9/29/11

Vin ger godare utdelning än aktier

Upp och ner på börsen och ingen hausse i sikte. Guldkursen är instabil. Inte ens diamanter kan man lita på i dessa kristider. Kanske är vin lösningen på dilemmat?

Det är inte konstigt att intresset för vin som investering växer. Priserna har gått som tåget och dessutom har allt fler upptäckt att nöjet med en vinsamling inte bara behöver handla om att dricka gott vin.

Tänk om du hade köpt fint vin istället för de där 17000 skattade kronorna du satsade på 200 Telia-aktier år 2000. Då hade du varit betydligt lyckligare i dag. Har du aktierna kvar fortfarande finns inte ens ett aktiebrev att titta på. Tänk om du åtminstone fick ringa upp pengarna?

Annat är det med vin. Du kan beskåda furulådorna med sina ståtliga slottssigill medan priserna stiger. Du kan ta fram en flaska, känna på tyngden och fantisera om hur fantastiskt det skulle smaka. Och skulle det gå helt åt skogen med din vininvestering så har du ändå flaskorna kvar. Då kan du bjuda alla dina vänner.

Vill du lyckas med en vininvestering så gäller det att ha kunskap och tur – som överallt annars. Är du tillräckligt insatt köper du dina vinlådor själv när årgången lanseras. Helst från några av de högst rankade slotten i Bordeaux. Men tyvärr är du inte ensam. Det är inte bara rika kineser som handlar i korridorerna, utan de stora vinslotten har också blivit smartare. Dels har de trissat upp priserna rejält och dels håller de hårt i lådorna. De tjänar nämligen ännu mer pengar på att själva lagra vinet några år.

Ett annat sätt är att ta råd av erfarna vinmäklare. De har koll på prisutvecklingen och kan tipsa om framtidens viner. Åtminstone i teorin. Sveriges ende auktoriserade värderingsman av vin, Johan Magnusson, pekar till exempel på att Premier cru-slottens andraviner varit lönsamma investeringar de senaste åren. Framöver kommer de mindre kända Grand Cru-slotten säkert också att dras med i prisspiralen.

Nu är jag själv ingen mästare på investeringar och har inte koll på lyxvinernas alla priser. Men nog vet jag att det varit fart uppåt. Kännare påstår att det varit 15 procents årsavkastning i snitt sedan 2001. Kanske det – även om det är knepigt att räkna på ett vinvärde. Sedan ett antal år finns det dock en slags vinbörs i London vid namn Liv-Ex. Deras index för de hundra främsta vinerna visar på en värdeökning på 110 procent de senaste fem åren. Ser man bara på de femtio främsta så handlar det om en värdeökning på 175 procent under samma period. Och då ska man ändå veta att finanskraschen 2008 innebar en rejäl dipp.

De bekväma investerarna satsar på det senaste: rena vinfonder. Vinlådorna blir då en del av en fond som fungerar som vilken annan investeringsfond som helst. Man satsar helt enkelt en slant och litar på att fondförvaltarna kan sitt jobb och ser till att det blir högsta avkastning. Det är bara en stor skillnad. Det handlar ju om dyrbara flaskor som rent fysiskt måste finnas någonstans i väntan på värdestegringen. Med stor sannolikhet ligger lådorna kassaskåpssäkert i ett lager i södra England. Där har nämligen världens största firma för vinlagring, Octavian Vaults, expanderat enormt. I deras 300000 kvadratmeter lär det finnas mer än 800000 lådor vin.

800000 lådor är lika med nio miljoner sexhundratusen flaskor. Jag gissar att det är många tusen ägare inblandade i dessa viner. Annars kan det bli lite jobbigt att dricka upp om investeringen slog fel. Även för den med många vänner.



SvD  mat&vin

9/28/11

Luxembourg and wine? is that a joke?

