The Carménère grape is exclusive to Chile, as this European grape variety became extinct in the 19th century due to phylloxera. Other varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and to a lesser extent, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Malbec and Pinot Noir are also grown. For white wines, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Gewürztraminer are grown.

The country has five major wine growing regions: Atacama, Coquimbo, Aconcagua, Valle Central and Sur, making wines that fall into three categories: wines with a designation of origin, wines without a designation of origin and “vinos de mesa” (table wines).

It has a large number of wineries, including Miguel Torres, Concha y Toro and Viña Leyda.

Chilean rosé wine

The bottling process for Chilean rosé wines begins in June (in Spain it usually begins in September), and one of its references, the Santa Digna Cabernet Sauvignon Rosé, is now available for sale in the online wine store INVINIC. This is a wine of great personality: original, young and non-conformist, with the charm of Cabernet Sauvignon vinified in rosé and with a brief maceration of the skins. It has a fragrant, floral aroma and a tempting fruity sensuality. In the mouth it is voluptuous, with a silky fabric and fruity body (cassis, blueberries, blackcurrant) that can only offer a rosé of Cabernet Sauvignon from the Pacific. It is an excellent rosé wine to accompany sausages, empanadas and Italian pasta dishes.

Have you tried it yet? We’d like your opinion!

La entrada Wines of Chile se publicó primero en Blog INVINIC.

New Zealand wine is produced mainly in ten regions: Northland, Auckland, Waikato/Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, Wellington, Nelson, Marlborough, Canterbury/Waipara and Otago Central.

As in Australia, the winemaking tradition dates back to colonial times, when the Englishmen began to produce wine although with little production due to cultural (drinking more beer), economic and legal issues.

New Zealand red wines

They are made with any mixture of varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and not so often Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec), or Pinot Noir. Recently, in Hawkes Bay there have been wines produced with Syrah, either alone or mixed, and even Tempranillo, Montepulciano and Sangiovese.

In general, New Zealand red wine tends to be of advanced and early maturation, fruity and with moderate oak.

Pinot Noir is a grape variety whose importance in New Zealand is greater than its weight in cultivation indicates. As in other New Zealand wines, New Zealand Pinot Noir is mostly fruity, evolved and prematurely matured in the bottle. It tends to be full-bodied (for the variety), very accessible and oak ripening tends to be moderate. The high quality examples of New Zealand Pinot Noir are distinguished by tasty, earthy flavors of great complexity.

White wines from New Zealand

The Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc grape varieties predominate in plantations and production.

New Zealand’s Sauvignon Blanc has been described by some as “lively with flavors of mowed grass and fresh fruit”, and by others as “cat’s pee on a gooseberry bush” (but not necessarily as a criticism).

Other white varieties frequently included are Riesling, Gewürztraminer, and Pinot Gris, and less frequently Chenin Blanc, Pinot Blanc, Müller-Thurgau and Viognier.

New Zealand sparkling wines

We can find excellent sparkling wines made by the “Methode Traditionelle“.

Our recommendation

We recommend that you try any of the wines from the Staete Landt winery. These are wines made in a very manual way, giving rise to wines of great quality and complexity such as: Staete Landt Pinot Noir, Staete Landt Sauvignon Blanc, Staete Landt Chardonnay or the Staete Landt Pinot Gris.

Have you tried any wine from New Zealand yet? Tell us what you think!

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It is recognized for its production of “ferrous” red wines, due to the high content of this mineral in its soils. British settlers were the first to settle in Barossa Valley in the early nineteenth century, and the first to make their own wine. These historic vineyards, which still exist today, have never been affected by phylloxera and produce fantastic wines that are currently highly valued.

The grape varieties that are mainly used to make the Australian wines are: Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon and Riesling. Up to 130 varieties of grapes are used to make wine, and almost all have been brought from France, mainly from Italy and Spain. It should be noted that 75% of the wine is exported to other countries, mainly the United States.

The Australian wine region is divided into four states: South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Western Australia, although the southern region is the largest wine producer.

Australian wines are best for drinking young and the shiraz grape is the world-famous. It is a solid and austere wine, while refined and elegant. The cabernet sauvignon wine is fresh and pure, with intense fruit aromas, emphasizing its careful elaboration and regularity in the consecutive harvests. The white wines, especially the Sauvignon Blanc, are soft and fresh, of high quality.

Do not miss the opportunity to try some of these amazing wines!

