Grenache is one of my all time favorite grapes and wines, whether it be pure or a blend. While it has many homes (and styles) such as Australia, the US (Paso Robles) and Spain (as Garnacha), there’s no question that there’s no place like Southern Rhone as anyone who has enjoyed a top bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape (CdP) or Grenache-Syrah-Mouvedre (GSM) can testify. Even the very affordable and everyday Cotes du Rhone style offers up wonderful wines.
If you’re looking for a vibrant and fruity summertime wine, look no further than its rose version and one the other side of the weight scale lies Banyuls, that full flavored fortified dessert wine. I take it that you’re already picking up how diversified this wine can be but I’m getting a little ahead of myself here.
Grenache, as you’ve read, goes by many different names: Garnacha in Spain, Alicante, Carignane Rousse, Roussillon (France) and Cannonau (Italy). As you’ve also seen, there are many styles from which to chose from the light rose to the hefty Banyuls. The great thing about Grenache is its proclivity toward blending with other Southern Rhone grapes such as Syrah, Mouvedre, Carignan, Cinsault, and Counoise to provide added complexity to the wine.
“In a great terroir, what seems impossible, is possible,” Axel Heinz, Director of Winemaking, Tenuta dell’ Ornellaia ,referring to the 2009 Masseto.
If your impression of Merlot is one of an everyday red, enjoyable, friendly and one dimensional but indistinguishable one to the other, I would challenge you to take a sip of the Italian great Masseto, produced at the Tenuta dell’Ornellaia estate, and not be blown away at what Merlot can be.
This will not be a chemistry lesson, I promise. But I have been a chemist and I do have a Master’s Degree in teaching chemistry. So if I do stray towards the technical, please forgive me. I will try to put this into layman’s language even if it’s not exactly, technically, correct.
First, I know of no scientific study which relates sulfur in wine (in any of its organic forms) to headaches. A lot of “urban legion,” but no science.
Without debate, Masseto, made of 100% Merlot, is one of world's finest and most coveted wines. A blend from three separate sections of the Masseto hill and aged for 36 months, the wine world always waits with baited breath for the new release. The 2009 will be released sometime this year and based upon my tasting, it's another winner with soft rounded edges and incredible fruits.
In this video, Axel talks about the Merlot grape, the Masseto hill and its soils and the importance of its proximity to the Tyrrhenian sea.
A new study, conducted by research centers at the Universities of Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto, has found evidence that moderate wine consumption may offer some protection to women against breast cancer, but only women with a certain genetic mutation. However, women with a different mutation, such as the mutated BRCA gene, may be at greater risk by consuming alcohol. A normal BRCA gene usually acts as a tumor suppressor. The study has been published in the Canadian journal, The Breast Journal. "The mechanism by which alcohol increases breast cancer risk is poorly understood. Likewise, reasons why wine may be protective are unclear," says lead author and researcher Jessica Dennis.
A total of 857 breast cancer patients participated in the experiment, including 10 BRCA1 and 33 BRCA2 mutation carriers. Lifestyle choices were recorded, including alcohol consumption. The scientists examined the age at which each participant was diagnosed with breast cancer and attempted to relate it to alcohol consumption.
Chances are when you think of alternative bottle closure systems, you think of New Zealand or Australian screw caps. But don’t think that the importance of reliable closures has been lost on more established wine markets such as France where the reputation of prestigious estates producing high end wine is always front and center.
With of risk of “tainted” wine estimated at 5-10%, often due to faulty cork closures, world renown Chateau Margaux has been experimenting with alternative closures for nearly ten years. Paul Pontallier, the managing director of Château Margaux, acknowledges that the problem is a stubborn one, concerned that the work in producing a great wine can be ruined by a cork. The result is that the Chateau has examined alternative systems: screw caps and synthetic corks (which were discarded as they were exceptionally poor choices) for both reds and whites.
In a move that will just continue to confuse the wine consumer, new organic wine standards have been introduced both in the US and EU and centers around one tiny component……….sulfites in the amount of 100ppm! But on the label, only the claim of “organic wine” (vs. wine made with organic grapes) can display the easy-to-understand, green USDA Organic seal that helps producers attract customers seeking “green” products. The distinction has sparked a battle between winemakers over what organic wine should be.
The European Union, as of the 2012 harvest, will allow winemakers to use the label "organic wine." (Previously, only "wine made from organic grapes" was permitted). In early February, an EU committee agreed upon standards for organic winemaking practices—including the allowed addition of some sulfites.
In and around Bordeaux, more than 12 chateaux are in various stages of acquisition by Chinese investors, according to the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce (CCIB), the most recent of which was Chateau du Grand Moueys purchased from its German owner by Zhang Jinshan.
These investors, however, are not just buying wine estates as novelty. Many of them are serious about wine as a craft and as a business. They’re interested in the cellars and they surround themselves with knowledgeable wine experts. Their goal is to improve the wine.
Renown for their research and advances in plant genetics, biodiversity, and plant breeding, researchers at University of California, Davis hope that they are one step closer to discovering a cure for Pierce’s Disease. Pierce’s is caused by the bacteria Xylella fastidiosa which is carried by the sharpshooter insect. Once the sharpshooter infects the vines, the bacterium clogs the vine water transport system. The vine develops yellow-brown leaves and dies within a few years. Thus far, there is no known cure.
Researchers, fusing two genes both responsible for immune responses in the vine, inserted the new hybrid into the vine. They discovered that the sap from the vine now recognized the bacterium invader as foreign and destroyed its outer membrane causing it to die. Vines engineered to carry the new hybrid demonstrated far less leaf scorching and xylem (responsible for water transport) clogging hinting at increased resistance to Pierce’s.
A survey commissioned by the German wine trade fair Prowein, found that the majority of Chinese oenophiles said their ideal alcohol content in wines would be between 8.5 to 10.5 percent by volume. The average bottle of wine contains between 12.5 and 14.5 percent alcohol.
That percentage dips even lower among young, female Chinese drinkers aged 18 to 39, who said their preferred level of alcohol would be between 5.5 to 8 percent -- just a little higher than the average alcohol level of beer.
Grenache is one of my all time favorite grapes and wines, whether it be pure or a blend. While it has many homes (and styles) such as Australia, the US (Paso Robles) and Spain (as Garnacha), there’s no question that there’s no place like Southern Rhone as anyone who has enjoyed a top bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape (CdP) or Grenache-Syrah-Mouvedre (GSM) can testify. Even the very affordable and everyday Cotes du Rhone style offers up wonderful wines.
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