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Kerin O'Keefe (decanter.com) writes:

The Chianti Classico^? Consorzio^? has confirmed that after 78 years of distancing itself from the Chianti denomination, the divorce is now final.
 
The Chianti Classico zone, the original central growing area for Chianti, was first delimited in 1716 by the Grand Duke of Tuscany.
 
It was relegated to mere subzone status in 1932 when the government divided the much expanded Chianti area into subzones.
 
Since then Chianti Classico, which produces among the best wines in Italy, has fought to distance itself from Chianti, winning its first battle for independence in 1996 when it became its own autonomous denomination.
 
A new ministerial decree goes even further, and bans any vineyards in the Classico zone from being used for Chianti or Chianti Superiore^? production.
 
'This effectively cuts the umbilical cord that has continued to connect the two distinct denominations,' Giuseppe Liberatore, director of the Chianti Classico consorzio said.
 
Chianti Classico, whose producers can use the black rooster motif, also has a more rigid production code than Chianti, disallowing white grapes, which are permitted for Chianti.

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Tags: melgab, wine, chianti, tuscany, italian, south-africa, South Africa

John Abbott (decanter.com) writes:

Casanova di Neri has escaped legal action over the 'Brunellogate' scandal.
 
The winery^? was informed of the decision in July, but requested additional official documentation before making a statement.
 
The document, issued by the Minister of Justice, confirms that no legal action has been taken against the winery.
 
Casanova di Neri was one of the seven wineries investigated as part of 'Operation Mixed Wine' over the alleged adulteration of wines produced in Montalcino and Chianti Classico^? in 2003.
 
In a statement, estate^? owner Giacomo Neri said Casanova di Neri had been 'removed from the list in the course of the investigations.'
 
'As one of the more important wineries in the zone, Casanova di Neri was checked and controlled by the required authorities.'
 
'We inform our clients that the wines of Casanova di Neri are even more guaranteed post-investigation than before, having completed the analyses that were requested by the authorities for the commercialistion of Brunello di Montalcino,' he said.
 
A spokesperson for Casanova di Neri said the winery will now continue its business operations as usual.

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Casanova Di Neri

Brunello di Montalcino

Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto

Brunello di Montalcino "Tenuta Nuova"

Pietradonice Sant'Antimo Rosso DOC

Tags: melgab, wine, brunello, scandal, italian, south-africa, South Africa

David Furer (decanter.com) writes:

Amarone has been promoted to the highest possible quality level.
 
Italian DOCs Amarone della Valpolicella and Recioto^? della Valpolicella have been promoted to the status of Denominazione Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG^?) Italy's Agriculture Minister has announced.
 
DOCG is the highest quality level allowed by both Italy and the EU, with the move understood by many to be a step to define Amarone's status to its most important export market, the USA.
 
Carlo Boscaini, of his eponymous estate^?, said 'it is unfortunate that it arrives after 15 years of battles between producers.'
 
Sabrina Tedeschi, too, has been waiting the promotion for many years saying that 'it is very important on for our economy as it is one of the best Italian wines sold abroad.'
 
She argued that this should be the first step in a review of the zone to define a limited area of hilly vineyards over flat vineyards as deserving of DOCG status.
 
Retroactive to the 2008 harvest, the move was preceded by the Ripasso^? style^? of Valpolicella receiving its own DOC^?.
 
Giuseppe Rizzardi of Bardolino's Guerrieri Rizzardi celebrated the impact this measure would have upon diminshing the amount of fake Amarone sold on some export markets.
 
The National Wine Commission who approved the promotion, also dismissed the application for adjustment of DOC rules for Collio, Gorizia, Bivongi, Marino, and the IGT^? Quistello.

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Tags: melgab, wine, amarone, appellation, italian, south-africa, South Africa

Jeremy Parzen and Franco Ziliani (decanter.com) write:

The U.S. Alcohol^?, Tobacco, Tax, and Trade Bureau (TTB) will no longer require Italian government certification for imports of Brunello di Montalcino to the U.S., Italy's agriculture ministry has announced.
 
A statement was published shortly after Italy's agriculture minister Luca Zaia met with TTB administrator John Manfreda in Washington D.C. last week.
 
The previous requirement for government certification was announced by U.S. authorities on 17 June 2008, in the wake of allegations that producers of Brunello di Montalcino had adulterated their wines by adding unauthorised grape varieties.
 
'I have obtained the definitive go-ahead for the importation of Brunello di Montalcino to the U.S.,' said minister Zaia in the statement.
 
'The case^? is now definitively closed^?.'
 
According to existing appellation^? regulations, Brunello di Montalcino must^? be produced using 100% Sangiovese grapes grown in Montalcino.
 
Although no arrests or indictments have been made by Italian authorities during the "Operation Mixed Wine" investigation, treasury department officials reported in July 2009 that 20% of the 6.7 million litres impounded in the inquiry was declassified from Brunello di Montalcino DOCG^? to Toscana Rosso^? IGT^?.
 
