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Croatia in Colour

Four Soils

Four Soils
(Photo credit: thirstforwine)

We were introduced to Istria, this beautiful corner of Croatia on the Adriatic coast, as the "land of the four soils", and it is very hard to move in food and wine circles here without hearing the colourful refrain of "Red, White, Grey & Black". These are in fact only half the story, because in Spring, the country is also alive with yellow and white flowers, pink peach blossom, green grass, blue seas and purple and orange sunsets. However, we were here for just three days to focus on the soil, and its effect on the wines, foods, traditions and personalities of Croatia.

RED

The first-time visitor's first impression HAS to be the Red. "Wow, look at that soil!" I exclaimed, unaware of the initiation I was to receive over the next few days. We were on our way to visit Roxanich, the increasingly well-known producer of some fantastic, but also challenging wines. The red vineyard soils, delineated by green grass borders and yellow accents, screamed for attention through the bus windows.

Red Soil

Red Soil (Photo credit: thirstforwine)

The wines, it turned out, have the same strong personality, solid confidence and masculine charm of their wine guide (I hesitate to say 'maker' as it implies more manipulation) Mladen Roxanich, and his team. In their youth, his wines seem quiet, understated, somewhat enigmatic, but as they mature, the wines - particularly the white wines, are transformed into charming, lithe and confident individuals. Roxanich achieves this by the somewhat controversial technique of extended maceration, leaving the juice from the grapes in contact with the skins for incredibly long periods - from 20 to over 170 days (compared to mere minutes or hours for most white wines), particularly for the local hero, the Malvazija Istriana of Malvazija Istarska. This is, in his view, the best way to express the uniqueness of the soil, the grape variety and the vintage, and these views are strongly held.

His wines do not have the fresh, primary fruit we might normally look for in a white wine made from a crisp grape such as Malvazija, and instead, develop an amazing range of "secondary" flavours of dried fig fruit, wild herbs, honey while retaining a fresh minerality, perfect complements to the range of Istrian salami and other dried meats shining bright red on the plates in front of us. These are spectacular examples of what a complex wine can be, but in a fashion that the average wine drinker will probably not have experienced.

The reason, at least in part it seems, is that these red soils do not retain much water, forcing vines to dig deep roots and fight for water and nutrients deep down in the earth. This dry soil is something we then experienced first-hand later that afternoon in the newly planted vineyards belonging to Bruno Trapan. It cost him a fortune to clear a small patch of land of enough rock to be able to plant a new vineyard, and today the spindly young vines appear to stick out in desperation from a sea of reddish brown instant coffee granules, such is the consistency of the soil. Trapan's wines from these soils also show interesting minerality, but he chooses to express this through slightly more traditional crisp citrus and white floral wines, and some rather tasty, plummy and bright red wines, the star of which was a juicy young Teran. This is a local red grape that seems to capture the wild and rugged Istrian countryside well, with its bay tree hedges and other herb plants. Teran in general seems to have a green herbal bay and rosemary edge to the drier, plum and mulberry fruit, and seems to exhibit a spiky acidity that demands attention.

WHITE

White Stone

White Stone (Photo credit: thirstforwine)

But not all is Red, as generous platefuls of White fish will attest. Nothing comes close to the experience of a 16+ course fish extravaganza at Konoba Batelina by David Skoko. This outwardly unassuming restaurant was packed and served course after course of delicious Istrian fish dishes to complement the Trapan wines. This was a fantastic meal and experience that all Croatian visitors should attempt to replicate if possible.

White was also the bright backdrop created by our docked ocean-liner designed 5* hotel, Hotel Lone (Rovinj), where we took over the Presidential Suite to taste the wines of Misal, and picnic on the vast balcony. There are very few sparkling wine producers in Croatia, so this one small winery and the two young, energetic sisters who run it, have taken it upon themselves to cover the entire gamut of styles, from bone dry, 'pas dose', through vintage wines all the way to sweet and even red sparkling wines, to ensure their largely local clientelle have a wine for all occasions. My favourite was the Misal Millenium Brut presented by winemaker Ana Peršurić. 

