Articles – Page 60 – Colin Harkness on Wine

Christmas Stocking Fillers – 2014!

CHRISTMAS APPROACHES!

Each year at about this time (it’s mid-November as I write) I like to suggest some possible wine related presents that you might consider giving a wine enthusiast for Christmas.

CAVA FOR BEGINNERS!

A super introduction to Cava - an ideal stocking filler! — A super introduction to Cava – an ideal stocking filler!

A new, short, beautifully presented hardback book targeting those who love Cava but who don’t really know so much about it, is, I think, a perfect Christmas present. Whilst it’s pleasant enough to blindly continue drinking Cava, one will derive so much more from the glass of fizz in your hand, if you know a little more about it.

Written by my Swedish colleague and fellow Cava enthusiast, Anna Wallner, ‘CAVA: SPARKLING HAPPINESS’, published by Grenadine, gives the reader a short, informative, easy-reading introduction to the one of the loves of her life. The first page of the text, which follows some evocative opening photos, is entitled, ‘Bubbles Make You Happy’, and ends simply in, ‘Cheers!’ It’s wholly indicative of Anna’s viewpoint – Cava is often used for Celebrations, and this book is a celebration of Cava!

However, that’s not all, of course. Like myself, Anna does not subscribe to the school of thought that firmly places Cava (and other sparkling wines) in the ‘nice, but frivolous and inconsequential’, category. Whilst it’s true that there is no better drink for celebrating: birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, exam success – well, everything, really; there is also far more depth to this very special drink.

Anna tells a little of the history of Cava, revealing some interesting facts. She discusses the geography of the DO Cava, the climate, soils, grape varieties and of course, the method by which Spain’s answer to Champagne is made. It’s fascinating and all written in a very reader-friendly style – in fact, most charmingly, given her passion for the subject and the occasional grammatical/syntactical error that can be expected from one for whom English is a second language!

I’m sure also, that many of use Cava as a wonderful aperitif – it’s thus employed almost exclusively in our house (though Sherry also has a significant input here!). But Anna takes the concept of pairing food with Cava further still. If it’s true that Cava matches brilliantly with all manner of amuse bouche, tapas, hors d’oeuvre etc, it doesn’t take a quantum leap in cerebral activity to extrapolate the idea and consider pairings for starters, main courses and desserts.

I literally read it from the front cover to the end, in one fell swoop, with glass of Cava in hand!

‘Cava Sparkling Happiness’ is available from www.amazon.co.uk – search Cava: Sparkling Happiness.

WINE ACCESSORIES – FROM WWW.BARAMIGOS.CO.UK

I’m a great believer in Homeopathic Medicine – when it works! Unfortunately, for me at any rate, it doesn’t often do what it says on the tin!

I feel similarly about wine accessories – the often small accoutrements that make, or are supposed to make, our enjoyment of wine that much better (but not always small, consider, if you will, the large wonderfully designed wine decanters available nowadays).

Over the years I’ve tried a plethora of: corkscrews, bottle stoppers, aerators, bottle pourers, decanter cleaning tools etc and I’ve had mixed results. It seems that not all producers get it right for all their products. So I’m delighted to let you know about one new company, trading as www.baramigos.co.uk, all of whose merchandise actually works!

Seems to me that all of their products (albeit, at the moment, a list in progress) will make excellent ‘stocking presents’ for the people in your life who love wine and want to be able to taste it when it’s at its best.

I’ve been extremely lucky recently to have been tasted many Spanish Sparkling Wines, and indeed the French imitation – Champagne! I’m working on some articles for Cork Talk as well as for the glossy, UK based, magazine, Glass of Bubbly (www.glassofbubbly.com) and in the course of my research I have to have several bottles of fizz on the go (I know, it’s tough!). Part of my research is to see how the wine develops over a short period and to do this, one has to have a reliable Sparkling Wine Bottle Stopper. It has to work!

Well I’m very impressed with the Bar Amigos Sparkling Wine Stoppers, which, as with their still wine stoppers, also come in a range of colours. After 24hrs and 48hrs the stopper came off the bottle with a pleasing ‘pop’ and the fizz inside was as active as when I’d first pulled the actual cork. It works!

The still wine bottle stopper also works a treat. Wine bottles I’ve closed with this small, user-friendly pump action device have kept the wine fresh for days when housed in the fridge, which is excellent for those of us who want a glass of wine on occasion, but don’t want to empty the bottle. It’s also very useful, for example, if you’d like a glass of rosado with your aperitif, a glass of white with your starter and a glass of red with your main course – allowing you to do the same the next night and the following night+!

