France (and some other major European wine countries) is fighting tooth and nail to maintain planting rights in Europe. And even though they have managed to obtain an extension they are far from satisfied. The new system of controlled growth (which is not so different from the system that has been in force since the [...]
Tag Archives | France
Sauternes – the death of a myth
It is sad when something you have always believed in turns out to be false. I suppose I am not the only one having learned early on that the fog that causes noble rot in Sauternes occurs when cold water from the small river Ciron meets the warmer waters of the Garonne. Now I learn [...]
El Picaflor – Peruvian restaurant in Paris | BKWine Pick
Inspired by our South America wine tour trip in February we recently went to a Peruvian restaurant here in Paris, considered one of the very best. And we were not disappointed. We started with a pisco sour – of course! And it was delicious. They use egg white and cinnamon so it tasted a bit [...]
Even the simplest French wines can now mention the grape variety, except some
How provincial protectionism makes it more difficult to sell French wines Vin de France, that is the new name for “vin de table” (wine without a specific appellation, AOP, or IGP), can now have the grape name mentioned on the label. Except for some varieties. It used to be that Vin de Table (now Vin [...]
New yeast strain gives wines with less sulphur
All wines contain sulphur, but some less than others, help is on the way Almost all wines contain sulphur. This is not only because most winemakers add sulphur to stabilise the wine and make it more long-lived. It is also because during fermentation sulphur is produced. The yeast that converts sugar to alcohol, carbon dioxide [...]
Time to discover white Bordeaux wines from Entre deux Mers
BKWine was recently in the jury for the annual competition for white Bordeaux wines. The wines that competed were all from the appellation Entre-deux-Mers. Here they make fresh and very pleasant white wines in a very reasonable price range. And with a wide range of flavours depending on whether it is sauvignon blanc or sémillon [...]
Alsace – dry or sweet?
We have probably all experienced a bottle of wine from Alsace that did not go well with the food we served. The reason being, for the most part, that the wine was sweeter than we had expected. This is a problem that producers in Alsace have long been aware of. Some argue that a little [...]
Nine decades of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in London
The fabulous White Club DRC Burgundy tasting (with a few dark horses) Most people rarely have the opportunity to taste a wine from the Domaine de la Romanee Conti even once in a life time. So when you have the opportunity to taste nine decades of DRC wine it is permitted to be a bit [...]
Excellent wines and cheese: Sancerre in the Loire Valley
Sancerre in the Upper Loire is famous for its refreshing and white wine from Sauvignon blanc. This wine goes wonderfully with another local speciality, the goat cheese. Read more about it on the wine travel blog, the BKWine Travelog: Rolling hills, charming towns, excellent wines and cheese: Sancerre in the Loire Valley.
Britt’s Wine of the Month: Terrasses du Larzac 2011, Mollard & Fillon, Languedoc
Packed with dark berries, quite soft and easy-to-drink but with good structure and freshness and a spicy after-taste that reminds me of the syrah grape. And syrah is one of the grapes, the others are grenache, cinsault and carignan. Mollard & Fillon is a new small wine company run by Nicolas Mollard and Sébastien Fillon. [...]
Champagne is like haute couture?
More and more champagne houses mention the disgorging date on the label. A champagne often spends several years in the cool cellar of the producer, resting on the dead yeast from the second fermentation. Removing the lees is called disgorging. It is quite fashionable today to put this date on the label, along with information [...]
Protest party in Alsace
10 or 12 producers in Alsace recently formed a group called Groupe Transverse Alsace 2015. The group believes that the wine industry in Alsace needs to be reformed. The members are well known producers such as Jean-Michel Deiss, Paul Blanck, Jean-Pierre Frick, Marc Tempe, Jean-Claude Rieflé and others. Alsace is an old-fashioned wine region, they [...]
Exciting and affordable wines from Entre-deux-Mers in Bordeaux
BKWine judges the annual wine competition for white Bordeaux. And an intro to the Entre deux Mers appellation We tasted several exciting white Bordeaux wines from Entre-deux-Mers competition recently. BKWine was one of the judges in the Top Vin competition which is organized every year. Here is a brief introduction to Entre-deux-Mers, and a selection [...]
Satellite imaging helps the wine grower
To have fine, healthy grapes when it is time to pick means everything, or at least a lot, to the quality of the wine. And that means that you must ensure that both the vines and the soil they grow in are in a good condition. The more the wine grower knows about the state [...]
The Holy Bacchus wine competition in Roussillon. Judging (wine) is hard. And easy.
It is quite fun to be part of the jury in wine competitions. It is also very good blind tasting practice. And above all, it is very humbling. Blind tasting is very difficult. In a way. On the other hand it is very simple. The only thing you can do is trust your own taste [...]
Alsace, why don’t we see more of it in France?
