Tag Archives: vinification

France

Château de Parenchère Bordeaux Supérieur Rouge, Bordeaux, France

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Chateau de Parenchere Bordeaux Superieur Red

Appellation: Bordeaux Supérieur Red

 

Blend: 50% Merlot

40% Cabernet Sauvignon

9% Cabernet Franc

1% Malbec

Tasting note: With its equal proportions of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, Château de Parenchère Bordeaux Supérieur Red is half-way between a Médoc and a Saint-Emilion.

Merlot gives it its supple, fruity fleshiness; Cabernet-Sauvignon provides structure and additional tannic density.

This traditional Parenchère blend is generally very fleshy, with a very deeply coloured robe. Characterized by a good balance between fruit and tannin, it displays distinct red fruit aromas with a long, sustained finish.

France

Domaine Faiveley Pommard “Les Vaumuriens”, Burgundy, France

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Domaine Faiveley Pommard

The village of Pommard neighbours Beaune and is one of the most reputed winemaking villages in the Côte de Beaune. The vineyards are steeped in history and have long enjoyed a reputation for outstanding quality.

Grape Variety

Pinot Noir

WINEMAKING

The grapes are cut harvested and sorted by hand. The proportion of de-stemmed grapes and whole clusters varies depending on the vintage. The wines are punched down daily in order to extract colour, tannins and aromas from the skin of the grapes. After a 19 day vatting period, the alcoholic fermentation is complete. The free-run wine is run off using a gravity system whilst the marc is pressed slowly and gently in order to extract an exceptionally pure press wine. The wines are aged for 12 months in French oak barrels (20-30% new oak) which have been selected for their fine grain and moderate toast. The wines are left to age in our hygrometry-controlled cellars at consistent, natural temperatures. The wines spend 2 months in vats at the end of the ageing process.

TASTING

This wine reveals an attractive deep ruby red hue. The nose exudes aromas of black fruit and spice combined with oaky notes and a touch of spice. The attack offers a powerful structure with direct tannins underpinned by delicate oaky notes. This wine’s excellent structure and aromatic persistency give it good potential for bottle age.

Serve at 14°C to 16°C

Cellaring Potential 5 to 8 years

Italy

Colombo Silviandare Piemonte DOC Chardonnay, Piedmont, Itlay

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Colommbo Silviandre Chardonnay DOCVarietal: Chardonnay

Age of vineyards: 35 – 40 years

Alcoholic fermentation: stainless steel at 12-13° C

Malolactic fermentation: None

Maturation: stainless steel on the lees for four months and then two months in the bottle.

Color: Intense pale yellow with greenish reflections, very consistent.

Bouquet: Inevitable pleasure from the intensity of this wine. Fruity and floral at the beginning, pineapple and white flowers, apple and a bit of acacia. After a few minutes the aroma evolves into notes of crusty bread and honey, which come from the maturation on the lees.

Palate: Soft and fresh in the mouth. Pleasingly persistent which allows us to appreciate the bouquet.

Alcohol content: 13% vol.

Serving temperature: 10-12°C

Pairings: Excellent as an aperitif or with light appetizers. During a meal it pairs well with white meats like pheasant, and is perfect with fish dishes such as first courses with crustaceans or main dishes like Mediterranean Sea Bass.

Winemaker: Riccardo Cotarella

Italy

Banfi Cuvee Aurora Alta Langa DOCG, Piedmont, Itlay

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Banfi Cuvee Aurora Alta Langa

Vinified at Banfi Piemonte estate cellars in Strevi, this elegant wine is the expression of the Alta Langa project.

GRAPE VARIETIES: Pinot noir (70%) and Chardonnay (30%). All grapes are selected and hand-picked in hilltop Piedmontese vineyards located in the provinces of Cuneo, Asti and Alessandria.

