Superiore

Generally indicates a wine of higher quality, often because it has more alcohol than the minimum required and/or it has been aged longer than regulations stipulate. Valpolicella Superiore, for example, is a Valpolicella with at least one year of aging in contrast to basic Valpolicella, which has no minimum.

What is Puliniacus?

A. A heritage strain of yeasts used in the 18th century when Champagne as we know it began

B. The name of a Roman poet who wrote about the beneficial relationship between wine and the emotions

C. The name of a village that later became known as Puligny-Montrachet

D. A type of rot that can overtake botrytis cinerea in the vineyard, potentially devastating sweet wine production in the vineyard affected

Originally a Gallo-Roman village known as “Puliniacus,” Puligny-Montrachet got its current name in the late nineteenth century. The wines of Puligny-Montrachet (poo-le-KNEE mon-ra-SHAY) are often considered the most ravishing chardonnays in the world. The tiny village (just 1,260 acres) sits in between two other great white wine villages—Chassagne-Montrachet to the south and Meursault to the north. Before World War II, the village was also planted with wheat, blackcurrants, and mulberries.

The True Wine of Kings

Hungary’s Tokaji Aszú has been the wine of the famous, the powerful, the pious, and the noble. Its description as “the king of wines and the wine of kings” comes from the early 18th century,… Continue reading

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