An interesting article about a Sydney doctor who has prescribed wine!
Wine - Just what the doctor ordered
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
What we've been drinking
Majella Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon 2001
A previous winner of the Stoddart trophy (best 1 yr old red at the Brisbane wine show) and always an entertaining drink, this is quite classic Coonawarra Cabernet, if drying out a little now. Cedar, blackcurrant and blackberries on the very Cabernetish nose, the palate is a touch angular with very dry tannins and an element of toughness. It probably needs a few more years in the bottle to settle down or some red meat to control the tannins.
Benfield & Delamere Red Blend 2005
One of the few Cabernet blends to come out of Martinborough, this is one outstanding leafy red - a leafy, dusty blackberry & spice nose with some herbaceousness to remind how cool a climate this comes from. The palate is light to medium bodied dry and refreshing, with natural acidity making for a very taut and long palate. The beauty here is the pristine, leafy blackberry fruit characters that make for a beautifully elegant dry red. Very much modelled on Bordeaux, this is excellent stuff (and impossible to find in Australia).
A previous winner of the Stoddart trophy (best 1 yr old red at the Brisbane wine show) and always an entertaining drink, this is quite classic Coonawarra Cabernet, if drying out a little now. Cedar, blackcurrant and blackberries on the very Cabernetish nose, the palate is a touch angular with very dry tannins and an element of toughness. It probably needs a few more years in the bottle to settle down or some red meat to control the tannins.
Benfield & Delamere Red Blend 2005
One of the few Cabernet blends to come out of Martinborough, this is one outstanding leafy red - a leafy, dusty blackberry & spice nose with some herbaceousness to remind how cool a climate this comes from. The palate is light to medium bodied dry and refreshing, with natural acidity making for a very taut and long palate. The beauty here is the pristine, leafy blackberry fruit characters that make for a beautifully elegant dry red. Very much modelled on Bordeaux, this is excellent stuff (and impossible to find in Australia).
Monday, December 15, 2008
What we've been drinking
Barwang Cafe Series Pinot Chardonnay NV
Whilst the winery is listed as being from the Hilltops, the fruit could really come from anywhere for this bubbly. But we aren't bitching, for what's in the bottle is top class - a crisp, fruit driven yet classically dry base wine, with some nutty yeasty overtones indicating that whoever put this together knew a thing or two about what makes a good sparkling. Top stuff, at a very realistic price. (Disclosure - we have this on special at the moment!)
Pierro Chardonnay 2006
Such an impressive Chardonnay. The positively chilly 2006 vintage brought us this classic Pierro Chardonnay, with overt toasty oak and malo mixing with dense, beautifully textured powerful grapefruit fruit. Its definitely not a subtle wine, but it is a superb Aussie Chardonnay. Still available if you search for it.
Whilst the winery is listed as being from the Hilltops, the fruit could really come from anywhere for this bubbly. But we aren't bitching, for what's in the bottle is top class - a crisp, fruit driven yet classically dry base wine, with some nutty yeasty overtones indicating that whoever put this together knew a thing or two about what makes a good sparkling. Top stuff, at a very realistic price. (Disclosure - we have this on special at the moment!)
Pierro Chardonnay 2006
Such an impressive Chardonnay. The positively chilly 2006 vintage brought us this classic Pierro Chardonnay, with overt toasty oak and malo mixing with dense, beautifully textured powerful grapefruit fruit. Its definitely not a subtle wine, but it is a superb Aussie Chardonnay. Still available if you search for it.
Friday, December 5, 2008
What we've been drinking
Charles Cimicky Reserve Barossa Shiraz 1998
A big, full bodied red in its youth, age has mellowed this somewhat into a more rounded red fruit style & chocolate style. Drinking at its peak now, but with time on its side, its a nice aged Barossan Shiraz but without hitting the absolute high notes.
Jim Barry Armagh Shiraz 1998
This also was a monster in its youth and is still incredibly intense even now. The nose carries the trademark super ripe Armagh nose of raisins, turkish delight and roasted meat with a sumptuously rich and sweet fruited palate. This is probably drinking at its peak, for there is a creep of mushroomy development that takes over this wine pretty quickly (though the cork was very soft in this). Drink up (good bottles are probably still going strong).
A big, full bodied red in its youth, age has mellowed this somewhat into a more rounded red fruit style & chocolate style. Drinking at its peak now, but with time on its side, its a nice aged Barossan Shiraz but without hitting the absolute high notes.
