5600 € Trockenbeerenauslese

26. February, this year’s spring auction at Kloster Eberbach was held and gave a total result of 84000 €. The highest bid was given for a 1921 Erbacher Marcobrunn Trockenbeerenauslese with 5600 €.

200 years ago, wine auctions were started by the aristrocratic wine estates, in order to establish further channels to sell their wines.

Every year, two auctions are held. The fall auctions are done together with the VDP, in the spring events it is solely the Hessische Staatsweingüter.

www.klostereberbach.com

Are you ready to auction some wine?

Cheers!
Heike

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Riesling. Riesling. Riesling.

Riesling grape © Photographer: Tom Maack

Fresh, crisp wines with high acidity.
Noble sweet wines with long ageing potential.
Young, lean, fruity everyday wines.
Off-dry wines.
Dry wines.
Kabinett.
Late Harvest.
Ice wine.
Sparkling wines.
Wines with residual sweetness.
Citrus, apple, peach, apricot, maracuja, rose, grass, raisin.
Honey, orange peel, petroleum, walnut.
Minerality.
Terroir wines.
Grand cru wines (Grosse und Erste Gewächse).
All that – and more – is Riesling.

I love Riesling. Always have. Always will. And so do many more wine enthusiasts around the world. Today (since 2008), the largest Riesling area of the world is the Pfalz with 5455 hectares. Total Riesling area in Germany is 22.400 ha. (source: German Wine Institute).

”The true origins of Riesling remain a mystery. Some believe it is a varietal mentioned long ago by the Roman writer Plinius, others feel King Louis the German (843–876) was the first to have had the grape planted in the Rhine Valley. Other experts suspect that Riesling is a mutation of a wild vine of Germanic origin. In a viticultural dictionary from 1930, Riesling is briefly defined: “Origin: Germany. Probably a seedling from the Rheingau.” Trendsetter for the advance of Riesling in the Rheingau was the wine estate at Johannisberg. In 1720, some 294,000 Riesling vines were planted in the vineyards of the old Benedictine abbey…” (source: Schloss Johannisberg/Rheingau)

While there are documents relating Riesling & Rheingau & Mosel back to 1435, the grape variety has spread to many wine countries since then: Alsace; Austria; North America: Washington, Oregon, California, Michigan, New York, Canada; Australia; New Zealand; South Africa.

Many synonymes are found, Rhine Riesling, Johannisberg Riesling only two of them.

Riesling is a slow riping variety, hardy and thus predestined for cool climate areas. Late summers and sunny falls help the grape to develop slowly, giving, besides good must weights, intense aromas to pair with the great acidity. While for better quality wines, the site is of utmost importance, the soils can be poor. However, the terroir – soils, vineyard site, micro climate, vinification – can be reflected to the maximum in Riesling wines, without loosing its typicality. A good way to test that is to do tastings of several Rieslings of different sites from one winery.

Go to International Riesling Foundation: www.drinkriesling.com for more information

Find Invinitums Rieslings here: www.invinitum.com

And what’s your favorite Riesling wine?

Cheers!
Heike

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February: time for winter pruning

The vines are still dormant, but things are happening now out there in the vineyards: winter pruning. Last year’s canes are being cut off, with only a few left to grow new ones the coming season. Depending on several factors (i.e. which region, vine, quality of wine, etc.), pruning is done in different ways. In hot regions of i.e. Spain, where it is very common to find bush vines that are growing low and thus close to the soil, several short canes (=spurs) will be left around the head of the vine.

Vines with old canes, unpruned

In the Pfalz, where the climate is cooler, it is typical to have vertical shoot positioning (the vines are about hip-high and then spread along strings). One or two canes with a certain number of buds are left, all the others are cut off. The buds on those few remaining canes will grow into this year’s grape clusters. The length of the remaining cane is determined by the number of desired buds, which in its turn is dependent on which vine, desired wine style, etc. The school books refer to max 15 buds per cane. This work is done by hand, although the pruning shears can be electrical and thus making it somewhat easier. However! Standing out there in wind and weather shows there is a not-so-romantic side of wine making…

Pruned vines with two canes left on

Pruning is a very important step in the process of winemaking and lays the foundation for what there is to come. It is here where the vinter decides about the yields he or she wants to get from a certain vine. As a simple rule, lower yields give better wines. Further, the older the vine, the lower the yields get. Lower yields result in less wine, results in higher prices per bottle. During the growing cycle of the vine and grapes, there are further stages of pruning required. We’ll get to those later on.

