Grainger’s Wine Blog

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Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Grainger’s wine blog weekly wine offer this week at www.gfwine.co.uk  is a Loire valley wine from Domaine de la Saugourde.  This is an Anjou blanc appellation  wine from the cellars of Francois Letheuil. A traditional dry soft white wine from the region. The wine is on offer at £6.99 reduced from £8.99. A terrific price. It is made from the Loire white grape chenin blanc with a little chardonnay. The wine is typical Anjou that is dry with a slight softness so although fresh its not too acidic.

The estate is owned and run by the Letheuil family who have been making wine for over 100 years. Francois Letheuil has been the winemaker for the past 20 years. The vineyard extends to some 20 hectares over a wide variety of soils from the valley bottom up to the escarpment above. The parcels on the river bank produce the Anjou Blanc wines made from Chenin Blanc, the classic white grape of the region. The Cabernet Franc from these parcels are used in the production of the dry fruity rose wine Rose de Loire appellation.

On the schist soils higher up the valley side Francois grows the Chenin for the production of the famous sweet wines of the Coteaux du Layon appellation. The grapes are left on the vines during the autumn and when the mist rises up the valley it promotes the development of the ‘Noble Rot’ which concentrates the sugars. These grapes are hand picked and fermented into soft fruity sweet wines. The deep and fruity light Anjou reds are made from the Cabernet Franc grapes grown on the limestone soils of the escarpment. Francois has invested in a modern cellar with stainless steel fermentation vats with central temperature control heating/cooling facilities for all the vats. This allows wines to be fermented and stored at optimum temperatures to allow the full character of the wine to be achieved.

The vineyards wines are well received in France, most of their wines being sold locally and in other parts of the country. We are fortunate to have forged a relationship with Francois to allow us to offer small quantities of each vintage for sale in the UK.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog Grainger’s  wine blog Grainger’s wine blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Here’s our guide to when is the best day for opening a good bottle of wine that will taste the best.

This week can be described as a disaster for drinking fine wine. Do not bother to open a good bottle. Its a root day on Monday and this continues all the way to Thursday 23rd, with a very small window between 1pm and 8pm when we have a flower period. Apart from that its all downhill up until Sunday. Next week is slightly better so try and be patient before opening your bottle. Fortunately we had a good day on Saturday when we had a wine tour with our guests from the States.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog Grainger’s  wine blog Grainger’s wine blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Batonnage is the stirring action in a vat to mix the dead yeast and grape residues in the wine juice. This is traditionally done with a stick during the aging of wine in the vat after the end of fermentation.  The interest of stirring is to promote the autolysis of yeast that has the effect of giving more body to the wine and promote the development of more complex flavours.  Small domains use homemade sticks long enough to reach the base of the vat with a piese on the base with holes in it that is plunged up and down to stir up the sediment in the bottom of the vat.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog Grainger’s  wine blog Grainger’s wine blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Our updates on the current vintage of 2012 is not good for all you followers of vintages. 2012 was a year of cold weather and loads of rain so in the Loire valley the berries had little chance to fully mature and were affected by the damp weather with loads of rot on the vine. This after a very difficult start with a very cold winter down to minus 15 and more in some places and a bad period of flowering. This led to bud rot and lack of bud formation and then a good part of the berry bunch not maturing into berries. With low yields and bad weather the vintage of 2012 is extremely varied and I would suggest you miss this vintage and buy 2010 and 2011 which are readily available still.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog Grainger’s  wine blog Grainger’s wine blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Grainger’s wine blog today is our cocktail day so get your ingredients ready for the off.

No 15 of our cocktail reviews on a Thursday. Ready for that Friday night go go go.

Today our cocktail is called Pousse-Café

This is another classic from the cocktail manual. It is a layered cocktail of many different coloured liqueurs. It is crucial to ice all the liqueuers first

Ingredients:

1/4 measure Grenadine

1/4 measure Crème de Menthe

1/4 measure Galliano

1/4 measure Kummel

1/4 measure Brandy

Method:

Ice all the liqueurs in a tall shot glass.

Carefully pour the liqueurs over a spoon evenly into the glass

Leave a few minutes to settle

Have a wizzy weekend.

Enjoy.

Cheers.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

In Grainger’s wine blog today is our weekly wine review.

Guide no 20 of my review of all the wines on our wine list at www.gfwine.co.uk   Our list covers most of the wine regions of France and so you should have no trouble in finding a wine to suit your palate.

Todays review on Grainger’s wine blog is a wine from the  region of Provence in France. Our wine review of the week is a wine from Chateau de Fontlade.    The wine is from the appellation  of  Coteaux Varois en Provence AOC.

