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[09/03/2008, 21:06]
Exciting Announcement - The DeLong Iberian Wine Map - with help from Catavino | |  Since day one, I’ve wanted a map of the wine regions of Spain and Portugal. Seems like a simple request, and if I couldn’t have one of Iberia, at least you would think that there would be one of Spain and another of Portugal. You would think. You would also be wrong, sort of. Announcement Interestingly, there are no good maps of the peninsula we call Iberia, or at least as it relates to wine. Wines of Spain, the bureaucratic agency in charge of promoting Spanish wine, does have an outdated map, but you can’t get a copy of it. I had a prominent tour guide friend of mine once ask to buy a few copies to give to her clients, all of which were on wine tours, and she was told it was not possible. Hence, I’m not sure why they made it. We had to steal a few copies from a regional government’s office, and while we use them occasionally, in truth, they are worthless. That said, Portugal is no better, and I have yet to find a map that accurately sums up the many nuances in a very confusing set of regional wine laws. And considering that there is little consensus among differing governmental maps, it is clear that one concise and accurate map was desperately in need to be created. Enter the DeLong wine company, creator of such treasures as the Wine Varietal Table. Having encountered way too many inaccurate regional wine maps around the world, Steve decided to fix the problem by making his own map. Smart guy! The best part for us is that he asked us to help him out. Now, we can’t claim much in the way of contributions to this map, but we did make sure he included some important landmarks and we worked with him to make some editorial decisions on how to handle certain place names and regional identities. I asked him a few questions about how this map came about: Why did you choose to start with Iberia? We started with Iberia for three main reasons: 1. It’s the most dynamic (and constantly changing!) area in the wine world - but you already knew that! 2. There wasn’t a good map available (for France there are a few) 3. It’s a great looking land mass.
Which regions are next on your list? We’re working on France and Germany right now, which will be available early next year. Then on to Italy, and finally, the New World!
What makes this map different from other wine region maps? The one very simple thing that distinguishes these wine maps from others is that the wine regions don’t stop at the border. In reality, the wine regions reflect the regional differences that underlie the country borders. Catalunya and the Basque Country, which both overlap France and Spain, are just two examples.
Hence, this is just the start of a much bigger plan to cover the planet with quality wine resources - something that is SORELY needed! We hope that this first map is a resource that we can not only learn from, but can also use when reading about Catavino’s adventures throughout Spain and Portugal. And best of all, if you click here and buy the Iberian wine map through the Catavino website, a small portion of the sale will come back to us - something we would appreciate! Also, if you are in Spain and want to see this in Spanish, please let us know. We are considering translating it into Spanish and Portuguese if we find enough interest. Also, if you have a wine shop and would like either English or Spanish versions of this map, just send us a note at map(at)Catavino(dot)net, and we’ll tell you about additional opportunities to buy larger quantities. We’re very excited about this and feel VERY privileged to have Iberia be the first map of the series, a testament to the importance of this rich and exciting wine region. We hope that if Iberian Wine interests you at all, you’ll pick one up and let us know what you think. Cheers, Ryan Opaz All content protected by a Creative Commons License2005-2008. Catavino.net. Similar Posts: | | | |
[10/31/2008, 18:37]
From an Acorn a Mighty Wine Grows | |  The wrong Acorn has been in the news lately. The tiny Sonoma winery called Acorn was news to me as I tasted the wines for the first time at the first (annual we hope) Wine Bloggers Conference held in Santa Rosa last weekend. Betsy and Bill Nachbaur’s Acorn Winery is very good news indeed.
