Champagne-Nectar of the Gods or just good marketing? Probably a little bit of both. I'm doing a Bubbly tasting this weekend and looking forward to it BIG TIME as I'm a great lover of Champagne and Sparkling wine for that matter but then of course it has to be made according to THE METHOD. Secondary Fermentation, disgorgement and of course the magic yeast cells in the bottle to start of with and let's not forget the remuage, that age old French Tradition of turning the bottles until they virtually stand upright to move the yeast cells to the neck of the bottle, now replaced by mechanical cages in the New World. http://www.champagne.fr/en_fini_video.html A video of this process is available on this link. The official Champagne website.

I don't think that a Method Cap Classique as they are called here in South Africa could ever quite have the complexity of a real French one unless they are aged and meticulously made with of course the right grapes. A lot of Sparkling wines are not always made from Chardonnay, Pinot meaner and Pinot Noir. I have had some marvelous examples from Vouvray made from Chenin with a touch of sugar for the not so dry palates.
South Africa has some good examples in the form of Graham Beck, Jacques Bruere and Simonsig- all former Cap Classique Champions. If you find yourself in Franschoek though the farm not to be missed is Haute Cabriere with some 5 different Cap Classiques and a traditional subrage done at every cellar tour.

As I always say, be adventurous and try something new, not only the well known brand names! and happy drinking.

What's in a glass? I was going through a book last night on the Riedel dynasty and wondered why we are so enamored by glasses. Any host/ess will tell you that a nice glass is essential but in wine it is not just the colour and shape of the glass that is important but also the thickness of the lip and the ability to swirl the wine and admire the legs.

Why does the size of the lip matter? Besides for the fact that no one want to drink good wine from a glass that reminds you of a cheap water glass, you also don't want to interfere with the way the splendid liquid enters your mouth and hits your tongue on impact. And who wants to drink out of a red glass even if it does match your theme? Keep those for the water, how can you admire a fine claret if you can't see it? How can you judge sweetness and alcohol if you cant's see the legs?

The one part were Riedel has gone against common belief is when they designed a tasting glass that actually has a space in the stem for your wine and creates a gentle stream when brought to your mouth, nice to watch! And good to taste from as well. The best way to get your favourite glass though is still to try all your own glasses and see which one does justice to your favourite bottle.

Cape blends-I had the opportunity a couple of weeks ago to taste an extensive range of Cape Blends. To demistify the subject, it needs to have a component of Pinotage in the blend (15%) to be called a Cape Blend but all else is up to the Winemaker, although most winemakers keep to a Bordeaux Blend with Pinotgae. My personal favourite has a dash of Shiraz which lends a touch of toffee to the taste which is LOVELY. My favourites of the evening, Meinert Synchroncity from Stellenbosch (strangely enough they were ALL from Stellenbosch) and the Nikela from Grangehurst the 2000 was fabulous. Both expensive wines, in SA RAND R140 for the Synchronicity and around R115 for the Nikela.

This is a very good way to try Pinotage for the first time as to my mind it is not always very good on it's own, except in premium brands like Diemersfontein, Kanonkop etc. Do give it a try, I will give you a couple of names, Simonsig Tiara, Clos Malverne Auret, Meinert Syncronicity, Grangehurts Nikela, Beyerskloof Synergy, Flagstone Strata but there is around 20 available so do explore.

Happy drinking.