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austria, sauvignon blanc, st-bris, steiermark -

sauvignon blanc with a twist

New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc can be smelt across the room. It's wonderful in a blind tasting as the tasting note writes itself. These wines remain extremely popular even if they have a (sometimes undeserved) reputation for being too obvious and unsubtle in their pungent, unrestrained aromas. They also give the impression that all Sauvignon Blanc tastes the same. That's unfair on New Zealand, as there are many different expressions between and within regions. It's also unfair on Sauvignon Blanc as there are many extremely interesting and individual wines from regions not strongly associated with the grape variety. I recently wrote...

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australia, austria, skin contact wines, slovakia, slovenia, yarra valley -

skin-contact wines

White wine is almost always made the same way. The grapes are pressed to gently extract the juice which is fermented with the skins removed (they can be used for grappa, added to a compost pit, or put back in the vineyard as organic matter: waste not, want not). This is to produce fresh, crisp, clear wines. There are exceptions. Because Riesling is never aged in new oak, the grape juice is often left in contact with the skins overnight to add structure and texture to the wine without interfering with the aromatics. Sauvignon Blanc sometimes has a short period...

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austria, champagne, crémant, england, germany, oregon, prosecco -

sparkling wine — never been better!

I’ve been travelling quite a bit recently, taking in England, Germany, Australia, and the Pacific North-West. As I tasted my way through these different regions, I realised just how much good sparkling wine I had been enjoying, and that many of these wines weren’t simply carbon copies of champagne but entirely their own thing. I was reflecting on all this as I drove to Syncline, a producer in Columbia Gorge, Washington. I had no idea they even made sparkling wine (I was there for their superb Gamay), but as I was enjoying the 2014 Blanc de Noirs owner and winemaker...

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austria, blaufränkisch, burgenland, finger lakes, germany, lemberger, new york, württemberg -

blaufränkisch - not just austria

Blaufränkisch is one of Austria's most important black grapes. Its historic reputation can be seen in its name: Fränkisch is a traditional term for a high-quality grape, in contrast to inferior varieties which were called Heunisch. It produces spicy, meaty wines not dissimilar to Syrah, though not as tannic, and is more suited to a cooler climate. Its origins lie somewhere between the modern Austrian and Hungarian borders. In Hungary, it's called Kékfrankos (a literal translation of Blaufränkisch) where the wines are particularly bloody. There are around 1,800ha planted in Germany, where the grape is called Lemberger, named after the southern...

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