Weekly Faves: In the blend...the love you take...
WEEKLY FAVES
This week, Tom's weekly faves selection begins in the Loire, drops you down to the Rhône, before cutting across Central Europe to Austria. Three blends from three different young winemakers. We have fine, elegant bubbles with Domaine De Bablut's Cremant, Chardonnay's depth tempered by the lift of fruit from a rare varietal in Terres De ROA's Cuvee A, and the forest-fruit "pink mattress by-the pond" field blend that is Judith Ambrositsch's Rakete.
A bottle for every occasion the week may throw at us; or the makings of a great evening.
Cremant de Loire NV - Blend
Domaine de Bablut
“The Daviau family are a historical family from the Anjou region of the Loire Valley. The family's ancestors began the winery estate on the hills surrounding the town of Brissac back in the 16th Century. They then owned, in addition to their vineyard, several mills which they also worked. Typically in Anjou, the valleys were dedicated to cereals and water mills, and the hillsides: vineyards and windmills. At the end of the 19th century, the Daviau family devoted themselves solely to the vine, abandoning the flour mill. Several generations have followed since then but today it is Christophe Daviau that manages the vineyards at the historic Domaine de Bablut.
“This Crémant de Loire (a blend of 4 different grape varieties) will bring cheerfulness as an aperitif or with a light dessert. The bubbles are fine, the nose is "creamy" which picks up slight vanilla and brioche characters. The different grape varieties that make it up each bring their aromatics to the table: Chardonnay with its sweet floral scents (honeysuckle, hawthorn), Chenin Blanc with its mineral nuances, Cabernet its violet note and Grolleau Noir it's spice. The mouth is delicate and the fine bubbles give it lightness and finesse.”
Cuvee A 2018 - Tressalier / Chardonnay
Terres de ROA
“Second pick is from Terres de ROA in the Saint Pourcain area of the Rhône (basically smack bang in the middle of France). It's a blend of 2 grape varieties, one of which I'm sure you are all familiar with - but it's the other grape variety of Tressalier that may raise the question.. what the hell is that? Once upon a time this grape was widely planted across this region in the middle ages. As time went on and commerciality took precedence over individuality, there were not many plantings of the varietal left to withstand the onslaught of Phylloxera; which reduced the remaining Tressalier plots down to just 100 hectares across France.
“Loren Tisserand now farms this rare grape variety organically and uses biodynamics to let nature take its place. Freshness and aromatics from the Tressalier accompanies fruit and depth from the Chardonnay.”
Rakete 2018 - Zweigelt Blend
Jutta Ambrositsch
“Jutta Ambrositsch was born in Südburgenland, about two and a half hours south of Vienna. She moved to Vienna to pursue her career as a graphic design artist, but eventually decided that she needed a change. In 2004, she left behind her design career and started a special wine project in the city with only 650L of wine. Now, she spends most of her days in the vineyards; with winemaking she has been able to find a perfect balance of city living and getting her hands in the dirt. She manages the business with her husband, Marco Kalkbrenner who takes care of the ‘administration, poetic wine descriptions, and logistics’ while Jutta manages the vineyards and cellar work.
“The grapes for this Gemischter Satz, (a field blend with many different varieties picked the same day) come from the Kahlenberg vineyard which is comprised of compressed sandstone. All grape varieties were co-fermented in stainless steel. A light, bracing red wine that should be served chilled.”
Have a great week everyone,
Tom