Men of Terroir

Demystifying Terroir and Sharing the Stories Behind the Grape

Category Archives: MOT Corner

New Zealand Wine Fair, Vancouver

The MOT were on the ground for the annual New Zealand Wine Fair in Vancouver and were not disappointed. 26 producers were on hand to display their wines and as always there were a few standouts.

The usual strong varietals, Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir, were on show but a few others are starting to gain ground. Most obvious to us was the improvements made with Pinot Gris. Aromatic, balanced and complex Gris were not in short supply. The pick of them being the effort from Akarua.  There was obviously a plethora of quality sauvignon blancs to taste however midway through the tasting and after using up my third sweat band to ward off the glistening acidity on my forehead, a decision was made to only selectively try the SB’s as the acid was getting the better of us. The perennial favourite Cloudy Bay was once again outstanding. In the pinot noir corner the overall quality was impressive as was the array of styles. The Bannockburn from Akarua was the pinot of the tasting for us however the Ma Maison Pinot Noir also showed very well.

In terms of overall quality, Elephant Hill was fantastic across the board. The Viognier, Pinot Noir and Syrah all showed extremely well and the MOT were not afraid to give Elephant Hill the hurry up with their latest shipment with an encouraging  TWEET. The Syrah was the wine of the tasting for some of us. Whilst still being very young (2011) it displayed delicious fruit with loads of pepper.

 

Other standout wines included the Rifleman’s Chardonnay from Sacred Hill with its stunning balance and the low yield Hunting Hill Chardonnay from Kumeu River who were very solid across the board. Definitely a producer to watch for quality Chard in the future. (Pictured right)

 

 

The biggest surprise was the Sauvignon Blanc Sticky from Marisco Vineyards. Great acidity balanced out a mouthful of sweet fruits and fig. Very long…… (Pictured right)

 

Wine was not the only feature of the well organized tasting as there was some beautiful food to accompany the wine. A great selection of cheeses were available along with sliders and some delectable lamb cutlets. One of the MOT crew could be seen devouring what seemed to be an entire tray of the cutlets. Being an Aussie myself, I was very excited to also find some ANZAC cookies.  Happy days..

 

Brunch at Hentley Farm

I was lucky enough to recently spend a few hours for brunch at Hentley Farm in the Barossa Valley. Hentley Farm sits along side Greenock creek and is a relative newcomer in terms of the Barossa Valley. By now, everyone in Adelaide knows how good the wines produced at Hentley Farm are but the food is just has good. Local boy and chef Lachlan Colwill (The Manse) has done an outstanding job.

We were ushered into an old shearing shed and served a glass of sparkling with apple juice and pear liqueur (very tasty). The revamped shearing shed is decked out with a new kitchen and all the trimmings however it still holds some of its heritage and you can still find the shearers count scraped into the wall if you look hard enough. A degustation menu was served and it was fantastic to see and taste their wines as they were intended. Pork belly with a glass of their shiraz was a standout for me. I was also introduced to Hentley Farms ‘STICKY’ for the first time and was impressed. This brunch was sold out.

 

Whilst it is not a new idea for a Barossa Valley winery to offer a menu for special functions of the occasional dinner, it is now becoming common place for wineries to offer lunches and dinner every weekend and Hentley Farm is about to join those ranks. I was very impressed with the overall experience as were my friends and family.

Check their website www.hentleyfarm.com.au for details about special lunches or dinners, phone (+618) 8562 8427 or email cellardoor@hentleyfarm.com.au.

 

The Day I Met Sparky Marquis

Yesterday I met Sparky Marquis.  For those still wondering whom I am talking about, he is the owner of Molly Dooker wines.  And what a character he is!  I was excited to be a part of a sit down tasting where he took us through 8 of the 10 wines that the iconic McLaren Vale winery produces.  Sparky’s true Aussie flair came out almost immediately when hetold us he wasn’t going to talk us through the wines since we probably knew more than he did about wine anyways.  He said there are only 2 drops that he drinks; Molly Dooker wines and Jack Daniels and since they don’t serve Molly Dooker wines on the Air New Zealand flight back to Australia he was on in a couple of hours, he wanted to enjoy the wines with us!

