Gérard Bertrand in Languedoc celebrates 30 years as a wine producer. He has had a tremendous success. He had to take over the family wine business at a young age when his father died. At
Does Champagne have the world’s most expensive grapes? We thought so but now it seems that you have to pay as much for cabernet sauvignon grapes in Napa Valley, California. For one kilo of Napa
The French nurseries that supply wine producers with vines face major challenges. At the end of June, 120 of them gathered to discuss the future. The most important thing they discussed is the withering of
Côtes de Provence celebrates this year 40 years as an appellation. And there is reason to celebrate. Rosé wines from Provence have had incredible success in recent years. The world does not seem to be
Carmenere is the signature grape of Chile. Given that, one would think that it is an easy grape to grow all over Chile. But that is not the case. It is a grape that can
Georgia is on the move. And it’s no longer just the qvevri wines that get attention. In June, Winery Khareba/Lipartiani presented its wines in Paris. We tasted red and white qvevri wines and “regular” wines.
The wine world is considered by many to be a bit old-fashioned. But times are changing. “We want to be innovative in this very traditional world,” says Flavien Darius Pommier. 23 years old and with
A little while ago a few bottles of Chianti Classico arrived in the post from Fattoria della Aiola. This turned out to be a wine estate founded in 1934 by an Italian politician and sold
In France you drink French wines. With the variety that exists in this huge wine country, you never get tired of French wines. But the fact is that the French drink more and more foreign
The EU rules for organic farming are being reviewed and discussions are apparently in the final phase. Several proposals have upset the French (and also other countries’) organic growers. One of the new proposals is
I was a bit shocked the other day when I saw a video clip with Etienne Portalis from Château Pradeaux, one of the well-known wine estates in Bandol. Bandol has always, for me, been the
Most (all?) wine growers today aim for less spraying in the vineyard. Regardless of the products you use when spraying. There are various preventive measures that facilitate this goal. For example, keeping an eye on
Henceforth it is allowed for Rioja to indicate the name of the vineyard from which the grapes come from on the label. Many producers have impatiently been waiting for this. Consumers want, says the Rioja
Ackerman is a major producer of sparkling wine in the Loire Valley. Now the company launches its first bubbly chenin blanc without added sulphur (Saumur Brut l’Esprit nature, 11.50 euros on site). But that does
If you are thinking of becoming a wine grower in France, here are some important figures just announced by SAFER, a government organization. In 2016, the average price for an AOP vineyard was 140,600 euro
One of our favourites in Penedès is Parés Baltà, an organic and biodynamic estate (certified Demeter), run by the brothers Joan and Josep Cusiné. But the winemakers are their wives, Elena Jiménez and Marta Casas.
Over the last couple of decades German wines have changed dramatically. Here are some of the NEW keywords: The semi-dry / semi-sweet whites are on the retreat. (Thankfully!) Bone-dry whites with plenty of elegance and
An article about how natural cork has made a comeback in recent years made me look for some interesting cork statistics from Apcor, the association of Portugal’s cork industry. 34% of the world’s cork forests
Oak ageing is an important ingredient in the production of a quality wine, this all wine lovers are well aware of. Important yes, but more and more winemakers are trying to make the oak as
Frost has been a serious problem throughout Europe this spring. But frost is not the only climate phenomenon that a vineyard can encounter. No vineyard is completely sheltered from extreme weather or natural disasters. Cold,
Of the 28 member states of the EU, 18 counts officially as wine countries. Wine is made also in Denmark, Sweden and Poland but you have to have more than 500 hectares planted to be
The Company Cork Supply Group, a major supplier of natural corks, introduced earlier this year a new cork called VINC. This is a cork that is guaranteed to be free of TCA contamination. In other
In Côte d’Or in Burgundy this year, for the first time, a new method of frost control has been used. The burning of straw bales. Many of them. Maurice Chapuis at Domaine Chapuis in Aloxe-Corton
There is a wine revolution quietly going on in South Africa. Or more correctly, a second revolution. The first one was when apartheid ended and the KVW iron grip on the wine sector also came
Eurostat has recently published a variety of interesting statistics on the EU’s vineyards and wine industry. The EU currently has more than 3 million hectares of vineyards and 80% of it is classified as quality
50 kilometres north of Nice is a small town called Villars-sur-Var. We are quite far away from the wine regions. Closer to Nice is the appellation Bellet and further west is the Côtes de Provence.