Jim Barry Armagh Shiraz 1998
This also was a monster in its youth and is still incredibly intense even now. The nose carries the trademark super ripe Armagh nose of raisins, turkish delight and roasted meat with a sumptuously rich and sweet fruited palate. This is probably drinking at its peak, for there is a creep of mushroomy development that takes over this wine pretty quickly (though the cork was very soft in this). Drink up (good bottles are probably still going strong).
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Global Wine Trends - Our shores and beyond
We came across a stat recently that paints an interesting picture for Australian wine:
'According to the ABS, the volume of Australian wine imports increased by 40.7% in the past year to 34.2ML in 2006-07 and the value increased by 45.3% to A$307 million. Imports accounted for 7.1% of all domestic sales in 2006-07' Winebiz.com.au
Spearheaded by New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and French Champagne, it looks like imported wine is 'so hot right now'. So, to follow the trend, lets look at some global wine varieties, styles and buzz words that are currently fashionable.
Firstly Natural Wine - a buzz word with murky, though this term is generally accepted to be European in nature (with most of the 'natural wines' largely French). At the heart of 'natural wine' is a set of winemaking principles, including:
Further, this style of winemaking is labour intensive and prone to the vagaries of nature. The use of minimal filtration and little or no sulphite preservatives can have a detrimental effect on the finished wine, resulting in wines prone to bottle variation, yeast spoilage and off flavours.
'Natural wine' continues to be the wine producers holy grail, but its interpretation is topical to say the least...
Next up we have the return of Riesling. After decades spent languishing behind an image of sickly sweet rubbish (Liebfraumilch anyone?) Riesling is back. According to panel data figures released by AC Nielsen, between January 2006 and January 2008, Riesling sales in the US have grown 98 percent (winebusiness.com). What's more, the majority of interest has been in the drier styles, which happily suits the bone dry style produced in the Clare & Eden Valleys. In the US, the attention has firmly been on the very good off dry (Kabinett to Auslese levels on the European scale) wines of Washington state. In Germany, the strength of the 2007 vintage has seen a renewed interest in the classic wines of Moselle & Pfalz, with the Wachau just over the border in Austria gaining attention with its pristine Rieslings. Even in Italy, not known for its Rieslings, there has been a renewed interest in the grape.
Whilst this is probably a news story that we have heard plenty of times before (how many Riesling renaissances can we have?) its nice to see this great global grape receiving more attention. It might surprise people to know, but at the turn of the century, top Riesling was worth as much as top vintage Bordeaux (for evidence, check out this turn of the century Berry Brothers & Rudd [the UK supermarket chain] pricelist on Jamie Goode's excellent blog).
The next global fad we believe is somewhat the way of the future and that is Grower Champagnes. Traditionally Champagne is produced under a rather strict hierarchy system. The growers grow the grapes & sell through a co-op system, with the grapes themselves often crushed in co-op run pressing houses. The co-ops then on-sell the juice (or grapes) to the large Champagne producers (referred to as 'houses') via a middle man known as a Courtier (who takes a 1% cut by value). The Champagne houses then turn the juice/grapes into bubbly and everyone is happy.
The Challenge is that there are there are 20,024 growers (approximately) in Champagne and only 200 buyers, with the demand comfortably outstripping supply. As a result, yields are left unchecked and the vineyards themselves miss out on the attention they deserve, driving quality down with it.
The revolution then has come at the hands of the best growers, whom have worked out that that the margins are made largely in the hands of the big producers, with growers just another step in the process. Thus, the growers have vertically integrated and taken over all of the production steps - growing, producing and selling all their own products.
The result is the rise of the grower Champagne - now showcasing the vineyard terroir, rather than the Champagne house's winemaking skill. With biodynamics and organic production firmly embraced, the resultant grower Champagnes are almost revolutionary in their quality levels, achieving results found only in the finest ultra premium cuvees, at standard NV bubbly prices.
The trade off? Grower Champagnes are produced in tiny numbers, making them a challenge to acquire at the best of times. Some of the top names include Egly Ouriet, Agrapart, Larmandier & De Sousa, but expect to see many more as this movement gains momentum.
Finally, within a nod to our interconnected, finance savvy age, we have the advent of a very fashionable trend in the wine industry - that of the Virtual Winery. Essentially, a virtual winery is a winery without a winery, often without any vineyards either - the way that they work is to buy grapes off a grower and then have a winemaker to make the wine under contract (or at the minimum, make the wines in someone else's winery). The virtual winery owner can do as little as sit back and sign the bills, or to get fully involved and source their own grapes and have a hands on role in the winemaking process.
