Learn more about wine with our fact-filled articles under the heading ”wine school”. On how to make wine, on wine regions, on grape varieties, on tasting wine and much, much more. Facts about the wonderful world of wine. Everything from in-depth technical articles on viticulture and winemaking to tasting tips to learn more about flavours and characters.
Many people are familiar with cava, and many have gotten used to the fact that it is affordable bubbles, good to have when money is tight or the number of guests is large. But the
Vranec, or vranac, is a grape that almost only exists in the Balkans. It has an intense colour, intense fruit with blackberries and other dark fruit and very present tannins. Wines made from vranec are
Mousiness, or a mousy wine, is a relatively “new” wine fault. Going back a decade or a bit more, it was rarely talked about. Maybe it didn’t even exist. Today, it is more common, partly
Nebbiolo has changed over the years, not least in the last 40 years. Its world fame is rather recent. Its most famous wines, Barolo and Barbaresco, triumphed on the export market from the 1980’s. Before
Biodynamic viticulture is a topic that often stirs up emotions. Sometimes positive, it’s a trendy segment today. Sometimes negative, especially for those trying to understand how it works. Whatever one thinks, there is no doubt
You’ve probably heard it before. “How do you make a small fortune in wine? You start with a big fortune.” Looking at the list of France’s riches people, this seems to be only partially true.
Gamay is the grape in Beaujolais. It is a charming grape, easy to recognise with a fruitiness that few other grapes can beat. Gamay produces an easy-drinking, berry-like wine, sometimes a little spicy, often unpretentious,
A wine grower always keeps an eye on the weather report. As we now enter the month of May, you would think that the risk of spring frost is over for the winegrowers in France.
At what point can you be considered a wine expert? Is it when you have such good “theoretical” knowledge that you can place Bordeaux chateaux on a blind map and know which river flows through
The organic wine producers spray with copper to combat the fungal disease downy mildew, mildiou. (Many conventional—not organic—also spray with copper, but they may also use synthetic pesticides.) But, of course, they want to use
We missed an important anniversary by a few months. In 2022, it was 200 years ago that Louis Pasteur was born. Pasteur is a person that every wine lover must honour. His importance to the
The Old World and The New World. The wine industry has lived with these expressions for quite a few years. And it is convenient. It was natural to call the countries outside Europe The New
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
In 2016, the Pessac-Léognan appellation in northern Graves in Bordeaux changed its rules to allow irrigation during severe drought. Irrigation is a much-discussed topic in France today, and as the hot and dry summers continue,
The Michelangelo International Wine and Spirits Awards is one of the big wine competitions in South Africa with a few thousand entries. I was part of the jury, the people tasting and judging the wines,
Virtually all appellations in Europe have rules that limit the yield, such as “the maximum yield is 45 hectolitres per hectare”. The theory behind this is often said to be that “a high yield gives
There is a lot of talk about which grape varieties will best adapt to climate change. However, less is said about the (“American”) rootstocks, although they do all the work in the soil. Whenever a
When we travel through wine regions these days, we often see grass/weeds growing in the vineyard. And if you look at the statistics, the use of herbicides, i.e. chemical weed control, has decreased. But wine
Old grape varieties, more or less forgotten, are now being honoured again. A variety called lignage was grown before the phylloxera around the city of Blois in the Loire Valley and produced wines with high
Prosecco is today the world’s most-sold and most-consumed sparkling wine, with some 700 million bottles. It is made in the north-eastern corner of Italy in a region called Prosecco. Most of it is a light,
By using the new genetic technology CRISPR-CAS, Chilean scientists have produced a grape that is resistant to oidium, a fungal disease. The grape in question is Thompson seedless, a table grape, so not relevant in
Alsace now has its first grand cru wines made with pinot noir. Until now, the Alsatian red grape has been banned from grand cru wines. But not anymore. At least not from two of them.
Fitou is Languedoc’s southernmost appellation. In the past, this was the frontier between Languedoc and Spain. Today, it is the French region of Roussillon that is on the other side of the border. It is
Winegrowers all over France, yes, all over the world, organic as well as conventional, spray the vines with copper against the severe fungal disease downy mildew (mildiou). There are, regretfully, very few realistic alternatives to
Today, 45 different “resistant” grape varieties are permitted to be planted in France. And so far, they have been planted on 1,200 hectares. There is an interest among winegrowers to plant these grape varieties that
Sherry is back in fashion. Perhaps. In any case, many are trying hard to breathe new life into this old venerable wine. When the sherry region modernised its rules in 2021, it received some attention.