White stone was also everywhere, showing through in the rough fields that occasionally give way to small quarries. This marble-like stone is also present in the houses, but particularly the ancient cobbles of towns like Rovinj, and set amongst weather-worn town houses with their flaking white plaster and arches built by the Venetians centuries ago. We passed along these streets to find the wonderful hospitality of the Piassa Granda Wine Bar (another must-visit) to taste the wines of Gerzinic, Cossetto, Radovan and Rossi, and acclimatise our palates on arrival. We needed this preparation as some whites, like the Gerzinic and Radovan Malvazija wines showed fresh fruit, white floral notes and minerality, whilst others, such as the fabulous Cossetto Malvazija Rustica showed more banoffee pie or vanilla crème brulee notes, an unusual but rewarding taste. The surprises weren’t limited to the whites though, as I experienced something my notes describe as "the smell of red berry fruit soaking in fresh blood from raw steak" from the Gerzinic Teran, accentuating the “funky” animal nature of this grape, but also a very drinkable juicy red fruit Radovan Merlot

GREY

Cellars at Piquentum

Cellars at Piquentum (Photo credit: thirstforwine)

Past the red fields, over the ancient white stone, lies the grey concrete of the wineries. While Croatia and Istria have been making wines for thousands of years, more recent politics & social upheaval have meant that the 50,000 hectares of vineyards that existed in the early 20th century have largely disappeared, and only recent growth has brought that number back to something like 5,000 or so hectares. Most wineries today are new constructions, and concrete is the material of choice.

There are the large, planned, modern and bespoke wineries such as Trapan or Cattunar, or the converted sheds of Roxanich, but there are also the quaint places like Piquentum’s converted, reinforced concrete water bunker. These underground cellars were once fortified military water stores for local barracks, and they have made a surprisingly chilly but productive space for Dimitri Brečević, a half French & half Croatian winemaker who trained in Bordeaux but is making his home in Croatia. Like many others like him who are new arrivals to an area, he makes a great ambassador for his town of Buzet, and for Istria, because he has gone out of his way to study the history, the language and the traditions. His winery is small, but he is doing great things with Malvazija and Teran, which we were lucky to try at Nono on arrival in the country, as well as a delicious Refosk we tasted still in barrel.

BLACK

Fun with wine and oil

Fun with wine and oil
(Photo credit: thirstforwine)

But like all good days, we finish with late, great, dark evenings and ultimately the Black of night (inevitably, it seems there is always extended “socializing” late into the night on such trips, and we saw more than our fair share of starry nights). One of these was spent in the incredibly generous company of Chiavalon who make olive oil so good, you can just about drink it on its own (which we did) but who also offered an amazing array of dishes using their oil to match wines from some of the dark horses of the Croatian wine world: Coronica and Clai. We also got a chance to stumble around a small part of their olive farm in the black of night to see the newly arrived pig & piglets who will be clearing and fertilizing the ground.

Back at the dinner, we tasted wines made in very different styles by friends and neighbours Giorgio Clai and Moreno Coronica. All the wines were expressive and really did speak of something uniquely Croatian, but as before, I was really impressed by the Clai wines in particular. His Ottocento white was soft, with huge body and complexity and some rose petal notes. The Ottocento 2010 red was still bright and very young, but tasted like a berry salad, with some tart red currant, and also some herbal and mineral notes.

Each and every winery showed us something new about the country, and 3 days was not a long time to discover a whole new food & wine culture that I knew nothing about, but it was certainly long enough to know that Croatian wines will feature heavily in my future, and that extended skin maceration for whites is not madness, but an inspired tool for winemakers deserving further research.