In a California wine world dominated by squeaky clean, but personality-free wines, the wines of Acorn are packed with personality. Producing wines exclusively from their estate vineyard in the Russian River they once again challenge conventional wisdom on so called “warm” climate varieties. In the cool Russian River Valley, which is known for its pinot noir, the Acorn Vineyard is planted with syrah, zinfandel, sangiovese, petite sirah and other varieties that aren’t usually associated with pinot territory. It seems zinfandel and syrah like a little fog too. Acorn is doing some things that seem cutting edge in the new world, but actually go back to the very first wines. They are co-fermenting field blends instead of picking and fermenting each variety separately. There is no doubt that varieties that are co-fermented together have different characteristics than a wine made from those same varieties made separately then blended. The chemistry that takes place during co-fermentation is just different. For example, their 2005 Heritage Vines Zinfandel (1005 cases) is 78% zinfandel, 10% alicante bouschet, 10% petite syrah and the remaining 2% includes carignane, trousseau, sangiovese, petit bouschet, negrette, syrah, muscat noir, cinsault and grenache. All of these varieties were harvested and fermented together. The wine is rich, but with a firm backbone of tannin and acid and loaded with layers of flavors and aromas like coffee, chocolate, porcini and deep ripe blackberries. The 2005 Sangiovese (1022 cases) is easily one of the most interesting New World examples of this variety I’ve tasted. Produced from 98% sangiovese (7 different clones), 1 % canaiolo and 1% mammolo, which is a blend I wish more Tuscan wineries would use instead of overwhelming their sangiovese with the strong varietal character of cabernet sauvignon. This is a decidedly robust, California style wine, but like their Zinfandel it has the zesty backbone to carry the heft. It is interesting to note that while these wines come from an Acorn they are blessedly not over-oaked. They are also not overpriced running around $30 a bottle. All of the Acorn wines have just the right touch of what I call a rustic character. While being very well made they have just a bit of wildness or sauvage, as the French call it. Rustic does not mean brett or other wine faults, but means that the character of the varieties and vineyard really show through in the wine and are not polished away leaving only artificially gleaming simple fruit flavors. With this edge of wildness, the wines of Acorn are not only delicious, but interesting, which is just the way I like them. Acorn may be small, but they’re making some mighty fine wines. | | WorldWine Tags: California, zinfandel, sangiovese, wine, | | | |
[12/27/2007, 16:54]
New Year's Resolution, a week early | | I've thought long and hard about this one, but it's time to shut up shop here at The Wine Chicks. As you all know, I simply don't have the time any longer to post stuff - that's been more than obvious. I also have been focusing so much on certain wines that I rarely taste outside of my own portfolio. And the last thing I want to do is make this site an extension of my day job. I've wanted to keep this open but since I'm pressed for time, I too often just post about a tasting/wine dinner/IPO wine with which I was involved. The quality of my writing has certain suffered and I don't want to keep posting crappy blips just for the sake of posting crappy blips. So, let's ring in a Chick-free New Year! Who knows? Maybe I'll resurface elsewhere in the not-too-distant future... | | | |
[11/25/2008, 21:43]
Charles Sturt University Chardonnay 2008 | | | CSU chardonnay has gathered a fair deal of attention over the past couple of years, mostly due to the provision of extraordinary value. This release - from the Wagga Wagga Campus vineyards, as well as from vineyards in the Orange region - is another goodun’, if perhaps not quite up to the past couple of [...] | | | |
[09/08/2008, 15:21]
Moving to the UK | | I wanted to leave this post because over the coming days, I'll be completing a move to the UK. Heaven knows by when we'll have broadband and some of the other essential amenities set up, so please bear with me. I look forward to posting again, hopefully in the near future. Turning the spotlight, however, to my more recent current of thoughts... Just how much do I have to look forward to in London, in terms of my wine habit? It would likely be an outrageously long post, though here are some of my thoughts, in brief:
1. I'm very eager to peruse the Oddbins and other shops we may have nearby in central and SW London, hopefully turning up new artisan wines to discover and write about in this venue. Should anyone have any suggestions about some favorite, hidden gem London wine shops, please do not play "keep away" and do e-mail me at enotheque@gmail.com.
2. Another wonderful factor I couldn't count on before was having convenient and relatively inexpensive access (thank you low cost carriers) to any wine region of Europe, should I need to travel for any reason, from personal enjoyment to meeting with client producers.
3. The impressive business hub that is London...Every major trade mission or regional/national wine interest in the world has offices and trade events in London. No more worrying about which event I am able to make or not, be it Chicago, San Francisco, Boston or New York. At most, I will usually be a couple of trains away from an exposition or seminar that I would have otherwise not attended in the U.S. I've been looking over LocalWineEvents.com's London section, but if any locals or otherwise knowledgeable readers have any other suggestions for finding wine-related classes, events, seminars (you name it) in the general London area, I would be very appreciative if you posted a comment or e-mail me.
