Gastronomy and Wine Portal

Raventos i Blanc presents its purest and most authentic still wines for the summer months.

With the beginning of the summer, wine preferences change. Raventós i Blanc proposed its characteristic recommendations of the most suitable wine for these summer months of good and warm weather.

Three fresh and novel wines are selected symbolizing three summer months. This trilogy of the three natural wines is produced by Can Sumoi’s family wine.

Having a strong vision and growing passion for natural wines, Pepe Raventós has been helping Can Sumoi vineyards to recover for four years. This is a marvelous place of the highest integrated estates in the Penedès, located 600 meters above sea level, where the Raventós i Blanc team leads the process of recovery of lost vineyards and local varieties. Their aim is to produce natural wines with minimal intervention in all processes of viticulture and winemaking.

Their summer wine choice represents the new vintages of three wines Xarel.lo, La Rosa and Perfum 2020.

Xarel-lo Can Sumoi 2020; a single varietal, 100% Xarel-lo, with its distinctive character and marked identity. The purest and most sincere expression of Xarel-lo.

La Rosa Can Sumoi 2020; blend of Sumoll, Xarel-lo and Parellada. The wine is complex and expressive in aroma. An aromatic and voluminous wine.

Perfum Can Sumoi 2020; blend of Malvasia, Macabeo, Moscatell and Parellada, high aromatic expression with floral and citrus aromas, a very elegant, aerial, tasty, fresh, and dry palate.

Photo: Raventos i Blanc 

Raventós i Blanc presents its purest and most authentic still wines for the summer months.

Auction house Sotheby’s offers a rare collection of Moutai and the oldest Karuizawa released to bid on June 2-18.

The first-ever Moutai lot, the most famous Chinese spirit, will go under the hammer at the auction house Sotheby’s. It is estimated at up to £450,000 for its Rare Whisky & Moutai, Extraordinary Spirits from Asia & Scotland,

24 bottles of Kweichow Moutai “Sunflower” 1974 in an original wooden shipping crate are top lots on June 2-18. This is not only the first Mutai lot to be auctioned at Sotheby’s UK, but the most valuable Mutai lot that Sotheby’s has offered to date (est. £ 200-450,000), the report says.

Japanese whiskies from Yamazaki, Hibiki, Hanyu and Saburomaru will be presented at the auction house. A collection of 32 bottles of Karuizawa, all from a single collection known as The Unbeatable Collection of Karuizawa, leads the selection from Asia.

The most notable bottle of the collection – the Karuizawa Cask # 5267 1960 – was considered the most valuable Japanese whiskey in the world when the bottle was sold at Sotheby’s in March 2020 for £ 363,000 ($ 435,273). A bottle from this cask has been auctioned for the first time since this record was set (est. at £ 240,000–450,000).

Two prominent bottles distilled at Bowmore Distillery on Islay head the Scotch Whisky on the sale. Both were distilled in the 1960s, a historic milestone of production at Bowmore, and one which is revered amongst whisky lovers and collectors.

Without doubt, Bowmore Samaroli Bouquet 1966 is a whisky cult classic. It was distilled in 1966 at Bowmore and bottled around 18 years later in 1984 by the late Silvano Samaroli. One of the greatest whiskies of all time is estimated at £35,000-48,000. Sotheby’s currently is the record holder for this bottle, setting a price of £72,600 in October 2019.

At the other end of the age range, there is the Bowmore 50 Year Old Number 1 Vaults 1966, a long-aged expression from the same vintage (est.£ 26,000-35,000). The limited production of only 74 bottles was released in 2017 and became one of the rarest manifestations of Bowmore ever produced.

Bidding on the 75-lot sale runs until 18 June.

Photo: Sotheby’s

Auction house Sotheby’s offers a rare collection of Moutai and the oldest Karuizawa released to bid on June 2-18.

Hong Kong hotels offer tempting menu and accommodation discounts for those who have been vaccinated.

The Langham and its two sister hotels (Cordis and Eaton), owned by the Great Eagle Group, offer reduced prices on accommodation, food, and beverages if visitors are fully vaccinated. Thus, the company aims to encourage residents to vaccinate.

For vaccinated guests, the hotels offer a package called “Stay Safe and Save”, which is valid from June 1 to August 31, 2021, and offers a 50% discount on room and restaurant prices. Fully vaccinated guests at the Langham, Cordis, Eaton Hong Kong, and Ming Court (in Wanchai) hotels (no accommodation) will benefit from a 15% discount on food and beverages on the same dates.

“We have to do our best because we want Hong Kong to achieve herd immunity faster,” said Stefan Leser, CEO of Langham Hospitality Group. “We hope that by offering discounts, we can encourage more residents to get vaccinated, then our borders will open, and safe travel will resume.”