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The most significant characteristic of Alella is the existence of “sauló”, a sandy soil of granite origin and practically white color that has a great permeability and a great capacity of retention of solar irradiation. This facilitates the maturation of the fruit and brings fineness to the wines. The low power of water retention is compensated by the local microclimate.

Two distinct microclimates

In the D.O. two geographical and climatic zones are distinguished:

• The area of the Maresme, located in the foothills of the Litoral mountain range, of maritime orientation and open to the influence of the sun and the Mediterranean breeze. The mountain protects from the cold winds and condenses the moisture that comes from the sea, provoking a typically Mediterranean microclimate with warm, dry summers and mild winters. The vineyards are distributed in staggered plots ranging from 90 m to 260 m in altitude. The wines of this area are mild, with a low alcohol content and moderate acidity.
• The area of the Eastern Vallés is located in the interior slopes of the mountain range, with a more somber orientation and a more continental microclimate. The wines are more acidic and powerful.

Pansa Blanca, the most representative grape

The most characteristic grape variety of the Denomination of Origin Alella is the Pansa Blanca, very close, although not identical, to the Xarel.lo (in many literatures they even get confused), that produces some white wines perfumed and shiny.

Although the region produces white wines with Pansa Blanca and Garnacha Blanca as main varieties, other authorized varieties are Picapoll, Malvasia, Parellada, Macabeo, Chardonnay, Chenin, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscat.

For the elaboration of red and rosé wines, the main variety is Garnacha Tinta, although other authorized varieties are Hairy Grenache, Tempranillo, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pansa Rosada and Pinot Noir.

One of the most representative wines of the Pansa Blanca from Alella is the:

Raventós de Alella Pansa Blanca Tina 9

From the selection of the best “tina” (tub 9) of the winery, for the production of the Raventós de Alella Pansa Blanca Tina 9, single varietal of Pansa Blanca, the grape is pressed and macerated in cold to extract to the maximum the aromas. The result is a yellow wine with greenish tones, intense aroma to white fruit and a voluminous flavor with a long aftertaste. It’s an excellent value for money.

If you have not tried Alella white wine, we recommend you do not take too long … you will see how pleasantly surprised you are!

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Ribera del Duero: What do I need to know?

Located in Spain’s Duero Valley, the Ribera del Duero enjoys optimal conditions for growing and producing fine wine. Protected from the sea by a mountain range and with some vineyard sites at elevations of up to 850 metres, the growing area has hot days and cool nights. This allows the Tempranillo grape, known here as Tinta Fina, to ripen ideally with high levels of colour, acidity and fruit aromas.

What does Ribera del Duero wine like?

The best Ribera del Duero wines tend to be made from 100% Tempranillo, though one famous exception is Vega Sicilia. The local Tempranillo clone has a thicker skin than in Rioja, and ripening conditions in the vineyard give the grape skins more pigment. These factors, combined with extended maceration during winemaking, give the wine more colour than, say, a Rioja.

A typical Ribera del Duero has a deep, dark colour. Expect intoxicating aromas of dark fruit and plum, with a lot of the aromatic complexity thanks to the cool nighttime growing conditions which prevent the grapes from becoming too jammy or sunburnt. On the palate, Ribera wines are powerful and full-bodied, with astringent tannins. Ribera del Duero wines tend to have shorter ageing than Rioja, and generally in new French oak barrels.

What makes Ribera del Duero wine so great?

Okay, so you’ve got virtually perfect growing conditions. The primary grape, the Tempranillo or Tinta Fina, is perfectly suited to the soil and climate. That’s all well and good, but it’s not the whole story. Many wine regions meet these conditions and yet their wines are not considered to be the world’s greatest. In order to understand what makes Ribera del Duero wine so special, we need to explore its recent history!

The 1980s and 1990s: Make Ribera del Duero great (again)

Though Vega Sicilia wine had been on the scene for over a hundred years, and enjoyed a stellar reputation, Ribera del Duero was not considered a great wine region. In the early 1980s, a new generation of dynamic winemakers descended upon the region. This, combined with external investment, led to a rapid and considerable increase in terms of both quantity and, crucially, quality. Perhaps the biggest name of all was Peter Sisseck, who made a serious splash with the launch of the first Dominio Pingus wine in 1995. Today, Pingus is considered an equal of Vega Sicilia, and they’re not alone…

3 great Ribera del Duero wines to try

Pingus and Vega Sicilia are the cream of the crop, and command the prices to match. You can still score excellent Ribera del Duero wines without taking out a second mortgage, though. Here are three of our favourites:

• Alión 2000

  An elegant, fleshy and aromatic example of mature Ribera del Duero from a quality producer. With 97 points from Guía Proensa and 92 from Robert Parker, this is highly recommended.

