Douro Valley Wine Grower, Victor Marques says:

“To be considered organic, wine should be made from vines that are themselves organically produced ie without artificial fertilisers or pesticides.

It should contain no traces of:

pesticides, insecticides, herbicides and fungicides, industrial enzymes, industrial bacteria, industrial yeasts, colourants, preservatives, flavour enhancers, acids, sugar (other than occurring naturally from the grapes), fruit juice, fruit extracts, added water, wood chips, tannin powder, sulphites (other than those occurring naturally within the grapes) or any added chemicals whatsoever.”

Organic vines are cultivated in soil full of bacteria and worms where minerals are easily drawn from the soil. This in itself gives a certain protection against disease. In some organic vineyards, trees and other vegetation are planted between the vines. Plum trees, for, example are often planted in California. These attract wasps which in turn eat the leaf hoppers that could damage the vines. Nature has its own pesticides. Another example is bringing in myriads of ladybirds to eat up vine aphids. It general it is considered acceptable to put down salts such as copper sulphate.

So what is ‘Biodynamic’ then? It is an approach started by the pholosopher Rudolph Steiner with a series of eight lectures in 1924. It might be described as an approach more organic than organic. Natural fermented herbal preparations are added to compost. Not only are artificial fertilisers and pesticides avoided, but an attempt is made to align cultivation to earth and lunar rhythms. It might seem as wooly as Astrology, yet according to Wikepedia, a study carried out between 2009 and 2011 found that, amongst other things, Biodynamic farms had more earthworms and biodiversity than traditional farms.

Organic and Biodynamic growers have strict controls and certification. For Organic Ecocert in France, The Soil Association in England, CCOF in California. For Biodynamic Demeter looks after the certification of Biodynamic wine world-wide.

“Warry’s Warbles” – the wine newsletter is to feature regular special offers and news items of interest to wine enthusiasts.

A simple e-mailed special offer to existing customers yesterday brought an approximately 7% response in terms of orders in two days, highlighting the value that subscribing to these newsletters brings to our customers, with the great offers that are available at short notice. The newsletter will regularly feature such offers.

We are looking to expand the scope of the site by offering individual bottles as well as wine by the case offers. Cases have the advantage of FREE delivery, but individual bottles do give the opportunity of tasting before committing to that dozen quantity. The Newsletter will highlight great ones to try.

To encourage you to grab your regular copy of “Warry’s Warbles” we are offering a free introductory guide to wine and Food Pairing to all who subscribe by the 7th April. For your FREE Wine and Food Pairing Guide to start your free newsletter subscription simply click here.

Cheers,

Bill Warry

There I was one day several moons ago eating at the Red Lion with my friend Nicholas Collis. We’d brought some wines to be sampled and were drinking them with our food. We started discussing the relative merits of the different wines matching the food we were eating.

We chatted and tasted and had a little drop of this and a little drop of that, and commented how such a wine was nice but drowned by the dish and another blended well and at some point I said, “You know I think this discussion would have made quite an interesting video. Perhaps we could make one some time.”

I saw how popular the blog on food pairing was and also the one on choosing a wine to go with Christmas Turkey. The video idea kept coming back to me so it made sense to turn the idea into reality.

So here we are now with a series of five videos which will be published at little intervals. The first one is on choosing a wine to go with a delightful dish of cod loin and scallops with a buttery sauce. General principles of what goes with what are easy to lay out, but when it come to refining one’s choice, taking account of sauces, texture, strength of flavours, spiciness, leanness of meat: then for a perfect match there is a good deal of fine tuning to do.

In this series of videos, we show how one might evaluate what wine will make a perfect match for one’s diner party. Of course if you want a quick answer you could always email us to ask for our recommendation for matching a particular food: pairing@chateauselect.co.uk .

Here at Sirromet, things are different. This winery has hardly been going twelve years. It only opened in 2000. Yet it keeps winning award after award – both nationally and internationally. The wines command high prices – and people pay them. The Signature Collection – wines such as their Sirromet Shirraz Viognier and the Sirromet Viognier sell for 35 AU€ at the winery’s own cellar – that’s about £23.00. So you will see quite how much of a bargain it is to be able to buy for around £12 on our website here in the UK and, for an even shorter time, with a further 20% February discount – Just while an awareness of the wines is being built in the UK.

