Felidia is the fabulous venue for our Wine Media Lunches -- it is owned by PBS star Lidia Bastianich --

-- and you can imagine the pleasure in being invited to join Felidia's Executive Chef Fortunato Nicotra, along with Michelin-star Sicilian chef Patricia Di Benedetto and Azienda Agricola d'Alessandro for a Sicilian Food and Wine Dinner at Felidia on Thursday, January 19^th at 7pm.

I adore Sicilian wine and my crystal ball tells me that this will be the wine of the decade. The whites have a pleasant bitter finish that ends with a decisive finish ... they are not "fruity" in the New World sense of the word. The reds are also milder than most New World reds. Just very different and the difference is appreciated.

At any rate, the evening presented the opportunity to experience the flavors of Sicily interpreted by two Sicilian born and raised chefs and paired with the soulful wines of Azienda Agricola d'Alessandro based in the province of Agrigento.

This was actually a consumer event (yes, you could have gone too!) hence the reason I was curious why I did not see too many familiar faces.

The gentlemen distributing and selling Azienda Agricola d'Alessandro got up between courses to talk about the wines and the food of this region, and were better than any Broadway show (in a good way). They were 'educators' without this being part of their title, helping this lay audience understand how the wines were made and their best points.

Azienda Agricola d'Alessandro is a winery located near the ancient southern Sicilian seaside town of Agrigento, renowned during the golden age of Ancient Greece. The vintages are newer yet the wines were all extremely well made. Here is the menu:

SHAVED RAW TUNA AND AMBERJACK WITH OCTOPUS VINAIGRETTE
D'ALESSANDRO INZOLIA 2009

FISH STUFFED PACCHERI WITH FISH SOUP
CHOCOLATE RAVIOLI WITH HOUSE MADE RICOTTA, ANCHOVY AND CARDOON “BRODETTO”
D'ALESSANDRO NERO D'AVOLA 2009

ALMOND CRUSTED SWORDFISH
D'ALESSANDRO NERO D'AVOLA/SYRAH 2007

BASIL ICE CREAM, NERO D’AVOLA REDUCTION AND HONEYCOMB
RICOTTA MOUSSE WITH PISTACHIO CRUMBLE AND WARM BITTER ORANGE SAUCE

Fun Facts about Sicillian wine:

1. Sicily produces more wine than New Zealand, Austria and Hungary combined.
2. 90% of the wines produced in Sicily are dessert wines.
3. Although there are a bevy of dessert wines to choose from, there are impressive reds and whites as well. Among them is Nero d’Avola, the most prominent red grape variety on the island with smooth tannins and peppery notes.
4. Sicilians have been cultivating grapes and making wine since the 8^th Century BCE, heavily dominating their agriculture during Grecian rule. You can say wine now runs in their veins.
5. Sicilian wines make up 1/6 of all Italian wine production and are more heavily exported than ever before

About the Chefs

Patrizia di Benedetto learned traditional Sicilian cooking from her mother and in 1991, opened the Bye Bye Blues restaurant in Palermo – a great success from the very beginning, with its concentration on a lighter cuisine, using plentiful fish and vegetables and the fresh flavors of the Mediterranean. Patrizia was named Best Pastry Chef in Espresso’s Italian Restaurant Guide, and in the course of the last few years she has been broadening her experience in Los Angeles (Valentino Restaurant), Chicago (Margarita Inn) and New York (Hostaria Mazzei), as well as Italy (at the well-known Italian culinary centre Cast Alimenti at Brescia).

Fortunato Nicotra arrived in New York City to work for celebrity chef Lidia Matticchio Bastianich in 1995.  Hired as her Executive Chef of the famous flagship restaurant, Felidia, the restaurant earned three stars from Ruth Reichl from the New York Times only three months after his arrival. Nicotra earned his first Michelin Star at the young age of 23 at the Villa Marchese Restaurant in the beautiful seaside town of Milazzo, Sicily.  Although Nicotra is Sicilian by birth, he grew up in Torino where he completed his culinary degree at the prestigious Hotel and Restaurant School prior to working in several restaurants in northern Italy and then in Sicily where he left his mark.

Do you like sulfates in your wines?

No one does ...

Last night at Eataly (the new Italian food specialty megastore in Manhattan) I discovered  Domodimonti,  a boutique winery located on the picturesque countryside of Montefiore dell'Aso, in Le Marche Region, Italy. In addition to Domodimonti we tasted other specialty items from Marche, as well as fabulous Amaro digestifs from Varnelli.

