Ever Wonder About Italian Wine Blends?

Much like France, Italy has a long tradition of wine. In the 1960s, Italy formalized their wine appellation system modeled after the French system. Under this system, each wine region in Italy was required to operate under strict rules for the types of grapes they were allowed to grow and how their wines were to be produced.

Under this system, native Italian grapes were required to be used in Italian wines. These native grapes included Sangiovese, Barbera, Nebbiolo, and Montepulciano.

These regulations were quickly criticized as being overly restrictive and led small groups to push-back against them. By the end of the 1960s, these groups were producing wine blends with non-native grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah.

Unfortunately, these producers of wines using non-native Italian grapes and/or blends of different grapes were forced to bottle their wines using the generic title of Vino da Tavola (Table Wine) that is associated with Italy’s lowest-quality wines. Instead of settling for this, they chose to unofficially call their wines “Super Tuscans” so as to distinguish them from inexpensive table wines.

Finally, in 1992, the Italian government created a new wine classification called “Toscana Indicazione Geografica Tipica” or “Toscana IGT” which is permitted on any wines, including wine blends, produced in any of Tuscany's ten provinces.

The Toscana IGT continues to be used to distinguish Super Tuscans. So, look for Toscana IGT on the label of these unique Italian wines. Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - Herminia Rioja Wines

Herminia Casas was the beloved wife of a winemaker in the early 1900’s in La Rioja, Spain. She was a pioneer in entrepreneurship and a champion of education access for women and children.

Her husband memorialized her legacy and their mutual life project by naming the winery for her.

These wines honor a woman, the feisty, nonconformist and determined Herminia. She labored tirelessly in favor of her community questioning and challenging the established norms of her time. Charismatic, committed, and a pioneer.

Now more than 70 years later, they continue to make modern, bold, and pioneering Rioja wines that represent Herminia's original project as they carry on her legacy.

Both of these wines are produced from 90% Tempranillo, the signature grape of Rioja, and 10% Garnacha which is a variety which complements Tempranillo due to its body and aromatic features.

Herminia Crianza ($16) - This wine is aged for 12 months in American and French oak before bottling and then spends 6 months in the bottle before shipping. It is medium ruby in color with aromas of red fruit and brown sugar. On the palate this dry wine (14% ABV) is medium-full bodied with flavors of black cherry, and light hints of oak. It has medium tannin and a nice, easy finish of dark red fruits.

Herminia Reserva ($22) - This wine is aged for 24 months in American, Hungarian and French oak before bottling and then spends 12 months in the bottle before shipping. This wine is deep ruby in color with aromas of black cherry, cigar box and leather from it oak aging. On the palate, this dry wine (14% ABV) is medium-full bodied with rich black cherry flavor and vanilla/brown sugar. It finishes long with nice fruit flavor.

These are a couple of really nice Rioja wines from Herminia that are also quite affordable, making them a great fit as this week’s Behind the Cork™ Wines of the Week. Salud and Cheers!

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Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received these samples at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Samples Provided by Herminia Wines via IT Public Relations

Ever Wonder About the Types of Oak Used in Wine Barrels?

Photo by Jonathan Borba on Unsplash

Wine may be fermented and aged in a variety of materials including stainless steel, ceramic vessels, including concrete, and in oak barrels.

Oak barrels add additional quality, character and smoothness to wines and can impart many flavors into the wine. 

Barrels for wine-making are commonly made of French common oak (Quercus robur), white oak (Quercus petraea), and American white oak (Quercus alba)

Of the various species of oak, Quercus robur is said to provide a fuller body and larger tannin structures, giving less complexity and elegance than Quercus petraea. Forests in Hungary and France grow both species, including hybrids of the two. These two species are quite distinct from Quercus alba (American oak) in the flavors they impart.

Here’s a quick summary of the differences:

• American Oak - Wine barrels made in the US are typically from White Oak that is grown in the east and mid-west. American oak is known for imparting sweeter flavors of vanilla, coconut, as well as dill and sweet spices.

