Rosés from Italy's Alto Adige and France's Languedoc region go head to head in today's battle.
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
Showing posts with label France. Show all posts
February 23, 2012
February 16, 2012
Domaine Pallus 2009 Chinon Les Pensées de Pallus
Back in the wonderful Loire Valley! And this time we're going red with a Biodynamic Chinon.
January 12, 2012
André-Michel Brégeon 2009 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine
Tasting a delightful Muscadet from Biodynamic producer André-Michel Brégeon
December 15, 2011
Vignobles Mayard 2005 Chateauneuf-du-Pape La Crau de Ma Mere
A truly transcending wine from one of my favorite appellations. Watch the video to find out why I scored this Chateauneuf-du-Pape 95 points. Comes in at just under $40
December 08, 2011
Natural Wine Wars: Pinot Blanc, New vs. Old World
Installment 2 in our continuing series Natural Wine Wars pits old world Pinot Blanc against new world Pinot Blanc. Find out who comes out the winner.
October 27, 2011
Domaine de Fondreche 2007 Cotes du Ventoux Fayard
Come along as we go back to France for this week's Video Review. We are in the Cotes du Ventoux in
the southern Rhône. The wine is Biodynamically produced from the classic blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, and Carignan. It is vinified with a gentle touch and aged on its lees to
retain all the wonderful character of the grapes and of the terroir. Robert Parker scored this one 91. Find out what my verdict will be.
September 28, 2011
Chateau Pontet-Canet - Pioneering Biodynamics in Bordeaux
Biodynamic wine from a top Bordeaux Grand Cru Classe Chateau...is it possible? Not a common phenomenon among the large estates of Bordeaux, but one whose coming, given the proliferation and success of biodynamics in other regions of France and around the world, was inevitable. Chateau Pontet-Canet has boldly, if quietly, taken the lead in biodynamic viticulture in Bordeaux, a smart move in my estimation. There is little doubt in my mind that the current generation of wine-drinkers will continue to gravitate towards both the terroir-driven style and chemical-free, eco-friendly ideology of natural wines, and producers who fail to get on board with these trends may find themselves with some serious catching up to do.
Pontet-Canet has quite an interesting recent history, having been somewhat relegated to the margins of classified growth Bordeaux in the early seventies due to lackluster quality, and a scandal involving the blending of inexpensive Rioja with the estate's wines. In 1975, following the conviction of then owner Henri Cruse in the blending scandal, Cognac merchant Guy Tesseron purchased the estate. Tesseron's son Alfred soon began to make his mark in the vineyard, introducing quality-enhancing practices such as green harvesting and sorting, and eventually giving up the use of chemical herbicides and pesticides. In 1993 Alfred Tesseron took over management of the estate and under his guidance quality has improved steadily since then. In 2004 Tesseron made the bold decision to entrust the direction of the estate to his technical director Jean-Michel Comme, based largely on the success Comme had achieved with biodynamic practices in his own estate, Champs des Trailles. Under Comme's direction Pontet-Canet began the conversion to biodynamics in 2004, and since 2010 Pontet-Canet has been fully biodynamically certified. Tesseron does not pretentiously advertise the estate's biodynamic certification, preferring to let the quality of his wines do the talking. But his genuine motivation in treating the soil and vines with respect is evidenced by such retro-revolutionary practices as shifting to the use of horses for cultivation of the 200 acre estate. The idea is that horses allow cultivation of the soil without the compacting force exerted by tractors, thus allowing the roots to do their work better.
Uncompromising respect for the fruit and attention to quality continues in the harvesting process, where grapes go directly from the vines to sorting tables via small crates, keeping grapes unbruised and uncrushed. Respect at harvest time is further afforded the harvest workers who are paid a fair salary rather than the customary piece rates. As the fruit continues its journey to vinification, sorting is extremely careful and labor intensive, employing 30 workers, to ensure only the ripest, healthiest grapes make it to the fermenting vats.
So, has Pontet-Canet's Pioneering move to biodynamics paid off when it comes to quality? To answer that question let's look at prominent wine publications' scores for the past two vintages:
2010 - 100 Wine Advocate, 99 Wine Spectator, 98 Wine Enthusiast
2009 - 100 Wine Advocate, 100 Wine Enthusiast, 98 Wine Spectator
These are scores that look a lot like ones usually associated with first and second growth estates, so not too shabby for a fifth growth estate that was resurrected from mediocrity in the not too distant past. Chateau Pontet-Canet's success with biodynamics is just another piece of evidence for me that practices which focus first and foremost on respect for nature, for the terroir, and for the vines, are the wave of the future, and not a passing fad. If it is starting to happen in the venerable estates of Bordeaux, it will undoubtedly continue to happen there and wherever else great wine is made.
