All candles had to be lit by 2.30am as temperatures dropped. LIEZELE: While the Coronavirus has captured the world’s attention and focus, winemakers also have to contend with nature. Despite unusually warm weather over the past few days in Belgium, the night of April 14-15 brought about temperatures below zero. 450 candles were used at the winery Valke Vleug, in Liezele, Belgium, to protect the grapes from frost damage. Frost, at this time of year and normally till mid-May is a major threat to wine growing particularly in cooler climates. Valke Vleugel’s wine estate has 4.2 hectares and 9 grape varieties, including Chardonnay, Pinot Auxerrois, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. The grapes have formed their buds. If the temperature drops below -2C, the grapes are permanently damaged. ”This is a very vulnerable period, not only for fruit growing but also for winegrowers, ”said Pieter Raeymaekers, co-founder and winemaker at Valke Vleug. Cool climate Night frost is … [Read more...]
Muhr-van der Niepoort becomes Weingut Dorli Muhr
Dorli Muhr (Photo by Herbert Lehmann) A few years after Dorli Muhr and Dirk Niepoort went separate ways in their private lives, they have decided to terminate their professional partnership. Dorli Muhr is taking over the fifty per cent holding from her Dutch/Portuguese partner to turn the former limited partnership into Weingut Dorli Muhr. It was in 2002, the year of their marriage that Dorli Muhr and Dirk Niepoort vinified their first Blaufrankisch red wines on the slopes of Spitzerberg in the Carnuntum region of Austria. They produced just 500 bottles and since then the estate has grown steadily. "It is a highly emotional moment for me to return the name Muhr to Prellenkirchen," said Dorli Muhr. "My grandmother spent her childhood and teenage years in Prellenkirchen and she always carried this village and the Spitzerberg with her in her heart. For me, the hours I spent with her in the tiny vineyard parcels on the Spitzerberg were always very special. They left an indelible … [Read more...]
François Lurton creates a special vermouth
François Lurton, from the eponymous winegrowing dynasty in Bordeaux, not only vinifies excellent wines in South America and Europe, but also has a great passion for distinctive distillates. After the rousing success of his Sorgin, a gin distilled from Sauvignon Blanc, he and his partner Sabine Jaren have now created a vermouth – from this same grape variety. Hardly anyone in the world knows the Sauvignon Blanc as well as Lurton, and even fewer have the opportunity to vinify this grape variety on as many diverse and exciting terroirs as he does, in Spain, France, Argentina & Chile. This has led him in recent years to go one step further and see – in addition to the wine – what outstanding specialty items he could create from it. For a long time, he had played with the notion of making a vermouth. After the great success of Sorgin, he did not hesitate for long and began to develop the new idea. A tribute to his great-grandfather The vermouth is called … [Read more...]
Summa 2019: a family reunion in Northern Italy organised by Alois Lageder
The historic buildings of Hirschprunn and Löwengang set the scene for the Summa. Photo courtesy of Weingut Lageder For over twenty years, Weingut Alois Lageder has been inviting winegrowers from all over the world to an annual collaborative event in Magrè at the Alto Adige Wine Road. While a few dozen kilometres down the A22 at VinItaly in Verona, everything is about business, the Summa is more like a friendly family gathering of winegrowers, individuals who not only care deeply about the authentic expression of their wines, but also about the preservation of natural resources in their vineyards. It is no coincidence that numerous participating estates at this year’s Summa are certified organic or biodynamic – and the organiser himself, Alois Lageder, is the president of Demeter Italy. In total, there are 111 wine producers from ten countries (Italy, Germany, Austria, France, China, Hungary, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Portugal & New Zealand), who will be presenting … [Read more...]
Exceptional 2016 Bordeaux vintage on show in Antwerp
The 2016 Bordeaux vintage has been billed as the best since 2010 and from a recent tasting of a number of wines in Antwerp that is really the case. The Union des Grand Crus de Bordeaux brought together representatives from over 50 chateaux in Bordeaux for a unique dinner with the trade and press in Antwerp recently. It is not normal for so many representatives of Bordeaux wineries to be present for such a tasting. Among the wineries present for the dinner were Château Figeac, Clos Fourtet, Château Clinet, Château Beychevelle, Château Branaire - Ducru, Château Langoa Barton, Château Leoville Barton and Château Talbot to mention just a few names. For the dinner, I was sitting next to the director general of Chateau Giscours and Chateau du Tertre Alexander Van Beek and his wife Véronique Sanders, the president of Chateau Haut Bailly. They told me this was a really special occasion because it was the largest ever gathering of representatives of Bordeaux wineries they could … [Read more...]
