Category: Wine of the Week

Nadal at a Corpinnat tasting

Published 15. October 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

While Norway changed government with parades and speeches, an interesting tasting took place just across the street at the Grand Hotel. This tasting in Oslo was the first official Corpinnat tasting outside of Spain.

To be short, Corpinnat (meaning born in the Penedès, after Roman etymological roots) is a group of Catalan producers of sparkling wine that has left DO Cava. All ten producers with wines in the market were represented. Leading the tasting was Carles del Amor, export director of Nadal, one of the six founding members – together with Liora Levi, Norwegian sommelier and wine writer.

Carles del Amor while preparing the tasting in Oslo

The tasting showed a variety of styles. Some wineries contributed what they consider the more typical from their range, while others offered “top” wines. There were examples of restrained, mineral wines, while others were more on the fruity side. Some dominated by the xarel.lo grape (also varietals), others with more parellada. One rosé.

There will be a longer report that I will link to here. Now I will just present one wine in the ever ongoing Wine of the Week series.

Since Carles is here (on behalf of Corpinnat, that is) I still want to focus a bit on Nadal‘s contribution. Their Brut Nature Reserve 2015 was maybe the most flowery/fruity of the lot. This can maybe be seen from the grape composition; parellada 57%, xarel.lo 22%, macabeu 21%. While xarel.lo is a variety with a lot of acidity and preferred in wines made for ageing, parellada contributes more finesse and aroma. This said, Carles tells that they have a project going on, trying to prepare parellada for more ageing, for example by moving higher up towards the Pyrenees. By doing this they also prepare themselves for new, hotter times. The wine has an ageing of 60 months on the lees, is a non dosé obviously organically grown (as is mandatory without Corpinnat), and it’s degorged 21st June 2021 (also obligatory information within the group).

Here are other posts about members of the group (search the site for more):

Gramona

Recaredo

Mas Candí

Brut Nature Reserve 2015 (Nadal)

Light golden; fruity with aromas of white flowers, elegant yeast notes, a subtle hint of ginger and nuts; quite soft structure, but enough acidity – wonderfully balanced.

Price: Medium

Food: Fish, shellfish, light meat, salads various tapas and the best serrano hams

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Wine of the Week

SorGaahl of La Sorga

Published 8. October 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

La Sorga is something of a superstar on the natural wine stage. It was started in 2008 by Antony Tortul, now accompanied by his wife and by David Adell. They work as a kind of négociants, as the grapes are bought in. There are more or less 50.000 bottles produced per year. There is no shortage of creativity, so 30-40 different labels are created every year.

All grapes come from organic or biodynamic vineyards. La Sorga wines are always “zero zero”.

They work in different regions around Béziers, in the Languedoc. The climate is warm and maritime, close to the Mediterranean, so the grapes are often harvested early to maintain freshness. The soils are lime, clay and slate.

For this wine -from Corbières and Cabrerolles- cinsault 40 years old are used in 60%, the rest more than a hundred years old carignan. The grapes were picked by hand and underwent maceration carbonic for 60 days. Then followed 12 months in amphorae and bottling, clearly, without filtration or SO2.

SorGaahl 2019 (La Sorga)
Dark red with blue hue, somewhat turbid. Clear-cut aromas of blueberry, cherries and a spicy component. Luscious, juicy, but also concentrated, with a dry finish.

Price: Medium

Food: Rich vegetable dishes, light and tasty meat (chicken, lamb, pig), pizza and pasta…

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Wine of the Week

Blend from Brand

Published 1. October 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Pedersgata in the main street in what was earlier known as a tired eastern neighbourhood, but is now bustling with energy. Other fabulous restaurants like Bellies (vegan) and Sabi Omakase (Japanese with Michelin star) are also found here. This wonderful wine we tasted at Claes Helbak’s new place Lapin in that street.

One of the wines I tasted at the opening night in March was Wilder Satz 2018, a very clean, pure natural wine from Bockenheim, Pfalz. Weingut Brand is now brothers Daniel and Jonas, 5th generation. When little brother Jonas joined in 2014 the then organic production was taken a step further to natural. In some wines are added a bit sulphur. This one not. Whole clusters of chardonnay, müller-thurgau and silvaner were pressed before spontaneous fermentation. Bottled unfiltered.