What is the fuss about Luxembourg and the wines there? The answer is Mr Abi Duhr of Chateau Pauque in the small village of Grevenmacher who is the wild cat in this small country and  in my opinion makes some of the best Rieslings possible of the very old and steep vineyards facing the Mosel river.

I was there a couple a weeks ago to check out the grapes just before the harvest and the 2011 looks wonderful with ripe maturity and good acidity lever that are so crucial here and without it can make the wines bland and flat, this is what many winemakers miss out on, to bad.

Abi is a fascinating and highly knowledgeable winemaker with a great sense of humour that makes his wine with a passion and great skills to bring out the most in every plant.

The wines are concentrated and absolutely wonderful in every aspect with a great acidity that balances the mature fruits and makes them age beautifully.
If you can find any of his wines you better buy them before the whole world hear about it.


In vino veritas



9/27/11

Storing your wine collection? good or bad?

If you speak to wine professionals who provide wine storage facilities or assist in building cellars, they will tell you that a great many mistakes are made along the way to building a dream wine collection. The good news is that, unlike doctors who have to bury their mistakes, those of wine lovers can be drunk – or at the very worst, poured down the sink. However, this can become expensive, so do be careful.


Surprisingly, the experts will tell you that it is often those with the deepest pockets that make the most errors of judgment. They can take a scattergun approach to filling the cellar, tossing a wallet at every offer so as to corner as many of the best wines as they can. Unfortunately, they often also dredge up a lot of crap wines on the way. Those who take greater care however, often have more interesting cellars.


So the million-dollar question is: what do you put in your cellar?


Deciding if you are a collector or an investor is key. Investors usually have an entirely different agenda, and some may not even like wine. Collectors, on the other hand, are the real wine lovers, although they may make the occasional purchase for investment purposes. Buying two cases and later selling one allows for future expansion, and if done astutely, can even finance the cellar.


Bordeaux has underpinned the secondary market in wine for decades but not every Bordeaux is the same. First Growths and wines known as Super Seconds, along with the best from the Right Bank, such as Cheval Blanc, Petrus and Ausone are as close to blue chip as is possible, and a good vintage is vital.


In recent years, the pronouncements of American critic Robert Parker have had a profound influence on this market. A good score from him can propel an unknown into 'blue chip' territory, or send well-known wines into the pricing stratosphere.


Outside of France, things are more hit and miss. Spain has many exciting wines developing, but Vega Sicilia and Pingus are probably the most reliable investments for the moment. Vintage port has seen somewhat of a recent revival. German wines is rarely a fruitful investment, and Italian wines are mixed. Super Tuscans, like Sassicaia, Ornellaia and Masseto have done very well (the 1985 Sassicaia has been one of the great wine investments of all time), and the best Barolos are starting to see the sort of return that such great wines deserve.


From Australia, Penfolds Grange and Henschke's Hill of Grace are the leading performers, but the next generation is making strides. Some of the boutique producers from the Barossa and McLaren Vale with their turbo-charged shiraz have been given a boost by Parker points.


New Zealand has yet to establish such iconic auction performers, though some of the pinots from Martinborough and Central Otago, like Dry River, Ata Rangi and Felton Road, are close. From the United States, the auction performance of such wineries as Screaming Eagle, Araujo, Phelps 'Insignia', Opus One, Heitz 'Martha's Vineyard' and Harlan Estate is legendary and not completely unrelated to positive reviews from Parker and Wine Spectator.




Serious wine lovers soon learn that there is little point in collecting wines unless they are properly stored. High or fluctuating temperatures, light and vibration can all adversely affect wine. So can humidity: too dry an environment is detrimental as it can dry out corks, which allows for the ingress of oxygen and thus spoils the wine. Too much humidity, on the other hand, promotes the growth of bacteria and mold around the cork, which isn't very esthetically pleasing. However, the increased use of screw caps makes humidity less of an issue.