• Valdegatiles 2007

  This has spent over a year and a half in new French oak and has followed some biodynamic production methods. Complex and elegant, it boasts 97 points from Guía Peñín and 96 from Guía Proensa.

• Pago De Los Capellanes Crianza 2014

  This proves that you can get a great Ribera del Duero for less than €20! Powerful and complex, and with a 92-point score from Robert Parker it punches way above its price range!

What is your favourite Ribera del Duero wine? Share your favourites in the comments below!

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A Typical Valencia Wine:

The region produces lots of gluggable, chuggable table wine. You’ll pour it out, and enjoy it with standard paella, or simply on its own as you gaze at the sea from your hotel window. It’s uncomplicated, get-what-you-pay-for wine.

However, the region’s quality has been rising in recent years. Instead of obscure local varieties, the area is making red wines from Tempranillo, and increasingly white wines use Macebo.

Some Rare Gems:

What’s more, the region is producing a few great bottles. You just need to know what to look for – so keep an eye out for Moscatel de Valencia. It’s a renowned sweet wine, and occasionally fortified like a sherry. Some growers are also experimenting with international varieties too. Using solid, noble grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay will help the region to move towards higher status, and Maduresa is an lip-smacking example of this style. It has excellent fruit flavours, with strong, jammy ripe notes thanks to the beating Mediterranean sun.

Also look out for the sub-area of Utiel-Requena. It’s leading the charge of quality Valencia winemakers, which means you should look for it on bottle labels.

What to Do When You Get Here:

Once you’ve located the wine bar nearest to your hotel, you may start thinking about other things to do in Valencia. Don’t worry – there should be opportunities to drink at these tourist hotspots too. Yet you may want to include some of these activities in with your trip to wine country:

• Hit the Beach! There are no fewer than five beaches around Valencia. The main one, La Malvarrosa, is also pleasingly spacious, which will make it easy to find a nice spot for a picnic of red Valencia wine and paella. Here’s some other fantastic wine and food pairings for picnics.

• Visit a Vineyard. There are plenty to choose from, and this wine tour company is even WSET certified. That means you won’t just be visiting some nice wine producers. You’ll also be learning something, and it’s much easier to understand a wine when you’ve stood on the soil in which it’s grown while experiencing the weather that made it. And what weather – with highs of 29°C.

• Check Out Valencia’s Central Market. It’s often said that what grows together goes together, and this is your chance to stock up on the food that were made to match the local wine. Of course, at home your local delicatessen will charge the Earth to try this stuff. Here, you can pick up prize chorizo that would be a great match for a glass of Valencia red.

• Try the Nightlife. Of course, you will have seen footage of young twenty-somethings getting completely wasted on cheap booze in Spain. Valencia is not that kind of place. Yet there is something for you if you want to venture out at night, and ‘Elite Cocktail Bar’ is the sort of sophisticated place to visit with some very yummy drinks.

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The Most Important Grape in Jumilla Wine is Monastrell

You’ve probably already had the pleasure of meeting Monastrell. In France, the same grape goes under the name Mourvèdre, and they create wines with high alcohol content that are full bodied and highly tannic. All that alcohol supports deep flavours of spice and red fruit. Occasionally, you may find another example with hints of hung meat as well, which is another reason to pair it with roasts. An even better reason is the tannin. This bitter compound helps to break down meat proteins, which makes them taste more delicious, and so for your next Sunday roast, you need a bottle of Jumilla Monastrell on the table.

A Typical Monastrell:

Try MMM Macho Man Monastrell. Like a bullfighter, the bottle comes with a burly bloke on the front, which hints at what’s going on inside the bottle. It’s a crianza wine, which means it’s spent in oak developing flavours yeasty, woody flavours, but it should have the red fruit characteristic of the grape. Pair it with meaty stews with lots of tomato.

An Everyday Drinking Wine:

Honoro Vera Monastrell is a pure bargain. Because it hasn’t spent any time in the barrel, the producer doesn’t have to pass on any costs in the price of the wine, but on the flip side, it has not developed a great deal of flavour complexity. There also won’t be any oaky notes. Expect a simpler, less complex wine that will go with lighter meat dishes such as pasta with slices of chorizo. But remember, wine spectator gave this bottle 86 points. Buying this bottle might save you a few euros, but you’re not scrimping on tastiness.

