Sparkling Mojito Spanish Style

The Summer is almost here so lets hope all this fine weather lasts, as it sure makes one thirsty .Over the the weekend I discovered a great new refreshing drink that is not as heavy in alcohol as the familiar rum based Mojito because you  use Cava instead. It sure was a big hit at our brunch as it`s much lighter and not nearly as pricey as a bottle of rum. I used my favourite Cava called Maria Casanova, which  has a lovely rich palate, fine bubbles and a touch of nuttiness that reminds me of a vintage champagne.

 It could not be easier to make this cocktail: all you will need is crushed ice, fresh mint, some Cava and sugar syrup. Add mint to glass, muddle it  until it is crushed and will therefore infuse the rest of your drink.Add a dash of sugar syrup then fill  with the crushed ice to the top of a high ball glass, and add Cava.

Serve with a  cocktail umbrella and a straw.

Julie

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Super Sommielier Damien!

The WOW girls would like to thank Damien Corr for the very instructive comparative tasting he gave us on Domaine Chandon last night in the Merrion hotel.As you can see from this picture we were spellbound(!) by his level of knowledge.With all the hype about the recession the Merrion was a haven of true comfort and its suave professionalism is tempered by a lovely friendliness, which makes me understand why tourists fall in love with Ireland.
Anyway Domaine Chandon was established by French champagne house Moët & Chandon in 1986 and is dedicated to the production of méthode traditionnelle sparkling wine and premium quality, cool-climate still wines in the  hills of Victoria’s beautiful Yarra Valley, near Melbourne .These are premium wines yet really good value for the quality, even in the Merrion, with the sparkler served up to you with as much care and style as a bottle of Cristal for around €40.
Go on treat yourself, you know you deserve it!
Thanks Damien.


Evelyn 
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Bastille Day Celebrations with Barton and Guestier

Kinara v Vintry

Peter, Evelyn and chief strategist Stephen

This year the Bastille day Petanque tournament was hosted by Barton and Guestier in the lovely gardens of the Raddisson St. Helans.We were the defending champions and missing the main man Gerry (I would say that!) due to Cork week so I was promoted  to the first team and was feeling the pressure. This was not helped by the fact that Stephen had had a party the night before and we were feeling a little bit "tired and emotional".

Restaurant Patrick Guilbaud suggests pleasure to many but to Team Vintry it conjours up deadly fear as their teams are the standard bearers of this competition .We managed to beat them(just) in last years final so we were suitabley unimpressed when we drew the formidable opponents of Stephane Robin ,his son and a very brave employee in our group this year.In fact most of  the people in our group were excellent and it was a pleasure, after years of persisting at this tournament,to finally realise that we are not bad either. Speaking of bad ...Hollands of  Bray spring to mind.They reminded me of the lads on our team when we  first started out with this tournament..creating mayhem and comedy with every throw of the boule with the hope that the chaos would destabilise the opponents, and speaking from experience this worked for us for many years.So keep it up lads!

Peter tries in vain to save us from defeat to Dax

Anyway we won our group, so we still cannot dine in Guilbauds  for fear of death, and next thing we get Dax in the semi finals.Disaster(!).. because Dax is my favourite restaurant (sorry Stephane). So I quickly realize that  if we beat them I cannot go there again, except in disguise, and if we lose I will get indigestion every time I go there.
Need I say more ...I need to find a new  favourite or to invest in a large box of antacid tablets.

Speaking of antacid we had a lovely sparkling Chardonnay from the Loire, produced by Barton and Guestier which we tippled on throughout the day, for which no such tablet was required  despite the party the night before!
It was a real quaffer and I was seriously  impressed with it  as were my team mates .

Congrats to Barton and Guestier and all the team in Gilbeys as the total event raised €1000 euro for the Irish Wheelchair association.

Jusqu'à l'année prochaine!

Evelyn

The Vintry

Jus de Vines First Wedding Reception

Congratulation Sinead and Graham

who married on Saturday July 3rd 2010.

Wishing you both lots of happiness in your life together.

The Happy couple popped into Jus De Vine just minutes after they made their vows as they wanted to celebrate in style, and what better way than with a lovely chilled bottle of Bollinger Special Cuvee.

They put a smile on all our customers faces, and yes it was our first wedding reception in our shop!

As they were then whisked off up to the County Club with the cans tied onto the back of their convertible mini cooper they certainly brought things in Portmarnock to a stand still and they really were the talk of the town!

Thanks for making my day!