 A cellar can be anything from a box under the bed to a massive underground, temperature- and humidity-controlled facility. If you do not have a proper cellar at home, consider storing your wine with professionals. It has the disadvantage that late at night, you cannot grab a favored bottle on a whim (next morning, some may consider that as a positive), but at least you can be assured the wine will be in ideal condition when you do decide to drink it.


Remember do enjoy your wines in proper wine glasses such as Riedel.

9/26/11

Боллинджер По существу

Чтобы посетить Боллинджера миссии это сам, после месяца работы мне удалось получить время посещения этого великого Marque в шампанском.

Стиль Боллинджера является одним из моих любимых в течение многих лет и было специального лечения, чтобы получить возможность посетить их в качестве VIP-феерия, и меня, и Кристина была поражена от того, насколько руководство трудящимися было за все cuvees и какие усилия они помещают по крайней каждую бутылку.

Что мне нравится в Боллинджера власти в винах, я бы сказал, что они делают большие белые бургундские с лучших и мельчайших пузырьков, его мощный, мужественный, элегантный и чрезвычайно сложные вина всегда готовы к потреблению, ведьма я люблю J

Баррель хранения является одной из рода в шампанское и 3000 + баррелей, где все со штрих-кодом, так что винодел мог прочитать всю историю бочку с сканер, некоторые высокопоставленные Tec в традиционном месте.

Последняя ребенок розовые вина, что Боллинджера был последним принять благодаря тому, что Лилли Боллинджера не нравится идея розового вина, но потребности рынка делают их дважды подумать об этом, и за последние два года в два розлив розовоеСпециальных кюве и Ла-Гранд Année розы.

Наиболее загадочным в этом диапазоне бутылки Vieilles Vignes Francaises! Изготовлен из непривитого виноградные лозы, которые не пострадало от филлоксеры с двумя крошечными участками большой крю из 100% пино нуар в непосредственной близости от дома, и только около 2000 бутылок в год, мистическое, магическое и, вероятно, фантастические, я не попробовать его, к сожалению, бутылки Все, выделяемых на лучших клиентов по всему миру, и если вы можете найти его купить. Цена составляет в среднем 900 €

Диапазон выходит из специальных кюве, La Grande Année, RD (в последнее время изверг), а затем шедевр VVF, самое лучшее, что Боллинджера положить сосредоточиться на меньший портфель и делать лучшее, что виноград может обеспечить.


Боллинджера является торговой маркой для Gutsy шампанского, и я просто люблю его

9/25/11

Mr Gaston in Dizy, who the hell are he?

One of my many meetings recently in champagne was with the charming Nicolas Chiquet in the village of Dizy where he produce champagne in an traditional style with great depth and concentration especially the blanc de blanc from the vineyards of Dizy

That wine is exiting and very different from the Blanc de Blanc of the Grand cru in cotes du Blanc that is more famous for producing such a wine.

This is truly a challenge to identify on any blind tasting, how fun would that be? Very fun indeed J the flagship wine is his Special club selection where he use the best pressing and the oldest parcels of his vineyards, great stuff!

Nicolas is a very modern winemaker with lots of new ideas without dropping the respect of the family and the tradition that he grew up with, we hade a good discussion about the cork issue and he told me a lot of how you actually can manipulate the wine just by choosing an certain cork quality, amazing and very interesting news for me.

Another thing was all the things going on with the organic and biodynamic winemaking that’s going on in the world, he just prove to me that most of the things that are going on is BS, halleluiah!!! I told you, but we both agreed on that sustainable winemaking is the best way of producing grapes of the best quality and to take care of the environment regardless what it say on the label.
The house of Gaston Chiquet is a nice treat if you ever visit the area, but do make a reservation ahead





Istanbul by night

I culd not resist to put up some more pictures from this wonderful city even that I only use my mobil camera. tomorrow is off to Belgrade the capital of Serbia.







