ABOUT WINE – Page 86 – Le blog iDealwine

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:5 March 2018

Les Vignes de Paradis, a Savoie domain that goes against the grain

Dominique Lucas has a 7.5 hectares plot in Haute-Savoie. In an effort to keep his freedom, he has ventured into biodynamics and rid himself of the constraints that come with making appellation wine. We were itching to know more about why this Burgundian decided to call Savoie his home… The domain is a stone’s throw from Thonon-les-Bains, south of Lac Léman near the Swiss border. The vines are situated in three appellations: Crépy, Marignan and Marin. Dominique Lucas made the decision to downgrade to the ‘IGP’ (Indication géographique protégée) ‘Vin des Allobroges’, a…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:26 February 2018

The fabulous destiny of Château Lafite Rothschild

You don't need to be a wine buff to know that Château Lafite has quite the reputation. Once the tipple of choice of Louis XIV, this illustrious cru now welcomes in a new tandem to take over the reins in 2018. We take a look at the history of this prestigious domain... Where it all began The Lafite seigneury (in Gascony "la hite" means “mound”) dates back to the 13th century and hails originally from the north-west of Pauillac. Here the estate produced wheat and wine across their 110 hectares in Milon, Loubeyres, Anseillan and Pauillac. During…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:23 February 2018

Vineyards of the world: South Africa, Australia, New Zealand

Wines from South Africa Although vine cultivation has a much longer history in this country, the wines of South Africa rose to world fame thanks to Klein Constantia, the wine drunk by Napoleon during his exile on St. Helena. However, the country's vineyards have endured many hardships since then. Firstly, because of the commercial embargo as a result of apartheid; and secondly, because of a national fall in wine consumption. The wine industry has succeeded in its move upmarket, and South Africa has regained its previous status. The country's vineyards are located mainly…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:19 February 2018

Vineyards of the world: US, Chile and Argentina

If there's one area where the French can't claim the grass is greener elsewhere, it has to be wine. And yet there are some fabulous wine regions all around the world. The problem is, it's always hard to know where to start. So come with us, and let iDealwine take you on a guided tour of the world. It's a simple fact that the vineyards of France are full of hidden gems, and a single lifetime isn't long enough to discover them all. So we'll have to plead guilty to not being exhaustively…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:15 February 2018

Wine tasting event: 2015 Bordeaux Grands Crus

Tuesday 15th February saw the annual tasting of the Union des Grands Crus de Bordeaux to present the 2015 vintage. This was the perfect occasion to compare this vintage across the appellations. We sent Marie, Elsa and Raphaël down to meet the producers and, more importantly, taste the wines. Here’s the verdict… As you know, the quality of the 2015 vintage in France was universally lauded, especially in Bordeaux where it has even been described as the “vintage of the century”. We must admit the wines we tasted were thoroughly enjoyable despite their youth.…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:12 February 2018

Interview with Jean-Michel Comme (Pontet-Canet): “the vineyard is my one true passion”

Jean-Michel Comme and his Château Pontet-Canet have been hugely influential in the world of biodynamics and his wines have earned him a loyal following. Jean-Michel was kind enough to take the time to chat to us about his biodynamic journey… iDealwine: Tell us how you went about effectuating the change to biodynamic wine production Jean-Michel: “A lot of hard work went into the move to biodynamics, hard work that started well before Pontet-Canet could actually call itself biodynamic. At the time nowhere in our region was really doing it so we went into…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:7 February 2018

The 2016 vintage in France (part 2)

Following our round up of the 2016 vintage in the northern regions of France, this week we will be focusing on the southern regions including Bordeaux, the Rhône, the Languedoc, Roussillon, Provence and Corsica. Bordeaux Left bank reds: 19/20 Right bank reds: 17/20 Dry whites: 16/20 Sweet whites: 16/20 2016 was a vintage of contrasts in Bordeaux. Many different climatic conditions came together to make this vintage all in all quite difficult. The weather in the first part of the year was (too) humid and the region saw 850mm of rainfall during this…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:6 February 2018

Domaine Pinson in Chablis rooted in Kimmeridgian terroir

The Pinson family have cultivated their vines in prestigious Chablis for nearly four centuries now. Laurent Pinson’s grandparents were, in times past, winemakers, but they were also cattle farmers and this mixed farming approach worked well in their three hectares, protecting them from Mother Nature’s occasional hijinks. After the Second World War, the Pinson family decided to devote their full attention to viticulture, and they still do to this day. Read our interview with Laurent Pinson… After completing their studies in viticulture and oenology in Beaune in the 1980s, Christophe and Laurent Pinson…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:6 February 2018

What do you and Churchill have in common?

If you’re an oenophile, you might find that you have more in common than you think with the late Prime Minister… What with the release of Joe Wright’s latest film Darkest Hour (a must see!), we thought we’d spare a moment to reflect upon that true love of Sir Winston Churchill: no, not Mrs Churchill, but rather Champagne. In our favourite scene of the film, Churchill is asked what he is going to do now that he has been elected. His response? “Drink a glass of Pol Roger”. Quite right too Prime Minister!…

Post author:iDealwine
Post published:26 January 2018

Mixed case of 2010 Romanée-Conti goes for €36,723 at auction

A case of Romanée-Conti Grands Crus sold for €36,723 at auction at iDealwine on 18th January, a sale that sees a price increase of 30% for each wine. This case included some of the most sought-after wines from the legendary Domaine de la Romanée-Conti in Vosne-Romanée. This lot started the New Year off in style and sets the tone for 2018 auctions. No doubt the vintage of these wines affected the price enormously as 2010 is now being considered one of the strongest in France, especially in Burgundy. 2010 produced high quality wines…