September 22, 2011
Domaine Huet 2009 Vouvray Clos du Bourg
Chenin or Chenin Blanc, as it is often referred to, is a wonderfully versatile grape, capable of producing superb sweet wines, hauntingly perfumed dry wines, as well as excellent sparkling wines. Much like Riesling, Chenin also has an uncanny ability to age long and gracefully. Unfortunately, in the new world, it has been the source of a great deal of rather underwhelming and even bad mass-produced table wine made from high-yield fruit grown in unsuitably warm areas. Luckily today quality Chenin Blanc is seeing a resurgence, as producers in places like South Africa and California are re-discovering what wonderful wines can result when grapes are grown in appropriately cool climates and yields are kept low.
Today I will be tasting a wine made from this wonderful grape, the third of my four favorite varieties showcased in this four part series "These are a Few of my Favorite Grapes." For this week's video review we will travel to one of my favorite wine regions, the Loire Valley where Chenin traditionally finds it's most celebrated expression. I am excited to share my impressions of this wine from Domaine Huet, an excellent Biodynamic producer form Vouvray in the central Loire Valley. Sit back, relax, and enjoy today's episode...then go out, find a nice bottle of Chenin and discover for yourself why it is one of my favorite grapes.
September 21, 2011
Nicolas Joly
The man
If there is one icon, one oracle, one representative figure in biodynamic wine production it is Nicolas Joly. After all, this man wrote the book on biodynamic wine...no, literally...in fact he has written two essential treatises on biodynamics: Wine From Sky to Earth, aimed mainly at wine growers, and Biodynamic Wine Demystified, which strives to make the concepts of Biodynamics more understandable to the lay wine-lover. Both can be found in the Literary Elucidation section of this blog.
Nicolas Joly is an ardent, some would say almost fanatical follower of Rudolf Steiner's Biodynamic Principles. It is not hard to understand what drives his passion for this nature-intensive system, when one understands his objective. Joly, first and foremost, wants to create wine that is truly expressive of its Terroir. One almost gets a sense that he would rather create a slightly imperfect wine with exceptional character that has been produced naturally, than a "perfect" wine that has been tortured into submission in the cellar through over-manipulation. In his own words: "I don't want a good wine, but also a true wine."
Here a bit of history. Joly came to the wine-world from a banking background, having studied finance at Columbia University, and subsequently worked as an investment banker in New York. In 1977 he left banking to take over operations at his family wine estate in the Loire Valley. From the beginning, Joly was sensitive to what he saw as failings in the French AOC classification system. In his view, the scheme created in the 1930's to preserve wines that express precise locations and vintages by way of legal guarantee, was no longer fulfilling its intended goal. In Joly's view the destruction of the AOC system began with the proliferation of herbicides and subsequently other chemicals in the vineyard, which robbed grapes of their ability to show the unique characteristics of their environment. To compensate for this loss of terroir, wine cellars were transformed into factories where inferior grapes were to be endowed with interesting characteristics through artificial methods such as the use of "designer" aromatic yeasts. When Joly read Rudolf Steiner's works on Biodynamic farming, he was convinced that applied to the vineyard, this was the road back to creating "real wine," thereby restoring the intent of the AOC system. Since 1984 Joly has been doing his part to facilitate this restoration by using 100% biodynamic methods in his vineyards.
The Vineyards and Wines
Joly's estate Chateau de la Roche aux Moines has a long and storied history. Located in the Savennieres region of the Loire Valley, the vineyards were planted in the 12th century by Cistercian monks and have been under continuous cultivation ever since, making 2011 the 881st consecutive vintage. Quite the heritage!
Today Nicolas Joly, along with his daughter Virginie, oversees production of three wines from these estates. All, of course, white and from the Chenin Blanc grape.
The first of these is the flagship Coulee-de-Serrant, which shares the extremely rare distinction, along with the vaunted Romanee-Conti of Burgundy, and Chateau Grillet in the Northern Rhone, of being a single vineyard AOC. The 30-45 year old vines cover only 7 hectares on steep south/south-east facing slopes, yielding only 20-25 hectoliters per hectare. Harvest is carried out in 5 passes over 3-4 weeks, in order to insure that grapes are at their absolute peak of ripeness, Joly believing that only at that point can grapes produce wine with powerful terroir expression. The wine is wood-aged with no more than 5% new oak being employed. Total production is about 20,000 bottles per year.
The second wine, Clos de la Bergerie, is the produce of the larger Savennieres Roche aux Moines AOC.
