Grape Variety Series 05 - Cabernet Sauvignon

Cabernet Sauvignon is a colonizer, replacing other grape varieties in many different parts of the world, but also a friend of wine drinkers as it provides the flavors that are so easy to recognize and make many non-drinkers starting to appreciate red wine. It is also easy to grow, as it can strive almost anywhere that’s reasonably warm.

It is a two-edged sword. It can overpower other personalities when added to a blend, but it makes some of the best wines in the world also. The blackcurrant and cigar box scented wines in Pauillac are recognized by many as the best in Bordeaux, and in California the tiny output of the garage wine with the dense Cab becomes the bid of many insane drinkers (including me…). The basic flavors are simple: blackcurrant, cedar wood, pencil shavings and cigar box. But through the effort to replicate that, there are other also wonderful and exciting interpretations, making it highly enjoyable.

Cabernet Sauvignon is actually a chance crossing between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It needs warmth to ripen, otherwise it will turn out green and sappy, green bell pepper. But too much warmth makes it soft and jammy, cooked blackcurrants. Sometimes cool climates can also bring vegetal and minty notes.

The gravel soils are in Bordeaux is originally regarded as the secret, but actually the grape likes the warmth it retains. The soil drains well also, which is suitable for the late budding, late ripening variety. In warmer climates, gravel is less important a factor. In Coonawarra, the terra rossa over limestone produces good wines, and in Napa the alluvial soil suits the Cab well too.

High yield also makes the wine tastes green, so many producers practice green harvest to remove excess clusters at veraison. It has a high pip to pulp ratio so can withstand high temperature at fermentation and long maceration. It has a high affinity to new oak, blending well the blackcurrant with the vanilla and spice of the barrels.

It is almost never bottled as a varietal wine in Bordeaux, because it lacks the flesh in the middle palate and needs the rounder Merlot and perfumed, fruity Cabernet Franc. The climate also is fickle enough to require different grapes to reduce the risk of having no crop with late frost. In warmer climates this is not a problem so single varietal can be successful, as in Napa and Margaret River.

Top red Bordeaux needs at least ten years to come round, and in good vintage should last two or three decades longer. There is no mistake on the taste, the blackcurrant. Young wines have black cherry and plum, mature ones add pencil shavings, cedar and cigar boxes. At lower ripeness it shows greenness, a green bell pepper nose. More pleasant nose like tobacco, mint and eucalyptus, and blackberry and black cherry are also available. Over-ripe will bring stewed prunes.

For food pairing, Pauillac goes well with roast lamb, Napa with roast turkey or goose. It is good for all roast or grilled meats and game, as well as sauced meat dishes such as steak and kidney pie, beef stews, rabbit stews and dishes with mushrooms.

The best Cabernet Sauvignon that I owned or tasted:

• Domaine de Chevalier 2007 / 2008
• Cos d'Estournel 2004
• Ducru-Beaucaillou 2002 / 2004
• Grand Puy Lacoste 2004
• Gruaud-Larose 2004
• Haut-Brion 2004 / 2009
• Lafite-Rothschild 2004 / 2009
• Lagrange 2005
• Latour 2004 / 2009
• Leoville-Barton 2004
• Leoville-Las-Cases 2004
• Lynch-Bages 2003 / 2004
• Chateau Margaux 2004 / 2009
• Mouton-Rothschild 2004 / 2009
• Pichon-Longueville 2004
• Pichon-Longueville-Comtesse de Lalande 2002 / 2003
• Pontet-Canet 2004
• Rauzan-Segla 2001
• Sassicaia 2007
• Petaluma Coonawarra 2001
• Caymus Special Selection 2008
• Diamond Creek Lake 2005
• Dominus 1996
• Robert Mondavi Reserve 2003
• Opus One 2005
• Screaming Eagle 2005
• Stag's Leap Wine Cellars Cask 23 2001
• Montes Alpha M 2007