Next step in the process will now be the training of the vines. I’ll be back with new photos!

Are you interested to work in the vineyards? Get in touch!

Cheers,
Heike

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Veuve Monsigny Brut Champagne 11 €

Veuve Monsigny

Last night I was invited at good friends’ home. There is usually a bit of a nervousity around the wines, my friends seem to get uncertain whether Heike will appreciate a wine. (I have even heard some friends telling the clerk that they need a wine that a wine-knower will accept.) Poor people… I am constantly talking about letting your tastebuds decide and not some known journalist, and to stay cool about wine, and just like it or don’t.

However! This time they ‘went for it’: I was offered a Champagne from the discounter Aldi. Forget Systembolaget’s claim, they sell wine at the lowest prices possible. Veuve Monsigny costs 11 € and – what can I say – I liked it. It was surprisingly well done. A good acidity, nice dry style, no funny, disturbing components, fruity, with typical yeast and brioche notes. I just found a test-result at the German ‘Stiftung Warentest’ page, they recommend it as a good beginner’s Champagne of good quality at low price. Prisvärd som man brukar säga i Sverige.

I am not sure, I would buy it, since I will prefer vintner Sekt made of Riesling at this price level and since I rather buy local than via the discounter. But it was definitely a surprise to me, who really dislikes Aldi and Lidl and the mentality coming along with them.

Cheers,
Heike

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Südtirol, Alto Adige DOC with new logo

Now consumers around the world will be able to easily and quickly identify wines from Südtirol (German name) – Alto Adige DOC. A new logo has been created, that shows the name of the DOC together with the already established mountain-symbol – in two languages. With this new corporate design the wines of the northern Italian wine region will be recognized as such and will mark the distinction between the region and neighboring Trentino.
(as reported by Südtirol online)

Cheers!
Heike

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Glühwein och tarte flambée

NWJulmarknad

Aaaaah, vad det doftar gott… Julmarknader med alla underbara dofter och smaker… Glühwein m.m…

Jag har ingen aning om hur många julmarknader det finns i landet. En julmarknad ska vara liten och mysig och absolut inte någon folkfest, så glöm alla de stora turistfällorna! För att uppleva en äkta mysig och trivsam julmarknad är det bäst att besöka Pfalz, säger jag – helt objektivt (så klart). Här i Pfalz finns så många julmarknader och varje stad, varje by, liten som stor firar sin alldeles egen. Alla våra julmarknader är numera listade i en broschyr med plats, tid och datum. Inte ska det missas någon.

Vår julmarknad här i Neustadt an der Weinstrasse öppnar under de sista 4 veckorna före jul – varje dag från kl. 12-21, på helgerna lite tidigare. Man ska ju hinna. I staden Speyer är man ännu duktigare, för där pågår julmarknaden till 6:e Januari. Hur som: vi i Neustadt träffas så ofta som möjligt på kvällarna, om vi inte hann till lunch eller fika, och samlas vid ett av de ståborden. Glühwein och Flammkuchen (från vår grannregion Alsace kommer: Tarte Flambée) är det enda som gäller. Fast självklart finns det korvar, steak och gyros och vad vet jag för den som så önskar…

Gluehwein

Om nu sommelieren rekommenderar kombinationen av just Glühwein med Tarte Flambée får var och en diskutera och reflektera över själv. Här är det traditionen som kommer först! Och det är ju helt klart att vårt Glühwein görs av vin från Pfalz – eller hur? Det finns naturligtvis även Glühwein att köpa på Tetrapak (- herregud! -), men det är oftast de billigaste vinerna som används till färdigt fabrikat ute på hyllorna. (En annan sak kan det vara om man köper färdigblandat direkt av någon vingård…)