It is one of the city businesses that has announced promotions for the vaccinated. Previously, such discounts were voiced by developers offering apartments at discounted prices for fully vaccinated Hong Kong residents. Cathay Pacific offers free flights. The Hong Kong authorities and company owners hope in this way to induce citizens to get vaccinated, as of June 1, only about 18% of the population is fully vaccinated.

Earlier, health officials said millions of unused vaccines would be unusable by mid-August. Hong Kong is one of the few places in the world where more doses of vaccine have been purchased than the population needs. The government purchased and authorized a total of 15 million doses of Sinovac and Pfizer-BionTech.

Prepared by A. Bantysheva based on materials from vino-joy.com

Photo: facebook.com/LanghamHK

Hong Kong hotels offer tempting menu and accommodation discounts for those who have been vaccinated.

The dressing of wine gets inspiration from the “contactless” technology of our bank cards. NFC (Near Field Communication) technology opens up new possibilities for the wine trade within smartphone reach. A guarantee of authenticity and a logistical tool, radio frequency identification (RFID) is becoming an asset in digital marketing.

What is NFC technology?

The NFC tag, also called an inlay, is a passive transmitter that uses radio waves. The electronic chip transmits information through its antenna which captures the energy supplied by any smartphone, Android, or iPhone, placed near the tag. A thin and small support, it slips invisibly under the freshly printed adhesive label or is added as a chip on your already labeled wines.

Avery Dennison is the world’s largest technology partner with multiple R&D centers and production sites in every region of the world. Initially a traceability tool, like its use in the pharmaceutical and food sectors, the NFC tag has become an asset in customer relations. “Big houses use it to guarantee the authenticity of their products around the world,” explains Benoit Jourde, Business Development Manager at Avery Dennison. “It is more reliable than a QR code and can even become a pledge of inviolability, a definite asset in limiting counterfeiting.”

What is a connected label for?

NFC technology allows the traceability of each bottle to better understand its distribution channel.

The bottle is localized each time it passes a dedicated reading gantry. If your bottle is destined for the US market and it is scanned in China, you immediately identify which link in the distribution chain has caused a problem. The consumer who connects to the bottle also becomes an ally in targeted market knowledge. Thanks to geolocation, you can know in real time where the bottle is located and whether the consumer is scanning it in a store, restaurant or at home.

David Lamballais, Development and Innovation Director for the Tag & Play solution explains how technology has naturally found its place in wine packaging: “Historically, we are a family printing company created more than 50 years ago. In 2010, we incorporated NFC technology as a simple addition to the label design. The use of logistics appeals to customers, but marketing applications open the door to a multitude of possibilities.”

The widespread use of smartphones, purchases influenced by online research and the desire for a direct connection with the brand are all favorable criteria for using the NFC tag for commercial purposes.

Communication without limit with the consumer

For the winegrower or the merchant, introducing NFC technology means the possibility of communicating and creating a link directly with his customer. Solutions such as the Tag & Play marketing and communication platform put technology within reach of winegrowers and offer an adapted digital offer. “The NFC tag allows secure redirection to the winery’s website or to any web content chosen by the winemaker.”

NFC technology can thus provide access to information as precise as the parcel where the grape was harvested, the date of harvest or bottling. The information can be updated, such as indicating the ideal tasting time for example. The NFC tag provides an original interactive user experience that tends to become more and more customizable.

Boisset wines have implemented NFC technology first for the sake of authentication on their JCB range in order to offer a tasting experience to their VIP customers from their salon in Yountvil (California, USA). Collectors and members of wine clubs quickly appreciated being able to have information available to them, even in a more prioritized way of giving exceptional wines. Extended to other ranges this year, the connected label provides access to the founder’s personal stories or videos on the origins of the wines.

NFC technology heralds the future of the label. The dressing of your wine is thus designed in your image and goes beyond the paper medium to appeal to the consumer.

Photo: Boisset Collection, Resource Label Group

The dressing of wine gets inspiration from the “contactless” technology of our bank cards. NFC (Near Field Communication) technology opens up new possibilities for the wine trade within smartphone reach. A guarantee of authenticity and a logistical tool, radio frequency identification (RFID) is becoming an asset in digital marketing. What is NFC technology? The NFC […]

This spring, the Champagne vines are observed to have growth irregularities in some of their plots once again. The phenomenon remains unexplained for the moment. The Champagne Committee is carrying out studies to identify the causes.

This year in Champagne, the winegrowers once again observed shoot anomalies in some of their plots. What are the symptoms? Abnormally short internodes, a “shriveled” aspect of the shoots, leaves with asymmetric contours. This causes reduced vegetative growth and a lack of vigor.

