Wine Fact of the Day – Wednesday, 8 July 2009

Rivesaltes (reev-salt): a village in southern France, north of Perpignan and a name that applies to 2 styles of wines produced there. Both wines are sweet, fortified wines (a category known as Vins Doux Naturels – VDN). Muscat de Rivesaltes AOC, accounts for about 70% of France’s Muscat production and is the only sweet, fortified Muscat wine that can be produced with the grape Muscat of Alexandria. Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains, another Muscat clone is also used. The wine is fortified through the ‘mutage’ process (see below, 02/07/2009).

Muscat Blanc a Petits Grains

Muscat of Alexandria

Note how the grapes on the left have a tighter, more compact bunch.

Muscat de Rivesaltes is a wine that should be drunk as young as possible and as cool as possible, either as an aperitif, or with fruity or creamy desserts, according to Jancis Robinson. Generic Rivesaltes (the VDN) can be made from a variety of grapes, red and white, and in a variety of methods. It can have a flavour profile that covers raisins, coffee, chocolate and nuts and can be a decent pairing to chocolate dishes.

Generic Rivesaltes AOC

Wine Fact of the Day – Tuesday, 7 July 2009

Recioto (reh-chee-yo-to): a style of wine produced in the Veneto region in northern Italy. Recioto wines are almost always sweet wines and are produced by selecting either the ripest grapes or the ripest grape bunches, harvesting them late and allowing them to dry on racks in special drying rooms (see image below). What inevitably happens is the grapes become raisined, resulting in very concentrated flavours in the wine.

Recioto della Valpolicella is a DOC sweet red wine made from Corvina, Rondinella and other local grape varieties. This is the most prevalent Recioto style of wine. Less common is the sweet Recioto di Soave DOCG, made from dried, white, Garganega grapes. These wines can be somewhat expensive. Botrytis is encouraged for the sweet white wines and not always welcomed in the production of the sweet red wines as it results in a somewhat oxidised character which can be unpleasant.

Corvina grapes drying on racks in the Veneto region

Wine Fact of the Day – Monday, 6 July 2009

Vendange Tardive (von-donje tar-deev) literally meaning ‘late harvest,’ this refers to wines made from grapes that were left on the vines longer than those that were harvest normally. It can only be used for wines from Alsace. What happens in this case is that the grapes shrivel and look like small raisins. They may or may not be affected by the noble rot Botrytis but the resulting wine is always concentrated and very rich. It is usually sweet but can also sometimes be practically dry.

Grapes beginning to shrivel when left late on a vine.

This style of wine (indicated by a V.T. on the label) is similar to other wine from Alsace in that it is usually full-bodied, elegant and rich. It is often a perfect match to rich meat dishes like duck and pork and goes very well with foie gras if it is a sweet style.

Hugel et Fils, Trimbach and Zind Humbrecht are 3 VERY renowned producers from Alsace who make excellent V.T. styles, usually sweet. Pinot Gris and Gewurtztraminer V.T. wines are intriguing and wonderfully aromatic. V.T. Rieslings are often pricey and incredibly age-worthy.

Wine Fact of the Day – Friday, 3 July 2009

Botrytis: a fungal disease that can affect grape vines, particularly in warm, moist, humid conditions. The bad form of the disease is also known as ‘grey rot’ because it turns the grape bunch a dull grey colour. The benevolent form of the disease is known as ‘noble rot’ because even though the fungus attacks ripe white grapes, it does not impart a bad flavour to them. In fact, by making holes in the grape berries, water from the grapes is able to evaporate, leaving only concentrated, sweet grape juice, from which extremely sweet (or dry, robust) wine can be produced.

Wines produced from botrytis-affected grapes tend to have a rich, marmalade/orange-peel nose with confected citrus and honeyed aromas. Dry wines can sometimes be produced from botrytised grapes. Sauternes is an example of a style of wines produced from botrytised grapes.

Wine Fact of the Day – Thursday, 2 July 2009

Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise (mooska-duh-bome-duh-venees): a sweet, often fortified wine made from the Muscat (pronounced ‘mooska’ in France) grape in the Rhone Valley. (In fact, the specific grape used is Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains

Beaumes-de-Venise is the name of a little village in Vaucluse in southern France and this style of wine is made by the addition of alcohol to fermenting grape must to stop the fermentation while there is still some natural grape sugar left in the juice. This process is known at ‘mutage’ (moo-tahj) The result is a wine that is sweet and slightly fuller structured because of the addition of alcohol. It is a fortified wine, having between 15% and 20% alcohol.

