Happy Valen-wines Day.
February 14, 2012
40,000 Bottles of Wine on the Wall, 40,000 Bottles of Wine…..
February 14, 2012That’s pretty special!
Posted in News | Tagged France | Leave a comment //
Yalumba “Y Series” Viognier, South Australia.
February 13, 2012
Grape
100% Viognier [Vee-ohn-yay]
Facts
- I’ve never felt that Viognier gets the attention it deserves, both in retail stores or restaurants. What first needs to be understood is that it shouldn’t be compared to any other grape, and so if you’ve grown weary of the “usual suspect” white wines, you might want to pay attention to this review!
- In 1980 Yalumba planted 1.2 hectares of Viognier in the Barossa Valley, this was Australia’s first commercial planting of the grape. Yalumba now make 4 different styles of Viognier, making it the largest producer in Australia.
- Yalumba was founded in 1849 by English brewer Samuel Smith and is Australia’s oldest family owned winery.
- Viognier has historically always been blended with Shiraz / Syrah in order to add "aromatic complexity" and balance. It was originally believed that Shiraz originated in the city of the same name in Iran. We now know it to have descended from vines in the Rhone region of France.
Viognier is a notoriously tough grape to grow. If it isn’t picked at exactly the right time it can show undesirable flavors, but when fully ripened produces wine with a strong perfume and high alcohol content.
Virginia Wine Industry Doubles in Five Years.
February 13, 2012
According to a new study, the wine industry in Virginia is now worth almost three-quarters of a billion dollars. What’s even more impressive is that the figure has more than doubled in the last five years, from $362 million to $747 million, this whilst the country has faced one of its worst economic recessions.
While unemployment soared nationally, in Virginia, the number of wine industry jobs increased from 3,162 to 4,753 between 2005 and 2010. Most industry growth came from the addition of small wineries producing less than 10,000 gallons per year. As wineries increased in quantity, so did the number of tourists visiting them; the number of employees and the amount of wages paid.
One Sommelier’s Fairy-Tale Success
February 13, 2012
When it comes to qualifications, one man has sniffed and slurped his way through more wine examinations than perhaps any other. That man is Gérard Basset, 54 years old, boasts not just a Master of Wine qualification, but also a Master Sommelier, and a Wine M.B.A. from the Bordeaux École de Management, for which he wrote a thesis on the psychology of the wine list. If that wasn’t enough, in 2010 he was named world champion by the Association de la Sommellerie Internationale (ASI) in Santiago, Chile. If anyone can claim to be the world’s greatest sommelier, it is probably him.
Posted in News | Tagged Court of Master Sommeliers, Master of Wine, Master Sommelier, Sommelier | Leave a comment //DIVINO TUSCANY 2012
February 13, 2012
Event: DIVINO TUSCANY 2012
Date/Time: May 17- 20, 2012
Location: Florence, Tuscany.
Divino Tuscany 2012 is a one-of-a-kind 4-day celebration of the best Tuscan wines, food and culture. Divino Tuscany will offer a distinctive program that highlights premium wines: wine tastings with Tuscany’s top winemakers, seminars and grand tastings curated by James Suckling, former Senior Editor and European Bureau Chief of Wine Spectator and one of the world’s most influential wine critics; special luncheons and dinners prepared by Michelin-starred chefs and entertainment organized by IMG Artists, one of the leading producers of cultural and lifestyle festivals.
Participating winemakers include Marchesi Antinori, Frescobaldi, Mazzei, Ricasoli, Il Borro, Petrolo and Castello Banfi, and more.
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