Posts Tagged ‘Sparklers’
The summer sipper par excellence
Bugey Cerdon 2013, Méthode ancestrale, Domaine Renardat-Fache ($28.74, private import, 12 bottles/case)
Organically and biodynamically farmed Gamay and Poulsard from vines planted between 1960 and 2010. Manually harvested. Fermented with indigenous yeasts. The wine is bottled before fermentation is complete and continues fermenting in the bottle, creating the gas that makes it sparkle. After two months, the wine is filtered and recorked. 7.5% ABV. Quebec agent: La QV/Insolte.
An especially beguiling vintage of this perennial favourite. Deep pink or pale red (take your pick), with abundant if short-lived foam. Redolent of cherry, strawberry and cranberry. Floral overtones, slate undertones and a hint of yeast add complexity, while a soft effervescence tickles and lifts. Would be tart were the acidity not balanced by a touch of sweetness. Chalky minerals flavour the finish. So light, refreshing and fun. The summer sipper par excellence, this also accompanies not-too-sweet red berry desserts, grilled hamburgers (the adult version of strawberry soda!) and – you heard it first here, folks – mild to medium-hot Punjabi-style Indian food.
EDIT: An earlier version of this note mistakenly named the producer as Patrick Bottex, whom La QV also represents. The price, links and technical information have been updated accordingly.
oenopole workshop: picnic wines (1/4)
Earlier this week, oenopole held another of its workshops for wine writers and bloggers. Titled Atelier pique-nique, the workshop was devoted to wines that would lend themselves to picnic-friendly sandwiches. While waiting for the hordes to assemble, we sipped a sparkler.
Brut rosé 2005, Talento Metodo Classico, Bisol ($32.00, 11612598)
100% Pinot Noir from low-yielding vineyards. Manually harvested. Prior to fermentation, the must is macerated on the skins at low temperature until it turns pink. Unlike Bisol’s renowned Prosecco, this is made like champagne, using the traditional method with the second fermentation taking place in the bottle. 12.5% ABV.
Pale coppery salmon pink, with little foam or visible bead. Nuanced nose of oxidizing apple, red berries, peach and brioche. Finely effervescent in the mouth. Dry but rounded by subtle fruit. Chalky minerals and an elusive strawberry overtone add complexity. The long finish brings a faint bitter almond note. Crisp, clean, elegant and delicious. (Buy again? Yes.)
Tasted in 2009 alongside rosé champagnes costing twice as much, the 2003 – a private import retailing for $39 – came across as somewhat stern and austere. Don’t know if it’s the different vintage or different context, but neither of those descriptors apply to the 2005. On its own, it made a fine aperitif. I can also see it working with light fare such as chicken salad or salmon tartare.
MWG April 17th tasting (4/6): The Greek, the Beauj’ and the Funky
Naoussa 2012, Jeunes vignes de Xinomavro, Domaine Thymiopoulos ($18.70, 12212220)
100% biodynamically farmed Xinomavro from ten-year-old vines. Manually harvested. 80% destemmed, 20% whole cluster pressed. Very gentle pressing. Fermented with indigenous yeasts and no pump-overs. Macerated about one week, then matured nine months in stainless steel tanks. Bottled unfiltered. 13.5% ABV.
A bit stinky on opening, as sometimes happens with this wine. That quickly blew off, leaving a charming nose of slate, candied red berries and spice. Denser than some earlier vintages but still fresh and supple, the fruit pure, the acidity bright and the tannins light and just a little raspy. Dried herbs, spice and minerals add savour. Finishes clean and tangy. Yet another winner from Thymiopoulos. (Buy again? In multiples.)
Morgon 2012, Marcel Lapierre ($30.50, Rézin, NLA)
This was the “nature” bottling available through the private import channel, not the filtered and more heavily sulphured SAQ bottling. 100% organically farmed Gamay from 60-year-old vines. Manually harvested late in the season. Whole-cluster fermentation with indigenous yeasts at low temperatures lasts ten to 20 days. Matured nine months on the fine lees in old Burgundy oak barrels. Bottled unfiltered, unfined and with minimal sulphur. 12.5% ABV.
Cherry, stones, vine sap and faint spice. Silky fruit, bright acidity, supple tannins and that Lapierre trick of being both etherial and intense. Slow-fade finish with lingering scents of minerals, berries and flowers. Classic and delicious. I’m guessing this will peak in two to three years. (Buy again? Yes.)