A bit younger, the average age of these vines is 25 years, grown on east-facing slopes, with yields at 25-30 hectoliters per hectare. Again, only wood aging, with less than 5% new oak is used. Production is about 10.000 bottles.
Vieux Clos is the third wine, produced under the more general AOC Savennieres. Yield are a bit higher at 30-35 hl/h, and both wood and tank aging is used. About 15,000 bottles are produced per year.
One concept Joly is very particular about in his vineyards, is diversity. All of his vines are propagated using the Massale method, where cuttings are carefully selected from the best and oldest vines, rather than the more common modern use of clones. This, Joly feels, produces a diversity in the vines that ensures real aromatic complexity without having to resort to artificial means in the wine-making process. To the same end he also believes in encouraging the formation of botrytis as an essential element. In keeping with Joly's careful nurturing of the vineyard, work in the vineyards is carried on only by hand and horse.
In the cellar, Joly believes first and foremost in simple wine-making. In fact, he really sees himself less as a wine maker, than as he calls it, a "nature assistant." He sees the cellar not as a laboratory, but as a "womb" where the midwife simply listens and waits to see what happens, employing only few and measured actions. Some of these actions include stirring of the lees, racking, and so forth, but never artificial manipulations such as adding commercial yeasts or micro-oxygenation. In this way wine will be what it should be; a reflection of the "information" taken from the earth through careful nurturing in the vineyard, and therefore a sincere expression of terroir.
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on any of these bottles of superlative Savennieres expression, you may also want to heed Nicolas Joly's advice on the optimal and most natural way to drink his wines. Believing that oxygen enhances and brings out the full character of biodynamic wines, he recommends decanting. He is also of the school of thought, as am I, that good white wines are usually drunk far too chilled to capture their most interesting aromas. He recommends drinking at around 57 degrees F.
Nicolas Joly is an ardent, some would say almost fanatical follower of Rudolf Steiner's Biodynamic Principles. It is not hard to understand what drives his passion for this nature-intensive system, when one understands his objective. Joly, first and foremost, wants to create wine that is truly expressive of its Terroir. One almost gets a sense that he would rather create a slightly imperfect wine with exceptional character that has been produced naturally, than a "perfect" wine that has been tortured into submission in the cellar through over-manipulation. In his own words: "I don't want a good wine, but also a true wine."
Here a bit of history. Joly came to the wine-world from a banking background, having studied finance at Columbia University, and subsequently worked as an investment banker in New York. In 1977 he left banking to take over operations at his family wine estate in the Loire Valley. From the beginning, Joly was sensitive to what he saw as failings in the French AOC classification system. In his view, the scheme created in the 1930's to preserve wines that express precise locations and vintages by way of legal guarantee, was no longer fulfilling its intended goal. In Joly's view the destruction of the AOC system began with the proliferation of herbicides and subsequently other chemicals in the vineyard, which robbed grapes of their ability to show the unique characteristics of their environment. To compensate for this loss of terroir, wine cellars were transformed into factories where inferior grapes were to be endowed with interesting characteristics through artificial methods such as the use of "designer" aromatic yeasts. When Joly read Rudolf Steiner's works on Biodynamic farming, he was convinced that applied to the vineyard, this was the road back to creating "real wine," thereby restoring the intent of the AOC system. Since 1984 Joly has been doing his part to facilitate this restoration by using 100% biodynamic methods in his vineyards.
The Vineyards and Wines
Joly's estate Chateau de la Roche aux Moines has a long and storied history. Located in the Savennieres region of the Loire Valley, the vineyards were planted in the 12th century by Cistercian monks and have been under continuous cultivation ever since, making 2011 the 881st consecutive vintage. Quite the heritage!Today Nicolas Joly, along with his daughter Virginie, oversees production of three wines from these estates. All, of course, white and from the Chenin Blanc grape.
The first of these is the flagship Coulee-de-Serrant, which shares the extremely rare distinction, along with the vaunted Romanee-Conti of Burgundy, and Chateau Grillet in the Northern Rhone, of being a single vineyard AOC. The 30-45 year old vines cover only 7 hectares on steep south/south-east facing slopes, yielding only 20-25 hectoliters per hectare. Harvest is carried out in 5 passes over 3-4 weeks, in order to insure that grapes are at their absolute peak of ripeness, Joly believing that only at that point can grapes produce wine with powerful terroir expression. The wine is wood-aged with no more than 5% new oak being employed. Total production is about 20,000 bottles per year.The second wine, Clos de la Bergerie, is the produce of the larger Savennieres Roche aux Moines AOC.
