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california, chenin blanc, clarksburg, south africa, stellenbosch -

chenin blanc: not just the loire

Chenin Blanc is one of my favorite grape varieites. That's perhaps not surprising because the Loire, where Chenin Blanc originates, is one of my favorite wine regions—but it's a bit more complicated than that. It's also grown in other parts of France which are quite different from the Loire: there's actually more planted in Languedoc than in the Loire Valley, and it's found in various appellations in south-west France. In fact, until recently, it was technically permitted in Bordeaux. It's planted elsewhere too: there's more Chenin Blanc in South Africa than the rest of the world put together, and there...

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cinsault, languedoc, south africa, southern rhône -

cinsault

Cinsault (also spelt Cinsaut) is a black grape variety with a strange reputation. It's quite widely planted in southern France and South Africa, yet isn't regarded as a high-quality variety. It's planted because it produces big berries with lots of juice and therefore high yields. That makes it popular with growers, but less so with producers. Its reputation also suffered as it's one of the parents, alongside Pinot Noir, of South Africa's Pinotage. Pinotage is a variety which produces much better wines than its reputation suggests, but Cinsault, with its high yields and basic wines, was seen as part of...

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spotlight on spain

Spain has many classic regions where wine has been made for centuries and their names are instantly recognisable. Rioja is the most famous; the wines were known as far back as the 900s because the region is in the middle of El Camino de Santiago, the pilgrim trail which starts in France and ends in Galciia. There have naturally been lots of changes since then, but Rioja has always remained the most prominent Spanish region for red wine. Ramírez de la Piscina has a long farming tradition, and started making wine in 1945 although the first commercial vintage was 1961....

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langhe, montalcino, montefalco, nebbiolo, piemonte, sagrantino, sangiovese -

introductory italy

"Introductory" can seem a disparaging term. Instead of the truly great wines of a region or a producer, an "introductory wine" is the simple, drink-now, youthful, non-serious wine that a producer makes to bring in some ready money. Except that is rarely the case. They're less expensive than a producer's single-vineyard wines and aren't aged for as long, but they are important representations and—yes—introductions to a producer's portfolio. If quality is low, then no one is buying the more expensive wines. They also make us familiar with the style of wine a producer generally makes and is associated with. In...

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bío-bío, chile, cinsault, itata, país, sémillon -

a different side to chile

Last week, I hosted Chilean winemaker Roberto Henriquez in my back yard here in California. As I tasted the wines, we spoke for an hour about the identity of Chile's wines and his work in the vineyard, both of which he spoke passionately about. He's based in Bío Bío, one of the more southerly of Chile's regions, and also makes wines from neighboring Itata. Although both Roberto and the wines are most definitely Chilean, they represent a different side to Chile. Winemaking in Chile goes back to the mid-1500s, after the country was colonised by the Spanish. Religious missionaries brought...

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