Perhaps most impressive was the wholly beneficial effect that the Bar Amigos new generation Wine Aerator had on a four year old wine that I brought out of my ‘cellar’ and opened immediately. A simple test where we tasted a wine when poured straight into the glass, against the same wine poured through the aerator, was – well, astonishing, is about the beast word I can use! Immediately accessible, aromatic with full, balanced fruit delivery. Top marks.

An excellent innovation - your fine wine ready to drink on opening! — An excellent innovation – your fine wine ready to drink on opening!

Finally, though there are more products that I’ve yet to test, simple though it may sound, they also make a very effective decanter washing brush, and wine glass washing brushes, designed in different shapes for different styles of glasses. They work, too! Bar Amigos products are available www.amazon.co.uk and www.amazon.es

PS You may also be interested in a New Year present to yourself(ves) – I’m taking a group March 23^rd – March 27^th 2015 for a fantastic 5-day wine and culture coach trip to beautiful Segovia and Toro. Boutique hotels; two bodega visits, tours and lunches; cultural visits; and lots more! I have just 8 places left. Please contact me colin@colinharknessonwine.com or call me 629 388 159 for more details

Cava Dinner, Hotel Swiss, Moraira

We thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience; the food, the cava, the setting and the company.

Hilary and Stewart

Glasses for Sparkling Wine

YOU CAN’T HEAR THE ORCHESTRA FOR THE FLUTE!

Before I met the lovely Claire, I was to music what a JCB is to subtlety. I blame my piano teacher all those years ago when she punished my innocent error my knocking me off the piano stool on my first (and last!) lesson! However, in reality, I know that the fault is all mine – I have no musicality.

I still don’t, but now I’m married to a classical soprano (www.dolcedivas.com) I am learning, albeit slowly. That said, I have always been aware, admittedly in a nebulous sort of way, that there is a certain symbiosis between beautiful music and fine wine. The two are synonymous – a fine wine is like a symphony.

Indeed Claire and I have worked together on pairing wine, not, this time, with food, but with types of music. For example, a young purple coloured, fruit orientated red wine might go perfectly well with a light, vivacious and melodic piece of music. The perfect match for a bodega wishing to launch its new joven wine!

So it’s this, albeit limited, experience which I feel qualifies me to write the above title, though, as you might have already ascertained, this article is in fact nothing to do with music! I refer, instead, not to the magical wind instrument (which, incidentally, Claire also plays, angelically), but to the glass that you are probably reaching for right now to relieve the pain of such a long-winded (pun intended) opening to this week’s Cork Talk!

Yes, a flute glass for Cava, Champagne and any other Sparkling wine you might have, set aside for emergencies. They are beautiful aren’t they? Tall and elegant (like myself – well, perhaps not) and in various different designs, they complement the dinner table and perch so easily in the hand as one sips the celebratory bubbles. Perfect.

Well, actually no, not perfect at all, apparently! There is something of a raging debate going on in the Sparkling Wine world at the moment with the ‘abolitionists’ making headway, leaving the ‘old modernists’ (if that’s not a contradiction in terms!) in their wake.

Firstly, let me explain, the jargon. The ‘abolitionists’ are those who want to do away with the aforementioned flute for drinking sparkling wine. This powerful pressure group is championed by Mr. Maximillan J. Riedel, present incumbent of the famous glassware designers and manufacturers, Riedel, one of whose many mantras is that during his lifetime he wants to see the total eradication of the Sparkling Wine flute.

Now, as the designer of alternative Sparkling Wine glasses, you may think he has a hidden agenda! However, he is not alone. Telegraph writer, Victoria Moore (whose recent article was the impetus for this week’s Cork Talk), Federico Lleonart, ‘global wine ambassador’ for Pernod Ricard, Angus McNab, ex-Sommelier, Beth Willard, wine buyer, Anna Wallner, Cava book Author; Victor de la Serna, Wine-maker and Writer – oh and myself, too, are all steadfastly on the abolitionist side.

The ‘old modernsits’ takes some explaining. I’m saying ‘old’ because these were the protagonists whose pressure moved us all on from the ‘coupes’ of yesteryear, the George Best Champagne Fountain, or Babycham glasses; and ‘modernists’ because in those days, this was modern!

The Champion for this group? Well, an unnamed Champagne producer (in Victoria Moore’s article) who was the only one who offered her Champagne in a flute. Perhaps I’m being unfair to this group, I’m sure there are others who will continue to blow their trumpet (never mind the metaphors, let’s mix the instruments!), but in a wholly unscientific straw poll, there were no flute supporters!

