Gewurztraminer Wine

Gewurztraminer (Gewürztraminer in German-language areas) is a pink-skinned grape variety that produces some of the world’s most distinctive aromatic wines. Its perfumed style is somewhat polarizing; fans adore its intense floral scent and sweet-spice flavors, while detractors lament its low acidity and lack of subtlety.

Gewurztraminer’s parentage is hard to trace. Modern research suggests that it is the aromatic mutation of Roter Traminer (Savagnin Rose), and therefore part of the ancient Savagnin-Traminer group of grape varieties, which have identical or near-identical DNA profiles. As such it is hard to locate a precise area of origin, though Savagnin is thought to have originated in what is now southwest Germany.

Gewurztraminer Grapes

Literally translated, Gewürztraminer means “spiced Traminer” (Traminer Aromatico in Italian). The second part of the word suggests the grape may have origins in Tramin (Termeno) in the Alto Adige region. But while documents mentioning wines from Tramin date back to the 1200s, the spicy variant of the Savagnin Rose grape did not exist in the region until the 19th Century. Recent studies suggest that German growers of the Gewürztraminer/Savagnon Rose grape created the confusion by naming the variety after the wines of the Tramin region, which by the 1400s were attracting international acclaim.

The best examples of Gewurztraminer are generally regarded as being from the grand cru vineyards of Alsace. It could even be argued that Alsace is the spiritual home of Gewürztraminer, despite the fact that it is not its ancestral home and that Gewürztraminer accounts for less than one-fifth of vineyard area in the region.

Gewürztraminer, as we know it today, arrived in Alsace from the Pfalz region – closer than most wine regions of France. The rich clay soils present in Alsace proved an ideal environment to produce full-bodied Gewürztraminer wines. The richness of dry, late-harvest, (vendage tardive), and botrytized very sweet (Sélection de Grains Nobles) Gewürztraminer wines in Alsace set the benchmark for which the variety is judged, and it is one of the grape varieties along with Riesling, Muscat and Pinot Gris which can be produced at Alsace Grand Cru level.

The primary aromatic descriptors used to define Gewürztraminer are typically lychee, rose petal, Turkish delight, tropical fruit and perfume. On the palate it is marked by its full texture, low acidity, stonefruit (mango, peach and apricot) and spicy (ginger and cinnamon) flavors.

Somewhat confusingly in Australia, the variety is often referred to as simply Traminer. The confusion is amplified by the recent discovery that a small amount of Savagnin Blanc – aka Traminer – is grown in the country, having been misidentified as Albarino for many years prior to 2009.

Notable examples of Gewürztraminer produced outside Alsace are from New Zealand, Oregon, Washington, Germany and northern Italy. It is also made under a wide number of synonyms in eastern Europe, but these wines are rarely exported.

Synonyms include: Traminer Aromatico, Traminer Musqué, Traminer, Gentil Aromatique, Savagnin Rose Aromatique.

Food matches for Gewurztraminer include:

Stir-fried pork with pickled plum (dry)

• Crayfish laksa (dry)
• Pannacotta (sweet)
• Enjoy this video about Gewurztraminer, from Sonoma Valley’s Kunde Family Estate.

Producer Notes

In 1896 the Willm family founded the Willm Estate in Barr, at the foot of the majestic Kirchberg de Barr Grand Cru vineyard. Willm has always been concerned with revealing the best of its terroirs and sharing its exceptional wines with the whole world. Thanks to the adventurous founder Emile Willm, the estate’s wines were the first from Alsace to be exported to the United States in the early 1930s, after prohibition laws were lifted. Their wines are celebrated for their blend freshness, minerality and elegance; they are synonymous with tradition, terroir, purity and refinement.

