Wine Lesson #9: What Is Port Wine And When Do You Drink It? (Part 3/3)

WINE LESSON #9: WHAT IS PORT?
Unlike dry red or white wines, Port is a versatile product with numerous styles

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Let me explain.

To refresh our memory, the fermentation process converts sugar in grape juice into alcohol to form wine. For dry wine almost all the sugar is converted.

What if we stopped the fermentation half-way? This would mean two things: (1) there is sugar left unfermented and (2) not the full strength of alcohol is achieved. We’ll we have achieved the sweetness.

Now we need to achieve the desired level of alcohol strength. We are an exact ratio of spirit — grape brandy usually — to make the solution precisely say 20%ABV. Viola! We have Port – a complex wine with a great balance of sweetness and alcohol strength.

Some names to look for in Port are: DOW, GRAHAM, COCKBURN, TAYLOR, DIEZ, SMITH WOODHOUSE, SANDEMAN, FEIST and BARROS.

But the greatest name of all, the nobility among Port producers if you will, is Portugal’s national pride — QUINTA DO NOVAL.

Their vintage port made from the indigenous grape variety called Touriga Nacional — specified in label — commands an extraordinary high price but despite that all bottles are zapped up immediately upon release.
Although some connoisseurs recommend serving Port at 20°C, many find it more pleasant at room temperature 15°C in tropical climates.

What do we eat with Port? Blue cheese, medium-spicy Asian food, heavy reduction sauces, dark bitter chocolate come to mind instantly.

The all-time classic pairing is a English Blue Stilton cheese with a glass of genuine Vintage Port.

Life is not long enough to say no to something so perfect, do you agree?

Source: Wine Lesson #9: What Is Port Wine And When Do You Drink It? (Part 3/3)

Wine Lesson #9: What Is Port Wine And When Do You Drink It? (Part 2/3)

WINE LESSON #9: WHAT IS PORT? (Part 2/3)
Unlike dry red or white wines, Port is a versatile product with numerous styles

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Colheita Vintage Port
It is not often that we come across a Colheita but when you see one, it is almost always a super-value buy. Colheita is a Tawny Port made from a single vintage which is stated in the label. It ages for at least 7 years in barrel giving it depth, complexity, that attractive nutty flavor and flavors of dried fruit.

Most Colheita’s are zapped up once they hit the wine shelves because it is perhaps the closest thing to the KING of Port — The Vintage Port — at probably half the cost.

Vintage Port
Well, well, well, this is what PORT is all about, the top of the line, ultimate luxury but alas almost always expensive Vintage Port. To start with, producers don’t make Vintage Port every year. As a matter of fact, they “declare” — term used in the trade to mean announcing that a Vintage Port will be made for this year — a Vintage about 3-5 years in a decade.

That decision is based on how great the vintage is. Vintage Port accounts of about 1% of Port made so it hardly makes or breaks a producer’s financial disposition either way. A lousy Vintage Port can seriously damage a producer’s reputation.

Vintage Port is made from one single vintage year and only the best grapes are chosen. It is bottled after 2-3 years in barrel, unfiltered of course and is expected to improve with bottle ageing for many years, a century even, for the best vintages such as 1955, 1963, 1977 for example.

Many argue that Vintage Ports are one of the finest wines in the world. After a sip of these, one might be at a lost for words to disagree. We can always expect a thick sediment in Vintage Port and so decanting is absolutely required.

Single Quinta Port
Now that we know how sensitive a decision to “declare a vintage” is, for lesser-quality vintages, producers may opt to produce a “Single Quinta Port”. It is practically the same as a Vintage Port but it comes from a single vineyard.

But the mere admission that it is not “Vintage Port” means two things: (1) it is less expensive and (2) its quality is not up to the standard of Vintage Port. Along with Colheita’s, Single-Quinta’s can be excellent value for your money. Always decant a vintage port.

Now before we end this week’s lesson on Port, let’s quickly explain how Port gets its sweetness. Except for really bad Ports where cheating takes place, there is no sugar added to make the wine sweet. Instead, the sweetness comes from the (red) base wine.

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Source: Wine Lesson #9: What Is Port Wine And When Do You Drink It? (Part 2/3)

Wine Lesson #9: What Is Port Wine And When Do You Drink It? (Part 1/3)

WINE LESSON #9: WHAT IS PORT? (PART 1/3)
Unlike dry red or white wines, Port is a versatile product with numerous styles

PORT is a fortified wine. That means spirit is added to a base wine to fortify the alcoholic strength to a designated level, which in the case of Port, is 20% ABV (Alcohol By Volume) or about 18% in some Australian versions.