PRODUCTION TECHNIQUE: Soft pressing of the grapes is followed by clarification of the must and by fermentation at controlled temperatures. 10% of the cuvée consists of the previous vintage wine, aged in barrique. Fermentation takes place in the bottle according to the Classical Method. Yeast contact is extended for at least 30 months followed by traditional hand riddling (remuage) on pupitres and dégorgement à la glace.

DESCRIPTION

Color: pale gold colour with tiny and persistent perlage.

Bouquet: intense and fragrant with notes of yeast and vanilla.

Taste: on the palate the wine is well balanced with gentle acidity and harmonious with a soft hint of bitterness on finish.

WINEMAKER’S NOTES: Alta Langa is a new Piedmontese DOC appellation. In each bottle of Cuvée Aurora, the current vintage is enriched by the addition of 10% of the previous vintage cuvée aged in oak barrels. The result is very round, rich and long aging sparkling wine.

Italy

Demarie Roero Riserva DOCG, Piedmont, Italy

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Demarie Roero Riserva

Roero is a small paradise made up of sandy dunes in yellow ochre clay tones covered with green vineyards, all of which combine to create a magical and enchanted landscape. The vineyard traditions in the Roero territory were the inspiration for this denomination and have their roots set deeply over time. Roero is made from pure Nebbiolo grapes, which reach their apex in Barolo and Barbaresco, and in Roero produce a rare fine and elegant wine which has experienced great success over only a few years’ time.

The vineyard from which it comes is the oldest vineyard of Nebbiolo grapes owned by the company, planted in 1946 by Giovanni Demarie along with his brother when the latter returned from the war. Giovanni, 20 years younger, has known its brother on his return. This vineyard, therefore, still tells the story of two brothers among them unknown and a return home after six years of war and captivity.

Variety: 100% Nebbiolo grapes

Colour: deep carnet with brick-coloured reflections

Scent in perfume: ethereal and intense with hints of violet, raspberries and blackberries, tinged with elegant touches of spice

Flavour: full-bodied wine, harmonious, warm and powerful. Sensations of violet and red fruits with an undertone of the pleasant spiced fragrances of liquorice and cocoa.

Best served at: 18° C. – 65° F.

Italy

Demarie Roero Arneis DOCG, Piedmont, Italy

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Demarie Roero Arneis

In traditional local culture, the name Arneis is given to someone who is an extrovert, a bit of a rebel, original but with a certain charm. For this reason we are proud to present this fine white wine from the Roero hills, as it shows all the excellent qualities of its name. The sandy terroir provides this wine with a full intense aroma, and the limestone and clay, its strong body and structure. One of the great white wines of Piedmont, Arneis is the result of a lucky rediscovery, due to the intuition, headstrong passion, and the business capacity of the winegrowers of the Roero region. Within a very short time, this authentic champion of local winemaking has made itself a name in the list of international quality wines.

Variety: 100% Arneis grapes

Colour: brilliant, sunny, bright with shades of straw yellow and green reflections

Scent in perfume: full-bodied, robust and intense, composite and delicate. Floral as well as fruity nuances of broom, camomile, peach and apricot

Flavour: dry, palatable and pleasantly harmonic. Fresh and persistent with a slightly almond aftertaste

Best served at: 8-10° C. – 47-50° F.

Food matches: excellent as an aperitif, it is perfect with hors d’oeuvres, light, vegetable first courses. Ideal also with fish or poultry

Italy

Ceretti Ceret One Nizza DOCG, Piedmont, Italy

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Ceret One Nizza DOCGServe at 18°-20°C

GRAPE VARIETY        

100% Barbera

AGEING

18 months in oak barrels

ACIDITY          

6 gr/l

SUGARS (REDUCERS)

0,3-0,5 gr/lt

ALCOHOL

14,0% Vol

VOLUME        

750 ml

TASTING NOTES

Characteristics

Ruby red colour with purple hints. Delicate, alcohol-rich, intense, full and lingering aromas. Complex and well balanced body.