4. Do I have to mention the cheaper subscription rate for Decanter?
Again, lists really don't do any justice to the dozens and dozens of ideas that propel themselves electrically from my dendrites when it comes to how much fun a wine geek can have in London. For now though, I leave you with a warm, albeit brief goodbye, and a reassurance that I'll soon return for more on artisan wines and the people behind them. | | | |
[10/29/2008, 13:30]
Malbec: Argentina's Signature Red | |  I came back from the first Wine Bloggers Conference in Sonoma this weekend and there was one thing I knew for sure: I didn't want to drink any California wine. I needed a change. I caught up on my mail and read the backed up blog posts in my RSS reader and inspiration hit: I was going to drink an Argentinian Malbec.
This inspiration stemmed from two of the people I met at the conference (though I've known them via the blogosphere and Twitter for some time now): David from the blog Vinomadic, and Philip James from the wine finder and keeper site Snooth. David lived in Argentina for a time (and always gives me good suggestions on what to drink), and Snooth just had a tasting dedicated to value Malbecs. I enjoyed talking to both of them this weekend, and that was enough to send me scurrying to the cellar in pursuit of an Argentinian Malbec.
The wine that I pulled out was the 2006 Finca Las Moras Malbec Reserva (sample; suggested retail for this new release is $12; you may find it or other recent vintages near you for between $7 and $12) This wine was a simple pleasure from start to finish, because it was made in an apologetically New World fruit-forward style, but with some sensitivity and restraint. Malbec is often described as fitting somewhere between Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon in the flavor spectrum, but what I always think of is plums--lots and lots of plums. The 2006 Finca Las Moras Malbec Reserva did indeed have prominent aromas of plum, leather, and vanilla. These aromas were echoed in the flavors of plum and spice, and there was also a nice meaty note that gave the wine some depth of complexity. Very good QPR for this wine brought into the US by Joshua Tree Imports, who are known for their good value brands such as Razor's Edge and Fetish.
I love lamb with Malbec, and so we had this with Lamb Chops and a tomato-and-potato gratin. If you are vegetarian, I highly recommend making the gratin, and having it with some meaty grilled portabello mushrooms instead of the lamb. Whether you go with meat or a meatless option, you'll find that the meaty, leathery aromas and flavors will get drawn out by the grilled food and the beautiful plum fruit will be a nice complement to the earthy potatoes and sweet tomatoes.
Thanks to David and Philip for helping me get inspired about wine all over again. See you next year at the Wine Bloggers Conference! | | | |
[11/05/2008, 07:10]
For Your Pleasure | |  It doesn?t seem like eight years has passed since we entered the new millennium in 2001, but it has. It was the beginning of a very difficult time; my wife Liz passed away in Feb 2001, the political process started to change and the world changed with it. September 11 showed up on the world?s doorstep, and many of us have been taking it one day at a time, hoping for better days to come.
As I was jogging this evening by the high school, a speaker announced over the stadium address system, that there were refreshments in the concession stand. He described the available items: candy, popcorn, hotdogs, and then he said three little words, ?for your pleasure.? It sounded like a throwback in time when things were so much simpler and in its uncomplicated message I thought back over the last 40 years and what some of our cinematic dreamers and Italian wine visionaries thought the world would be like in 2001. And while it sure wasn?t all that they projected in the movie, 2001: A Space Odyssey, it sure has been a heck of a trip. So, at this time I?d like to jump into the WABAC machine, back to 2001 and see what wines I would have predicted for the past, here in the safety of the future. Of course the wines are from the Italian trail, and beyond.
 Ever since the time I attempted to simultaneously sell a Tuscan Novello and a Vernaccia di Serrapatrona, that would have been about this time in 1984, I have wondered why Italian wines chose me. Not just me, but for some of the hard stuff, I sure have had my share of those assignments. Driving around with a delivery van full of baby Sangiovese alongside a quirky, dry, foamy red wine made by a madman in the hills of the Marche. What was I thinking then? Even now it sounds bizarre. Don Quixote, only this time we weren?t looking for windmills. We were looking for space stations for these special travelers. And in honor of those two wines, in the 2001 of our little story here, we have an homage: Novello Di Ascoli, a modern wine about reincarbonation.
