Category The Wine Explorers Letter

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] As a general rule, winemakers don’t like to gamble.  When they blend varietals, they generally ferment each grape separately, then carefully mix the wines to…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″] Well, we had planned on regaling you with an explainer on co-fermentation and why its “ancient science,” once confined to the Côte Rôtie,…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] “A stallion of wine – a little wild – but kind and generous on the inside,” says Julien about Calchaquí winemaker Augustín Lanús’ contribution to…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.22″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] Looking out at the Calchaquí’s purple desert mountains covered in cacti, you might miss a little patch of green at the…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.22″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] At the southern edge of the Calchaquí Valley, in the town of Tolombón, the malbec vines are over half a century…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” hover_enabled=”0″ global_colors_info=”{}” sticky_enabled=”0″] Grapes from a single vineyard at 8,694 feet puts Agustín Lanús’ malbec Salvaje among the highest wines we’ve ever sourced (there are but…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] No missive this week as we spend some much needed time with our family this Christmas. But today, Julien Miquel takes a look back at…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.22″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] Why does extreme altitude winemaker Augustin Lanus age his wine Salvaje (malbec, single vineyard, 8,694 ft.) for a year in a…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] Up at about 9,000 feet above the world, with little atmosphere to protect them from the sun’s rays, little white butterflies dance above lavender blossoms.…

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”3.22″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row admin_label=”row” _builder_version=”3.25″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”3.25″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.11.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”] In 1395, Philippe le Hardi, Duke of Bourgogne, outlawed the wine grape gamay, calling it a “very bad and disloyal plant.”…