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WHEN Jock Tulloch hosted a tasting event to showcase his family's wines this year, he threw a party in Chiang Mai, Thailand, with a DJ, tapas and an upbeat vibe. "I didn't want anything stuffy," says the 31-year-old. "No sit-down dinner, long speeches or overdosing on technical jargon. Wine
should be fun."
Jock's childhood friend Lisa McGuigan would thoroughly approve. She describes her Tempus Two wines, with their pewter labels and curvy bottles, as a "fashion accessory". "It's a girl thing," she says, "just like choosing what to wear to dinner. You pick your Prada handbag, but which wine
will you take?"
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The leaders of the WA Wine Industry gathered to celebrate their own at the Chamber of Commerce & Industry WA Wine Industry Awards 2008 on November 21, held at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. The yearly event, hosted by Gerry Gannon, aims to recognise the quality performers in all aspects of the WA wine industry.
WIAWA Chief Executive Officer Sue Vidovich said the awards succeed in recognising excellence in all aspects of the wine industry, from viticulture through to tourism and exporting. “We are delighted at the standard of entries received this year, and love to celebrate our own at this event,” Mrs Vidovich said. “These awards aim to recognize excellence in all aspects of the wine industry and are reflective of what we aim to achieve - premium quality and excellence at every stage of the winemaking, marketing and selling process.”
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Saturday, November 8, 2008, 4 to 5:30 PM: Join us for a cozy afternoon of exquisite Tuscan wines at North Georgia's most beautiful winery. Noted Italian wine expert Michael Venezia, (Corporate Director Wine Education United Distributors, Atlanta) will be on hand to lead a guided tasting of some of Tuscany's finest vintages--including the 2006 Frescobaldi Pomino Bianco, Chardonnay; 2006 Lucente, and 2004 Tignanello. Guests will taste through six wines while Venezia discusses their origin and what makes each one special. Wines will be paired throughout the tasting with artisan cheeses and charcuterie. Cost to attend tasting is $60 per person.
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Local tradition has it that the only good wine is a red wine. With its first Bulgarian Wine of the Year competition, Bacchus, the Bulgarian magazine for wine and fine dining culture, has, in a way, set out to find if such is really true.
From October 1 2007 to September 15 2008, all registered Bulgarian wineries and winemakers were invited to submit what they consider their top blends and vintages of any style and made of any grape variety – as long as the wine was made on Bulgarian territory from grapes grown in the country according to legal norms.
To participate, the wines had to have appeared on the Bulgarian market between October 1 2007 and October 1 2008, and also to have been sent to Bacchus for evaluation (100-point scale) as part of the magazine's monthly Degustation rubric, having been published in the rubric between issues 98 and 109.
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Australian researchers believe they have cracked the key to the lucrative Chinese wine market, with a study of Chinese tastes.
The Australian Wine Research Institute found that most preferred Australian red wines over other international wines, and enjoyed light fruity flavours.
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It’s ironic, given the recent massive bailout of Wall Street in the guise of making nice to Main Street, that some of the best advice on inexpensive wines should come from The Wall Street Journal. “Tastings,” by Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher, recently examined Italian primitivos (often cited as kin to Zinfandel), and the second-favorite on their Dow Jones Primitivo Index was a Flaio 2006 Salento. It was $10.99. Forget the fickle barometers of bonds and not-so-securities; the Wine Index is a much more reliable bellwether of economic conditions.
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Many readers have requested that I include a mention of alcohol levels in my wine reviews. As much as space limitations allow, I try to do so.
More and more of you, it seems, are looking for wines that offer complex flavors at moderate alcohol levels. I've lost count of the number of winemakers who tell me that they are doing everything in their power to make wines that walk the thin line between unripe, vegetal flavors and jammy, alcoholic fruit-bombs.
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The city of Pensacola is gearing up to commemorate its 450th anniversary. In celebration of this historic time, I thought it would be a wonderful opportunity to feature the wine regions of Spain. Many other Spanish wines in the local market are unknown treasures made by small, independent family bodegas (wineries).
Some of the most influential importers of Spanish wines in this area are Jorge Ordonez and Classic Wines of Spain. Wines from these importers range in price from inexpensive to very pricey, but all offer solid quality and value.
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SIAL Paris 2008, the world summit for food and beverage decision-makers scheduled October 19-23, 2008, will feature a new Hall 7 for the expanded Wine and Fine Food sectors. Launched in 2006, the Wine sector draws more than 16,000 visitors and 154 exhibitors from 23 countries.
For the second time, the Best Buy selection in the Wine sector will allow visitors to discover wines that offer an outstanding value. These wines have been chosen by a panel of independent judges made up of leading figures from the wine world. There will be four categories based on the ex-cellar price: wines under €2, wines at €2-€4, at €4-€6 and at €6-€10. There will be a tasting area in the center of the wine section where visitors will be able to try more than 200 showcased wines from 14 countries.
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In northern Italy, you don't need to visit a big city to see spectacular art. Harriet O'Brien presents a cultural itinerary of frescos, paintings and sculptures – all off the beaten track
Why not 'art cities'?