Larry Cherubino's glorious Westeran Australian wines (under the Cherubino, The Yard & Ad Hoc labels) are all the output of a virtual winery where Larry sources the grapes and makes the wine in others wineries. Rory Lane's acclaimed 'The Story' Victorian wines are under a similar arrangement, as are Michael & Susan Papps 'Yealand & Papps' Barossan wines.
In all these operations, by taking out the fixed costs associated with traditional bricks and mortar wineries, the resultant wines are often of the highest quality and sold at the most realistic prices. Even larger producer Cheviot Bridge run their business model along these principals too.
Watch to see many more virtual wineries in years to come - judging by the initial operations, its a trend we are bound to see more of.
'According to the ABS, the volume of Australian wine imports increased by 40.7% in the past year to 34.2ML in 2006-07 and the value increased by 45.3% to A$307 million. Imports accounted for 7.1% of all domestic sales in 2006-07' Winebiz.com.au
Spearheaded by New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and French Champagne, it looks like imported wine is 'so hot right now'. So, to follow the trend, lets look at some global wine varieties, styles and buzz words that are currently fashionable.
Firstly Natural Wine - a buzz word with murky, though this term is generally accepted to be European in nature (with most of the 'natural wines' largely French). At the heart of 'natural wine' is a set of winemaking principles, including:
- Hand-picked, organically or biodynamically grown grapes.
- Low-yielding vineyards.
- No added sugars, no foreign yeasts.
- No fining or filtration.
- No adjustments for acidity.
- No other additives for mouth-feel, colour, etc.
- No micro-oxygenation or reverse osmosis.
- Little or no added sulphite.
Further, this style of winemaking is labour intensive and prone to the vagaries of nature. The use of minimal filtration and little or no sulphite preservatives can have a detrimental effect on the finished wine, resulting in wines prone to bottle variation, yeast spoilage and off flavours.
'Natural wine' continues to be the wine producers holy grail, but its interpretation is topical to say the least...
Next up we have the return of Riesling. After decades spent languishing behind an image of sickly sweet rubbish (Liebfraumilch anyone?) Riesling is back. According to panel data figures released by AC Nielsen, between January 2006 and January 2008, Riesling sales in the US have grown 98 percent (winebusiness.com). What's more, the majority of interest has been in the drier styles, which happily suits the bone dry style produced in the Clare & Eden Valleys. In the US, the attention has firmly been on the very good off dry (Kabinett to Auslese levels on the European scale) wines of Washington state. In Germany, the strength of the 2007 vintage has seen a renewed interest in the classic wines of Moselle & Pfalz, with the Wachau just over the border in Austria gaining attention with its pristine Rieslings. Even in Italy, not known for its Rieslings, there has been a renewed interest in the grape.
Whilst this is probably a news story that we have heard plenty of times before (how many Riesling renaissances can we have?) its nice to see this great global grape receiving more attention. It might surprise people to know, but at the turn of the century, top Riesling was worth as much as top vintage Bordeaux (for evidence, check out this turn of the century Berry Brothers & Rudd [the UK supermarket chain] pricelist on Jamie Goode's excellent blog).
The next global fad we believe is somewhat the way of the future and that is Grower Champagnes. Traditionally Champagne is produced under a rather strict hierarchy system. The growers grow the grapes & sell through a co-op system, with the grapes themselves often crushed in co-op run pressing houses. The co-ops then on-sell the juice (or grapes) to the large Champagne producers (referred to as 'houses') via a middle man known as a Courtier (who takes a 1% cut by value). The Champagne houses then turn the juice/grapes into bubbly and everyone is happy.
The Challenge is that there are there are 20,024 growers (approximately) in Champagne and only 200 buyers, with the demand comfortably outstripping supply. As a result, yields are left unchecked and the vineyards themselves miss out on the attention they deserve, driving quality down with it.
The revolution then has come at the hands of the best growers, whom have worked out that that the margins are made largely in the hands of the big producers, with growers just another step in the process. Thus, the growers have vertically integrated and taken over all of the production steps - growing, producing and selling all their own products.
The result is the rise of the grower Champagne - now showcasing the vineyard terroir, rather than the Champagne house's winemaking skill. With biodynamics and organic production firmly embraced, the resultant grower Champagnes are almost revolutionary in their quality levels, achieving results found only in the finest ultra premium cuvees, at standard NV bubbly prices.