Wineshark weekly - 23 Oct 2011

This week we went to Tonkichi for the famous Japanese style deep fried pork cutlet (tonkatsu) in Causeway Bay. A nice restaurant in World Trade Centre, it has another one in CWB and two in TST. We ordered a set for two persons, including an appetitizer (deep fried soft-shell crab), miso soup, and the deep fried pork cutlet, pork fillet, oysters and prawns. Kind of fun to ground the sesame to mix the sauce, and the rice and salad (shredded cabbage) can also be refilled as well. The different sauces (curry, mustard, sea salt) also pair nicely with the pork and that tartar sauce is good with oyster (though the tartar sauce I made definitely is better...). A full meal costing $580, a bit on the high side but still would be good to go once in a while.

On Thu I was finally able to join one of the tasting practices organized by my fellow classmates, in preparation for the fortified wine examination coming up in two weeks. We tried a total of 10 wines, and personally I like the Banyuls VDN the most. We talked about the past exam topics and tried to tip the coming one. Frankly I was at a loss when they discussed some of the terms so I definitely need to catch up and work hard now.

I prepared two dishes on Sat, this time making a Avocados with Prawn Salad and a Curry Pork with Pineapple. The salad is a bit light because there is no dressing, but the pork is really delicious and I am sure you will ask for another refill of rice to finish the tasty sauce. I have posted the two recipes on my blog already.

In my Sun cooking class, this week we learnt to make Busecca Soup Italian and Baked Curry Fish with Rice. Unfortunately I did not taste the soup since I don't eat beef but from the reactions of the fellow groupmates the soup should be nice. It makes a huge difference by adding the pesto into the soup. The curry is quite easy to make, and we asked where we can buy the good curry powder. Once I bought and tried that out I will share on this blog.

Next week will be traveling for the whole week, and then having our monthly wine tasting on the theme of Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon. Look forward to that!

Grape Variety Series 04 - Riesling

There are several benchmark styles of Riesling: Germany, Eden and Clare Valley in Australia and Alsace. Its quality was never in doubt, but it was a luxury variety because of its low yield. Rieslings can exhibit a remarkable number of different flavors, from smoke to peach, from earthiness to petrol, from slate to dried apricot, reflecting the vineyard more transparent than many other varieties.

Rieslings can adapt to most soil types, providing they are well drained and offer the sheltered, sunny position it likes. To achieve the greatest balance, it also needs two things: long, slow ripening season and low yields. It is an early-ripening variety, in warm climate it ripens too early and quickly to develop the complexity. The hard wood makes it highly resistant to winter cold, and late budding also give some resistance to late frosts. The yield of Riesling in Mosel is around 120-150 hl/ha for low quality vines but most produce at 50-70 hl/ha.

In winemaking, stainless steel is favoured both for fermentation and ageing for a fresh, youthful briskness. When putting in large, old wooden barrels, the wine is softened and more complex. Riesling’s acidity and floral perfume didn’t go well with new oak. It is not blended as it is complete in themselves without requiring improvements from others.

Riesling is also one of the rare grapes that can make sweet wines as much as dry ones. It can be made off-dry or sweet by simply stopping fermentation or adding Sussreserve (sweet unfermented grape juice), with the former having the fructose taste still retained in the wine. Fine sweet Rieslings are made with the help of noble rot, with the cost of producing a bottle of TBA at EUR 255, higher than the selling price, with a picker spending one day to pick the grapes for half a bottle of TBA. It can also be made to Eiswein where the grapes are picked frozen solid, at night-time when temperature falls to -6 deg C or lower. When pressed the water is left behind in the form of ice, and intensely sweet juice comes out.

