At the Island Wine Summit in Tenerife in June, I tasted some excellent wines from islands in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic Ocean (see part 1 for an introduction). The winemakers here mostly work
What should we have for aperitif today? Running out of ideas? Why not try a refreshing Porto Rosé Tonic, a recipe straight from Kay Bouchard at Quinta do Tedo in the Douro Valley. Here’s what
2024 was a brilliant vintage for port wine, and many of the major Port wine houses have “declared” in April (as is done in the Port wine district) that they will make a vintage port
In 1955, Systembolaget, the Swedish alcohol monopoly stores, started selling Mateus Rosé. For 70 years, this legendary, unpretentious rosé wine has been on its shelves. In other words, drinking rosé wine is not a new
Portugal is the country to turn to for Christmas wines. They make some stunning fortified wines, very suitable for the winter season and, of course, Christmas. But it is not only port wine. Here are
It is really too early to ask if 2024 will be a year for Vintage Port, as we learned on our Douro Valley tour recently. Although the winemakers may know deep down. Kay Bouchard at
There are signs that the use of cork stoppers as a closure on wine bottles is increasing and that its new popularity is partly due to its strong sustainability credentials. In the UK, bulk wine
All wine regions need new customers. But global consumption is shrinking and if the global wine consumption continues to fall, consumers will become fewer and fewer. I just returned back home after 10 days in
Last autumn, our wine tours took us to a number of wine regions and wine countries, including France, Italy, Portugal, and Austria. We took the occasion to ask some of the winemakers what they thought
For many rosé wine drinkers, it goes without saying that the wine should come from Provence. This has not always been the case. Rosé wine has a long history, and for a certain time, Portugal
In February, the wine monopoly in Sweden launched a wine from acclaimed winemaker Sandra Tavares in Portugal. We take that as an excuse to tell you about Sandra’s delicious wines since her wines are widely
The cork oak is a unique tree. It gives us not only wine corks – still the world’s most popular closure – but also a forest habitat with tremendous biological diversity. A diversity we should
An essential phase in grape ripening is what the French call le véraison. For lack of a better one, many other languages use the same word. Véraison means that the grapes change to their final
Now it is getting more and more tempting to have a glass of white wine for an aperitif. Or maybe with the food. The days are getting longer and temperatures rise. A source for brilliant
In 2009 the EU implemented a wine reform that structured wine in a few different groups. The intention was, and is, to harmonise the different systems that exist in the member countries. How this has
You can find some of Portugal’s best red and white wines in the Douro Valley. A renaissance has taken place in this region in the last few decades, previously only known for port wine. Wine
Many a bottle of port will be opened over Christmas. We recommend some of our favourites. Fonseca Guimaraens Vintage Port 2008 (~30 euro). Fonseca is one of the larger houses and is part of the
We meet many fantastic and talented winemakers on our wine tours around the world. (You can watch video interviews with many of them on the BKWine YouTube channel.) One of them is Tiago Alves de
One of our very few autumn wine tours went to the Douro Valley in late October. All the winemakers we met agreed on one thing: the 2020 harvest was a challenge, and it was not
Almost all of the world’s most popular quality grape varieties have spread around the globe. But in the world’s top ten list of most planted grapes, there is one that you will find almost only
It is inevitable to be wow-ed when you come to the Douro Valley. It is one of the world’s most spectacular wine regions. These days they make both excellent “table” wines and the famous fortified
In October we have twice been in the Douro Valley. In this wonderfully beautiful region in northern Portugal, some of Portugal’s, even the world’s, most interesting wines are made. That they make both dry wines
People go to conferences for two main reasons. To get inspiration or learn things about their business. And to meet other people in the same business, to network. But there are not many such events
Very literally so this year, when Anselmo Mendes held a tasting on our much-anticipated spring equinox. Given the feel of Anselmo Mendes’ wines, it was a particularly suitable combination. Fortunately, it was a sunny day
Portugal is a wonderful wine country in many ways. Not least because it is unrelentingly focusing on Iberian grape varieties. The only French grape that is included in the top-10 list is Syrah, and it
Port wine is something people love to drink at Christmas time. It is true that a glass of Port goes well with chocolate, nuts, stilton cheese and so on, things we tend to eat for
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
Portugal and Spain have also been hit hard by forest fires, just like the fires in California. A dry and hot October made it easy for fires to start. When the hurricane Ophelia came, the
A while back I had a few hours to spend in Lisbon. I was visiting Portugal to go to some oak forests and vineyards. (More on cork production here.) I was staying at a hotel
Just a few years ago, or perhaps mainly in the mid 90s and early 00s, corked wines were a big discussion subject. Some people reported 4-5% cork defects in wine, sometimes even 10%. We started
At the Island Wine Summit in Tenerife in June, I tasted some excellent wines from islands in the Mediterranean and the North Atlantic Ocean (see
What should we have for aperitif today? Running out of ideas? Why not try a refreshing Porto Rosé Tonic, a recipe straight from Kay Bouchard
2024 was a brilliant vintage for port wine, and many of the major Port wine houses have “declared” in April (as is done in the
In 1955, Systembolaget, the Swedish alcohol monopoly stores, started selling Mateus Rosé. For 70 years, this legendary, unpretentious rosé wine has been on its shelves.