If Willm isn’t in an American history book, it should be. The winery was the first producer in Alsace to export to the United States after prohibition, and it’s said that Al Capone favored the wines after his release from Alcatraz. Though the Willm family has been making wine in Alsace since 1896, their French heritage dates back to 1398. Willm’s portfolio includes four Grand Crus, sparkling Cremant d’Alsace and late-harvest sweet wines, in addition to their reserve range. The winery is known for its easy-drinking, well-priced Riesling that pairs well with shellfish, grilled seafood and white meats. Among Alsace’s rarer sparklers is Willm’s Crémant d’Alsace Blanc de Noirs, a white bubbly made from 100% Pinot Noir. The vineyards span the Haut-Rhin (upper Rhine) and the Bas-Rhin (lower Rhine) in three locations, encompassing a diversity of soils and allowing Willm to produce a range of styles. The winery received its organic certification in 2012.

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Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

St-Emilion

St-Emilion is a region of smallholdings.  The co-operative is of great importance and vinifies over 20% of entire crop to a consistently pretty high standard.  Merlot is the dominant grape in the clay-rich soils with significant plantings of Cabernet Franc on limestone lending support.

The grapes of St-Emilion are the plump Merlot and the Cabernet Franc.  Cabernet Sauvignon can have problems ripening in this climate less tempered by the ocean especially in its damper cooler soils

When to drink – Straightforward St-Emilion is enjoyable from the word go and even ambitious wines are bursting with fruity richness from around four years of age.  Don’t plan to keep too many bottles beyond their tenth birthday although the best wines from the limestone slopes around the town of St-Emilion itself have more structure and longevity.

Best Vintages of St-Emilion : 2016, 2015, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2003, 2001, 2000, 1998, 1990, 1989, 1985, 1964, 1961, 1959, 1955, 1953, 1950, 1949, 1947 and 1945.

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Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

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Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

Owned by the Sichel family since1961, Chateau Angludet is is an extraordinary property situated at the heart of the Margaux appellation, surrounded by forests and Cru Classé vineyards. The estate would almost certainly have been included in the famous 1855 Classification, had it not been broken up as part of an inheritance settlement. In an act of faith (given the property’s state of decay) and belief in Angludet’s potential, the Sichel family bought the estate and since then, have worked tirelessly to restore and, indeed, improve the vineyard and cellars, giving Angludet back the reputation its exceptional terroir deserves.

Chateau Angludet is also the family home to the Sichel clan, a family which has been in the wine business since 1883 and at present includes the five Sichel brothers and two of their sons. For those familiar with the Bordeaux wine industry, the family Sichel is also well-known for its broad range of house brands, negociant wines and, of course, ownership of Chateau Palmer, one of the other extraordinary Grand Cru Classé properties of the Margaux appellation. Benjamin Sichel is responsible for winemaking at Angludet & runs the vineyards along biodynamic principles.

Maison Sichel also owns Chateau Argadens, perched atop one of the highest hills in the Bordeaux appellation, about 60 km south of the capital. Originally called La Salle d’Argadens , the estate dates back to the 12th century. Maison Sichel acquired the property in 2002 with the aim to become one of the benchmark properties in the Bordeaux Supérieur category, taking advantage of its fabulous soils & orientation. The cellars have been completely renovated and Argadens is a thoroughly modern Bordeaux with lots of concentrated fruit and an attractive, supple balance.

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Grape Variety

Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

Pauillac Wine

The deep gravel banks around the town of Pauillac are the heartland of Cabernet Sauvignon, making these both the most revered and the longest lived of Bordeaux’s great wines.  For many wine lover, King Cab’s greatest wines are the three Pauillac First Growths (Lafite, Latour and Mouton-Rothschild).

When to drink

These wines definitely need cellaring to allow the powerful and forbidding tannins of youth to mellow and the perfume to emerge.  A few examples bloom with friendly fruit from an early age, while others retain the froideur of an assiduous school prefect throughout their long lives.  Eight to ten years will be enough to bring most wines to a peak and the should drink well for another decade thereafter, perhaps two decades for the best wines.

Best Vintages of Pomerol :  2005, 2004, 2003, 2002, 2001, 2000, 1996, 1995, 1990

The hallmark flavours of a classic Pauillac are an intense blackcurrant fruit flavour allied to a heady cedarwood and pencil-shaving perfume.  Simple to describe yet compelling and infinitely satisfying in the glass.  A few properties produce a broader, plummier style but austerity is the watchword for the majority.

