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Nicolas Joly + Produttori del Barbaresco + Les Bertrand + European Import Tasting this Saturday 3-6PM!

by Annandale Cellars

European Imports Tasting

Saturday 3-6PM

We have a range of different European wines on tasting this Saturday which we are very excited for you all to try. This is a selection of wines that we believe represent excellent value and speak to their origins from France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Here is the line up that we'll be presenting:

Chardigny Blanc 2022 (Burgundy)

Chardigny Gamay 2022 (Burgundy)

Pierre-Henri Morel Côtes du Rhône 2021

Haart Riesling (Mosel) 2022

Ca' del Baio Barbera d'Alba 'Paolina' 2020

Venta la Vega Adaras Aldea 2021 (Almansa)

Venta la Vega Adaras Lluvia 2022 (Almansa)

Join us in tasting some excellent European wines this Saturday. See you soon!

 

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Nicolas Joly

Nicolas Joly - the Godfather of biodynamic winemaking and a cult figure in the world of wine. Almost all biodynamic producers in Europe owe dues to this man that started the revolution. I can personally say that Nicolas was the man that piqued my interest in biodynamic agriculture and spurred me to read Steiner’s series of lectures on the topic.

This family is home to a very special plot of land: Coulée de Serrant; a monopole vineyard (Joly is the only producer) planted in 1130 by Cistercian monks with an average vine age of 35-80 years. On top of the usual organic practices of chemical-free farming by hand, Joly uses compost produced from the manure of a local cow breed that lives on the estate, fed with food grown on the estate to produce a truly localised compost which he deems necessary for the truest expression of terroir. In addition, there are about a dozen species of native cover crops to prevent a monoculture which is eaten in the winter by a flock of Ouessant sheep that also convert this to manure and a portable chicken coop is used on the parcels of land where there are snails. This is barely scratching the surface of everything this man does to elevate farming to a high art to serve Earth.

So how does all this translate into the wine?

"I personally believe that Chenin – along with Riesling – is one of the very few grape varieties which can only fully express their deep personalities through a fairly advance maturity which contains some “noble rot”.

That's right, these wines contain a portion of botrytised grapes (never following a formula, always following the nature of the vintage) which add unique flavours and texture to the wine. There are 3 wines produced under 3 different appellations: "Les Vieux Clos" (Savennières), "Clos de la Bergerie" (Savennières Roche aux Moines) and finally "Coulée de Serrant" from the monopole appellation of the same name. All of these wines offer a unique drinking experience unlike anything else. Nicolas has been a proponent of drinking whites at a slightly higher temperature than most of us are used to so as not to mute the expression of the wine and even advocates decanting the wines for hours in advance (he suggest 24 hours for his top wine). Not to mention these are seriously age-worthy wines that will reward decades of cellaring. We only have small quantities of these legendary Chenin expressions so be sure to get in quick to snag some of these bottles. - Aaron C.

 

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Produttori del Barbaresco

We are proud to to acquire stock from the legendary 2019 vintage from our favourite co-op: Produttori del Barbaresco. This cooperative works with 50 local growers from a variety of communes within Barbaresco that come together at the end of the growing season to produce some seriously spectacular and sincere expressions of Nebbiolo.

The wines of Barbaresco tend to be slightly more perfumatory, floral and with slightly softer tannins and a more feminine profile than its counterpart in Barolo while still retaining that aristocratic austerity of Nebbiolo from Piemonte. The 2019 vintage is exceptional and is shaping up to be one of, if not the greatest vintage in Barbaresco this century. Produttori produce their 9 single vineyard expressions in great vintages after 4 years of ageing under the Riserva program. These are wines of haunting intensity and expression; tasting multiple of will help you discover the subtleties and nuances that Nebbiolo is able to express between the different sites.

We have all 9 single vineyard bottlings in stock to share with you. These include: Asili, Montefico, Montestefano, Muncagota, Ovello, Pajè, Pora, Rabajà and Rio Sordo. I recommend buying at least a few different single vineyards bottlings to go on a journey and in a sense, walk through the different crus of Barbaresco. Produttori always represents not just "accurate" expressions of each cru but genuinely interesting terroir-driven expressions and the large scale of the operation allows them to keep the prices in check and outperforms many more expensive producers in the region.

This producer, especially in this outstanding 2019 vintage is an offer that can't be passed up - I'll be personally picking up some '19s myself at some point to cellar. Get in quick - Aaron C.

 

 

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Les Bertrand

Yann Bertrand is a young gun from a family of wine-making history situated in the great site of Grand-Pré in Fleurie, Beaujolais. Yann took over the estate since joining in 2012 and has been experimenting with biodynamics in the vineyard (the estate was already certified organic) and perpetuates a family wine tradition passed down for three generations.

Similar to Nicolas Joly, Yann creates biodynamic preparations involving plant extracts and horse dung in addition to compost to promote the vitality of the soil and its symbiosis with the micro-organisms of plants and animals - to allow "wild nature" to regain its rights. "Our wine is thus the fruit of artisanal and family know-how acquired over time and through contact with a terroir where we evolve every day."

Le vin est un produit « vivant »

Wine is a living product, and Yann's oenological practices are as respectful as possible to this fact. There are no heavy-handed wine-making techniques; no sulfur additions at all, fermentation with native yeasts, aversion to high-extraction cap-management techniques like pumping over and absolutely no new oak. The objective here is to create wines with greater freshness and length, in a word, more "vibrant" wines.

We have a great selection of wines from this estate to cover a spectrum of tastes and styles from fruitier, smooth styles such as the "Oh!..." and the "Lantignie", to the intoxicating complexity and structure of "Cuvée du Chaos" and "Morgon Dynamite" and something in between with "Julienas" and "Coupe de Foudre". These are some seriously interesting wines that any fan of Beaujolais or organic/biodynamic farming should snap up. - Aaron C.

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