I sat next to Domodimonti representative Marco Scapagnini and learned their objective is to produce wines as naturally as possible with the least amount of additives and make the highest quality Natural Wine.

Their approach can best be described as follows:

• Grapes are hand-picked
• Sustainably-grown, using organic matter
• Low-yielding vineyards
• No added sugar, and strict selection of yeasts
• No acid adjustments
• No other additives for mouth-feel, color, etc.
• Minimal sulfites added
• Use of state-of-the-art technology

In 2010, Domodimonti launched its new state-of-the-art winery, designed to generate the least amount of visual and ecological impact on the environment: a commitment to the production of Wines in the respect of Nature.

It was a fabulous evening, and Marco is an excellent representative for his products. Not all "natural" wines are delicious, yet Domodimonti manages to strike the right balance between quality taste and staying true to the environment.

For wine geeks, I've copied some information about the vineyard and harvest ...

THE VINEYARD

The vineyard’s 48 hectares of land are spread across the backdrop of Montefiore dell’Aso. They are facing south on clayish soil, which in the past was covered by the Adriatic sea. Remnants of ancient times have left behind minerals that are very precious to the development of the vines. The vicinity of the  Adriatic Sea to the east, the protection offered by the mountain chain “Sibillini” to the west, and the winery’s altitude of 300 meters above sea level, all play a role in providing an ideal microclimate for healthy and natural ripening of the grapes.

Domodimonti’s first vintage was in 2004. Although the vineyard has been in existence for over fifty years,  a great deal of work was performed to restructure the original vines, and plant new ones.

Our vineyards are spread over several parcels of land, all located around Montefiore dell’Aso.  The grape varieties grown include: Montepulciano, Sangiovese, Petit Verdot, Pecorino, Passerina Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon.

THE HARVEST

Throughout the growing season, Domodimonti’s Agronomist carefully monitors vine growth. During the summer months, the vines are pruned reducing the fruit by 67%. This strengthens the vines, so that the remaining grapes get the maximum amount of nutrients and achieve their full qualitative potential.

The harvesting season usually starts at the beginning of September, but varies from year to year. We continue to use a traditional approach of harvesting grapes manually in spite of the higher cost. Our dedicated staff’s strict methodology helps determine grape ripeness by testing the pulp, skin and seeds, as well as other parameters such as consistency of ripeness, astringency, acidity and flavour. This regime allows us to precisely time the harvesting of each parcel of grapes.

All of our grapes are then carefully sorted for quality according to a strict standard of production. Only thirty percent of the year’s harvest is typically processed during vinification. The must is then transferred to a shoot where gravity pulls the liquid into stainless steel vats and begins fermentation.

OUR METHODS

Domodimonti's production method revolves around the systematic amalgamation of the best techniques and technologies from the Old World and the New World respectively. The objective is to produce wines as naturally as possible without the use of chemical and/or additives to synthetically enhance our wines.

Old World Techniques:

• Manual harvesting to minimize stress and bruising of the fruit.
• Pruning 67% of grape clusters to increase nutrients to the remaining fruit.
• The use of natural yeast.
• The wines are aged in traditional French oak barrels located in Domodimonti’s wine cellar. Depending on the wine, the duration in barrels may range from 3-14 months, after which, the wine is bottled and stored for an additional period of at least three months before being shipped to its various distributors.

New World Technology:

• The entire winemaking process is performed under nitrogen which is generated by ionic exchange, allowing us to handle and later bottle the wine in the absence of oxygen.
• Temperature controlled vats with external insulation jackets allow strict control of the very important stage of fermentation.
• The use of cryomaceration: the grapes are de-stemmed and gravity-fed into stainless steel vats where a quick drop in temperature, from two (2) to five (5) degrees Celcius is maintained. This allows the pulp to absorb aromas otherwise lost to the pomace, which in turn limits the solubility of polyphenols and protects against oxidation.
• The use of First and Second fermentation to ensure the organic and antioxidant properties of the wine are not lost.

