Champagne or not Champagne that is the question ?

In the number of restaurant that i worked for, every time a guest wanted sparkling wine they ask " Do you have some Champagne ? "

So, is Champagne synonymous of good quality sparkling wine ? or is it just a fashion thing ?

Of course American use the word champagne to name there sparkling wine (California Champagne for example)so Champagne has we know is very renow around the world. Do we make around the world sparkling wine of similar quality than champagne or even better ?

I found few exemple of good sparkling wine, sometimes the idea is clearly to do a wine like Champagne but sometimes it's clearly to make a wine in their own style.

Bisol Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Cartizze NV(Italy, Veneto)
This wine made from the white grape of the same name is a very aromatic and complex sparkling wine. The wine come from the best cru of prosecco, the hill of Cartizze. you found in this wine those typical aromas of exotic fruit, it's still light but in the same time you get much more flavour and weight than the classical prosecco. Simply superb.

L'O de L'Origan NV(Spain, Cava)
This wine produce in small quantity and nearly impossible to found outside Spain, but if you got the chance to test it don't hesitate. You will discover a very vinous sparkling wine, some of the wine are aged in oak and other in big volumes. Complexity is the word, aromas of licorice, vanilla, fresh butter in the mouth those very fine bubble are sweet not to acidic for a Nature (no dosage) and it's long in mouth. Such an amazing wine !!!

Nyetimber (West Sussex, England)
For this estate i didn't chose a particular cuvée or vintage, this little manor situated in the south of england make wine since 1992 always with a vintage. The quality are constant and they sometimes compared to the best champagne. For me it's one of the best champagne blend make outside France that's i ever tried. I don't know if it come from the climate or the nature of the soil similar to those of Champagne but for example in the classic cuvée 2003 you can find lemon and yeasty aromas typical (to Champagne) In the palate the chardonnay is dominant with agrum aromas and well balanced, nice acidity.

Raventos i Blanc (Spain, Cava)
For me is the best producer of Cava, all the range is made in a way of high quality. Try the reserva and gran reserva, there are the best example of what you can get when you want to make good cava. Tropical fruit and yeasty aromas are dominant but allways in a very elegant way. Superb balance and long palate.

That's it i know other wine but i don't want to make a big list. The ones i remenber much are those present here.

First Growth at the Château

I'm not a big fan of Bordeaux first growth (it's too expensive for what you get in the bottle) but when you got the opportunity to taste it at the châteaux it's always a great experience.

My trip to Bordeaux start few years ago and it's not finish yet :


- Château Lafite Rothschild
The estate here is amazing, a beautiful castle down in a little valley. The tour end in the famous round cellar where concert take place sometimes. Here the cellar master open for us a 1993 of course it's not a great vintage but it's not so bad really !!! My feeling about this wine is more about a moment or the atmosphere of the place than about the wine itself. But i remenber something great well balance and very long. The smell of blackcurant, smoked and a hint of something animals.
A great "souvenir"

- Château Mouton Rotschild
Yes another rotschild to follow. This Château looks more like a museum than a wine estate. It's like disney land for wine !!! After the boring visit and everything else, if you're lucky (or if you put the price when your not professional), you will try the wine for us it was a 2008 sample barrel (something not finish yet). I remenber the colour of this wine it was deep purple not filtered yet so very dark. The nose was amazing a mix of vanilla, cinamon and red fruit, then you put that liquid in your mouth and it's an explosion so young so rich so intense blackberry, mix of spice the tannins are heavy and the taste stay in your mouth for hour (lol). A wine for the future, great potential.


- Château Latour
First there is no Château here. Oh, sorry there is one but is hide by some tree but from the road you can see the tower that you see on the label. You need to park your car down in a little hole, like that nobody can see it from the road. It's like that in Bordeaux !!!
Like Mouton it's a bit disneyland but in a much more luxury way. After a little movie, start the visit and you can admire the very well decorated cellar (and very well equiped to). Then they put you in a very fashionable tasting room on the menu : Pauillac 2008 (3rd wine), Fort de Latour 2005 and 2008 (2nd wine), Château Latour 2004 and 2008 great progam ???
I will just give you the impression on the Latour 2004, the colour is quite opaque with tuile reflect on the nose tobacco, moka and leather are the dominant the palate is rich a very quick attack the tannins are big for sure it's a wine to forget in your cellar for a decade or two.