 Chianti: 2001 was a little project that went beyond Chianti 2000. I?m not sure if people realize the first Italian in space was Sangiovese. A little known experiment resulted in growing and harvesting the grapes aboard the International space station. Limited release, only about 20 cases, hydroponically grown. It was intended to test the ideas of extra-terroirestrial winegrowing. It is an amazing red wine, without the pull of gravity and ratings. No, only the influence of the astro-agronomist-winemaker, an American of Italian descent. It challenges the limitations of the Italian wine trail that we terrestrials put on it. Buckminster Fuller said, ?Whatever nature lets you do is natural.? I wish all of you could have tried it with me. But alas, a quick trip to Washington D.C., some time ago, was the only opportunity any of us will have. But there will be more. Watch for a sparkling wine to come, made in zero gravity, called Zero-Zero. No dirt on their space-boots, but lots of ardent advances orbiting above us.
 Down in the Cilento National Park, there is a colony of Italians who speak Esperanto. They escaped the area around Vesuvius many years ago and decided to leave behind their dialect. But they took their grapes with them and started making a red wine for the new millennium, to coalesce their past with their future. It is a cult wine on the islands around Naples and further south. I have only seen and had it once, from a private cellar in Panarea. The wine reminded me of the reds made by Galardi. I have heard people say they have traded two bottles of Le Pin for one bottle of ?Vulkano? Campania Ruga. I have tried both wines. I would say two bottles of Le Pin for one from the Esperantani?s is a fair deal.
 About 11 years ago, in a place near Colfiorito, there was a terrible earthquake. When they got to digging out some of the buildings, rescue workers found a lab book from a vineyardist, describing a project code-named ?Il Grifi?. The project, like its name, had as its goal to combine three grapes to make a new wine. Here the vineyardist had been researching, via recombinant DNA, the creation of a wine that had as its parents, Sangiovese, Sagrantino and Montepulciano. And yes, for many years in Umbria and the Marche, winemakers have blended these grapes together to make various wines. William Sylvester, who starred in the Stanley Kubrick film, had made a film in Italy and was fascinated with this area and with wine. So he funded this little known experimentalist. Italy loves to resuscitate ancient things: statues, grapes, legends. In this case, as we headed back to 2001, we discovered that the wine had finally been made, in minute quantities. An amazing wine, combining the ephemeral verve of Sangiovese, the tannic and alcoholic power of the Sagrantino and the lubriciousness of the Montepulciano. Joy upon joy, an almost perfect wine in time for the new age. But alas, only one year was made and only 1113 bottles. They were mostly served at an autumn Sagra in Colfiorito for the special red potato named after the area, which makes the most wonderful base for the local gnocchi. The wine disappeared into memory, along with the best gnocchi I had ever had. The wine? Sangrapulciano.
 Two wines, Navicella and Passeggiata, were ?good soul? efforts to make right the promise to reach the moon before the end of the decade. In the Italian?s efforts, though, it managed to arrive about 30 years later. End of decade, end of century, end of millennium, hey it?s only time, no?
 Navicella was the wine intended for the first course, something from the aquaculture tanks. Passeggiata was created for the second stage, more experimental than the first wine. It was a sci-fi way of twinning tradition (Navicella) with innovation (Passeggiata) and for those who experienced the wine, I've been told it was a magical. Again, this was eight years ago when the Italians were embracing the next big thing. Now we are earthbound again, arguing this time over tradition vs. innovation. There are a few of these wines available on the auction circuits. A large enological school in Northeastern Italy was in incubating site for these wines. The Lega Nord, and a then unknown party operative, put an end to it. That little known operative would someday, in the future, join with Berlusconi and attempt to influence events in a larger and more important wine producing region, with near cataclysmic results.
 Out last find caused a little flap among the retro-futurists in the room. Paraspruzzi was proposed to bridge the workers in the fields, those who tromp through the primal slime in their waders, with the elevated shapers of fashion. Originally the marketers wanted to call it ?Chiaccerone?. Another on the board wanted to name it ?Lo Scroccone?. But it was felt that normal wine lovers wouldn?t know how to pronounce it. Not that Paraspruzzi is that easy, but it sounded like the celebrity photographers who were known to frequent all the ?in? places looking for those same nine beautiful people to snap up.