The Sulfite Difference

Sulfites are typically used to stop the very crucial stage of fermentation, and stabilize the wine to reduce the occurrence to spoilage. Due to the extended usage of sulfites by producers, the Canadian Food Inspection Agency has ranked it within its top nine food allergens. Domodimonti's use of temperature controlled vats with external insulation jackets allow us to strictly control the very important stage of fermentation. By controlling the temperature of each individual vat, we are able to substitute the use of sulfites during the fermentation process. This cornerstone approach creates a more natural, and non-synthetic wine.   Unfortunately, there is a minimum sulfite quantity required by law, but this minimalistic amount insures that our product arrives to our international destination intact. In comparison, we are far lower than any biological wine.   An additional technique utilized to substitute chemicals in the wine making process is the implementation of cryomaceration. It is a process in which the grapes are de-stemmed and gravity-fed into stainless steel vats where a quick drop in temperature, from two (2) to five (5) degrees Celcius is maintained. This allows the pulp to absorb aromas otherwise lost to the pomace, which in turn limits the solubility of polyphenols and protects against oxidation. A technique that is very costly to implement, but its benefits replaces the use of chemical compounds to alter the aromatic properties of the wine.

“Welcome!” exclaims affable Emanuele Rabotti, his exuberant and expressive face lighting up at the appearance of long lost (very lost!) visitors.

Perhaps the first thing you should know is that Emanuele i(beyond being a very nice and fun guy) is that he is the owner and winemaker behind Monte Rossa winery, one of the oldest and most prestigious wineries in the region even though it was established in 1972.

Emanuele makes Franciacorta, and only Franciacorta ... this is the name of the sparkling wine of the same name that is often compared to the finest champagne. Key differences are the climate, as Franciacorta is warmer, so the wine has less acidity and the tradition of long barrel aging on the lees (dead yeast cells). This can be as long as six years, which gives the wines their characteristic notes of brioche and spice. Like Champagne, Franciacorta is made with the traditional method, which means the same bottle used for the secondary fermentation is what consumers buy in the store.

As you can see from the picture above, the Monte Rossa estate is gorgeous! Manuele grew up in the luxurious 17th century mansion that lords over the vineyards. In 1982 he joined the family business and turned his attention to producing top quality Franciacorta.

The perfect host, Manuele procurs a golf cart and our tour begins as he drives steadily up the tallest hill in Fransicorta so we could see the vineyards and surrounding topography (including the Alps mountain, a river, various farms) in perfect splendor.

Also perched on the top of the hill is a picturesque church, which belonged to the aristocratic family who owned the mansion with its murals, frescos, and fine oil paintings of aristocratic nobles. Though the mansion dates from the 17th century, its foundation dates from the 14th century.

“Through the centuries, the noble family used this as a summer house, full time residence, and also, had small lodge near the forest for hunting,” Manuele explains. “They made wine, but in those days the vineyards were mixed with other types of produce."

We visit the various vineyards, which have just been hand-harvested. Unlike Champagne and any other sparkling wine, the grapes used for Franciacorta include Chardonnay, Pinot Bianco, and Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir).

Soil on Monte Rossa is stone, which allows for good drainage and also accounts for the minerality in the wine. On our tour we see an enormous pile of huge stones that have been removed from the young, year-old version planted on the top slopes.

As we zipped through the mature Pinot Nero vineyard I couldn’t help but notice gorgeous looking dark, heavy fruit still hanging on the vines a week after harvest.

“We leave some grapes on the vines so the old people could come and pick it and make a sweet wine traditional to the area,” Manuele says. "For acidity, it is important to pick the grapes before they get too ripe."

As Manuele generously shows us the winery, I am absolutely dazzled by what I can only describe as an elevator driven tank.

Just like the kind of high tech circular, glass enclosed elevator you might find in a high tech hotel, Manuele has a stainless steel tank that rises and falls at the touch of a button.

Grapes are vinified separately by variety, and then they are blended. Like Champagne, a percentage of " reserve wine" from previous vintages is added to the blend depending on the intended style and quality.

We visit the maturation room, which has French, American, and Hungarian oak (it gives it different spice and nutty notes). Manuele never uses new oak for fermentation as he does not like the oak to take over the flavor of the wine. Instead, the wine is four times used at the very least, as his main goal is micro oxygenation.

Stirring the lees (dead yeast cells) is crucial for the rich, toasty flavors of the wine, and it is done two ways: the barrel can be turned, and also the traditional battonage with a stick.

Now the tasting room is built into a space that, 300 years ago, was used to kill pigs on a certain day of the year. The meat would provide families with meat throughout the year in different forms. Visitors could still see the hooks on the ceiling (used for hanging the meat), and also the ancient sinks and fireplaces carved out of stone.

The wine tasting table is a site to behold, as it had been personally designed by the resourceful Manuele. Elegant sinks slide out in drawer-like fashion from the burnished wood table, with lights above designed to help the taster see and measure the bubbles.

