Tag Archives: wines

Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Baden’s Breisgau District

What I Learned:

The Breisgau area of the Baden Region of Germany has some unique topography, both natural and manmade. From the plain, you see ridgeline after ridgeline, each rising higher as it moves away from the Rhine, and toward the upper reaches of the Black Forest to the east.

The vine-covered hills, usually on the first or second ridgelines after the plain, tend to be small, but steep. Man has worked around this by terracing many of them over time. This terracing provides plenty of opportunity to notice the primarily loess and sandy soils that predominate in this area.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Baden’s Breisgau District →

Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Franconia’s Maindreieck

What I Learned:

Along the Main River in Franconia (Franken, in German), there are three wine districts of good repute: Maindreieck, Mainviereck, and the Steigerwald, set slightly off the river, but still enjoying a climate mild enough to grow grapes. This post focuses on the Maindreieck district only.

The Maindreieck is a triangle of land surrounded on three sides by the Main River. The Main is a tributary to the Rhine. The river makes three dramatic curves close to the heart of Franconia, forming this “triangle” (dreieck) as a paragon of viticulture in south central Germany. The most important and undoubtedly best known town for wine culture in this area is Wuerzburg.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Franconia’s Maindreieck →

France, Wines

Wine Notes: Beaujolais Crus

What I Learned:

Beaujolais is a wine region just south of Burgundy. It has three different quality levels: a simple Beaujolais produced in the southern-most reaches of this region; a Beaujolais-Village appellation; and in the northern part of this wine region, ten villages have their own appellations due to their special crus. It is a singular geological area, once part of an ancient sea bed. The hills are often steep and hide valleys between them. Schist and granite soils in the Beaujolais give a distinctive minerality to the wines. The best of these wines, the ten villages/areas of appellation (Brouilly, Chenas, Cote de Brouilly, Chiroubles, Fleurie, Julienas, Morgon, Moulin a Vent, Regnie, Saint-Amour) offer good value for quality wines.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Beaujolais Crus →

Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Germany’s Wuerttembergisch Unterland – Part II

What I Learned:

About 20 miles north of Stuttgart, Germany, there is a distinctive grape growing area, lining the Neckar River as it flows north past the towns of Mundelsheim, Hessigheim and Besigheim. An unusual geological feature here is a fractured, limestone cliff with rock outcroppings that tower above the Neckar. Known as the Felsengarten, this site is favored by local rock climbers, as well as wine lovers who delight in visiting the vineyards surrounding the cliff, and the local wine cooperative, the Felsengartenkellerei, at the base of the cliff.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Germany’s Wuerttembergisch Unterland – Part II →

Germany, Wines

Wine Notes: Germany’s Wuerttembergisch Unterland – Part I

What I Learned:

About 20 miles north of Stuttgart, Germany, there is a distinctive grape growing area. An unusual geological feature here is a fractured, limestone cliff with rock outcroppings that towers above the Neckar River. Known as the Felsengarten, this site is favored by local rock climbers, as well as wine lovers who delight in visiting the vineyards surrounding the cliff, and the local wine cooperative at the base of the cliff.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Germany’s Wuerttembergisch Unterland – Part I →

France, Wines

Wine Notes: Alsace Haut-Rhin

What I Learned:

Alsace is a fantastic wine country. Alsace’s Haut-Rhin (upper Rhine) area is particularly favored with great terroirs, such as the Mandelberg displayed above. Here, as elsewhere in Alsace, the harvests are primarily white varietals. The soil here is minerally, and complex, resulting in crisp, refreshing and uniquely flavored white wines. The six main white varietals grown in Alsace are Riesling, Sylvaner, Muscat, Gewürztraminer, Pinot Blanc, and Pinot Gris. The only red varietal is Pinot Noir.

Visiting Alsace practically mandates you taste some local wine. First, you will notice the unusually tall wine bottles. You will also notice green-stemmed stemware, with smaller than usual bowls. These two unique items have more in common with German Rhineland traditions than French ones. But like the French tradition, wine producers proudly offer tastes of their product, for wine-making here is an art, and even nowadays, still a family affair.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Alsace Haut-Rhin →

Luxembourg, Wines

Wine Notes: Luxembourg

What I Learned:

Little known, as not much is exported, Luxembourg’s wines are readily available and thoroughly enjoyed by residents and visitors in the Grand Duchy. For lovers of dry, white wines, this region provides some delicious alternatives to Alsatian or Rhine white wines.

From the towns of Schengen to Wasserbillig, Luxembourg joins the centuries old tradition of producing wines along the Moselle. On this west side of the river, local vintners grow their grapes mostly in terraces rising steeply from the narrow river plain for much of Luxembourg’s 42 kilometer stretch along the Moselle.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Luxembourg →

France, Wines

Wine Notes: Champagne

What I Learned:

 Champagne can only come from Champagne, the region, about 90 miles from Paris. In spite of its proximity to “gay Paris,” champagne did not enjoy great fame until fairly recently. Although grapes were cultivated in the region as early as Roman times, the often cold, foggy climate worked to ensure that grape ripening was not consistent from year to year. Hence the wine was not always good, or plentiful.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Champagne →

Austria, Wines

Wine Notes: Austria’s Wachau Wine Region

What I Learned:

Austria has 20 wine regions, one of which is the Wachau, situated along the banks of the Danube, upriver from Vienna.

Wine production in the Wachau region dates to at least the 1130s.

The geography helps to make grape-growing possible. The ancient Danube River helped created the loess soils, and now serves to moderate temperatures; the bowls formed by the steep hill slopes (called Ried), shelter vines from winds and capture the sun’s heat.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Austria’s Wachau Wine Region →

France, Wines

Wine Notes: Burgundy Cote D’Or – Cote de Nuits

What I Learned:

By way of overall explanation, the term Cote D’Or (Golden Slope) has a couple of meanings: it refers to a department in France, and it refers to a geological phenomenon, a large limestone ridge, that gives its name to a wine region. The wine region is subdivided into two sections: the northern Cote de Nuits, and the southern Cote de Beaune. This post covers the northern, Cote de Nuits, section, which runs from approximately just south of Dijon to just south of Corgoloin in Burgundy.

Continue reading Wine Notes: Burgundy Cote D’Or – Cote de Nuits →