New wave Aussie chardonnay
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A masterclass led by Phil Sexton from Innocent Bystander/Giant Steps, and Martin Spedding from Ten Minutes by Tractor, explores new wave Aussie chardonnay from the Yarra Valley
Château Massamier La Mignarde
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Frantz Vènes is no newcomer to the Languedoc. The now 70 hectare Château Massamier La Mignarde, in the Minervois, has been in the family for 300 years. He is a fan of carbonic maceration.
La Chablisienne: quality and minerality
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La Chablisienne is one of those rare enough things, a quality-orientated co-operative that’s also blessed by its members with some great vineyard plots, which boost its reputation overall. In addition, the co-op has explored in some depth the status quo on minerality.
A lesson in viticulture at Domaine d’Arjolle
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Charles Duby, the viticulturist at Domaine de l’Arjolle in the Languedoc gives a great session on the role of the soil.
Crus Bourgeois – a steady ship
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Having had just 18 months in 2007 to reinvent themselves, after the previous cru bourgeois system was cancelled, the Alliance des Crus Bourgois du Médoc consider themselves fortunate to have saved the name ‘cru bourgeois’ a term which has positive resonance with consumers.
Crémants from Maison Simonnet Febvre
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Maison Simonnet Febvre are the only winery in Chablis making sparkling wine, and about a quarter of their total production is Crémant
White wine phenolics
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When a vertical tasting of bourboulenc at Château d’Anglès, in Languedoc’s La Clape followed on the heels of a viognier masterclass by viognier virtuouso Louisa Rose, one can’t help but tweak one’s thinking on the roles of acidity, freshness and phenolics (essentially tannin) in white wine. Neither grape is particularly well endowed with raging acidity, but both have thick skins which impart a phenolic texture and freshness to the wines they make.
The science of sauvignon blanc, by Jamie Goode
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Various research institutes in NZ and France have been researching sauvignon blanc for some years, and Goode has brought together some of that research in a book that aims to provide growers and winemakers up to date information so they are better equipped to achieve the flavour profiles they’re looking for. There’s some interesting stuff for MW students and the like, too.
Skinny – a new era for Aussie chardonnay?
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Forget skinny lattes, skinny is a new model for Aussie chardonnay – lean, maybe a bit mean, very clean, even edging to green. The style has been around for a while, as Tom Carson, winemaker at Yabby Lake in the Mornington Peninsula explained “these wines have been here in Australia but they didn’t have too much of a voice. Now, everyone is talking about these wines, and how fine they are.”
Sparkling berries
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A revelation of carbonic maceration.
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