Four new grape varieties permitted for Austrian quality wine
Four new white wine varieties are now permitted for Qualitätswein (quality wine) in Austria, via a collective amendment to Austrian wine law. Three of these are fungus-resistant new crossings known as PIWIs. Blütenmuskateller, Goldmuskateller, Muscaris and Souvignier Gris, all white grape varieties, were elevated to the status of Qualitätswein varieties during the summer through a collective amendment to Austrian wine law. This increases the total of Qualitätswein varieties in Austria to forty. The inclusion of the Goldmuskateller (Moscato Giallo) takes into account that, along with Muskat Ottonel and Gelber or Roter Muskateller, the Goldmuskateller, which is less susceptible to rot, also shows promise. Blütenmuskateller, Muscaris, and Souvignier Gris are three of the fungus-resistant grape varieties known as PIWIs. In addition to the two red PIWI varieties Rathay and Roesler, this is the first time that white PIWI wine varieties have been approved for the production of … [Read more...]
How to make the perfect Prosecco based cocktails for Christmas
From Snowballs to Mulled Wine, no Christmas party would be complete without a festive cocktail or two. This year, Prosecco DOC has chosen their favourite Christmas cocktails to suit any kind of occasion and every kind of guest. With such a variety of styles and flavours available, the versatility of Prosecco DOC wines will take you through the entire festive period. At this time of year, in the lead up to Christmas, the month of December officially transforms into party season. Whether it’s a casual family get-together or a glamorous office party, there’s a Prosecco cocktail to suit every mood. The Office Christmas Party The office party is all about having fun, but not too much fun. You want a cocktail that’s delicious and festive, but perhaps with a little less alcohol than your New Year’s Eve tipple of choice. Why not try the Uva D’Oro, made with fresh tomato juice, peach puree, fresh rosemary and basil, perfect with Millage Prosecco DOC Extra Dry or Prosecco DOC Santero … [Read more...]
Get ready for disruption in the wine industry: How Gary Vaynerchuk and Empathy Wines plan to cut the middlemen and sell the best $20 wine
Gary Vaynerchuk, also known as Gary Vee has created Empathy Wines with a radical new way of selling wine. With the aim of eliminating the middlemen, Empathy Wines wants to sell the best possible wines at a $20 price point for wines that would normally sell at double the price. Jon Troutman, CEO of Empathy Wines told Food and Wine Gazette that staring a wine brand is something that Gary has been thinking about for two decades. "Gary finally had the right executives in place to help him. Both Nate and myself have been working with Gary across his previous wine businesses and most recently at VaynerMedia." Empathy Wines itself started materializing about one year ago. It was born out of the team's proven ability to scale consumer brands and build equity in a digitally-native way, which VaynerMedia has specialized in from the start. Industry trends have also worked in their favor - wineries are now able to get licensing for shipping direct to consumers in 43 of the 50 states. The … [Read more...]
The wine battle: biodynamic vs natural wines
Around 10 years ago, I sat for a five session course on wine tasting. The sommelier who was organising the wine course presented us with a range of natural wines, a few excellent, most foul. The scope was not to convince us about the merits or not of natural wine but rather to allow us to spot the defects in a wine whether it was natural or not. Move 10 years and in 2018, most restaurants and wine bars worth their salt are offering many natural wines and biodynamic wines on their wine lists. But have we reached peak natural wine? What’s the difference when it comes to taste with biodynamic wines? Can they be both? And has there been improvement in natural wines. These were the questions we tried to explore at a wine tasting club I am a member of. Together with a friend, we selected 10 wines from philosophical European winemakers who in one way or another have a vision and who translate their vision into their wines. This was an atypical wine tasting moving where we compared … [Read more...]
Influential wine writer James Suckling opens wine bar in Hong Kong
James Suckling, one of the top wine writers in the world has fulfilled his dream of opening a wine bar. The wine bar on the second floor of Staunton Suites in Staunton Street, Soho, Hong Kong has softly opened its doors and is welcoming people for a glass or bottle of wine. The brand new wine bar and restaurant is called James Suckling Wine Central and includes a personal selection of wines which have scored between 90 and 100 points by him or his team. "It’s been a dream of mine for many years to open a wine bar. I want to share my lifelong passion for wine with every single one of you in Hong Kong. I want you to know that whether you purchase a rare old bottle or a good-value wine by the glass at my restaurant, you can be assured of a great experience," he told readers of his newsletter. Opening James Suckling Wine Central has taken many months of preparation and careful planning. "But I felt it was something I had to do as a natural extension of the large-scale consumer … [Read more...]