It is difficult to pinpoint when Port was “invented” but it is pretty sure to be around since the 17th century. The best Port in the world comes from Portugal but the countries that drink the most Port are France and Britain.

Unlike dry red or white wines, Port is such a versatile product that there are numerous styles. Each style can easily be a stand-alone product complete with its own purpose, appeal and characteristics.

Here are some of the more popular styles that you are likely to encounter frequently.

Ruby Port
This is “entry level” port which we can buy for about p300 and up to p1000 for a ‘Premium’ Ruby. Cheaper versions tend to be a bit harsh, often used in cooking — port reduction sauce for example — or drunk with strong-flavored food and moderately spicy Asian cuisine. Ruby Port is aged in wooden barrels for up to three years and they are ready to drink when bottled.

Tawny Port
The range of quality in Tawny is staggering. True Tawny usually has on its label the number of years it was aged in barrel before bottling. This can be 10 to 40. Long ageing in barrels gives this Port a red-brown color — hence the name Tawny — as well as a dry nutty flavor and raisin notes.

Steer clear of exceptionally cheap Tawny Port even if they show the matured red-brown color. Most of these cheap Tawny Ports are made by adding a little White Port to a basic Ruby to achieve the color that would allow it to pass for a Tawny. We get the color but not the attractive flavor or barrel-aged Tawny Port.

White Port
White Port is made from a variety of white grapes like Arinto, Gouveio, Malvasia etc. It comes in dry or sweet versions, both best served slightly chilled and often enjoyed as an aperitif. A serious dry white port can benefit from a few years of ageing.

Late Bottled Vintage (LBV)
LBV is the most popular style because of its consistently good quality and reasonable price tag. It is a superb introduction to first-class Port. Unlike Tawny and Ruby, LBV is made from a single harvest and a Vintage Year appears on the label.

It is aged in barrel from 4 to 6 years giving it more complexity than a Premium Ruby. Before you serve an LBV, check if it is “filtered” or “un-filtered”. If it is unfiltered, you should expect a considerable amount of sediments in the bottle. Decanting is strongly urged.

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Source: Wine Lesson #9: What Is Port Wine And When Do You Drink It? (Part 1/3)

Wine Lesson #10: What Is Sangiovese Wine? (Part 2/2)

WINE LESSON #10: The Truth About Sangiovese Wine (Part 2/2)
Sangiovese wines reign supreme in many tasting tables even in the face of formidable adversaries like Lafite, Richebourg, Grange and Vega Sicilia

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THERE is a good reason why it is difficult to find cheap Sangiovese.

Unlike Cabernet, Merlot and Syrah/Shiraz, Sangiovese is not a very spectacular varietal. It is a lot easier to make an enjoyable Cab or Merlot.

A mediocre Sangiovese has little or no personality to speak of, light-weight in all respect and all too forgettable.

Cheap Sangiovese is invariably, to be quite honest, plonk.

In contrast, many low-price Merlots and Cabs are quite enjoyable and sometimes quite interesting.

But up in the heavy-weight arenas, Sangiovese wines reign supreme in many tasting tables even in the face of formidable adversaries like Lafite, Richebourg, Grange and Vega Sicilia.
Fans of Sangiovese will seek out these great Sangiovese labels: Tignanello, Biondi-Santi and Gaja. From the new-world, there are some stunning albeit different renditions.

Try to get your hands on a “Peter’s Vineyard” bottling from Long Meadow Ranch or a Napa blend from Turnbull.

On the more affordable end of the price range, try Italy’s household name, Ruffino and from the new world a pretty good Sangiovese from Napa’s Kuleto Estates.

Don’t forget Australia’s Yarra Valley. A cadre of wine makers is starting to fool around with this varietal and some of the stuff that come out of there are not that bad, especially for those who are able to keep the alcohol level under 14%.

For cheese lovers, the recommended choices are all from Italy, namely Boschetto al Tartufo, a soft cheese with New-World Sangiovese, Grana Padano for the hearty and firmer Brunello and the popular Mozzarella Bufala with the friendly Chianti but a Provolone, Pecorino or Pecorino Romano would do fine with any good Sangiovese wine.