Rieslings can age well. The acidity of many German Rieslings may taste lean and ungenerous. It is important to know that Rieslings must have bottle age, 4-5 years for Kabinett, 5-7 years for Spatlese, 6-10 years for Auslese and 10+ years for BA, TBA or Eiswein. Dry (trocken) Rieslings have a slightly different ageing profile, and can be drinkable a little earlier. Similar for Alsace, 3-4 years for simple AC wines, 4-5 years for GC and ideally 10+ years for VT and SGN. In Austria it is drunk young, but the best Wachau can improve for 6-8 years. In Australia the top Clare or Eden Vallets will improve for about 8 years.

For the taste, slate soils give smoky tang, other soils it can taste minerally, steely, tarry, earthy, flowery or slightly spicy. Peaches and green apples are common, quince is also found, as is citrus peel. Riper wines may taste of apricot or even pineapple. Australian Rieslings often taste of ripe limes and toast. With bottle age it acquires a smell of kerosene or petrol, also with honey and marzipan and buttery bread. For botrytis it gives dried apricot, honey, almonds or even raisins. Also peaches, lemons, passion fruits, pineapple and baked apples can be found.

Good well-aged German Kabinett or Spatlese will be perfect with trout, or smoked fish pate. Rheingau haltrocken can pair with fish in creamy sauce. Auslese and upwards can only pair with desserts, but not over-sweet types. Alsace are more food-friendly, can pair with onion tart to spicy chicken dishes, like Chinese or Thai food. Dry Rieslings will be good for salad.

 

Some of the best Rieslings that I owned or tasted:

• Dr. Bassermann-Jordan BA 2001
• Paul Blanck Schlossberg Grand Cru 2006
• Josmeyer Hengst Grand Cru 2001
• Albert Mann Schlossberg Grand Cru 2007
• Trimbach Cuvee Frederic Emile 2005
• Domaine Weinbach Cuvee Theo 2007
• Zind-Humbrecht Clos St Urbain Rangen de Thann SGN 1998
• JJ Prum Wehlener Sonnenuhr Auslese Gold Capsule 2003

Wineshark Recipe - 13. Curry Pork with Pineapple

Ingredients:

• Vegetable oil - 2 tbsp
• Pork butt - 2 lb
• Pineapple juice - 8 oz
• Onion finely - 12 oz
• Garlic finely - 1 tbsp
• Curry powder - 2 tsp
• Tomato paste - 1 tbsp
• Peeled tomato - 1 lb
• White vinegar - 1 tbsp
• Apricot jam - 2 tbsp
• Stock - 4 oz
• Salt - 1 tsp
• Black pepper - 1 tsp
• Flour - 2 tbsp
• Sugar - 1 tsp
• White pepper powder - 0.5 tsp
• Coriander leaf - 1 tbsp

Cut the pork butt into cubes and marinate with salt, black pepper, curry powder, flour, sugar and vegetable oil for 1 hour. Heat pan and fry the pork on both sides to golden brown. Heat pot with oil, stir fry the onion finely and then add garlic. Once the onion starts to turn golden, add the tomato paste, pork butt, curry powder, apricot jam to cook. Then add the vinegar, peeled tomato and pineapple juice. The stock is then added with the other seasonings.

Allow the pork to cook for 1 hour and then ready to serve with steamed rice.

Wineshark Recipe - 12. Avocados with Prawn Salad

Ingredients:

• Avocados - 2
• Prawns - 8-10 (depends on size)
• Lettuce - 1
• Tomato - 1
• Lemon - 0.5 (to get the juice)
• Salt - little bit
• White pepper powder - little bit
• Brandy - little bit

First need to know how to buy avocados. We should choose those in green colour and hard, and after purchase wrapped in newspaper to let it ripen for 3-4 days before use. Cut it in half and remove the seed, use a spoon to remove the pulp and cut into cubes. Apply a little bit of lemon juice to keep the avocados from getting blacken.

Boil water and put in onion, celery, carrot, bay leaf, black pepper, then put the prawns to cook. Remove to cool down then remove the shell, and marinate with salt, white pepper powder and brandy.

