French paradox – climats and lieux-dits
French semantics are to the fore as we delve into the fog-bound world of attempting to differentiate between Burgundian ‘clos’, ‘climat’, ‘lieu-dit’, ‘cru’ and ‘appellation’. Some are easier; others require increasing magnitudes of microscopy, combined, perhaps, with a small gallic shrug for the inevitable French paradoxes.
Tasmanian sparkling wine
It’s been estimated that some 40% of the total Tassie harvest tonnage goes into making sparkling wine. That’s some three-quarters of the chardonnay grown and one third of the pinot noir grown on the island state. It’s all about the cool climate.
French brokerage, or courtier, system
Courtiers – a word to conjure polarised views, especially of the Bordeaux trading system. But in France the courtier system is not a one-size-fits-all, though the broker still puts together a customer with the wine they want, that they’ve sourced through their contacts.
Ten minutes with … Nick Farr
Nick Farr, of By Farr Vineyards, discusses soils, moisture and future-proofing in Geelong, Victoria.
Gouais blanc
All sixteen progeny of pinot x gouais blanc
The Makers of American Wine
Emeritus professor Pinney takes the reader through the last 200 years of USA winemaking history through a collection of chapters of luminaries of the USA wine industry.
Thermenregion reds
Thermenregion is a region of two halves. The southern part, around Sooss, Tattendorf, Bad Vöslau and further south, is home to red pair pinot noir and saint laurent.
Deliberating the nature of viticulture
Sense of place and certification issues came into focus during a May 2012 Circle of Wine Writers panel discussion on organic, biodynamic and natural viticulture.
Thermenregion whites
Thermenregion starts on the edge of the Wienerwald forest just 5km south of Vienna. It’s a region of two distinct parts, the result of a merger in 1985. Nearest to Vienna, two niche white grape varieties prevail – rotgipfler and zierfandler.
Taste test: semi-carbonic versus de-stemmed fruit
Schools of thought are evolving in Beaujolais, especially in the Beaujolais crus, around semi-carbonic maceration versus a Burgundian style of fermentation using de-stemmed grapes with pump-overs or punch-downs to extract colour and tannins. To see if it is possible to begin to taste the difference between these two vinification methods, I conducted a tasting seminar.
