2015 – Page 6 – Le blog iDealwine

Read more about the article Exploring the South

Trade and press gather at the Sud de France tasting in London.

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:4 May 2015

Exploring the South

The South of France, and particularly Languedoc-Roussillon, is known for its mild, Mediterranean climate, modern production techniques and good value for money wines. A recent showcase by Sud de France in London highlighted this region’s diverse offering, from easy-drinking and fruit-forward sippers to the more serious and individual wines. Languedoc-Roussillon is the world’s largest vineyard and in 2013, more than 453 million bottles were exported. Germany remains its most important market, while sales in the US have doubled over the last five years. Of the 20,000 growers in the area, around 1,000 have…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:1 May 2015

Meursault’s Roulot impresses on auction

Roulot may be less renowned than other Coche-Dury or Auvenay producers, but has emerged as a sought-after success during the recent auction sales of white Burgundy. A key reason for this is that Jean-Marc Roulot’s Meursault wines are not only of exceptional quality, but also with a strong personality and style which is becoming more and more popular. Many Meursault producers have gained a reputation for creating big and opulent Chardonnay that is rich and concentrated, often marked by a “smoky or toasty” character, wrongly suggesting that this is the only style of…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:23 April 2015

Petrus, Krug and wines from Chambertin, Cornas and Alsace in the spotlight

The latest Online Auction that closed on the 15th of April attracted nearly 500 buyers from 30 different countries. All regions garnered interest, in particular wines from Chambertin, Cornas and Alsace, while Petrus and Krug were also stand-out performers. Among the great wines of Bordeaux, Petrus is clearly distinguished, with prices on the rise for all vintages, from the classic years, to the highly sought-after 2000, which sold for €3,360 (+6%). The 2011 Petrus that recently started to appear at sales, already registered good growth compared to the iDealwine estimate, reaching €1,680 (+17%).…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:22 April 2015

Women and wine

As a woman working in the wine industry, I wanted to focus on Wine and Women. When I started working in the wine sector, my friends thought that it was a great idea, but a very male-dominated industry. Even today, they question whether it is difficult to work in a traditionally male industry. While men still make up the majority, figures show that the grape game is becoming more and more feminine. It is not uncommon to see women working as winemakers or wine merchants, sommeliers or public relations officers. Ophélie Neiman, a…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:20 April 2015

A thirst for Rhône

While Bordeaux and Burgundy remain synonymous with fine wine investment, the Rhône Valley is growing in popularity, with renewed interest in top wines particularly from Côte Rôtie and Hermitage. In addition, the entire Côtes du Rhône AOC experienced a 27% value growth in the UK over the last decade. iDealwine’s iDealwine Rhône indice registered an increase of 6.95% for the first quarter of 2015 – more than either Burgundy (+5.49%) or Bordeaux (-1.23%). Angélique de Lencquesaing, co-founder of iDealwine, explains that the Rhône Valley has become one of the most praised regions over…

Read more about the article Biodynamic, organic, sustainable?

Credit: Pontet-Canet

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:10 April 2015

Biodynamic, organic, sustainable?

An introduction to sustainability Impossible to miss, this yearly “grande messe” of the En Primeur, where about 5,000 wine trade and press gather talking, gossiping, swirling, spitting, bashing or praising the new releases. For my second year of this tasting, I was glad to discover a better vintage than 2013. Part of the iDealwine team of four visiting this year, we tasted hundreds of extremely (often too) young juices full of tannins and anthocyanins, all the way from the left to the right bank. We finished our two-day visit with obviously black teeth,…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:9 April 2015

High bids on Clair-Daü, Chave and Clos Rougeard

The latest Online Auction that closed on the 1st of April attracted nearly 600 buyers from around the world, who battled it out for some rare bottles, including a collection of Chave from Hermitage and different vintages of Clos Rougeard, red as well as white. In Bordeaux, it was primarily vintages older than 10 years that pushed the prices up, with one exception: the year 2009. This vintage generated impressive results for Château Pichon Longueville Baron, sold for €172 a bottle, up 10% on the iDealwine estimate, and Château Beychevelle, sold for €83…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:8 April 2015

Bordeaux 2014: a question of price

In the aftermath of the 2014 Bordeaux En Primeur tastings, the question on everyone's mind is what prices will these wines be sold for? Every year, the En Primeur tastings draw the world’s media to Bordeaux, who evaluate and rate the wines, trying to identify specific strengths and flaws. Stakeholders unanimously hold their breath until the publication of tasting notes, which award some wines as “excellent”, while others "could improve" and some are even ”banished to the corner...”. Until a few years ago, the most awaited report was that of Robert Parker. But…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:30 March 2015

Meursault and Marsannay return to the forefront

All French appellations have their "sleeping beauties", those who lack in fame despite their exceptional heritage. Until “Prince Charming” (an investor) comes along, making every effort to produce wines worthy of the pedigree. This has been happening to the châteaux of Meursault and Marsannay since 2012. One such Prince Charming is Olivier Halley, heir to a family shareholder of Carrefour and head of "H Partners" (owner of brands including "Du Pareil au Même" and "Tout Compte Fait"), who bought Château de Marsannay (35 hectares of vineyards in Marsannay and Côte de Nuits) and…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:25 March 2015

Are “old vines” really old?

Chances are, you’ve bought a wine with the term “old vines”, or "vieilles vignes", on the label. But when can a vineyard really be considered “old”? A vine is not unlike a human being. When it is young, between four and eight years old, it has the charms of childhood and the wines are usually mild and full of freshness. Between eight and 14, it reaches adolescence: it grows in all directions and is difficult to control. The viticulturist needs to tame the vineyard to prevent it from producing weak grapes without personality.…