Tag: Wine

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Saint Emilion…Worth a Trip

Saint Emilion

Travel 20 or so kilometers from the bustling city of Bordeaux and you’re surrounded by vineyards. Some of the world’s most famous vineyards, these were planted here in Roman times.

Spend a day in Saint-Emilion, exploring the UNESCO World Heritage Site, with its Eglise Monolithe. This church carved out of the rocky hillside in the 11th century is now one of the largest of its kind in Europe, with its underground caverns and catacombs.

For a true wine tasting experience, set up a wine tasting class where you will learn about the subtle differences in wines where the same type of grapes are grown only a few feet from each other.

Bottom of the slopes, gravel terraces, sandy soils, limestone, high, low…all produce a slightly different taste. Cru, Grand Cru, large estates, small estates, non-classified, Premier Cru…there’s so much to learn! But, it sure is fun.

We weren’t there long…we’ll be back.

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Cite du Vin and Porto

Press Release from Cite du Vin…

From 5 October 2018 to 6 January 2019, La Cité du Vin is hosting an exhibition paying homage to the exceptional viticultural landscape of the Porto region: Douro, an alchemy between air, land and river. Inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2001, the Upper Douro valley is distinguished by its singular beauty, bearing witness to the evolution of wine and human activity over time. Offering a sensitive and multidisciplinary approach, the exhibition highlights the development of a landscape heritage melding air, land and river, but above all man and nature.

Douro, an alchemy between air, land and river

Porto is one of the oldest appellations in the world. An exceptional viticultural region, surrounded by mountains and shaped by the hands of man into terraces on the steep slopes of the river banks. The exhibition Douro, an alchemy between air, land and river is an invitation to travel through the landscapes of the Douro and across time. A sensitive journey, in both sound and images, and resolutely contemporary, will reflect this special alchemy between the air, the land and the river that gave birth to the famous Port wine, not forgetting the great vineyard of classic wines produced in the region.
Conferences, tastings, themed visits and shows will accompany this original exhibition.

The Guest Vineyard temporary exhibition

Each autumn, the Foundation for Wine Culture and Civilisations gives a partner wine region or country the chance to present a “Guest Wine Region”. The aim is to let the public discover a wine-producing region through its culture and civilisation, in an original and aesthetic exhibition, accompanied by numerous cultural events.
Georgia, as the oldest wine region in the world, was the first Guest Wine Region in autumn 2017. This archaeological exhibition jointly organised with the Georgian state and the national museum of Tbilisi was a great success: more than 50 000 visitors discovered the historical richness and quality of the heritage of this country.

Douro, an alchemy between air, land and river will be the second exhibition dedicated to a Guest Wine Region, from 5 October 2018 to 6 January 2019.

Support the cultural seasons at La Cité du Vin with La Fondation pour la culture et les civilisations du vin: https://fondation.laciteduvin.com/en

About La Cité du Vin:

La Cité du Vin is a new-generation cultural site, unique in the world, where the soul of wine is expressed through an immersive and sensory approach at the heart of an evocative architecture. La Cité du Vin shows wine in a different way, across the world, across the ages, in all cultures and in all civilisations. It offers a permanent tour, temporary exhibitions, wine-culture workshops and numerous events. Visitors can book their tickets on the website www.laciteduvin.com and on the door.
In September 2018, La Cité du Vin is open daily from 10am to 6pm (monday to friday), and from 10am to 7pm (from saturday to sunday).

Ongoing events at La Cité du Vin:

  • Visit of the Permanent Tour with the interactive travel companion and a world wine tasting in the Belvedere.
  • A rich and varied cultural programme, with a steady stream of high-quality performances, concerts, screenings and debates.

Check it out…sounds like a great trip.

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Champagnes, Cavas, Proseccos, and Sparkling Wines…Oh My

Italian Sparkling Wines

Moscato d’Asti

This is a sweet, sparkling wine from the Piedmont region of Northern Italy. Made with Moscato grapes in the Asti region, this is a white wine.

