Ferrer Bobet SE 2009, one of the most sought after wines

Posted by Carme Pla on May 9, 2012 in Wine | 0 comments

Ferrer Bobet Special Selection 2009 is one of the wines that most fans are looking for. Bear in mind that this is a limited edition and about 60 bottles can be depleted in just 4 hours.

What is the secret of this success?

This is a wine that got a high score on the guide Robert Parker and belongs to one D.O. Catalonia: Priorat.

Last week, an editorial in the newspaper La Vanguardia explained the reasons for the success of these wines.

In a quarter century, Priorat has grown from four wineries to 96. Today is not uncommon to hear speak English or French in the streets of Falset. The miracle has occurred. And it is worth remembering because, coming from the particular to the general, this process of reinvention holds key interest in times of crisis.

 

Thirty years ago the Priorat region was almost abandoned, and so well preserved, but it produced normal wines. That’s when a group of pioneers, lovers of the craft, found there a terroir of great potential, suitable for more ambitious crops. They set up their cellars, and produced their first wines, thereupon sought the positive sanction of French specialists, Swiss or American, who granted it gladly. With this endorsement, they decided to continue working. Parker enthroned Priorat wines in the early nineties and was extending its popular appreciation. Then, halfway between the twentieth and the twenty-first, this story of passion wine attracted mass investment and expanded his business.

 

Capacity for innovation, vision, global and local revalidation and investment are some of the reasons for the success achieved so far by the wines of Priorat. But no matter how happy it feels now, it does not guarantee the future. Unless its creators know, as those pioneers of Priorat do, now assisted by new generations, you should be renewed continually, be able to adapt to the circumstances and, therefore, not ever think that everything is done.

.

 

Read More

Bodegas Torres receives international award for wine tourism

Posted by Carme Pla on May 7, 2012 in Wine | 0 comments

 

Dutty Free magazine explains it as follows:

 

Drinks International has highlighted the work of Bodegas Torres in the area of wine tourism, giving it one of its first “Wine Tourism Awards.” Bodegas Torres has been recognized in the category of “Most Innovative Vineyard or Cellar Tour” thanks to the success of the innovative activities offered to visitors.

Bodegas Torres provides an extensive range of wine-related experiences, including tastings, wine and cheese pairing seminars, cooking courses, VIP Tours, Ecotours and Natureo tours, aimed at all kinds of people with a wide range of interests. Proof of the popularity of the activities is that the Visitor Centre has received more than 1.5 million visitors in the last 25 years.

According to Drinks International, Torres is the second “World’s Most Admire Wine Brand 2012″.

Read More

Catalonia Wine D.O. by The Wine Advocate

Posted by Carme Pla on May 5, 2012 in Wine | 0 comments

April’s issue of The Wine Advocate magazine includes an article about Catalonian wine D.O. After reading it, you won’t want to miss Falset’s Wine Fair starting today.

Catalonia: Tasting Beyond Priorat
 
It was my early decision to separate the “other” Catalonian D.O.s, for the simple reason that I wanted to spend a week concentrating upon the wines of Allela, Conca de Barberà, Costers del Segre, Empordà, Montsant, Penedès, Pla de Bagès, Tarragona and Terra Alta, without the shadow of Cava and Priorat looming over them. And so in week two, the hire car was filled with petrol and off we drove over 1,000 kilometers, traversing the region from the glistening Mediterranean in Empordà to the dramatic foothills of the Pyrenees. My one regret was that Terra Alta was a D.O. too far, although I have striven to make amends by tasting as many wines as possible, and given the quality I found, it will be at the top of my list of places to visit next time. Costers del Segre was difficult to cover because it is a relatively expansive, nebulous D.O. that covers diverse terrains, and so I visited wineries that happened to be located within its boundaries. Then there is Penedès, synonymous with Cava and yet a treasure trove of dry wines that tend to get pushed out of the limelight by their sparkling siblings. — NEAL MARTIN –
 

Read more at: http://www.erobertparker.com/members/winedata/articles/article639.asp

 

Read More

Veuve Clicquot

Posted by Carme Pla on Apr 16, 2012 in Wine | 0 comments

Last week, Restaurant magazine anticipated that  Elena Arzak will get the Veuve Clicquot World’s Best Female Chef award.