Shred the lettuce and slice the tomatoes into thin pieces, put the lettuce on the bottom then put the tomatoes on the sides, top up with avocados and prawns mixed. Alternatively can cut the prawns into pieces to mix with avocados before putting onto the lettuce.

Andalucia - Sherry Country

Andalucia has been associated mainly with sherry, but latest development also see the spread of unfortified wines, both dry and sweet. The mountains here rise straight up along the coast, resulting in altitude that help to produce fresh and ripe wines. Malaga is mostly for its fortified sweet by adding spirit during fermentation or drying the grapes. Lopez Hermanos and Telmo Rodriguez produce good wines here. The unfortified white is called Sierras de Malaga.

Sherry’s great distinction is its finesse, coming from the combination of the chalk, Palomino Fino grape and skill of the winemaking. Many people had given Jerez a wrong quality impression because of the poor wine shipped in the 1970 to 1980s. But through closure, consolidation and takeover now there are far fewer sherry producers. Sherry needs the chalk soil, or albarizas, for producing the best wine.

The shipper’s headquarters and bodegas are located in Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlucar de Barrameda, and Puerto de Santa Maria. In these bodegas, the butts are typically put in three tiers high rolls, for the wine to mature and blend under the solera system. When the wine has got over its fermentation it is sorted into categories, with different styles.

The new wine is put into the youngest level of a criadera, and each year a proportion of wine from the solera is taken from the oldest and final stage of the criadera to be bottled. Wines from the next criadera is taken to fill up the butt and the process repeats. The more stages or criaderas, the finer the wine.

All sherry is originally classified to be a light and delicate fino, or a fuller wine in oloroso. The fino will mature under a layer of protective yeast called flor. Oloroso are matured in contact with oxygen, and fortified to more than 15.5% to prevent the growth of flor.

Finos should be drunk fresh and they are fast-faders. Even lighter and drier are the manzanillas, with a salty tang. An aged manzanilla (pasada) is very good with seafood. Amontillado is a darker and more complicated wine. They can be old finos. Oloroso is dry, dark and biting. Commercial brands labeled oloroso or cream are younger and blended with sweetening wines. Pale cream is the same except removing the color. Palo Cortado is the true, classical, rich-yet-dry rarity, something between amontillado and oloroso. A way to signal the notable age and quality of the sherry is the VOS and VORS grading. They are more than 20 and 30 years old sherry.

Montilla-Moriles has a similar chalky soil in the best vineyards but generally on sand. The best grape is Pedro Ximenez. The hot climates result in very high natural sugar and thus always shipped without fortification in contrast to sherry. It is made similar to sherry. It got the scents of black olive.

The wines that I got / tasted from Andalucia:

• La Guita Manzanilla
• Nectar PX Sherry
• Tio Pepe Fino Muy Seco
• Valdespino Tio Diego Amontillado
• Lustau Capataz Andres Deluxe Cream
• Valdespino Solera 1842 Oloroso VOS

Wineshark weekly - 16 Oct 2011

This week I went to try an Indian fast-food restaurant in Sheung Wan, called Masala, located at Mercer Street. Generally a non-descript restaurant without much to talk about. We ordered a set dinner, with Lamb Masala, Chicken Tikka, salad and snacks, plus some Nan. Total $250 for two, I think there are other Indian restaurants that I recommend over this one.

I was in Shanghai for the better part of the week. Everytime I went back I was amazed by how developed this city is. It is almost one year since my last visit, and already I found quite a few differences near where our office and hotel is. I went to a district similar to Xintiandi but more quiet. If only I can open a wine shop and do some wine education in this city... Maybe I should try to prepare for this?

Because on Sat we had dinner with my sister-in-law's family, I did not cook but only made some fruit scones. The scones were quite good though the outlook may be not particularly appealing. On that night we had hotpot and I brought three bottles of Alsace along, a Paul Blanck Pinot Blanc, a Jean-Marie Haag Riesling and a Andre Dussourt Muscat. They are not expensive wines but good match with the food. I did not manage to write tasting note because I was too busy eating...