9/24/11

ISTANBUL, AN MAGIC CITY / İstanbul, Sihirli şehir

English:

Istanbul an Magic city

I am actually here on work, as a representative for the Swedish chefs association on the WACS European presidential meeting, but you need some fun also don’t you think?

Where to start? The first thing when arriving to this marvellous city is the heavy and crazy traffic that easy scare the living hell out of you, everybody is driving like maniacs, its nothing for weak nerves.
Officially the live 16 million people in Istanbul but nobody really knows the right figures, some people told me that as many as 25 million live here, moving in from the country side to get a better life, I don’t know about that.

The culture here must be the best in the world without any doubt considering all what have been going on here for thousands of years, simply wonderful architecture and remains from great past times, there is something magical in the air when you hear the priest call people to the mosque with the songs from the minaret, I must say that Islam is truly an fascinating religion that I do not know anything about, but I would like to!

 Food, what to say about that?  I hade some great experience and some extremely bad, its like a coin, if you hit wrong you can suffer for days in your bathroom, I call this Jalla, and if you hit the superjalla! You can only start to pray.

The Turkish cuisine is in my opinion one of the worlds best with authentic flavours and ways to prepare food, when its good its world class, like the old restaurant Beyti that started in 1945 and is still consider to be one of the best in Istanbul, we hade a great treat of excellent food, and you know how picky I can be J don’t miss out when you are here next time.

The belly dancing is a very special chapter for its self, I saw the top dancer in Turkey and let me tell you boys a secret! She was fabulous and very sexy.

The grand bazaar is very grand, about 6000 shops and It takes  some days to get around it all, sadly it is also the biggest tourist trap with fake cloths, handbags and so on, nothing genuine and no normal Turks in sight, I wonder where they shop? Maybe in the Gucci store when you look at all very well dressed ladies with top brands everywhere.

 I would love to get back here asap to discover more of this amazing city and our friend Malin who lives here must be prepared to receive us soon


Turkish:
İstanbul, Sihirli şehir
WACS Avrupa başkanlık toplantı İsveç aşçılar derneği temsilcisi olarak, iş burada aslında, ama bazı eğlenceli değil mi?
Nereden başlamalı? Bu harika şehre gelen ilk şey, kolay yaşayan bir cehenneme korkutmak ağır ve çılgın bir trafik, herkes, manyaklar gibi zayıf sinirler için hiçbir şey sürüyor.
Resmen canlı İstanbul'da 16 milyon kişi ama kimse gerçekten doğru rakamlar bilir, bazı insanlar gibi pek çok 25 milyon olarak daha iyi bir yaşam elde etmek için ülke tarafında hareket, burada yaşıyor, ben bu konuda bilmiyorum söyledi.Rahip çağrı insanlar duyduğunuzda kültürü burada ne, binlerce yıldır burada sadece muhteşem mimarisi ve büyük geçmiş zamanlardan kalan edilmiştir düşünen hiç şüphesiz dünyanın en iyi olmalı, havada sihirli bir şey var. camiye minarenin şarkıları ile İslam hakkında hiçbir şey bilmiyorum gerçekten büyüleyici bir din olduğunu söylemek gerekir, ama ben istiyorum!
Gıda, bu konuda söyleyecek ne var? Ben bazı büyük deneyim ve bazı son derece kötü, yanlış vurduğunuzda bir sikke gibi, banyoda gün boyunca muzdarip olabilir dikey durumdan eğik duruma geçmek, ben bu Jalla çağrı ve superjalla vurdu! Sadece dua etmeye başlayabilirsiniz.Türk mutfağının otantik tatları ve yemek hazırlamak için yollar, en iyi dünyalar benim görüşüme göre, 1945 yılında başlayan ve hala İstanbul'un en iyilerinden biri olarak kabul eski restoran Beyti gibi iyi, dünya standartlarında, biz mükemmel yemek ayrı bir keyif damarın dikey durumdan ayrılma açısı ve ben burada bir dahaki sefere ne zaman  kaçırmayın ne kadar seçici olduğunu biliyoruz.Oryantal dans kendini çok özel bir bölümde, Türkiye'nin en iyi dansçı gördüm ve bana erkek size bir sır vereceğim! O muhteşem ve çok seksi.
Büyük çarşı, yaklaşık 6000 dükkan, çok görkemli ve aynı zamanda sahte bezler, el çantaları ve benzeri, gerçek bir şey ve hiçbir görüş normal Türkler ile en büyük turist tuzağı ne yazık ki, etrafında almak için birkaç gün sürer, nerede merak ediyorum onlar alışveriş? Belki Gucci mağazası, her yerde en iyi marka tüm çok iyi giyinmiş bayanlar baktığınızda.
En kısa sürede bizi almak için hazırlıklı olmalısınız burada yaşayan bu muhteşem şehir ve bizim arkadaş Malin daha fazlasını keşfetmek için en kısa zamanda geri almak isterdim
Şimdi ve İnşallah için Bye



