Decanting a sparkling wine?

I was recently been told that it is possible to decant a champagne and still enjoy its finesse. With all curiosity, I opened a bottle of sparkling wine made with Methode Champenoise to experiment this unconventional way of drinking champagne. To make the whole experience worthwhile, I prepared a couple of oriental appetizers to go with my tasting.

To begin with, I use a decanter that has a stopper (so that the carbon dioxide does not escape too readily). After opening the chilled wine bottle with a loud "pop", I poured the wine immediately into a champagne glass as my reference sample. I then decant about half the bottle and let it rest for 5 minutes. Now, I have two samples (undecanted and decanted) each resting in its glassware for 5 minutes. Meanwhile, I start to observe the beautiful bubbles for both samples. Since the decanter has a broader surface, the bubble is not rising as beautifully as that of the proper champagne wine glass. After 5 minutes, I tasted the undecanted wine and feels that it has its normal fizzy self, citrus nose and a lemony palate. This sparkling wine uses the blending of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier with 3 years lees contact. Now, I pour the decanted champagne into another similar glass and tasted it with high curiosity. There is still the fizziness but much less intense, the lemony palate is smoothened and it tastes more like a still wine that survived through the second fermentation. The creamy character of the wine is accentuated. To my pleasant surprise, I find the decanted sparkling wine very welcoming and indeed exhibits more fruit characters than its original sparkling form. The amount of oxygen exchange with the wine during decanting has removed the sharp edges contributed by the fruit acidity, softening the palate. There is still sufficient carbon dioxide to give the fizzy texture.

Food wise, I have an Indonesian styled deep fried squid and the ever popular Chinese dry fried prawns. They are perfect companion to a sparkling wine, decanted or not. Overall, I think this little experiment has yielded pleasant results and I don’t mind presenting it to my guests in the next dinner party. Cheers!

Copyright of Wine Treasures Pte Ltd

By Cher Lim
Wine Treasures Pte Ltd
Website: http://www.wine-treasures.com
Email: limce@singnet.com.sg

Oh, Grappa!

I was checking stocks of my wine cellar this weekend when I realized that I am still holding a small collection of Grappa ! I decided to write about this forgotten spirit even though it is not a wine.

Strictly by definition, Grappa is a distilled spirit from grape skins and seeds (known as pomace) that are left behind in the winery after the wine is made. The name is exclusive – only distillates produced in Italy can be marketed as “grappa” and every aspect of its production is to follow a prescription – the composition of the pomace, including the allowable moisture, the distillation method and the maximum alcohol level (86%). The other form of spirit that is distilled from whole fermented grapes is called acquavite d’uva.

The aroma of grappa is complex and full, especially when the alcohol level is less than the maximum. The grape varietals that are more suitable for making grappa belong to the aromatic category: Riesling, Gewurztraminer, muscat, Muller-Thurgau. As the raw materials of grappa are dependent on those used in winemaking, the recent changes in winemaking practices carry an impact on the quality of grappa indirectly. Traditionally, whole grapes and stems are crushed to extract the grape juice for fermentation in making wine. Today, wineries remove the stems from the grapes before pressing in order to reduce the bitter taste in the wine. Similarly, grappa distillery can now use pomace without stems or request the winery to remove the stems. There is also more moisture in the pomace for distillation. The smell of sweetness in the must is much like that of the wine that we all enjoy. When grappa is made, the aroma from the grapes is passed to the spirit. The higher quality pomace ensures that the resultant grappa is smooth and richly aromatic.

Enjoying a grappa is much like enjoying a wine. It sometimes carry aroma like herbs, raisins, nutty and the color may vary from its purest form to amber and honey. The glassware designed to hold the spirit is fanciful and artistic. It is a love on first sight for me. The taste of grappa has also found its way into many Italian kitchens. As for my own kitchen, I love to use a dash of grappa that has the spicy aroma in strong flavored dishes to give it the extra omh factor. To enjoy grappa in a glass, it is best served at 8-10C for the young spirit and 16-18C for the older ones.

Copyright of Wine Treasures Pte Ltd

By Cher Lim
Wine Treasures Pte Ltd
Website: http://www.wine-treasures.com
Email: limce@singnet.com.sg