The wines we try are:

Prima Cuvee Brut

One of my favorites with a rich, nutty, mouth feel. It rests on the lees for at least 24 months (mostly Chardonnay and Pinot Bianco with 15% Pinot Nero)

Saten

This word is used to identify a wine produced by Chardonnay grapes and only 5 atmospheres of pressure.

Rose Brut

Everyone loves the color of rose, and this wine is delicious and pleasing to the eye

P.R. Brut Blanc de Blanc

This wine is produced from Chardonnay grapes, 65% from best cru and 35% from vintage (reserve). It is named after the initials of Manuele’s parents.

Cabochon Brut

Now this is the flower of the entire production. It is produced in the most favorable yers from Chardonnay (70%) and Pinot Nero (30%) The wine rests on the leees for over 40 months.

Very smooth, enticing, and delicious with exotic spice notes!

In October we visited the Languedoc -- our “base” was Agde, a town with 2,600 years worth of history where the River Hérault and the Canal du Midi meet the Mediterranean. From the 5th century BC, the Phocaeans developed this town into a trading station between Marseille and Spain, which expanded in the fullness of time.

Our first event official event was a lunch hosted by the Syndicat Minevois, were we were welcomed by the elegant Christine Molines of the CIVL and Stephane Roux of the Minevois. Christine and Stephane chose a rose and red wine from Minevois for our al fresco lunch, calling attention to its balance, elegance, and the fact it can be purchased in the UK for under eight euros. Afterwards, we walked a short distance along the canal to a room where Christine, Stephane, and Stephanie Egenolf of Sud de France gave presentations about Minevois and the Languedoc in general. Perhaps the most impressive takeaway points from the presentation was the continuing improvement of wine from the region, and its quality for price – especially in terms of competing countries.

The evening was filled with a presentation in the tasting room of the Gerard Bertrand winery, where energetic young winemaker Jean-Baptiste led a tutored tasting of the company’s many wines. Gérard Bertrand owns five estates in the best wine regions of the Languedoc. With the purchase of a fourth estate, Château l’Hospitalet in 2002, the Company took on a new dimension. becoming the Group’s head office and a place dedicated to Mediterranean lifestyle and wine-growing culture. Afterward, we had a group dinner in the elegant restaurant of the Bertrand winery.
Wednesday saw us set out early for a tasting of wines from the AOP Languedoc, where energetic Jean-Philippe Granier, head of communications, introduced us to several winemakers who each presented three styles of wine from their region. Lunch followed with the winemakers and their wines.

After lunch, we met an amazing woman, Diane Losfelt, whose family bought the Chateau de L'Engarran estate in 1923. Diane is the fifth generation and the winemaker, and was incredibly passionate about the estate, its tremendous history, and the wines. Her assistant Emily gave us a tour of the pleasure gardens before Diane took us into the winery and then the tasting room where we tried the various wines, most offered at a very reasonable price point (under ten euros) and of excellent quality. The magic followed with a visit to Bergerie du Capucin, where we were greeted by owner/winemaker Guilhem Viau and shown his dramatic vineyard, which was filled with stones. Winemaker/owner Fabien Reboul from Chateau de Valflaunes in Pic Saint Loup showed us his field as well, with the rugged terroir varied at every turn and mountains literally jutting out of the slopping earth. Dinner followed at the Maison des Vins, where we enjoyed the various wines from winemakers in ther region.

Thursay took place in Limoux, where the Syndicat de Limoux gave us a very structured presentation on the wines of the region, careful to distinguish the Blanquette de Limoux from Crémant de Limoux and also the Blanquette Méthode Ancestrale, which started here in the year 1531. Lunch followed the presentation at a restaurant where we could taste more Blanquette de Limoux, along with some whites and reds.

Afterward, we arrived at Domaine Rives-Blanques for a visit and tasting. Owner Caryn Panman and her pampered dog Bruno (also a Decanter magazine star!) met us in the field and took us on a tour of the extraordinary vineyards. Rives-Blanques lies in a nature reserve designated by the European progamme Natura 2000, because of the unique habitat for flora and fauna provided by this meeting ground of Atlantic and Mediterranean influences. We toured the winery, and then tasted the many award winning sparklling and still wines.

The last visit of a very busy day was at the winery of affable Pierre Borie, owner of Chateau Les Ollieux in Montseret. Pierre is a lively, funny guy who makes fabulous wines, mostly various blends of syrah, grenache, mouvedre, and some carignan. We saw his winery, tasted wines from his tanks, and then gathered in the tasting room for a complete tasting of all the wines in his range. After the tasting, some of us went in search of the braying donkey before our departure for the restaurant Le Petite Comptoir, where Pierre shared more entertaining stories.