Brunello is 'one of the wine ambassadors of 'Made in Italy' products,' Zaia said, and is now 'assured its presence in the American market.'
 
The meeting between minister Zaia and TTB head Manfreda was part of Zaia's week-long tour of the U.S. promoting authentic 'Made in Italy' agricultural products.

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Tags: melgab, wine, brunello, legislation, italian, south-africa, South Africa

Scientists in Japan are reporting the first scientific explanation for one of the most widely known rules of thumb for pairing wine with food: "Red wine with red meat^?, white wine with fish." The scientists are reporting that the unpleasant, fishy aftertaste^? noticeable when consuming red wine with fish results from naturally occurring iron in red wine. The study is in ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.
 
Takayuki Tamura and colleagues note that wine connoisseurs established the rule of thumb because of the flavor clash between red wine and fish. They point out, however, that there are exceptions to the rule, with some red wines actually going well with seafood. Until now, nobody could consistently predict which wines might trigger a fishy aftertaste because of the lack of knowledge about its cause.
 
The scientists asked wine tasters to sample 38 red wines and 26 white wines while dining on scallops. Some of the wines contained small amounts of iron, which varied by country of origin, variety, and vintage^?. They found that wines with high amounts of iron had a more intensely fishy aftertaste. This fishy taste^? diminished, on the other hand, when the researchers added a substance that binds up iron. The findings indicate that iron is the key factor in the fishy aftertaste of wine-seafood pairings, the researchers say, suggesting that low-iron red wines might be a good match with seafood.

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Tags: melgab, wine, food, pairing, science, south-africa, South Africa

Italian bank vaults may soon resemble well stocked delicatessens if a plan goes ahead to accept expensive wines and dry^?-cured hams as collateral on bank loans from crisis-hit producers.
 
The idea, which was launched this week by an influential Italian bank chairman and wine producer, was backed by an Italian minister and follows the tradition of Italian banks storing massive wheels of parmesan^? cheese as loan collateral.
 
"We've done it with cheese, why not with prosciutto^? and good wines like Brunello di Montalcino and chianti classico^??" said Gianni Zonin, chairman of the Banca Popolare di Vicenza and head of wine producer Zonin.
 
"This is a great idea, it has my blessing," said Luca Zaia, the Italian agriculture minister.
 
The Italian bank Credito Emiliano has long stored hundreds of thousands of parmesan wheels, worth about ¤300 each, in warehouses as collateral while they age.
 
Since the bank can sell the cheese if creditors default, it can afford to offer low interest rates to an industry which is suffering from recession and supermarket discounting.
 
Legs^? of cured ham^?, or prosciutto crudo^?, weighing about 10kg, can sell for hundreds of euros after months of curing in controlled conditions, while bottles of Brunello di Montalcino are regularly snapped up for the same amount.
 
"We may start off with accepting wine as collateral, but I would prefer the Italian banking association to launch an industry-wide scheme which involves a range of products," said Zonin. "This will help producers in times of crisis as well as when the economy picks up."
 
Zaia said he would take the matter up with the Italian treasury minister.
 
"Apart from meeting the need of companies for liquidity, this proposal also recognises that our true gold reserves are the excellent products we make in Italy," he said.

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Tags: melgab, wine, currency, gourmet, prosciutto, italy, south-africa, South Africa

Richard Woodard (decanter.com) writes:

Wineries in Chianti Classico^? will only be allowed to sell 80% of this year's production in an effort to stabilise the market.
 
Members of the Chianti Classico Consorzio^? have agreed to implement a 'blocco delle vendite' for the first time because of fears that falling bulk prices could harm the image of the Tuscan DOCG^?.
 
Under the plans, they will hold back 20% of the wines produced from the 2009 harvest for a minimum of 24 months.
 
A spokesperson for the Consorzio said the action was a response to the general state of the wine market, rather than a specific issue for Chianti Classico.
 
Consorzio directors had rejected the idea of limiting yields in favour of the 'blocage', she told decanter.com.
 
'It's an experiment. And it's not too painful for the estates, especially for those who produce Riserva^? wines.' The Riserva category requires an extra 24 months of ageing.
 
The idea was to avoid speculation after bulk prices for Chianti Classico fell heavily during 2008 and early 2009.
 
'It's a tentative attempt to avoid speculation in a period which is difficult for all the wine sector, and not only for our appellation^?,' said the spokesperson. 'It's difficult to foresee the real impact on the market, but we will see.'
 
Chianti Classico has recently been hit by falling sales in key markets like the US. But the Consorzio spokesperson said there were some signs of a recovery, with producers reporting new orders from the US, Asia and some European countries.

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Tags: melgab, wine, chianti, tuscany, italian, south-africa, South Africa

Jeremy Parzen (vinowire.simplicissimus.it) writes:

VinoWire editor Franco Ziliani has obtained two letters sent to Consorzio^? del Vino^? Brunello di Montalcino (Brunello Producers Association) members in recent days by director Stefano Campatelli and by association president Patrizio Cencioni. Both letters address the members “pursuant to the [Italian] Treasury Department’s press conference a few days ago [see below] and news that has appeared in the media.”
 