The estate of Chateau de Fontlade lies on the former Roman road Via Aurelia and have been documented since the 10th century. The vineyards cover about 35 hectares and are classified under the Côtes de Provence appellation and produce rosé under this appellation. Production is 75% rosé, 15% red and 10% white.

The estate works to a commitment of reasonable agriculture and uses only methods that will not harm the vined and respects the environment. The estate grape varieties are Syrah, Grenache, Cinsault, Cabernet Sauvignon and Rolle (also called Vermentino). With its continental climate of cold winters and hot summers together with the stony soils the long tradition of wine making goes way back to Roman times. The Coteaux Varois en Provence appellation produces generous wines typical of the appellation – hearty reds, aromatic rosés, and fresh flowery whites.

The estate is one of Provence’s top wine makers and it has been recognised as such by winning gold, silver and bronze medals in Macon and in Paris as well as favourable reviews in the press.

The rosé wine is macerated for 5 to 6 hours and is bled not pressed and kept at 17°C  during fermentation to enhance the fruitiness of the wine. The reds are Syrah based. One cuvee is vat aged whilst the one made from older vines is aged in old oak barrels to preserve the aromas of the wine and give it a refined elegance. The small quantities of white are also oak aged to give a full and delicate complexity to the wine.

This is a  rosé wine made from 50% Cinsault and 50% Grenache grapes. An elegant dry style with a pleasant nose of red fruits and peach. A long and aromatic mouth with good structure and a long fresh finish. Serve at 6-8°C as an aperitif, summer meals, barbequed fish, summer puddings and even with a far eastern style meal as long as it’s not spicy.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

 Loirewinetoursblog Loirewinetoursblog Loirewinetoursblog

Loirewinetoursblog loirewinetoursblog.co.uk

We made a visit today to a new domaine in Anjou country. New to us I mean. We heard about it from our friends Peter and Maggie. Then coincidentally we all went out a week ago to a restaurant in Neuil sur Layon near us and they had a wine on the wine list from the domaine which we all tried and rated very highly. Its an Anjou Village AOC from Domaine du Petit Clocher in a village near us called Cléré-sur-Layon. It is run by the Denis family Jean-Noel, Vincent, Julien and Stephane.

We tasted reds of Anjou and Anjou village AOC, Whites of Chardonnay VDP and Anjou AOC, Pinks of Rose de Loire and Cabernet d’Anjou, sparkling white Cremant de Loire and a pink sparkling, and a selection of Sweet Coteaux du Layon.

All perfectly good wines and we purchased the very good Anjou Village. Peter also liked the same and our other taster John was partial to the Anjou rouge and Chardonnay.

All in all good fun and enjoyable. If you fancy some of the same why not come out on a wine tour with us.

We finished up at Cléré Quarry as Peter was after some gravel. Cheers.

Wine tours blog ing is fun with our wine tours blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine tours scene or something quite different you never know.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog Grainger’s  wine blog Grainger’s wine blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Grainger’s wine blog weekly wine offer this week at www.gfwine.co.uk  is a Loire valley wine from Domaine de L’Enchantoir.  This is a cabernet d’Anjou appellation  wine from the cellars of Pierre Van Den Boom. A traditional medium pink wine from the region. The wine is on offer at £6.99 reduced from £8.60. A terrific price.

Pierre and Brigitte Van den Boom’s first foray into wine began in a small way in 2003 and since then Pierre has studied at college, obtained his BPA (agricultural professional degree) completed an internship with an organic wine grower and bought a vineyard.

They chanced upon the wonderful Domaine de L’Enchantoir in 2008 and, after working with the former owner on the 2008 vintage, purchased the vineyard in March 2009. They have adapted perfectly to the life of vignerons, immersing themselves into the estate, relishing working in the vineyards and making wine.

The domaine is located in the commune of Le Puy Notre Dame, 25 kilometres south of Saumur on the left bank of the river Thouet, a tributary of the river Loire. The clay and limestone nature of its soils, together with the exposure of the hillsides confer on L’Enchantoir’s wines the aromatic character typical of the vines growing on  the mound of ‘Turonien’ on which the vineyard is located.

During the harvest and subsequent processes in the chai Pierre and Brigitte make joint decisions. The grapes are slowly pressed and the juice frequently tasted until just the right level of tannins, colour and aromas are achieved. One hundred and one decisions are made that result in a great bottle of wine.