Winemaking

Grapes are selected and hand-picked. Crushing/destemming, long submerged-cap maceration 3 weeks. Fermentation in steel temperature controlled vats at 28°-29°. Maturation in oak barrels.

Italy

Torraccia del Piantavigna Ghemme DOC – 2009 Riserva, Piedmont, Italy

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Torraccia Ghemme 2009

Grape: as tradition demands, 90% Nebbiolo, 10% Vespolina

Vine training system: guyot

Area of production: own vineyard on top of the hill, historically called Ronco dell’Ulivo, in the territory of Ghemme

Orientation: East-West

Average yield per acre: about 2,200 kg, selection of the best grapes

Harvesting: hand-picked during the first fortnight of October and transported to the winery in small crates

Vinification: soft press of the grapes, fermentation in temperature-controlled steel tanks, monitoring the remontage frequency and the oxygen intake, so as to encourage the extraction of polyphenols. This is followed by malolactic fermentation

Ageing: at least 3 years for the traditional Ghemme

Finishing: at least 6 months in the bottle

Bottle: inspired by an original dated 1904

Notes: Torraccia declares a Riserva only in the greatest years, when the weather and the climatic conditions have been exceptionally good, allowing the grapes to mature absolutely perfectly. Only if we deem that the wine is exceptional, do we bottle it bottle it as a Riserva. The vintage 2009 is the second Riserva of the century. The yield is only 2,000 kg per acre.

The Riserva has a ruby-red colour with garnet shades, a fine, intense nose with hints of violet and liquorice. In the mouth, it is dry, powerful and sapid with soft velvety tannins and good residual acidity. We expect this wine to continue to develop well over the next 20 years.

Italy

Travaglini Gattinara DOCG, Piedmont, Italy

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Travaglini Gattinara

Country: Italy

Area: Northern – Piedmont

Varietal composition: 100% Nebbiolo

Soil: rocky and abundant minerals of iron which give the tipical reddish colour to the indigenous rock

Climate: typical of the piedmont area, in respect to that of the plain. It permits an even distribution of precipitation between both spring and autumn, and a ventilation of the vineyard supported by almost daily descending” winds brought about by the Alpine bow. In the winter, snow is frequent, which supports the slow process of sedimentation of the soil

Harvest: first part of October

Winemaking: crushed and macerated for about 15 days in stain-less steel tanks at controlled temperature. The wine is aged for 3 years, 2 years in Slovenian oak of different origin and size, then rest in the bottle for 3 months

Wine Description: a deep pomegranate red wine; medium-bodied wine shows good depth in its red fruit. Soft silky tannins, with a good structure and intense mineral fragrance

Serving temperature: 18/20° C

Shelf life: 8-10 years, if correctly stored

Alcohol: 13.5%Vol.

Acidity: 5.9 g/l

Sugar residual: 1.1 g/l

Italy

Giulio Cocchi Brachetto d’Acqui DOCG, Piedmont, Italy

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Cocchi Brachetto d'Acqui

The most distinctive of sweet sparkling wines, Brachetto d’Acqui has had a steady presence in the Piedmontese wine history.

Giulio Cocchi presents this wine made of grapes from the typical DOCG zone, labeling it with the original liberty style poster dated 1932.

GRAPE VARIETY

100% Brachetto d’Acqui

VINIFICATION AND SPARKLING WINE MAKING

Bunches of grapes are harvested by hand and immediately pressed to obtain a very sweet and cherry red must, which will then ferment in autoclave. Thanks to this technique, the aromatic qualities of the grape pass to the wine, releasing its intense scent of rose and raspberry.

TASTING NOTES

Cherry red with light notes and a joyful foam; vibrant, fresh and stylish bouquet with an intense scent of rose; gentle, slightly tannic to balance the sweet aroma and grant a pleasant persistence.

It is the perfect party wine that goes naturally well with fresh fruits, pastries or elaborate desserts.

A young wine to be served chilled; ideal for bars and patisseries, it can be best presented in cup-shaped glasses with a garnish of wild berries.