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The Prince of Wales has reduced his motoring emissions by running his
38-year-old Aston Martin, a 21st birthday present from the Queen, on fuel
made entirely from English wine.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/theroyalfamily/2223663/Prince-Charles%27s-Aston-Martin-is-wine-powered.html
I won't drink
my own Parker-rated wines, says California winemaker
January 9, 2008
Oliver Styles
Robert Parker's influence on Californian wines has forced winemakers to
lose their sense of balance, says a cult Santa Barbara producer.
Adam Tolmach of Ojai Vineyard told newspaper the Los Angeles Times that
his wines had 'lost their rudder' in trying to please the palate of the
American wine guru Robert Parker.
Tolmach, who has made wine for 25 years, says that although he 'got the
scores' he wanted, he found his wines moving further away from his own
tastes.
'I'd stopped drinking my own wines,' he said.
Tolmach says he is looking to harvest his grapes earlier and pick
less-ripe grapes in the search for balance.
The news will come as little surprise to those who have attacked
high-alcohol wines in the past, including veteran wine taster and
Decanter columnist Michael Broadbent and Napa Valley producer Randy
Dunn.
'Take 20 winemakers, and they are all thinking about alcohol levels,'
said Arcadian Winery owner and low-alcohol enthusiast, Joe Davis.
Ray Coursen, a producer in Napa Valley, agreed with Tolmach. He
admitted that although there was a 'lot to be said' for bigger wines,
they overwhelmed a meal.
'One thing is certain, two people can't share a bottle with dinner,' he
said.
The debate was further stirred by Burgundy wine critic Allen Meadows
who produces the Burghound newsletter out of Los Angeles.
'I flatly disagree that a 15% alcohol wine can be balanced,' he said.
The LA Times highlighted Meadows' comments on the 2004 Kistler
cuvée Elizabeth Bodega Headlands which Parker gave 96/98
points out of 100. According to Parker, the wine was 'bordering on
perfection'.
'While the size and weight and concentration are impressive, the
texture is anything but elegant,' said Meadows, giving it 86 points.
'Consumers – wake up and get active. Reviewers -please at
least include the labeled alcohol percentage in all your reviews, and
try to remember that not everyone is spitting,' said Dunn in July last
year.
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South Africa sweeps the board at Decanter World Wine Awards
September 1, 2008
Adam Lechmere for Decanter Magazine
In an evening full of surprises, South Africa emerged triumphant from last night's Decanter World Wine Awards.
The
country won 12 Regional Trophies and an amazing six International
Trophies – among them the International Bordeaux Varietal Trophy
(Under £10) and the International Rhone Varietal Trophy (Over
£10)
Cederberg Shiraz won in the Rhone category, while Amani Vineyards Cabernet Franc-Merlot took the Bordeaux Trophy.
Only 26
International Trophies are awarded. The only other region to come close
was Australia with four – but it enters hundreds more wines.
Against
intense competition South Africa swept the board in Chardonnay, winning
the International Trophies in both the Under £10 and Over
£10 categories with Paul Cluver Elgin and Rustenberg Five
Soldiers respectively – beating the best that Burgundy, Australia
and Washington State could offer.
Then it took the International Sauvignon Blanc Under £10 Trophy – beating top Chilean and New Zealand wines.
# South
Africa is the fastest-growing category in the UK off-trade wine market,
according to the latest data from AC Nielsen – growing by 13% in
volume, against a total market growth of 1.1%. The country's value
sales also grew by 13%, making it the fifth largest county in the UK
market. The UK accounts for a quarter of all South African wine exports.
Jo Mason,
UK market manager for Wines of South Africa, said. 'South Africa is
increasingly viewed as a producer of premium wines with distinctive
regional characteristics.'
FRENCH MAY PAWN WINE FOR CASH (http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Quirks/2008/05/12/parisians_pawn_wine_with_auntie/5664/)
A Frenchman received $8,000 for
a bottle of wine at Credit Municipal of Paris, a pawnshop known to many
Parisians simply as "auntie," officials said.
The Credit
Municipal of Paris, a government-run pawnshop open since 1777, marked a
new phase in pawning when it recently began taking wine, the Los Angles
Times reported.
"People can now exchange liquidity for liquidity," said Bernard Candiard, director-general of Credit Municipal.
The Nespresso World's 50 Best Restaurants Academy chairperson
South-East Asia Academy Chairperson
Leisa Tyler
A social anthropologist by trade, Leisa has spent the last eight years eating
her way around Asia, five of those writing and photographing culture, food and
travel destinations for various publications, including Travel + Leisure, Time
and CNN Traveller. Based in Bangkok, she is currently researching a book on food
from the Mekong River.
Countries in Region
Borneo, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, East Timor, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia,
Micronesia, Nauru, Philippines, Singapore, Sumatra, Thailand, Vietnam
Voters:
Aun Koh, Beppe De Vito, Bobby Chinn, Chalie Amatyakul, Daven Wu, David King,
Donald Berger, Geoffrey Eu, Glenn Tanner, Hal Lipper, Howard Richardson, Jamie
Case, Jimmy Chok, Jose Gamboa, Jose Lois Calle, Leisa Tyler, Margaux Salcedo,
Mason Florence, Melisa Teo, Myrna Segis, Nicholas Chan, Nick Downing, Peng Loh,
Rob McKeown, Ronald Liem, Ross Lusted, Sean Flakelar, Su-Lyn Tan, Evelyn Chen,
Nam Nguyen, Bill Black
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