The award is inspired by the life and achievements of Madame Clicquot, who nearly 200 years ago, set the standard for women in business.

Who was madame Clicquot?

Madame Clicquot, née Ponsardin, Widow Clicquot or Veuve Clicquot (16 December 1777 – 29 July 1866), known as the “Grand Dame of Champagne”,[1] was a French businesswoman who took on her husband’s wine business when widowed at 27. Under her ownership, and her skill with wine, the company developed early champagne using a novel technique. The brand and company of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin still bears her name.

She invented the technique called riddling to obtain lighter wines, crisp and clean. Prior to this invention the second fermentation of wine to create champagne resulted in a very sweet wine with large bubbles and sediment from the remains of the yeast used in the fermentation in the bottle (which creates the bubbles in the wine) resulting in a cloudy wine. Madame Clicquot had the brilliant idea of ​​making holes in a table to put the bottles upside down and turning them regularly so the sludge concentrated on the cork. Current champagne owes much to the obsession with quality this woman had.

She also had a great business acumen. She sent intrepid representatives throughout Europe regardless of the difficulties. It’s said she sent a whole ship full of champagne in St. Petersburg in 1814 to the fall of Napoleon, ahead of their rivals.

Read More

Future Wines will be More Enjoyable

Posted by Carme Pla on Mar 5, 2012 in Wine, In the Restaurant | 0 comments

We recently announced the International Congress of Gastronomy BCNVanguardia, as part of Alimentaria Fair. This fair hosts other spaces, one of them Taste & Flavors to discuss about trends in the world of wine.

We can also read about those trends from Juan Muñoz, honorary president, founder and president of the UAES Academy and Master sommeliers and one of the five committee members of 50 for 2020, a new concept within the space of Taste & Flavours in the International Fair Alimentaria 2012 .

These are three questions that refer to future innovation in the wine world, from an interview published at the conference website.

What trends do you foresee in the wine world in 10 years? :
I think wines will be more pleasant tasting. White wines, with good aromatic intensity, silky on the palate and a balanced acidity. Red wines will be softer without losing its personality. Its aromas will be more soothing and complex. Many of these vineyards will grow at high altitudes to balance the high temperatures of climate change.

What is the position of Spanish wines in innovation? :
Very good. On the one hand, there is innovation recovering indigenous varieties and incorporating some international trendy varieties. On the other hand, Spanish wineries incorporate new winemaking techniques to better reach the consumer.

What role should sommeliers play in defining future wines? :
A sommelier is a counselor and must have the knowledge to recommend the right wine, not only to combine with food but also taking into account customers’ profiles. Guests want to enjoy and learn more. Sommeliers transmit them information. These suggestions give us an idea about future trends.

We can read the full interview at Alimentaria’s web.

Read More

San Sebastian Gastronomika 2011 Programme

Posted by Carme Pla on Nov 18, 2011 in Wine, In the Kitchen, In the Restaurant, Other Kitchens | 0 comments

Last July, we announced the San Sebastian Gastronomika Congress – Euskadi Saboréala 2011 and we have it here!!!

Only two days to start an incredible programme from 20 to 23 November at the Kursaal Palace in San Sebastian.

Here we have the Haute Cuisine and  The World of the Lounge and Wine programmes. Note that this is not everything, for the International Congress has many more activities that are available on the official website:

Monday November 21, 2011

HAUTE CUISINE

Emerging cuisines: Brasil

• 10:30 – 11:00 French refinement, Carioca colour. Claude Troisgros Rest. Olymple (Río de Janeiro)
• 11:00 – 11:30 Four-colour transgressions Helena Rizzo y Daniel Redondo Rest. Maní (Sao Paulo)
• 11:30 – 12:15 Northeast rapture Rodrigo Oliveira Rest. Mocotó (Sao Paulo) | Local ingredients, global thinking Roberta Sudbrack Rest. Sudbrack (Rio de Janeiro)
• 12:15 – 13:00 Deconstructing the Amazon Álex Atala Rest. DOM (Sao Paulo)

Face to face

 

Links:

• San Sebastian Gastronomika
• Programmea
• Registration 

Read More