Tasting Notes Archives

Wine in a Can. I’m a Fan!

What’s wrong with selling wine in a can? It was not too long ago when traditionalists thought screw caps on wine bottles were a total outrage to an industry cloaked in tradition. And look at us now; twisting that screw cap with glee and patting ourselves on the back that the screw cap invention protected the cork trees.

Wine in a can is no gimmick. It began in about 2004 with Francis Ford Coppola Winery producing “Sofia”, a blanc de blanc sparkling wine in a can. It has been growing steadily since then and canned wine was a $50 million business in the US last year. It seems to be falling somewhere between the box wine of student days and elegant, gifting wine in bottles. We accepted beer in a can, followed by other premium beverages in a can like cocktails, sake, and craft beer, what’s stopping us from embracing the wine in a can trend?

So why is this new format drawing so many consumers? Firstly, it is mainly the millennial generation that is attracted to wine in a can. This grouping of people is usually drawn to products of convenience, accessibility, approachability, especially when purchasing wine.

Canned wine ticks all those boxes and so many more:

Ease of use: simple to take anywhere, takes up little space, is practically a single-serve unit, no mess
Environmentally friendly: the product has a lower carbon footprint because of transporting its reduced weight as well as space efficiency. Aluminum cans are also far easier to recycle than glass
Faster chilling: making this product practically instant
Adaptability: canned wine can be used in places where glass is normally banned like in parks and swimming pools
Price: due to reduced costs of packaging and transport

It is now a question of premiumization. Consumers, especially the millennials do not want lower quality products, in any format. The challenge is to prove that canned wine can exceed the consumer’s expectations and deliver a quality wine, regardless of its format. One way is to encourage the consumer to drink the wine out of a glass and not from the tin. There is still the old myth: “won’t it taste like metal?”.

Age ability is the other difference. Wine in a can is meant for immediate consumption. There are currently no trials or stats to see what the aging process in a can might be, so for now, the wine in your cellar will remain in a bottle, but the wine in your picnic hamper may well be in a can.

Stel + Mar sent us some samples of their wine in a can. The Stel + Mar strap line is “premium wine in a can” and I was not disappointed.

The Premium White is a 250ml Californian Chardonnay at 14.5% alcohol. It is quite delightful. I tasted it, enjoyed it thoroughly and poured the rest of the can into my glass to enjoy as I wrote this piece.

Tasting Notes: Aromas of fresh nectarine, lemongrass and a refreshing honeysuckle note make it a very appealing everyday tipple.

The Premium Red is a Californian Zinfandel and has classic varietal typicity.

Tasting Notes: Blackberries and rose petals with dark cherries and cinnamon. It’s heavy enough to satisfy but light enough to glug.

I am a fan of wine in a can. It’s a growing business and is to be ignored at your peril.

Stel + Mar Website: https://stelandmar.com/

Jenny Ratcliffe-Wright Cape Wine Master

Rosé Champagne Report – Liz Palmer Wine Picker Magazine, Milan, Italy

The Champagne production zone (AOC) is defined and delimited by a law since 1927, stretching over 34,286 hectares of vineyards. It lies 150 kilometres East / North-East of Paris, and is made-up of plots from 320 villages in five departments: Marne (66%), Aube (23%), Aisne (10%) – also shared by Haute-Marne and Seine-et-Marne. The vineyards are also divided by “crus”, a qualitative division of the appellation. Of the 320 villages, 17 are Grand Cru and 42 are Premier Cru.

Champagne terroir has two major distinguishing features: northerly latitude and a dual climate that is subject to oceanic and continental influences. The Champagne region is located near the northern limits of the wine world along the 49th parallel, with the coordinates of 49°5 and 49° North – this means cold climate and harsh weather conditions. The oceanic influence brings steady rainfall and the continental influence ensures ideal levels of summer sunlight, but often causes devastating winter frosts.
The average annual temperature in Reims and Epernay) is 11°C. This complex weather pattern distinguishes the Champagne viticultural zone from the other terroirs in the same group.

The subsoil in Champagne is predominantly limestone –including the outcrops, which consist of sedimentary rock (75% limestone), chalk, marl and limestone proper. This type of subsoil provides good drainage and also imparts that particular mineral flavour found in certain Champagne wines.

These regional differences lead to different styles of wines, different and aromas developing in the fruits.