They make wonderful wines in Alsace and the landscape is wonderfully beautiful. It has long been a popular wine region in Sweden (at least as long as I lived there) and in other countries but not so much in France. It is a little seen wine region in France. Rarely on wine lists in restaurants. [...]
Fat Bastard on video
Arrogant Frog and Fat Bastard are two rather unpleasant brand names for unpretentious French wines. And they happen to be big sellers on the export market. If the names show foreigners’ idea of the French or just what the French think is the opinion of them in other countries, we really don’t know. Now the [...]
We are all French, aren’t we?
The usual infighting between French appellations… Renaming the French table wines to Vin de France was an ingenious move. They were formerly called vin de table, wines without geographical origin. “France” is a brand name that goes down well in most countries and big wine firms with a flair for marketing have been quick to [...]
Making the best blend every year: Jacquesson Champagnes
Jean-Hervé Chiquet talks about Jacquesson’s journey of liberating yourself from the non-vintage straight jacket in Champagne. Recently I was invited to a tasting with champagnes from Jacquesson Champagne. The tasting was organized by their Swedish importer Vinovum AB, and was held at Brasseri Bobonne, a modern French restaurant in Stockholm. Jean-Hervé Chiquet, co-owner and co-wine [...]
Château La Reyne L’Excellence 2010, Cahors | Britt’s Wine of the Month
Cahors is in the wine region called South-West in France. A region well known for its duck and foie gras among other things. Château La Reyne l’Excellence is a powerful wine with a warm feeling and a good structure, soft tannins and a pleasant freshness. It is a wine you can keep in your cellar [...]
Chateau Lestrille wins award in wine tourism
Best of Wine Tourism is a prestigious international competition that promotes wine tourism initiatives. One of the awards for this year has been given to Chateau Lestrille, one of the estates we often visit on our Bordeaux wine tours. The chateau is run be the young female winemaker Estelle Roumage, with the help of her [...]
We taste a range of champagnes from Bruno Paillard, to our satisfaction
Bruno Paillard, in person, was recently in Stockholm for a tasting of his champagnes, organised by the wine importer Tryffelsvinet. It is always particularly interesting and exciting to taste wines together with the producer. You can get a totally different understanding of the how:s and why:s when you have the person in front of you [...]
Eating good food and drinking delicious wine is an act of culture. In France at least.
The gastronomic meal of the French is something worth preserving. And this is also the opinion of UNESCO. Since 2010 it is on the world heritage list of intangibles assets. It is not, however, as yet considered as endangered. But what exactly is a French gastronomic meal? It follows a strict pattern. It takes more [...]
Wine more important than football (soccer)!
In France, people talk more frequently about wine than about football (the European soccer version of course). 72% of the French say they talk about wine with some regularity, but only 44% talk about of football. Furthermore, 87% of French claim that they bring wine as a gift when they are visiting friends and the [...]
The end is nigh! Vintage wines as we know them to disappear?
Well, the world did not end last December as some thought it would. But perhaps it is the end of vintage wines as we know them? Some years the vines yield abundantly, other years they give very little. That is life for the wine maker. But now the door is opening for the possibility to [...]
No Château d’Yquem 2012
There will be no 2012 vintage of Château d’Yquem, the most famous Sauternes chateau. The conditions for the development of noble rot was bad this year, and the chateau’s director Pierre Lurton would rather refrain from making an Yquem wine than to make one with little concentration. Last time it happened was in 1992, says [...]
Faugères 2010 Les Premières, JM Alquier & Mas Cal Demoura L’Infidèle 2010 | Britt’s Wine(s) of the month
These are two high quality wines from the Languedoc. Both are elegant, complex and very drinkable. Faugères 2010 Les Premières JM & Vé Alquier (14 euro) Quite light in style, full of aromas, well made with freshness, fine acidity and length. The talented wine maker Jean-Michel Alquier, well known for his cuvées La Maison Jaune [...]
A new champagne discovery: Champagne Vautrain-Paulet | BKWine Pick
The year is soon coming to its end (we wrote at the end of December) and it will soon be time to plan what drink to finish it and celebrate the new year with. Or to have for dinner on New Year’s Eve (but you can have champagne anytime!). A champagne producer that we recently [...]
White dry Bordeaux from André Lurton
We love dry white Bordeaux wines and hope that more people will discover how delicious they are. This summer we had the opportunity to visit some of the Lurton chateaux (there are several) in Entre-deux-Mers and Pessac-Léognan in Bordeaux and taste the wines. André Lurton is a big producer of white dry white wines in [...]
Saint Emilion and Stradivarius for lunch
In late October we were invited by Bernard Magrez to a luxurious lunch at Le Cinq, star restaurant at the Hôtel Georges V in Paris. We were there to celebrate several things. Bernard Magrez’ Château Fombrauge in Saint Emilion had just been given its new classification, Grand Cru Classé, and he had only a few [...]
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