9/23/11

Guy Charlemagne Champagne

Champagne Guy Charlemagne is situated in the heart of the Côte des Blancs, in the small village of Mesnil sur Oger. As father to son winegrowers since 1892, they only harvest and vinify grapes from their own Chardonnay vineyards and produce around 130 000 bottles per year and most part of it is sold outside France.

I fell in love with this champagne house and its wines some years ago after tasting some bottles of the Mesnillesime vintages that I still today hold as one of the best buys when it comes to vintage champagne, I base this on the pure power and great finesse in the wine that I like and appreciate.
All of the wines are well worth the money.

On my recent visit I tasted the whole range of wines with the recently realised 2003 vintage of the wine that Christina refers to as the “kexchoklad label” all Swedes know what that is J

The wines of Guy Charlemagne is a champagne with great muscular presence, wonderful acidity and aging potentials, I try to use this as an reference wine on my tastings with great success, people just love it.

Another cool thing is that you can make your own personal label on the wines, great gift idea don’t you think?  





9/21/11

POL ROGER IN MY HEART

Upon arrival to the private office of champagne Pol Roger I noticed that the Swedish flag was in front of the house as an honour to us and that made us feel very special and welcome.

The champagne house of Pol Roger dated back to 1849 in Epernay and is still one of very few houses that are still privately owned with Christian Pol Roger and others in the family.

You can not write anything about this house with out mentioning sir W.Churchill who in 1908 bought his first bottle of Pol Roger and stayed unwavering client thru his life and called the house “the most delightful address in the world”

When Churchill died in 1965 the house declared mourning and in 1975 to celebrate the 10: th anniversary of his death the pay an tribute to an old friend by launching the Cuvee Sir Winston Churchill.
Entering the cellars of Pol Roger was a fantastic experience with all the new fermentation tanks and newly restored cellars, I have never seen something like this during my travels in wine countries, I can just say WOW..

Even more amazing is that everything is totally manually made with even the remuage made on every single bottle by hand, I don’t know any other champagne houses that are doing that considering the volume that they put out every year, I have the greatest respect to this great house.
The VIP tasting of all the wines in the range was a tremendous treat and an unforgettable memory that will stay with me until the next visit J


I sure believe in the sun & wine god   







9/18/11

Unga EKO kockar & girl power

Efter en lång tur med utagningar och semifinaler så var det äntligen dags för den stora finalen av Unga Eko kockar som gick av stapeln i Växjö denna helg, vinnarna av årets tävling var tjejlaget från dackeskolan i Mjölby som gjorde en utomordentlig tre rätters meny med tanke på deras ringa ålder, dessa tjejer visar vägen att vi säkrar en framtid för Svenska kockars förening och alla våra tävlingslag.
ETT STORT GRATTIS TILL EMMA, JONNA & FRIDA
Och ett tack till PM & vänner för en strålande middag på kvällen och ett extra tack till Per för den goda Chambollen.

här kommer även lite bilder på tjejernas rätter.