Brachetto d’Acqui

This one is made from the Brachetto grape near Acqui Terme. It is a rose wine.

While both of these can be too sweet for most people, good ones make a great aperitif or with dessert.

Lambrusco

This one is making a comeback. This sparkling red wine can be off dry. Pair it with Prosciutto di Parma and Parmigiano Reggiano. It comes from the Emilia Romagna region of Italy.

Prosecco

Made from the Glera grape in Italy in the Charmat method, Prosecco is a favorite bubbly of mine.

Because it is not aged “sur lie” as Champagne is, the flavors of Prosecco tend to be simpler and less complex. If you don’t want the sweeter version which comes to mind, look for the DOCG on the neck label.

This is not bottle fermented. Bubbles are light and frothy.

 

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Champagnes, Cavas, Proseccos, Sparkling Wines…Oh My

Champagne

Not all bubbly is created equal, so while “champagne” is often used as a general term to describe all sparkling wine, true Champagne can only come from the small northern region of Champagne, France. world of sparkling wine.

GRAPES OF CHAMPAGNE

Historically, Champagne has been characterized by the fact that is blended in every sense: a blend of grapes, a blend of vintages and a blend of regions. While this is now not always the case, it is true that each of the three major grapes of Champagne contributes its own attributes to a wine.

Chardonnay

As the only major white grape in Champagne, Chardonnay has quite the category to represent, and represent it does. It contributes elegance, ageability and bright citrus flavors to Champagne blends. As 100 percent Chardonnay, this is called blanc de blanc.

Pinot Noir

Because Champagne is such a cold region, Pinot Noir needs to be planted in areas that allow it to ripen fully. Champagnes with a lot of Pinot Noir can be fairly broad and in your face.

Pinot Meunier

Pinot Meunier (also simply known as Meunier) is known for its aromatics and approachable fruit, acting as a bit of flavor-packed seasoning in Champagne blends. While formerly a rarity, some producers now specialize in 100 percent Pinot Meunier Champagnes.

Then there are the different types…

Blanc de Blancs

Blanc de blancs literally translates to “white from whites,” or Champagne made only from white grapes. Since Chardonnay is the only major white grape grown in Champagne, blanc de blancs wines are almost always 100 percent Chardonnay.

Blanc de Noirs

Blanc de noirs, or “white from black,” is the opposite of blanc de blancs. This is a white Champagne made from the red grapes Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier (either blended together or from a single grape). Blanc de noirs Champagnes can have a silver or even rose-gold color, due to the slight skin contact.

Rosé Champagne

With the rise of the popularity of rosé has come the rise in popularity of rosé Champagne. Interestingly, Champagne is one of the only regions in the world where rosé may be made by blending red and white base wine. I like this one when done right.

You might wonder about dosage, a term you hear or read.

Dosage

Dosage is a mixture of sugar syrup and wine that is added to a Champagne right before permanently corking it for sale. While no- or low-dosage Champagnes are uber-trendy these days, the purpose of dosage is to balance acidity, so every Champagne needs something different. The wine is then labeled with a sweetness level, ranging from bone dry (Brut Nature and Extra Brut) to dry (Brut) to off-dry and sweet (Extra Dry, Sec, Demi-Sec, and Doux).

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Champagnes, Cavas, Proseccos, and Sparkling Wines…Oh My

Cava

I like Cava, but keep in mind some earlier exports were not what I’m drinking today. Spain’s sparkling wines can be extremely high quality, but historically the ones that were exported to the U.S. were not the nation’s best.

Cordoniu is a quality producer with a fairly large production that is widely available. Another is Freixenet, one of my personal favorites. These are also made in the Methode Champenoise, and many are aged even longer than Champagne is.

The principal grapes are Xarello, Macabeo and Parellada, but many others can be used as well.

You will find fine bubbles in this bottle fermented wine. Sweetness levels range from Brut Nature to Dolce…dry to sweet.

 

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Champagnes, Cavas, Proseccos, and Sparkling Wines…Oh My

Blanquette de Limoux

Hailing from Limoux, a small sub-region of the Languedoc in southern France, this wine is also made in the Méthode Champenoise. Used is primarily the Mauzac, a local grape also known as Blanquette.