But why? Well, it is true that the flute shows-off perfectly the stream of bubbles that are the nature of Sparkling Wine. A continuous stream of fine bubbles travels from the bottom of the glass to the top, enticingly capturing the eye and seducing us all. But, that’s basically all you get! Whilst the fizz is an integral part of Sparkling Wine, there’s a lot more to it than just that.

It’s like saying that a red wine is a nice colour. Yes, the colour of wine is a part of its appreciation – but what about its aromas and flavours, and more? Flutes are just not wide enough for you to put your nose in and really appreciate the aromas, often delicate, that arise from the wine. Unfortunately, a flute concentrates carbon dioxide at the top of the glass, masking the fragrance of the wine.

(Coupes, incidentally, and apologies to the memory of one of the UK’s best ever footballers, are also wrong, for the opposite reason – they are so wide that the aromas diffuse and disappear far too quickly).

So what is the answer? Well, it’s actually very fortunate from an economic point of view. The easy answer is a simple white wine glass – and the likelihood is that you already have plenty of these. Plus, let’s face it, flutes are a nuisance in the dishwasher too! Whereas who has a ‘man’s best friend’ that doesn’t cater for wine glasses?

However, there is still the aesthetic element that has to be placated. The main reason, I believe, that flutes are at the moment the preferred glass for many of us is because, when seen, they immediately make a statement – Celebration! The sight of a tray of flutes full to the brim of golden and/or rosé Sparkling Wine with bubbles exploding to the top is in itself part of the fizz folklore. This aesthetic appreciation is, for some, more important than the aroma and the flavour of the contents!

Well, don’t worry – you can still consign the flutes to the kitchen cupboard to be used on occasion for a posh dessert or a between-courses Champagne Sorbet, and yet enjoy the celebration of Sparkling Wine as well as its aromas. The answer is the ‘bowed flute’, a hybrid which combines the wider and sexy curves of a wine glass with the visual celebratory impact of a flute!

Not sure what’s best for you and your pals? Well, you can easily put the theory to the test. Invite some friends around for a glass or two of Cava. Buy a mid-priced or a posh Cava, but not one of the cheap ones. Hidden from sight, pour the same Cava into your white wine glasses and your flutes and offer one of each to your friends, asking them to decide which is the better Cava. Try it yourself too.

According to the theory, and my belief as well, it will be the Cava in the wine glass that wins the day – although it’s likely that some will criticise the wine glass, even before tasting, because of the aesthetics, and this may colour their ultimate view. But, never mind, you’ll have a great night!

The Riedel answer to the Sparkling Wine Glass conundrum - a beautiful Hybrid! — The Riedel answer to the Sparkling Wine Glass conundrum – a beautiful Hybrid!

PS Did you know that most of the wine related events I organise are sold out before being advertised? This is because I inform those on my e-mail list first about wine tastings, wine/food pairing evenings, bodega visits etc so that, because of their loyalty, they have the first option. You may be missing out!

This is simply solved though – just contact me and I’ll add you to the list immediately!

Contact Colin: colin@colinharknessonwine.com ; through his website www.colinharknessonwine.com where, amongst lots more, you’ll be able to read client comments following his wine related events; and via Twitter @colinonwine

VINOS IBERIAN Part Two

Vinos Iberian, La Compaña de Viñedos Iberian, as readers of last week’s common, is making lovely wines in various parts of Spain . .

TOP WINES FROM COMPAÑA DE VIÑEDOS IBERIAN

AND THAT’S NO BULL!

The iconic symbol above is known to all visitors to, and residents of, Spain. I think it’s a great story. The Osborne family, famous firstly for the Brandy de Jerez as well as their Sherry erected them in the ’50s. Huge and bold they stood on hilltops all over Spain, proudly advertising the company.

Decades later the law changed and they were told to remove them, but they successfully challenged the ruling in court on the basis that they had become part of the landscape of Spain, a national symbol and in the words of the court they have “ . . asethetic or cultural significance . .”! Was there ever a better advertising coup?

Well maybe Cork Talk will match it?! The Osborne family’s venture into the wine business is clearly a great success too. Vinos Iberian, La Compaña de Viñedos Iberian, as readers of last week’s common, is making lovely wines in various parts of Spain and I’ve tasted several examples. This week it’s the turn of DOs: Bierzo, Toro, Ribera del Duero.