The trade off? Grower Champagnes are produced in tiny numbers, making them a challenge to acquire at the best of times. Some of the top names include Egly Ouriet, Agrapart, Larmandier & De Sousa, but expect to see many more as this movement gains momentum.
Finally, within a nod to our interconnected, finance savvy age, we have the advent of a very fashionable trend in the wine industry - that of the Virtual Winery. Essentially, a virtual winery is a winery without a winery, often without any vineyards either - the way that they work is to buy grapes off a grower and then have a winemaker to make the wine under contract (or at the minimum, make the wines in someone else's winery). The virtual winery owner can do as little as sit back and sign the bills, or to get fully involved and source their own grapes and have a hands on role in the winemaking process.
Larry Cherubino's glorious Westeran Australian wines (under the Cherubino, The Yard & Ad Hoc labels) are all the output of a virtual winery where Larry sources the grapes and makes the wine in others wineries. Rory Lane's acclaimed 'The Story' Victorian wines are under a similar arrangement, as are Michael & Susan Papps 'Yealand & Papps' Barossan wines.
In all these operations, by taking out the fixed costs associated with traditional bricks and mortar wineries, the resultant wines are often of the highest quality and sold at the most realistic prices. Even larger producer Cheviot Bridge run their business model along these principals too.
Watch to see many more virtual wineries in years to come - judging by the initial operations, its a trend we are bound to see more of.
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Pinot Gris vs Pinot Grigio - A one sided affair
Firstly, lets clear up a common misconception. Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio are one and the same. Both come from the Pinot Gris grape variety, with the difference between the pair relating more to where it was traditionally grown - and the associated stylistic differences - than anything else.Pinot Gris itself is actually a highly variable mutation of Pinot Noir, with 'Pinot' referring to the pine cone shaped bunches that characterise the 'Pinot' group of varieties. The grapes themselves range from a greyish blue to a brownish pink - often on the same bunch! The varietal name follows this closely; Pinot Gris is French, Pinot Grigio is Italian for 'Grey Pinot' '; Pinot Noir - French for 'Red Pinot' & the little seen, pale, highly aromatic Pinot Blanc - French for 'White Pinot'.
The challenge then is to establish the characteristics of Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio under this cloud of variability. To do this, we look at both styles in their traditional homelands.
Firstly, Pinot Gris: The traditional home of Pinot Gris is Alsace, located on the border between France & Germany, in an area that has regularly changed hands between France & Germany for generations. In Alsace, Pinot Gris (which is also locally referred to as Tokay) has traditionally been associated with very rich, dry white wines that are known for their palate texture and viscosity. Picked quite late, the wines are relatively high in alcohol, low in aroma and almost Chardonnay like in their palate weight, also retaining great palate acidity, with the best examples capable of ageing for considerable periods (up to a decade). This Pinot Gris style may also undergo some wood ageing and yeast work in the winery, making for a creamier, richer wine again.
In direct contrast with this style is traditional Pinot Grigio. As we found out earlier, Pinot Grigio is the Italian name for Pinot Gris, and in Italy it finds a home in Northern Italy, where the plantings have exploded over the last decade, in line with the worldwide popularity of the style. Most of Italy's Pinot Grigio is produced in the Veneto region, where it is made in a very dry, neutral and crisp style that is more Sauvignon Blanc (without the lifted aromatics) in style than the richer Pinot Gris of France. Early picked, quite low in alcohol and almost boring in its neutrality, the best examples are crisp, understated and refreshing food wines. Renowned wine taster James Halliday describes it best:
"Like painting a picture with white paint (NZ winemaker), or losing a blind tasting against Evian (Robert Joseph, UK wine journalist) are my usual reference points for pinot grigio."
So essentially we have two very different wine interpretations, both coming from the same grape, just treated differently. The challenge in much of the new world (ie outside of Europe) is that the stylistic definition between Pinot Gris and Pinot Grigio is blurred - lean Pinot Gris, rich ripe Pinot Grigio and a lake of watery rubbish in between.
The greatest successes of the variety have largely come from the cooler climate regions of Australia: Yarra Valley, Mornington Peninsula, Adelaide Hills & Tasmania. In New Zealand the variety has found success in Martinborough in the North Island & Marlborough, Central Otago & Canterbury in the South Island. Mostly it is the Pinot Gris (French) style that is favoured (arguably as it is the more interesting of the two), with Pinot Grigio largely relegated to much more commercial level wines.
If ever there was a wine that requires you to read the tasting notes before purchasing, it is Pinot Gris (or is that Grigio)!