Thank you again to Pacta Connect for organizing the trip (if you fancy following in our footsteps, they are organizing consumer wine trips to Croatia). Thanks also to a fantastic group of fellow wine adventurers – Joe Wadsack, Tara Devon O’Leary, Christina Pickard, Niamh Shields, Douglas Blyde, Fiona Beckett,  Donald Edwards, Tamlyn CurrinSimon Woolf and Matthew Lee.

Lots more photos (full set) here:

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Drink my Champagne, said the Hologram

Champagne brands really understand that the difference between one wine and another isn't so much about what is in the bottle or glass, as it is about the story that we build around that experience.

 Seeing James Bond drinking Dom Perignon* doesn't mean the wine will taste better, but it does mean that we get a vague sense of doing something daring and decadent when we see the familiar shield-shaped label emerging from the ice bucket.

Dom Perignon Vintage 2003

There was much more than a touch of James Bond about the simultaneous release of Dom Perignon's latest vintage declaration in London, Hong Kong, Tokyo, New York and Paris (though I suspect James would be disappointed Moscow was not on the list). 

The winery organised identikit launches in galleries in each city, carefully staging each with the same wooden table, large screen, twitter-stream, vast black & white photos of the vineyards, dozens of monitors showing carefully crafted photos and videos of the Abbaye d'Hautvillers, and in one corner a glass pyramid with revolving holographic logos.

Impressive.

But what were we here to experience?

Questions ... and Answers

A small cast of carefully chosen "friends", mostly wine journalists and influencers, were assembled in each city to taste the latest vintage to be released, the 2003.

Oh yes, my dear reader (and, obviously, consumer of Dom Perignon). I said 2003! What a surprise, heh? I bet you knew about the April frosts and thought "they'd never have enough grapes left to declare a vintage in that year", but we were all surprised. Oh yes! Then you might have thought back to the summer heat and thought, "but the over-ripeness, how could they .... ?" but again, with careful picking and crafting in the winery they have been able to make a wine that Richard Geoffroy, Chef de Cave describes thus:

“Intensity is the signature and memory of the 2003 Vintage. The intensity is unique and paradoxical, hovering between austerity and generosity.”

Unlike most of the assembled friends, I did not know anything of the above, did not have a preconceived idea of a "typical Dom Perignon", and will readily admit that this is probably the first time I have ever drunk more than a sip of Dom Perignon of ANY vintage. I know nothing about the vintages, and struggled even to make sense of the tasting notes being presented for this wine.

I wasn't here to learn about vintage differences between Dom Perignon or to compare 2003 with 1976. I was here to be impressed by the brand story. The ancient lineage of the name, traced back to one of the key personalities that "created" Champagne. To witness what a winery can do when it controls fiercely how it communicates its own message.

The most impressive part was the sudden appearance IN the glass pyramid of Richard Geoffroy himself, in holographic form, to tell us his message about the 2003 vintage. I must admit I was almost too entranced by the technology to hear the details of the winemaking, but the effect was mesmerising.

I come to you from a galaxy far, far away

James Bond would probably have managed a clever quip at this stage, I managed to dredge up half a quote from Star Wars instead - "Help me Obe Wan Kenobe, you're my only hope". It would have to do. 

Certainly, the idea that "we are a global brand, we can reach you wherever you may be, we have the technology, the money, the influence, the organisation and the commitment to make it happen" came across loud and clear. Many of Mr Bond's well funded adversaries would have been hard pressed to be more imposing.

Yet, you can't knock them for taking the reigns and making sure that they were telling their own story. Yes, the assembled "friends" are even now typing furiously to spread the news (is it news?) of the release to drinkers around the world, but this is a story carefully crafted before release, like the wine. If more wineries took control of their message, and knew what made them unique, then points and price-points wouldn't be the main drivers for consumers.

Of course, I do not expect a thousand wineries to rush out and buy a holographic projector, but if they could even decide what they would say if they were to project themselves into it, that would be a start.