Paul Jaboulet, a top producer and negociant makes one that is available in India. Other good producers include Domaine de Durban.

Paul Jaboulet Aîné's Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise, called 'Le Chant des Griolles'

This fact also appears as a daily post on my Facebook Group – WineFOTD. Click here to join.

Wine Fact of the Day – Wednesday, 1 July 2009

Wine Fact of the Day – Wednesday, 1 July 2009

Barsac (bar-zac): a village in Bordeaux giving it’s name to a great dessert wine-producing appellation. It is on the left bank of the Garonne river, right next to the larger appellation of Sauternes.

All wines produced in Barsac are entitled to use the ‘Sauternes’ name on their label, but the reverse is not the case.

Semillon is the predominant grape variety in Barsac, along with Sauvignon Blanc and sometimes Muscadelle.

The wines of Barsac are often lighter than those of Sauternes, with more refreshing acidity and flavours along the lines of pineapple, fresh orange and peach. These are mingled with hints of orange/ginger marmalade and an interesting floral character.

Top producers in the region are Chateau Climens and Chateau Doisy-Daene (dwah-zee dah-enn).

This fact also appears as a daily post on my Facebook Group – WineFOTD. Click here to join.

Chateau Climens Label

Chateau Doisy-Daene Label

…catching up…

After a fun 10 days in Europe – Duesseldorf for ProWein 2009 and then Verona for Vinitaly 2009, it’s back to the daily grind here in India.

ProWein was superb: extremely well-organised (Germans, of course!!!) and there seemed to be a lot of good wine ‘business’ taking place, along with some rather spectacular tastings. I promise to write up the notes of some of the incredible wines that I was lucky enough to have tasted there, but as a teaser, I managed to attend a tastings of Dolcetto from various DOCG’s in Piedmont including Alba, Dogliani, Ovada and Acqui. Very interesting.

The highlight was, without a doubt, a tasting entitled ‘Fascination Riesling’ presented by Jancis Robinson MW.

Jancis Robinson at ProWein

3 flights of old, sweet Rieslings – Auslese, Eiswein, Beerenauslese and Trockenbeerenauslese –  culminated in some relics from the 1950’s, including a still-lively 1959 TBA from the Kanzemer Altenberg vineyard of Bischoefliches Priesterseminar from the Mosel.

Aged sweet Rieslings at ProWein 2009

There was also a Barolo vertical from Fontanafredda, a producer founded in 1878. All the wines were the La Rosa Barolo, starting with the 2004 vintage and ending with the 1990.

I was very impressed with a quick tasting of Muscadet’s from the Loire Valley. If anyone thinks Muscadet cannot age – I have to say I was skeptical – then they have to try the 2000 Vignoble de Lorière et d’Herbauges’ Cuvée de Legendaire. For a 9-year old light white wine, it tasted youthful, fresh and still just a bit fruity.

Vinitaly update to follow, but I have to say immediately, the the best wine I tried in Verona was the 1964 Gaja Barbaresco, guided by Angelo and Gaia Gaja at their 150th anniversary tasting. Jancis Robinson was again present, moderating this tasting. A rare and extremely special event!

Gaja 150th Anniversary tasting, including the 1964 Barbaresco, extreme right

And there is a comment from Fouad in Sydney about wine and Indian food, which I will get to shortly. Thanks for your patience.

Basic Wine Faults

Full article on this will be in The Telegraph (Kolkata) next Sunday, 22nd March 2009.

Wine is a living thing and is susceptible to faults, like any other product. There are a variety of chemical and wine-making faults that can occur, either in the winery or while the wine is in transit or even while the wine is being stored. Four of the more noticeable faults are described below; hopefully this gives you a head start on assessing wine and enhancing your overall dining experience.

Cork Taint

Wine drinkers and experts often talk about a wine being ‘corked.’ This is a very specific fungal fault that comes about when a residual fungus in cork reacts to chlorine that is used to bleach and sterilise the corks before they are used in the winery. Cork taint occurs in roughly 1 in every 20 bottles (5%) and leaves the wine smelling musty, like opening an old, empty cupboard; or like wet newspaper. It is a fault that is picked up by the nose immediately and does not usually require a sip for confirmation! A wine that is sealed with screwcaps, or with a glass cork can very rarely show evidence of this fault. This can be from wood chips used in the wine-making process.