Just how do Sirromet achieve their extraordinary quality in twelve years flat? The terroir has got to have a lot to do with it. At their Mount Cotton Vineyards within the granite belt 800 meters above sea level, the cool weather combines with the granite soil to produce outstanding fruit from the vines.

But terroir alone is not enough to make superb wine. Human skill is needed too and Adam Chapman, the Chief Winemaker leads a whole expert team of oenologists dedicated to producing one award-winning wine after another.

There are some really interesting blends being produced, blends like Shiraz Viognier where a predominantly red wine has a touch of a white wine varietal. They also produce a very pleasant white single varietal Viognier. This itself has been achieving increasing popularity amidst wine aficionados. I remember being at a stand at a fair when someone stopped in their tracks and said “Oh Viognier. I must taste. It’s my favourite.”

Feedback from a customer trying out a special mixed case commented on the Shiraz Viognier, “Pick of the bunch for value, excellent value, got better with bottle left open for the evening.”.

 If you try out one new wine in February, I would urge you to try one of the Sirromets.

]]> http://www.chateauselect.co.uk/wineblog/2012/winemaking/sirromet-a-success-story/feed/ 0 http://www.chateauselect.co.uk/wineblog/2012/winemaking/rioja-crianza-%e2%80%93-best-rioja-or-a-good-rioja-quasar-from-bodegas-ondarre/ http://www.chateauselect.co.uk/wineblog/2012/winemaking/rioja-crianza-%e2%80%93-best-rioja-or-a-good-rioja-quasar-from-bodegas-ondarre/#comments Sat, 14 Jan 2012 22:34:52 +0000 Bill Warry http://www.chateauselect.co.uk/wineblog/?p=140 Continue reading →]]> So many Riojas from which to choose.  Which is the best Rioja to represent Rioja wines on my website? I am not looking for the best Rioja Spain produces; it will be too expensive for the bulk of my customers. Prices of Rioja are a cut above the average by their very nature. The regulatory body that gives them their DOC status requires that Rioja wines are produced with grapes costing 200% more than the average price of grapes used in Spanish wine production as a whole. I am not complicated. I am simply looking for a really good Rioja that also represents great value for money.

Many are the wine drinkers who will order Rioja when having a drink out, but you won’t learn about the subtleties of Rioja at a pub. Let’s consider a bit of background on the wine.

Rioja is a wine region in Northern Spain South of the Cantabrian Mountains which give protection from the fierce winds that frequently prevail in that part of the world. It is usually made from a blend of grapes,  Tempranillo being the most common. Viura, Garnacha, Graciana and Mazuelo varietals are also regularly included in Rioja blends.

Rioja is well known for its oaky characteristics. There are four categories of Rioja: Rioja, Rioja Crianza, Rioja Reserva and Rioja Gran Reserva. Rioja, plain and simple, will have spent less than a year in an oak-ageing barrel. Rioja Crianza will have been aged for at least two years with at least one in oak. Rioja Reserva will have been aged for at least three years with at least one in oak, and Rioja Gran Reserva will have been aged for five years or more with at least two in oak.

In selecting one Rioja, I feel a Crianza would be appropriate to adequately convey the oaky characteristics of a good Rioja wine. But it has to be a good Rioja. I am impressed to see that one Rioja producer making it to the American Wine Spectator’s Top 100 list for 2010 with 94 points out of a 100, is Bodegas Ondarre. I try their Quasar Crianza and compare to a variety of other Riojas. This is the one! In time I will probably expand to list the entry-level Rioja and the two Reservas as well. Try the Crianza for starters.  http://www.chateauselect.co.uk/shopping/product.php?productid=1352 .

It’s a nice, robust, warming wine – just right for these cold winter evenings and great with beef roasts and stews.

I have come to see Dominique Auzias, owner of the 150 hectare Chateau d’Auzias and Publisher of the Petit Futé series of travel guides throughout the world.

I am struck by his unassuming nature that, combined with a quiet dynamism, brought him to the forefront of French wine export to Japan, India and China. As well as exporting bottles from his winery in Carcassonne, he has even set up a substantial winery in China itself.