In rhe cooking class today we had prepared two dishes: an English Chicken Broth and a Beef Bourguignonne. Of course I did not eat the beef. I witnessed how some classmates nearly got us killed by unknowningly turn on the stove and the fire burnt the tabletop. Fortunately it was discovered early so nothing happened. But it really tells how poor some of these people are in kitchen. After dinner with my parents I went to Causeway Bay City Super to buy some wines, and then took the challenge of the aroma detection. We successfully guessed both the samples so was given a bottle of wine as a reward. Haha!

Until next week, take care and enjoy good food and wine!

Wineshark Recipe - 11. Fruit Scones

This week I went to my sister-in-law's home for hotpot, so decided to make some fruit scones to bring along. Again, quite easy to make. The ingredients:

• Self-raising flour - 8oz
• Baking powder - 1 tsp
• Salt - a bit
• Butter - 2oz
• Sugar - 2oz
• Milk - 90ml
• Dried sultana - 2oz

First make a hole on the pile of flour, and put the baking powder, salt, sugar, butter, dried sultana inside. Gradually add milk and roll to make the dough. After it is no longer sticky, cut into 8 pieces and roll to a biscuit shape. Cut a cross on top before putting on the baking plate, and swipe some milk on top. Put the dough in oven for around 30min, with temperature of 200 deg C.

Grape Variety Series 03 - Merlot

Merlot has traditionally been Bordeaux’s other red grape, used to soften the stronger and more powerful Cabernet Sauvignon, without much personality of its own. However, things changed when the US drinkers started to crave for something easy to drink, requiring no need to wait for a long time in ageing, and Merlot stepped out into the spotlight.

Boosted by the demand from US, Merlot plantings in France’s Languedoc has doubled and now is France’s number one grape variety. It is also booming in Italy as well as the star grape of Chile, but with a bit of confusion still in some vineyards about which is Merlot and which is Carmenere. There is also the same issue with Cabernet Franc in US, Australia and Austria.

Merlot is grown in pretty much the same locations as Cabernet Sauvignon, and should not be a surprise as growers see the good complement in the blend of the two. But it has its difference. It is more suitable for a cooler climate and can produce soft, rich-textured, low-acid, and low-tannin red. It has an appetizing black cherry, plum, chocolate, and fruitcake flavors, with some herbaceous green streak. Most Merlot is made to be drunk young, because of the low tannin and acidity making it less obvious for the cellar. But it can age well as part of the Bordeaux blend.

Merlot makes soft, rounded, fruity wines that are easy to enjoy without food, but also good to pair with game, duck, goose and pigeon. It also partners with spiced curries and tandoori dishes. The good ones with a hint of sweetness can be good with ham or savory pancakes.

Some of the best producers of Merlot which I owned / tasted:

St-Emilion

• Chateau Angelus 2004
• Chateau Ausone 1999
• Chateau Beau-Sejour Becot 2007
• Chateau Canon-la-Gaffeliere 2006
• Clos Fourtet 2007
• Chateau Grand-Mayne 2007 / 2008
• Chateau Magdelaine 1998
• Chateau Monbousquet 2002

Pomerol

• Chateau Certan-de-May 2005
• Chateau Clinet 2007
• Chateau la Conseillante 2007
• Chateau l'Eglise-Clinet 2003
• Chateau Gazin 2006 / 2008
• Chateau Latour-a-Pomerol 2005
• Petrus 2006
• Chateau Trotanoy 2006

New Zealand

• Kim Crawford, Hawke's Bay Merlot 2004

Chile

• Carmen, Reserve Merlot 2003

Wineshark weekly - 9 Oct 2011

The weather nowadays is so comfortable that sometimes I don't want to get up in the morning, but I am quite an early person and still normally wake up at 6:15. I will need to do more exercise as I think I am gaining weight back and all my effort in the early part of this year seems to have gone...