To your health and happiness

Cheers

Julie

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Champagne Taittinger N/V

 




Champagne Taittinger is one of the few Champagne Houses to remain owned(see buy out / buy back below) and actively managed by the family.

They are based in Reims in the Champagne district and their bottles are stored in  ancient  Roman chalk pits  that were created when stone was quarried out to build houses in the region .  They also own substantial  vineyards throughout the region.

  

   Today, Pierre Emmanuel Taittinger heads up this famous house whose origins date back to 1734.
I met him at a dinner while at the Champagne  Academy and heard him telling the men at his end of the table that he never eats cheese when he is going to be with a lady.I got a flash back to the lads in Ireland…can you imagine a Paddy thinking let alone actually  saying “I never drink pints of Guinness or eat Kebabs when I am going to be with a lady! I don`t think so..

Each champagne house has a typical style that is adhered to from vintage to vintage and for Taittinger the word that best describes their approach is elegance. Some others can be quite creamy or nutty or overwhelmingly intense, but at Taittinger it is about the fruit being  allowed to shine.

The blend is 40% Chardonnay 40 % Pinot Noir and 20% Pinot Meurnier and is aged for three to four years before release

Colour: brillient gold straw colour with fine persistent bubbles and a delicate mousse

Nose: bready/brioche and fruity…peach white flowers and vanilla pod

Palate: lively ,balanced  and elegant  with delicate flavours of  fresh fruits and honey with a lovely long concentrated finish.

PIERRE-EMMANUEL TAITTINGER: TALKS ABOUT CHAMPAGNE FOOD& LOVE 
For 3OO years, Champagne has been known as the wine to drink at grand occasions, such as year-end holidays and weddings and graduations. But more and more, Champagne is becoming known as a wine to enjoy at lunch and dinner. Why? Because Champagne matches well all types of gastronomy: French, Asian, Greek, fusion, Chinese, Japanese, Indian. It's very good with spices because it does refresh your palate. Magnum bottles are just the right size for two gentlemen.  Personally I recommend the half-bottle for a lunch for two, say, me and my wife, so you don't waste a full bottle. I adore that.
If you are with a nice partner, you are not tired after Champagne; you are active, in good form, perhaps slightly excited. The only problem is that you might want to make love, and that is not a serious problem. That is why there is a new attitude towards Champagne all over the planet.

PIERRE-EMMANUEL TAITTINGER: TALKS ABOUT THE BUY OUT.
My family is a large one, with seven branches. The family wanted to sell the entire Corporation for tax purposes and simply to get their money. (Seagrams did likewise some years ago.) We put it up for auction and an American group, Starwood, bought it all - Champagne Taittinger, Domaine Carneros, the Loire valley winery, Baccarat Crystal, Hotel du Crillon, Societe du Louvre - everything. That was the will of 9O% of my family. Me, I was in the 1O% who wanted to keep the business. But - I am a democrat - and I had to accept the majority decision. And we do all get along well. My son and I were a little sad, but we had no choice. But then, Starwood stated, "We are a real estate group, we are not specialized in wines." So they decided to sell off Taittinger and Carneros to specialists. Then our branch of the family - my father, brother and children - decided to become candidates to repurchase at least our winery. So they put it on sale, and here were at least ten candidates, from India, America, Britain. So we banded with Credit Agricole, a powerful bank in Champagne, and fought a hard fight for a year with bigger giants. We finally won, partly because we proposed a large check - after debt absorption, about 59OM Euro - but also because we were a family-run affair, like Starwood itself. In the package was the Loire winery and Carneros. We sold the Loire for technical reasons; we liked the very well run winery and the chairman, a very nice man. It was done in a genial manner. But we're keeping Carneros. And we're still on good terms with our family, who can always get the preferred discount on Champagne!

PIERRE-EMMANUEL TAITTINGER: TALKS ABOUT GLOBAL WARMING.

 Global warming is the major issue for the planet. It's the Third World War, and we are in it right now. For the last ten years, the wine world has been positively affected by global warming - good harvest, regular harvest - but it's not going to continue. In the long term, it's going to change our way of life dramatically, and for the worst. I am very pessimistic about this. We're recycling, using vehicles less, driving cars with ethanol, and planning our business activities to conserve. We're avoiding unnecessary business travel, shipping wines by train instead of truck. We're extremely conscientious. At home, we don't take baths anymore, only brief showers; I think of water now as more precious that Champagne.

