Fabulous event today at Christies ... Robin Kelly O'Connor, the new Vice President and head of Wine, Americas, at Christies hosted this event focusing on "The Finest German Wines" (which of course, means Riesling).

Lisa Granik MW acted as moderator for an excellent panel that included Paul Grieco and famed producers Reinhard Lowenstein from Weingut Heymann-Lowenstein and Raimund Prum.

Riesling rocks, and Paul Grieco, the force behind Terroir and Insieme, proved it with the Riesling tattoo on his forearm!
 

 

One of the most fabulous things about Manhattan is that one has no need to jump on a jet to explore exotic wine regions, as the regions themselves come to us.

On March 16, Burgundy Wines came to Manhattan to educate journalists about "the lesser known village appellations from Burgundy."

Leading hte seminar was Jay Youmans, Master of Wine, who was brilliant and had a great sense of humor.  Jay took us through a tutored tasting of eight wines, showing us on a map (very helpful!) how the different village plots differentiated against one another in terms of aspect. At times we had two wines from the same producer, the key difference being the year and also the differenet vineyard and its "aspect."

After the tasting, guests could meet the three dozen producers and taste their wine.

Pictured above is Jean-Marie Du Champs, who had some examples of top producers with her. Jeanne-Marie is super keyed into Burgundy, and you can read more about her and our visits to different producers here.

Seminar Tasting

"The Italians seem so happy to be here in New York," says a friend, after the Friday night close of the Italian Wine Exchange Grand Tasting. "Why is  that?"

Yes, it's true - the Italians did really seem happy to be here and have the opportunity to share their wine and the love of their culture with top journalists, importers, and distributors in New York. Having attended many of the sessions, and met many of the producers, making wine is a way of life ... and not always a very generously rewarded way of life at that.

Most people in the wine trade realize that it is difficult to make a truly successful living making wine, so it really is a passion. And if the producers I met are any indication, many Italian wineries are several generations old. Their objective is to introduce their brand to the American market.

As a whole, Vino Italy 2010 was exceptionally well run and extremely well attended, with two grand tasting events supplemented by seminars (including first rate tutored tastings) and food and Italian wine paired dinners.

Among the highlights of the events I attended were the following:

Virtual Vino: Millenials and Social Media Decanted

This was a really fun and well attended panel as social media is a key buzz word of today. The usual suspects were up on the podium -- Alder Yarrow of Vinography fame who is the poster child of blogs, having established one of the earliest wine blogs and well known for his very personal style of interaction with his many followers. I hadn't met Doug Cook, Director of Search at Twitter, before yet he was also fabulous. Both men underscored the importance of blogs in today's media landscape, and especially the fact that blogs are search engine friendly.  Producers: take note! This means that when you send your wine to a blogger or a blogger writes up your wine, the world can access it quite easily!

A very charming speaker was Susanna Crociani of Azienda Agricola Crociana in Montepulciano (Siena) who gave a very sincere talk about how and why she started her blog early on and why it is important for a personal voice in a blog.

Susannah Gold of Avvinaire/Vigneto Communications spoke from the standpoint of a media specialists addressing Italian wineries, urging them to create rich, content filled web sites. As a journalist, i am constantly searching for information online, and Susannah's advice (I hope) will get more easily available winemaking content on the Internet.

Anthony Dias Blue moderated and Steve Raye of the Brand Action Team also gave some solid advice.

Terroir: Diversity and Complexity of Brunello di Montalcino, Chianti Classico, and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano

"Who is that fabulous speaker!" I found myself wondering. I was seated in the back here, and only heard the energetic voice of presenter Anthony Giglio, who deftly led the audience through a tasting of several wines from the region. The session was just about ninety minutes -- barely time enough time to understand the terroir of these classic regions - yet it was an excellent introduction to the Sangiovese grapes and its many expressions.

Tuscany's Etruscan Coastline: Bolgheri and Morelino di Scansano

Piero Selvaggio moderated this panel, consisting of the so called 'young generation" of producers in the region according to the handsome, white-haired Attilio Scienza, Professor of viticulture an adjunct professor at the University of Milan. In looking at the winemakers, however, one assumes Mr. Scienza was referring to young or "new" ideas in winemaking, especially with regard to biodynamic winemaking.

In any event, one of the key takeaway points was that Sangiovese vines near the coast (Bolgheri and Morelino di Scansano) produce different wine than inland vines, and Mr. Scienza had a long presentation about soils to prove it. I especially enjoyed this tasting, as it offered guests the opportunity to taste wine made from 100% Sangiovese and wines with Merlot and/or Cabernet Sauvignon added. Very happy to report that in this tasting at least, I was able to correctly identify which wines had more Cabernet, and which had more Merlot. Yet I liked the pure Sangiovese wines with their fresh forward fruity appeal the best.

The Evolution of Prosecco

Another well attended tasting and lecture by Antony Giglio, offering a variety of very exceptionally good Prosecco wine. Lucky audience members had the opportunity to taste many different examples of this wine, which is made in the Conegliano-Valdobbiadene region in Italy's Veneto. All the examples were excellent and delicious examples of this grape and region (it is a sparkling wine made from the Prosecco grape in what is called the Charmat or "tank" method of secondary fermentation). 