Yaso is from DO Toro, one of the waking giants of Spanish wine-making. I say ‘waking’ rather than ‘sleeping’, which is the more common phrase, because this beauty has already been kissed and is slowly arising! There are excellent traditional bodegas in DO Toro that have been making fine wines for ages, but the ‘kiss’ has come from some of the more famous names in Spanish viniculture, who have been buying land within the DO, and thus attracting the media and upping the ante re wine quality.

Yaso, named after the Greek Goddess of Healing, is made with Tinto de Toro (aka Tempranillo) from 40 yrs old vineyards. The soil is sandy, short of natural nutrients and therefore excellent for vines as they have to work hard for their supper – harsh, I know, but the grapes produced, and therefore, ultimately, the wines, will be the better for it.

Fresh black cherries mix with cherry jam aromas and flavours. There are violets on the, black pepper spice and minerality – but it’s the fruit that predominates, lovely juicy and with a mid-length finish.

DO Bierzo is another area that is attracting more and more attention these days and the ace up the sleeve is the indigenous Mencía grape variety. It’s like . . ., well no other variety and I often drink it, enjoying its originality.

Lomopardo is 100% Mencía and has been aged in one year old French oak barricas. The typical cherry notes on the nose along with some pencil lead (sounds odd I know, but seek and ye shall find) and mushroomy forest undergrowth. On the palate the cherries come through, a mixture of picota and ripe red cherry which stays with you after you swallow. There’s a little spice and minerality which is noticed both on first hit and on the finish. Super wine!

Ribera del Duero wines figure strongly on the Vinos Iberian list. Jaros is a blend of Tinto Fino (aka Tempranillo), Cabernet Sauvignon and just 3% Merlot. Its been matured for 15 months in new French oak, which has obviously mutually taming – the wood on the Cabernet and the blend on the wood! There’s no harshness here, no green tannin astringency; and there’s no overpowering oak. It’s a balanced wine in harmony and a real pleasure to drink.

There is depth of flavour, that’s brambly fruit with a hint of blackcurrant and a hint of menthol and on the nose you’ll find fruit to the fore with a background of minerality and subtle tobacco and coconut whiffs. Serious wine and very enjoyable.

Chafandín is from the same stable, Bodegas Viñas del Jaro. It’s an excellent concentrated wine with intense flavour and aroma. Made with 100% Tinto Fino from grapes from 40+ years old vines, the wine has its malolactic fermentation in 300 litre French oak barrels in which it then stays for between 15 – 20 months, depending on the year and according to the head winemaker’s wishes. Its slightly liquorice flavoured dark blackberry and plum fruit lasts for an age after swallowing and ends in a note of elegance.

Sed de Caná is of a limited production and has tio be considered a flagship of the bodega above. When we first sipped this wine all conversation stopped so that we could linger undisturbed in its elegance, depth of flavour, super aroma and yet marked subtlety, whilst admiring its complexity as we gently navigated its various layers.

After 6 months in French oak all the barrels are tasted, a few are deemed to be of the correct standard and taste/aroma profile to be elevated to the Sed de Caná level. Violet aromas, deeply flavoured dark red fruits with integrated oak a whiff of damp earth, a sniff of minerality, some nebulous mountain herbs and a touch of cinnamon spice and coconut on the lengthy finish. Wow!

Sembro, also from Ribera del Duero, has a beautiful bird on the label – a theme that follows with some of the VdlT wines to follow in next week’s article. It makes the wine stand out on the shelf, which is a help, of course, but will consumers go bird spotting again, after tasting the contents?

Answer – yes! Sembro is all about expressing, in the most vivacious way, the local Tinto Fino variety. Many people these days are telling me that they are buying more and more Ribera del Duero wines as they all seem to have in common a super fruit element that makes them instantly accessible and gloriously enjoyable.

Sembro is such a wine, though it’s not at all here today gone tomorrow, it’s not at all inconsequential, perhaps down to the six months it has had in French oak. But it’s the fruit that makes this wine sing. Lovely damsons on the nose, joined on the palate by stewed plum notes and maybe, to lighten the colour profile, just a flick of red cherry and red current. It has a lick of acidity making it fresh for simply enjoying on its own with a little depth from the wood.

The final part of the Vinos Iberian saga soon!

NB Many of the tasty, entertaining and informative wine related events that I organise are fully subscribed before being advertised because I notify first those who are on my e-mail list. If you are not on the list then you could be missing out! If you would like to hear about the various tastings/wine dinners/bodega visits etc please contact me and I’ll be delighted to add you to this list!

Contact Colin: colin@colinharknessonwine.com and via Twitter @colinonwine and please visit www.colinharknessonwine.com click on Client Comments and read what people think!