Category Archives: Wine Experiences

February 1, 2012 · 9:04 am

Take me to the river (Mosel Valley, Germany – Day One)

Whilst I admit that it was wonderful starting the European leg of my trip in the familiarity of Champagne, there was something quite exhilarating about arriving into a totally new region. I spent the past week staying with a friend in the German town of Neuss trying to organise my visa and a car, and then caught up with some friends I met in the States in Cologne over the weekend. On Sunday afternoon I drove down in very cold conditions towards my base for the next five nights, the town of Traben-Trarbach, situated in the middle of the Mosel-Saar-Ruwer. The town straddles the Mosel River; Traben on the North side and Trarbach on the South. Just as I was entering the valley above the Mosel River, it began to snow very lightly, which made it that much more beautiful. It was already dusk so it was a little too dark, but amazing nonetheless.

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January 24, 2012 · 9:38 pm

Two ends of the spectrum (Champagne, France – Day Five)

A common theme across all of my visits in Champagne (both in 2010 and 2012), is the importance of vineyards, and particularly growers. This was the major theme of my first visit of the day. Something even more important in Champagne that I have stumbled upon is the pioneering women of the region, many of whom not only kept houses operating after husbands or fathers perished, but dramatically improving quality. It is undeniable that the largest market for champagne in every market is female consumers, so I feel they are missing out on an opportunity to empower their consumers through communications and messaging about the pioneering spirit of women Champenois. This was a discussion point of my second visit of the day.

Unique cellars at Laurent-Perrier

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January 24, 2012 · 9:21 pm

Family-owned and proud of it (Champagne, France – Day Four)

During my week I had several engaging discussions with many of my hosts, and we shared our philosophies on wine and champagne. As this was my second visit to Champagne and considering my history with Domaine Chandon Australia, I feel like I have come to a reasonably good understanding of Champagne and what the most important things are. Champagne as a product is probably the best example of wine marketing, and brand strength and recognition has been built around the category. Today there are many more competitors for champagne around the world, and with so many houses and so much wine coming out of this small region, the question becomes how to stay relevant and competitive in a saturated and (currently) stagnant market?

A lovely welcome at Pol Roger

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January 23, 2012 · 5:50 pm

The Prestige (Champagne, France – Day Three)

As aficionados and visitors to Champagne would know, there are considered to be three main areas where grapes are grown in the region. Two of these areas are between Reims and Epernay; the Montagne de Reims which is famous for pinot noir, and the Marne Valley famous for Pinot Meunier. The third area is to the south of Epernay, and is the Cote de Blanc famous for chardonnay. It just so happened that the majority of the houses I visited in 2010 were in either Reims or Epernay, and occasionally in Ay and Mareuil-Sur-Ay, which are both in the Montagne de Reims. I was very pleased therefore to get the opportunity to drive down into the Cote de Blancs for the first time to make my first appointment for the day. It would no doubt have been nicer during Spring, Summer or Autumn, but at least I got an idea of the terroir of the appellation.

The famous Clos de Mesnil

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January 23, 2012 · 5:31 pm

I see you are a connoisseur, Mr. Bond (Champagne, France – Day Two)

The weather seemed to get colder on the second day I was in Champagne, which makes it harder to acclimatise after six weeks in the South American summer. Possibly because my body is used to being in the Southern Hemisphere, I noticed the early symptoms of a cold, which I also battled with when I was in Northern USA and Canada. I was glad that I had brought my thermals with me, which I had never worn away from the snow in Australia. Some of my hosts laughed that it got much colder, but I’m not used to walking around in zero degree temperatures.

Amazing dessert at Le Table Kobus in Epernay.

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January 23, 2012 · 5:18 pm

Champagne calling (Champagne, France – Day One)

For those following this blog, you may have noticed a large gap since my last post. The reason for this is that it is difficult to make appointments at wineries no matter where between Christmas and the third week of January. Even winemakers, marketers and owners of wineries need a break sometime. Thus I took the opportunity to spend time with friends in Brazil over Christmas and New Years, and then a week in Paris before heading to my first official region in Europe and the perfect aperitif; Champagne. This was my second visit to the home of sparkling wine, having ended a three-week journey to France here in 2010. It was a great feeling arriving into Reims on the TGV train early in the morning and seeing the sun rise on a wintery day. You truly appreciate the cold climate here when visiting in winter. I picked up my rental car early as I had my first appointment at 9: 00 am.