A High Quality Red:

Jumilla is only a ‘DO’ region. In Spain’s quality rankings, that means it’s second best, but you will find some producers in the area creating absolutely wonderful Jumilla wine. Las Gravas is one such example. It’s actually a mix of Monastrell, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah, which won 94 points from Robert Parker as well as 94 from Guia Peñin – two of the greatest wine authorities on the face of the planet. This is the good stuff.

The wine is very balanced – tannin, alcohol, flavour and dryness being perfectly in sync. Like all good quality wines, it has a very long finish, meaning you’ll taste red fruit flavours some time after you’ve gulped it down. It has a vivid cherry colour too. Enjoy it with a good steak, or even strongly flavoured venison.

If You Like That, You’ll Like This:

There are a few grapes that make similar red wine. We’ve summarised them in our article Shiraz Cabernet and Other Power Red Wine Blends, which gives you more options to find one with more of what you like in a wine.

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Mallorca wine

Mallorca wine may not have the international recognition of Rioja or Ribera del Duero, but it is truly distinctive and has a lot to offer. There are four separate areas within Mallorca that produce wine, two of which have Denominación de Origen (DO) status and two with regional wine status.

• Binissalem DO is the island’s oldest designated wine region, established in 1990. It covers the central part of the island and cultivates a range of local and international grapes including Callet, Manto Negre, Fogoneu, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah, among others.
• Pla i Levant DO was established in 1999. It covers the island’s central and eastern areas, and cultivates many of the same grapes.
• Mallorca is a regional wine designation established in 2007, covering some 25 producers across five municipalities.
• Serra de Tramuntana-Costa Nord is another regional wine designation covering 18 municipalities in the island’s northwest. Mallorca wine has been produced under this designation since 2002, though the region has produced non-designated wine (primarily from the Malvasia grape) since the 15th century.

Mallorca wine to try

The best way to experience Mallorca wine is surely by visiting the beautiful island, touring its picturesque vineyards and tasting the wine at source. Almost as good is to pick up a bottle (or three) of Mallorca wine, cook up a storm of Mallorcan-inspired dishes and have your very own island experience at home. We’ve picked three Mallorca wines that should have you covered:

• Quíbia demonstrates why Mallorca wine is so unique: This aged white is a blend of Xarel-lo (best known in Cava) and Callet. The wine is fermented and aged in cement tanks, with four months’ ageing on the lees giving it some serious complexity. Flavours of citrus and tropical fruits and mineral character make this a very memorable white indeed. Serve this with a Catalan fish stew and find yourself instantly transformed to Mallorca in the summertime.
• Ànima Negra ÀN/2 is a balanced and elegant red that expresses the best of those indigenous grape varieties that make Mallorca wine so special, alongside a healthy splash of international superstar Syrah for good measure. The blend is a 65% majority of Callet, 15% Syrah and the remaining 20% a combination of Manto Negre and Fogoneu. Ageing in a combination of French and American oak, both old and new, gives the wine good structure without ever overpowering it. Serve with Mallorcan Sobrassada if you can get it, or another cured sausage if not.
• Ànima Negra ÀN is ÀN/2’s big brother, solely from local grapes with 95% Callet in the blend supported by Fogoneu and Mant Negre. Callet makes firm, well-structured and savoury wines, and this is a seriously premium example. With 18 months of ageing in new French oak, this is a big wine that will pair very well with hearty and meaty dishes inspired by Mallorcan cooking. Try this Mallorca wine with a Porcella, the traditional suckling pig dish served at Christmas.

Have you been to Mallorca? What do you think of Mallorca wine and how it pairs with the local food – can you recommend any non-traditional food pairings for adventurous Mallorca wine lovers?

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One could write a book on the region, and indeed the esteemed wine writer and Bordeaux specialist Neal Martin did just that. Instead of getting into too much detail, the point of this article is to give a brief overview for those that may be interested by this wonderful region, but are at a loss as to where to begin.

What (and where) is Pomerol?

Pomerol is a tiny wine region on Bordeaux’s right bank, neighbouring the larger Saint ?milion region. It is Bordeaux’s smallest fine wine appellation, covering barely 800 hectares of land under vine. The vineyards of Pomerol lie in a relatively unremarkable area of countryside land, with little more than a church to signify that the commune is anything more than farmland.

What makes Pomerol special?