Atout France is a government organization that is responsible for promoting various French tourist destinations. Recently, it launched an ad campaign aimed at French tourists. The slogan for the campaign is “France, tout un monde
Spring is a lovely time of the year but it can also be a nail-biter for wine growers in northern wine regions. No one wants to be hit by frost in April or May, destroying
A wine can be certified organic, biodynamic, sustainable and now there is also a certification taking into account the well-being of the bees. It is called, of course, Bee Friendly. The label is a private
Muhammad and the mountain? The primeur tastings in Bordeaux take place every year in early April. We have not been there this year but we did a mini-primeur tasting at home with one wine the
Gérard Bertrand in Languedoc celebrates 30 years as a wine producer. He has had a tremendous success. He had to take over the family wine
Does Champagne have the world’s most expensive grapes? We thought so but now it seems that you have to pay as much for cabernet sauvignon
The French nurseries that supply wine producers with vines face major challenges. At the end of June, 120 of them gathered to discuss the future.
Côtes de Provence celebrates this year 40 years as an appellation. And there is reason to celebrate. Rosé wines from Provence have had incredible success
Carmenere is the signature grape of Chile. Given that, one would think that it is an easy grape to grow all over Chile. But that
Georgia is on the move. And it’s no longer just the qvevri wines that get attention. In June, Winery Khareba/Lipartiani presented its wines in Paris.
The wine world is considered by many to be a bit old-fashioned. But times are changing. “We want to be innovative in this very traditional
A little while ago a few bottles of Chianti Classico arrived in the post from Fattoria della Aiola. This turned out to be a wine
In France you drink French wines. With the variety that exists in this huge wine country, you never get tired of French wines. But the
The EU rules for organic farming are being reviewed and discussions are apparently in the final phase. Several proposals have upset the French (and also
I was a bit shocked the other day when I saw a video clip with Etienne Portalis from Château Pradeaux, one of the well-known wine
Most (all?) wine growers today aim for less spraying in the vineyard. Regardless of the products you use when spraying. There are various preventive measures
Henceforth it is allowed for Rioja to indicate the name of the vineyard from which the grapes come from on the label. Many producers have
Ackerman is a major producer of sparkling wine in the Loire Valley. Now the company launches its first bubbly chenin blanc without added sulphur (Saumur
If you are thinking of becoming a wine grower in France, here are some important figures just announced by SAFER, a government organization. In 2016,
One of our favourites in Penedès is Parés Baltà, an organic and biodynamic estate (certified Demeter), run by the brothers Joan and Josep Cusiné. But
Over the last couple of decades German wines have changed dramatically. Here are some of the NEW keywords: The semi-dry / semi-sweet whites are on
An article about how natural cork has made a comeback in recent years made me look for some interesting cork statistics from Apcor, the association
Oak ageing is an important ingredient in the production of a quality wine, this all wine lovers are well aware of. Important yes, but more
Frost has been a serious problem throughout Europe this spring. But frost is not the only climate phenomenon that a vineyard can encounter. No vineyard
Of the 28 member states of the EU, 18 counts officially as wine countries. Wine is made also in Denmark, Sweden and Poland but you
The Company Cork Supply Group, a major supplier of natural corks, introduced earlier this year a new cork called VINC. This is a cork that
In Côte d’Or in Burgundy this year, for the first time, a new method of frost control has been used. The burning of straw bales.
There is a wine revolution quietly going on in South Africa. Or more correctly, a second revolution. The first one was when apartheid ended and
Eurostat has recently published a variety of interesting statistics on the EU’s vineyards and wine industry. The EU currently has more than 3 million hectares
50 kilometres north of Nice is a small town called Villars-sur-Var. We are quite far away from the wine regions. Closer to Nice is the
Atout France is a government organization that is responsible for promoting various French tourist destinations. Recently, it launched an ad campaign aimed at French tourists.
Spring is a lovely time of the year but it can also be a nail-biter for wine growers in northern wine regions. No one wants
A wine can be certified organic, biodynamic, sustainable and now there is also a certification taking into account the well-being of the bees. It is
Muhammad and the mountain? The primeur tastings in Bordeaux take place every year in early April. We have not been there this year but we
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