JULY 2022 FEATURED WINES
WINE ONE: SUCCÈS VINICOLA LA CUCA DE LLUM
About: This cuvée is named for the fireflies they’ve seen in the vineyard. The grapes come from 40-year-old Trepat vines in Conca de Barberà, the variety’s ancestral origin. Trepat has an unusual combination of thick skins and light pigmentation giving it structural similarities to Italy’s Nebbiolo. Its early budding and late ripening make it susceptible to weather events at either end of the season, especially spring frost. The grapes are crushed and fermented on skins for 35 days before being pressed off into stainless steel and fibreglass tank for élevage. Roughly 2000 cases are made annually.
Taste: This wine is bright ruby in the glass. The nose is ethereal with aromas of squished strawberry, dried roses, prairie sage, pink peppercorns, fennel seeds, and raspberries. It is charming and stalwart. The palate takes you in two directions at once; it is bright and refreshing but physical and grounded. There’s a rustic edge, an attractive unkemptness, an amiable naïveté; we will be friends. You’ll find further flavours of juicy red plum, clove, cherry skins, chicory root, and nasturtium.
Pairing: Coca de Recapte is a Catalan flatbread topped with eggplant, escalivada, and tomatoes. Coming from a few towns over, this dish is the ideal vegetarian pairing for Trepat’s red fruit flavours. Romesco, the classic local condiment, is made from ñora (sundried peppers), tomatoes, and onions combined with a combination of dried and roasted nuts (pine nut, almond, and hazelnut). Although it originated as a sauce for fish, it is an ideal pairing for grilled spring onions.
WINE TWO: A SUNDAY IN AUGUST PINOT GRIS
About: This wine is made from certified organic Pinot Gris (75%) and Gewurztraminer (25%). The grapes are co-fermented semi-carbonically for five days in tank. After being pressed off, the wine finishes fermentation and malolactic conversion in stainless steel before being bottled, unfined, unfiltered, and with less than 30ppm of SO2. Claire Milbrath does the label art. One thousand cases were produced.
Taste: This wine is copper-salmon-ochre goodness-knows-what. The nose is quirky, eclectic, and eccentric with aromas of papaya, cherry blossom, passionfruit, white gummy bears, cinchona, angelica, cinders, starfruit, mangosteen, oxalis, and sea buckthorn. What even is this?! The palate features tangy acidity, a nibble of tannin, and a confounding combination of freshness and weight. Despite its low alcohol content, it has viscosity. You’ll find additional flavours of raw pumpkin, cloudberry, persimmon, pink gooseberry, taro, licorice root, orris root, charcoal, and peach. Intergalactic.
Pairing: Mike Schindler, proprietor and winemaker, suggested pairing this particular bottle with” 1. Gazing into the eyes of your lover, and 2. A tennis court, some cute shorts, and a hop in the pool.” It seems reasonable to me!
WINE THREE: SÉLÉNÉ BEAUJOLAIS BLANC
About: Sylvère got his hands on a small Chardonnay vineyard five years ago and has been farming it organically ever since. Soils here are typical for southern Beaujolais, consisting of richer clay loam. The grapes are whole cluster pressed into concrete for fermentation and élevage. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered with 10ppm of SO2.
Taste: This wine is pale silver-gold in the glass. The nose is instantly familiar, an archetype, flawless, majestic, and regal. It has aromas of crunchy apple, lemon peel, crushed stones, almond paste, white flowers, white truffle, sea salt, and beeswax. The palate is expansive and precise with zesty acidity, modest weight, and a mineral finish. It is tense but also generous. The finish provides flavours of nectarine, white tea, quince, fresh bread dough, and glacial rivers.
Pairing: Sauce Nantua comes from the eponymous city just east of Beaujolais. This take on Béchamel is infused with crayfish butter and often accompanies Quenelles de Brochet, small football-shaped pike dumplings. The decadent combination is the ideal pairing for this fresh yet bevelled mineral-driven white.