Turns out that Molly Dooker is an Australian term for left-handers.  Sparky and his wife, Sarah, and coincidentally, over 50% of the staff at his winery are left-handed; he claims it is not a questions on the interview sheets!  Started in 1995, his wines have been featured in Wine Spectator’s Top 10 list twice, have received more 94 points and above from Robert Parker than any other producer, and Sparky and Sarah were voted Australian winemaker of the year in 1999.  Of the 8 wines we tried today the lowest rating was an 88 and the highest a modest 97+.

Other than the obvious high quality of his wines, two things struck me after listening toSparky Marquis talk for an hour.  One is that he is true pioneer that is not afraid to

push the barriers to keep creating a better quality product.  After he was repeatedly told that the most concentrated grapes could only come from dry grown, low yielding, old vine vineyards, he turned it into a personal mission to discover what it is that gives a concentrated taste and how to emulate that in new vines.  This led to a creation of the (now trademarked) Marquis Vineyard Watering Program that allows the vines to get the intensity and sugars they need to create these big, bold wines that he loves.  It also led to a term he calls fruit weight which he explains as how far back on the tongue the velvet glove of flavor reaches before the tingling structure sets in.  Sounds complex but when you taste his wines you understand exactly what he is talking about and how it gives that WOW factor he is after.

The other point that struck me is how ingenious their marketing is.  After his wife shut down the original commissioned label design, Sarah took the task to herself to create the labels now on the bottles.  From caricatures of Sparky and Sarah dancing to a boxer with two left hands, the labels are fun, creative, and tell a story of their life and wine-growing career.  The attention to detail even goes as far as forcing a consumer to pick up the bottle to read the sideways wine details since it was shown in studies that a consumer is more likely to buy a bottle if they have 2 hands on it.  And then what better marketing than to send the fast-talking, excitable Sparky Marquis on the road to pour their wines!

Now to the wines themselves.  Sparky doesn’t waste time with small wines.  All of the wines had at least 15% alcohol, but unlike most high alcohol producers, Molly Dooker wines have the concentrated fruit and healthy acidity to back it up.  The line

up was:  The Maitre D’, Two Left Feet, The Boxer, Blue Eyed Boy, Gigglepot, Enchanted Path, Carnival of Love, and the Velvet Glove (all 2009 except the 2010 Boxer).  The Velvet Glove has the ominous distinction of being “the wine” that was crushed by a forklift accident last year on an Australian dock.  With one quick mechanical failure, 1/3 of the production of the best wine that Molly Dooker offers, a $250 wine, was destroyed instantly.  In true Aussie fashion, Sparky rolled with the punches and said that the worst part about the incident is that his personal allocation of those wines dropped right off!  This wine is beautiful, a perfect balance between a delicate palate and strong flavours.

As we our red stained lips had taken our last sips, Sparky was asked how long his wines age.  He replied by saying “As long as it takes me to find a corkscrew!”  I like a winemaker that truly believes in the quality of his wines, as long as he leaves some for us to be able to enjoy!

Book Review: The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J. Mazzeo

The Widow Clicquot by Tilar J. Mazzeo is a fascinating look at the life of one of the most famous of all champagne houses and the woman who led this company from basic obscurity to a worldwide brand, all this occurring during a time when woman were discouraged from being in business ventures.  Writing a story about a woman set during the French Revolutions of the 1800’s is a daunting task that leads to a lot of speculation on behalf of the author as to what actually happened, but what can you expect when writing a story over a century old?

What this book does show is the private side of one of the world’s most powerful women at the time.  Barbe-Nicole Ponsardins rise from her bourgeois roots, her determination in the face of constant adversity, and her passion for the champagne region.  What really caught my attention in this informative read was the descriptions of the French economy at the time; Everything from the 4 revolutions that changed that face of Champagne to Napoleon favouring Jean-Remy Moet’s champagne.  As I read this book I couldn’t help feeling that my efforts in business are a little lackadaisical and I found myself strangely inspired by Barbe-Nicole’s risks and persistence.

This book is well worth the price of admission so pop the top off a ‘Bottle of the Widow’ and enjoy this tale!