Vino da tavola 2011, Rosso frizzante, Sottobosco, Ca’ de Noci ($24.00, Ward & associés, NLA)
A blend of organically farmed Lambrusco Grasparossa (30%), Lambrusco di Montericco (30%), Malbo Gentile (20%) and Sgavetta (20%) from ten-year-old vines. Manually harvested. The grapes are macerated for around ten days on their skins and fermented with indigenous yeasts. Refermentation in the bottle (to produce the sparkle) is also natural. Unfiltered and unfined. 11% ABV.
Popped and poured. The wildly funky nose elicited all kinds of reactions, including the descriptor fetid. The miasma lifted some as the wine breathed, allowing hints of slate and red and black fruit to emerge. (A taster who had previously encountered the wine said ours was an unusually stinky bottle.) In the mouth, it’s bone dry, tart and astringent. The light fizz adds a mild creaminess that polishes, if only a little, the coarse texture. Surprisingly mouth-filling fruit and earthy flavours last well into the finish. Despite everything, good enough to make you think a cleaner bottle might have a genuine rustic appeal. (Buy again? With my fingers crossed.)
The common thread in this flight was wines that would work with charcuterie. Our cured meats came in the form of duck prosciutto and pork and duck rillettes from Pork Futures and a gifted dry sausage whose provenance I don’t recall. While all three wines proved up to the task, I found the Naoussa best with the prosciutto, the Morgon best with the fatty, mild rillettes and the Sottobosco best with the prosciutto and the dark flavoured sausage.
MWG March 20th tasting (1/7): Soulless sparklers?
Eric Asimov neatly summarizes the issues many MWG members have with cava: “I have never been the biggest fan of cava. While repeatedly I have seen it cited as an excellent value, the rock-bottom prices never justified the absence of pleasure I experienced. Served chilled, I thought, it was merely cold and bubbly, with little zest or energy. It seemed to lack the sparkling joy of prosecco, or the intrigue of the various crémants.”
To put our preconceptions to the test, we popped the corks on two highly rated and relatively pricey Spanish sparklers.
Conca del Riu Anoia 2009, De la Finca, Raventos I Blanc ($31.50, 12178834)
Organically farmed Xarel⋅lo (45%), Macabeu (30%) and Parelleda (25%) from vines grown in nine parcels planted between 1970 and 1987. After gentle pressing, the varieties are fermented separately in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks, then blended and transferred to bottles for second fermentation and a minimum of three years’ maturation. 12% ABV.
A fine bead but not much foam. Bready, yeasty, lemony, chalky nose. Clean with a tight effervescence. More minerally than fruity (quince?). Long, bitter-tinged (almond skins?), tensely acidic and very dry. Not much depth, though chewing reveals more. (Buy again? Maybe.)
Penedès 2007, Imperial Gran Reserva, Gramona ($32.70, 11800222)
Xarel⋅lo (50%), Macabeu (40%) and Chardonnay (10%) from 25- to 30-year-old vines. Aged on the lees for four to five years. 12% ABV.
Sweeter-smelling than the Finca: lemon, flowers and a note of shower curtain. Softer effervescence. Suaver but also grapier, rounder, less dry and less pristine. Again more minerally than fruity. Decent breadth and length but plumbing no depths. (Buy again? Meh.)
Both wines are scored highly by local and international critics. Both are impeccably made. Neither is unpleasant to drink. So why did they generate no excitement and little enthusiasm around the table? “Lack of soul?” hazarded one taster. “Not a lot of personality there,” noted another. The general conclusion was that the 20% to 30% price premium over more enjoyable sparklers from the Jura, Loire, Alsace, Burgundy and Limoux made purchasing them hard to justify.
Somewhereness 2013: Flat Rock Cellars
Founded in 1999 and located at the top of Twenty Mile Bench, Flat Rock Cellars owns 80 acres of vines. The three core grape varieties are Riesling, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. The winery is built on several levels to allow gravity flow. Intervention in the wine-making is largely avoided and indigenous yeasts are used for some wines.