• Ch. d’Armailhac
• Ch. Batailley
• Ch. La Fleur Peyrabon
• Ch. Fonbadet
• Ch. Grand Puy Ducasse
• Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste
• Ch. Haut Bages Averous (second wine of Lynch Bages)
• Ch. Haut Batailley
• Ch. Lacoste Borie (second wine of Ch. Grand Puy Lacoste)
• Ch. Lynch Moussas
• Ch. Pibran

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Grape Variety

Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

Margaux Wine

Margaux’s fame relies on its light and divinely perfumed wines.  But consistency has never been Margaux’s strong point, as the vineyards sprawl more widely than those of the other Haut-Medoc communes and over more diverse soils.  The best wines hail from the gravel banks that weave through the appellation.  The southernmost vineyards produce a rounder but still perfumed style.

Margaux and Cantenac, the village just south of it are considered to make the Medoc’s most polished and fragrant wine.  Their historical record says so; and contemporary reality is slowly catching up.  There are more second and third growths here than anywhere and a new broom has been sweeping through the southern Medoc.

Good Margaux beckons with seductive fragrance enriching the Medoc’s trademark blackcurrant and cedarwood perfume with violets and rose petals, roasted nuts and vanilla, plums and hedgerow berries,  The body is certainly lighter and more supple than in wines from the communes to the north, yet by no means wanting for intensity or substance.

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Grape Variety

Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

St-Emilion

St-Emilion is a region of smallholdings.  The co-operative is of great importance and vinifies over 20% of entire crop to a consistently pretty high standard.  Merlot is the dominant grape in the clay-rich soils with significant plantings of Cabernet Franc on limestone lending support.

The grapes of St-Emilion are the plump Merlot and the Cabernet Franc.  Cabernet Sauvignon can have problems ripening in this climate less tempered by the ocean especially in its damper cooler soils

When to drink – Straightforward St-Emilion is enjoyable from the word go and even ambitious wines are bursting with fruity richness from around four years of age.  Don’t plan to keep too many bottles beyond their tenth birthday although the best wines from the limestone slopes around the town of St-Emilion itself have more structure and longevity.

Best Vintages of St-Emilion : 2016, 2015, 2012, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2006, 2005, 2003, 2001, 2000, 1998, 1990, 1989, 1985, 1964, 1961, 1959, 1955, 1953, 1950, 1949, 1947 and 1945.

What a contrast with the stern demanding wines of the Medoc ! A glass of St-Emilion melts with gorgeous softness a buttery toffeeish sweetness and a fruit flavor sticky with dark chewy richness of raisins and cherries in a fruit cake.

• Ch. Balestard La Tonnelle
• Ch. Barde Haut
• Ch. Beau Sejour Becot
• Ch. Bellefont Belcier
• Ch. Bellevue
• Ch. Bernateau
• Ch. Corbin
• Ch. Destieux
• Ch. Faugeres
• Ch. Grand Mayne
• Ch. Grand-Pontet
• Ch. Tauzinal L’Hermitage
• Ch. Teyssier

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Grape Variety

Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

Graves & Pessac-Leognan Wine

The Graves is the original home of red Bordeaux wine, renowned long before the marshlands to the north of the city had been drained to create the vineyards of the Medoc. Its secret is as the name suggests, the gravelly vineyards that lie in the northern part of the region which have been hived off since 1984 to form the Passac-Leognan appellation.

When to drink

Even serious wines are approachable fairly young-say from four or five years old as the tend to be lighter and more supple than Medoc reds, with a significant proportion of Merlot in the blend. The keep on going for 10,20,even 30 years after the vintage.