"Regione Toscana" dinner with Guest Chef Cesare Casella from Salumeria Rosi in the Waldor Astoria's Louis XVI room

Wine expert Kevin Zraly introduced wines of Tuscany with fabulous pairings from the region as well. Elin McCoy and Karen MacNeil were in attendance, as was Susanna Crociani of Azienda Agricola Crociana from the social blogging panel.
 

.... so by now, you've seen the film Sideways, tasted Pinot Noir, and count yourself as one of the varietal's many fans. Yet do you like Pinot Noir from around the world, or just certain locations? Have you taught yourself to tell the difference between a Pinot from New Zealand and Burgundy?

The folks at Craggy Range in New Zealand put several wine journalists to the challenge recently by creating a blind tasting of twelve Pinot Noir wines from California, Oregon, Burgundy, and New Zealand. Guests were given time to write tasting notes on each wine, rate them from one to twelve, and guess its origin. Among the many familiar faces were writers such as Howard Goldberg of Decanter and the New York Times, and Andrew Dorenberg, who with his wife Karen Page is the author of many award winning books on food and wine.

Speaking for myself, I could tell the difference between the "new world" wines and the "old world" wines, yet the youthful 2007/2006 vintage meant that the Burgundies weren't showing as well as they would in a decade's time. I also discovered that from a pure sensory point of view, I really instinctively liked the what turned out to be the New Zealand wines, all from Craggy Range individual vineyards (Te Muna, Zebra, Aroha, Calvert, and Sluicings). These wines range from $39 to $85, and reflect the individual soil, as well as the percentage of new French Oak they are aged in. To my palate, they were lighter and fresher than the Burgundies and the Oregon producers, and had a signature ripeness of red berry fruit I associate with New Zealand.

At my table for lunch was winemaker Rod Easthope, who is passionate about Pinot Noir and all the other wines they make. from this vineyard. The property looks gorgeous - if you go to http://www.craggyrange.com you will see the famed mist near the mountains, and can even arrange to stay on property and taste through the wines.

Yes, it takes time, but it is possible to train your palate to detect the subtle differences between new and old world PNs first, and then differentiate between California and Oregon and New Zealand. A very dramatic effort on behalf of Craggy Range which underscored that the time is right for those who love Pinot to try quality wine from New Zealand as opposed from considering Burgundy the benchmark of good wine.

Quick! When you think of Burgundy wine, what is the first thing that comes to mind? “Expensive” is one possible word. Everyone around the world has heard about the famous tiny vineyards where wines can sell for hundreds of dollars a bottle - and beyond!

Sure, Burgundy wine can be expensive, yet you can find many delicious affordable wines at the village level. Another word that may have come to mind is “varied.” Each of the tiny vineyards boasts such individual terroir wine made from a vine a meter away from another vine can taste completely different. And believe it or not, you will find experts who can correctly blind taste and identify wines from each region.

Recently, the Burgundy Wine Board (BIVB) hosted a “Terroirs & Signatures de Bourgogne” event in New York City, featuring many Burgundy producers as well as a very well-attended and informative lecture by Lisa Airey, Certified Wine Educator and Director of the French Wine Society. A vivacious speaker, Lisa gave her presentation an extra jolt of excitement by distributing wireless polling devices to the attendees, and asking them to guess at the correct answer to questions posted on the screen. In addition to testing the audience’s knowledge of the location of Burgundy and key historical events in its history, another question concerned which Burgundy to choose for a specific food pairing.

The audience learned about Burgundy’s rich history, starting with the birth of the first vineyards under the Gallo-Roman influence, then to the Monks of the11th century who developed the methods to work the vines, to the present. You probably already know the main red grape is Pinot Noir, and the white grape is Chardonnay. Yet you have probably wondered why is it that a single varietal, Pinot Noir, in a single region, Burgundy, with similar climate conditions, can taste so different, vineyard to vineyard. The answer depends on the clone, the soil and subsoil, the weather conditions (microclimate of the vineyard), if the grapes are grown on flat ground, on the hillside, and if so, what aspect of the hillside.

Though Burgundy wine has earned its high-end reputation based on Grand Crus and Premier Crus, they account for only two percent and ten percent, respectively, of the total production. Village Appellations account for 35 percent of the total production, and Regional Appellations account for just over half of the total production.

Included in the presentation was a wine tasting of some white, some red, some First Cru, and some Village level, thus encompassing many styles and price points. Audience members found Lisa’s keen observations about the wines quite helpful. Even though the assembled group consisted of seasoned tasters in the trade and media, it is always a valuable experience to taste with an expert and hone one’s palate.

When the seminar ended, the group headed upstairs to the main tasting, where seasoned winemakers poured and explained the methodology behind their wines. All in all, a great event and a reminder that even in these hard economic times, you can find a Burgundy in your price range.