This is an archive version of the newsletter previously published in another format.
Welcome to the first issue of my monthly email newsletter, “BKWine Brief”. In my activity, WineTastings Britt Karlsson, I do tastings and wine courses in France, Benelux and Scandinavia and organise wine tours in French wine regions.
Through my monthly newsletter I aim to bring you personal suggestions (on my favourite wines, wine shops, useful internet addresses and wine bars & restaurants throughout Europe), interesting wine industry news, as well as an update on my activities in case you want to join us in a tasting or on a tour to a wine region to enjoy and learn more about wine.
News, Views and Recommendations
Recommendations – a selection from what we have tasted, visited or enjoyed recently
Producers:
Chateau Roubine, Provence, France: A very interesting and ambitious producer who is not relying on bland rosés to make its reputation. A good range of wines with particularly interesting whites. And actually a good rosé made from Tibouren grapes. Prices around €10 depending on the cuvee. More info on their site www.chateau-roubine.com or on www.rivieralink.com (Swedish only).
Domaine Coupe-Roses, Minervois, France: Well made and interesting wines. Several different cuvees, for example their base wine sold in one-litre bottles and very good value. Price: €4-15 depending on cuvee. For example, the Cuvee Orience, full of fruit made from Syrah (£7.75 from www.harlequinwines.co.uk).
Claude Courtois, Sologne, France: One of the ”new wave” of biodynamic producers. Makes several different cuvees of excellent wines, e.g. two full-bodied Sauvignon Blanc wines with lots of citrus freshness: ‘Agathe’ (12.60€) and ‘Plume d’Ange’ (13.80€), available at Lafayette Gourmet, address see below. Also at the restaurant La Grange in Boulogne-Billancourt, near Paris (34bis, quai Alphonse Le Gallo, 92100 BOULOGNE, 01 46 05 22 38) that we’ll come back to here soon.
Wine Shops
If you don’t have the time to travel to wine country, at least you can try a new wine shop. Some suggestions:
– – Paris:
Le Nez Rouge, 11 r Alexandre Cabanel, 75015 Paris (Metro Cambronne), +33 (0)1 47 34 87 40: One of the few wine shops in Paris with a good selection of foreign wines. They are also good at smaller, not-so-well-known French producers. Try for example Domaine de Triennes (see below). www.le-nez-rouge.com
Galeries Lafayette – Lafayette Gourmet, boulevard Hausmann, 75009 Paris, +33 (0)1 48 74 15 35: A department store is not the first place to think of when it comes to buying wine. But the wine shop at GL has an exceptional selection. And even a penchant for biodynamic producers.
– – Stockholm:
Systembolaget Hötorgshallen, Stockholm: If you happen to go to Stockholm this is the most pleasant place to shop for wine. It’s still the Monopoly of course, but you won’t necessarily feel accused of unsocial behaviour by shopping there. And it’s in one of Stockholm’s best food halls.
– – The Web:
Fine Wine World: A French on-line shop with only foreign (non-French) wines. A good selection from many interesting countries. See also tasting note below on Jordan. www.fine-wine-world.com
Wine Bars and Restaurants
– – Paris:
Sur un Arbre Perché, 1 r Quatre Septembre, 75002 Paris, +33 (0)1 42 96 97 01: A small resto close to La Bourse. Kitchen inspired by international « fusion » with exotic ingredients. The interior is designed using old wood from disaffected barns in northern Sweden (www.arvesund.se). The wine list is designed with the help of WineTastings Britt Karlsson: short and interesting.
L’AOC, 14 r Fossés St Bernard 75005 Paris, +33 (0)1 43 54 22 52: Close to the Institut du Monde Arabe. Classic French cuisine – very well made and nicely presented by la patronne or her staff. As the name suggests, also a good wine list.
– – Stockholm:
Gondolen’s Wine Bar, Stadsgården 6, 104 65 Stockholm, tel: +46 (0)8-556 960 66, www.eriks.se: Many wines by the glass, both reasonably priced and very expensive.
Bits and pieces
Chateau Margaux sold: Corinne Mentzelopoulos regains full control of Chateau Margaux buying back what she did not own from the Agnelli family. The chateau is now back in the hands of the family that revived its reputation in the mid 70s. The value of the deal was not disclosed but the whole property is estimated to be worth 300-400 million euro.
Jean-Pierre Moueix dies: Friday March 28 Jean-Pierre Moueix died at the age of 90. He founded one of the most influential wine empires in Bordeaux, one that controls properties such as Petrus, Trotanoy, Latour-à-Pomerol and Magdelaine.
What wine with chocolate?: At BKWine’s and Le Cercle Suédois’ recent Wine-With-Chocolate tasting general consensus was that Banyuls goes very well, as does Madeira. To dark and therefore not so sweet chocolate you can try a Madiran (!). Beer did not mix well at all with chocolate though. Some were also very enthusiastic about the combination with Malt Whisky.
Domaine Huet in Vovray in American hands: One of the most famous producers of Vouvray (Loire) wines, Domaine Huet, was, according to our information, recently sold to a consortium of an American investor and one of Hungary’s leading wine makers, Istvan Szepsy. This follows the death of Gaston Huet last year. Noel Pinguet, who is a leading light in Loire, will continue to manage the domaine.
Wine-On-Line
Some wine sites worth having a look at:
Out of the Bottle
Some recently tasted wines worth mentioning:
- Tokay Furmint Dry 2001, Oremus: Very well made dry wine from the Tokaj district. Crisp and elegant, citrus and some almonds and wood. ~€8 from the estate, but difficult to get hold of elsewhere in Europe. www.tokajoremus.com. See pictures at BKWine.
- Domaine de Triennes, Cuvée St-Auguste, 1999, Vin de Pays du Var: A full-bodied and well made wine. Two well known Burgundy producers have joined together to create a new domaine in Provence: Aubert de Villaine (Dom de la Romanée Conti) and Jacques Seysses (Dom Dujac). A mix of Cab S, Merlot and Syrah. Lots of fruit, spice and southern warmth. ~€12 from Le Nez Rouge (see above). www.triennes.com
- St-Aubin 1988, Pierre Leduc (Tastevinage), Bourgogne: We’ve drunk a few bottles like this over the years and have generally been a bit disappointed. Now, it has developed into a lovely, classic, ripe burgundy. Fine, old Pinot character. (From our cellar.)
- Jordan Cabernet Sauvignon 1999, Stellenbosch, South Africa: quite full-bodied, warm and full of fruit. Very well balanced with a more “classic” character rather than “new world”. ~€16 from Fine Wine World (see above).
- Chateau Malescot St Exupery 1972, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1990, Medoc, Bordeaux: Next to the graveyard? Not at all. ’72 was a bit passé but quite drinkable and interesting; ’75 was hard and lacking body; ’76 was very good and elegant, a bit light; ’80 was light and with some red berries but with a certain elegance and charm; ’90: full-bodied, classic Bordeaux, quite a lot of tannin, very good. (From our cellar.)
- Beaujolais Blanc 1999, Domaine Terres Dorées, Cuvée fermentée en fûts de chêne, Jean-Paul Brun: With a few years’ bottle age this has developed into a very interesting chardonnay with quite a bit of soft oak character. From one of the better growers in Beaujolais. You can find the wines from J-P Brun (not just the white one) e.g. at Grande Epicerie (au Bon Marché, rue de Sèvres, Paris 7e) and Lafayette Gourmet (see above).