This was actually one of the most successful of the wines; it had a run of three vintages. Later as it was being packaged to sell to one of the large Euro-spirit-lux corporations, there were a string of lawsuits. As it turned out, everyone spent more on lawyers than the plan could ever return in ten years, so the project was jettisoned. A real shame, because the wine had a bona fide grip on the cognoscenti of the Italian wine industry. The bloggers never found out about it, this was buried deep in Puglia under the cover of an ancient Masseria. The remaining wine fetches a pretty Euro.
There lies my time and space odyssey of 2001, following the wines of the future back to the past. Submitted for your pleasure.
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[10/01/2008, 19:39]
Oregon Pinot Gris Harvest Better Late Than Never | | Although the Oregon Pinot Gris Harvest is a little later this year than vineyard managers would like, good weather has ensured that this year's crop should be outstanding. The rule in Oregon has been that the even years (2004, 2006, etc...) are better than the odd years (2005, 2007), and it look as though the grapes will prove that theory right again.
A virtually rain-free summer with warm temperatures has slowly given the vines enough heat units to produce healthy fruit. There has been a lack of extended periods of moisture, or any other destructive types of weather. Last year's harvest was noticeably unfavorable, with several weeks of bad weather in September and October. | | | |
[05/12/2008, 17:55]
Interview with Ed Lehrman of Vine Connections: Second Installment | | 
*What an unusual mix in terms of the international producers you represent?why Argentina, New Zealand and Japan?
- Not really if you consider that Argentina and Japan (Ginjo sake), and to some extent New Zealand, share the same common elements?there are great wines and sake being produced by highly talented winemakers and tojis (master brewers), and they are not getting recognized yet. The quality is already in the bottle?so why should these sell less or get less respect than wine from more obvious regions? We always say that we are really a ?national education company? since we usually explain more than we sell. Our job is to get people to taste these wines and premium sake, and the stuff inside the bottles takes care of the rest. At the heart of this idea is also the notion that in the end, it?s the people you work with who make the difference between mediocre and ?wow!?. We have been lucky, fortunate, and smart (maybe a little of each) to meet and represent some of the top talent in these regions:
Susana Balbo?Crios de Susana Balbo, Susana Balbo signature wines, Nosotros (with Pedro below)
Pedro Marchevsky ? BenMarco
Pepe Galante & Mariano di Paola ? mapema
Luis Reginato ? Luca, Tikal, La Posta
Roberto de la Mota - Mendel
Jose & Pepe Reginato ? Reginato sparkling wines
Guy Davis ? Davis Family Vineyards (Russian River, CA) and Gusto (NZ SB)
13 Master Brewers from all over Japan?each as talented as anyone we have met.
*As someone who deals so closely with Argentine producers, what types of obstacles, limitations and concerns have any of them expressed to you in terms of being able to export and promote their products abroad?
- Well, I want to stay out of trouble here since I travel to Argentina a lot, but let me just say that the Argentine government has historically been more of a hindrance than a help for wine exports. As an example, and hard to believe, they actually tax EXPORTS! Perhaps the bigger obstacle for Argentine wineries is that the economic and political situation is relatively unstable, and when you are in an industry that measures commitment and success over a decade or longer due to capital investment requirements, it is hard to deal with a system that usually looks out only 2-3 years at a time.
*In your eyes, what sets apart these Argentine producers you represent? What do their wines bring to the table of American wine consumers that large-yield, often conglomerate-backed wines simply cannot?
- I alluded to this a bit above when talking about who we represent and why. I think there are three main things that set our producers apart:
1) Our wineries are owned by and have Argentine winemakers who have lived in this unique climate and region for their entire lives. For us, that means that the wines that they make TASTE like Argentine wines, not like some random wine from somewhere in the world. And as talented as some of the flying/foreign winemakers are who are working in Mendoza, I have yet to taste a wine from them that thrills me the way our producers? wines do at the dinner table. And I taste everything from down there.