The wine he produces is called ‘Cabardes’ an AOC of fairly recent years that combines the quality of wines on the Atlantic coast such as Bordeaux with the Mediterranean-facing ones. The blend from wines from the same Vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot (Atlantic/Bordeaux style) and Syrah plus Grenache (Mediterranean style) brings about a lot of subtlety, softness and flavour. The blend is probably unique in France and typical to this region and this AOC (Appelation d’Origine Controllé). His white is also an interesting blend: Chardonnay and Muscat (10% Muscat), just enough to give it a lovely aroma of wild flowers and a softer edge over most Chardonnays.

At the Chateau he introduces me to his Estate Manager, Benjamin Baudry. Together they give me a conducted tour round the estate. We travel in a golf-style buggy.

They show me their technique of keeping grass on alternate rows between the vines (they rotate the rows each year). The long grass roots draw water up by capillary attraction and encourage the vines to grow their roots deeper and stronger in search of water.

Another natural technique I am shown along the way is the piling of pebbles along the foot of the vines. These capture the heat of the summer sun and act as a kind of solar blanket giving extra warmth to the vines.

We stop at an interesting small parcel of vines called “Les Vignes de Madame”. In this small plot, has been gathered one of each of three hundred grape varietals from around the world.

A remarkable feature of the Auzias wines is the amount of Gold and Silver medals they have won. His Japanese importer had told him “I don’t need to taste your wines, they have already been tasted and approved when they acquired all those medals”.

I certainly enjoyed them with our lunch. We had the wonderfully aromatic and flavoursome Chardonnay-Muscat as an aperitif and with our Whisky Gambas starter. Then with our steak, their range of reds. Although I delighted in the privilege of sipping away at their top of the range, it is the second one up that I see as commercially viable in the UK Once one has added the cost of transport and the government’s pleasure taxes (excise duties and VAT) , I guess the retail price will come out at £9 or £10 a bottle.

Lees are residues of dead yeast and other particles that fall to the bottom of a vat after fermentation. Frequently in a process known as “racking” wine is transferred from its original vat to another vat to leave these behind.

Different winegrowers use different techniques to weave their art of winemaking – which makes wine such a varied and interesting subject. Some winemakers bottle their wines without this process of racking. Such wines are known as “Sur lie” (on the lees) wine. Montrachet wine is one such  with its toasty , nutty, flavours and exceptional complexity.

Sometimes the lees are actually stirred up during fermentation to enhance the taste of the wine. This process is known as “batonage”.

As I recollect, many of the d’Arenberg wines do not go through the racking process, any kind of filtration or fining. “Fining” is a process of bringing clarity to wine by the use of agents or substances. A substance often used is “egg whites” which attract certain particles floating in the wine.

Clearly the more organic a wine maker is in his approach, the less he will be inclined to use any additives and the more likely an organic wine is to show signs of sediment.

So it is not so much a matter of “how did the lees get there” as why did the winemaker not remove them, through racking, filtration and/or fining. The answer is probably that leaving them is an integral part of the creation of the final taste of these well reputed Australian wines that have been made to lay down and age in the same way as are many Burgundy wines.

If the lees are found cosmetically unappealing, the simple answer is to filter the wine by pouring it into a decanter.

I never realised just how many deposits are left at the bottom of a vat until in a recent Wines and Tours trip to Portugal during a visit to a Port Lodge I was shown little doors at the bottom of the big vats.This was for someone to climb in and chisel out the deposits at the bottom and sides of the vat.  They can only stay in for a limited amount of time because it has been known for people to pass out on the job from the fumes.  To see for yourself why not join the next Wines and Tours trip to North Portugal (www.winesandtours.co.uk). It starts in Oporto on Thursday 26th July 2012. However, if that time is inconvenient, other trips start on Thursday 30th August and Thursday 27th September.

In France there are very strict rules (controlled by the Comité Interprofessionnel du Vin de Champagne) about what can and cannot be called Champagne. International treaties have extended many of the rules to all the EU, and many other countries have gone along with the geographical origin requirements, though the United States seem to go their own way and call many of their sparkling wines Champagne.

The rules and regulations extend not just to the Geographical boundaries of what can be labelled Champagne and the double fermentation technique, but also to the types of grape varietal that are permitted in the production of Champagne. These are principally, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Meunier, Petit Meslier and Arbane. There is one Champagne that is quite unique in that it uses all these varietals at the same time. It is the Moutard 6 Cepages.

Other areas of France that produce a sparkling with the same traditional method of double fermentation call them “Crémants”.