English:

This is from an competition this weekend where students from the 2:nd grade at restaurant school ware competing for the Ekological trophee.
what a great future we have in this country. bevare all the guys here comes the girlpower.




Why do you write in English?

That is an very easy question to answer, half of my readers on this blog are from outside Sweden and as I am a very humble guy and most Swedes know English I think that this would be easier for everybody to understand and if you don’t please do not hesitate to write me and I will translate It for you, this will at the same time be a big challenge for me to do considering that English absolutely not are in any way my native language.

There will be some in just Swedish and sometimes in Serbian just for fun and I will improve over time so please have patience with me.

 In Vino Veritas

9/16/11

Mouton Rothschild the magic Chateau

This famous chateau is located in the village of Pauillac in the Médoc, 50 km north-west of the city of Bordeaux, France, Mouton Rothschild is one of the First Great Growths of Bordeaux Grand Crus, alongside Château Latour, Château Haut Brion, Château Margaux and Château Lafite-Rothschild.

The Bordeaux Classification of 1855 came about when wine brokers were tasked by Emperor Napoleon to create a classification of the wines of Bordeaux. The rating was based (mostly) on the price that the wines were bringing in the market and it divided these top wineries into five classifications. These classifications are known as 'Growths'.

Mouton was the first of the grand wines who started to do all the bottling at the chateau to assure quality of the wine.

 Historically, however, Château Mouton Rothschild was excluded from First Great Growth status. This, it was thought to be so because the vineyard had recently been purchased by an Englishman and was no longer in French ownership.

 In 1973, after decades of intense lobbying by its powerful and influential owner, Mouton Rothschild was elevated to "first growth" status - this was one of the two changes in the original 1855 classification (in 1856 Château Cantemerle was added to the Grand Cru list). This prompted a change of the Château Mouton motto: previously, the motto of the wine was Premier ne puis, second ne daigne, Mouton suis. ("First, I cannot be. Second, I do not condescend to be. Mouton, I am."). Today the motto is Premier je suis, Second je fus, Mouton ne change. ("First, I am. Second, I used to be. Mouton, I do not change.")

Mouton Rothschild's 203 acres of vineyards produce Cabernet Sauvignon (77%), Merlot (11%), Cabernet Franc (10%) and Petit Verdot (2%) that is used in the blend. The wine is fermented in oak vats (one of the few châteaux in the Médoc that is loyal to this traditional method) and then matured in new oak casks.

Baron Philippe de Rothschild, father of the current owner, Baroness Philippine de Rothschild, came up with the idea of having each year's label designed by a famous artist of the day. Since 1946, many of the world's great painters and sculptors have created works (displayed at the chateau) that are also reproduced on the labels of the wine.

On my first Mouton from the vintage of 1976 the label was painted by Pierre Soulages and was a gift from a friend on my 20:th birthday and that changed my direction in to wine and made me be more focused on wine and food pairing, I was an chef at that time and very nerdy in to food without knowledge of wine, what a great start it was, many thanks my dear friend Lars Bogren for introducing me to the world of wine.



Mosel Rieslings with a twist

I was in Mosel last week with Christina, granny Jorunn and Bianca to see how the new vintage is doing and on site there I tried to explain some about the German wines and quickly realized that this is not an very easy topic, but my friend Glenn is putting it down like this when he tries to explain just how sweet is sweet? The Germans have simplified this process by including the information on the label of each wine bottle.

Let's start with Kabinett: The lightest end of the German wine spectrum. They are the least sweet of the German Rieslings. This wine is great as an aperitif.

Spätlese is next in line for the sweet category. Breaking up the word spat means "late" and "lese" means "harvest". Put them together it means "late harvest". These grapes are fully ripened, a little sweeter than Kabinett and typically are more expensive.

