Winehog - with a passion
Burgundy Insights from the Winehog
Tasting red Burgundies made without oak is a relatively new thing for me … at least in the top-end level - 1er cru and up!. I have tasted oak-based wines in 25 years and more so please bear with me here. I need to learn and first and foremost taste more .., before I get my head around this as …
[Read more...] about Tasting is believing? but try to understand
Oak is becoming quite a focus area, and more and more tonneliers are now delivering oak to the experimenting vignerons. In general, better oak is used, and a lighter toasting is employed. There is a lot of focus on the new oaks, but less so on the older barrels used for the elevage. Old …
Amphorae and other different, more or less exotic, maturation vessels are seemingly invading Burgundy. One can now find elevage in traditional terracotta amphorae, ceramic vessels, glass vats, stainless steel vats, and then of course the numerous variations on oak and its toasting. This is …
Selecting the right barrel for the job is, in a big vintage like 2022, an even greater challenge, as the large harvest means many producers will see a shortage of barrels and barrel options. Add to this the small, boutique producers with one-barrel cuvees, and this can easily become a problem …
In the words of an old geek and wine reviewer (me), the world of wine is getting more and more complex. While we are used to tasting wines from standard (228-litre) barrels, their differences being only age and maker, there are now one or perhaps several new dimensions to this game: large barrels …
[Read more...] about One wine in many versions: new barrels and amphorae