2) As good as they already are, they are still always trying to learn how to improve their wines, and in today?s wine world, that?s the only way you stay on top. It shows.
3) Obsessive attention to detail seems like an abused phrase, but in winemaking it is crucial and not as common as you would think. Our winemakers are also our close friends and in Argentina that is taken pretty seriously. They make sure that every step is done with the utmost care because they would never want to look their friends in the eye and say, ?uhh..I?m sorry but this wine is just ok because we weren?t really paying close attention when we made it.? Large wineries may be able to solve #1 above, but #2 and #3 are far harder to come by, and that?s probably as true in the US as it is in Argentina.
*Looking ahead?are there any regions Vine Connections is looking to expand its portfolio toward, and why?
- We made a strategic decision a few years ago that we would remain specialists in Argentine wine and Japanese sake. Some importers have gone in the opposite direction and are happy to sell one of everything from anywhere, but we?re just not built that way as people. We started as leaders in both of these categories and we feel the only way to stay out in front is to specialize. That?s why we spend almost a month per year in Mendoza and visit Japan for at least 2 weeks every year. It?s our own ?attention to detail? mantra, and we try to stick to it so that we can look our customers in they eye and say every time, ?This is really great Argentine wine and Ginjo sake?. Every time.
- Fortunately, we won?t be bored since there still plenty of regions and microclimates still left to discover in Argentina.
*Given the nature of the market here in the United States, what advice would you give to consumers who would like be aware of, as well as actually see, a dramatic increase in availability of premium Argentine wines such as those crafted by your producers?
- American consumers have helped their own cause a lot already by being very open to trying wines like Malbec, Bonarda, and Torrontes. I think they will help themselves even further by continuing to experiment with wines at many different prices, not just the ?great values? under $15. Nick and I firmly believe that well-made Argentine wines offer incredible value and over-deliver at all price points. A $12 wine is worth more like $16, and a $30 wine is worth more like $40 when compared to other wine regions of the world. And, of course, you can support quality-focused companies like Vine Connections by paying attention to the importer name or logo (like our compass) that appear on every bottle. As with other wine regions, a good wine importer can be your best friend when you haven?t tried a particular wine yet and would like some assurance that you are going to enjoy it?especially when spending more than $15 or so. | | | |
[08/29/2006, 02:09]
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Buenos Aires, wine and tango (1).
Almost a hundred of Argentine warehouses will expose your products in the biggest Fair of Wine of Latin America.
This event - Wines and Warehouses 2006 - removes to end for the sixth year in a row. It will be realized in the Fairground Land of La Rural, in Buenos Aires, between the 14th to September 16.
This meeting of the industry of the wine incites the interest not only of the consuming public, but specially of merchants and distributors, places and foreigners who have opportunity to analyze in an alone place the variety of Argentine wines, produced both by big companies and by the warehouses called "boutique".
In the last years the Argentina realized a deep review of your position on the international market of wines and, thanks to the joint effort of the local butlers, the positioning of the mark is fortifying country in the different markets. Provided that your wines expire with all the requirements of quality and being relied on, likewise, by two varietales celebrated, the malbec and the torrontés, the Argentina marks a difference and manages to differ from other countries producers.
Wines and Warehouses 2006 foresees the accomplishment of business Rounds, where the local producers will be able to make concrete economic agreements with buyers of the whole world.
Exhibitors' list:
Alta Vista - Bodegas La Riojana Coop.- Aristides - Lariviere Iturbe - Atilio Avena - Lavaque - Babco - Los Haroldos - Balbo Luigi Bosca - Barale Biurrun - Luis Segundo Correa - Bgas. Kaufman - Lurton - Bodega Altus - Morsella - Bodega NQN - Navarro Correas - Bodegas Borbore - Nesman - Bodegas La Guarda - Norton - Bodegas Lopez - Pcia. de San Juan - Bodegas Mayol - Porvenir de los Andes - Cavas de Santos - PR Argentina - Chacras del Sol - Putruele Hnos. - Chandon - R. J Viñedos - Clos de los Siete - Revista Club del Vino - Club del Vino - Dante Robino - Roca - Crotta - Ruca Malen - Del Fin del Mundo - Saenz Briones - Domingo Hnos - Sua - Don Cristobal - Telteca Winery - EAS - Tempus Alba - EAV - Terrazas de los Andes - El Rosal - Tittareli - Eral Bravo - Toso - Familia Nofal - Trapiche - Fantelli - Trivento - Fecovita - Valentin Bianchi - Finca el Retiro - Viña El Cerno - Finca Flichman - Viñas del Baron - Finca Las Moras - Viñas del Golf - Fincas Andinas - Vinecol - Flia. Schroeder - Wine 5 - Flia. Zuccardi - Xumek - Freixenet - Honda - Guime - YPF - Humberto Canale | | | |
[12/31/2007, 02:39]
Happy New Year! | | Happy new year everyone!