Amazing lunch at Taittinger

Amazing lunch at Taittinger

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December 23, 2011 · 1:36 am

Come on down to torrontes town (Salta, Argentina – Day Two)

Funny how hindsight is always 20/20, but Salta was a very expensive detour to make. Firstly the rental car here was the most expensive I’ve experienced at $100+ per day, plus a navigator. Then you factor in the three hours each way from Salta, and the three hours each way to Colome, and that adds up to a fair amount of fuel for two days. Then on the way back from Colome on the previous day I had a blow-out without realising on the gravel highway, and subsequently damaged the wheel, which cost me $220 damages. When you add on accommodation and food, I ended up spending about $500 for two days, well over the $100 per day budget I have set myself. Was it worth the effort and expense? We shall see…

Very old vines on a very hot day

Very old vines on a very hot day

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December 23, 2011 · 12:14 am

Did someone say isolated? (Salta, Argentina – Day One)

I tossed around a couple of ideas for the name of this entry; Cafayate to Colome Rally; On top of the world, looking down on creation; Extreme altitude; High society; There and back again. Really any of them could apply to the adventures of the day. After arriving quite late into Cafayate the previous night and getting a good night sleep, I was keen to get to Colome on time. Little did I know that getting to the Colome winery is possibly one of the most laborious and treacherous I have ever experienced. Now in my days as a wine professional I’ve driven on unsealed roads to get to wineries plenty of time. Mostly they are the driveway or a side road off the highway, but nothing like this. The National Route 40 for a good 75km from Cafayate to Molinos and beyond is like outback Australia, also because of the scenery. This is not the kind of setting you expect to find a winery, let alone vineyards. Significantly drier and warmer during the day than Mendoza, the altitude of the Salta region alone makes this a cooler climate, as the daylight hours are shorter and the nights are colder.

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December 22, 2011 · 11:30 am

Flagships (Mendoza, Argentina – Day Five)

For my (unfortunately) final day in Mendoza, I visited three wineries; two similar, one different. The first was established back in 1901 (the year of Australia’s federation!) by a Spaniard, who named the winery Bosca. It became Luigi Bosca for reasons I can’t quite fathom, but they had something to do with marketing. I’m not sure how the addition of Luigi helps, considering he was the dud Mario Brother… Anyway, the cellar is very large and historic, combining Mendoza cement fermenters stainless steel, 5,000 barrels for maturing the wines, and a fantastic museum area where the 12 pillars of the cross are reimagined as the life cycle of wine and Luigi Bosca. The winery produces in excess of 8 million litres of wine each year, covering 35 different wines. No mean feat for the consultant winemaker Roberto de la Mota, who you may remember is the winemaker at Mendel. I was taken through part of the winery and part of the range of wines by Soledad, from the hospitality department. She picked a few wines to show me, and you can read my notes here.

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December 22, 2011 · 10:47 am

Uco your way, and I’ll go mine (Mendoza, Argentina – Day Four)

In case you weren’t already aware, the Mendoza wine region is large in area and volume. Covering an area about the size of the entire Murray Darling Basin, and producing more wine than Australia and New Zealand combined, there are a lot of vineyards. There are also over 1,200 wineries, equivalent to all of Australia, and a range of different viticultural areas. The main difference between these areas is elevation, ranging from 800m to 1500m above sea level. The Uco Valley, 1.5 hours South of Mendoza city, is one of the more elevated and newer viticultural areas in Mendoza, and it was here I visited the only winery of the day. The reasons were two-fold. Firstly I didn’t realise how far away the winery was, and secondly because it was difficult to find and I took several wrongs turns. Worth the drive though, even in the blistering heat with virtually no air conditioning. It was also amazing how the Andes are so clear in the morning and you can see the snow-capped peaks, yet by the afternoon the clouds and fog has set in and they are almost invisible.

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