At the risk of oversimplification, the wines produced here are fantastic and quantities are so small that guarantee they are always in high demand. Of course, there is more to it than that. Pomerol’s more unique selling points include the following:

• Unlike the other fine wine subregions of Bordeaux, Pomerol has no classification system. For anybody who has ever tried to make sense of Bordeaux’s many archaic systems of classification, this is a relief.
• The soils here are unique and are optimal for fine winemaking. Sandy soils are common, with slightly denser gravel also present. The very best soils in the region are the precious “argile bleue” (“blue clay”), best known at Petrus. No other wine region in the world has such a concentration of blue clay. This clay is incredibly dense, making it incredibly difficult for grapevines to penetrate, while also retaining moisture. The resulting wines, Pomerol’s best, are profoundly dense and rich.
• As in Saint Emilion, Merlot is the dominant grape in Pomerol wine blends. These are rich and supple wines that are approachable (and delicious) while young, though they also have fantastic capacity for long ageing. This is in contrast to the more austere Cabernet Sauvignon-based wines of Bordeaux’s left bank regions, which require a lot more ageing time to become enjoyable to drink.
• Pomerol is home to Bordeaux’s most expensive wines, some of which we will speak about next.

Three of the best Pomerol wines

• Petrus tops the table in Pomerol, and is arguably the world’s finest wine. The tiny vineyard is planted exclusively on blue clay, which makes it as unique a wine as you are likely to find. Château Petrus 2003 is a perfect example of why this wine is so special: Powerful, deep and rich with layer upon layer of complexity and a dizzying array of aromas and flavour.
• Château Le Pin is of an almost equal standing to the longer-established Petrus. Established as recently as 1979, Le Pin occupies a microscopic 2-hectare estate and produces barely 600 or 700 cases per year. It is constantly in huge demand amongst fine wine connoisseurs, due to its uncompromising quality. Château Le Pin 2006 is a fine expression of this elusive wine.
• Château Lafleur has a 4-hectare vineyard and produces tiny quantities of wines that would – and frequently do – put many of the official Médoc first growths to shame. Château Lafleur 1999 demonstrates the beauty of an aged Pomerol, while the estate’s second wine, Pensées de Lafleur, offers an insight into the estate’s magic for a (relatively) more affordable price. The 2009 and 2010 vintages of this one are outstanding.

Have you had the good fortune to try one of these iconic wines? All serious wine lovers surely dream of one day opening a bottle of one of these wines. No Pomerol comes cheap, but there are many other fabulous producers to look out for, including Châteaux Certan de May, Nenin and La Conseillante, to name just a few. What are your favourite Pomerol wines?

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But where does this magic come from?
The Priory contains in its landscape and in its vineyards a mystery, and the result is a different type of wine, like all wines that come from a major wine region in the world.

It all began in 1194, when the from the Provence coming Carthusian monks settled down and founded the Carthusian order Escaladei, just at the place where there was a tree, and from which, according to the monks, a stairway led up to the sky.
They were experienced winegrowers, and they created the conditions for a unique wine-growing, in a unique landscape. During a long time the wine was the economic base of the region.

After the phylloxera plague that befell Europe beginning of XX century, the Priorat remained deserted … the people left this area that became poorer. The people left behind the fields, and went to the cities to work in factories.
This left very few bodegas, and some cooperatives. Undoubtedly one of the most difficult moments for the Priorat.

But after much effort it was in 1974 when the Bodega Scala Dei bottled there the first Priorat. Undoubtedly a major challenge. The other mythical Bodega that has bottled there was Masía Barril, now named Mas d’En Gil.
Two different styles to produce a wine: the first is fermented on its lees, the second uses no wood for the ageing … Where they perhaps visionaries?

Several years later, come to Priorat a group of young winemakers, led by Rene Barbier, who already knew the district, and who believed in its great potential.
Among them stood five out: Rene Barbier, Alvaro Palacios, Daphne Glorian, Josep Lluís Pérez and Carles Pastrana, who launched on the market in 1989 a wine called CLOS.
Then, as surely all know, the wine L’Ermita stands out at an auction, and from then the Priorat had a comeback.

Some people say that the price is too high, but if you take a look at the hillsides on which the wines are planted, the very low production of the wines, the climate in this area, you will understand that in the Priorat you just can not only speak over the price.

It is a land ownership that attracts like a magnet. You need a special character to work and live in the Priorat, but the area also gives back many things.
And then you open a bottle, taste it, and  the magic captures you.

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