Auslese wine is made from selected bunches of grapes which have been left on the vine and allowed to become overripe. Some of the grapes have been attacked by Edelfäule (botrytis cinerea an noble rot, a good mold which forms on the grapes as they shrivel up to become raisin-like, extracting the water, but leaving a honey flavor in the grape).

Beernauslese wines are specially selected grapes which have been affected by Edelfäule, choosing the ripest bunches. It is made only in outstanding years and is very expensive.

Eiswein is exactly what it suggests. The wine is made from overripe grapes unaffected by Edelfäule, but left on the vine until caught by frost. The grapes are pressed to separate the frozen water from the very sweet juice. Eiswein can be enjoyed with just about any sweet dessert or it can be the final course.

Trockenbeernauslese sometimes known as TBA is a wine that may be hard to pronounce but is unforgettable once it reaches your palate. The wine is usually ultra-rich and deep golden-orange. The term literally means dried up selected grapes. It is only made in selected years and is affected by Edelfäule. The selection is hand picked from a single vineyard.

German Rieslings display a mineral quality with pear, yellow/green apple, white peach, floral and honey notes. They are typically higher in acidity lower in alcohol which makes them a good match for spicy dishes. It can also be grown in Alsace, Austria, Australia, New Zealand, U.S.A., Chile, and South Africa.

Look for the label that has the famous German Eagle with the grape cluster. This represents the Verband Deutscher Pradikatsweingüter Association also known as the VDP. It is the oldest recognized wine organization in the world founded in 1910. This association insures quality in the wine by meeting certain members' uncompromising dedicated standards starting with self-imposed regulations.
In Bernkastel we stayed in the Riesling house, a small hotel upstairs and a great wine shop on the bottom floor with the best selection on Mosel wines and always a selection of older vintages for a great bargain, I just love old Rieslings and I will get back with the harvest report in  the next weeks.




9/15/11

Årets Glögg 2011


Tyskarna dricker glühwein, fransmännen har sitt vin chaud och engelsmännen värmer sig med mulled wine. Här i Sverige dricker vi glögg.

Blossa glögg görs på ett mer än hundra år gammalt recept från vinhandlaren J.D. Grönstedt i Gamla stan i Stockholm. Det har inte förändrats sedan Vin & Sprit startade tillverkningen år 1917.

Men som alla andra familjer har även släkten Blossa växt med åren. Med rötterna i traditionen har släktträdet fått nya grenar, utvecklats och föryngrats. Blossa för traditionen framåt med nutida design och spännande nya smaker. Blossas röda och vita lättglögg finns numera i närmsta livsmedelsaffär, medan samlare och entusiaster köar utanför Systembolaget inför premiären på Blossas läckert paketerade årgångsglögg.

All glögg i Blossa-familjen utgår från samma grundrecept. Smaken kommer från den unika kryddblandningen, som bland annat innehåller kardemumma, ingefära och nejlika. De färska kryddorna kommer från utvalda odlare på så vitt skilda platser som Kina och Guatemala, och får dra i sprit i sex månader på fabriken i Åhus.

Den viktigaste ingrediensen vid sidan av kryddextraktet är starkvinet. Blossa innehåller upp till tre olika sorters starkvin av sherry-typ, som tillverkas speciellt för Blossa i Spanien. De tar fem år att framställa och har en inbjudande karaktär av torkad frukt och russin.


BLOSSA 2011: Det är bara åtta år sedan den första årgångsglöggen presenterades, men den har redan blivit en kär familjemed­lem. Blossas årgångsglögg är både trendig och traditionell, den tillfredsställer vårt behov av förändring samtidigt som den bottnar i hundraåriga sedvänjor. Årgångsglöggen får sin smak av traditionella ingredienser med julkänsla. Tidigare år har den bland annat smaksatts med clementin, blåbär och saffran.