Have an amazing evening and above all - drink some great wine and champagne!
2008 promises to be an exciting year for The Cru so stay tuned!
To begin with I will be releasing a new look Cru in the next two weeks - it's going to a lot easy to navigate around and hopefully it will make finding your favourite South African wine that much easier and more enjoyable!
Until then have a great evening and enjoy the chosen Pouza! | | | |
[11/01/2008, 01:35]
lignier-michelot morey st.denis vieilles vignes 2003 | | | 2003 Lignier-Michelot, Morey St.Denis Vieilles Vignes Medium-plus colour. The nose is forward, maybe a hint porty and certainly very ripe but generally the fruit talks of pinot. Ripe, plenty of concentration and very well mannered tannin. The understated acidity provides good balance and just enough freshness. It’s riper than I prefer, [...] | | | |
[02/04/2008, 11:00]
All that Glitters | | 
Love is in the air this month. For those of you looking for a way to dress up your Valentine?s Day, consider the object of your affection ?the one with the sparkling personality? as your inspiration. Accordingly, pop open the sparkling wines and celebrate. If Valentine?s Day is not your thing, there are plenty of other reasons to celebrate with bubbly this month, from Presidents? Day to any other day of the week, which ends in ?y.? Why? Because sparkling wines add a touch of festivity to any occasion and they taste too good to wait for a special event. And, even though you may not have a fondness for this Hallmark holiday, you always have your love of wines to keep you warm. Sparkling wines, of which Champagne is most well-known, capitalize on harnessing the CO2 created during the fermentation process to provide the fizz we all know and love. This capture takes place during a secondary fermentation, which is coupled with allowing the spent yeasts to remain in the bottle throughout the ageing period. The yeasts impart the bready/toasty aromas and flavors that are characteristic of sparkling wines. There are several ways to make a wine sparkle, the simplest, cheapest and short-lived being the injection method (aka pompe bicyclette), which injects CO2 into the wine. These man-made bubbles tend to be large and coarse on the palate. Conversely, the traditional method, based upon Methode Champagnoise, provides a longer-lasting, smaller bead, which has more finesse in its mouthfeel. These traits stem from the labor-intensive process which includes an initial blending of still wines (assemblage) that is then bottled and capped, along with a yeast and sugar mixture (tirage), to facilitate a secondary fermentation. The wines are then left to age on the spent yeasts for a period of time as set by the appellation (in Champagne, this is a minimum of 15 months for non-vintage wines, while Cavas are generally aged for 9 months). The sediment left behind must then be carefully shifted from the base of the bottle to the neck in a process known as riddling. The bottles are gently tilted and turned throughout a period of several weeks, forcing the sediment down into the mouth of the bottle. The necks are then immersed into a cold, briny solution, thereby freezing the sediment. The caps are removed and the frozen sediment is thrust out of the bottle and discarded (disgorgement). The remaining wine is topped off with a blend of wine and sugar/must (liqueur d?expedition), which impacts the resulting dryness or sweetness of the finished sparkling wine. The final step is the insertion of the cork, which is much denser that those used for still wines given that sparkling wines can be under up to 6 atmospheres of pressure (be careful where you point that thing). A similar process is used in the transfer method whereby the steps above remain the same with the exception that the sediment is removed in bulk and the wine is then filtered and bottled. Such wines will note that they have been fermented in the bottle, whereas the wines in the previous method are labeled as having been fermented in this bottle. An additional method involves the use of a tank in which the entire secondary fermentation, ageing and disgorgement takes place. While this is of course a much less expensive process than the other two, it is frequently used to produce wines that have a distinct freshness to them such as Astis from the Piedmont region in Italy. The Champagne region in France has done a good job in marketing itself as a luxury product and this joined with increasing demand, limited supply and expensive processes has pushed up the price on these wines. Vintage sparklers (those produced entirely from grapes grown in a particularly great year) and prestige marquees (i.e. Crystal, Dom Perignon) command even higher prices. However, many sparkling wines from other regions in France (such as Burgundy and the Loire Valley) as well as well-made American, Italian (Asti and Prosecco), Germany (Sekt) and Spain (Cava) can offer the consumer a wonderful experience without the hefty price tag. | | | |
[08/30/2008, 21:24]
Drink for the Cure | | 
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Fat Bastard wines are doing their part to cure this disease by donating 25 cents for every bottle sold in restaurants and retail stores, up to $75,000. This is the sixth year the company has run this program and to date, they have donated more than $250,000 to breast cancer research.