A bit younger, the average age of these vines is 25 years, grown on east-facing slopes, with yields at 25-30 hectoliters per hectare. Again, only wood aging, with less than 5% new oak is used. Production is about 10.000 bottles.
Vieux Clos is the third wine, produced under the more general AOC Savennieres. Yield are a bit higher at 30-35 hl/h, and both wood and tank aging is used. About 15,000 bottles are produced per year.
One concept Joly is very particular about in his vineyards, is diversity. All of his vines are propagated using the Massale method, where cuttings are carefully selected from the best and oldest vines, rather than the more common modern use of clones. This, Joly feels, produces a diversity in the vines that ensures real aromatic complexity without having to resort to artificial means in the wine-making process. To the same end he also believes in encouraging the formation of botrytis as an essential element. In keeping with Joly's careful nurturing of the vineyard, work in the vineyards is carried on only by hand and horse.
If you are lucky enough to get your hands on any of these bottles of superlative Savennieres expression, you may also want to heed Nicolas Joly's advice on the optimal and most natural way to drink his wines. Believing that oxygen enhances and brings out the full character of biodynamic wines, he recommends decanting. He is also of the school of thought, as am I, that good white wines are usually drunk far too chilled to capture their most interesting aromas. He recommends drinking at around 57 degrees F.
August 18, 2011
Chateau Puech-Haut Prestige 2009
August 15, 2011
Some Clarifying, Dispelling, and Educating on a Sunday Evening
Ah, another quiet Sunday evening in the Sieger crib, just enjoying some quality time with my laptop, a crusty baguette, a bit of Forme d'Ambert, a few olives from Puglia, and a 2009 Naia Rueda: 100% Verdejo, not biodynamic, not organic, not great, but not bad. I'm giving it 89 points. This would definitely be a good match with grilled fish or crustacean.
My daily tasks I believe are in order. Laundry, check. Bike repair, check. Dub playing on the Stereo, check. Now all that's left to do is a bit of Clarifying, Dispelling, and Educating my fellow wine lovers on the subject of Biodynamic Wine. Sounds like a daunting task, but thanks to some wonderfully concise information provided by another iconic biodynamic producer from Alsace, this should be virtual child's play. So, if you have only vague notions of what biodynamics is all about, or worse, loosely equate biodynamic farming with some kind of mysterious metaphysical ritual, hopefully some of those notions will be dispelled and we will have a bit clearer picture of the significance of biodynamic viticulture and it's benefits. But before we dig into the nitty-gritty of the matter, let's take a quick look at the source of our enlightenment.
Clos des Capucins' (the vineyard soil of Domaine Weinbach) history goes way back, and I mean WAY back to circa 890, when the empress Richarde gave the land to the Abbey of Etival, who in turn gave part of the soil to the Capuchin monks. These Capuchin monks then established the aptly named Domaine Weinbach (German for winestream) in 1612. In 1898 the domaine was acquired by the Faller family and is run today by Colette Faller and her daughters who carry on a long tradition of passion for the wines of Alsace and an unrelenting commitment to delivering excellence.
Nature has endowed the vineyards of Domaine Weinbach with a variety of exceptional soils that are carefully matched to the grape varieties grown on them, as well as ideal topography providing optimal exposure to the sun. As part of their commitment to producing wine that fully expresses the characteristics of the terroir, the Fallers began converting their vineyards to biodynamics in 1998. Since 2005 all of the domaine's vineyards have been cared for biodynamically, and since 2010 are both Ecocert and Demeter certified.
Here then is Domaine Weinbach's very cogent definition of Biodynamics and a brief explanation of how Biodynamic viticulture furthers their high quality standards.
For us, biodynamic viticulture means respect of the environment, respect of the terroirs and of the grapes. A viticulture that respects life allows not only the vintage climate and the grape varieties but above all the terroirs to express themselves in the wines.
The benefits of biodynamics were never as obvious as in 2003 (extremely hot and dry vintage). During that year, the vines resisted incredibly well and the wines showed a natural balance and a surprising freshness.
Biodynamics may look esoteric. Yet it is easy to relate to homeopathy for humans. It also involves a great deal of good sense based on traditional peasant practices that were being lost in the new industrial world. It is interesting to note that our grandmother used some of the now fancily called biodynamic methods as well as the "astral" calendar to take care of her garden.
To conclude: The main motivation is to increase soil activity and thus stimulate soil/root/aerial system exchanges with the objective of producing better quality, terroir driven and aromatically complex grapes and wines. Biodynamics helps us care for and protect our vines not only for now but also for future generations.
Hopefully, fellow wine lover, this post has been as interesting and informative for you as it is for me.
