Every Monday, discover new wines, regions, and ways to understand this fermenting sea.
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Munching Vidal Blanc on Keuka Lake, New York
Tag Archives: chardonnay
Serendipity: Biodynamics -vs- Wines from Jura #MWWC13
Serendipity provides the lucky theme for this 13th Monthly Wine Writing Challenge. So, what role does fortuitous chance play in wine? Well, one theory thinks we can control nature’s chaos: biodynamics.
Logo DemeterImagine organic wine-making on astrological steroids, based, weirdly, on lectures given by Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner in the 1920s. I won’t bore you, but biodynamics looks at a vineyard as a whole ecosystem tied to celestial phenomenon and proscribes rituals to better enhance sustainability and produce. Intriguing…
However, bio-ists also latch their lunar planting calendar to a wine tasting calender (no really). 1st century Roman naturalist Pliny the Elder said the moon “replenishes the earth; when she approaches it, she fills all bodies, while, when she recedes, she empties them.” In theory, wine lives, and moon phases effect it just like living plants. Now wine certainly evolves and changes chemically with time and oxygen exposure, but to consider it “living” is like believing in zombies: those grapes aren’t growing anytime soon.
But can this (pseudo) science really predict chance? If we can calculate and plan our pleasure: “today is a leaf day, I shall avoid wine for maximum delight!” does it rob us the joy of surprise? Can we control serendipity?
Posted in Savagnin, Uncategorized, White
Tagged biodynamic winemaking, biodynamics, Bourdy, chardonnay, Chateau Chalon, demeter, Jean Bourdy, Jura, mwwc, mwwc13, Poulsard, Savagnin, serendipity, Trousseau, Vin Jaun, wine
12 Comments
Thirsty Thursday: Olivier Leflaive, Les Setilles, Bourgogne Blanc, France 2011
This Thirsty Thursday we drink Chardonnay. Wait! No! Keep reading! I lied. It is not Chardonnay, it is magnificent, fabulous, white Burgundy.
Now, yes, white Burgundy must be Chardonnay. But you try and grow any grape in Burgundy. Any grape. No matter how hard you try, the resultant wine will taste of Burgundy. Why?
The weather in this eastern French valley sucks. The soil sucks. Vineyards are smaller than American homes. Traditions and rules are painfully restrictive. Wine-making is stuck in the past. And everyone looks pale, angry, and old. Continue reading
Posted in Chardonnay, EMPTIED BOTTLES
Tagged Bourgogne, Burgundy, chardonnay, France, French wine, Leflaive, Olivier, wine
2 Comments
ENTRÉE PARIS 4: La Fête des Régions: EU Austerity Drinking Tour #43
Our EU Austerity Drinking Adventure continues today in search of a feast. Paris is constantly awash with events. We stumble onto La Fête des Régions: the biggest fair of regional food in France. Terroir-tastic Batman! Since it was right next to Stalingrad Metro, we gave ourselves permission to drink and eat…everything. Continue reading
Posted in Paris, WINERIES WANDERED
Tagged Alsace, Beer, Bière Blonde, Burgundy, Côtes du Couches, chardonnay, Chateau de Couches, Château la Boissière, DURAS, EU Austerity Drinking Adventure, European Union, France, Gallia, La Fête des Régions, La Semaine du Goût, Muscadet, Muscadet Sèvre et Maine, Muscadet Sur Lie, Oak, Oak (wine), Paris, pinot noir, riesling, Terrior, Théo Meyer, wine
5 Comments
Chardonnay, Hamilton Russell, Walker Bay, South Africa 2008
Chardonnay still brings this to most minds: Butter. Cloying, yellow richness in a glass. But is it the grape’s fault? Once alcoholic fermentation is finished, winemakers can add lactic acid bacteria (e.g. Oenococcus oeni, and Lactobacillus and Pediococcus species) to … Continue reading
At War With Waring Pro’s Wine Chiller
I walked through Target, marveling at China’s manufacturing prowess, then something caught my eye. Beneath a red clearance sign was a humble mound of black plastic: a wine chiller. Customers at my wine shop had asked me if we have … Continue reading
WAYWARD WINE 