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Second Salon des Vignerons in Liège, Belgium

20/02/2009 Jozef Schildermans 0

The second edition of the Salon des Vignerons in Olne, Liège, Belgium, takes place from April 17-19 2009. The exhibition gathers 35 wineries who practice organic agriculture, biodynamic agriculture and / or minimal intervention during winemaking. The magazine Rouge et le Blanc organizes blind tastings, the public can also taste and there are lectures by the winemakers. The exhibition starts > Read more …

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Older Burgundy’s In Folliez (Vinotopia)

17/02/2009 Michiel Carpentier 0

The reason for this meeting in restaurant Folliez in Mechelen was the visit of a (hopefully) future American Master of Wine. Reason enough to taste a nice series of older wines. We began with a few beautiful white Burgundy’s with in between them a couple of top California Chardonnays: Kongsgaard and Marcassin. Nice comparison, though the flight was dominated by the 2001 Coche-Dury Perrières. Even the …

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2006 Château Malescot St. Exupery

13/02/2009 Jozef Schildermans 0

2006 Château Malescot St. Exupery – France, Bordeaux, Médoc, Margaux (2/6/2009) Blackberries, chocolate, black coffee, leather and minerals on the quite modern but enjoyable nose. At this stage, the rather sweet tannins dominate the ripe black fruit; good acidity ensures much needed freshness; additional aromas of exotic spices, leather and black coffee turn this in a very tasty package. Similar > Read more …

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Plastic Wine Bottles Gain Popularity

12/02/2009 Jozef Schildermans 0

Plastic bottles are increasingly used for packaging wines that are ment for quick consumption. Since 2006, the Australian wine giant Wolff Blass sells several of its cheaper wines in bottles made from recycled PET (polyethylene). We wrote about this earlier. PET bottles are also used by some winemakers from the Loire. Jospeh Mollet (Sancerre) showed at the recent Salon des Vins de Loire in Angers plastic bottles with his Sauvignon Blanc ‘Destinea. Frederic Jacquet, chef de cave, sees (in the newspaper Ouest-France) only benefits. Because PET bottles are lighter, the same lorry can carry nearly nine thousand bottles extra. Not only …

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2007 Laurenz V. Grüner Veltliner Singing

10/02/2009 Jozef Schildermans 0

2007 Laurenz V. Grüner Veltliner Singing – Austria, Niederösterreich (6/26/2008) Ripe yellow fruit, flowers on the slightly spicy nose. Fresh on the slightly spritzy palate, with ripe fruit, a touch of honey and good acidity. Not very profound, but a good aperitif or summer quaffer. (87 pts.)

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2006 Finca Sandoval Manchuela

05/02/2009 Jozef Schildermans 0

2006 Finca Sandoval Manchuela – Spain, Castilla-La Mancha, Manchuela (1/29/2009) Black berries, ripe black prunes, stable aromas and aromatic herbs on the expressive nose. Masses of black fruit on the palate, intermingled with herbs, black coffee, refreshing acidity and a serious dollop of oak. Young and not yet completely balanced, but promising, although this seems somewhat lighter than in the > Read more …

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Stable Results For Champagne Vranken-Pommery Monopole

05/02/2009 Jozef Schildermans 0

Vranken-Pommery Monopole, the number two in the world for the production and distribution of Champagne, registered a stable turnover in 2008. Sales in Great-Brittain and the U.S. fell sharply in 2008, but rising sales in Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland compensated this. The worldwide turnover in 2008 clocked in at 286.8 million euros, compared with 285.8 million euros in 2007. > Read more …