Their philosophy is best summed up in Pierre’s own words:

“To make a good wine, you need a healthy vine, beautiful grapes and sunny ripe berries. So our first principle is to keep the vines in good shape, to prune carefully, to maintain a living grassy ground and make sure that helpful insects, predators of parasites can live on location. Even though our vineyard is not yet organic, we already use reasoned culture, our ultimate goal in the coming years being to convert to organic culture. Second, harvesting at the very right moment is crucial in order to produce well-balanced wines and avoid acidity. Last but not least, wine must be the result of a natural process: let the soil express itself in the wine.”

This wine is made of the single varietal Cabernet Franc the predominant red grape of the Loire Valley particularly in the central section between Angers and Tours. It is used in four of the main rosé appellations. This is a medium dry fruity still rosé wine. It has a lively nose of raspberry and is lusciously fruity on the palate. Serve chilled at 6-8°C as an aperitif before dinner, with grilled meats and with the cheese course.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Here’s our guide to when is the best day for opening a good bottle of wine that will taste the best.

Its not a good start today being a root day, but never fear Monday and Tuesday are good for a bottle with a couple of flower days. Wednesday  afternoon and evening and All day Thursday are leaf days so avoid these days. A great finish to the week with a fruit period on Friday 17th from noon and this follows on to Saturday and Sunday so all good for some fine wine drinking.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog

Grainger’s wine blog Grainger’s  wine blog Grainger’s wine blog

Grainger’s wine blog is gfwineblog.co.uk

Grainger’s wine blog. The one and only wine blog for all you winos out there.

Today my wine facts are about the premier red wine grape variety of the Loire valley Cabernet Franc.

Cabernet Franc is one of three main grapes used in Bordeaux wine blends where you are more than likely heard of it.  The grape reaches its best expression and potential in the limestone soils found in the central area of the Loire around Saumur, Chinon, and Tours. The wine appellations of Anjou, Saumur, and Chinon. It is alos the favourite of the Bordeaux wine appellation of St. Emilion. Pomerol also offers fertile soils for the varietal. Cabernet Franc is planted with varying degrees of success in other French wine regions.  It has continued gaining in popularity in America as well as in other wine producing countries. Few wineries outside of the Loire Valley and America seem to have produced successful wines from 100% Cabernet Franc. More often than not, the wine is blended with other grapes.

Cabernet Franc is less popular today than it was at the start of the 20th century. At that point in time, almost as much vineyard land was devoted to Cabernet Franc as it was to Cabernet Sauvignon. While Cabernet Franc first earned its popularity in the Loire Valley in the 1700′s, perhaps its greatest claim is due to the fact that it gave birth to Cabernet Sauvignon after it was crossed with Sauvignon Blanc.

Cabernet Franc shares DNA with Cabernet Sauvignon. But there are numerous differences between the grapes. Cabernet Franc ripens earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon and it is better suited to cooler vintages than Cabernet Sauvignon. Cabernet Franc performs well in stone and chalk soils as well as in sandy terroir. Perhaps the grape earns its highest accolades from the wines produced at Chateau Cheval Blanc, located in the Right Bank region of Bordeaux. With global warming, more land is being devoted to Cabernet Franc in Pomerol and St. Emilion these days.

Not as fleshy as Merlot and with less tannic structure than Cabernet Sauvignon, this deeply colored, thin skinned berry offers floral, plum, blackberry, cassis, spice and fresh herb flavors when ripe. When not ripe, it’s possible to find green pepper or other green vegetal aromas. Wines with a healthy portion of Cabernet Franc can be difficult to taste and assess when young

Wine blog ing is fun with Grainger’s wine blog so log on regularly to catch up on the latest with the wine scene or something quite different.  You never know what might appear.

Cheers.

Our websites

www.loirewinetours.com   Our wine tours

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk  Our self catering holidays

www.gfwine.co.uk  Our retail wine shop

www.thestrictlywineclub.co.uk  Our wine club

www.vintnersfinewines.co.uk  Our wholesale wine shop

www.thewinefinder.co.uk  Our wine import portal

Our email addresses

info@loirewinetours.com Our wine tours email address for enquiries

graingersatmanoir@yahoo.co.uk Our self catering holiday email address for enquiries

enquiries@gfwine.co.uk Our retail wine shop email address for enquiries

enquiries@thestrictlywineclub.co.uk Our wine club email address for enquiries

enquiries@vintnersfinewines.co.uk Our wholesale wine shop email address for enquiries

Our blogs

www.loirewinetoursblog.co.uk  Our wine tours blog

www.gfwineblog.co.uk  Our wine blog

www.manoirdegourin.co.uk/karins-loire-holiday-cottages-blog  Our gite holiday blog