Andrew Graham
Monday, November 17, 2008
What we've been drinking
Voyager Estate Margaret River Cabernet Merlot 2001
The bottle we tried was a little dried out, but still an excellent example of classic cool climate Cabernet. Leafy, cassis & secondary cedar on the nose, the palate linear, very dry and showing a little meaty developed characters. It's very Bordeaux like in its savoury character & would be fantastic with a lamb rack.
Hoddles Creek 1er Cru Pinot Blanc 2008
Seriously sexy packaging. The bottle is enormous (can't see this fitting into many wine racks) & the label is ornately European. The wine itself is quite European too, with a crystalline honey character to it that is very pure and light. Very dry and pure, this really needs some bottle age to flesh out. Drink with a Thai Noodle salad
The bottle we tried was a little dried out, but still an excellent example of classic cool climate Cabernet. Leafy, cassis & secondary cedar on the nose, the palate linear, very dry and showing a little meaty developed characters. It's very Bordeaux like in its savoury character & would be fantastic with a lamb rack.
Hoddles Creek 1er Cru Pinot Blanc 2008
Seriously sexy packaging. The bottle is enormous (can't see this fitting into many wine racks) & the label is ornately European. The wine itself is quite European too, with a crystalline honey character to it that is very pure and light. Very dry and pure, this really needs some bottle age to flesh out. Drink with a Thai Noodle salad
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Going Organic
Once upon a time, organic products were mostly reserved for the hippie-types. Today, consumers are more eco-savvy and eco-friendly than ever before. Organic products have found its way into the mainstream market. This is great for the wine industry with producers and consumers embracing it on both sides of the supply and demand market.
Organic wine has been around for some time, though till now, has not been taken too seriously. There are varying differences of organically made wine and I will briefly discuss the differences between organic wines, bio-dynamic wines and preservative free/ low preservative wines.
Organic Wines:
Organic viticulture and production practices are designed to work in harmony with nature and the seasons in order for the vineyard to be self-sustainable, not only for upcoming vintages, but for future generations.
Organic wine is available in two forms. The first being, wine produced from organic grapes and the second is wine which not only contains organic grapes, but which is also processed using organic methods. Organic grapes are free of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, insecticides, weed killers or other synthetic chemicals. Essential natural preservatives like sulphur dioxide are kept to a minimum. (A standard wine may have 400 parts per million or more of sulphur. Most organic wines are limited to125 parts per million or less of sulphur.) In the vineyard, grapes are selectively hand-picked, whilst in the winery; wine is treated gently with minimal handling. Additionally, any winemaking equipment must be washed without the use of any chemicals. Winemakers pay careful attention to minimise the need of cultured yeasts in organic winemaking, as this is reduced by the farming itself, for wild yeasts remain present, not having been eliminated by weed killers or insecticides. Winemakers also practice minimal filtration and fining methods.
Bio-Dynamic Wines:
Bio-Dynamics is a method of organic viticulture that incorporates organic principles and is heavily influenced by the theories of Rudolf Steiner. Bio-dynamic vineyards are designed to be self sufficient. Work on a bio-dynamic vineyard is timed to coincide with the earths natural rhythms ( determined by the position of earth relative to the sun, moon and other planets) throughout the year. Another major element of bio-dynamic farming is the use of natural preparations to nurture and enlivened the soil.
As for organics, no synthetic chemicals of any kind (fertilisers, herbicides, insecticides etc) are used, but in addition, biodynamic preparations are sprayed on soil and vines. These preparations (made from cow manure, silica , and extracts from various pants) encouragenatural biological processes that result in a healthy structured aerobic soil. Healthy soil s form the basis of a balanced ecosystem in which vines can access nutrients in optimal amounts ,allowing them to produceidealfruit and avoiding many pest and disease problems which can occur if nutrients in the soil (and subsequently plant foliage) are out of balance.
In the winery, the bio-dynamic winemaker will also take into account the earths rhythms when carrying out certain winery activities.
Low Preservative / Preservative-Free Wines:
The main difference between organic wines and low preservative / preservative-free wines, the latter is made without sulphur dioxide and former may contain lower amounts than standard wines. Sulphur has also been used as a preservative in winemaking for centuries. To prevent wine spoilage, European winemakers pioneered the use of sulphur dioxide (SO2). Unfortunately, freshly pressed grape juice has a tendency for spoilage due to contamination from bacteria and wild yeasts present on the grape skins. Not only does SO2 inhibit the growth of moulds and bacteria, it stops oxidation and preserves the wine's natural flavour and colour. This is not to say that wines with very little S02 are impervious to oxidation, rather, the shelf life of low preservative / preservative free wines can be comparable to standard wines. The alcohol and tannin present will act as natural preservatives in wine, negating the need for huge amounts of SO2.