- Château Cheval Blanc
We change the side to go to the right bank of Bordeaux
This châteaux is quite particular in french we say in is "jus". It's not that Bling Bling like the left bank, it's looks like much more artisanal. The old concrete vats still there and nothing else. The tasting here was on a Petit Cheval and a Château Cheval Blanc 2008.
The Cheval Blanc was young (of course 2008 !!!!) a deep ruby colour, very pale the nose is spicy aroma of licorice and blackberries jam a bit of bell pepper aroma maybe ( cabernet franc is a big part of the blend) on the mouth you feel immediatly the ripe strawberry it's very fresh and well balance and the finish is long, long, long...

I didn't have the chance yet to go to Château Haut-Brion and Margaux but i will for sure. You can't visit Château Ausonne it's a to small structure (at list it's what they say on the phone) I already try all the first growth but not all of them at the property that's why i didn't put the comment there. Be patient they will come !!!

Italian but not macho

Yes, I love Italian Wine. I'm French but i fall in love few years ago with italian wine and i feel allright with that !! lol!!

When you speak about italian wine in France everybody laugh at you. For them Italian wine means the very bad bardolino you found in the pizza restaurant. And it's sad, you found so many diversity in italy, in the terroir, in the grape diversity and so many talent in some of the winemaker.

My favourite wine are Barolo and Barbaresco, those wine made hundred percent from Nebiolo are amazing. They are the kind of wine you can keep for decade, the grape variety make usually full bodied wine with great and silky tannins and high acidity that balance everything.

New Barolo tend to be drinkable younger but still this long ageing of four years in big oak barrel, this make a round wine sometime over extracted but allways a pleasure to drink.


The best producer for me (and the one i like the must) is G.D Vadjra who make the best Barolos i ever tried allways very well made not to much extraction with a great balance silky tannins and long in mouth. I recomand the "Bricco del Viole" it's heavy and sharp like a Medoc and sweet and silky like a Burgundy.
The other you should try Sandrone (Barolo), Giacosa (a great Barbaresco and you should try is white from Arneis amazing of freshness) and if your luky the wine from Gaja are an experience to live.

Hopes you will drink more italian wine, i talk today about this region but they're is so many other that are valuable.

Bordeaux or Burgundy ???

That's an eternal question ? And for my first (tasting) post that the question i'm asking. We all know in France exist a little war between those two region wich one have the best wine ? wich one have the best "terroirs" ? etc... an eternal dispute that never end. For me all wine region in the world needs to be know and you can find some surprising wine in area you didn't expect they made wine. But i will told you about that later !!!

So, for this first tasting post I choose to talk about a wine from each area.

Let start with the Bordeaux :
- it' an AOC Sainte Foy Bordeaux made by Mitjaville oenologue at Tertre Roteboeuf and Roc de Cambes its the Reserve de Famille 2006 from Château Martet.
This wine made from 100% Merlot and aged in 100% new oak barrel, is a very brillant wine a nice colour of old tawny with perfect rim. In the nose you feel the oak but it's not dominant flavour of red fruit, licorice and musk came to you. In blind tasting you will say it's a St Emilion Grand Cru for sure but it isn't. Then it's time to put this liquid to your mouth and now it's an explosion of flavour, you still find those aroma of black fruit, the truffle then came to you. The tannins are present but very silky. It's very well made, a monster of balance and long like a Cameron's movie. It will last aswell for decade.

Then the Burgundy :
- it's a Nuit St Georges 1er cru "Aux Perdrix" 2007 from the Domaine aux Perdrix
It's a quasi monopole (3,45 ha) only two row of vine are not vinified by the estate.
Time to taste it, it fill your glass with is purple reflect, very clear and limpid. On the nose you can feel a very ripe wine with aromas of fresh griottes and blueberry. The palate is great a full vivacity and very fresh with notes of tabacco and then under blue and raspberry. The tannins are present but not dominant just here to give to the wine a great balance and a intense longevity. A wine to enjoy now but for sure it will be better in few years.

That's it for today !!!

See you later for some new adventure

Just the beginning !!!

I had an idea long time ago : to start a wine blog. Of course you are going to say It's not very original, so many wine blog exist all ready !! What the difference between me and the other. You gone a see !! I will try to pass all my feelings the post tha you going to reed. I hope you gone a enjoy and write some comments Please !!!!