WineSpeed - Wine Intel from Karen MacNeil

Stay tuned for more LIVE Virtual Tastings!

͠ ͠

ANTICA TERRA

“Antikythera” Pinot Noir 2019

(Eola-Amity Hills, Willamette Valley, OR) $175

We’ve tasted a slew of sensational Oregon Pinot Noirs in our recent office tastings. Here’s another one I couldn’t wait to tell you about. Antica Terra is a small artisanal producer that dances to the beat of its own drummer. The winemaker Maggie Harrison has a golden touch, for this is a beautifully rich Pinot that rushes at you in waves of flavor—spices, wet black earth, juicy red fruits, bitter dark chocolate, plus an electrical current of minerals that race through the wine. The “energy” is simply captivating. I always feel as if great Pinot pulls you into it, and that’s what happens here. Lastly, like just about everybody else, I had to google Antikythera to find out what it referred to. It turns out that an Antikythera is an ancient Greek instrument considered the oldest example of an analog “computer,” and was used to predict astronomical positions and eclipses. I wonder if it could have predicted that Antica Terra’s terroir would produce something as delicious as this. (12.8% abv)

96 points KM

Available at Antica Terra Winery

Karen’s Flavor First™ Stemware

Buy The Wine Bible

About Karen MacNeil

See the Current Issue

California Chardonnay—Walking the Talk?
By Karen MacNeil
May 27, 2022
In the United States, the popularity of big, oaky California Chardonnays led, in the late 1990s, to a still-thriving counter-movement called ABC—Anything But Chardonnay. Today, scores of California winemakers hammer on about the importance of… Continue reading
The New Super Sauvignons
By Karen MacNeil
May 6, 2022
One of the most exciting developments in wine over the last several years has been the emergence of a whole new class of California Sauvignon Blancs—wines that are bright, minerally, sophisticated, and complex, often with a ravishing… Continue reading
Why Don’t I Love Beaujolais More?
By Karen MacNeil
March 11, 2022
I should. Gamay can be a fantastic grape. And the best cru Beaujolais’ have lots of what I love in wine—precision, freshness, structure, aliveness, a core of addictively delicious fruit. But somehow I never seem… Continue reading

Red Bordeaux wines are usually ___and _than Burgundies, and they are also usually __.

A. Darker, more tannic, more acidic

B. Lighter in body, less tannic, lower in alcohol

C. Darker, fuller in body, more tannic

D. Darker, sweeter, more bitter

Red Bordeaux wines are made principally from Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot—all of which have more color pigments in their skins than does Pinot Noir (the red grape of Burgundy). And while alcohol levels in Burgundy have been climbing compared to past years, most Bordeaux is still slightly fuller in body. Finally, all three red Bordeaux grapes are also more tannic than Pinot Noir. And finally, while the alcohol levels in Burgundy have been climbing compared to years past, most Bordeaux is still slightly higher in alcohol.

The very first grape varieties were probably all white.

Answer: False.

Scientists believe that the very first original grape varieties were probably all red. Accordingly, the first white variety was a mutation that occurred when pieces of DNA moved within the gene, interrupting the coding for anthocyanins, molecules that create color. Interestingly, in early wine-drinking civilizations, the rarity (and relative fragility) of white wines gave them social value and led to the perception that white wines were more refined than reds and, as such, more desirable as upper-class drinks.

Foudre

French term for a large wooden cask of indefinite size. Popular in France’s Rhône Valley, foudres are significantly larger than small oak barrels (barriques or pieces). Foudres often have the capacity to hold 528 to 3,170 gallons of wine.

Washington Wine-The Time Is Now Video #3

Don’t miss Karen’s video on Washington Wines, the time to drink Washington wine is now.

In Honor of National Chartreuse Day—A Few Secrets

There are only two people alive who know the identity of all 130 herbs and aromatic plants used to make Chartreuse, the world-famous, emerald-green liqueur from east-central France. They are monks of the Chartreuse Order (the Carthusians), which was founded in 1084, in the Chartreuse Mountain Range near the Alpine vineyards of Savoie. The Order received the original recipe for an “Elixir of Long Life” in 1605 as a gift in the form of a cryptic manuscript believed to have been written by a sixteenth-century alchemist. A hundred and fifty-nine years later, the Order’s monks finally decoded the mysterious instructions and began to produce “Elixir Vegetal de la Grande-Chartreuse,” a medicinal tonic. The tonic’s descendent—today’s Green Chartreuse liqueur—still calls for a dizzying cornucopia of botanicals (including rosemary, green bell pepper, licorice, and lavender) to be macerated in alcohol, distilled to 55 percent alcohol by volume (110 proof), and aged for several years in oak casks. Made at the Monastery in Voiron, it’s the only liqueur in the world with a completely natural green color.

Oz Clarke
Read the Interview by Karen MacNeil
February 18, 2022
Oz Clarke is a British wine writer, TV personality, and well-known authority on wine. His unpretentious style has made him one of the most recognized wine critics in the U.K. … Watch and Read Interview
Alessia Antinori
Read the Interview by Karen MacNeil
January 14, 2022
When asked what piece of advice she would give to the next generation of women in wine:
“…continue to pursue (their) values and strengths… I think our role is essential now and in the future.”… Watch and Read Interview
Laura Catena
Read the Interview by Karen MacNeil
August 27, 2021
Laura Catena is a Harvard and Stanford-trained biologist and physician, and the founder of the Catena Institute of Wine in Argentina. … Watch and Read Interview

1894

Year that the classic Chinese take-out box was patented by its creator, a Chicago inventor named Frederick Weeks Wilcox. According to the website Gastro Obscura, Wilcox modeled the folded waxed paperboard box with the metal handles on oyster pails. The box was all white until the 1970s when a drawing, in red, of China’s famous “Porcelain Pagoda” was added by a designer at the manufacturing company. The designer also added the words “thank you” in a script mimicking Chinese calligraphy.

245

Age (in years) of the oldest grapevine in Great Britain. While this doesn’t make it the oldest in the world, a two-and-a-half century-old Vitis vinifera vine that still dependably yields grapes is not exactly what one expects to find growing in the middle of London. Curiously, the vine is Schiava, a sleek, spicy red variety indigenous to the Alto Adige/Südtirol region of northern Italy. It was brought to the UK by King George III.

96

Percentage of New Zealand’s vineyards that are now officially certified as sustainable, according to a report in Decanter magazine. The country launched its certification program known as Sustainable Winegrowing New Zealand in 1995, making it one of the first countries to do so. Wineries and growers in the program are audited by an outside independent agency who assess compliance in six areas: water, waste, pest and disease control, soil, climate change, and people.

͠ ͠

“Antikythera” Pinot Noir 2019

Get WineSpeed