“This is a problem that has been lasting for a few years in the oldest plots. However, it was brought up to us in 2019 in Barsuraubois. But we have the feeling that the phenomenon is spreading, with cases that have been reported to us all over the place: in Sézannais, the Ardre Valley, in Cuis, Chouilly, Barséquanais…”, lists Constance Demestihas, from the Champagne Committee.

Nutritional imbalances and disruption of sap circuits

Since last year, the interprofession has been carrying out investigations to determine the causes of these physiological disorders. The first analyzes revealed “nutritional imbalances and disruption of sap flow” in the “abnormal” vines.

But currently, the Champagne Committee does not know the origin, nor the link it may have with the shoot anomalies observed. This year, it will therefore continue its work and carry out in-depth monitoring of water and nutritional constraints on a network of affected plots. The Committee will also perform virological diagnoses at the end of the season.

Photo: Champagne Committee

This spring, the Champagne vines are observed to have growth irregularities in some of their plots once again. The phenomenon remains unexplained for the moment. The Champagne Committee is carrying out studies to identify the causes.

On June 11, the heroes of Eurovision, the Ukrainian Go_A_band will end the first day of the Ukrainian Wine Festival.

Go_A band is like Ukrainian wine. Young, but already mature. As ones that will thunder all over the world and not stay unnoticed. On June 11, Go_A_band will end the first day of the Ukrainian Wine Festival with an hour concert in the courtyard of the Pototski Palace at 7 pm.

The first Ukrainian Wine Festival will take place on June 11-13 on the territory of the Pototski Palace (in Lviv).

The best products of domestic wine, titans of the wine business and craft winemakers will come together to prove that wines made in Ukraine are not worse, or even better than European or New World wines to which everyone is accustomed.

Exquisite gastronomy at the festival will complement the taste of Ukrainian wines. In addition, the festival will host a variety of tastings which will be held by representatives of iconic Ukrainian brands. And the best domestic winemakers will take part in the Competition “The best Ukrainian wine 2021”. The professional jury will choose the best white, red, rosé, and sparkling wine.

There will be a Wine and Art zone. Both wine and art are narrators of amazing stories. They are a pleasure glorified since ancient times. They are incredible associations and feelings, tasted through fascination with color, aroma, and taste.

From today, the unique Radio Wine UA, created especially for the festival, is on the air. All connoisseurs of good Ukrainian wine and quality music will be able to immerse themselves in the atmosphere of the festival by simply turning on the radio.

Buying a ticket to the Festival until June 10 (UAH 125 / person / day), you get a tasting glass, because if you taste wine, it is worth doing it beautifully and aesthetically. The organizers also strongly remind about the culture and responsible consumption of alcoholic beverages, social distance, and the mask regime.

The ticket price for “early birds” for the Go_A_band concert is UAH 250.

Tickets to the ground floor worth UAH 800 are also on sale.

• Tickets for the June 11 concert can be purchased here.
• Tickets for the Ukrainian Wine Festival here.
• More about the festival on the Facebook and Instagram pages.

On June 11, the heroes of Eurovision, the Ukrainian band Go_A_band will end the first day of the Ukrainian Wine Festival.

The designer of the fashion house Moschino has designed pinot grigio of the famous Italian winery Ecco Domani.

A professional career of Jeremy Scott, creative director of the world’s most famous Italian fashion brand Moschino, began in 1996 when he moved to Paris after graduating from Pratt Institute in New York. In the same year, the Italian company Ecco Domani released its first pinot grigio.

In subsequent years, Jeremy Scott declared himself as a rebel from the fashion world and one of the most promising couturiers of our time, having worked with a number of world stage and film stars. And Ecco Domani became one of the most recognizable pinot grigio brands in the world. Now they have teamed up to create a limited-edition wine collection.

Having received an offer from an Italian wine brand, Scott immediately decided that the new line would be a tribute to the 90s – the time when both he and the winery were just starting their activities: “The 90s are a bright and bold pop culture, so, I used this frantic energy in the design of the bottles, combined with colorful graphics.”

Ecco Domani & Jeremy Scott 2020 Pinot Grigio hits store shelves in June for $12 a bottle.

The designer of the fashion house Moschino has designed pinot grigio of the famous Italian winery Ecco Domani.

The supplier Soufflet Vigne is investing in the wine deployment of the KeyKeg PET packaging range, with the exclusive distribution of the Dutch brand on the French territory.

KeyKeg PET is an innovation that meets the expectations of players in the wine industry and French consumers. Like many agricultural sectors, the French wine industry is in search of innovations.

French winegrowers are particularly turning to new technologies to better meet consumer expectations.