Sparkling Brut Reserve 2007, Twenty Mile Bench VQA, Flat Rock Cellars ($35.00, available only at the winery)
Two-thirds Pinot Noir and one-third Chardonnay. Whole-cluster pressed, cold settled, fermented in stainless steel tanks. Racked into neutral barrels for six month’s maturation, then blended, filtered and bottled, with secondary fermentation taking place in the bottle. Aged on the lees for three years, then disgored and dosed. Crown-capped. 12% ABV.
Citrus, apple, brioche and chalk. Lightly fruity upfront, turning bone dry as it goes along. Laden with minerals and brilliant acidity. Long, toasty, leesy finish. Good complexity and balance. Lovely. (Buy again? Yes.)
Riesling 2011, Nadja’s Vineyard, Twenty Mile Bench VQA, Flat Rock Cellars ($25.00, Langevins, 12 bottles/case)
100% Riesling from a 2.5-acre vineyard atop a bed of limestone. Manually harvested, whole-cluster pressed, cold-settled and then racked off the lees for fermentation. Fermented at cold temperatures with selected yeasts. 13.5 g/l residual sugar. 11.5% ABV.
The nose – peach and white flowers – doesn’t quite prepare you for the lemonade-ish palate with its tension between tart and sweet against a backdrop of flint and white fruit. Long, juicy finish with lingering sour green apple and lime. Intensely refreshing. (Buy again? At the winery’s $20.15, definitely.)
Chardonnay 2009, Twenty Mile Bench VQA, Flat Rock Cellars ($20.20, 11889474)
A blend of two Chardonnay clones from four different sites and soil types. Manually harvested. Some of the grapes were destemmed, others were kept as whole bunches. After pressing and settling, the must was transferred by gravity feed into barrels (60%) and stainless steel tanks (40%) where it was underwent primary fermentation (with selected yeasts) and full malolactic fermentation with regular lees-stirring. After blending, the wine was bottled unfined. Screwcapped. 12.8% ABV.
Oak, lemon, chalk. A bit leesy and lactic with a sour edge. Smooth texture, the charged acidity notwithstanding. Lemon and sour apple with some honey creeping in the decent finish. Tasty. (Buy again? Sure, especially at the LCBO’s $16.95.)
Chardonnay 2011, The Rusty Shed, Twenty Mile Bench VQA, Flat Rock Cellars ($25.00, Langevins, 12 bottles/case)
A challenging vintage meant the fruit was left on the vine until early October. Manually picked, gently pressed, transferred to barrels for fermentation followed by ten months maturation in French oak barrels (a mix of new and old). Screwcapped. 13% ABV.
Oats, lemon, white fruit, lanolin and a hint of sweet oak. Weightier than the 2009, though by no means heavy. Dry and minerally with grippy acidity and faint overtones of stone fruit, butter and caramel. Clean – the oak is an accent – and long. Polished and appealing. (Buy again? Yes.)
Pinot Noir 2011, Twenty Mile Bench VQA, Flat Rock Cellars ($29.20, Langevins, 12 bottles/case)
The so-called estate bottling. 100% Pinot Noir from seven parcels. Manually picked, pressed, then soaked on the skins with manual punch-downs several times a day to extract color and tannin. Barrel-fermented, mostly with indigenous yeats. Matured in a mix of old and new French oak barrels. Screwcapped. 12.5% ABV.
Pretty nose of cedar, spice and red berries. Ripe fruit, light oak and a slight earthiness. Good acidity and structure. Clean finish with a faint tannic rasp. (Buy again? At the Ontario price of $20, sure.)
Pinot Noir 2011, Gravity, Twenty Mile Bench VQA, Flat Rock Cellars ($34.50, Langevins, 12 bottles/case)
A blend of barrels selected for their deeper, less forward fruit. Aged longer than the estate Pinot Noir; otherwise, the wine-making is identical. Unfined. Screwcapped. 12.5% ABV.
Less primary and more integrated than the regular Pinot. Pure fruit, good acidity, fine tannins, dark minerals and a little more savour and heft. Light oak on the lingering finish. (Buy again? Yes, especially at the winery’s $30.15.)
Somewhereness 2013: Hinterland Wine Company
Hinterland Wine Company is the only Somewhereness winery based entirely in Prince Edward County. Owners Jonas Newman and Vicki Samaras began planting vines near Hillier in 2005 and quickly determined that the soil and climate gave them grapes well suited to sparkling wine production. So they bet the bank on it: to this day, Hinterland remains Ontario’s sole winery whose entire line consists of bubblies. The couple has also begun making wines on the Greek island of Limnos under the Terra Lemnia label.