Portugal is the country to turn to for Christmas wines. They make some stunning fortified wines, very suitable for the winter season and, of course,
It is really too early to ask if 2024 will be a year for Vintage Port, as we learned on our Douro Valley tour recently.
There are signs that the use of cork stoppers as a closure on wine bottles is increasing and that its new popularity is partly due
All wine regions need new customers. But global consumption is shrinking and if the global wine consumption continues to fall, consumers will become fewer and
Last autumn, our wine tours took us to a number of wine regions and wine countries, including France, Italy, Portugal, and Austria. We took the
For many rosé wine drinkers, it goes without saying that the wine should come from Provence. This has not always been the case. Rosé wine
In February, the wine monopoly in Sweden launched a wine from acclaimed winemaker Sandra Tavares in Portugal. We take that as an excuse to tell
The cork oak is a unique tree. It gives us not only wine corks – still the world’s most popular closure – but also a
An essential phase in grape ripening is what the French call le véraison. For lack of a better one, many other languages use the same
Now it is getting more and more tempting to have a glass of white wine for an aperitif. Or maybe with the food. The days
In 2009 the EU implemented a wine reform that structured wine in a few different groups. The intention was, and is, to harmonise the different
You can find some of Portugal’s best red and white wines in the Douro Valley. A renaissance has taken place in this region in the
Many a bottle of port will be opened over Christmas. We recommend some of our favourites. Fonseca Guimaraens Vintage Port 2008 (~30 euro). Fonseca is
We meet many fantastic and talented winemakers on our wine tours around the world. (You can watch video interviews with many of them on the
One of our very few autumn wine tours went to the Douro Valley in late October. All the winemakers we met agreed on one thing:
Almost all of the world’s most popular quality grape varieties have spread around the globe. But in the world’s top ten list of most planted
It is inevitable to be wow-ed when you come to the Douro Valley. It is one of the world’s most spectacular wine regions. These days
In October we have twice been in the Douro Valley. In this wonderfully beautiful region in northern Portugal, some of Portugal’s, even the world’s, most
People go to conferences for two main reasons. To get inspiration or learn things about their business. And to meet other people in the same
Very literally so this year, when Anselmo Mendes held a tasting on our much-anticipated spring equinox. Given the feel of Anselmo Mendes’ wines, it was
Portugal is a wonderful wine country in many ways. Not least because it is unrelentingly focusing on Iberian grape varieties. The only French grape that
Port wine is something people love to drink at Christmas time. It is true that a glass of Port goes well with chocolate, nuts, stilton
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
Portugal and Spain have also been hit hard by forest fires, just like the fires in California. A dry and hot October made it easy
A while back I had a few hours to spend in Lisbon. I was visiting Portugal to go to some oak forests and vineyards. (More
Just a few years ago, or perhaps mainly in the mid 90s and early 00s, corked wines were a big discussion subject. Some people reported
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