Category Archives: Testable Material for the CWE Exam

News from Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine: Four New Sub-zones Approved

  By admin | June 29, 2019 - 11:17 am | ,
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On Wednesday, June 19, 2019 France’s Institut National de l’origine et de la Qualité (INAO) approved a revision of the Cahier des Charges of the Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine AOC and in doing so, approved four new sub-zones for the appellation. These geographical indications are sometimes referred to as Crus, or Crus Communaux (cru communal zones).

This new announcement means that the appellation now contains seven sub-zones including Clisson, Gorges, and Le Pallet (approved in 2011). These seven sub-zones represent the highest-quality wines (and very limited production) from the large and Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine appellation.

The Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine AOC is located in the Pays Nantais area of France’s Loire Valley, and is known for still (non-sparkling) white wines produced using 100% Melon de Bourgogne grapes. Much of the production is produced in the sur lie style, requiring that the wine be aged on the lees (expired yeast cells) until at least March 1 of the year following the harvest. (A sub-zone designation typically requires longer minimum sure lie aging times as well as other specific standards required for qualification.)

Map of Muscadet via: https://www.vinsvaldeloire.fr/en

Map of Muscadet via: https://www.vinsvaldeloire.fr/en

The new sub-zones are as follows:

Goulaine: Goulaine is the northernmost as well as the largest of the seven crus of Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine AOC. This area is dominated by a series of small hills overlooking the Marais de Goulaine (a swampy area known as the Marsh of Goulaine). Top soils are coarse and sandy; subsoils are mainly metamorphic (gneiss and schist). Vines in the Goulaine sub-zone tend to have early bud break and are often the first vines in the area to be ready for harvest.

Château-Thébaud: The Château-Thébaud sub-zone is located in the southwest portion of the Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine AOC, just to the north of Clisson. The area consists mainly of hills and hillsides, some of them steep and wooded. Many of the finest vineyard sites are located near the Maine River as it flows through this area in a north/northwest direction. Soils are mainly sandy/stony atop granite and gneiss.

Detail of the map of Muscadet via: https://www.vinsvaldeloire.fr/en

Detail of the map of Muscadet via: https://www.vinsvaldeloire.fr/en

Monnières-Saint-Fiacre: The Monnières-Saint-Fiacre cru—also located just to the north of the Clisson subzone—lies just to the east of Château-Thébaud. The vineyards are planted on a succession of hillsides spread over eastern bank of the River Sèvre, extending into the surrounding valleys and woods. The soils consist primarily of sandy loam over a subsoil of gneiss and some clay.

Mouzillon-Tillières: Mouzillon-Tillières is located to the north of the River Sèvre, to the north/northeast of the Gorges sub-zone. It is centered around the Sanguèze River (a 44km-/27 mile-long tributary of the Loire).  The vines are planted on a series of small hillsides and outcrops along both the sides of the river. The soils are mainly composed of sand and clay over gabbro bedrock (gabbro is an igneous rock created by the slow, underground cooling of magma).

Keep those flashcards handy: According to the website of Loire Valley Wines (Vins de Val de Loire), three more areas— La Haye-Fouassière and Vallet (in Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine), as well as Champtoceaux (located within the Muscadet Coteaux de la Loire AOC)—are being considered for sub-zone status.

Please note that while you will be able to see these subzones on wine labels beginning with the 2018 harvest, the new-and-improved Cahier des Charges for the Muscadet Sèvre-et-Maine AOC (as linked below) will still need to wind its way through the EU registration process.

Click here for more information on Muscadet (note the details on the Clisson, Gorges, and Le Pallet sub-zones near the bottom of the page).

Post authored by Jane A. Nickles…your blog administrator: jnickles@societyofwineeducators.org

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Castilla-La Mancha (and Spanish Wine) has a Very Good Day: Three New Vinos de Pago approved!

  By admin | June 14, 2019 - 7:11 am | , ,
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The estate wines of Spain hare having a good week! Last Wednesday (June 12, 2019) the EU approved three new Vinos de Pago as protected designation of origin/PDO wines of Spain.

All three of these newly-registered Pagos are located in the comunidad autónoma of Castilla-La Mancha—making a total of 11 Pagos (out of Spain’s new current total of 18) located within the region. According to the fresh-off-the-presses documentation, the details concerning these PDOs include the following:

Vino de Pago Vallegarcía

  • Location: Specified parcels in the municipality of Retuerta del Bullaque (Ciudad Real); located within the VdlT Castilla; the area is close to and influenced by the Bullaque River; soils of the region are known for high acidity/low pH
  • Allowed grape varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, Viognier
  • Types/styles of wine:
    • Viognier: Both stainless steel and French oak barrels are used for fermentation; wine is lees aged for a minimum of 6 months
    • Red˜single-variety and blends: Both stainless steel and French oak barrels are used for fermentation; maceration lasts for 7 to 28 days; oak and barrel aging are utilized but minimum aging time is not specified
  • Other notes: The use of pre-fermentation maceration (cold soak) is common; must and wines are gravity-fed through much of the production process; both red and white wines are known for their herbal aromas (described in the white wines as white flowers, lavender, and rosemary and in the red wines as Mediterranean scrub and lavender)
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Vino de Pago La Jaraba

