Wine With Wanda

Sparkle All Season With Champagne Piper-Heidsieck!

 

Tis the season to sparkle, in your spirit and in your glass! Get into the festive mood of the holiday season with a bottle of Champagne Piper-Heidsieck. It’s impossible to be a Grinch when Piper-Heidsieck’s petite bubbles are dancing in your glass! I’m happy to say that I’ve lost count of how many glasses of Piper-Heidsieck I’ve sipped over the years. Consistently elegant and always intriguing, Champagne Piper-Heidsieck always makes me smile. Founded in 1785, Piper-Heidsieck elicits smiles around the globe; it is poured in over 100 countries!

Piper-Heidsieck Cuvée Brut ($60) is the House’s signature cuvée. Festive and full of finesse, it blends Pinot Noir, Meunier, and Chardonnay from 100 crus with reserve wines. A generous and balanced bubbly, it is crisp and round with bright fruit and vibrant energy. Classic and chic!

Look at that color! Piper-Heidsieck Rosé Sauvage ($72) brings a bit more drama to the party! An unusually large proportion of red wines give this Rosé champagne its stunning ruby hue and bold personality. Pinot Noir dominates the blend, of which 20-25% is vinified as red wine. Meunier, Chardonnay and reserve wines add additional complexity and nuance. Juicy red and black berry flavors mingle seamlessly with hints of spice.

Make it an even more festive and fabulous holiday season with Piper-Heidsieck!

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Chapoutier for the Holidays!

Add some ooh la la to the holidays with the wines of M.Chapoutier! I’m a big fan of Chapoutier’s elegant, terroir-driven, and authentic wines; they always add a bit of magic to meals and time together with friends and family.

I took this photo of Michel Chapoutier when we met in 2018. 

The Chapoutier family has been making wine in the Rhône Valley since 1808, but 1990 was a turning point in their history. With the bold visionary Michel Chapoutier at the helm, the family winery became a trailblazing powerhouse. Under Michel’s leadership, Chapoutier introduced Single Vineyard Selection wines that express the unique terroir of a site. To ensure that visually impaired wine lovers could access the information on his wine labels, Chapoutier began embossing their labels in braille. Also, since 1990, the Maison M. CHAPOUTIER has been unwavering in their commitment to practicing biodynamic viticulture. Care for the land and concern for others doesn’t just drive Chapoutier to make great wine, but to make a difference. 

I’ll be adding some ooh la la to the holidays with two Chapoutier wines.

Les Meysonniers Crozes-Hermitage Blanc 2019 ($45) is 100% Marsanne from gently sloping south-facing hillsides. It is described as a white wine that “epitomizes the character of Marsanne in Crozes-Hermitage”. “The nose is full of quince, peony, and roasted almonds and the palate is fresh and supple.”

Monier de la Sizeranne Hermitage 2016 ($162) is 100% Syrah sourced from three vineyards with different soil types. The winemaker's notes say, “Red fruits with a hint of liquorice are evident on the nose. The palate is round and elegant with flavours of blackcurrant, raspberry and spicy aromas when it is young."

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Deep Roots and Wines That Soar: A Taste of Catalunya with Familia Torres

Miguel Torres Maczassek, President, Familia Torres

If you’ve been reading my wine musings for a fair amount of time, it’s no secret that I love Spain and I have great affection and respect for family-owned wineries with a long history. So, it was an absolute joy and honor to chat on Instagram Live with Miguel Torres Maczassek, fifth-generation vintner and president of Familia Torres. In 2020, Familia Torres Winery celebrated their 150th anniversary, but their winemaking roots in Spain can be traced back to 1557! 

Familia Torres produces quality wine from 9 DOs across Spain, and in Chile too, but our tasting focused on wines from Catalunya, where the family has deep roots. During our chat, we discussed the rich history of Familia Torres, their commitment to sustainability, high-altitude heroic viticulture, regenerative farming, and the important role monks played in winemaking in Catalunya. We tasted:

Varietat Recuperada “Forcada” 2019 ($74) – The Torres family placed ads in newspapers asking for help in locating pre-Phylloxera ancestral varieties. 60 varieties have been identified, including this Forcada from the northwest of Penedés. A very aromatic white wine, it has great body, texture, and acidity and flavors of chamomile, citrus, and a bit of honey and white peach. A real treat and treasure!

Purgatori 2017, Costers del Segre ($48) is a blend of Cariñena, Garnacha, and Syrah from a more inland area. It has concentration, but there’s a wonderful freshness that prevents it from being jammy.

