Grand Champagne Helsinki’s Post

New review 🖤 Back in action! Let’s talk wine 👉🏼🍷 Full review on: dutchwineapprentice.com

As a Wine Industry Marketing Specialist, I find this quote inspiring, interesting, and simultaneously challenging. "New generations are pulling away from convention and are buying with more awareness of the fundamental values of a brand. Considering that we have no social media presence and not even a website, we are not really targeting the new generation from a communication point of view. Still, I think our values are unchanged; we have always stood up for an artisanal approach, a ‘thinking different’ attitude, originality and a sense of place, with a long-term view". Will the "new generations" be the end of wine specific marketing as we know it? How will brands respond to this new conscientious consumer?

Today at "Italian wine collector" for the first time I want to present the Marsala Superiore Riserva ACI Florio 1840 Wine "created around the table" by "foreign" traders, in particular the English. Exactly, a fleet of English traders had dropped anchor in the port of Marsala in the second half of the 18th century. While they were dining in an inn in the port they were served a particular local wine, made with a method that they called "perpetual". A large barrel containing the wine that was "tapped" from the tap at the bottom, gradually filled with the new wine of each year. In this way, wines from many different vintages were mixed and refined in the large barrel. We could call it an "ancestor" of the solera method, however made in a single barrel, larger than a vat. The admiral of the fleet is impressed by this wine and decides to stop for a few days to visit the vineyards in the area. He looks around and realizes that in Marsala he finds the same climate and the same type of soil found in the Porto area in Portugal and Jerez in Spain where the Port & Sherry wines so loved in their homeland are produced. He brings in an agronomist friend of his from England while he starts buying vineyards and building a large winery. Once harvested, it uses the Spanish Solera Method for refining (Sherry) and the addition of a "tanning or mistella" to produce different typologies, a method borrowed from the Portuguese Wine of the Island of Madeira. At this point all that remains is to give a name to this wine and given the examples that inspired him, he decides to take the name from the place of production and christens it: Marsala. And the first label bears the name of its discoverer: Woodhouse, we are in 1773. After about 100 years of English dominance, a young local man, who had worked for some time in the British companies of Marsala, decides to found the first Italian winery (called "Baglio") which will bear his name, he is Ignazio Florio and so was born Marsala Florio The label reads Marsala Superiore Florio ACI 1840. It is a Marsala produced with the Solera Method, using a battery of barrels built in 1840. This particular reserve was bottled in 1962. We are faced with a piece of history of Italian enology For any information on availability and quantity or price list contact me privately

Are the changes in Rioja good for consumers or producers? This weeks Rioja Residency at London’s swish The Ned hotel was a great opportunity to taste some of the wines resulting from the 2017 changes in the way Rioja wines are classified and promoted. But I have to say that while what I tasted was definitely very good, I do wonder who the changes have benefited most, consumers or wine makers? From 2017, rather than having wines from the three established regions of Rioja Alta, Alavesa & Oriental (which used to be known a Baja), and the classifications based on oak ageing; Joven, Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva based on how long wines spend in oak barrels and in bottle before release, producers who meet certain criteria can now make wines from different zones within those three regions (Vinos de Zona), specific villages/towns within those zones (Vinos de Municipio), right down to specific named vineyards within those settlements (Viñedo Singular). So this should provide opportunities for winemakers to show what they can do with grapes from their best plots using their best wine making skills and techniques, and yes, while I agree that some of the wines I tasted were top-notch, the retail entry price for almost any wine made from a single vineyard was at least 3-figures, and quite a lot well over the £160 mark. And that made me think about what has always been one of the great qualities of wines from Rioja, value for money. OK so I’m a bit biased, I have been a Rioja Educator since 2018, but I’m yet to find anywhere else in the world where you can get wines at such great value for money than from Rioja and I’m beginning to think that what some winemakers are doing is what the pioneers of ‘Super Tuscans’ have done, taken (very) good wines and promote them to being something that they really aren’t by selling them at quite frankly ridiculous prices thereby making them exclusive. It was also noticeable that a couple of producers had taken advantage of a relaxing of what grapes they can use and there were a few Rioja’s with added Cabernet Sauvignon and descriptions using the phrase ‘Bordeaux-style’ that were again reminiscent of what happened in Tuscany. Rioja is also one of the 4 regions of Spain where sparkling wines (ie Cava) can be produced, but again it was noticeable that those showing these wines had forgone using the word ‘Cava’ rather than the term ‘Espumoso’ and I do wonder whether joe-public will associate that with the often-derided ‘spumante’ term. They will have a shock when they see prices of £95 a bottle! I came away pleased that I’d had the opportunity to taste the wines but a bit unsure whether this is the way that Rioja should be going and whether the public will think that perhaps it’s just a bit too Emperors New Clothes? What do you think? Rioja Wine #rioja #wine

Resharing an article I wrote last year about the fantastic wines of Israel. If you have questions about where to find them in South Florida, or would like to bring some in to your restaurant or shop, I can help. Send me a note.

𝗨𝗻𝘃𝗲𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟵 𝗜𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮𝗻 𝗪𝗶𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗟𝗶𝘃-𝗲𝘅 𝟭𝟬𝟬𝟬 𝗜𝗻𝗱𝗲𝘅 Have you ever wondered which Italian wineries are globally celebrated for their excellence? The Liv-ex 1000 index, spotlighting the world’s finest wines, proudly features nine Italian wineries renowned for their quality and appeal to collectors and wine enthusiasts alike.” Liv-ex 1000 index is the gold standard in the wine world. The Liv-ex Fine Wine 1000 index is more than just a list; it’s the definitive guide for tracking the performance of 1,000 globally renowned wines. Updated monthly, this index is a reflection of quality, tradition, and the high regard in which these wines are held. The focus of the Liv-ex 1000 is on the prestige and demand for these wines among collectors, not on their production or export volumes. It celebrates wines that have made a significant impact on the market and have become must-haves for enthusiasts. Understanding the Liv-ex 1000. The index is divided into six categories, each representing the best from significant wine regions. It includes the Bordeaux 500 for recent Bordeaux vintages, the Bordeaux Legends 40 for outstanding older vintages, and the Burgundy 150 for top Burgundy wines. Additionally, there’s the Champagne 50, Rhone 100, Italy 100, and the Rest of the World 60, showcasing recent vintages from their best producers. The proud 9 Italian wineries featured in the Liv-ex 1000. Among the celebrated names, nine Italian wineries make the list for their outstanding contributions to the wine world. These are: - Bartolo Mascarello - Bruno Giacosa - Gaja - Giacomo Conterno - Fontodi - Masseto - Ornellaia - Sassicaia - Solaia Their inclusion highlights Italy’s role in producing world-class wines that command attention and respect from wine lovers everywhere.