These wines stand out from their Medoc counterparts from the moment you encounter the rich, earthy scent redolent of tobacco. Within the blackcurrant and plum fruit and creamy layers of flavour you’ll find firm mineral nuances and an appealing core of baked earth, a robust reminder that even in its loftiest incarnations wine is a product of soil and sweat. But the Graves is also about juicy, drink-me reds, delivering upfront plummy fruit with a touch of oak spice and a dusting of that appetizing dry earthness.

• Ch.Haut Brion
• Ch. Bouscaut
• Ch. Cantelys
• Dom. de Chevalier
• Ch. de Cruzeau
• Ch. La Garde
• Ch. Haut-Gardere
• Ch. Haut-Lagrange
• Ch. Latour Martilac
• Domaine de Chevalier

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Grape Variety

Bordeaux Blend

A Bordeaux Blend is a blended red wine that contains only those varieties that are authorized for use in the red wines of the Bordeaux region of France.  Bordeaux is the most famous and highly coveted wine blend in the world. Like many wines with a long history, there’s a lot to learn, so we’re here to just cover the basics.

• Red Bordeaux blend is primarily composed of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, with smaller portions of Malbec and Petit Verdot.
• White Bordeaux blend is primarily made of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon, with a splash of Muscadelle in the mix

While there are both red and white Bordeauxs, the name Bordeaux is primarily associated with the red wine blend. Red Bordeaux is a red wine that is always made from blending Cabernet Sauvignon wine and Merlot wine together, though the proportion of each depends on the location of the winery that made the wine.

• Left bank blends : tend to be higher in tannins, alcohol and acidity. They are powerful, rich wines that are said to age a bit better than wines from the Right Bank.
• Right bank blends : tend to be softer, less tannic and lower in alcohol and acidity. Because Merlot is the dominant grape, they are much more juicy and usually ready to be drunk much earlier than Left Bank Bordeauxs, and they’re often less expensive.

Margaux Wine

Margaux’s fame relies on its light and divinely perfumed wines.  But consistency has never been Margaux’s strong point, as the vineyards sprawl more widely than those of the other Haut-Medoc communes and over more diverse soils.  The best wines hail from the gravel banks that weave through the appellation.  The southernmost vineyards produce a rounder but still perfumed style.

Margaux and Cantenac, the village just south of it are considered to make the Medoc’s most polished and fragrant wine.  Their historical record says so; and contemporary reality is slowly catching up.  There are more second and third growths here than anywhere and a new broom has been sweeping through the southern Medoc.

Good Margaux beckons with seductive fragrance enriching the Medoc’s trademark blackcurrant and cedarwood perfume with violets and rose petals, roasted nuts and vanilla, plums and hedgerow berries,  The body is certainly lighter and more supple than in wines from the communes to the north, yet by no means wanting for intensity or substance.

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Nose and palate: white flowers such as hawthorn and acacia with gourmet notes of pear, vine peach, mirabelle plum and greengage. A minimum of 4 years’ cellar ageing reveals its great aromatic complexity. This Champagne of great purity retains vivacity and freshness to balance its gourmet vinosity on the palate.

Dining and wine pairing: this is the Champagne par excellence for aperitifs and moments to remember whatever the occasion. Cuvée Gosset Extra brut goes perfectly with raw baby vegetables, fresh prawns or savoury cookies.

Wine and food pairing: this is the perfect aperitif wine for moments to remember on any occasion

Grape Variety

Champagne Blend Wine

The term Champagne Blend refers to one of the world’s most distinctive wine styles – the sparkling wines made from Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier that are most famously associated with the Champagne region of northern France. The term, however, has come to evoke wines made in the methode traditionnelle around the world, and particularly in New World countries like the United States, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

Pinot Noir and Chardonnay are the stars of the blend, usually used in roughly equal quantities in New World examples. The less glamorous Pinot Meunier really only comes into play in real, pure-blooded Champagne. In fact, there are seven permitted grape varieties in the Champagne AOC, although the remaining four – Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Petit Meslier and Arbane – are so rarely used that they are typically forgotten, and are almost never used for sparkling wine production outside of Champagne (save for Pinot Blanc, which is used in Italy’s sparkling Franciacorta wines, and in Alsace).