Next lesson: A Few Facts About Decanting

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Source: Wine Lesson #10: What Is Sangiovese Wine? (Part 2/2)

Wine Lesson #10: What Is Sangiovese Wine? (Part 1/2)

WINE LESSON #10: The Truth About Sangiovese Wine (Part 1/2)
This well-balanced wine is just about perfect for all sorts of home-made Italian food. The classic pairing is wild boar with a matured Brunello/Chianti — or grilled zucchini with extra virgin olive oil, bruschetta, carpaccio and pizza with tomato sauces

SANGIOVESE [SAHN-gee-o-VAY-zee], the diplomat of wine grapes — we’ll get to that in a minute — has done much to bring Italian (red) wine to stardom in the international arena.

Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti (to a lesser extent perhaps), for example, are two of the most sought-after wines in the world. Italians are not the only one besotted with Sangiovese. Wine enthusiasts in the US and all over the world seem to ingratiate themselves with this stuff.

Back in Tuscany, the new classification of Chianti Classico, which has succeeded in restoring lost faith and much needed respect for this classical rendition of Sangiovese blends, has raised the bar for the percentage of Sangiovese in the blend to 90%.

When Baron Ricasoli invented Chianti just before the turn of the 20th century, the assemblage was 70% Sangiovese with the filler made up of equal parts of a red and a white varietal.

Well, times have changed.

Modern-day wine buyers want more purity of grape varietals, preferring to select wines by the name of the grape — Sangiovese in this case — rather than the type of blend or a terroir.

Today, Chianti Classico is one of the cachets of premium Italian wines.

This diplomat of wine grape maintains a middle-of-the-road position on all important oenological issues. Its color is not too dark and not to light. So are its flavors and aromas. They are not too assertive, not to weak and its low tannins always mild and agreeable.

No wonder it always wins many votes among frequent diners even the fastidious lot, ordering a reliable bottle for dinner especially in Italian restaurants.

Insipid is one quality that Sangiovese is not. It has a relative high natural acidity that is always delivered fresh. This results in a wine that is robust and vigorous, almost never flat or dull.

Combine that with a generous amount of fruit flavors on good vintages, we have ourselves a well-balanced wine that is just about perfect for all sorts of home-made Italian food.

The classic pairing, as professed by the Tuscans, is wild boar with a matured Brunello/Chianti. Other pairings that are highly recommended include grilled zucchini with extra virgin olive oil, bruschetta, carpaccio and pizza with tomato sauces.

Back on the farms, viticulturists have learnt from generations of experience that Sangiovese loves hot and dry climates. That pretty much describes the climate of Tuscany, coincidentally.

A quick study of the grape quickly reveals that its skin is rather thin. That means it is susceptible to rot, so humidity that usually exists in high elevation is unwelcome. It also takes a long time to ripen and that means trouble if it was planted in a place prone to late-Autumn rains, like Bordeaux for example.

No such climatic threats await its arrival to California. Today there are many fine Sangiovese wines coming out of California and their prices seem to tell us how confident producers are about their wines.

Part 2: Why it’s difficult to find cheap Sangiovese

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Source: Wine Lesson #10: What Is Sangiovese Wine? (Part 1/2)

Wine Lesson #12: When To Order Viognier Wine (Part 2/2)

WINE LESSON #12: VIOGNIER WHITE WINE IS PERFECT WITH ASIAN FOOD (PART 2/2)
Viognier is always a full-bodied white wine with a finish that lingers on for quite a while, and for these qualities, it is well-suited for stir-fry dishes, spicy Asian-flavoured dishes, and coconut milk in sauces

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HOWEVER, the sweeter the wine, the higher is the level of acidity required to balance the sweetness to prevent cloying. Château Grillet is one of the few that manages to produce a well-balanced sweet wine.

Viognier comes across on the nose with aromas of apricot, violet and apple. On the palate, it hits you with a basket of fruits with undertones of honey. It is always a full-bodied white wine with a finish that lingers on for quite a while.

For these qualities, it is well suited for all sorts of stir-fry dishes and is one of the few wines that can handle coconut milk in sauces.

Other dishes that bring out its virtues include lobsters, roast chicken, fish like trout and sole too. And for something exotic, try crocodile steak (www.YatsGourmet.com).

When it comes to cheese, best choices are goat cheeses. If you prefer cow’s milk, then better stick to aged cheese with washed rind, like a Livarot, an Artisanal Brillat-Savarin or a simple Piave.

If you have trouble finding a bottle of Viognier in your favorite wine shops, feel free to write the wine tutor at wine@Yats-International.com. Whether you are a red or a white wine person, Viognier will appeal to you with equal intensity.