Årets upplaga av BLOSSA 2011 har fått smak av kaffe, odlat i Finca Las Delicias i El Salvador. Servera den rumstempererad med en isbit eller värm den på traditionellt vis (89 kr/750ml).




Harvest report from Champagne

The last day of picking in 2011 was Wednesday the 7th September. A date which is usually matching the preparation of the harvest in Champagne rather than the end. But an early summer-like spring has given more than two weeks advance to the vines. This is not the earliest harvest we have had in recent years, 2003 with it's summer heat wave and the 11th April frost that destroyed almost all the yield had seen the harvest start on August the 23rd. Luckily this is also the only common point of those two years.


This year we have seen grapes of exceptional quality: healthy, ripe, giving sharp and fresh juices. Our chardonnays, from both Chouilly and Vitry were already at this stage a pleasure to taste. Now that fermentations are complete, our hope is confirmed, as in 1961, 2011 will contradict the common belief that "years in one" don't make good wines. We could have thought of no better gift for our 20 years anniversary. Similar in many ways to beautiful vintage years (1995 for its structure and to 2004 for its elegance) 2011 will continue to keep us in suspense until the final decision to make a vintage or not. We will be very cautious when taking that decision, even if 2011 is a meaningful year for us but we want to leave no doubt about the reasons for making it a Vintage.

Jérôme Legras
Champagne LEGRAS & HAAS


9/14/11

LEGRAS & HAAS CHAMPAGNE EXTRA

The champagne house of Legras & Haas maybe is unknown for some, but let me tell that you are missing out on some great wines made by this family.

Brigitte Hass & Francois Legras started up their own company in 1991 after being growers to other houses for many years.

I meet one of three sons, Jerome Legras and his mother on a sunny afternoon at the winery in Grand Cru Chouilly (he hade just finished the last pressing) to try some of the wines that they produce, what a great tasting hi gave me,
From the tradition bottling of 50% chardonnay, 25% pinot noir and 25% pinot meunier that is representing the house in full scale and great quality to the

Millesime 2005 made of 100% chardonnay grand cru selection parcellaire, what a great wine it was.

The house produce some 80 000 bottler per year from 14 hectare in Chouilly and a very small parcel of pinot in Ay and the vilification is obtained by the best and most rigour ways to obtain the highest quality.

Per Exigence





9/11/11

Bollinger Per Se

To visit Bollinger is a mission by it self, after months of work I was able to get a visitation time to this Grand Marque in champagne.

The Bollinger style is one of my favourite for many years and is was a special treat to get a chance to visit them as VIP extravaganza, both me and Christina was amazed on how much manual labouring was behind all of the cuvees and what efford they put in at every single bottle.

What I like about Bollinger is the power in the wines, I would say that they make a great white Burgundy with the finest and tiniest bubbles, its powerful, masculine, elegant and extremely complex wines always ready to consume, witch I like J

The barrel storage is one of a kind in champagne and the 3000+ barrels where all with a barcode so that the winemaker could read the whole history of the barrel with a scanner, some high Tec in a traditional place.

The latest baby is the rose wines that Bollinger was the latest to adopt due to that Lilly Bollinger did not like the idea of a rose wine, but market demands make them think twice about this and for the last two years there is two bottling of rosé
The special cuvee and the La Grand Annee rose.

The most mystifying in the range is the bottles of Vieilles Vignes Francaises! Made of ungrafted vines that was not affected of the phylloxera with two tiny grand cru plots of 100% pinot noir just outside the house and only about 2000 bottles a year, mystical, magical and probably fantastic, I did not taste it unfortunately, the bottles are all allocated to the best customers around the globe and if you can find it buy it. The price is an average of 900 €

The range goes from special cuvee, La Grande Annee, the R.D (recently disgorged) and then the masterpiece V.V.F, the best thing is that Bollinger put focus on a smaller portfolio and make the best of what the grapes can provide.

 Bollinger is the trademark for gutsy champagne and I just love it.