I must say all this clarifying, dispelling, and educating has made me quite tired, and so once again I bid you adieu. Until next time,
Keep it natural, and keep it interesting.
My daily tasks I believe are in order. Laundry, check. Bike repair, check. Dub playing on the Stereo, check. Now all that's left to do is a bit of Clarifying, Dispelling, and Educating my fellow wine lovers on the subject of Biodynamic Wine. Sounds like a daunting task, but thanks to some wonderfully concise information provided by another iconic biodynamic producer from Alsace, this should be virtual child's play. So, if you have only vague notions of what biodynamics is all about, or worse, loosely equate biodynamic farming with some kind of mysterious metaphysical ritual, hopefully some of those notions will be dispelled and we will have a bit clearer picture of the significance of biodynamic viticulture and it's benefits. But before we dig into the nitty-gritty of the matter, let's take a quick look at the source of our enlightenment.
Clos des Capucins' (the vineyard soil of Domaine Weinbach) history goes way back, and I mean WAY back to circa 890, when the empress Richarde gave the land to the Abbey of Etival, who in turn gave part of the soil to the Capuchin monks. These Capuchin monks then established the aptly named Domaine Weinbach (German for winestream) in 1612. In 1898 the domaine was acquired by the Faller family and is run today by Colette Faller and her daughters who carry on a long tradition of passion for the wines of Alsace and an unrelenting commitment to delivering excellence.
Nature has endowed the vineyards of Domaine Weinbach with a variety of exceptional soils that are carefully matched to the grape varieties grown on them, as well as ideal topography providing optimal exposure to the sun. As part of their commitment to producing wine that fully expresses the characteristics of the terroir, the Fallers began converting their vineyards to biodynamics in 1998. Since 2005 all of the domaine's vineyards have been cared for biodynamically, and since 2010 are both Ecocert and Demeter certified.
Here then is Domaine Weinbach's very cogent definition of Biodynamics and a brief explanation of how Biodynamic viticulture furthers their high quality standards.
Biodynamics is a farming philosophy formalized by the Austrian born philosopher and scientist Rudolf Steiner in the 1920's and developed by Maria Thun. It takes organic viticulture as a beginning: the soils are worked and no synthetic chemicals are used as fertilizers or pesticides. It goes farther then organics in the sense that it considers a vineyard as a living organism. The soil (the earth is viewed as the mother) is not a simple support for the vine but a living environment and a source of energy as much as its outdoor environment is (the sun is the father). The primary principle is to upgrade the soil and the vine life in its natural environment and increase the natural defences/resistance of the vine with the use of products made from vegetal (nettle, willow, horsetail, camomile, achillea,…), animal (manure, compost) and mineral (silica) origins. Secondly, the application of these products and the working of the soils at specific times according to the sun and moon cycles are also key, there lies the "dynamic" part. |
The goal is to achieve harmonious life conditions and better exchanges between the soil, the plant (including root and foliage systems) and its environment based on:
transferred to the grapes, increasing the quality of their flavours and the expression of the terroirs. |
For us, biodynamic viticulture means respect of the environment, respect of the terroirs and of the grapes. A viticulture that respects life allows not only the vintage climate and the grape varieties but above all the terroirs to express themselves in the wines.
The benefits of biodynamics were never as obvious as in 2003 (extremely hot and dry vintage). During that year, the vines resisted incredibly well and the wines showed a natural balance and a surprising freshness.
Biodynamics may look esoteric. Yet it is easy to relate to homeopathy for humans. It also involves a great deal of good sense based on traditional peasant practices that were being lost in the new industrial world. It is interesting to note that our grandmother used some of the now fancily called biodynamic methods as well as the "astral" calendar to take care of her garden.
To conclude: The main motivation is to increase soil activity and thus stimulate soil/root/aerial system exchanges with the objective of producing better quality, terroir driven and aromatically complex grapes and wines. Biodynamics helps us care for and protect our vines not only for now but also for future generations.
Hopefully, fellow wine lover, this post has been as interesting and informative for you as it is for me.
I must say all this clarifying, dispelling, and educating has made me quite tired, and so once again I bid you adieu. Until next time,
Keep it natural, and keep it interesting.
August 04, 2011
Zind Humbrecht 2007 Gewürztraminer
Welcome fellow wine lovers! Firsts are always exciting, and I'm glad to have you along. Sit back, buckle in, and enjoy the ride as we explore the exciting world of Biodynamic, Organic, and Sustainable wines. Oh, and don't forget to put in your two cents' worth.
Today we'll be tasting a nice Gewürztraminer from Zind Humbrecht, one of the pioneering biodynamic wine producers from the Alsace in France.
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