Wine producers should not deceive consumers when they promote their wines. This story is about Château de Reignac in Entre-deux-Mers. This chateau was bought in the 1990s by Yves Vatelot. His ambition from the very
Typical. Guessing right again…? They are easily counted, the times I have called a wine “typical” during the past year. But what is typical? Everyone who has attended a wine course has learned typical aromas
A tour of France’s vineyards today shows that more and more wine producers prefer to let the grass and the weed remain in the vineyard instead of removing it. Today, many refrain from chemical weed
Gérard Bertrand’s empire in Languedoc is growing. He recently bought Mas du Soleilla, a 22-hectare vineyard adjacent to Bertrand’s headquarters Château l’Hospitalet in the appellation of La Clape. Mas du Soleilla was founded by Peter
The most important grape in Argentina is Malbec and it has doubled its acreage in the last 15 years. It has now 18% of the vine surface in the country. Syrah has also increased its
Alsace wines are becoming drier and drier. At least that was the impression we had on our recent Alsace tour. And that is very positive. In addition, it is easier to know if the wines
Germany is a small but important wine country. Steep slopes and a cool climate give us wines that are difficult to copy. The most planted grape is Riesling but nowadays one should also look out
Heavy rain and floods of a rare violence in the department of Aude In Languedoc in mid-October caused major damage to vineyards and wineries, in particular in the Minervois and Cabardes appellations and, to a
It is amazing how different vineyards look today compared to 30 years ago. Then, there was not one single straw of grass in the rows between the vines. Today vineyards are often vibrant and colourful
Beaujolais has had a few hard years but it is now back in fashion. Today, the third Thursday of November, is the release of the new vintage of Beaujolais Nouveau. Now representing approximately 30 %
Climate change is a fact and the wine industry prepares in different ways for the future. INAO, the Institut national de l’origine et de la qualité, recently approved a change in the rules that allow
Many consumers perceive wines nowadays as more alcoholic than they used to be. This is actually quite true. This has to do with a lot of things (and not only global warming): grapes are harvested
Prosecco is producing more and more bottles. This year they will pass 500 million. People can’t seem to get enough. The yields for the simplest Proseccos are sky high, making the resulting wine sometimes a
The most important factor for making great wines! We can’t control the weather. The weather determines the size of the harvest and, to some extent, also the character of the wine. The overall climate (the
The cooperatives are many and significant players in the Languedoc. They account for a large proportion of the production here. But to survive in today’s competition, they, like everyone else, have to invest in what
It has been a hot summer in France, but the growing conditions have not been easy everywhere. Alban Rabasa, assistant winemaker at Château Vaudieu in Châteauneuf-du-Pape, says that 2018 is une année du vigneron, which
People often say wines nowadays tend to taste the same. But isn’t it exactly the opposite? Take the New World. A few years ago, one might have talked about sameness. A few grape varieties dominated
On September 29, Scandinavia’s first Lambrusco festival will take place. It is Carlo Merolli in Denmark who wants to promote this bubbly, easy drinking wine from Emilia-Romagna. Carlo comes from Rome but has lived in
Sweet dry wine and the taste police A dry wine should be dry and a sweet wine sweet. That sounds obvious. But considering the amounts of not-so-dry red wines sold in the world today, one
Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough has made New Zealand famous in the wine world. As popularity has increased, the export of bulk wines from Marlborough has also increased. Some producers here are now concerned about the
Nothing can stop Pinot Gris. Whichever country we are looking at the plantings of Pinot Gris is growing. Not least in Italy where the grape is called Pinot Grigio. Now there is a completely new
Nowhere else is the dominance of a few grape varieties as big as in Australia. Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay account for almost 60% of the total vineyard area of 149,000 hectares. Syrah alone accounts
It is not as bad as it sounds… We wrote some time ago about the role of wine in French films. We asked our readers for recommendations of “wine movies” and one of our readers
Method Cap Classique (MCC) is the name given to South African sparkling wine produced according to the traditional method, ie with a second fermentation in the bottle. The Cap Classique Producers Association (CCPA) was founded
The importance of origin New appellations are added to the wine world continuously. And not only in France and Italy. The New World has also realized the advantages of designations of origin. It is no
Uncorked: Under this heading, we collect various wines that we have tasted, and liked, recently. It can be wines that we have had during dinner at home, at wine tastings, press lunches, visits to vineyards,