On 4 July 2015, in Bonn, Germany the UNESCO World Heritage Committee delivered a decision to include the “Champagne hillsides, houses and cellars” on its World Heritage list.
“The property encompasses sites where the method of producing sparkling wines was developed on the principle of secondary fermentation in the bottle since the early 17th century to its early industrialization in the 19th century. The property is made up of three distinct ensembles: the historic vineyards of Hautvilliers, Aÿ and Mareuil-sur-Aÿ, Saint-Nicaise Hill in Reims, and the Avenue de Champagne and Fort Chabrol in Epernay. These three components – the supply basin formed by the historic hillsides, the production sites (with their underground cellars) and the sales and distribution centres (the Champagne Houses) – illustrate the entire champagne production process. The property bears clear testimony to the development of a very specialized artisan activity that has become an agro-industrial enterprise.”

R O S É C H A M P A G N E

Rosé Champagnes are distinct from brut and blanc de noirs in that they are noticeably and intentionally colored, with hues that span from light pink to copper salmon. There are two main methods of creating this style:

Blended or Rosé d’assemblage

This method is most common – it allows the producer to obtain colour and density identical year to year. It consists of blending still white wine (before its second fermentation) with 5 – 20% of red wine, vinified to be non tannic.

Macerated or Rosé de saignée

This process consists of allowing the grape must to remain in contact with the skins of black grapes (Pinot noir and Pinot Meunier) for a few hours. The natural pigments in the skins begin to colour the juice and at the same time enrich the juice with their aromatic components. Rosé de saignée champagnes are generally richer in taste and have a vinous character, which makes them particularly suitable to be served with food.

Rosé Champagne is produced in both vintage/millesimé and non-vintage versions. Although there is variation in the sweetness levels, the wines are most often dry (brut or sec) in style.
Rosé Champagne account for 3-5% of Champagne’s yearly production. Most of the Champagne houses have this style their portfolios, including: Krug, Laurent-Perrier, Billecart-Salmon, Dom Pérignon, Cristal Veuve-Clicquot. With Billecart-Salmon and Laurent-Perrier’s leading the pack in making Rosé champagne a speciality.
UK is Champagne’s largest export market – sales increased by 6.1% in 2014 reaching 32,675,232 bottles. While US is the second largest export market – sales grew slightly, up 7.3% to 19,152,709 bottles, with rose up 14.4% to 2,758,364 bottles.

US figures 2010-2014

Total Export Rosés % export
2010 134,364,880 11,437,497 8.51%
2011 141,328,649 12,699,146 8.99%
2012 137,349,432 13,004,384 9.47%
2013 137,639,340 13,371,939 9.72%
2014 144,870,262 13,731,634 9.48%

Rosé Top Ten Markets 2014

2014 Country

1 ETATS-UNIS
2 ROYAUME-UNI
3 ALLEMAGNE
4 JAPON
5 SUISSE
6 ITALIE
7 BELGIQUE
8 ESPAGNE
9 NIGÉRIA
10 RUSSIE

Some salient characteristics of our favourite Rosé Champagnes:

Dom Pérignon Metamorphosis Rose 2003
Exquisite soft rose-colour with nose of cherry and soft citrus; creamy textured and precise with flavours that are complex and rich; focused and elegant with subtlety and depth; graceful and well balanced with a long echoing finish.
96 Points

Roederer Cristal Rosé 2002
Medium pink hue with lively effervescence; soft aromas of strawberry, cherry and blood orange with some notes of butter and dried flowers; crisp Chardonnay -underlay pinot fruit on the palate with a very silky, long finish.
93 Points

Krug Rosé – NV
Pale salmon colour (with some subtle hint of pink) and fine bubbles; aromas of rose hips, ham, mulberries, redcurrant, peony, pepper & pink grapefruit; mouthfilling but refilled and elegant layers of honey, citrus and dried fruit with long finish.
96 Points

Delamotte Brut Rosé NV
Very pale, delicate rose hue; fresh berry fruit and blood orange come through on the nose and palate, with some chalky mineral notes – medium finish.
92 Points

Pascal Doquet Brut Rosé Premier Cru NV
Pale salmon colour; aromas of red fruit, flowers, and minerals lead to a palate with hints of strawberry, toast, and minerals – fresh and ample mouthfeel.
92 Points

Perrier-Jouet Rose Belle Epoque 2004
Light salmon pink; with delicate aromas of floral, strawberry, raspberry, orange and pink grapefruit; fresh, refined attack with subtly crisp notes of pomegranate and pink grapefruit; full-bodied with a long, silky finish.
94 Points

Charles Heidsieck, Brut Rosé Réserve
Very pale pink, rich toasty aromas with creamy texture; finely honed acidity lending a mouthwatering impression to flavors of crème de cassis, toasted brioche, lemon curd and roasted almond; long, spicey finish.
93 Points

Liz Palmer

Roederer launches Brut Nature 2006 in Toronto

Louis Roederer Champagne, known for its tête du cuvée Cristal, has launched its first new cuvée “Brut Nature 2006” in more than 40 years.