Next lesson: Why do people sometimes get a hangover wine?

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Source: Wine Lesson #12: When To Order Viognier Wine (Part 2/2)

Wine Lesson #12: When To Order Viognier Wine (Part 1/2)

WINE LESSON #12: VIOGNIER WHITE WINE IS PERFECT WITH ASIAN FOOD (PART 1/2)
Viognier is always a full-bodied white wine with a finish that lingers on for quite a while, and for these qualities, it is well-suited for stir-fry dishes, spicy Asian-flavoured dishes, and coconut milk in sauces

VIOGNIER, pronounced vee-oh-NYAY, is a white wine grape not very well known outside the French wine region Rhône, although wine enthusiasts have long fallen in love with the full-bodied voluptuous white wine from Condrieu and Hermitage.

For a bottle of those, many willingly part with US$100 without batting an eyelash. And then there is this very rare wine called Château Grillet, the tiniest appellation comprising of just one property.

Viognier is one of the few white grapes that are frequently added to red wine for a softer and suppler mouth-feel.

It makes man-size white wine with intense fruit flavors, stunning aromas and extraordinarily high levels of alcohol, though often too high for its own good.

Advent of fusion cuisine led to its discovery, which later won the approval of the quaffing public. Its size allows this dry white wine to stand up to spicy Asian-flavoured dishes. Later on the same people would find out that Viognier pairs very well with cheese also and that helped to fuel its ascent to stardom in the New Worlds.

Viognier is almost always an expensive proposition for a number of reasons.

First of all, the yield of the grapes is low. To make matters worse it is highly susceptible to (vine) diseases. As a matter of fact, it was on the road to vanishing completely by the mid-80s. A crop of Viognier is as expensive as premium Cabernet Sauvignon, which is always the most expensive grape to purchase.

This grape flourishes in warmer climates with a long growing season. It doesn’t pack much acidity, though. Its high sugar levels encourage producers to consider it for sweet dessert wines.

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Source: Wine Lesson #12: When To Order Viognier Wine (Part 1/2)

The Perfect Brew (Part 2/2)

The Perfect Brew
Backed by its company’s rich roasting experience, the Young bloods at boutique cafe Cuppa Choice shows Singapore how to brew the best coffee

By James P. Ong
Editor, 88DB.com

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Suhaimie Sukiman. operations manager of Cuppa Choice, says they wanted to capture the ambiance of a Parisian cafe.

They will soon feature a live, interactive coffee roasting session on its display window. （PHOTOGRAPH: MARK LIM）

IT’S no surprise that Suhaimie and Consulta, both in their 20s, are former baristas. And they have seen enough to realize that some mainstream coffee chains, while not exactly horrible, actually have low standards when it comes to coffee preparation.

This boutique cafe is their answer to this imbalance. They do not say it, but they try very hard to be purists.

For example, on display now in the store is a very intricate cold brew gadget which they use to make their frappes. “This is our secret ingredient,” Suhaimie proudly tells us. Most methods of brewing coffee involves hot water and a relatively short brewing time. This one is a very slow approach, taking at least 24 hours and uses chunks of melting ice to extract the juice out of the beans.

Suhaimie, who had the unenviable task of preparing for his wedding at the same time he was opening this pilot outlet, says the idea behind Cuppa Choice was to make it like a “Parisian cafe” where people really enjoy their coffee.

Prior to opening this establishment, Cuppa Choice had been hired as consultant by start-up cafes, so it was just logical and a matter of time before they made use of all that exposure and experience and build their own thing.

Something to look forward to in the near future: an interactive coffee roasting experience. Behind the shop window will be a “live” roasting session. That’s something no other cafe can do in Singapore. #

Cuppa Choice cafe (3 Temple Street, Singapore 058556; tel. no. 6316 1007) is open from 10 am to 10pm every day.

Source: The Perfect Brew (Part 2/2)

The Perfect Brew (Part 1/2)

The Perfect Brew
Backed by its company’s rich roasting experience, the young bloods at boutique cafe Cuppa Choice shows Singapore how to brew the best coffee

By James P. Ong
Editor, 88B.com

THE CAFE THAT COFFEE BUILT: After over 20 years of supplying coffee beans to Singapore’s hotels and restaurants, Hui Yee Manufacturing has finally opened its own cafe in Chinatown. （PHOTOGRAPHS: MARK LIM）

THE newly opened Cuppa Choice cafe, with its shiny black-and-white tiles, is the most peppy cafe I’ve been to recently.