Salmos 2017, Priorat ($42), is also a blend of Cariñena, Garnacha and Syrah. I love the Mediterranean character of this wine; you can really smell and taste the influence of mountain herbs and the sunny climate. The wine is bold but not overbearing with rich and juicy red and black berry flavors.

Watch the video for Miguel’s wonderful tasting notes and background info on the wines. Cheers!

Savor Every Bubble with the Coravin Sparkling Wine Preservation System

Greg Lambrecht, Inventor and Founder, Coravin

Coravin wine preservation systems have become treasured tools for wine consumers and professionals by eliminating the worry of wasting unfinished wine. Until recently, that protection was limited to still wines, but the new Coravin Sparkling™ makes the dream of a reliable preservation system for bubbly a reality. The Coravin Sparkling™ Sparkling Preservation System ($399) preserves the crisp flavor and effervescence of sparkling wines for up to 4 weeks.

To learn more about the Coravin Sparkling™, watch my Instagram Live with Coravin inventor Greg Lambrecht. During our chat, Greg demonstrated how to use the system. And I put the system to the test with bottles of Veuve Clicquot Champagne La Grande Dame 2008 and Ruinart Champagne Rosé that I had preserved with the Coravin Sparkling™ six nights prior. The system is very easy to use, and the bubblies were in pristine condition when I removed the sparkling stoppers. 

 

After our chat, I used the Coravin Sparkling™ unit again and popped the bottles back in the fridge. I will open the wines in about three weeks and post an update on Instagram. I tested the unit with Champagne, but it is compatible with all sparkling wines, from Cava to Trentodoc, Pet-Nat to Prosecco. 

I think the Coravin Sparkling™ is great for wine professionals and consumers. Restaurants can use it to expand the number of sparkling wines they offer by the glass. For the home user, the Coravin Sparkling™ makes it possible to explore more than one bubbly at a time and not feel pressured to finish one bottle before opening another. Savor every bubble! 

Time in a Bottle: Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon

Enrique Tirado, Winemaker, Don Melchor

My recent Instagram Live chat with Enrique Tirado, winemaker for Don Melchor, reminded me that wine is one of the best ways to ponder the passage of time. Each vintage is a snapshot of that year. What was happening in the vineyard, the world, and even your own life? Drink and think! 

I first experienced the charms of Don Melchor about five years ago when I shared a bottle of the 2014 vintage over dinner with some friends. It was love at first sip, and I have tasted every new vintage since then. And thanks to a retrospective tasting hosted by Enrique in New York City a few years ago, I've tasted almost every vintage of Don Melchor, including the debut 1987 vintage. 


During our chat, we tasted the yet-to-be-released 2019 Don Melchor Cabernet Sauvignon ($120). One of Chile's most iconic wines, the second vintage of Don Melchor (1988), was the first Chilean wine to be named to Wine Spectator's Top 100, where it has placed nine times, including three placements in the Top 10. 

In a world full of Cabernet Sauvignon, Don Melchor is something special. A terroir-driven wine, Don Melchor is crafted from grapes from the Puente Alto vineyard, in the Maipo Valley, at the foot of the Andes Mountains. The vineyard's 127 hectares are divided into seven plots that are partitioned into even smaller plots of 151 parcels. The 2019 vintage blends 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot from 150 parcels. For this reason, Enrique describes Don Melchor as not a single Cabernet Sauvignon but multiple expressions.

Enrique described this meticulous vineyard mapping, grape selection, and blending process in our chat. Each year, this precision in the vineyard and the cellar consistently yields a Don Melchor that is elegant, balanced, and a compelling snapshot of that specific vintage. What a beautiful way to document a year! Watch the video for Enrique's tasting notes and more details about the process for crafting Don Melchor. 

Elegant Sips from the South of France: The Wines of Maison Lorgeril

Miren de Lorgeril, CEO, Maison Lorgeril

Talk about Old World: the Lorgeril family has been making wine since 1620. But these prominent vintners are not stuck in the past. I recently had the pleasure of chatting on Instagram Live with Miren de Lorgeril, CEO of Maison Lorgeril, and discovered that the family enthusiastically embraces innovation without sacrificing authenticity. Lorgeril has expanded their footprint in the South of France, and they currently own six wineries in nine appellations of Languedoc and Roussillon.

During our chat, we tasted Lorgeril's Domaine de La Borie Blanche 2019, AOP Mivervois La Laviniere (Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvédre, $27) and Chàteau de Pennautier 2019, AOP Cabarde (Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Grenache, $27). Elegant and beautifully balanced, these wines have a depth of flavor – fruit, minerality, and bright acidity. Miren explains how terroir, including Lorgeril's high-altitude vineyards, influences their flavor profile. For Miren's tasting notes, watch the video below, or click this link.