In the first letter in question, director Campatelli does not confirm or deny that he was named in the Treasury Department’s findings among the seventeen persons found to have “cheated in commercial transactions” [translator’s note: official EU translation] and “falsely certified public documents.” He does, however, reveal that he was accused of said transgressions and explains his actions as follows:
 
“The accusation leveled at me is that of having allowed the sale^? of wines sourced from vineyards for which [an evaluation of] “light non-conformities” had been issued in relation to the presence of vines not in accordance with those prescribe by [Brunello di Montalcino] Appellation^? Regulations. In the view of the [Italian] Treasury Department, a[n evaluation of] “grave non conformity” should have been immediately issued and reported to the appropriate authorities (the Provincial Administration of Siena, the Siena Chamber of Commerce, and the ICQ [Inspectorate for Quality Control of Food and Farm Products]). In keeping with standard practices, the interpretation was to treat such situations as “light,” since it is possible to rectify the situation and bring it into conformity through grafting^? or by grubbing up the vines. This is what happened in nearly all of the cases.”
 
In the second letter, president Cencioni encourages members to project a “positive message” in the light of the Treasury’s findings and he announces that the auditing firm^? Valore Italia has been contracted to certify quality of association members in future.
 
VinoWire will continue to report on this story as new information emerges.

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Tags: melgab, wine, brunello, montalcino, scandal, italian, south-africa, South Africa

David Furer writes:

Ten of Valpolicella's top winemaking families have joined forces to promote Amarone della Valpolicella.
 
Between them, Allegrini, Brigaldara, Masi, Musella, Nicolis, Speri, Tedeschi, Tenuta^? Sant'Antonio, Tommasi, and Zenato represent 55% of the value of high-level Amarone and over 40% of the total market.
 
They have banded together to form Amarone Families, an association of exclusively family-owned companies to champion minimum quality standards and prices for all Amarone della Valpolicella Classico^?.
 
They argue, for example, that low-cost Amarone, often found discounted at supermarkets for €10-12, should never cost less than €25 due to the expense of its production.
 
'Amarone must^? remain precious and rightly priced,' the group's president Sandro Boscaini of Masi said.
 
'The commercial success of our wine lies in its identity. We want to confirm these values.'
 
The Group has set out a voluntary code of conduct with rules stipulating a minimum alcohol^? content of 15% and no less than 30 months maturation^? before release. There will also be rules governing the complex^? production process of the wines.
 
There will also be an attempt to persuade producers to declassify wines in less-good vintages.
 
Each winery^? must also produce a minimum of 20,000 bottles of Amarone, export to no fewer than five countries, and members will detail the history of their Amarone production on labels.
 
The Group's primary focus is on exports, which make up 70% of DOC^? production.
 
Amarone's most important export markets are Canada, which has recently outpaced the US, Switzerland, the UK and Germany.

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Melgab's Amarone Selection

Lamberti Amarone Tenuta "Pule"

Santi Proemio Amarone Della Valpolicella

Villa Rizzardi Amarone Della Valpolicella DOC

Tags: melgab, wine, amarone, veneto, italian, south-africa, South Africa

Guy Woodward (decanter.com) writes:

In what might be seen as a reversal of recent trends, two Bordeaux first growths have triumphed in a top-level blind tasting^?.
 
Yesterday in London, premium Chilean producer Errazuriz gathered some of the UK's top palates to recreate its landmark 'Berlin' tasting, pitting its own wines against the top names of Bordeaux, Tuscany and California.
 
In a line-up of a dozen wines, the judges gave the first two places to Chateau^? Margaux 2005 and Chateau Lafite 2005, followed by a 'Super Tuscan'. Errazuriz wines took the next four places, while Opus One, the sole^? Californian wine, was placed last of the 12.
 
Errazuriz president Eduardo Chadwick first conducted the tasting in 2004 in Berlin, when his wines took the top two places. Describing the event as 'a milestone in the history of the Chilean wine industry', Chadwick has since repeated the event in Tokyo, Toronto and Beijing.
 
The tastings frequently elicit protests from Bordeaux, whose producers complain that taking their wines out of context leads them to underperform.
 
On this occasion, however, a panel comprising some of the UK's top tasters, including Jancis Robinson MW^?, Tim Atkin MW and Oz Clarke, were unanimous in favouring the clarets.
 
Decanter consultant editor Steven Spurrier, who took part in the inaugural tasting, and has attended several since, observed that this was 'without doubt the most pro-Bordeaux result we've seen'.
 
...
 
The results in full:

1. Château^? Margaux 2005
2. Château Lafite-Rothschild 2005
3. Solaia 2005
4. Don Maximiano 2006
5. = Viñedo^? Chadwick 2006
5. = Seña 2005
7. Seña 2006
8. Château Latour 2005
9. Sassicaia 2005
10. Don Maximiano 2005
11. Viñedo Chadwick 2005
12. Opus One 2005

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Tags: melgab, wine, contest, bordeaux, berlin tasting, south-africa, South Africa