  • Location: Specified parcels in the municipality of El Provencio (Cuenca); within the confines of the existing La Mancha DO; the area has almost no hills and sits at a consistent elevation of 700 meters (2,300 ft) above sea-level; vineyards are surrounded by oak and pine forests
  • Allowed grape varieties: Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Graciano
  • Types/styles of wine:
    • Red blend of Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Graciano; aged in oak barrels for at least 9 months followed by aging in the bottle for at least 9 months
    • Red blend of Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot; aged in oak barrels for at least 6 months followed by aging in the bottle for at least 6 months
    • Varietal Merlot (red): 100% Merlot, aged in oak barrels for at least 6 months followed by aging in the bottle for at least 6 months
  • Other Notes: Wine may be fermented in stainless or French oak; fermentation process is initiated via the “grapes’ own microbial flora”
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Vino de Pago Los Cerrillos

  • Location: Specified parcels in the municipality of Argamasilla de Alba (Ciudad Real); the area is locally referred to as the “Vega Alta” section of the Guadiana River
  • Allowed grape varieties: Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Syrah
  • Types/styles of wine:
    • Varietal Tempranillo (red); 100% Tempranillo, aged in oak for at least 30 days
    • Varietal Syrah (red); 100% Syrah, aged in oak for at least 6 months
    • Red blend of Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon; aged in oak for at least 6 months
    • “Private Collection” red blend of Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon; aged in oak for at least 13 months
    • “Cabernet Sauvignon de Familia” (Family Reserve Cabernet); 100 % Cabernet Sauvignon; aged in oak for at least 24 months followed by at least 18 months of bottle aging
  • Other notes: Grapes are harvested between 5 o’clock and 11 o’clock in the morning; wine is fermented in stainless steel; délestage (rack-and-return) is used throughout the fermentation process; wine is not pressed but is clarified via racking

Welcome to the world, Vino de Pago Vallegarcía, Vino de Pago La Jaraba, and Vino de Pago Los Cerrillos!

Post authored by Jane A. Nickles…your blog administrator: jnickles@societyofwineeducators.org

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The Ancestor Vines of Barossa

  By admin | October 22, 2014 - 8:18 pm | , ,
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Photo by Stephan Ridgway

Photo by Stephan Ridgway

Old vines…for many of us, the term “old vine” implies that a wine is produced from grapes grown on a grapevine of more than 20, or 50, or 100 years of age (the exact number depending on where exactly the vineyard is and your point of view), and that the fruit, having been painstakingly ripened by a grizzled old vine, will be exceptionally rich, concentrated, and complex.

While I am sure most wine aficionados would agree with that purposefully vague description, the truth remains that “old vine” (or vieilles vignes, as the French say) remains a largely unregulated and undefined wine term. After all, a lot depends on context. If you grow grapes in Châteauneuf-du-Pape or Jerez, the idea of “old” might actually start at about the half-century mark. On the other hand, if you grow grapes in the Canterbury Plains or Elkton, Oregon, you might start to think of your vines as “old timers” once the hit 20 years old.

One thing that just about everyone can agree upon, however, is that the older vines of the world need to be protected, respected, and – in the best of all possible worlds – documented and substantiated. To this end, Australia’s Barossa Grape and Wine Association, which has over 500 grape growers and claims to have more old vines than any other region in the world, has taken steps to do so. After all, as Ron “The Dirtman” Gibson, of Gibson Wines in the Barossa says, “Old vines aren’t good because they’re old, they’re old because they are good.”

Photo by Verita Photography

Photo by Verita Photography

The organization has released what might be one of the only specific definitions of the term “old vine” in the wine-making world. Although these terms  are not regulated by the Australian Government, nor are the approved as “official” wine descriptors, this is at least a good first step in understanding and honoring the areas “old vines.”

The classifications of Barossa’s old vines are as follows:

  • Old Vines: 35 years old or over
  • Survivor Vines: 70 years old or over
  • Centenarian Vines: 100 years old or over
  • Ancestor Vines: 125 years old or over

The Barossa Grape and Wine Association has also published the “Barossa Old Vine Charter,” a declaration of sorts intended to protect and recognize the region’s oldest vines, some of which date back to 1909 or earlier and are to be considered part of Australia’s living history. The organization also keeps a Barossa Vineyards Register, which details the vineyards of the area by grape variety and by age.  The Barossa Vineyards Register, and the Barossa Old Vine Charter can be found on the Barossa Grape and Wine Association’s website. An excellent overview of the different categories of the Barossa’s old vine classifications can be found on the website of the Barossa’s Langmeil Winery.

Post authored by Jane A. Nickles, CSS, CWE – your SWE Blog Administrator

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