Whitecap 2012, Method Charmat, Ontario VQA, Hinterland Wine Company ($23.50, La QV/Insolite, 12 bottles/case)
Equal proportions of Riesling and Vidal with a dollop (7%) of Muscat. Made like a Prosecco using the Charmat process. Crowncap. 15 g/l residual sugar. 12% ABV.
Surprisingly Muscaty nose: peach, sweet spice, flowers. Just off-dry with a soft, frothy effervescence, crisp acidity and a sustained finish. The kind of wine you could serve to just about anyone, from your grandmother to your wine-geekiest friend. The winemakers say it’s popular at weddings and it’s easy to see why. (Buy again? A bottle or two for summer sipping on the deck.)
Lacus 2012, Method Charmat, Ontario VQA, Hinterland Wine Company ($23.50, La QV/Insolite, 12 bottles/case)
100% Cabernet Franc. 12% ABV.
Deep rosé colour. Cabernet Franc nose: red berries, turned earth, herbs, leaves and a hint of “red pepper jelly” (quoting one of the couple). Dryish on the palate with faint tannins, spice, chalk (?) and lingering brioche. So odd yet so delicious. The winery says it can go with red meat and it’s substantial enough (which doesn’t mean heavy) that I’d like to give it a try. (Buy again? Yes.)
Jonas was also pouring tastes of the still wine used to make the Lacus. Light bordering on watery yet somehow very present. Dry and pure, a mouthful of pale fruit, grainy minerals and streaming acidity. Refreshing and delicious. If Hinterland ever bottled this, I’d buy it.
Blanc de Blanc 2011, Method Traditional, Prince Edward County VQA, Hinterland Wine Company ($41.00, La QV/Insolite, 12 bottles/case)
100% Chardonnay. Was originally intended for Les Étoiles but the quality was so high the winery decided to use it for a one-off blanc de blanc. The base wine was matured in 500-litre oak barrels for eight months and sparkled using the traditional method. 12% ABV.
Intriguing if subtle nose: citrus, brioche and lees with a sour edge (a sign of youth?). Tart and clean on the attack, bright with lemon, crystalline minerals and zingy acidity. Long smoky finish. Perhaps the most Champagne-like of the Hinterland wines I’ve tasted. (Buy again? Yes, especially at the Ontario price of $35.)
Les Étoiles 2010, Method Traditional, Prince Edward County VQA, Hinterland Wine Company ($45.00, La QV/Insolite, 12 bottles/case)
Chardonnay (60%) and Pinot Noir (40%) made using the traditional method. Sixty percent of the crop was lost to spring frosts. The Chardonnay spends a few months in third-fill barrels. The blended wine is bottle-aged on the lees for at least two years before disgorging and dosage, which is done in small batches on an as-needed basis. 12% ABV.
Bit stinky at first though that quickly blew off, leaving a textbook nose of lemon, apple, pear, brioche, chalk and cream. Creamy in the mouth too, with good tension between the rich fruit and bright acidity, some mineral depth and a persistent toasty finish. A serious , well-delineated sparkler – not Champagne but really very good. The star of the portfolio. (Buy again? Yes, especially at the Ontario price of $39.)
Ancestral 2013, Method Ancestral, Ontario VQA, Hinterland Wine Company ($29.00, La QV/Insolite, 12 bottles/case)
100% Gamay Noir. Inspired by the sparkling Gamays (sometimes with a little Poulsard thown in) from Bugey Cerdon. The name refers to the rarely used (outside of Savoie and Gaillac) méthode ancestrale of sparkling wine production, whereby the wine is bottled before fermentation is complete. Fermentation is then allowed to continue in the bottle and the carbon dioxide that is a byproduct creates the effervescence. As the VQA doesn’t allow cloudy wines, the winery recreates the process in tank, then filters the wine before bottling. 8% ABV.
Flirting nose of strawberry and rose. Fruity and lightly effervescent on the palate. Off-dry verging on sweet though with plenty of balancing acidity. Turns drier on the finish as minerals and a hint of earthiness emerge. Candied but fun. Lacks the slatey vein of my favourite Bugey Cerdons but none of their charm. (Buy again? In a drier vintage.)