The mission grape was brought to California in the 18th century. It had already been grown in Mexico and South America since the 16th and 17th centuries, where Spanish missionaries planted it. The Spanish name
Champagne had a successful year – commercially – in 2021, with a record turnover and excellent sales also in volume, a stark contrast from the meagre 2020. From a grower’s perspective, it was a more
It is interesting to look at in what kind of “container” wine is exported: bottle, bag-in-box, or bulk. This gives quite a clear indication of the price and quality level of the wines. A country
The average price per litre of wine exported was 2.80 euro in 2020. This is back-of-the-envelope calculations based on the data in our article on export volumes and values. Actually, I think this is a
Many people are familiar with cava, and many have gotten used to the fact that it is affordable bubbles, good to have when money is
Vranec, or vranac, is a grape that almost only exists in the Balkans. It has an intense colour, intense fruit with blackberries and other dark
Mousiness, or a mousy wine, is a relatively “new” wine fault. Going back a decade or a bit more, it was rarely talked about. Maybe
Nebbiolo has changed over the years, not least in the last 40 years. Its world fame is rather recent. Its most famous wines, Barolo and
Biodynamic viticulture is a topic that often stirs up emotions. Sometimes positive, it’s a trendy segment today. Sometimes negative, especially for those trying to understand
You’ve probably heard it before. “How do you make a small fortune in wine? You start with a big fortune.” Looking at the list of
Gamay is the grape in Beaujolais. It is a charming grape, easy to recognise with a fruitiness that few other grapes can beat. Gamay produces
A wine grower always keeps an eye on the weather report. As we now enter the month of May, you would think that the risk
At what point can you be considered a wine expert? Is it when you have such good “theoretical” knowledge that you can place Bordeaux chateaux
The organic wine producers spray with copper to combat the fungal disease downy mildew, mildiou. (Many conventional—not organic—also spray with copper, but they may also
We missed an important anniversary by a few months. In 2022, it was 200 years ago that Louis Pasteur was born. Pasteur is a person
The Old World and The New World. The wine industry has lived with these expressions for quite a few years. And it is convenient. It
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
In 2016, the Pessac-Léognan appellation in northern Graves in Bordeaux changed its rules to allow irrigation during severe drought. Irrigation is a much-discussed topic in
The Michelangelo International Wine and Spirits Awards is one of the big wine competitions in South Africa with a few thousand entries. I was part
Virtually all appellations in Europe have rules that limit the yield, such as “the maximum yield is 45 hectolitres per hectare”. The theory behind this
There is a lot of talk about which grape varieties will best adapt to climate change. However, less is said about the (“American”) rootstocks, although
When we travel through wine regions these days, we often see grass/weeds growing in the vineyard. And if you look at the statistics, the use
Old grape varieties, more or less forgotten, are now being honoured again. A variety called lignage was grown before the phylloxera around the city of
Prosecco is today the world’s most-sold and most-consumed sparkling wine, with some 700 million bottles. It is made in the north-eastern corner of Italy in
By using the new genetic technology CRISPR-CAS, Chilean scientists have produced a grape that is resistant to oidium, a fungal disease. The grape in question
Alsace now has its first grand cru wines made with pinot noir. Until now, the Alsatian red grape has been banned from grand cru wines.
Fitou is Languedoc’s southernmost appellation. In the past, this was the frontier between Languedoc and Spain. Today, it is the French region of Roussillon that
Winegrowers all over France, yes, all over the world, organic as well as conventional, spray the vines with copper against the severe fungal disease downy
Today, 45 different “resistant” grape varieties are permitted to be planted in France. And so far, they have been planted on 1,200 hectares. There is
Sherry is back in fashion. Perhaps. In any case, many are trying hard to breathe new life into this old venerable wine. When the sherry
The mission grape was brought to California in the 18th century. It had already been grown in Mexico and South America since the 16th and
Champagne had a successful year – commercially – in 2021, with a record turnover and excellent sales also in volume, a stark contrast from the
It is interesting to look at in what kind of “container” wine is exported: bottle, bag-in-box, or bulk. This gives quite a clear indication of
The average price per litre of wine exported was 2.80 euro in 2020. This is back-of-the-envelope calculations based on the data in our article on
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