This week we went to a Japanese ramen bar in TST to try it out. The restaurant is called Ippei-an and located at Energy Plaza basement (they do have other shops in TST and Causeway Bay). First thing that got my attention: there are quite a few Japanese customers inside. We ordered Clams in Sake, some skewers, deep fried oyster and ramen. Frankly I don't think the food is that spectacular though it is not bad. Maybe it is simply the connection that one can feel (with the Japanese magazines, TV programs) that you found in the restaurant which draw the crowd. Can have a try, but I probably won't go back.

On Friday I had to take a video talking about our company's core values and stuff. I did prepare a bit the night before but when I was filmed I got so nervous that I forgot everything and had to just talk on the spot what I can think of. As expected it was quite bad (and funny) and it took me a whole 30min to complete my three 'sessions'. I am not the material for the entertainment industry obviously...

Over the weekend I made some dishes at home. This time it is American Vegetable Soup and Grilled Chicken in Black Pepper Sauce with Croquette. The soup is easy to make and also healthy. It can be a vegetarian dish if we use non-meat stock. The chicken is much more complicated because of the croquette and sauce, but personally I love the croquette and think that is one of my biggest success in cooking so far. I recommend you to try them also. The recipe can be found in my blog.

Now I am continuing my fortified wine study, proceeding to the sherry part after completing the port session. I still haven't opened my 1991 Vintage Port though and may do so later. Who want to join me?

Wineshark Recipe - 10. Grilled Chicken in Black Pepper Sauce with Croquette

This dish is quite complicated and involves three parts. I actually love the croquette the best though. First let's talk about that. The ingredients are:

• Potato - 12oz
• Salt - 1/2 tsp
• White pepper powder - dash
• Butter - 1 tsp
• Egg yolk - 1
• Flour - 2 tbsp
• Bread crumbs
• Oil

First peel the skin off the potatoes and cut into small cubes. Boil those in water and add some salt. When they are totally softened, remove the water and then add the seasonings, flour, butter and egg yolk, and mash them together. Then form individual pieces and cover with bread crumbs to deep fry in hot oil. Be careful as the bread crumbs can quickly become burnt.

Then we prepare the black pepper sauce. Ingredients:

• Oil - 4oz
• Garlic finely - 1oz
• Onion finely - 5oz
• Red chili finely - 2oz
• Green pepper finely - 2oz
• Black pepper finely - 1.5oz
• Brandy - 1/4oz
• Red wine - 1.5oz
• Maggi seasoning - 1/4oz
• Salt - 1/4oz
• Meat gravy - 1lb

Stir fry the garlic, then add onion, red chili and green pepper till all become frgrant. Add black pepper and brandy (beware of the fire!). Put the meat gravy, red wine, and other seasonings to the sauce and cook for about 20min. If the sauce is not thick enough then add some corn starch mix with water.

Finally we grill the chicken. We can season the chicken beforehand using salt, white pepper powder and Worcestershire sauce. After it was done pour the sauce on top and add the croquettes. Yummy!

Wineshark Recipe - 9. American Vegetable Soup

This soup is easy to make and healthy. If you want to make a vegetarian dish you can use vegetarian soup stock instead.

Ingredients:

• Onion - 3oz
• Leek - 1oz
• Carrot - 2oz
• Cabbage - 5oz
• Celery - 2oz
• Green peas - 1oz
• Potato - 3oz
• Butter - 2oz
• Tomato paste - 4 tsp
• Tomato juice - 10oz
• White stock - 2lb
• Salt - 2 tsp
• White pepper powder - 1/2 tsp
• Bay leaf - 2pc

First cut the vegetables into small pieces. Stir fry with butter till they are softened. Then add tomato paste to continue stir fry a bit. Add the white stock, and tomato juice in to cook for 20min. Then add the potato in to cook for 10min till they also soften, season and add the green peas.