Some wine regions and even individual wine producers are incredibly keen, sometimes excessively so, to protect their names and brands. Champagne is the undisputed world champion in this sport. The most recent discussion in this
Natural wines are the darlings of sommeliers and wine bars around the world at the moment. But what is a natural wine? For some people, it is a style of wine, a style that you
It gets warmer and drier in Languedoc, says Christophe Bousquet at Domaine Pech Redon in La Clape. This cannot completely be compensated for by irrigation. That’s why Christophe this summer is going to plant grape
Portugal’s (and the world’s) largest producer of cork products, Amorim, is slowly changing the cork industry. Since 2013, a project has been in progress concerning the possibility to start harvesting the cork from the cork
Wine producers should not deceive consumers when they promote their wines. This story is about Château de Reignac in Entre-deux-Mers. This chateau was bought in
Typical. Guessing right again…? They are easily counted, the times I have called a wine “typical” during the past year. But what is typical? Everyone
A tour of France’s vineyards today shows that more and more wine producers prefer to let the grass and the weed remain in the vineyard
Gérard Bertrand’s empire in Languedoc is growing. He recently bought Mas du Soleilla, a 22-hectare vineyard adjacent to Bertrand’s headquarters Château l’Hospitalet in the appellation
The most important grape in Argentina is Malbec and it has doubled its acreage in the last 15 years. It has now 18% of the
Alsace wines are becoming drier and drier. At least that was the impression we had on our recent Alsace tour. And that is very positive.
Germany is a small but important wine country. Steep slopes and a cool climate give us wines that are difficult to copy. The most planted
Heavy rain and floods of a rare violence in the department of Aude In Languedoc in mid-October caused major damage to vineyards and wineries, in
It is amazing how different vineyards look today compared to 30 years ago. Then, there was not one single straw of grass in the rows
Beaujolais has had a few hard years but it is now back in fashion. Today, the third Thursday of November, is the release of the
Climate change is a fact and the wine industry prepares in different ways for the future. INAO, the Institut national de l’origine et de la
Many consumers perceive wines nowadays as more alcoholic than they used to be. This is actually quite true. This has to do with a lot
Prosecco is producing more and more bottles. This year they will pass 500 million. People can’t seem to get enough. The yields for the simplest
The most important factor for making great wines! We can’t control the weather. The weather determines the size of the harvest and, to some extent,
The cooperatives are many and significant players in the Languedoc. They account for a large proportion of the production here. But to survive in today’s
It has been a hot summer in France, but the growing conditions have not been easy everywhere. Alban Rabasa, assistant winemaker at Château Vaudieu in
People often say wines nowadays tend to taste the same. But isn’t it exactly the opposite? Take the New World. A few years ago, one
On September 29, Scandinavia’s first Lambrusco festival will take place. It is Carlo Merolli in Denmark who wants to promote this bubbly, easy drinking wine
Sweet dry wine and the taste police A dry wine should be dry and a sweet wine sweet. That sounds obvious. But considering the amounts
Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough has made New Zealand famous in the wine world. As popularity has increased, the export of bulk wines from Marlborough has
Nothing can stop Pinot Gris. Whichever country we are looking at the plantings of Pinot Gris is growing. Not least in Italy where the grape
Nowhere else is the dominance of a few grape varieties as big as in Australia. Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay account for almost 60% of
It is not as bad as it sounds… We wrote some time ago about the role of wine in French films. We asked our readers
Method Cap Classique (MCC) is the name given to South African sparkling wine produced according to the traditional method, ie with a second fermentation in
The importance of origin New appellations are added to the wine world continuously. And not only in France and Italy. The New World has also
Uncorked: Under this heading, we collect various wines that we have tasted, and liked, recently. It can be wines that we have had during dinner
Some wine regions and even individual wine producers are incredibly keen, sometimes excessively so, to protect their names and brands. Champagne is the undisputed world
Natural wines are the darlings of sommeliers and wine bars around the world at the moment. But what is a natural wine? For some people,
It gets warmer and drier in Languedoc, says Christophe Bousquet at Domaine Pech Redon in La Clape. This cannot completely be compensated for by irrigation.
Portugal’s (and the world’s) largest producer of cork products, Amorim, is slowly changing the cork industry. Since 2013, a project has been in progress concerning
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