För dig som nu inte har vägarna förbi, kommer receptet här. Så kan ni bjuda era vänner och fira julmarknaden hemma framför garagedörren, om ni vill:

Glühwein:
1 flaska 0,75 l rödvin (jag föredrar Spätburgunder)
0,25 l vatten
2-3 msk kandisocker (alternativt honung)
1-2 kanelstång
5,6 nejlikor
2 st stjärnanis

ev. 1 apelsin (obehandlad)
ev. 1 citron (obehandlad)

Lägg ingredienserna utom apelsin och citron i en kastrull och värm upp tills sockret har smält – det får ej koka. Tillsätt skivade citrusfrukterna (det är inte något måste) och låt allt stå lite tid innan det serveras.

Och vill ni dessutom ha receptet på Tarte Flambée, så kan ni gärna lämna en kommentar.

Cheers,
Heike

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Small but fine

As the German Wine Institute just announced, Germany’s wine production will be a 25% less than last year’s. With some estimated 7 million hl, this year’s crop will be the country’s lowest in 25 years. The quality though is foreseen to be good, at least 25% of the total production will give ‘Prädikatsweine’ (wines with the prädikat Kabinett, Spätlese, etc…). Some record 250 Oechsle degrees of Trockenbeerenauslese wines were harvested. But due to the low quantities, not much Eiswein is expected.

The forecast for the European wine production seems to be approx. 7 % under the average of the past 5 years, so the institute claims.

That the quantities are low, I get to hear from many vintners around me here too. And that much extra work had to be invested, due to the weather situation. So 2010 better tastes really good, don’t you agree?

Cheers
Heike

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Vin till julmaten?

Mycket mer traditionellt än julen blir det inte och sällan är vi människor så bundna till sedvanligheterna vilket följer högtiden som nalkas. Vi har för vana att göra det väldigt enkelt för oss under julbordet och serverar öl och snaps till det mesta, istället för att leka med smakpalletten och omvandla mat och dryck till en intressant händelse med hjälp av en titt in i vinets förtjusande värld. Varför inte testa en Sherry Fino till löksillen eller ett fatlagrat vitt vin från södra Frankrike till den nygriljerade skinkan med en klick sötsyrlig senap?

Prova en karaktärsfull Gewürztraminer till de rökta delikatesserna och bistå de varma rätterna med en ljuvlig och elegant Pinot Noir. När risgrynsgröten ska avnjutas gör den det bäst i sällskap med ett sött och livligt vin av druvan Chenin Blanc från Loiredalen och drick en balanserad och himmelsk Sauternes till den rumstempererade mögelosten. Det är bara att börja experimentera och till slut hittar man sina egna favoriter.

Om några veckor är julen här så det är verkligen hög tid att börja planera för drycken som ska spillas i glasen till alla de olika rätterna som kommer att serveras. Låt oss här på Invinitum hjälpa dig att hitta rätt bland djungeln av utbud och få på så sätt en mycket minnesvärd och tillfredsställande upplevelse innan årets sista dagar går oss förbi och så flyktigt rinner ur våra händer.

Erica Björklund Sattler

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German Wine Classifications

German wines tend to have a reputation of being too sweet, still. And, yes, some of the most famous German wines belong to the sweet categories. But in 2008, out of 8 million hl produced quality wine, 3.3 million hl were dry wines. Here are a few key figures to hopefully help you understand your German wine label a bit better.

Dry or not dry
First of all, it is a good thing to know that (generally) the word ‘trocken’ will tell you that the wine is dry. A bottle of German wine that does not state ‘trocken’, is not dry. Wines with up to 9 g/l residual sugar are in accordance to German wine law dry wines. With the residual sugar being max 2 g higher than the acidity (i.e. 7 g res. sugar are possible for a wine with 5 g acidity). German top dry Riesling wines have max 4 g of residual sugar. But even wines with 6 g res. sugar can seem less sweet in taste, because the acidity is high and aromas of fruit and/or minerality are intense. (Do not go by numbers only, it is always worth tasting first.)

