Aromatized wine? Flavoured yeast? Luxury wines without oak? On our trip to the southern Rhone Valley last week we tasted the unfermented grape juice from freshly harvested Grenache. It was delicious and sweet. But it
Americans drink more and more South African wine and they drink higher quality South African wines. Sales of South African wines in the United States increased by 14% in the past 12 months and the
We must admit that when a blue wine was launched a few months ago we did not think it deserved a mention in the BKWine Brief. It felt too bizarre and somehow so unnecessary. However,
Our winter tours have been on the program for a few months and now we have also finalised our tours for the spring 2017. All details are or will soon be (for Champagne and Bordeaux)
A violent hailstorm caused great damage in among others the Pic Saint Loup and Grès de Montpellier appellations in Languedoc on 17 August. Grapes from hundreds of hectares were completely destroyed. The vines afterwards were
We have recently finalised all the details for the exceptional “extension module” for the South Africa wine tour. After the wine tour we offer you a four-day trip to private game reserves in the Eastern
Fires break out now and then in the immediate vicinity of vineyards. It can be violent fires that go on for days, or even weeks. Although the vines may not be affected directly by the
The style of a Rioja wine is determined by whether it is a crianza, a reserva or gran reserva. And the different levels are determined by how long the wine has been aged by the
If the Spanish winegrowers were allowed to decide, the Spanish vineyard surface would this year increase by 13 500 hectares. But Spanish authorities, after lobbying from co-operatives and other agricultural organisations, have set the limit
The winemaker Fabrice Durou took over the family estate in 2000. The family’s Cahors wines were then known as powerful wines for laying in you cellar. Wines that you should rather not touch the first
Terroir, desirable or despicable? It is interesting to see how a word can be reassessed. Take the word terroir. A word that every wine lover uses about ten times a day. And always in a
Vineyards are everywhere in Italy. The vineyard surface is as large as France – around 800 000 hectares – but the country is very much smaller. In contrast to France, Italy have vineyards in all
Angelo Gaja’s children obviously do not agree with their father’s decision to sell the estate’s three single vineyard Barbaresco – Costa Russi, Sori Tildin and Sori San Lorenzo – as DOC Langhe instead of DOCG
In Napa Valley they like Cabernet Sauvignon. The grape accounts for 40% of the Napa grape surface and 60% of the value of its wines. Now, says Chris Carpenter, cabernet specialist and winemaker, this dependence
South Africa has a number of exciting and delicious wines. We go there once a year and we have our favourite wine estates that we return to every year. But we always make new discoveries
It is not only in Sweden that the Italian wines are popular. Also in Denmark, Italy is the largest wine country with a market share of 21.5%. Chile is in second place with 13.3%, closely
So far there has never been any shortage of wine in the world. Rather the opposite. For a long time there was a large surplus but since some years back this surplus is gone. Now
While the world’s top athletes are fighting it out in the Brazilian metropoles the best wines are made in the very southernmost remote parts of the country, in the Vale dos Vinhedos on the border
Brazil is on the front page of every media these days. The Olympic Games does give a lot of attention. But it is rare that Brazilian wines are given much coverage. That is a pity.
True or not true? You can find tons of information about wine on the Internet. Who look things up in books nowadays? (Actually, as we write wine books, we hope that many do!) It is
Whether you are organic or not, you have to spray against fungal diseases like downy mildew and powdery mildew. The organic growers use copper and sulphur and the conventional growers use synthetic chemical pesticides. To
Organic viticulture has seen some astonishing growth. Today almost 10% of world wine production is estimated to be organic. A year like 2016 with very difficult weather conditions in many parts of Europe, that still
Caviar. It is not for every day eating, but it is delicious. Not least the caviar from Bordeaux. In the past, there were wild sturgeons in the Gironde. But today the Bordeaux caviar, the caviar
It is summer time and people drink tons of rosé wines. In 2014 the world produced a total of 24.3 million hectolitres of rosé (sparkling rosé not included). This was a rise by 16% from
I came across some interesting statistics about Italy a while ago. It shows how the Italian vine acreage has decreased over the past 40 years. The decrease is dramatic. In 1970 there were 1.3 million
The Rhone Valley in southern France is a fantastic source of good wines. Most of the wines are full-bodied and spicy. On a warm summer day you should drink them slightly chilled (16C) to underline
Despite persistent attempts by France to bring about a ban, it is still permissible for Californian winemakers, under certain circumstances, to call their sparkling wine “California Champagne” (but not within the EU of course!). At
Black-rot is a difficult fungal disease that affects the vines when rainfall is plentiful. And it has been plentiful, so say the least, in France this spring and early summer. Black-rot (as it is called
Frequent readers of the Brief know that we are very fond of Grenache. It is one of the world’s most widely planted grapes but it is very much a grape that works behind the scenes.