Friday began with a structured presentation and tasting of St Chinian and Faugeres, areas of quality red wines, and lunch in Pezenas at L’entre Pots. After a walk through Pezenas, we visited Château Saint Martin de la Garrigue. This gorgeous estate lies in the heart of Languedoc, between Beziers and Montpellier, facing the Mediterranean. The Renaissance Château Domaine is surrounded by alternating vineyards, scrubland, pine forests and olive groves and the wines were well balanced and again, of great quality for the price. Jean-Claude Zabalia took us around and led a fabulous tasting.

The final visit of the day was with the Syndicat de Pinet, where we learned all there was to know about Picpoul de Pinet and that the region was once famous for its gin factory. We tasted over a dozen impressive styles of this wine before enjoying yet more Picpoul at La Ferme Marine, a restaurant right by the sea featuring a shellfish buffet. Picpoul de Pinet is fabulous with seafood.

Overall, the trip was expertly organized and presented a rare opportunity to discover the various appelations in the region. Each and every producer we met was enthusiastic, positive, passionate, and very excited to present his or her wines. Producers were universally supportive of their colleagues in the region, and all showed genuine interest in working together to promote the region as a whole. And thankfully, the wines were representative of their specific regions, partially due to the very strict laws of each appellation. Voila!

So now after two and a half days of drinking $$$$ of very fine champagne (as a guest!) I am back in New York and looking for something slightly more affordable for Christmas.

At Le Bernadin last week, sommelier Aldo Sohm (who won best sommelier in the world competition and is always winning new ones) introduced me to two new champagnes, Phippe Gonet 3210 -- very clever title as it means 3 years of aging, 2 terroirs, 1 grape (chardonnay) and zero dossage. I LOVED this champagne ... it was a pure beam of clean fruit with a delicate mousse that dissolved like a cloud in your mouth.

Alas ... I couldn't find it for Xmas so the store recommended Laherte Brut Tradition NV (below)

The other wine was Jacques Lassaigne Les Vignes de montgueux, which I bought today for our Christmas feast with pastries from Thomas Keller's Bouchon.

Jacques Lassaigne is a 4.7 hectare family vineyard located in Montgueux. The vineyards boast prime southeastern exposure & consist primarily of Chardonnay vines (94%) & the rest is made up of Pinot Noir (6%). The Montgueux vineyard sites were originally held for the Montrachet of Champagne & are located near the gates of Troyes—the former capital of Champagne.

The terroir in Montgueux is nearly identical to the growing sites found further north in le Mesnil, as they share the same limestone vain —this is exceptional terroir for making great champagne. The non-vintage Blanc de Blanc is a blend of nine different vineyard sites & two successive vintages.

Age of Vines: 35 Years

Yields: 60 hl/ha

Pruning Method: Guyot

Soil: Heavy clay.

Varietals: Chardonnay.

The grapes are harvested by hand—from 9 different sites—at their maximum ripeness before being destemmed & gently pressed. The fruit undergoes complete malolactic fermentation & no sulfites are added to the blend. The wine is aged in new & old barrels for 12 to 24 months & held in bottle for 1 to 5 years until it is disgorged, corked & released.

Tasting Note: Pale straw in the glass with lovely mineral, dried fruit & citrus zest aromatics that reflect the purest expression of the Montgueux terroir. The palate is vibrantly alive with crisp citrus & melon flavors that are backed by deft acidity & dazzling minerality. The finish resonates with succulent citrus notes.

Laherte Brut Tradition NV

The word on cellertracker is mixed ... some call it "adolescent" (ouch! after all that mature 1980's Champagne in Champagne a few weeks ago!) with some giving it the dreaded 88 points ... the "kind" score for a wine you want to support but don't really like.

Still, I am re-assured by some people saying it has notes of honeydew, strawberry, green apple, and lemon cake (a real fruit salad) though others call it bracing, zippy, and full of "masculine charm"

And yet JW of Chambers street wines  recommended it highly, saying:

"On occasion saying that we’ve made a ‘discovery’ is really kind of silly. In this case these wines have been around for quite a while (1889, in fact – a mere newcomer by some standards) but they’re new to us – thus a discovery.

I’d been hearing about Laherte, and I ended up tasting them in Italy – at the fabulous natural wine fair called VinNatur; there were a few Champagne producers there, but none of those wines came close to the distinctiveness – and just plain excellence of Laherte. As you might now assume, this is natural wine: organic and biodynamic farming on an unusually diverse and large number of terroirs (over 75 vineyard parcels in 10 different villages).

