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Château Palmer white wines go on sale for the first time

The news may have slipped under the wine world's radar, but Château Palmer has just released its 2014 white (the first time these wines have carried a price tag)… on the Hong Kong market. Have you had the chance to try a white Château Palmer yet? This tiny production, launched in 2007, had until now been reserved for the estate's owners, and served at private receptions. The fact is that hardly any Médoc châteaux produce white wines, although some have been taking steps towards doing so over the last few years. There is,…

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Auction Report: top bids for 1966, prestige Champagne & old Yquem

Prices for Bordeaux and Burgundy wines have calmed down, but wine lovers seem keener than ever on rare and prestige vintages from Champagne, the Rhône, Alsace and the Loire. And with a number of bottles celebrating their 50th birthday this year, our bidders seem ready for anything… The top sale at this auction was a case of high-end Bordeaux 2005 wines - Château Margaux, Lafite Rothschild, Cheval Blanc, Petrus, Latour and Mouton Rothschild. Congratulations to the Swiss buyer who walked off with this much in demand lot for €6300 (+11% on its iDealwine…

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Read more about the article Spring frosts: Loire and Burgundy hit hard
Severe Weather Europe © Silvan Rossr
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Spring frosts: Loire and Burgundy hit hard

Although it's still too early for a full report, the long-feared spring frosts have taken their toll in northern Burgundy, as well as in the Loire appellations of Chinon, Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas de Bourgueil. We bring you a dispatch from the front line. Given the mild winter and the early appearance of the buds, growers were already on the alert. And their fears were well-founded: the spring frosts hit a number of French vineyard regions hard, mostly (but not all) in northern France. In the Loire, the Chinon, Bourgueil and Saint-Nicolas de Bourgueil…

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Where does the sweet taste of dry white wines come from?

In terms of taste, the balance of a wine depends primarily on the level of acidity and its tannic structure, but equally on its sweetness and smooth taste. This usually relates to “sucrosity”, a neologism which describes a sweet taste unrelated to sugar. But where does the sweetness that can be found in fine dry white wines come from, since it is not the product of residual sugars as is the case with dessert wines? Axel Marchal – who holds a doctorate in wine science from the University of Bordeaux – wrote a…

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Report from ProWine Asia and thoughts on the Singapore market

Following our last visit to Shanghai in March for the Grand Tasting, we're back in Asia with Alexandra to promote iDealwine at the first edition of ProWine Singapore. Unlike in Shanghai, where the attendees we met were individual wine lovers, the Singapore event was open to professionals only. More than 8,000 delegates came from the region's main countries – including Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia – to discover wines from nearly 250 exhibitors, producers, importers and distributors. The market is still a small one, with a population of just over 5 million, but…

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Auction report: stagnant Bordeaux & Burgundy vs dynamic Champagne & South

The auction closed on 13th April on iDealwine confirmed the stabilisation of prices for the more traditional regions such as Bordeaux and Burgundy. In the meantime, Champagne and South of France where much more on demand while Rhone and Loire were in only rising slightly. Besides these main trends, there were some hot lots in all regions with some significant price increase on the most sought after wines. The auction has attracted buyers from many countries outside of France who won half of the lots (Hong Kong, China, Singapore, Japan, Italy, UK, Switzerland,…

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NEW: find organic wines on iDealwine in just one click

iDealwine has introduced another new function - there is, after all, a reason why we won an award for innovation! From now on, to raise the status of estates that care about the environment and our health, we are listing our wines according to production approach. You can find them in just one click - here's how… Astute iDealwine users that you are, you must have noticed that, for a few days now, our search function has included a filter for production criteria. So, if you want to find wines from organic, biodynamic or…

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Rhone wines stand by their strategy to move up-market

The Inter Rhône professional association has set its sights firmly on the “premiumisation” of its wines, targeting the mid to high-end market. It is proud of the potential of its terroirs and appellations, and is convinced that this process is crucial to securing the future of the vineyards. At its latest press conferences (on 24 March in Tain-l’Hermitage and 31 March in Avignon), the Interprofession des vins AOC de la vallée du Rhône, confirmed its strategy to move up-market in the next few years. This could already be seen in action with the…

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Bordeaux mourns the loss of the gentleman of Margaux

In the middle of Easter weekend, it is with great sadness that we learned of the passing of Paul Pontallier, the oenlogist, director and spirit of Château Margaux. It is hard to imagine going through the doors of Château Margaux without spotting Paul Pontallier behind a tasting counter, walking through the cellar or strolling the elegant passageways drawn by Norman Foster and recently inaugurated. For more than 30 years, Paul Pontallier, faithful guardian of the temple of Château Margaux, perfectly embodied the style of the wine he brilliantly produced He joined the château…

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Auction Report 30 March: stable Bordeaux, uneven Burgundy & rising Rhone

The auction closed on 30th March featured a large quantity of fine Bordeaux wines whose prices stabilised. In Rhône, old vintages of Cornas from domains that no longer exist are increasingly sought by bidders from all around the world. Burgundy, however saw contrasted performances. Bordeaux: While the awaited 2015 En Primeur campaign just started, the market for Bordeaux appears relatively stable in the auction closed on 30th March. Even myths like Petrus in Pomerol – a safe bet that has been rising in all previous auctions – has shown sable prices. Some wines…

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