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Fashion & Style Trends: dining & wine, wine |
| wine - food - meeting etiquette |
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Champagne Krug, France
Krug was established in 1843 by Johann Joseph Krug, a German immigrant, in Reims, the main city for Champagne in France. The house is now part of global luxury brands conglomerate Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy. The house also emphasises the fact that primary fermentation occurs completely in small oak barrels. |
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| All the wines at Krug have a primary fermentation in small well seasoned oak barrels as in the past. This practice isn't common in Champagne at present. Reserve wines are transferred to stainless steel tanks. Krug utilises all Champagne varieties in their wines, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Pinot Meunier. Krug disgorges its wines after 6 years on lees, the Champagne Collection series after 15 years. |
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| Dom Pérignon - was the first prestige cuvée, an idea proposed by Englishman Laurence Venn, in 1921 but released for sale in 1936, after the 1929 Great Depression. Dom Pérignon is the name of a Benedictine monk who was a pioneer in making sparkling wines. Champagne Dom Pérignon, produced by Moët et Chandon, is a vintage champagne, means that all grapes used to make the wine are harvested in the same year. Most champagne wines, are from grapes harvested in various years. The wine is 55% Chardonnay and 45% Pinot Noir. All vintages need at least 12 months ageing to nurture Dom Pérignon's signature silky mousse. Dom Pérignon disgorges its wines after 8 years on lees. |
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Red Wine Brunello di Montalcino, Italy
Grape varieties: Sangiovese Grosso 100% from the vineyards on Montalcino hill.
Production techniques: fermentation in 100hl stainless steel tanks, 20 days long maceration at controlled temperature of 30° degrees. Aged for 24 months in 300lt. French oak barrels. Bottle refinement min. 24 months. |
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| Tasting notes: Colour - deep ruby red with garnet hues. Aroma - very rich and complex, with scents of wild berries, balsamic hints, further enriched by spicy and toasted notes. Taste - powerful yet very elegant, with impressive aromatic persistence. Food pairing - ideal with game, grilled and roasted meats and medium seasoned cheeses. |
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Chianti red wine, Italy
Production Zone: Comune of Castellina in Chianti, area of San Leonino
Grape varieties: Sangiovese 90%, Cabernet Sauvignon 10%
Vineyards facing and altitude: North – South / 300 metres
Training System: Cordone Speronato
Average age of vines in production: 10 years
Harvest period: Early October |
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Vinification: in stailess steel vats of 100 ht, 15-18 days of maceration at the controlled temperature of 30°C.
Ageing: 18 months in new French oak barrel
Bottle Ageing: 12 months before the release on the market |
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The limoncello liquor - was born at the beginning of 1900, in Amalfi, Capri and Sorrento, in the South of Italy. In 1988, Massimo Canale started a small handmade production of limoncello in Capri, registering the trademark for this traditional yellow liquor ready to taste as an aperitif or digestive, from lemons enriched by water, alcohol and sugar. The yellow and wrinkled lemon skin is the essential ingredient of its lucky production. Only the Mediterranean climate of the Sorrento and Amalfi coast can guarantee the large and perfumed peel of lemon. You can find many sweet artificial liquor labeled lemoncello world wide, but if you don't see Limoncello from Italy from IGP lemon, it is better you make at home. It's easy to make, and homemade limoncello is always better than any lemoncello copy:
- 1 liter of alcohol
- 1/2 cups water
- 5 lemons from Sorrento and Amalfi coast if possible, not lemon juice
- 2 cups sugar
After washing of the fruit in warm water and brushing in order to clean it from eventual residual of insecticides, cut them, and squeeze out the juice. Pour the alcohol into a large glass jar, add the lemons, seal the jar, and put it in a dark cool place for 6 days. After 6 days, put the water in a pot, add the sugar and bring to a boil. Keep at low boil for 5 minutes, stirring often. Cool to room temperature. Stir in the alcohol and lemons, wait an hour. Remove the lemon pieces. Stir. Pour the mixture into glass bottles and make airtight. Put the bottles in your freezer overnight. Store in freezer until your next dinner or cocktail party. |
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Grappa, Italy
Grappa is a distilled beverage made in Bassano del Grappa, a small town in Italy, in the Middle Ages. It is from this town that Grappa gets its name. Similar to France's brandies and Cognac, and Portugal's Sherry, Grappa is a mixture of grape pieces and alcohol is heated gently, allowing much of the mixture to evaporate, and leaving about 42% alcohol concentration. |
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| After distillation, Grappa is stored in glass bottles for 6 months. In the past, Grappa was a poor beverage, but in the 1960s Mrs. Giannola Nonino started producing a higher quality Grappa and offering to journalists, restaurateurs, and commercial dinners for free. Grappa became popular all around the world. Traditionally, Grappa is served chilled in small glasses and served after the meal. |
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Cognac, France
Cognac is the most famous variety of brandy, produced the town of Cognac in France, from which it takes its name. The town of Cognac is one of only 3 brandy regions in Europe, the other towns are Armagnac in France and Jerez in Spain. Cognac must meet strict legal requirements, to ensure that the 300 year old production process remains unchanged. |
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| Cognac must be made from at least 90% Ugni Blanc, Folle Blanche, or Colombard grapes, although lately the most used is Ugni Blanc. It is distilled twice in copper pot stills and aged at least two years in French oak barrels. Cognac is produced by doubly distilling the white wines. The wine is a very dry, acidic, thin wine, excellent for distillation. It is made from a strict list of grape varieties. Distillation takes place in copper stills, named alembic, after 2 distillations the resulting is a colourless spirit of 70% alcohol. Once distillation is complete, it must be aged for at least 2 years before it can be called Cognac. The final product is usually diluted to 40% alcohol content. |
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