Oxidation

Sometimes known as volatile acidity, this fault manifests itself in a number of ways on the nose and sometimes on the palate. At the simplest level, oxidation occurs when the wine has been exposed to oxygen when it should not have been. This can occur in the winery before preventative measure have been taken (such as the addition of sulphur), or can occur once the wine has been bottled, and is exposed to varying temperatures. Oxidised wine often looks dull in the glass, with a slight brownish tinge. This is considered a fault if the wine is very young. (Old wine naturally takes on a brownish colour). Red wine will look somewhat brick-red, and white wine will veer towards deep golden yellow. (Imagine what happens to an apple if you cut it and leave it exposed to air for half an hour or so). Oxidised wine can smell a bit like vinegar (acetic acid) or, in very bad cases, like nail varnish remover (ethyl acetate). Wine bottles stored in extremely hot environments often have corks which expand and contract with the temperature, allowing unwanted oxygen to enter the wine, leading to this oxidative character being present in the wine.

Reduction

There are various forms of reduction, but the most easily recognizable is Hydrogen Sulphide (H₂S). This is the ‘rotten egg’ gas and results from a reaction that occurs in the absence of oxygen, but in the presence of sulphur, either in the winery, but very commonly in the bottle. Sometimes, really badly reduced wine will smell like burnt rubber. In the case of H₂S, sometime decanting the wine, giving it a lot of air or swirling it quiet vigourously in the glass will get rid of the smell. There is also what is known as the ‘penny test’ where an old copper coin can be dropped into the glass. If the wine is only mildly faulty, the penny will lead to the wine’s aromas returning, and wine will be alright to drink.

Brettanomyces

Known as ‘Brett.’, this fault is considered benign by some wine tasters and sommeliers, particularly in the Old World. It is such a controversial ‘fault’ that many actually consider it a good thing, adding complexity to the aroma profile of a wine. However, Americans and Australians in general, consider this an all out fault. Brett occurs as result of a surface yeast (one that occurs on the surface of unclean barrels in the winery, for example) creating a strange-sounding chemical known as tetrahydropyridine. The resulting wine can smell a bit ‘horsey’ or like band-aids or overly ‘meaty’. If you find this character over-bearing and unpleasant, it is perfectly acceptable to ask for another bottle of the wine.

Additionally, look out for wines that smell ‘aldehyade-ic’ (like sherry) or like Geranium leaves, or overly garlicky or like old vegetables. This indicates faulty wine too.

What’s in a wine tasting group…?

I was fortunate enough to be involved with Sommelier India’s inaugural tasting panel: a group of 5 professionals sitting around a table, tasting and assessing wines. Look out for the full report in the March/April 2009 issue of the magazine.

It’s often a sign of growth in a wine market when groups like these can come together independently to taste wine. For anyone contemplating the Master of Wine qualification, a tasting group is a most necessary thing: it’s one of the only ways one can be exposed to a range of wine styles, while offering an opinon about them and learning from the thoughts and the opinions of others.

What’s important in these sorts of tastings – if you’re being serious about them – is to take notes, and to try and remember the nuances and characteristics of the wines being tasted. This particular tasting was centered around the wines from the Murcia regino in Southern Spain, and featured the red Monastrell grape variety. The members of this tasting panel were a mix of seasoned palates and simply those who had a keen interest in tasting and learning about wine. In fact, I would say the latter category  is just as important to a tasting group as the experience of the so-called ‘experts.’

The best way to learn about wines is through discussion, and tasting groups are the easiest way to discuss, compare, criticise..whatever..it gets you tasting wines with like-minded palates.

Let me know of your wine tasting group experiences by leaving a comment below.

Introduction to the Indian wine system

Below is the introduction from a report that I am compiling for a client in Australia. It gives a rough guide to how wine is taxed in India and shows why, although the consumption rate of wine in India is growing steadily, the quality of wine being consumed is not.

India has predominantly been a non-drinking country and has even embedded this principle in its constitution. Section 47 of the Directive Principle of State Policy declares that “the State shall endeavour to bring about prohibition of the consumption – except for medicinal purposes – of intoxicating drinks”. A majority of Indians not only shun alcohol, but also consider it taboo. No distinction is made between wine, beer and liquor or the possible health benefits of the former. Although the voting age was lowered to 18 a few years ago, the legal drinking age is still 25 in some states. The government is apparently ready to lower that to 21, yet fears a backlash and is reluctant to take a firm stand. This, in a country that downs 120 million cases of hard spirits represents quite a paradox[1].

