Terro
Here's the link: PODCAST or search Wine For Normal People in iTunes (and if you can rate us there we'd love it!!).
As usual, we review great emails, blog comments, and posts on the Facebook page and then we jump right into the main topic -- terroir. Here are the notes...
Main Topic - The big question...what is terroir? - A loaded question
- How to pronounce it correctly
- What does it mean (translation)?
- Its effect on wine (can you actually taste terroir?!)
- The big controversy - Is terroir a bunch of hooey?
- The origins of terroir (a bit of history)
Grape of the Week - Cabernet Sauvignon (and its differences in terroir)
- We discussed how this love child came into being and Rick asked for more info on it's parentage. I'm happy to say I got it right -- Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc had a love child spontaneously. In 1996 a UC Davis researcher found that these two grapes, native to Bordeaux, mated to create the King of the Reds!
- Here's a link to some more information from Kobrand, a major importer that has a good site with lots of info on grapes and wines!
AND we're not done...next week: Terroir Part 2: Its different aspects and why terroir matters. Thanks for staying tuned!
10 comments:
You are really hitting the mark with balancing wine facts and knowledge in an entertainng manner. Still catching up, I suggest more focus on the subject matter to keep my interest and reduce the podcast time. How about spending the entire cast on a specific grape variety comparing and contrasting styles, regions and classifications? Great job!!
The podcast is really entertaining and informative!
But on another note, I finished the bottle of Zinfandel that I posted about the other day. I enjoyed the wine but it definitely doesn’t rank among the top wines that I’ve had the pleasure of drinking. South Africa only has three wineries producing Zinfandel so there isn’t a wide range of choices, or chances for the wine to make an impact on consumers. The Zin was a 2006 vintage produced by Blaauwklippen in Stellenbosch, South Africa. It had a lot of “Terroir” mentioning on the back label giving an old world style to the wine.
I like tasting different wines together because it really brings out the flavours of the individual wines. That said, I paired the Zin with a popular and tasty Pinotage. The Zin (a red one because Elizabeth said the white one sucks (you can remove this if you like Elizabeth!)) had a brown, coffee tint compared to the deep red of the Pinotage. When I tasted it, the Zin had liquorice undertones combined with a liquor-ish finish. I think that’s because the Zin has 1.5% more alcohol than the Pinotage. I really couldn’t make out any other flavours except for a nice oaky finish, so all in all the Zin was okay, if a tad bit expensive.
I’m sure other people analysed the hell out of the one I tasted, but you can Google them if you want to!
Vriendelike Groete
Bosman
I am really enjoying your podcasts and learning alot of practical simple information. Thanks!
Shoomon,
Thanks so much for your comment and for the show suggestion. We'll try to get more focused on the topic at hand. I think when we start covering regions, you'll get much more of what you're talking about vis a vis classifications, regions, etc., although I do like your idea on covering a grape and how its expressed in different areas (the only challenge with that is that then the show would be hours long!!!).
We'll get on the tightening up part.
Question for you: Should we lose the "news" portion of the cast?
Let me know what you think!
Elizabeth
Bosman,
I love that you were able to get your hands on a Zin (yes, there is no problem or secret with you citing that I said White Zin sucks. I believe it does and there's just too much other good stuff out there to stick to that!).
Makes perfect sense that it had licorice and liquor-ish (love it!) undertones. The grape often tastes like licorice and it's often high in alcohol. What I think is a little "they missed the boat" on the one you tried -- Zin is inherently New World in style and should be obnoxiously fruity. It's not really an Old World grape (anymore) so I think it's weird that they were trying to pitch it as Old World style Zin.I really hope at some point you can get you hands on a CA Zin - they are so unique and I think you'd love them (even though they are like us Americans -- brazen and a bit obnoxious).
Regarding the side by side test -- Pinotage is a touch one to go up against Zin because they are so different in weight. Pinotage is usually light bodied in my experience, medium for a robust one, and Zin is almost always a full wine. Not that you asked and I hope this isn't offensive for me to recommend, but I'd taste the Pinotage with a Grenache, Pinot Noir, or Barbera so you stay within the same "family" of weights. That way you don't obliterate the delicate flavors of the lighter bodied wine with the big-ass flavors of the Zin (Cab, Merlot...take your pick).
Thanks again for continuing to listen and provide feedback. You are awesome!!!
Elizabeth
Cool, I'll remember that!
Regards
Bosman
You guys are funny. Great French pronunciations. :)
Rick is SO great with his accent...mine is just what it is: a New Yorker who learned the Spanish/Italian accent trying to say something in French. SOOO lame.
At least I cop to it : )
Elizabeth
I'm not a big fan of the "news" portion. Your terrior (part 1) was excellent. How about a related future show on what and how Global Warming will affect new and old world wine regions/terroir? Keep up the great job! I need to add some stars to your iTunes app.
Ken --
Thanks for your honesty. We're scaling back on the news and are just going to cite it when it's something big that you should know about, so I guess we're on the same page!
Glad you liked the Part 1 (have you listened to Part 2 yet? I hope that was helpful too).
Huge fan of environmental topics -- we'll be covering organic wines in the near future -- and I think Global Warming is important too, although hotly contested, as I'm sure you have read or can guess.
I'll put it on our list and maybe we can wrap it into an episode on the environment and wine!
Thanks so much for listening, commenting, and suggesting a cool topic!
Hope to hear from you again soon!
Elizabeth
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