WINO 101

Hello Friends and Wine Lovers!

Welcome to the Mid-August Stretch and Summer Savoring and Sampling Symposium with the Weekly Carpe Vinum Friday Tasting and Newsletter of Super-Tastiness! Last week we were in Germany sampling the fine wines they have to offer, and this week we’re not going too far from that. We’re heading to the French Alsace! It’s the most French part of Germany! Or is it the most Germanic part of France?

Alsace has always been a disputed part of Europe. The region, on France’s Eastern border with Germany, has been a veritable tug-o-war between the two countries for centuries. Every time a war breaks out, the region gets captured, and then returned at the end of the war. As a result of this constant dispute, the people of Alsace are technically neither French nor German, and they speak Alsacien, a dialect that is neither French nor German, but a bit of both. And the wines? Yep. They’re specifically Alsatian as well.

Unlike most of the other French wines which are named and labeled after the regions in which they are grown, Alsace is one of the only French regions that state the grape variety names on the labels. In fact, most of the wine marketed in Alsace are single-varietal wines. For that reason, Alsatian wines are more easily understood of any of the French wines as the labeling resembles more closely the wines of the New World.

So of these grape varieties grown, most are white. There is only one red in the region. It’s the current rising star of the world, even still reeling from some independent movie a couple of years ago. Yep. Pinot Noir. Our savory savior. There’s not much of it grown there and, like everywhere else in the world, they’re highly sought-after and therefore awfully expensive. Are Alsatian Pinots good? Apparently so, considering I’ve never been able to afford one. The other varieties are Riesling, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc, Sylvaner, Muscat, Gewurztraminer, Auxerrois, Chasselas (mostly used in blending) and Klevener de Heilingenstein (which apparently exists, but we’d all be pretty hard-pressed to prove it).

From there we’ve got a couple other things of note. There’s Cremant d’Alsace, which is the sparkling wine of the region that I find to be more pleasant and more affordable than Champagne and most other sparkling wines. Also, considering the colder climate up there in Alsace, there are a number of dessert wines designated “Vendage Tardive”. That literally translates to “Late Harvest” and is one of my favorite wine terms, just by the way it sounds. Vendage Tardive. Sounds like a good name for a band. But I digress.

Then there are the Grand Cru wines from the best locations in Alsace. These wines work like the regular single-varietal wines, but all come from specific locales and/or vineyards and the labels carry these names, as well. These wines are pretty limited quantity, and highly sought-after, so they’re hard to find and pretty expensive, at that. For the purposes of this tasting, we’ll be taking a tour through many common varieties of the Alsatian varieties. One thing for sure, though, is they’re all perfect summer wines, and my favorite for this time of year.

Also: Art Opening! That’s right! We’ve got new art on the walls here at Carpe Vinum. I always seem to forget to mention it when it happens, but not this time! We’ve got the photographic art of Rachell Coe. It’s potentially the most appropriate art showing we’ve had in here, as the subject matter is expertly and delightfully well-done photos of grapes and vineyards. You will love the show if you like and appreciate wine, and I imagine you do considering you’re on a wine newsletter list. The demographic is right, hey?

So Friday, August 17th, between 4:30 and 9:00 PM it’s:

Alsace!!!
Sparr NV Cremant d’Alsace
Kuentz Bas 2004 Alsace Blanc
Domaine Rolly Gassmann 2004 Sylvanner
Maison Bott Freres 2004 Pinot Blanc
Dopff Irion 2004 Tokay Pinot Gris

Mor’Alsace!!!
Andre Kientzler 2004 Auxerrois “K”
M Deiss 2001 Pinot Noir

A stellar deal at $10 for the First 5, $6 for the Extra 2 Premium Pours.

Hope to see you here!

Seize the Wine!

Next Friday tasting is Wines! Of! Oregon!

M