From Roman ruins to Renaissance masterpieces and Baroque glories, Italy is so packed with sensational sights and art collections that it is difficult to know quite how to start choosing what to see. So we have stepped away from the big cities and centres such as Rome, Naples, Milan, Florence and Venice and have opted to take in several of the most atmospheric smaller art-venues of northern Italy, which is liberally endowed with amazing masterpieces. Finding a major work of art in a minor town is a fabulous and intrinsically Italian experience.
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A decade-old domestic wine industry in India is expanding rapidly as Indians acquire a taste for wine. But as Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi, high import duties continue to remain a barrier for foreign wine producers in the Indian market.
When corporate executives threw parties ten years ago, they only stocked whiskey, vodka and beer. But as a growing economy and increasing affluence changes tastes, middle and upper class Indians make sure they have wine to offer when friends come over.
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A WINE that can be bought off the bottleshop shelf for $17 was the star of the Cairns Show Wine Awards.
The 2005 Gramps Shiraz was awarded Champion Wine of the annual awards yesterday, with a host of other wines awarded gold, silver and bronze medals.
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Napa Valley wine maker who transformed the reputation of American wines by striving to enhance subtleties of flavour
Robert Mondavi, who died on Friday aged 94, played a leading part in the widespread growth in admiration for American wines, especially for the wines of the Napa Valley, California, where in the 1960s he established the Robert Mondavi Winery and did much to improve the wines produced there.
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Posted: May 1st, 2008, 11:05am CEST by Wine Atlas
I'm watching the sun rise over the Tuki vineyard as the harvest starts, all from the comfort of my own home. I'll not be putting in the hard graft with the pickers as I experience vintage activity vicariously via the webcam that's been monitoring proceedings at this Hawkes Bay vineyard.
Wine appears on the web in many guises, the most obvious being the recent explosion in bottles available to buy over the internet. From the virtual cellar doors of many wineries and the websites of a growing number of wine retailers, to 100 per cent online wine enterprises: wine is increasingly just a mouse click away.
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Posted: May 1st, 2008, 11:01am CEST by Wine Atlas
Barossa Valley, Australia
Jarrett Osborn, Riverwalk Wine & Spirits
April 30, 2008
Barossa Valley produces beautiful red wines, particularly shiraz. The 2006 Earthworks Shiraz is not as dark and rich as most from this region. Instead, it’s a nicely balanced, medium-bodied wine that still displays dark berry and light mint characteristics, with a teeny-tiny hint of toasty oak on the finish. Light acidity keeps the finish clean, while a meaty, earthy body makes this red anything but a lightweight.
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Enologist Menke counsels Colorado's vintners
Raising a glass of the 2006 Creekside Cellars Chardonnay, Colorado's official winemaking guru savors what he's tasting.
"I like the direction you're going with this," Steve Menke tells the winery's owner and winemaker, seated at a table with him. "I like the overall balance."
Creekside owner Bill Donahue pours a glass of his 2006 Viognier. Then, he utters a confession.
"We learned a lot from this particular bottle of wine," he tells Menke, who's sitting at the same table in Creekside's popular cafe here.
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In less than two weeks' time the 2008 Decanter World Wine Awards entry system will close. Wine producers all over the world have been sending in their top wines to be tasted - to date we have had more entries than ever before.
Our panel of world class judges are gearing up their palates for the medal winners that will surprise and delight them. The Decanter World Wine Awards is the only competition to judged on a regional level, hence its reputation as "THE ultimate terroir competition".
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Vintners held their annual "bake sale" last weekend at Premiere Napa Valley to raise money for the Napa Valley Vintners Association, and the price tags went a mite higher than what mom's cupcakes usually fetch. Try $62,000 for the top lot, five cases of Shafer Vineyards Sunspot Vineyard Cabernet, which was auctioned off to Ultimate Distributors from Atlanta, Ga. That breaks down to $1,033.33 a bottle.
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The 2008 Australian grape harvest is set to produce higher yields than first thought.
Mid-harvest figures suggest up to one-point-six million tonnes will be picked, up around four hundred thousand tonnes from earlier estimates.
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The world's fastest developing major economy is the new exporting target for a group of Marlborough wineries setting off to China next week.
New Zealand Wine global marketing manager Chris Yorke said the eight-day trip aimed to search for distributors and increase sales, as well as to push New Zealand wines as strong, premium wine brands.
Of the 23 wineries represented on the Shanghai trip 12 are from Marlborough: Omaka Springs, Forest Estate, Babich, Nobilo, Stoneleigh, Terrace Heights, Jackson Estate, Oyster Bay, Spy Valley, Tohu Wines, Villa Maria, and Staete Landt.
Seven of the Marlborough wineries also have company representatives making the journey.
Mr Yorke, who is leading the trip along with New Zealand Wine marketing executive Kate Garton, said it would be New Zealand Wine's first visit to China. He also said it would be the largest ever tasting of New Zealand wines in China, with 100 wines on the sampling menu.
The three-day trip involves a media conference, tastings and a restaurant dinner matching the New Zealand wines with Chinese cuisine.
Ruud Maasdam, owner and winemaker at Staete Landt Vineyards, said he was looking forward to the tour.
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