The changing drinking habits of the people of India have changed the fortune of Indian wine market, witnessing a tremendous growth. Higher disposable incomes and growth in foreign tourists are some of the reasons for such growth. Present consumption of wine in India is very low with the average per capita consumption sitting at between 4.6 milliliters and 9.6 milliliters. However, considering the fact that about a decade earlier markets for wines did not exist at all, the present developments are positive. Wine market in India has been growing at around 30% annually over the last ten years and is expected to have a positive (although somewhat more restrained) growth in the future.

There does not, as yet appear to be a definitive report with accurate, objective statistics on the Indian wine market. Almost all data is anecdotal, and while vaguely accurate, is difficult to verify. From previous experience and with regards to imported wine, it is sometimes best to start off with data acquired from the source of the wine – the country exporting the wine. So, for example, for accurate data about Champagne imported into India, it is probably most accurate to approach the CIVC in France to see their data of the Champagne that they have on record as being exported to India. Furthermore, one cannot necessarily rely on data from wine importers in India without considering the proviso that all the wine imported into India is not necessarily sold.

Again, from experience, depletion reports from importers are not necessarily accurate, as the importer is often under pressure from some principals to achieve certain growth targets. Short of undertaking a physical stock take, it is hard to know the true inventory position and depletions of any importer.

It is an oft-repeated exercise: a principal/wine exporter requests a quarterly inventory and depletion report from their importer in India. The importer very often does not provide it or does so with a post-script that there are far too many regulatory changes in the market that appear to be stopping the flow of wine to their customers. This is somewhat true, but in fairness, state excise duties have really only been significantly raised in the state of Maharashtra (Mumbai, Pune) twice in the last 18 months and once in Karnataka.

The federal import duties, known locally as customs duty, were once levied at around 260% a bottle, including a countervailing duty that marginally favoured higher priced wines. Through WTO negotiations and agreements, the federal customs duty now sits at 150% of the CIF value of the wine. It is likely to come down further in the coming 18 months.

2003 brought a windfall for hotels with foreign exchange earnings.  5% of these earnings could now be earmarked for duty-free wines. Independent, stand alone restaurants were later given more generous privileges at 10% of their foreign income earnings (through credit card sales etc). The hotels with the largest quotas, however, often had markups as high as 500-700%, which did not encourage consumption and cancelled out the effect of the wines not having the customs duties added to their price. These markups are now regulated and can sit at a maximum of 200% for wines.

Wine distribution is largely dictated by the sales and excise policy of each state. The states are not only allowed autonomy in formulating policy for the sale of wine and alcohol, they also have fiscal powers to impose additional excise duties. Mumbai is the leading wine city in terms of volume consumption with 39% of total wine consumed, followed then by Delhi with 23%, Bangalore and Goa 9% respectively, and the rest of India accounting for the remaining 20% of the market. All of the 28 states and seven union territories operate as individual power centres that formulate their policy independently. In Delhi, for instance, an excise duty of Rs 150.50 per bottle is levied on every bottle of foreign wine sold irrespective of cost or quality. Moreover, the distributor must pay a label registration at an annual charge of Rs 5,000 – 10,000 per wine reference that they are wish to sell.

The state of Maharashtra once charged an excise duty of Rs 100 per litre for imported wines, but increased that to Rs 200 in 2005, presumably to protect its domestic wine industry. This was further increased to a whopping 150% of CIF in July 2007 and then again to 200% of CIF in November 2007. Maharashtra thus remains the state with the most restrictive state tax regime on wine in India. So, in Maharshtra (which historically accounts for 39% of all wine sales in India), this amounts to 150% (Federal) customs duty; 200% excise duty; 7% octroi; 25% supply chain margins and 20% value added tax (VAT)[2]. The retailer margin is additional. Effectively, a wine costing the importer 1 unit, ends up costing the consumer approximately 11 units.

The state of Karnataka (capital city: Bangalore now called Bengaluru) charges a state excise duty of Rs 370 per bulk litre of wine (amounting to Rs 277.50 per bottle) and applies this duty to domestic wines from other states in India also. This was increased in August 2008. Label registration is also required at Rs 10,000 per reference.

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[1] Arora, S (2006), Meininger’s Wine Business International The Indian Paradox

[2] VAT is uniform across India. 25% supply chain margins are enforced by the Maharshtra Govt.