The Port Lodges

While the grapes are grown in the Douro Valley, most of the port is still being made in the shippers’ lodges in Vila Nova de Gaia across the river from the city of Oporto, or Porto in Portuguese, where the name of the wine came from.

Port is made by running partially fermented wine into grape spirits, which stop the fermentation. With the residual sugar so it is sweet. Because of insufficient time for the pigment and tannin to come from the must, treading is needed, which is to macerate the grape skins in the juice to extract the phenolics. Human foot is the perfect tool to avoid damaging the pips which release bitterness to the must.

Now because of improving living standard many shippers turn to mechanical substitute, typically autovinifier that automatically pumps wine over the skins. But some finest ports are still produced in the old-fashioned treading.

Most port is shipped downstream in spring to Vila Nova de Gaia to avoid the heat in Douro to cause ‘Douro bake’ but with improving conditions at the quintas many port now is kept and matured where it is made.

The city of Oporto and Vila Nova de Gaia has a strong English influence with the port trade dominated by English and Anglo-Portuguese families. The port lodges are similar to sherry bodegas, with barrels called pipes storing superior tawny port from 2-50 years. Larger vats are used for better-quality ports to reduce influence of the wood and oxidation.

In exceptional good years (around 3 out of 10) the best wine will be used to make vintage port, with no blending. It is arguably the world’s best wine. Another style of port goes through a blending process to give a branded wine of specific characters. They mature in a different way, more rapidly to give a mellow and smooth style. The colour is relatively pale (thus the name tawny) and many people prefer this over the vintage port’s full, fat fieriness.

Colheita is the port coming from a single year and normally can be drunk after bottling date. Ruby port is not kept for nearly so long and would not age and reveal any great qualities. Inexpensive tawny is usually a blend of emaciated young ruby ports. White port is made exactly the same way but with white grapes. Those denoted Reserve are young rubies with more quality or tawny with less than 10 years ageing. Crusted port is a blend of different years which are bottled early enough to throw a heavy sediment, so they need to decant beforehand. LBV is kept in barrel for 4-6 years and then bottled, often referred to as modern man’s vintage port.

The wines that I have tasted and owned:

• Dow's Fine Ruby Port
• Dow's Fine White Port
• Dow's Late Bottled Vintage Port 2006
• Graham's 20 Years Tawny Port
• Dow's Vintage Port 1991

Douro

Douro Valley is the traditional home of port, but now it is fast developing into a good wine region in Portugal for light wines. With the large amount of money from World Bank, more than 6280 ha of vineyards had been replanted. Quality of life had improved for the growers and labor there, making the production of cheap port not economical nowadays.

It is one of the most improbable places for men to grow vines, with steep slopes of schist which is flaking and unstable, very hot summer and malaria. But the vine is one of the few plants that can survive in this harsh environment. With terraces developed and walls to stabilize and retaining the rainwater, vines flourished since the 17^th century in this location.

Now many of the old stone-walled terraces were replaced by patamares supported by banks of schist, which allow mechanization but with a reduced density. If the elevation allows, growers also now planting rows up the slope to allow for easier mechanization and denser planting. It also offers more homogeneity.

The Douro reaches Portugal from Spain in Upper Douro, or Douro Superior. This is the driest and most continental climate. In the west, the Serra do Marao stops the Atlantic rain clouds from refreshing Cima Corgo, the heart of port production. Baixo Corgo, further west, is the wettest, coolest climate where the cheapest port is produced.

The best port is conventionally recognized to come from Pinhao. Depending on orientation and altitudes the characters of wine produced can be quite different. Each vineyard is classified from A to F according to natural advantages of altitude, location, soil, yield, inclination and orientation, and the age, density, training and varieties of vine grown. The higher the classification the more expensive will be the grapes. Traditionally little is known on the jumble of vines grown but now Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriz, Tinto Cao and Tinta Barroca are regarded as the most suitable for top-quality port. For white port, Viozhinho, Gouveio, Malvasia and Rabigato are the best grapes.