Wilder Satz 2018 (Weing. Brand)

Light straw, slightly turbid. Aromatic, yellow apples, lime and orange peel, and yeast. Energetic, with lovely acidity and low alcohol; long.

Price: Medium

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Wine of the Week

A nod to the Valpolicella of the past

Published 24. September 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Valpolicella was originally light to medium-bodied, refreshing, with a pleasing bitterness on the finish. Nothing to do with the dark, sweet, oaky or raisiny wines we have come to know. (Okay, amarone and ripasso have a rightful place in their context.) Monte Dall’Ora makes beautiful classical style wines.

The winery was founded by Carlo Venturini with his wife Alessandra in 1995. They bought some land in bad condition and started almost from scratch. They work the traditional varieties corvina, corvinone, rondinella, molinara, and also oseleta, an almost extinct grape that now is on the up.it was always organic, and in 2006 they converted to biodynamic agriculture.

Carlo amongst his pergolas (Cred. Monte D’O)

They are found on the Castelrotto height, in San Giorgio, northwest from Verona. The soils are limestone with a reddish hue, quite special for this area, with a porous upper part. They train their vines in pergola. These varieties are vigourous and can easily grow to big bunches to control. Pergola gives air and space between the clusters, and you would also get smaller and concentrated bunches.

The actual wine is made up of 40% corvina, 30% corvinone and 20% rondinella, and a dash molinara. The vines for this traditional Valpolicella varieties were planted in 2008, trained on wires in guyot rather than in pergola for greater concentration. It’s harvested by hand in October, later than for the rest of their wines.

The grapes are destemmed and gently pressed. Spontaneous fermentation takes place with native yeasts and without sulfur in concrete and steel tanks, then maceration 7-8 days with occasional manual punch-downs. Aged 6 months in steel, then 6 months in old 25-hectoliter oak vessels bottled without filtration and only a small amount of sulphur.

Camporenzo Valpolicella Superiore 2017 (Monte Dall’Ora)

Ruby red, just a bit cloudy. Aroma of cherries, white flowers and, wild raspberry. On the palate more pungent than it appears by the eye; with red currant, pomegranate, berry seed, and stony minerals. Lots of pleasure in this bottle!

Price: Medium/low

Food: Light meat, liver, sage, prosciutto, pasta, boils, hard cheeses…

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Wine of the Week

Pure Pureza

Published 17. September 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

This is a wine I enjoyed in southeastern Murcia several times this summer, before and after a visit to the producer in the neighbouring Alicante province. (Read about the visit here.)

Pureza 2019 is a 6 days skin-contact moscatel from coastal Marina Alta (in the cooler La Marina subregión of DO Alicante wine region. It is aged in amphoras, therefore often called Pureza Moscatel Ánfora.

Pepe and yours truly in the bodega this summer

The grapes for the Pureza are moscatel de alejandría sourced from a two hectare vineyard planted in 1943. It is dry-farmed, organically but not certified. It’s made with indigenous yeasts and completely without additives.

The juice is fermented on skins in amphoras, with macerations two to three times a day. After ten days alcoholic fermentation it’s matured on the lees in the same amphoras for a further six months.

Here with the simplest of foods, olives and unpasteurized brie

Pureza 2019 (Casa Agr. Pepe Mendoza)

The wine is light in colour, but has evident citrus peel aromas (orange), fresh rose, mint; some volume in the mouth, with an uplifting acidity and a saline and slightly bitter finish.

Price: Medium

Food: t’s an individual wine for time and contemplation, but should go well with a variety of food. I think of varied salads, such as Caesar and Waldorf (when served only as a salad), light meat and tasty fish, for example salmon.

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Wine of the Week

Hécula of Yecla

Published 10. September 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

This summer I attended a tasting in Murcia organized by the Spanish magazine Verema. You can read more here.

From Yecla, a one-municipality-denomination to the northeast of Jumilla I tasted the wines of its leading winery, Bodegas Castaño. Among these was a favourite for many years, the Hécula, now Hécula Organic in 2019 vintage. It comes from a 750 meter altitude north-south vineyard on limestone, with in average 50 years old vines. Aged 6 months in French (80%) and American oak, and malolactic took place in tanks.