Wines that are not dry are distinguished as follows:
halb-trocken (half-dry), 12-18 g/l residual sugar;
feinherb, 18+ g/l, but clearly lower than halbsüss;
halbsüss (medium), 12 – 45 g/l res. sugar;
süss (sweet), 45+ g/l.

Official Classifications, regulated by German wine law:
Qualitätswein bestimmter Anbaugebiete (Q.b.A): must be 100% of one of the 13 German regions. Grape must must have at least 51-72 degrees Oechsle (link), (the minimum weight varies between grape varieties and the regions – which doesn’t make it less complicated). QbA wines can be chaptalized, under regulations.

Prädikatsweine may not be chaptalized. Following are the different stages:
Kabinett (from 67-82 Oe): fine, light wines made of ripe grapes, lower abv.
Spätlese: (from 76-90 Oe) ripe, elegant wines with fine fruit, harvested later (=spät)
(Note here: the common misunderstanding is that a Spätlese wine will be sweeter than a Kabinett. So is not the case. It is rather so that a Spätlese wine will have more body than the little brother.)
Auslese: (from 83-100 Oe) fine wines from very ripe grapes which are hand selected
Beerenauslese: (from 110-128 Oe) full-bodied wines of over ripe grapes, Botrytis affected, wines can be stored for many years
Trockenbeerenauslese: (from 150-154 Oe) raisin-like dried, Botrytis affected grapes give sweet wines that can be stored for many decades
Eiswein: (from 110-128 Oe) frozen grapes harvested at minus 7°C
All categories can be made ‘trocken’, but mostly the last categories are not dry wines.

Since 2000, the terms ‘Classic’ and ‘Selection’ were newly established. Classic indicates a wine of a for the region typical grape variety, with minimum 12% abv and max 15 g/l residual sugar. (These wines may not necessarily state ‘trocken’.)

The top dry wines are marked with ‘Selection’ or ‘Erstes Gewächs’ (Rheingau), which come from best vineyards with low yields .

Deutscher Landwein (Vin du Pays) is a simple wine, dry or off-dry.

The lowest standards for a German wine are found in the ‘Deutscher Wein ohne Herkunftsbezeichnung’ (German wine without indication of origin), which has replaced the German table wine.

VDP classifications
The VDP (Verband der Prädikatsweingüter) is the créme-de-la-créme of the German wine world. (See one of our next posts.) They are now leaving (at least partially) the Prädikatswein-system to classify their wines by vineyards instead. Their own regulation foresees that the very best wines are referred to as ‘Grosse Gewächse’ from ‘Erste Lagen’, the German Grand Crus, so to say. The vineyards belong to the very best sites of Germany. Those wines (the Rieslings) will typically be having around 3 to 3,5 g/l residual sugar, when ‘trocken’ (max 4 g). While those wines are by German wine law classified as ‘QbA’, the must weights are equivalent to Spätlese quality wines. VDP wines with residual sugar above the 4 g/l will be referring to the Prädikate, and not labelled as ‘Grosses Gewächs’.

Zum Wohl.
Heike Larsson

www.deutscheweine.de

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Mårten Gås

Den 10 november firar vi Mårten Gås och äter då den traditionella gåsamiddagen. Måltiden består av svartsoppa, gås och äpplekaka. Som dryck väljer vi kanske sherry till svartsoppan, ett pinot noir vin till gåsen och ett glas Sauternes till äpplekakan (se www.invinitum.com) .
Vilken festmåltid!
Traditionen kommer ursprungligen från Frankrike.  Redan under tidig medeltid ordnades fester för att fira att gässen var tillräckligt feta för att slaktas. Traditionen spreds med tiden till Tyskland och sedan vidare norrut till Sverige. I Sverige firas  Mårten Gås fortfarande mest i Skåne.Det är en årlig tradition att se fram emot med delikat mat och matchande drycker – ofta i goda vänners lag. Länge leve Mårten Gås. Eller i alla fall traditionen…
Smaklig spis eller Bon Appétit som man säger i Frankrike.

Ann Janson

Läs även Heikes tidigare inlägg om Mårten i Tyskland, St Martin.

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