The new cuvée was created in collaboration with world-renowned French designer, Philippe Starck and is the first non-dosage for Louis Roederer.

This non-malolactic, zero dosage vintage champagne was unveiled by Roederer’s Chef de Caves, Jean-Baptiste Lecaillon, during a launch event in Toronto a few weeks ago. In attendance was a select number of wine journalists and members of Authentic Wine & Spirits Merchants.

According to Lecaillon, his team carried out a series of bottling trials for 2003, 2004, and 2005 (extra-brut cuvées – 3-6 g/l of sugar). These wines were fine-tuned and culminated in the selection of the 2006 vintage and marked the birth of Louis Roederer Brut Nature.

“Before 2003 we didn’t have the raw materials…the grapes, the terroir, sufficient ripening with this texture—the natural ingredients that would allow uw to go further with [lowering the dosage] in Roederer’s non-malolactic style.”

“The land and soil are the keys to great wines” says Lecaillon in between sips of champagne.

The 2003 growing season was ideal – it was an excessively warm, sunny and a dry year. The grapes come from 10 hectares of south-facing, biodynamically-farmed vineyards in Cumieres. Lécaillon says “You have a higher ripeness with biodynamics, different texture and fruit,” he said. “This wine might not have been possible without biodynamics.”

Lecaillon further states that all the grapes were picked on the same day and pressed together ‘I didn’t want any varietal taste. The idea was to eliminate the varietal characters and let the terroir speak’.

The grapes were picked much riper than usual and as a result, the lower sugar level of the wine-making process was altered. Fifty percent of the wine was aged in 9,000 litre oak casks and bottling at the lower pressure of 4.5 atmospheres versus the widely used 6 aided the wine’s texture. “Pressure and texture interact,” explained Lécaillon. “If you’re too high in pressure, you lose the texture.”

‘This is a small production with 60,000 bottles. The next warm year to expect a no-dosage cuvee will the 2009 vintage’ says Lecaillon.

Brut Nature 2006 contains 56% Pinot Noir with equal parts Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier.

Tasting Notes:

Brut Nature 2006

This cuvée is ample, elegant, and pure.

The deep golden color with lively bubbles.
Layers of fruit with hints of lemon peel, pear, flowers with some hints of
hazelnut and spice.
On the palate – stones, fruit, mineral freshness with a creamy texture,with a
long powerful finish.

“It’s a very good Champagne – definitely for foodies and sommeliers! “ Liz Palmer

Other Champagnes Tasted:

Brut, Blanc de Blancs, 2008
Pale yellow with active bubbles and soft effervescence.
Roasted nuts, orchard fruits, with white flower aromas.
On the palate – elegant and fresh with a creamy texture, refined acidity with
hazelnut, slight minerality with a long finish.

Brut Vintage 2007

Pale gold with lively bubbles and soft effervescence.
Toasty, apple, pear, hazelnut, and vanilla aromas.
The palate is characteristic of Roederer’s vintages with the attack
being ample and dense with apple, pear, subtle citrus, almond, white chocolate and caramel flavors, ending with a long finish.

Brut Rose Vintage 2008

Salmon color with active tiny bubbles.
Intriguing complex red fruits, orange peel, subtle spice, floral with chalk aromas.
On the palate – full-bodied, creamy, well structured, cherry, raspberry, orange peel, some spice flavors with some minerality ending with a Long finish.

Cristal 2006

Pale gold color with plentiful lively bubbles.
Layered aromas of lemon, orange and toasted nut aromas, followed by apple, peach, ginger and mineral aromas.
On the palate – creamy delicate mousse with some pear, apple, citrus zest flavors and spicy notes, with some minerality, ending with a long finish.

Cristal 2002

This 12-year-old wine comes from 30-year-old vines.

Brilliant yellow with some amber highlights.
A beautiful mousse with fine beads
Intense and delicate on the nose, revealing hints of Biscuit, honey, cocoa, toasted hazelnuts and candied citrus.
One the palate – savory explosion of ripe fruit on the attack, revealing red fruit, white chocolate, caramel and pastry.
Intense, powerful, beautiful balance with a long finish.

Cristal 1995

Tasting this was another special treat – there is only a few hundred bottles left in the world.
This 19-year-old wine has been 10 years on lees.

“Time on less is powerful and important” says.. says Lecaillon

Bottles were opened two hours before serving in order for them to breathe.

Light golden color with a very strong mousse, with lively bubbles.
Deep, yeasty aromas which are dominated by toffee, butterscotch and toast.
Fresh in the mouth, with hints of yellow fruits, strawberry and toasty flavors.
Finishes long and lean with some mineral.

Liz Palmer