Crémant de Limoux is from the same region, but made primarily from Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc. Both are great choices.

Limoux is one of the oldest sparkling wine-producing regions in France – dating to 1531.

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Champagne, Cava, Prosecco, and Sparkling Wine…Oh My

For me, bubbles in a glass are a favorite. I like most all Champagnes, Cavas, Proseccos, and Sparkling Wines…as long as they’re not sweet. Over the next few posts, I will give you some information about each one. Let me know your favorites.

American Sparkling Wines

In the US we don’t have any laws about what grapes can be included in what wines, so technically just about anything could be used.

Having said that, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are the most common choices. Some are made in the Methode Champenoise, but many are not.

In general, cooler growing regions are better bets because the acidity in the grapes is preserved. That means parts of Northern California and upstate New York are great places with this climate. However, New Mexico produces a fantastic sparkling wine. Yes, New Mexico.

 

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Cite du Vin

Following the success of the major temporary exhibition Bistro! From Baudelaire to Picasso in 2017, La Cité du Vin will be presenting Wine and Music, harmony and dissonance (16th – 19thcentury) from 23 March to 24 June 2018.

The exhibition will include 150 works (paintings and pottery, music books, models, instruments, stage jewellery, etc.) from regional, national and European collections, as well as a selection of musical works (operas, ballets, drinking songs) illustrating the association between wine and music, based on themes ranging from the mythical to the profane, epicurean to moralistic. This original exhibition will be accompanied by a wide and eclectic cultural programme.

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A broad range of themes :

During the Renaissance period and the late 19th century there were numerous representations of wine and music, with inspiration taken from Antiquity. Such evocations appeared in new forms in every social category, whether princely, bourgeois or common.

The exhibition pays tribute to this diversity and is based on six themes (Dionysus, wine and music – Dance, bacchanal, ballet and the open-air ball – Love and intoxication – Figures and allegories – Home concerts and gracious tables – Banquets, taverns and cabarets).

The exhibition brings together all musical forms and artistic mediums, from court ballets to opera, from drinking songs to dance tunes, from paintings to tableware and popular imagery.

At the beginning of each section, an old work evokes the historical depth of the subject and the reference to ancient myths. Dionysus, followed by Bacchus, incarnated intoxication, sensual pleasures, fertility and creativity. The allegory of music is often associated with love, sensuality and wine.

The tour is accompanied by a soundtrack.

Eight individual listening points and three communal listening cabinets play excerpts from musical works (ballets by Lully, Rameau, Massenet, Duvernoy, etc.), videos of great operatic arias (Puccini, Verdi) and unique recordings of drinking songs.

The scientific committee with Florence Gétreau

The curator of the exhibition is Florence Gétreau, Director Emeritus of Research at the CNRS, Institute for Research in Musicology. Florence Gétreau is an art and musicology historian, working as Heritage Curator until 2004 (Museum of Music, Museum of Popular Arts and Traditions) and has directed two research teams at the CNRS.

An accessible exhibition, open to all

The layout and choice of works presented are suitable for all audiences. The explanatory texts are presented in different parts (by theme, group of works or major works), helping visitors in their discovery of the different sections. Some collections of sketches,

manuscripts and other written collections are presented on digital displays for visitors to browse.

A special tour has been designed for young people. Through an accompanying booklet and a selection of key exhibits, they will discover the history of instruments and musical genres, and the variety to be found in sets, costumes and stage jewellery.

Original scenography

The scenography was designed by architect-scenographer Loretta Gaïtis, who has also created projects for the Musée d’Orsay, Grand Palais and the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

The exhibition progresses through an atmosphere of warm colours, structured by breaks and musical interludes. Extracts from sheet music, books and etchings provide the backdrop for the scenography. Different perspectives and transparencies gradually reveal the items on display, showcased behind glass using light effects. Three musical cabinets blend naturally into the exhibition, inviting visitors to immerse themselves in the sounds of both familiar or original works.