Each wine is vinified separately and subject to a range of technique – fermentation in tank, barrique, and foudre (large wood barrels); malolactic on some wines and not on others – all depending on what each wine requires as it evolves. The dosage is very low (dosage = “The final addition to a sparkling wine… which determines the sweetness, or residual sugar, of the finished wine. In French this is called the liqueur d’expedition and usually comprises a mixture of wine and sugar syrup” – Jancis Robinson, the Oxford Companion to Wine) – the wines are very fresh and vivid, but also quite rich and ripe – evidently very good quality fruit is used.

All of the range of wines are excepetionally good: excellent NV Brut and Rose, and the fantastic Les Clos – a unique blend of all seven types of grapes that are permitted for use in Champagne – one our best wine discoveries, sparkling or still, that we’ve made this year. JW"

Also, Columbus Circle wines recommended both of the wines above

Bruno Paillard is an increasingly popular brand, and the first time I heard about it was during a week I spent as AXA's guest for winning a competition related to the Masters of Wine programme - it was the wine served in the very elegant 'drawing room' of Chateau Pichon-Longueville before dinner.

The other guests at the table, at least the ones from the UK, seemed to know it.

The second time was when Bruno Paillard himself made a big splash at a big Champagne event for the press last year.

... so you can imagine I was delighted to tour his winery and meet the man himself (for the second time) in person.

Bruno's daughter (above) greeted us and gave us an excellent tour of the winery. She is a fabulous ambassador for her father and nice to see the third generation is already on its way (though Bruno tells me  this won't be the first grandchild).

Word is he got his start by selling his Jaguar (vintage, of course) and thus raising the capital to buy grapes and rent machinery to make the wines. His family goes back to 1704 as brokers, yet if I understand the situation correctly he is the first producer.

And according to the CIVC, it is impossible today to buy wine if your family doesn't already own a winery or grow grapes. Bruno bought a small winery in Oger, a small area of the Cotes des Blancs, and now owns 26 ha.

As a winemaker, he feels strongly about fresh, clean flavors and low dossage. Also very important to him is the date of disgorgement on the bottle.

Like many top houses, he believes in only first pressings for the top wines, aging more than the CIVC requires, and is a fabulous speaker and marketer.

To see more Champagne visits please click here
 

One of the highlights of a very impressive trip to Champagne was an excellently conducted tutored  tasting of "base wines" at Champagne Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, followed by a "fantasy lunch" at l'Hotel du Marc, a very private, incredibly lavish, Proustian mansion owned by LVMH, complete with beautifully-attired servers and of course the best champagne.

M. Pierre Casenave, who is pictured above  teaching and below tasting wine at the center of the table, led the tutored tasting of the base wine. It was one of the most fabulous experiences of the already impressive trip, as it really drove home what Champagne is all about.

Champagne is an exercise in the art of blending. Even if a wine is all Chardonnay -- a Blanc de Blanc -- it is still made up of different vineyards, each prized for a specific trait such as high acidity, minerality, fruitiness ...

... and of course, the different soils and aspects shape the taste and aroma as well.

As we tasted the base wines from different vineyards, we could see how a master blender, the Chef de Cave, could put them all together. We were able to even see the vineyards we tasted on a large map.

After the "school work" was the party -- well, the pictures below explain everything. It was something one really only reads about in jet-set novels or films.

To see more visits to Champagne houses, please click here

Drive up to the home/winery of winemaker Francis Boulard -- who makes some of the finest Champagne I have ever tasted -- and you will see a modest farmhouse, colorful children’s toys in the large driveway, and … a trampoline.

The farmhouse had been purchased by Francis, his wife, and daughter/winemaker Delphine after a "break up" with his father's Raymond Boulard Champagne House , with the family's involvment in wine traceable to the French Revolution in 1792.

Francis Boulard's first contact with wines when he stood behind his grandfather's horse-driven plough at the age of 14 -- his grandfather was the last to resist the mechanization which followed the end of WW II

During his time in the family business Raymond Boulard & Fils (founded in 1980) Francis became increasingly interested in viticulture. Wanting to move towards vines that were grown as naturally as possible, he pushed the estate towards organic methods, resulting in the conversion in the 2000s of a proportion of the vineyards towards organic agriculture.

After Raymond’s death, Francis – feeling his family still did not understand organic wine and wanting to do something healthy for consumers and his own self, as well as the planet. - Francis decided to make as many of his vineyards biodynamic as possible so he "divorced" his family and went on his own with his wife and daughter.