Whilst sulphur poses no danger to 99.75% of the population, the affected population are highly allergic with asthmatics, particularly highest at risk. Having said that, many people have little tolerance for sulphur. Even for moderate wine drinkers, the average level of sulphur found in many standard wines can cause side effects. Unpleasant reactions include migraines, hives, cramps and skin flushes. For those affected, preservative free or low preservative wines is a good choice as they contain minimal amounts of sulphur.
Certification:
Though there are seven certification authorities for organic farming in Australia, the vast majority of organic-wine grape growers operate under the Big Three.
Demeter is the oldest certification seal in Australia. It's administered by the Bio-Dynamic Research Institute and only certifies organic produce from biodynamic growers who follow the beliefs of Austrian philosopher/scientist Rudolf Steiner.
The next oldest organisation is the National Association for Sustainable Agriculture Australia Ltd (NASAA), which holds the rights to the "certified organic" label and has strong links with the Australian Quarantine and Inspection Service.
Third of the trio is the more recently established Biological Farmers of Australia (BFA), which merged with the Organic Vignerons Association of Australia to get a bigger share in organic wine production. The BFA administers the Australian Certified Organic scheme, which allows the display of its bud logo on certified products.
Organic production should definitely be considered. Whilst it is a matter of personal taste and opinion, organic winemaking increases the final quality of the product, which is what we are all after. Bringing with it many health and environmental benefits as additional positives.Winemakers Choice now stock a variety of high quality Organic, Bio-Dynamic and Preservative Free wines from Happs, Botobolar, Hardys & More. Why not try them and see the difference. We're sure you will be impressed with the quality on offer.
Check them out here
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Why does my wine contain milk products?
This unusual question was posed recently by a customer who was rather surprised to find the following label on the back of her Chardonnay - 'This wine has been produced with aid of milk products and traces may remain' thus leading to the perplexing question of what milk was doing in a bottle of wine.
For the answer to this we can look back to 2002, when the Food Standards Authority (FSANZ) revised the food standard for Australia and New Zealand. Within this revision, wine was more formally recognised as a food, thus subjecting wine to the same (world class) standards of health and safety as 'food products'.
Also in the revision was a change in food labelling, including the advent of the allergen warning - a declaration requiring producers to specify if certain substances have been used as an ingredient, food additive or processing aid and are present in the final product. These substances have been identified as allergens - substances that can cause an adverse allergic reaction in humans. They include:
- Cereals containing gluten and their products
- Crustacea and their products
- Egg and egg products
- Fish and fish products
- Milk and milk products
- Nuts and sesame seeds and their products
- Peanuts and soybeans, and their products
- Added sulphites in concentrations of 10mg/kg or more
- Royal jelly
- Bee pollen
- Propolis
Now wine is a classically natural product (fermented grape juice) with stringent laws on what can be 'added' to wine, yet there are some quite unusual natural products that are used in the production process. Previously, little attention was paid to these products, however the increased awareness of allergens and the increased prevalence of allergies ultimately spurred the food standards authority to introduce the requirement for the allergen warning.
Some products used by winemakers include several foods (listed above) which are recognised as common allergens, including milk, eggs and fish, all of which are used as fining and clarifying agents (leading to brighter, cleaner wines). Egg whites, for example, are sometimes added to red wines to remove astringent tannins. The protein in the egg whites bind to the tannins, which then polymerise and form a deposit in the bottom of the barrel. Before bottling, the wine undergoes a process of racking, whereby the wine is seperated from the solid sediments, leaving the egg white deposit behind in the barrel (thus little, if any, actual egg white actually makes it way into the final wine - particularly after the wine passes through standard filtration).
Some of the other substances used by winemakers include casein, a protein derived from milk (which is used for clarification), or Isinglass, which is derived from fish swim bladders. Some winemakers also add tannin to red wine to give it more 'body' and the tannin can occasionally be derived from chestnuts.
The reality is that most of these products are used largely as production aids and the additions are so minimal, with such low concentration in the final product, that they are viewed as essentially innocuous. A study funded by the Australian government wine & grape research body (GWRDC) found that negligible levels of allergens remain in finished wines, and as yet there has been no medical evidence to support any linkage between wine fined with egg, fish or milk products and allergic reactions.
