Monday, December 19, 2005
Did you know?
This section will provide you with short interesting wine related anecdotes. The information is taken from either books I've read orarticless found in the Internet. Enjoy, GPCI.
How to win a war?
How do you know how long to cellar your wine?
How many grapes are used for wine?
There are 24,000 names for varieties of wine grapes. Ampelographers say these represent about 5000 truly different varieties (many have different names for the same grapes). Out of the 5000 only 150 are planted in commercially significant amount. AND out of the 150 varieties only the following 9 are considered classic: White-Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon ; Red Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah.
Which type of trees is better for wine barrels?
Oak, right. An Oak from a cooler, drier climate growths narrow rings which is tightly grained. Winemakers generally prefer these type because they better integrate into the wine and the overall flavor is more mallow.
Sulfites how dangerous is it?
First, you may find significantly more sulfites in salad bars then in wine. The wine upper limit is 350 ppm (parts per million), where most of the wines today contain 150 ppm or less. Current research suggests that wine-related headaches are more probably related to difficultiesthe individual may have in metabolizing wine.
Chateau Mouton-Rothschild artistic labels
It all began in 1945 where famous artists shared their talent on the label of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild.
Each vintage has its own unique decorated label by artists like Pablo Picasso (1973), John Huston (1982) and others. The label and the artist's name are published only a year before the release of the bottles to the market.
How do people call 'legs' in different countries:
Britain - legs
Spain - tears
Germany - church windows
How do I tell the difference between a full and a medium or light body wine ?
It is like the difference between half-and-half, whole milk and skim milk respectively.
French are (too) serious ?
For one week each year, French school children, under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, go on field trip to three-star restaurants in order to taste foie gras, Bresse chickens, Roquefort cheese and sometimes even taste wine
What is quality in Sautern?
About twice a decade Chateau d'Yquem may choose not to make sweet wine because the grapes did not reach to the proper standard.
* * *
Dom Perignon Oenotheque
Dom Perignon, a Benedictine monk, had a problem in the 1660s, when he couldn’t control the wine’s fermentation because of the unpredictable weather – he kept getting a persistent sparkle. Much to his horror, Paris society loved it and since then, his Champagne is considered one of the best.
To achieve Don Perignon style, vintages are only released after 7 years of aging.
Further, a small portion of each vintage is kept on the lees even longer to continue the evolution and magnify its natural qualities.
Only one person - the Don Perignon cellar master – can decide if and when to release a vintage. When a vintage is released for the second time, it merits the Oenotheque (wine library) label.
The Oenotheque label indicates that a Don Perignon vintage has reached either its second peak in maturity, with optimized intensity (15 to 20 years after harvest), or its third peak, with optimized complexity (after 30 years on the lees).
The Dom Perignon vintages that currently merit the Oenotheque label are 1996, 1976 and 1990.
Dom Perignon Oenotheque
Dom Perignon, a Benedictine monk, had a problem in the 1660s, when he couldn’t control the wine’s fermentation because of the unpredictable weather – he kept getting a persistent sparkle. Much to his horror, Paris society loved it and since then, his Champagne is considered one of the best.
To achieve Don Perignon style, vintages are only released after 7 years of aging.
Further, a small portion of each vintage is kept on the lees even longer to continue the evolution and magnify its natural qualities.
Only one person - the Don Perignon cellar master – can decide if and when to release a vintage. When a vintage is released for the second time, it merits the Oenotheque (wine library) label.
The Oenotheque label indicates that a Don Perignon vintage has reached either its second peak in maturity, with optimized intensity (15 to 20 years after harvest), or its third peak, with optimized complexity (after 30 years on the lees).
The Dom Perignon vintages that currently merit the Oenotheque label are 1996, 1976 and 1990.
How to win a war?
In World War II, the French army got Champaign and wine to cheer them up.
Every soldier had an allowance of 1 litre a day (yes, a day!).
How do you know how long to cellar your wine?
An Australian wine consultant shared with me the following secret...
If you bought a few worth-cellaring bottles and you'd like to know how long you can cellar them, you need to sacrifice one bottle...
Open it and leave it uncorcked for a day in room temperature, if it tastes good after one day, the wine can be cellared for 2 years. If it's good after 2 days, it can be sellared for 4 years and so on...
Every DAY the wine remains tastefull equals 2 YEARS laying down in the cellar.
Some wines can taste great after 5 days that they were left open, which means the unopened bottles of the same type can lay down for 10 (!) years.
Interesting, eh?
How many grapes are used for wine?
There are 24,000 names for varieties of wine grapes. Ampelographers say these represent about 5000 truly different varieties (many have different names for the same grapes). Out of the 5000 only 150 are planted in commercially significant amount. AND out of the 150 varieties only the following 9 are considered classic: White-Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon ; Red Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Syrah.
Which type of trees is better for wine barrels?
Oak, right. An Oak from a cooler, drier climate growths narrow rings which is tightly grained. Winemakers generally prefer these type because they better integrate into the wine and the overall flavor is more mallow.
Sulfites how dangerous is it?
First, you may find significantly more sulfites in salad bars then in wine. The wine upper limit is 350 ppm (parts per million), where most of the wines today contain 150 ppm or less. Current research suggests that wine-related headaches are more probably related to difficultiesthe individual may have in metabolizing wine.
Chateau Mouton-Rothschild artistic labels
It all began in 1945 where famous artists shared their talent on the label of Chateau Mouton-Rothschild.
Each vintage has its own unique decorated label by artists like Pablo Picasso (1973), John Huston (1982) and others. The label and the artist's name are published only a year before the release of the bottles to the market.
How do people call 'legs' in different countries:
Britain - legs
Spain - tears
Germany - church windows
How do I tell the difference between a full and a medium or light body wine ?
It is like the difference between half-and-half, whole milk and skim milk respectively.
French are (too) serious ?
For one week each year, French school children, under the auspices of the Ministry of Culture, go on field trip to three-star restaurants in order to taste foie gras, Bresse chickens, Roquefort cheese and sometimes even taste wine
What is quality in Sautern?
About twice a decade Chateau d'Yquem may choose not to make sweet wine because the grapes did not reach to the proper standard.
