Archive for July, 2012:
Thermenregion reds
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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
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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
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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
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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.
Semi-carbonic maceration
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Carbonic maceration and semi-carbonic maceration are not quite the preserve of Beaujolais and the gamay grape, but this is the region where the techniques reach complex and varied permutations. The process can produce vibrant, lively, fresh, and sometimes also very serious, wines.
Tassie pinot noir
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With 42% of total Tasmanian vineyard plantings, pinot noir is the island state’s lead variety. Still red pinot noir wine is getting to be a force to be reckoned with, with even latent sub-regional undertones becoming apparent.
Brunello di Montalcino by Kerin O’Keefe
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It’s not too often a single (small) appellation merits an entire book all to itself. After the Brunello-gate scandal of 2008 it probably needs a book all to itself to help restore its reputation. As a long-standing italo-phile and Italy resident, but not a native Italian, O’Keefe’s commentary has an attractive independence of voice.
First taste of Russia
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Russia is the world’s largest country, though its population of 138 million ranks it ninth most populous in the world. It is one of those old world countries, with a multi-millennia history of vine cultivation, once again diving into the modern and new world of wine.