Thank you to Dom Perignon and everyone who works for them for putting on the event and for inviting me. I look forward to seeing what further innovations you come up with to tell your story. I particularly await the full-size holographic presentation by Dom Pierre Perignon himself at the next event.

* yes, I remember the old days** before he switched to Bollinger
** yes, I'm geeky enough to know these sort of details about James Bond

Thinking of Franciacorta

In anything at all, perfection is finally attained not when there is no longer anything to add, but when there is no longer anything to take away, ... - Antoine de Saint Exupéry

I have been impressed by the sparkling wines of Franciacorta in Italy. SO many of the wines I have tried have been interesting to drink - quite a feat for any wine region.

If there is a flaw in the current nature of Franciacorta, I would argue that it is "over-designed" and producers pay a little too much attention to measuring themselves against others' yardsticks and not clearly on creating a unique wine that will reach wine lovers all over the world.

Franciacorta is a very small region, and it produces barely enough to satisfy the local (northern) Italian thirst for its wines. No wonder the rest of us have not heard about it, or can't get hold of any. However, as their guests at the recent EWBC it made me look carefully at their wines, and what you (the wine-loving readers) might want to know about them.

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Choosing Chenin Blanc for some variety

Imag0629

"If you could only pick one grape to drink the rest of your life, what would you choose?" 

Not a fair question, but it was a thought inspired by a game I overheard on the radio when I was daydreaming. I assumed I knew the answer to that ... but the more I thought about it, the more I was not sure. In the end, I cheated and decided it would have to be one for white and one for red, but even so I was stuck.

I have to admit I am a cosmopolitan drinker (not the cocktails!). I like variety and believe that there is no "one best style" in most cases. There are simply too many issues to consider. 

So it finally dawned on me that the answer (at least for the white) had to be ... Chenin Blanc.

It was an odd choice. In truth, I drink very little of it, but when I do I am often blown away. It makes everything from great sparkling wine, wines that are INCREDIBLY dry, through delicious, almost dry but rich to full on luscious and sweet wines. One grape. So many wines.

What does the grape "Chenin Blanc" evoke for you? 

For many, unfortunately, it is a fairly simple, often dull, white wine usually from South Africa.

It certainly should not have to be that way. Chenin Blanc was (and might still be) the most planted variety there, so it was grown more for volume than quality, but there are great South African versions - I'm fond of the wines of Ken Forrester, A A Badenhorst and De Trafford.

However, for Chenin Blanc lovers, the variety and complexity of the wines of the Loire Valley (it isn't all about Sauvignon Blanc thank goodness!) have to be ranked amongst the world's very best. This blog is not the place for in-depth looks at Loire wines - for that I point you in the direction of the indefatigable Jim Budd and his Jim's Loire blog.

So, when I saw an offer for some Chenin Blanc with a little age (though not yet nearly enough) on a special price, I jumped at the chance.

I bid/bought a case of bottles of Villebois Chenin Blanc 2007 from the Naked Wines Marketplace (in its first iteration). I have had a slightly mixed experience with the wines from this producer (who sells wines mainly thanks, it seems, to Naked Wines) but thought it worth a punt. According to their site, they focus almost entirely on Sauvignon Blanc but I'm rapidly getting bored with this grape (if I'm honest), so I am not sure what the story is to this wine, although the label implies it comes from their main vineyards.

This particular wine reminds me of baked green apples and hay on the nose. It smells bright yellow. It is a big, round wine in the mouth, showing the ripeness of the grapes, but maybe also a hint of some botrytis in there too. It has the sharpness of the filling of a bramble & apple pie, and also finishes with crispness and notes of honeyed, cinnamon spice. 

I paid £45.96 for 6 bottles, including delivery - making this wine £7.66 a bottle. A proper steal. 

However, it is now no longer available, but you might want to keep an eye on the site as it seems to have been quite popular, so you never know when they might find something from 2008 ;)

So, what would your one (white) grape be?