The respect for a fine wine Wine drinking has been democratized in the last 50 years. There are today wines in all price ranges, for all budgets, for all kinds of consumers. Screwcaps and bag
Aromatized wine? Flavoured yeast? Luxury wines without oak? On our trip to the southern Rhone Valley last week we tasted the unfermented grape juice from
Americans drink more and more South African wine and they drink higher quality South African wines. Sales of South African wines in the United States
We must admit that when a blue wine was launched a few months ago we did not think it deserved a mention in the BKWine
Our winter tours have been on the program for a few months and now we have also finalised our tours for the spring 2017. All
A violent hailstorm caused great damage in among others the Pic Saint Loup and Grès de Montpellier appellations in Languedoc on 17 August. Grapes from
We have recently finalised all the details for the exceptional “extension module” for the South Africa wine tour. After the wine tour we offer you
Fires break out now and then in the immediate vicinity of vineyards. It can be violent fires that go on for days, or even weeks.
The style of a Rioja wine is determined by whether it is a crianza, a reserva or gran reserva. And the different levels are determined
If the Spanish winegrowers were allowed to decide, the Spanish vineyard surface would this year increase by 13 500 hectares. But Spanish authorities, after lobbying
The winemaker Fabrice Durou took over the family estate in 2000. The family’s Cahors wines were then known as powerful wines for laying in you
Terroir, desirable or despicable? It is interesting to see how a word can be reassessed. Take the word terroir. A word that every wine lover
Vineyards are everywhere in Italy. The vineyard surface is as large as France – around 800 000 hectares – but the country is very much
Angelo Gaja’s children obviously do not agree with their father’s decision to sell the estate’s three single vineyard Barbaresco – Costa Russi, Sori Tildin and
In Napa Valley they like Cabernet Sauvignon. The grape accounts for 40% of the Napa grape surface and 60% of the value of its wines.
South Africa has a number of exciting and delicious wines. We go there once a year and we have our favourite wine estates that we
It is not only in Sweden that the Italian wines are popular. Also in Denmark, Italy is the largest wine country with a market share
So far there has never been any shortage of wine in the world. Rather the opposite. For a long time there was a large surplus
While the world’s top athletes are fighting it out in the Brazilian metropoles the best wines are made in the very southernmost remote parts of
Brazil is on the front page of every media these days. The Olympic Games does give a lot of attention. But it is rare that
True or not true? You can find tons of information about wine on the Internet. Who look things up in books nowadays? (Actually, as we
Whether you are organic or not, you have to spray against fungal diseases like downy mildew and powdery mildew. The organic growers use copper and
Organic viticulture has seen some astonishing growth. Today almost 10% of world wine production is estimated to be organic. A year like 2016 with very
Caviar. It is not for every day eating, but it is delicious. Not least the caviar from Bordeaux. In the past, there were wild sturgeons
It is summer time and people drink tons of rosé wines. In 2014 the world produced a total of 24.3 million hectolitres of rosé (sparkling
I came across some interesting statistics about Italy a while ago. It shows how the Italian vine acreage has decreased over the past 40 years.
The Rhone Valley in southern France is a fantastic source of good wines. Most of the wines are full-bodied and spicy. On a warm summer
Despite persistent attempts by France to bring about a ban, it is still permissible for Californian winemakers, under certain circumstances, to call their sparkling wine
Black-rot is a difficult fungal disease that affects the vines when rainfall is plentiful. And it has been plentiful, so say the least, in France
Frequent readers of the Brief know that we are very fond of Grenache. It is one of the world’s most widely planted grapes but it
The respect for a fine wine Wine drinking has been democratized in the last 50 years. There are today wines in all price ranges, for
Newsletter:
Get our free monthly newsletter, the BKWine Brief and join 25,000 other wine and travel enthusiasts.
Text and images may not be used without our permission. More info on copyright.
25,000 subscribers get wine news every month. You too?