MWG October 3rd tasting (2/7): Cortese leggermente frizzante
Vino da Tavola 2011, Il Brut and the Beast, Valli Unite ($21.75, La QV, 6 bottles/case)
Based in Costa Vescovato in southern Piedmont, Valli Unite is a 30-year-old organic cooperative whose members grow local grape varieties as well as grains, fruits, vegetables and livestock. This semi-sparkler is made from Cortese and, depending on whom you believe, may contain some Favorita. The biodynamically farmed grapes are manually harvested, fermented with indigenous yeasts and bottled unfiltered and unfined. No sulphur is added during the wine-making process. The fizz is the result of natural, in-bottle fermentation and the wine is vegan-compatible. 12.5% ABV. Cool label. The name is a play on the title of a spaghetti western, The Brute and the Beast.
Straw, quartz, faint yellow pear and herbs. Intense yet fresh in the mouth, lifted by soft fizz and glowing acidity. The fruity attack gives way to beeswax, rocky minerals, iodine and sea salt (“like licking a seashell” quipped one taster) and a long, bitter-edged finish. Not for wimps but lots of fun and, for most tasters, one of the wines of the night. (Buy again? Definitely.)
High QQ
Crémant d’Alsace 2010, Zéro Dosage, Domaine Barmès Buecher ($23.10, 10985851)
Biodynamically farmed Pinot Auxerrois (42%), Pinot Gris (36%), Chardonnay (13%) and Pinot blanc (8%). No dosage. 13% ABV.
Abundant foam dissipates, leaving tiny bubbles in a few twisting, fast-rising streams. Subtle nose: brioche dough, lemon, hints of spice and white flowers. Softly effervescent on the palate, dry and complex, even layered. Here the fruit – lemon peel and pith, candied citron, sour green apple – is wrapped around a core of quartz and chalk. There’s just enough extract to balance the tart acidity. A yeasty note marks the long finish. The quaffability quotient* is off the charts – you can’t resist going back for another sip. The best vintage yet? (Buy again? In multiples.)
*My translation of coefficient de torchabilité, which was François Barmès’s favourite metric, or so it seemed at the MWG tasting he led a few months before his untimely death.
MWG May 16th tasting (1/5): ABCs
ABCs = A British Columbia sparkler.
Brut, Méthode traditionnelle, Okanagan Valley, Blue Mountain ($28.30, 11881907)
Pinot Noir (57%), Chardonnay (37%) and Pinot Gris (6%). Manually harvested and sorted. Each variety is whole-cluster pressed and fermented separately. The wines are then blended, re-inoculated with yeast for secondary fermentation and aged on the lees for 24 months before disgorging, followed by another six to nine months after disgorging. Retails for $23.90 at the winery. 12.5% ABV.
Leesy lemon and apple. Thick foam and tons of tiny bubbles. The pure, clean fruit shows some residual sugar on the attack and turns sourish, dry and a little toasty by the finish. Sugar levels aside, a soft, glyceriny undercurrent runs throughout – like mild honey I thought at first before settling on almond syrup. Also, the wine starts out like a sparkler but, the bubbles notwithstanding, ends up tasting like a still wine. Odd but not unpleasantly so. The initial sweetness makes it better as an aperitif than a food wine methinks, though the weight and texture might argue otherwise. (Buy again? Could be pushed to by national pride and the wine’s curiosity value, but better crémants and cavas can be had for several dollars less.)
MWG March 21st tasting (4/6): Bubbly, dry and red
IGT Emilia 2011, Lambrusco, Monte delle Vigne ($16.50, 11873190)
100% Lambrusco Maestri from 20-year-old vines. Manually harvested and sorted. Fermented at less than 25ºC. Macerated on the skins a total of 25 days. Carbonated using the Charmat method. 11.5% ABV.
Black cherry, plum blossom and bitter almond nose (kind of Valpolicella-like, actually) along with raw red meat, slate and a dash of vinyl. Dry. Soft effervescence. The sweet-ripe fruit dries on the mid-palate, where it’s joined by sketchy tannins. Acidity runs throughout. A faint astringency and bitterness colour the finish. Opinions were divided over this but I liked it and look forward to trying it with salume; the producer specifically recommends pig’s trotters stuffed with minced pork and spices (be still, my beating heart). (Buy again? Sure.)
Brett happens 