Taittenger Trivia

Taittinger was a favourite of the literary James Bond.Taittinger was actually Ian Fleming’s favourite Champagne,’ said Justin Llewellyn, brand ambassador for Taittinger and son of gadget master Desmond Llewellyn. We have a letter from  Fleming thanking M. Taittinger for a dozen bottles, and Taittinger was mentioned in Casino Royale, Moonraker, On Her Majesty’s Secret Service and Goldfinger.

The last time Taittinger made a screen appearance in the 007 series dates back to 1963’s From Russia with Love.

They approached Claude Taittinger for the next film, but he didn’t want
                                     to  be involved, and we never have been since,’ said Llewellyn.

Secret Agent Jones over and out.
THE VINTRY RATHGAR

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Pere Ventura, Cava, Rosat.

The final sparkling of our last Country Mix slot is a fizz that should appeal to those that find Brut Cava, n.v Champagne or Crements a little too dry. This is a semi-sec Cava from the Cava region of Penedes in Northern Spain.
This also won the 2009 Gold Star Award for Sparkling wine under €25.
A raspberry cool-aid colour in the glass with good bubbles. The nose is like a summer fruit salad of soft red berries with a slight yeastiness. The palate is strawberries with a creaminess, sweet fruit and good fizz.
When holidaying in Northern Spain a couple of years ago we spent a good bit of time in this Cava bar.Not an English speaking person in sight nor a seat or table. The set-up was slightly alien to us Irish. On purchasing a bottle of the 4 Cavas on offer you were force fed - for free!!. If seen from the high counter, four man deep bar by one of the fast speaking Cava bar employees they would harass you until you were holding something resembling red meat in a bun wrapped in a white paper napkin. The food was delicious and the more you drank the better both the Cava and the food tasted. So, as served in your local Cava bar try red meat with this Rosat, if this doesn't float your food pairing boat try one of Darina Allen's Summer puddings or just chill and drink instead of a Cosmopolitan- Worked well in my house last Saturday.
O&O

Ruth.

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Cesario Frizzante Sauvignon Blanc

This Frizzante is made from 100% Sauvignon Blanc and comes from a family-owned vineyard in Mittelburgenland in Austria. The Kirnbauer family started making wine in 1979 when Irmgard and Walter(husband and wife team) bought the land and commited themselves to making superior quality wines. They are still very much involved in the running of the vineyard together with the help of their son, Markus and his wife, Alexandra.  Markus and Alexandra visited us in Cellars a few months back to introduce us to their family's wines. He works full-time in the winery whereas Alexandra works as an airhostess however it was quite apparent just how passionate she is about the wines as she would hardly let him get a word in edge ways!

  Austria is mostly known for it's dry white wines with Gruner Veltliner apparently set for world domination however the Kirnbauers are red wine producers, working with indigeneous Austrian grape varieties such as Blaufrankisch and Zweigelt. They also make small quantities of a straight chardonnay, a gorgeous Eiswein and more importantly this gorgeous little sparkler which is made in the traditional champagne method with secondary fermentation occuring in the bottle.

                                                                                                                          The Kirnbauer Family

Back in 1985, Austrain wines came under serious attack when the media realised that a few Austrian winemakers were adding a chemical to their wines that was also present in anti-freeze. This chemical apparently was added to the wines to add body and some sweetness. The Austrians were accused of trying to poison the Germans who were their biggest export market at the time and it spelled disaster for their wine industry. This whole scandal was all a little exagerated as the chemical in question is actually less toxic than alcohol but the media had a field day on it and Austrian wines dropped off the radar for a while.  As a result of the scandal the Austrian government were encouraged to improve the quality of the country's wines and put many regulations into place and now 25 years later we are seeing some super wines coming out of here.

 I particularily love this wine of theirs as not only is it something diferent to offer those looking for a nice sparkling wine but also it is light and refreshing. Most sparkling wines are made from  Burgundy grape varieties or the Prosecco grape in Italy it is not so usual to come across a sauvignon blanc sparkling. It is crown closed somewhat like a beer bottle top so you don't get that same POP that you get with a champagne but it is a frizzante so has lighter bubbles than a champagne.  Served in the famous Austrain glassware Riedel (pictured right), it has a pale straw colour.It has a very fruity nose with white peach evident. It is refreshing and light in the mouth with fine bubbles. €19.99 on the shelf, a lovely summer alternative to Cava or Prosecco.

Apparently the name is a tribute to their collie-sheep dog, Cesar  who had just turned 1 when they launched this fizz back in 2002. Unfortunately they never considered the Italian meaning to the word Cesario when launching it as they now have the only sparkling wine in the world called after a Caesarean section...