Champagne Blend

The development of the Champagne Blend was not as deliberate as it might seem; the grapes that were chosen for cultivation in Champagne were those that were most likely to ripen in the cool continental climate of northern France. At a latitude of 49°N, Champagne is among the most northerly and coldest viticultural regions in the world. Its average growing season temperatures are several degrees lower than those found in California, Tasmania, Marlborough and the Western Cape, the regions that use Pinot and Chardonnay grapes in their sparkling wines. The cold autumns in Champagne make it a challenge to ripen grapes fully and to drive ferments through to completion. It was the latter fact that (according to legend) led the monk Dom Perignon to observe that unfermented sugar started a secondary fermentation in his bottles – and so began the development of the world’s most famous sparkling wine.

Other than the ability to ripen in cool climates, the three grapes all contribute something particular to Champagne Blend wines. Pinot Noir adds structure and brings a certain berryfruit nose to the blend, while the Chardonnay fleshes this out and sets the wine up for aging, particularly when the base wine is aged in oak. Pinot Meunier, the more widely planted of the three in the Champagne vineyards, is more of an insurance policy than a vital fine-wine component. Not only is it the first of the trio to bud and flower (avoiding the risk of frost damage) but it is also the first to ripen. This is a considerable advantage in any cool-climate wine region, and more than compensates for Pinot Meunier’s lack of flavor. This explains why “Champagne Blend” in the warmer regions of the New World so rarely refers to wines containing Pinot Meunier.

Variations on the Champagne blend are used all over the world, in the crémant wines of Alsace and Burgundy, in Italy’s top sparkling wine Franciacorta, and modern styles of Cava. The other members of the Pinot family (Pinot Gris and Pinot Blanc) are the other main varieties used in these variations. There is no question, however, that the classic Champagne Blend (or at least two-thirds of it) has proved its worth in vineyards the world over.

Food matches for Champagne Blend wines include:

• Smoked salmon terrine
• Pork and prawn dumplings
• Fried chicken with chilli mayo
  

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Region

Champagne Brut Wines

Champagne Brut is dry, sparkling wine from the Champagne region of northern France. Champagne of any color can be brut, both the standard white and Rosé. It is made from the classic Champagne Blend (typically Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) but in theory can also include the four lesser-known Champagne varieties: Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Petit Meslier and Arbane.

The French word brut translates roughly as ‘raw’, and in this sense it indicates a wine bottled in its natural, raw state – i.e. without a significant addition of sweetness (dosage). In practice, almost all brut Champagnes do receive a small addition of sweetness prior to final bottling. Nowadays, the terms “brut nature” and “zero dosage” are used to indicate champagnes with no dosage at all. See Brut Nature.

Champagne Brut

Rows of riddling racks in Champagne
The laws governing Champagne wine labels define brut wine as “containing less than 15 grams per liter of sugar”. This same definition is reflected in E.U. law, and applies to sparkling wines from all European countries. In non-sparkling wines, which lack Champagne’s sparkle and high acidity, this much sugar would leave the wine perceptibly sweet.

The brut style was pioneered by top-end Champagne house Perrier-Jouet in the mid-19th Century, originally for their extensive market in England. The 1846 vintage marked the beginning of a new era; in that year Perrier-Jouet took the brave decision not to add any sugar to their wines destined for the English market. Prior to this, Champagne had always been sweetened, but the drier, unsweetened style soon gained in popularity. Technically speaking, what Perrier-Jouet created would now be defined as Brut Nature.

In the late 20th and early 21st Centuries, dry, white, brut Champagne has become the default. It is now vastly more popular than sweeter styles such as Sec, Demi-Sec and Doux.

The other official Champagne sweetness levels:

• Doux (50+ g/L)
• Demi-sec (33–50 g/L)
• Sec (17–35 g/L)
• Extra-Sec (12–20 g/L)
• Brut (0–12 g/L)
• Extra Brut (0–6 g/L)
• Brut Nature/Zero (0–3 g/L).

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