WINE COURSES, SOMMELERIE, CONSULTING

White Notre Dame de la Solitude is the second wine of the chateau Domaine de la Solitude. The vineyards of the chateau are located in the territory of the Pessac-Léognan appellation and belong to the religious community of the Holy Family, founded in 1820 by the Bordeaux priest Pierre Bienvenu Noailles. Dedication to religion, an […]

Doesn’t the name of the winery seem a bit Italian to you? And this is not without reason. Crimea’s favorable location for international trade attracted Italian merchants. The Venetians were the first to arrive in Crimea, followed by the Genoese, who controlled the peninsula for about 200 years and left their mark on it during […]

Every third Thursday in November, France (and not only, since bottles of Beaujolais Nouveau are sent all over the world on the eve of the holiday) celebrates Beaujolais Nouveau Day – the young wine of the current vintage, which is the first to go on sale in the same year. And this is the only […]

Today, I am adding another wine to the collection of volcanic wine tastings. Produced by the emblematic Auvergne estate, Desprat St-Verny, this lively, mineral and round white is made from Pinot Gris and Chardonnay, which grow in the heart of the Auvergne volcanoes, on clay-limestone soils. Vinification in neutral stqinless steel vats allows the grape […]

The history of Tchotiashvili family began in the 18th century, on the banks of the Lopota River, in the Alazani Valley. Today, the 8th generation continues the family traditions, producing wines from indigenous grape varieties and vinified in qvevri. Two brothers, Kakha and Ucha, are at the head of the family business, and since 2002 […]

In the article on Auvergne wines I spoke of a unique effect of foehn, a wind, created by the collision of clouds with the mountains, which descends from the mountains and warms the air and which thus promotes the maturation of the grapes. However, the grapes accumulate enough sugar for a sufficient level of alcohol […]

Contents: ► History of the appellation ► Types of wines and grape variety of Montlouis-sur-Loire ► Tasting: Closerie Chanteloup L’Essentiel 2018 Montlouis-sur-Loire Montlouis-sur-Loire is a small (450 hectares) little-known wine region in the Loire Valley. However, its wines differ from the smoky, mineral Pouilly-Fumé and Sancerre, thanks to the special characteristics of the terroir: Combination […]

Contents: ► A curious history ► How does wine acquire its blue color? ► Tasting “blue wine”: Bodega Santa Margarita Vino Azul Pasion Blue Chardonnay Red, white, rosé, orange – this is the well-known palette of wine colors, to which a rather strange blue color has been “added” for a relatively long time (in 2018, […]

This Barolo is one of the wines from my collection that requires patience, which will definitely be rewarded if you taste such beverages at the best moment, at the peak of their development. This bottle attracted my attention long time ago, but knowing the characteristics of Barolo and their potential for aging, I firmly decided […]

Another blue “wine” that I recently tasted: Luc Belaire Bleu. The Luc Belaire wine house has been around since 1898 and produces original sparkling wines. Currently, it is owned by the fifth and sixth generations of winemakers, who have added an experimental blue to the traditional colors of sparkling wines. And, to their credit, the […]

  Is Sauternes only sweet wines? Yes and no. Of course, only sweet white wines with minimal sweetness (measured in grams of sugar per liter) can have the appellation, but dry white wines are also produced on its territory, but under the name “dry white Bordeaux” (Bordeaux Blanc Sec). Why are the winemakers of Sauternes […]

Contents: ► A brief introduction to the Abrau-Durso Winery ► Terroir of Abrau-Durso

Contents: ► History of the appellation ► Terroir ► Types of wine ► Tasting CHâteau Piron 2004 Graves Rouge History of the appellation Grapes have been grown in the Bordeaux region since Roman times, but viticulture really took off in the Middle Ages. After the wedding of Eleanor of Aquitaine and the English King Henry […]

Contents: ► History of Domme appellation ► Terroir and grape varieties ► Tasting: Vin de Domme 2014. Périgord Noir. Les vignerons des coteaux de Céou The small district of Domme is located in the picturesque Dordogne region, in the historical territory of the Black Perigord, “Périgord Noir”. This part of the Perigord (there is also […]