So next time you spot a wine 'produced with the aid of fish products' think allergies and not seafood
Andrew Graham
For the answer to this we can look back to 2002, when the Food Standards Authority (FSANZ) revised the food standard for Australia and New Zealand. Within this revision, wine was more formally recognised as a food, thus subjecting wine to the same (world class) standards of health and safety as 'food products'.
Also in the revision was a change in food labelling, including the advent of the allergen warning - a declaration requiring producers to specify if certain substances have been used as an ingredient, food additive or processing aid and are present in the final product. These substances have been identified as allergens - substances that can cause an adverse allergic reaction in humans. They include:
- Cereals containing gluten and their products
- Crustacea and their products
- Egg and egg products
- Fish and fish products
- Milk and milk products
- Nuts and sesame seeds and their products
- Peanuts and soybeans, and their products
- Added sulphites in concentrations of 10mg/kg or more
- Royal jelly
- Bee pollen
- Propolis
Now wine is a classically natural product (fermented grape juice) with stringent laws on what can be 'added' to wine, yet there are some quite unusual natural products that are used in the production process. Previously, little attention was paid to these products, however the increased awareness of allergens and the increased prevalence of allergies ultimately spurred the food standards authority to introduce the requirement for the allergen warning.
Some products used by winemakers include several foods (listed above) which are recognised as common allergens, including milk, eggs and fish, all of which are used as fining and clarifying agents (leading to brighter, cleaner wines). Egg whites, for example, are sometimes added to red wines to remove astringent tannins. The protein in the egg whites bind to the tannins, which then polymerise and form a deposit in the bottom of the barrel. Before bottling, the wine undergoes a process of racking, whereby the wine is seperated from the solid sediments, leaving the egg white deposit behind in the barrel (thus little, if any, actual egg white actually makes it way into the final wine - particularly after the wine passes through standard filtration).
Some of the other substances used by winemakers include casein, a protein derived from milk (which is used for clarification), or Isinglass, which is derived from fish swim bladders. Some winemakers also add tannin to red wine to give it more 'body' and the tannin can occasionally be derived from chestnuts.
The reality is that most of these products are used largely as production aids and the additions are so minimal, with such low concentration in the final product, that they are viewed as essentially innocuous. A study funded by the Australian government wine & grape research body (GWRDC) found that negligible levels of allergens remain in finished wines, and as yet there has been no medical evidence to support any linkage between wine fined with egg, fish or milk products and allergic reactions.
So next time you spot a wine 'produced with the aid of fish products' think allergies and not seafood
Andrew Graham
Friday, September 12, 2008
What exactly is a 'cool climate wine'
This may sound like a very simple question, but the term 'cool climate' has been overly used in Australia to the point where no one actually knows what constitutes a 'cool climate wine'. In this article we are going to (attempt to) arrive at a conclusion on what's 'cool' and what's not.
For the most logical answer, we went straight to the top - to Australia's peak government wine body, the Australian Wine and Brandy Corporation. The AWBC (or these days, Wine Australia) define Australian wine areas (and the subsequent climate classifications) in terms of Geographical Indications (GIs). GIs are the official Australian description for a wine zone, region or sub region - so you can have a Limestone Coast GI (which is a zone and a conglomerate of regions including Padthaway, Coonawarra etc..) or a Frankland River GI (which is a sub region and is small & unique). (The AWBCs list of GIs is here)
As for delineating the cool from the rest, the AWBC then goes on to defines GIs as either cool climate or warm climate. There are only a handful of warm climate GIs - including the Riverland, Murray–Darling, Perricoota, Riverina and Swan Hill - all areas based around our warm, inland, irrigation fed wine regions. The problem then is that any wine producing area outside of these areas can, according to our peak Government body, call themselves 'cool climate'.
As anyone who has spent some time in the Hunter or Swan Valley in January can tell you, the AWBC definition is a long way from accurate & out of step with global expectations on what makes a cool climate wine.
For a better interpretation, we went to the National Cool Climate Wine Show (NCCWS). Held in Bathurst every year, this show is purely devoted to cool climate wines and thus has a clear definition of what constitutes a cool climate wine.