Events during the exhibition period

La Cité du Vin is also offering an eclectic cultural programme in connection with the exhibition (the full cultural programme can be viewed at: laciteduvin.com) with conferences, symposiums, concerts, “Culinary cinema” screenings, workshops, guided tours and tastings etc. A small stage for musical performances has been included in the exhibition space.

An exhibition catalogue will be published by Éditions Gallimard.

This exhibition is brought to you with the support of the Bibliothèque nationale de France.

This exhibition is brought to you with the support of thecultural season Patrons of La Cité du Vin:

  • Bellot
  • CIC / CM-CIC Investissement
  • Castel
  • Clarence and Anne Dillon Trust
  • Keolis Bordeaux Métropole
  • Château Kirwan
  • Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite)
  • Duclot

With the support of La Maison de Champagne Krug.

In partnership with France Musique, live from La Cité du Vin on 23 and 24 March 2018, and Le Figaro.

Practical information

The exhibition Wine and Music, harmony and dissonance – 23 March – 24 June 2018

  • La Cité du Vin – 1, esplanade de Pontac – 33300 Bordeaux – France
  • Exhibition cost: €8 (full rate)
  • Combined ticket for the Permanent Tour with the interactive travelling companion (including a tasting of world wine in the Belvedere) and the exhibition: €24 (full rate)

The exhibition press kit and related cultural programme is available upon request. Visuals and acknowledgements may be sent upon request.

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Support the cultural seasons at La Cité du Vin with the Fondation pour la culture et les civilisations du vin:

Individuals and companies can support La Cité du Vin’s cultural events. Thanks to donations from Patrons and Friends, the Fondation pour la culture et les civilisations du vin, an officially recognised non-profit organisation, provides a rich and varied cultural programme all year round at La Cité du Vin, informing and enlightening as many people as possible about the millennial culture of wine and helping to protect this intangible and universal heritage.

=> As a company – by joining the Patrons of the cultural season from €5,000/year.

=> As an individual – with the ‘Friend’s Card’ (for a donation of €250/year), or the ‘Benefactor’s Card’ (for a donation of €1,000/year).

=> As an international donor – by joining the American Friends or International Friends of La Cité du Vin.

About La Cité du Vin:

La Cité du Vin is a unique cultural facility located in Bordeaux, dedicated to wine as a cultural, universal and living heritage. It offers a spectacular journey around the world, through the ages and in all cultures. Visitors can purchase tickets at www.laciteduvin.com and at La Cité du Vin.

 

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Champagne…More Than Just a Celebration Drink

The first documentation of using the Champagne method to make sparkling wine appeared in the 1600s, and many of today’s most well-known Champagne houses, including Taittinger, Moët & Chandon, and Ruinart, were founded in the 1700s.

The Champagne appellation was formally created in 1936. Major houses launched marketing campaigns in the United States that portrayed Champagne as the ultimate luxury beverage for celebrations and aperitif-style sipping. Today, many Americans use the word Champagne to mean any and all sparkling wines.

Because of a combination of place, soils, grapes, and the Champagne process, Champagne is one of the most unique beverages in the world. Vintages vary dramatically due to the region’s marginal climate. For example, the differences between Champagne’s 61 Grand and Premier Cru villages are vast. Specific vineyards within those villages have unique terroirs, some of which are small, even tiny, parcels with completely different soils and aspects than those just next door.

Champagne has just three key grape varieties, with seven permitted in total. In addition, decisions about viticulture, aging, and blending create a huge variety of finished wines to study and dissect. Think of blanc de blanc, blanc de noir, rose, cuvee…

This diversity is one of the reasons why a Champagne-only pairing menu can emphasize the wine’s overall food-friendliness. With a combination of refreshing acidity and palate-cleansing bubbles, Champagne pairs with foods ranging from raw oysters to fried chicken, and everything in between. Those bubbles are not only lively to look at and refreshing to drink, but they offer you a drink relatively low in alcohol and fairly high in acidity.