Accentuated cut edges (ACE) maceration on pinot noir
Dr. Angela Sparrow at the University of Tasmania, Australia has devised what is known as the ACE (accentuated cut edges) technique of pinot noir maceration.
Ernst Loosen – barrel-aged, dry riesling
Barrel ageing dry riesling sounds like a quirky new thing to try to broaden the appeal of one of the wine industry’s (but not consumers’) best-loved grape varieties. In fact, Ernst Loosen, of Dr. Loosen in Germany’s Mosel valley, has been revitalising riesling in the fashion that was the norm for his grandfather.
Pinot noir ascendant in Alsace
There’s a growing excitement about pinot noir in Alsace, as a small groundswell of producers is increasingly garnering acclaim for their wines.
Domaine Fouassier
Typically in Sancerre a producer’s classic blend is likely to be blended from across different soils according to the plots of vineyards owned or managed by the domaine. But Domaine Fouassier was one of the early ones to bottle wines from particular vineyard parcels, having done so for about 30 years.
Sancerre lieux-dits
The wines were part of a tiny glimpse at the world of Sancerre’s lieux dits, from three of the more widely known single vineyard site names: Chêne Marchand at Bué, le Cul de Beaujeu and la Côte des Monts Damnés, both at Chavignol.
Mauzac
Gaillac’s mauzac blanc has an appley freshness and is made in a variety of styles, from dry to sweet and sparkling, especially by the traditional local méthode ancestrale.
Je négrette rien
Négrette is the signature cultivar of Fronton, located not far from Toulouse, in south west France.
Dry Loire valley chenin blanc
Chenin blanc is at the heart and souls of the Loire river, where it makes some of the best dry wines around.
Aromatic whites from New Zealand
The kiwis have created a category of white wines they call the aromatics. All of them too niche to garner much attention on their own, but together they are gathering a bit of a following. Well maybe soon.
Rybeyrenc and Oeillade – Languedoc past and present
Thierry Navarre, of his eponymous domaine, in Roquebrun, Saint-Chinian, has made something of a mission of not just preserving ancient Languedoc grape varieties, but making commercial volumes of them.