During October, Fat Bastard wines will be easy to spot on the shelf. They'll have a pink ribbon necker with an attached pin for consumers to wear. Fat Bastard's wine collection includes Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Rose, Pinot Noir, Shiraz, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon.
(photo © istockphoto) See full article.
Related Entries:
You Don't Have to Be a Woman to Support Breast Cancer Reasearch. It's As Easy As Buying a Cake! - 06 September 2007 Think PINK During OCT Breast Cancer Awareness Month - 04 October 2007 Pink October: National Breast Cancer Awareness Month - 02 October 2007 Attention Women: Change the Statistic! - 09 October 2007
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[09/03/2007, 21:57]
Pour Some Sugar on Me (or not) by Tod Stewart | | | Over two million Canadians have diabetes. For thirty-two years I?ve been a card-carrying member of the no-sugar-tonight club. The thing that always surprises people when they find out I?m diabetic is the significant part that food and wine play in... | | | |
[11/10/2008, 09:01]
Cocktail Recipe Cards | |  With the holidays approaching, I thought I'd arrange my various cocktail recipes into one convenient collection. This is a set of twelve 3"x5" cards that you can cut out and put in the recipe box, stick in the liquor cabinet, or use as flash cards for training your kids to mix your evening cocktails.
Click here to download PDF
 While I didn't create these cocktail recipes, I did put a bit of effort into trying them out and then typesetting them in an attractive and easy-to-read format. With that in mind I've licensed it under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License, which means that you're free to use this file for personal or commercial use or modify it as long as you give me credit. You can even put that download link on your website or blog if you want to recommend cocktails to your readers. Have fun! | | | |
[10/16/2008, 20:34]
Paso Robles Harvest Wine Weekend Begins Tomorrow | | Harvest Wine Weekend:
The celebration of the season starts tomorrow...
Begining Friday, October 17 Paso Robles Wine Country will kick off three days of celebration in recognition of the most important time of year - Harvest! Have you made your plans to attend a wine maker dinner, open house, grape stomp, seminar, or any other unique opportunity during Harvest Wine Weekend? Click here to learn more about what activities are available to you this Harvest Wine Weekend. Or use the clickable buttons to the left for more information. It's not too late to get involved. New this year:
Harvest your own wine country experience by bringing along a camera. Paso Robles Wine Country invites you to photo document your Harvest Wine Weekend experience and share them with your fellow wine enthusiasts. Simply attend one or more of the over 150 events during Harvest Wine Weekend and send us your photos. The Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance will post them after the event weekend. Three lucky entrants will win tickets to the annual Paso Robles Wine Festival in May 2009. Look for the entry tool on pasowine.com beginning Sunday, October 19. Paso Robles, CA?October 16, 2008 | | | |
[11/10/2008, 17:49]
The Wines of Portugal | | 
Port wines can seem like a challenging subject. There are all sorts of bottlings: vintage date, late-bottled vintage date, Colheitas, single Quintas, and still others know as ruby reserve, crusted, or white — and let?s not forget the various tawny Ports of 10, 20, 30 and 40 years of age. Why are there so many different bottlings, and where does one begin to explore all of the |
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