Natural light streams in. In the middle of the room: a bar with pillars made of coffee beans, where guests can sit across each other on Philippe Starck stools as they sip their coffee, or stare at the chalk board that covers an entire wall.

Ah, the wall. This is where the staff have painstakingly scribbled the names of all 84 drinks on offer, divided into neat categories: coffee classics, frappes, milkshakes, yoghurt shakes, iced tea signatures, signature espresso-based, iced coffee signatures, fruit juices and refreshments. Name it, they most likely have it.

On their first week of operation, a group came in and, upon being informed there was a total of 84 drinks to choose from, decided to throw down the gauntlet: “Make an 85th drink for us!”

To everyone’s delight, award-winning head barista and Business Development executive Ian Consulta obliged them and whipped up a Wasabi Milkshake — wasabi paste, milk, plenty of ice and homemade vanilla gelato. They finished the drink with relish.

It’s this off-the-cuff attitude that makes Cuppa Choice different from your garden variety franchise-coffee and kopitiam; the barista is given the go-signal to experiment with the ingredients on hand. In other cafes, creativity goes down the drain as baristas have no choice but to adhere strictly to the menu.

Barista Ian Consulta At Cuppa Choice, this concept of the barista as “chef” means there will always be something new on the menu.

For Consulta (pictured left), whose strength is transforming desserts into drinks, this could mean a Cookies-and-Cream Mocha Frappe, Nutty Presso (peanuts and coffee), Rose Dark Mocha (using bandung), or Matcha Azuki (green tea, red bean, and coffee).

But lest we be sidelined into the sweet concoctions, rest assured that the “real coffee” offering here is as substantial and equally exciting.

After all, the folks behind Cuppa Choice wouldn’t put up a board on the street that says “Brewing The Best Coffee” if they couldn’t deliver on the promise.

Cuppa Choice is owned by Hui Yee Coffee Manufacturer, which began over 20 years ago as a small start-up supplying coffee powder to cofee shops around the island. They have since moved into coffee roasting, as well as supplying coffee brewing machines and espresso machines to coffee shops and cafes.

According to Suhaimie Sukiman, Cuppa Choice’s operations manager and trainer, they also offer coffee appreciation workshops and barista training. They also hold events to prop up the barista community in Singapore.

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Source: The Perfect Brew (Part 1/2)

Lesson #13: Why Do People Get Wine Hangover?

LESSON #13: WHY DO PEOPLE GET WINE HANGOVER? IF YOU think alcohol bingeing is the only cause for waking up with a giant headache, think again.

If you sometimes get a headache the morning
after drinking wine — something similar to
hangover — it’s time you know a few more things about wines.

Tannins, the stuff that contains phenolic flavenoids that provide the anti-oxidant benefits to make you live healthily forever and ever, is the same stuff that can cause you to suffer from migraines.

Red wines would taste flabby without tannins. Unlike a hangover, this one doesn’t go away. Instead it accumulates over time as you consume more and more tannins making you even more susceptible to tannin-driven headaches.

To reduce tannin accumulation, drink older wines.

Tannins in wines “resolve” themselves with age inside a bottle, forming sediments that drop to the bottom. You can separate the sediments from the juice by decanting or simply avoiding them when pouring into a glass.

Most red wines start to throw sediments from 5 years old and continue to do for a few more years. Sticking to wines above 8-10 years old and you need worry no more.

Another culprit is the histamines which dilate blood vessels in the brain. Antihistamine drugs won’t do much to protect you but choosing the right kind of wines to drink does.

Red wines usually have a higher histamine level than whites. The ones that have the highest levels are the red wines with low acidity. Acidity in wine is mainly a result of cold weather. Heat produces sugar while cold produces acidity.

Wines from warmer regions like a lot of new-world wines for example tend to be full-bodied, high in alcohol (from high sugar levels), plenty of ripe flavors but often low in acidity. The combination of high alcohol and low acidity can mean trouble to the more sensitive populace.

So what are some of the wines with more acidity? White wine. But for reds, try Italian wines from Piedmont and Tuscany regions, France’s Burgundy, Bordeaux and northern Rhone. Believe it or not, the sweet wines from Sauternes have very high level of acidity!

So there you have it, and once again, please remember to drink less, drink better!

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Source: Lesson #13: Why Do People Get Wine Hangover?