Magazine

Are you really familiar with Bordeaux wines sporting the intriguing ‘Cru Bourgeois’ moniker on their labels? In an era of constant one-upmanship and an ocean of endorsements and superlatives, is this just one more marketing gimmick to catch the consumer’s eye, or is it genuinely meaningful? We went through the required specifications with a fine-tooth comb and quizzed the chairman of the Alliance along with various member chateaux. And here is our verdict!

After becoming a DOC in 1967, then securing the highly coveted DOCG endorsement in 1997, Franciacorta has gone from strength to strength. We drill down on what makes it so unique, and the producers behind this highly sought-after traditional method sparkling wine.

For the erstwhile heroine of ‘The Mask’, ‘Charlie's Angels’ and ‘Something about Mary’, cinema is a thing of the past. After choosing to distance herself from a world of make-believe and rediscover a taste for the simpler things, it was only natural that Cameron Diaz should turn to producing wine. And just like the California belle herself, her wine certainly has character.

The Castilla y Leon region, in North-West Spain, is replete with famous appellations such as Ribera del Duero, Toro, Cigales and Rueda – lining the banks of the river Duero and producing some of the country’s finest wines.

With just a single grape variety planted over 8,000 hectares and producing only dry white wines, a cursory look at Muscadet might imply something simple. But the minute you taste the wines, suddenly the horizon opens up to complex terroir-driven offerings, underpinned by recognition of village-designated growths in 2011. The endorsement points to the quality of the wines, which should most certainly be on your to-try list.

So far in 2022, Germany is experiencing the hottest and, above all, driest summer since weather records began. Weeks without any rain, forest fires, historically low river levels and shallow-rooted plants withered - all the result of 40 days at over 30°C. Under these conditions, it seems a little cynical to call Germany a possible ‘winner of global warming’. But climate is a long-term matter, and many people – German winegrowers included – quickly forget that only a year ago, in early summer 2021, they had complained about fungal pressure in the vineyards caused by high rainfall and humidity.