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

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

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.