The famous shipping firms have their own quinta up the hills. There is also a rise of single quinta ports (products coming from a single estate in a single year, typically not quite fine for be generally declared a vintage). The grapes are mainly not from the big estates but still small farmers, but more and more of them are selling under their own quintas.

Table wines have also been emerging from Douro. Traditionally it was made from grapes left over from port but now many producers are planting vineyards specifically for table wines. Many cooperation with Bordelais also see to that. It is interesting to see how this region is producing two different sorts of wine.

Kloster Eberbach

Many people are fascinated by the medieval churches in Europe and there is always a sense of mystique around those, making one to wonder what secrets these churches have been entrusted. Wine is also an integral part, with most churches having their own vineyard and the friars heavily involved in the winemaking. With Napoleon returning a lot of these properties to the people, nowadays in Germany not that many vineyard is still associated with the church, but Kloster Eberbach in Rheingau is among the few that still do.

In 1136 thirteen friars from Clairvaux in Burgundy went to this small town in Rheingau and set up a church, along with a vineyard. With their dedication, it became a very big and successful church, with more than 250 different properties in the heyday. In 1211 a devoted Catholic donated a vineyard nearby to the church, which is called Steinberger because it was located on a stony hill, growing Riesling grapes. This vineyard is the best in Kloster Eberbach, covering 31 ha. Facing south, with good sunlight and drainage, it has always been in comparison with another great vineyard in Rheingau – Schloss Johannisberg.

An interesting story also involved this church. Most people will credit the bishop at Schloss Johannisberg as the ‘inventor’ of Spatlese in 1775 but in fact records showed that Kloster Eberbach already produced the same 22 years earlier.

Kloster Eberbach subsequently became a royal vineyard, producing wines for the royal family but also selling to the general public. After WWI the vineyard was taken over by the state, with an eagle symbol added on the label to signify. Because it was very similar to the symbol used by the Nazi, this symbol aroused a sensitive debate within Germany after WWII, but finally it was decided that politics should not interfere with the tradition so the symbol was still maintained. Generally these state-owned vineyards were focused on keeping the tradition instead of pure commercial so the dedication to quality was always the key consideration. No wonder most of the wines from such vineyards were very good.

Kloster Eberbach also produces different quality level, from the simple Kabinett all the way to BA, TBA and Eiswein. Depending on the weather and botrytis, not every year such can be produced. In Steinberger, there is less than 0.04% of Eiswein produced, and even rarer for BA/TBA, which can clearly explain why the prices for such are truly the highest in Germany. The Spatlese is more common, contributing about 1/4 of the total production, with 0.2% under Steinberger. 2% of total production is Auslese, also with 0.2% under Steinberger. That’s why even the Spatlese and Auslese became such a hot item in Germany now, and difficult to find in the market.

The wine I have tasted from Kloster Eberbach:

Wine: Hessische Staatsweinguter Kloster Eberbach Steinberger Riesling Spatlese

Region / Country: Rheingau Germany

Vintage: 2003

Grape: 100% Riesling

ABV: 7.5%           

Price: HK$440

Tasting Date: 3 October 2011

Official website: www.weingut-kloster-eberbach.de

Wineshark Score: 91

Intense lemon colour, this German Riesling has a strong nose of developing aromas of lemon, petrol, apricot, honey, stony, melon and cream. Medium sweetness with a fairly low acidity, the wine is of low alcohol level yet full body and having intense flavors profile of honey, lemon, apricot, petrol, stony, quince and butter. Overall of good quality because of its intense nose and palate, the wine has also complexity. The sweetness is well balanced and harmonious, making it highly refreshing. A reasonable length on the finish, this wine is a good match for light dessert such as custard pudding. Ready to drink now but can further develop for another 2-3 years.