Hécula Organic 2019 (Bodegas Castaño)

Cherry-red. On the nose it shows ripe red berries (morello), aromatic herbs and a hint of coffee. Full in the mouth with mature tannins and a relatively good acidity.

Price: Low

Food: All kinds of meat, stews, salads with meat (such as Caesar), murcian paella…

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Wine of the Week

From the Brda borders

Published 3. September 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

The Movia winery has a history dating back to the 18th century, and has belonged to the Kristančič family since 1820. At the moment they own 22 hectares. half of it in Brda and half in Italy (Collio).

The grape variety is a 100% pinot grigio. The wine originates from a single vineyard called Fojana, that rich in lime, called opaka soil. Very low SO2.

The grapes were harvested late and by hand. Naturally fermented in large tanks with two weeks of skin-contact. Then it was transferred to barriques for 18 months storage. Unfiltered.

Sivi Grigio Ambra 2019 (Movia)

Amber-reddish. Aroma of stone fruits, flowers, orange peel, nuts. Quite full, dry with adequate acidity and a hint of salt in the finish.

Price: Medium

Food: Tasty fish dishes, light meat, salads, various Asian (dependent of a lot) – some importers suggest sauerkraut, and why not.

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Wine of the Week

Drink me Nat Cool

Published 27. August 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Dirk Niepoort is a driving force in Portuguese wine. Born into a Dutch port wine company, now he is “everywhere” with one more interesting project than the other. Various producers contribute to the Nat Cool series, that features light-bodied easy-to-drink wines from several regions. All of them in 1 liter bottles.

The Bairrada version comes mainly from their own Quinta de Baixo, in calcareous clay, vines between 40 and 100 years old, all baga, all handpicked, only stainless steel – with some malolactic fermentation. Unfitered.

Drink Me Nat Cool 2020 (Niepoort)

Light cherry colour. Fresh and fruity character, quite flowery, with raspberry, herbs and a touch licorice. Fresh and juicy in the mouth, low alcohol and just enough acidity. Nat and cool!

Price: Low

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Wine of the Week

Phaunus pét nat

Published 20. August 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Vasco Croft is a pioneer in biodynamic wine farming since he established his Aphros wine series in 2003. He disposes of some 20 hectares in the Lima Valley, in mostly granitic soil.

The Phaunus line is vinified in the historic medieval cellar, foot-trodden in lagares, then vinified in old amphorae from Alentejo. When I visited a couple of years ago he showed how all work was carried out without electricity, but with water, for instance.

This wine is based on loureio 85% and arinto 15%. It’s made according to the ancestral method. In this case it means pressing and decanting in inox vats, fermentation between 16 to 18ºC, first in inox vats, then finished in bottle, and dégorgement after 5 months. No added sugar nor yeast, unfiltered.

Phaunus Pét Nat 2020 (Aphros Wine/ Vasco Croft)

Light yellow with a green tinge, good mousse. Aromatic with apples, citrus, white flowers and some yeast. Fruity and stony with good concentration, very good acidity (from the varieties), that makes it last long.

Price: Medium

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Wine of the Week

Breuer’s Rosé

Published 13. August 2021 by Vidar Kenneth Johansen

Domaine Georg Breuer in Rheingau, Germany was officially founded in 1980, but it’s obviously much older. Today it accounts for some 40 hectares, some of them very prestigious, like Rüdesheimer Berg Schlossberg and Berg Roseneck.

Berhard Breuer, a well-known promoter of dry riesling, left this world much too early in 2004. And then 19 year old Theresa Breuer, 4th generation, was suddenly in charge of it all. Now oenology educated, she has for years handled the family plantings of riesling and red with great virtuosity.

Here is a link to another wine of the domaine, and the article also contain a link to Theresa’s visit to a wine fair in Stavanger, Norway.

Spätburgunder Pinot Noir Rosé 2019 (G. Breuer)

Lovely pink-orange colour. Floral aroma with cranberries and cherry, some lemon/lime. Fresh citric acidity, yet a smooth feeling that makes it excellent drinking, with and without food. Finishes dry. A very delicate wine.

Price: Low

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