Till Next Time
Clare
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Innocent Bystander ,Pink Moscato 2009, Victoria ,South Australia

They say all great things come in small packages, this 375ml bottle of fizz with its bottle cap (crown closure) to me is one for sure. 

It's a happy, fun, fruity little number that is only 5.5% alcohol, and very easy to drink. It's something that can be sipped on while enjoying the sun, out in the garden, or a great way to kick start your Sunday brunch.

The company was founded in 2004 by Philip Sexton who made his money in the beer business before venturing into the wine business. (you can get the pink moscato on draft at their cellar door) Moscato is a grape originating from Northern Italy's Piedmont and something the Australians have started to make  a good  job  of copying. 

The nose is Watermelons, Rose petals, Peaches, also a touch of turkish delight. If there is such a thing as summer time in a glass, to me this is it! It just tastes like more. The palate is very refreshing with a lovely spritz of sherbet like fizz .I would recommend this with any fruit based desserts, or as the Aussies like to drink it with a straw!

One to seek out over the Summer months.
Retails @ €5.99. 

Cheers,

Julie

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WINE-ING AWAY TO WESTPORT

Hens and Prosecco seems to go hand in hand with my girlfriends but then again so do late lunches and prosecco, nights out and prosecco and even of late, babysitting and prosecco so maybe it's just another excuse for me and the girls to crack open the bubbly! So 2 weeks ago, with a four hour train journey ahead of us, 26 hens and the bride-to-be could think of no better way to wile away the hours to Westport than by cracking open some fizz. Despite the stems falling off all our plastic champagne flutes  leaving us with no other option but to drink up (too) quickly or lose it to the rocky train journey, I did hear on our return leg to Dublin the words " I would kill for a glass of that prosecco now..." been uttered and some murmurs of agreeance in response. The same can definitely not be said about the other beverages consumed over the weekend!!

   Conti Neri Prosecco di Prosecco NV  is a spumante (fully sparkling) made from the Prosecco grape in the Prosecco region. Producers in this region are in the process of legally changing the grape name so that only sparkling from the Prosecco DOC can be called Prosecco(similar to champagne laws).

Everyone loved the freshness and elegance of this wine. Generous  flavours of apples and pears on the palate with loads of persistent bubbles. Some spiciness on the finish and definitely tastes like more... I feel great value for a spumante at €16.99.

I did have a great picture of us all on the train to Westport in all your typical hen paraphenalia but unfortunately as the saying goes "what goes on tour, stays on tour..."

Till next time
Clare

Jeio Desiderio Cuvee Rose ...One for mammies day!

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Our first radio spot coincided with Mothers day, and we decided to focus on Italian wines for that celebration! As rumour has it that the Italian mother is even more dedicated to her sons (and daughters!) than our own doting mammies here in Ireland..!


I chose JEIO DESIDERIO CUVEE ROSE which is a lovely pink sparkling wine, made high in the hills around Valdobbiadene just west of Venice where the best Prosecco is made.

This is a really lovely area with small rolling hillocks of vines angled in every conceivable direction and floating morning mists that burn off as the sun rises.

Julie and I happened to be there during the last Papal conclave and even though I am not religious (at all!) I will always remember standing in the silence of the Bisol vineyards, looking down on to a tiny Italian village, and hearing the bell peel in its little church, to signify that a pope had just been elected. It was around ten to four!

Anyway, back to the actual wine……As this wine is a pink colour it obviously cannot be a Prosecco,as Prosecco is a white grape variety, so it is actually a blend of Pinot Noir and Merlot.

It has a lovely smoked salmon, onion skin colour and a nice sparkle with a persistent bead(bubble).A fresh clean nose of ripe summer fruits…raspberries and fragrant Irish red apple and a lively crisp refreshing crisp finish.

Great for a party or a summer’s day in the garden Try it with fresh salmon or any sweet shell fish or just some ripe  raspberries or strawberries.

This wine is made by the Bisol family who have lived in this area since 1645 but have only been making wine since 1875! Jeio was the nickname Mamma Bisol gave her husband Desiderio,the equivalent of calling a Patrick…Paddy.

Subsequent Bisol mothers have called their children Desiderio  which funnily enough translates as Desire. Can you imagine an Irish mother calling her son in from the green where he is playing soccer..." Desire luv, come in your teas ready”…. talk about a slagging from the mates!

This wine retails at €18.95

 Salute & Arrivederchi,

Evelyn

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