One of the problems with being biodynamic in Champagne is the cold, wet, rainy weather ... it is harder to control mildew in these situations with natural remedies. And working with land that had previously had chemicals was a problem, as the chemicals destroyed the indigenous yeast and made it more difficult to start fermentation. To combat these problems, he revitalized key vineyards with organic dirt buried in a cow horn he bought from a professor of biodynamics in France.

To combat disease and make for healthier vines, he dissolves the organic dirt above, containing healthy earthworms, in water and sprays it over the land. He also uses another organic compound to fight mildew. Yet no spray can avoid the hailstorms that often strike the area, destroying as much as sixty percent of the crop.

Another key thing to know is that he stopped using a certain fining agent because it contained salmon bladder (gelatin), and the salmon had been farm raised, instead of wild, which meant it had been fed chemicals.

Francis conducts battonage along with the lunar calendar, as he feels it gives more complexity yet he has only been tracking this for two years and the results are not yet clear.

During our visit to the maturation room, we see he uses a mix of Bordeaux and Burgundy barrels because the shapes and staves are different, and thus, the oxygen exchange due to the ratio of wine to barrel is different and important for the final blend.

Finally, the tasting ... the wines are all fabulous, and there is a discussion of dossage, malolactic, and other factors as we taste through the line.

Les Murgiers Cuvee Reserve has fine beads, a shy nose, and palate with intense minerality and flavors of lemon chiffon and East Indian spices, along with ginger and quince. We try the Les Murgiers "nature" (no dossage) which has a more intense nose, a more tart profile, and sea salt on the palate.

Les Rachans is based on chardonnay grown on limestone silliceux - we taste the '06 and picked on "fruit day " and bottled on "fruit day.

Francis explains that his biodynamic teacher said that sometimes when you bottle on fruit day ihe wine is closed, so it is better to bottle on "flower day."

This wine is light gold color, with an Intense aroma of saffron and golden flowers. Palate is concentrated quince ... it needs another five years.

We try the Grand cru Mailly champagne (90% pinot noir,  10% chardonnay) 2008 extra brut - it has an aroma  of vanilla with a touch of honey and vanilla, as well as its no dossage counterpart.

This was a wonderful visit and fabulous introduction to biodynamic champagne.

See all champagne houses visited here

As is the case with every single Champagne house visited, it’s now hard for me to understand how anyone can understand Champagne – or appreciate it – without having had such an incredible tour and tasting. Yet then again, the Champagne houses are closed to most so it leaves us educators to spread the magic.

First, let me set up what turned to be a midnight (or, well near midnight tour). It was our first day in Champagne, some of us having flown in from overseas. We had just experieced a lunch and presentation from the CIVC  in Epernay and by the time we got to Ay we were all a bit exhausted … plus it was dark.

Outside Bollinger, we were met by M. Dennis, and taken on a tour of the vineyards in back of the house, planted by M. Bollinger herself. Later, I saw her portrait inside the Maison. The photograph looked early 60s from the color, a blue sky, and Madame Bollinger in what appears to be a smart Chanel suit (and I think a little chapeau) smiling and waiving. She looked very friendly and approachable, just he sort of woman who would plant an experimental in back of the Maison.

The purpose of the experimental vineyard were to raise pre-phylloxera vines. It was a tiny plot that yields 3000 bottles if my notes are correct. The vines looked gnarled and a bit dangerous, especially in the moonlight. They are visible from the house, and I could just imagine Madame Bollinger looking down on them each morning, perhaps from her bedroom or kitchen. M. Dennis mentions somethng about Madame Bollinger, who passed away in 1977, surprising everyone by being the ‘best manager.’ A few minutes later, we see some more experimental vines including Savignan, the grape from the Jura area, and Gamay.

We pause to overlook the tiny neighborhood around us of small, well-behaved houses, all as quiet as mice. From our elevation, it looks like a child’s toy village and it’s impossible to believe people actually live here. We learn that in the old days, workers lived here – now the houses are independently owned, mostly by people who in some way work for the Maison.

We walk through a very rocky garden (not fun in Manhattan-style boots!) and reach and alley, again very eerie and quiet, to one of the cellars where we learn that the Maison employs a barrel-maker to repair 15 year old barrels instead of buying new ones. Since this is Bollinger, it’s proably not a move to save money – I suspect the flavors of several vintages that have seeped into the wood add additonal flavor.