In the NCCWS regulations the definition of 'cool climate' is:
a) Heat Degree days 1600 or less
b) Cool nights in growing season
c) Four distinct seasons
d) Large variation in diurnal temperatures
e) Cool Autumns
Much of this is also quite broad in its definition (How cold is a 'cool night' or a cool autumn - it can get pretty cold in the Hunter in May, yet stifling hot in March). The 'Heat Degree Days' measurement however is a very particular measure of vineyard warmth that is used by grape growers around the world to compare climates.
Heat Degree Days are measured by taking the average temperature per day (°C) minus 10, multiplied by the number of days in the 7 month growing season (Oct to April in the Southern Hemisphere). The base is 10 as vines do not function below 10°C.
To get some perspective, the table below (from Geoff Weaver) shows Heat Degree Days (HDD) of some global wine regions:
Region | HDD |
| Champagne, France | 1131 |
| Burgundy, France | 1264 |
| Lenswood, Adelaide Hills, SA | 1278 |
| Bordeaux, France | 1420 |
| Coonawarra, SA | 1437 |
| Napa Valley, California | 1499 |
| Barossa Valley, SA | 1587 |
| Mclaren Vale, SA | 1765 |
| Hunter Valley, NSW | 2075 |
| Riverina, NSW | 2201 |
As you can see, the Barossa Valley would scrape in, but with its quite low diurnal temps and warm autumns would be essentially ineligible.
So going by these guidelines and using the HDD measurements, we start to get a clearer picture of where a cool climate wine comes from. I've set the table up below to show a few examples of what are true cool climate GIs, what could be more accurately described as 'moderate' climate GIs and what are warm climate GIs (based upon HDD and climate figures).
Cool | Moderate | Warm |
Tasmania | Barossa Valley, SA | Riverland, SA |
| Eden Valley, SA | Langhorne Creek, SA | Riverina, NSW |
| Coonawarra, SA | Clare Valley, SA | Hunter Valley, NSW |
| Orange, NSW | Mudgee, NSW | Swan Valley, WA |
| Yarra Valley, Vic | Mclaren Vale, SA | Murray Darling, Vic |
| Great Southern, WA | Rutherglen, Vic | Adelaide Plains, SA |
| Margaret River, WA | Granite Belt, QLD | Swan Hill, Vic |
| Canberra District | Goulburn Valley, Vic | Peel, WA |
| Mornington Peninsula, Vic | Hilltops, NSW | Perricoota, NSW |
| Adelaide Hills, SA | Bendigo, Vic | Cowra. NSW |
This list is by no means definitive - Mclaren Vale, for example could be warm climate but it abuts the Adelaide Hills & thus has considerable variation within the GI. Similarly, Cowra is very warm, with a high HDD, yet has quite cool nights.
So beyond the scope of where cool climate wines come from, what do they taste like?
Cool climate grapes will be subject to less heat during the growing season, with the grapes taking longer to ripen and often achieving significantly lower sugar levels than their warm counterparts. This translates into finished wines that may have lower alcohol levels & higher levels of natural acidity.
Cool climate wines are often thus 'drier' and more 'savoury & elegant' in style. The flip side of course is that the soft, opulent generosity that characterises many Australian wine styles is often absent in cool climate wines, with cool climate wines regularly emphasising wine structure over obvious fruit (which not everyone is attracted to).
The problem also with cool climate vineyards is that they normally yield less than warm ones; are more expensive to maintain and prone to the vagaries of the very cool climate that imbues them with character - Frosts are the enemy of cool climate vineyards.
Following on from this, many varieties need the warmer climates to achieve full ripeness - In the Mornington Peninsula, Cabernet struggles to ripen & even Shiraz can have an element of greenness to it & Tasmania sticks to early ripening Pinot Noir as most other red grapes are challenged to even ripen in all but the warmest vintages.
What ultimately defines cool climate wines however is acidity. Acidity = refreshment. Acidity keeps wines tight and crisp even after decades in the bottle. In warm climate wines, acid is added to the final product to keep it stable and, well, fresh! Acidity is the lovely dryness that comes from cool climate Sauvignon Blanc. Acidity is what makes Orange Chardonnay's that much more taut & pristine.
In short acidity is a crucial ingredient of wine, and the more natural grape acidity (when in balance) the more vibrant the wine can often appear - particularly in white wines. Winemakers love natural acidity - it makes their job easier. Thus winemakers love cool climate wines. Thus we have a preference of quality focused winemakers towards cooler climate wines. Thus we have Australia's finest winemakers making wine in cool climate regions (or 'moderate' regions at the most. There are, naturally, many exceptions).
Ultimately we can conclude that cool climate wines = Premium wines.
Or do they?....
Andrew Graham
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