The Champagne area is well-known for the quality it produces, but is it worth the extra money its wines command? I have friends who swear by Champagne and won’t celebrate with anything else. Personally, I feel that some of the Crémants d’Alsace and Crémants de Bourgogne that I have tasted have been every bit as good as Champagnes costing several euros more. I also feel that New World countries, such as Argentina, produce some excellent value-for-money sparkling.

The tricky bit is brought about by all the trimmings that go with the turkey – the stuffing, the cranberry sauce, the herbs, the gravy. You have lots of strong flavours swirling around your mouth.

Whether white or red (or pink),  my recommendation is to go for a really fruity wine. An Australian hospitality magazine comments on the suitability of Riesling. Generally very fruity and aromatic, it is a highly suitable white for your festive dinner. I would recommend a nicely chilled Riesling Kabinett 2009 from the Geil Estate.  A lovely soft wine, quite light (10% ABV) with plenty of grapey flavour. For something a bit stronger (12% ABV) you might go for a Silvaner also from the Geil Estate with delightful aromas of pear and citrus.

For those who favour red, again go for nice robust fruity wines. Bordeaux are a traditional favourite. The world-renowned d’Arenberg wines are extremely fruity and eminently suitable. The Coppermine Road Cabernet Sauvignon is just bursting with flavours of blackcurrent and cassis. There is a special half price offer on during December at Bill Warry’s World of Wine. Select for a mixed case of d’Arenberg and Riesling A pleasant wine path to follow with your Christmas dinner would be to start off with a Riesling or Silvaner as an apperitif and with your starter, move on to Coppermine Rd with your Turkey, Port with Christmas pudding and finish off with Essensia Orange Muscat with coffee and chocolates. This is quite an extraordinary wine from California.

You should be ready for a siesta break by that time before starting on the trivial pursuit and other Christmas entertainments.

The reasons behind the general assumption that only white wines should be chosen with fish are first that fish dishes are usually lighter than meat dishes and need a light wine to accompany them. Now there are more light white wines than light red wines.

The other is that red wines often have strong tannins that give the fish a rather metallic taste. When you do go for a red wine to accompany your fish, choose a light one with unpronounced tannins, such as a Pinot-based Gamay, Sancerre or Beaujolais. If you do go for a more traditional white do try out Trivento’s Chardonnay Torrontes.

In some situations it is best to follow tradition without deviation. When it comes to the rich flavour and texture of beef, whether roast, grilled or stewed, it is hard to imagine any circumstance where the traditional choice of red would not be apt. A medium to full-bodied Burgundy or Cahors would be ideal though a slightly softer, rounder, Medoc or St Emillion would also be a suitable accompaniment. From the New World for a sound, robust, wine you might go for a  d’Arenberg Coppermine Road Cabernet Sauvignon or the lower-priced Fox & Hounds Shiraz-Cabernet.

It is such softer reds that are best suited to roast lamb or grilled lamb chops, though in summer a nice cold dry but fruity rosé can balance the fattiness of the lamb. Some meats: pork, chicken, turkey, go with a whole gamut of wines:- a dry Chablis, a rosé, a fine Aloxe Corton or Gevrey Chambertin from Burgundy. Again the new world has unexpected offerings such as Hazy View Pinotage from South Africa, Trivento’s Shiraz Malbec from Argentina or Head over Heals Shiraz from Australia.

Pasta also lends itself to pretty much any type of wine unless it has a creamy sauce such as Carbonarra. In this case a not too dry white would probably be best. The Portuguese D. Paio Velho Branco from the Douro Valley comes to mind. Riesling is another little-thought-of great choice that comes to mind. Try also the Riesling Kabinett 2009. Although dry, its intense fruitiness gives an impression of sweetness.

Liver and kidneys are very red-wine foods. Likewise sausages most of the time, but because these can be rather thirst-provoking, a crisp chilled white or rosé can be agreeably refreshing.

Cheese elicits a diversity of reaction. Port is a well-known accompaniment to Stilton. However, although I am in the camp that finds a bit of cheese and a glass of red to be a delightful finish to a good meal, many will prefer a flavour-filled white such as a Rheingau Riesling. I love the softness of Malbec and would consider Don David Malbec to be an excellent choice of red to go with cheese.

If you are planning a dinner and would like to ask for advice on suitable wines to go with your planned dinner, do not hesitate to ask via a comment to this blog.