September: So it begins – the harvest is upon us! Spain is a vast, diverse country with regards to wine production and so unsurprisingly, there are various different stages of harvest. By this point, Cava grapes are already mid-way through harvesting as they tend to be picked slightly earlier to retain the high acidity that is prized for ageing potential in older wines and freshness in younger wines. A lot of white wines aiming to retain bright fruit flavours and high acidity will also be being picked, particularly in hot regions where the grapes can easily over-ripen and produce wines with unbalanced flavours and even some light reds, particularly Tempranillo may well undergo harvest this month. Vignerons and wine-makers alike will keep a wary eye on the sky, as excess rain during harvest can induce rots, fungi and often dilute the flavours they have worked so hard to nurture. Quality-minded producers will be spending a lot of money to hire trained pickers to gently harvest the grapes before transporting them in small, 15kg boxes to avoid crushing the grapes and losing precious flavours and aromas to oxidation. An entire years worth of effort comes down to these next few crucial months, as the saying goes: ‘It’s possible to make very bad wine with good grapes, but it’s impossible to make great wine with bad grapes!”
Hello Wine Lovers and welcome back! September is finally here and after a long, hot summer, I’m about ready to get back to wine tasting. With it being the first tastings of Maestrazgo Wine Club, I’m excited to be kicking off with some ‘discovery’ tastings – aka, showcasing some delicious new wines I’ve tasted over the last few months. We’ll have a tasting for the Old World wines and a separate one for the New World but remember that these are now available first through Wine Cuentista, so check them out here and reserve your spot. Aside from that, it’s time for an intense few months of studying ahead of my final exam for the WSET Diploma, ahead of a beautifully exam-less 2018. I hope you’ve all enjoyed the summer and hopefully I’ll see a few of you for a tasting soon!
Events: Maestrazgo Wine Club:
14th September – Summer Discoveries: Old World – 10 spots available
28th September – Summer Discoveries: New World – 10 spots available
Articles: I probably spend too much of my time reading online articles about wine. However, as a result I can find and select a choice few to share – here are my three favourites from last month!
1. ‘Italian Wine – 3000 years older than we thought’ by Chris Mercer. One of the bigger discoveries in the wine world recently was a series of caves in Sicily containing, what is believed to be, wine-making equipment. Given that this dates back to 4,000BC, it’s a big change in the common belief that the ancient Greeks brought wine-making to Italy and opens the door to a whole new range of possibilities. As a history geek, I’m very curious to see the final report on these findings and who knows what may be uncovered as a result? http://www.decanter.com/wine-news/oldest-italian-wine-study-375334-375334/
2. ‘How to make money in the wine business’ – by Felicity Carter. A large part of the reason I’ve chosen to study with the WSET over CMS (Court of Master Sommeliers) is that the industry of wine interests me far more than the correct, formal service of it. As a result, I love anything that gets to grips with the realities of the industry as if there’s one thing we’re not short on, it’s romantic wine-related stories and quasi-science. Whilst not exactly ground-breaking stuff, Felicity Carter makes an important point about the financial realities of producing wine and how some in the industry get carried away with the fantasy of it all. Here’s hoping for some more of the same transparency on other financial/business related issues within the industry! https://www.meininger.de/en/wine-business-international/how-make-money-wine-business
3. ‘Changes afoot in Rioja’ by Yolanda Ortiz de Arri. I’ve linked a few articles related to the recent turmoil in Rioja, we’ve spoken about it in tastings and I’m actually digging into it a little more deeply for an article myself, but Yolanda does a good job, as always, of summarising the more important points as well as getting some local reaction. Reaction to what, exactly? Well, the tiny step forward that Rioja has taken as a region, allowing for both regional and village names to be appended to Rioja labels meaning greater specificity for consumers and the start of our understanding of Rioja terroir. Sounds great doesn’t it? Naturally, there’s a catch… http://www.spanishwinelover.com/learn-265-village-wines-in-rioja-will-be-based-on-the-location-of-the-winery
Wine of the month: I’m constantly on the look-out for wines of real quality and value; I rarely purchase anything over 30-40 euros a bottle and more commonly you’ll find me drinking in the 6-25 euro range.
Bohorquez Reserva 2007
I tried this for the first time only a few days ago and I have to take my hat off to this small but dedicated team of vignerons – the wine is absolutely delicious. Ribera del Duero has become a tricky region for me, with many of the wines simply trying for too much and missing the target as a result, but this hit the spot nicely. Bohorquez was only founded in 1999 but stylistically, it’s leaning towards the Pesquera/Vega Sicilia way of making wine, which is to say a longer maceration and ageing process, restrained alcohol levels (14%) and considerably less of the overt, ripe fruit flavours so typical of the region.
Yet there is a good concentration of slightly dried red and black fruits here, cedar, coffee, dill, leather, tobacco and earth. This wine is in a really good place, with a lovely spectrum of flavours and a wonderfully elegant texture. Restrained and classic, with that smoky, leathery finish I so enjoy!
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That’s it for this months newsletter. I hope you enjoyed it and please, if you have any suggestions or things you would like to see get in touch! Either respond to me here or email to fintankerr@winecuentista.com I can’t wait to see you all soon for more wine, food and good company. 🙂
Fintan Kerr