• Hungarian Oak - These barrels may be made from either the Quercus robur or Quercus petraea species. Quercus robur is said to provide a fuller body and larger tannin structures, giving less complexity and elegance than Quercus petraea. Hungarian oak barrels are known for imparting bolder, richer flavors of butterscotch, vanilla, clove, cinnamon, and toffee.

• French Oak - French oak wine barrels are from the Quercus robur species but tend to have finer grains. The flavors imparted from French oak are said to be more subtle and include dark chocolate, roasted coffee beans and exotic, savory spices.

All of these imparted flavors can be dialed-up or down depending on the degree to which the barrels are ‘toasted.’ A winemaker will decide on what degree of toasting is appropriate for their wine’s style. Our 'job' as wine drinkers is simply to enjoy all the wonderful flavors that oak, and toasted oak, add to our wine. Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - Domaine Bousquet Alavida Organic Kosher Malbec

Alavida Organic Kosher Malbec ($19)

Alavida Malbec joins a very select group of wines: it is USDA-certified organic and kosher. Certainly, the first wine of its type from Argentina, Alavida is one of few wines worldwide to attain this unusual dual status. The 100% Argentine, reserve-level Malbec from Domaine Bousquet is also vegan, gluten- free, and Ecocert-approved.

The Alavida name means “To Life” (“a la vida”) in Spanish -- which is taken from the traditional Hebrew toast “L’chaim!” The Domaine Bousquet estate, high in Argentina’s Uco Valley, is owned by Anne Bousquet and her husband, Labid al Ameri. Anne Bousquet notes that “Argentina is a nation rich in diversity, and our own multi-cultural family has been making certified organic wines in Argentina since 1997.”

The winemaking process for Alavida is almost identical to that used in making a non-kosher wine, with two exceptions. Ingredients such as yeast must be kosher, and the wine must be physically made by a sabbath-observant Jewish team under the supervision of a rabbi.

This wine is aged with 90% of the juice in contact with used oak to retain the purity of fruit, and 10% is in contact with new oak.

This Alavida Malbec is deep purple in color with rich black fruit aromas and a hint of sweet tobacco. On the palate, this 100% Malbec is full-bodied and dry with black cherry and black berry flavors as well as a touch of cocoa on its nice finish.

This affordable, great-tasting Malbec, which is USDA-certified organic and kosher, is a great fit as this week’s Behind the Cork™ Wine of the Week. L’chaim and cheers!

For more information on kosher wines, see my recent blog.

ABV: 14.5%, RS: 1.52 g/L, Total Acidity: 5.77 g/L, pH: 3.68

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Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Domaine Bousquet via Creative Palate Communications

What Makes a Wine Kosher?

Photo by Aaron Ovadia on Unsplash

Kosher wine is made just like other table wine, with an extra set of rules to make it consistent with Jewish dietary law. In order for a wine to be deemed kosher (Yiddish for "proper" or "fit"), it must…

• Be made under the supervision of a rabbi

• Contain only kosher ingredients such as the yeast and the fining agents

• Made with equipment that has been certified by a rabbi to make kosher wines

• Be free of preservatives or artificial colors

• Be handled from start to finish by Sabbath-observant Jews

• Producers of Concord-based wines (such as Manischewitz) that are sweetened with corn syrup must produce special "kosher for Passover" bottlings which are labeled as such

• Some kosher wines are heated as part of the production process. These wines are known as ‘mevushal’ which literally means the wine was ‘cooked’

• Kosher wines will have certification symbols. One of the most common looks like a ‘U’ in a circle Ⓤ, suggesting that it’s certified by Union of Orthodox Rabbis. A ‘K’ in a circle Ⓚ indicates it’s kosher, a ‘K’ in a circle with a ‘P’ Ⓚ-P is kosher for Passover, a ‘K’ in a star, cRc and Hebrew ‘ר‎כש ’ are also indicators that the wine is kosher.

So, in summary, kosher wines don’t necessarily taste any different from non-kosher wines, or have higher or lower quality; they simply must be produced in accordance with a set of Jewish dietary laws.

L’Chaim! Cheers!