We also see the barrel-maker’s quarters. It is small and quaint with ancient looking tools, some of them looking like pitchforks.

After a walk through a few more cellars (there are MANY cellars here, all with their own lock and key) we finally get to the MAIN CELLAR where the reserve wine is held! Imagine a very spooky underground cave with cobwebs on the ceiling and very neatly arranged reserve wines dating back decades. Most wineries just keep their reserve wines in tanks, if I understand the situation correctly Bollinger is one of the few or only Maisons to bottle their reserve wine and also cork it in a real cork instead of a crown cap.

In the course of the tour we learn many other things, that Bollinger , Alfred Gratien, and Krug are three of the few (or only) Maisons that use wood, that there is only one use of the cuvee (first press), that the wines are barrel fermented, that the champagne receives extra aging before release (above appelation rules) …

… then of course there is the reception and dinner … all very fabulous, with the typical Champagne tradition of enjoying a few glasses of champagne and canapes in the living room (a uniformed servant passes them around).
Joining us for dinner was M. Mathiew Kauffmann, and we had the following wines Bollinger Special Cuvee, Bollinger Le Grande Annee Rose 2004, Bollinger Le Grand Anne 2002, and Bollinger Rose NV.

The pairing was on target .. lobster salad to start, a local fish as the main course, an incredible tiny diced fruit and vanilla ice cream plate …

bollinger dessert

It was a wonderful opportunity to understand the incredible energy and capital (human and monetary) that goes to make such a world class champagne.
 

Curious to discover S. African wine? Though imports are high in the UK, it’s often difficult to find wine from S. Africa in the United States, even in a large city like New York.

Recently I emarked on a four day trip (four days meeting with producers to discover the styles of wine they were making, check out the quality, and see the different wineries).
Below are some key finidings:

1. Quality is high among producers, yet it is crucial to be discerning and discriminating.

2. The trend among the best producers, large and small, is finding ‘micro sites’ with specific terroir. Think the tiny plots of Burgundy.

3. Increasingly, many producers are going biodynamic, organic, or at the very least are using natural yeast. More than fashionable marketing, this (at least from what I sampled) makes a better wine.

4. Larger producers are introducing tiers of quality levels. For a few dollars more, it pays to go for the best as the attention to winemaking, the quality of the grapes, and the terrior .

South Africa is now what must be one of the best and most exciting wine tourist destinationsin the world. While Napa has beautiful wineries, in South Africa the idea is that you spend a day – or at least several hours – visiting a facility. Virtually all of them have at least one restaurant, with most offering tours and some boasting museums or jeep tours.

All the wineries open to the public have tasting rooms, and these are very elegant places – most have been rebuilt/redecorated and almost all offer some sort of food or pairing option.

… and the restaurants in these wineries are incredible! I visited in early summer – before the rush – but reservations are crucial.
Driving is safe, and seemed pretty straight-forward. Traffic can be a problem, yet if you have the means, it may be best to hire a driver. We used Cape Divine Tours who were very prompt, and with 3 – 5 producer visits a day, absolutely necessary.

The range of hotels in S. Africa can suit any budget, and any expectation. The weekend before the trip, we relaxed at the One and Only in Capetown – it is located within walking distance of the waterfront in Capetown and close to dozens of restaurants, you won’t need a car if you are relaxing here for a few days before heading out to wine country.

During the four day trip through wine country itself, we stayed at at Batavia Boutique Hotel in Stellenbosch. It was actually my first time staying at what we in America call a “bed and breakfast” and what S. Africans call an Inn, so I didn’t know what to expect yet it was quite nice. It looks like every English major’s imagination of a Victorian home, with quaint touches all around and incredible attention to Victorian-era detail.

For example, sherry is in a decanter in every room (also port in the public rooms) on a complimentary basis. In the evening, guests can watch a wide screen TV in the public rooms, read, play chess, etc. in the morning, an incredible buffet breakfast awaits with eggs and other hot items cooked to order. The people who serve are very nice and very accomodating, and the set-up for breakfast (lace, antique china, tea-candles glowing in tiny antique china tea cups) was enchanting.

Click on this single URL that will take you to the producers I visited …
Happy travels!

Cape DivineTours
Mobile +21 76 815 8261 (Alecia)
             +21 72 376 4967 (Wessel)
Email: capedivinetours@gmail.com

Batavia Boutique Hotel
12 Louw Street, Stellenbosch
Telephone: +27 21887 2914
Fax                +27 21 887 2915
Email: reservations@batavia-stellenbosch.co.za
Website: http://www.bataviahouse.co.za