Thus, in the distribution of wine, customers appreciate entertainment and new drinking experiences. These trends are leading wine merchants to change their business concepts and turn to bars and restaurants to diversify the shopping experience and attract younger customers.

The concept of wine in the barrel KeyKeg, developed by OneCircle, meets these new expectations. Thanks to the use of sophisticated packaging in lightweight PET barrels, its large volume, and its system for reducing the size of the packaging once emptied, the KeyKeg barrel provides:

• better inventory management across the entire distribution chain,
• a gain in transport costs and a reduction in waste,
• a much wider range of wine by the glass for customers.The KeyKeg wine range, available in 10 L, 20 L and 30 L, is now stored and distributed in France by Soufflet Vigne.

Conquering the French market

Through this partnership with Soufflet Vigne, OneCircle, a Dutch company, aims to establish itself in the various French vineyards. Soufflet Vigne directly and exclusively on the wine market sells the KeyKeg and its accessories as well as the technical after-sales service for filling the KeyKeg. This partnership is first reflected in the takeover, by Soufflet Vigne, of the French customers of OneCircle.

From this sales, marketing, and logistics dynamic, Soufflet Vigne’s objective is to win new customers and bring OneCircle real development on the French market. For Soufflet Vigne, it is also a question of expanding its range of containers and offering an innovative product exclusively in France. The distribution of KeyKeg is part of the innovation policy for the wine industry and offers its customers, future customers and French consumers new possibilities for the distribution and consumption of wine.

A partnership between two companies serving the sustainable sector

The OneCircle company conducts technological research and the development of innovations that meet consumer expectations and are committed to respecting the environment. For nearly 30 years, Soufflet Vigne has offered winegrowers and cooperative cellars a full range of products and services, as well as technical advice, from planting to vine maintenance, including breeding and the conditioning of the wine.

Present in the heart of most of the great French vineyards (Beaujolais, Bordelais, Burgundy, Chablis, Champagne, Languedoc-Roussillon, Provence, Sancerre, Rhône Valley), Soufflet Vigne is committed to developing innovative solutions that create value for the wine sector, respecting the environment of users and consumers. Beyond its expertise in wine-growing areas, Soufflet Vigne shares values ​​similar to those of OneCircle, in particular in its commitment to sustainable, high-performance and quality sectors, with the objective of enhancing all stages of production of the wine, from the vine to the glass.

Based on the materials from Soufflet Vigne

The supplier Soufflet Vigne is investing in the wine deployment of the KeyKeg PET packaging range, with the exclusive distribution of the Dutch brand on the French territory.

On June 3, Cité du Vin is hosting famous French actress and winemaker Carole Bouquet.

Outstanding French actress Carole Bouquet, a wine lover and winemaker, is invited to celebrate the 5^th anniversary of Cité du Vin in Bordeaux.

The island of Pantelleria, situated between Sicily and Tunisia, took a particularly important place in Carole’s Bouquet heart. The island name means “daughter of the winds”.

In 2005 she launched the production of her own wine there, Sangue d’Oro. With her team, she has brought abandoned vineyards back to life to craft exceptional wines.

By taking on the challenge of resurrecting a classic wine, Passito, made in the pure tradition using dried grapes, Carole Bouquet is helping to preserve the winemaking heritage of the island. Her Sangue d’Oro is an exceptional vintage from old vines, a sweet white wine made from the Muscat of Alexandria grape variety: its aromas are very intense, and the grapes boast great resistance to extreme weather conditions.

Passito is suggested to be paired with almonds and pistachios biscuits, foie gras, roquefort cheese, almonds, or chocolate.

In 2011, she was awarded with the insignia of Commandeur of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by Frédéric Mitterrand, Minister for Culture and Communication, for her contributions to both culture and gastronomy.

The meeting with Carole Bouquet will take place online and in the Cité du Vin on the 3rd of June at 7 PM CET. It will be moderated by Jérôme Baudouin, editor-in-chief of La Revue du Vin de France.

You can participate in this event on site at the Cité du Vin by booking your ticket (places are limited), or online via Zoom.

Photo: Cité du Vin

On June 3, Cité du Vin is hosting famous French actress and winemaker Carole Bouquet.

The competition will present 1000 samples of the best white wines from 5 continents.

The only competition in the world dedicated to the variety of white wines will take place on October 2 and 3, 2021. The event is held under the patronage of OIV. The organizers say that the list of winners of Le Mondial des Vins Blancs Strasbourg can be seen as a reflection of global trends and evolution of viticulture on 5 continents.

From year to year, thanks to the support of official wine organizations and the best wine judges from all over the world, white wines from 20 countries compete with each other.

In 2020, the awards were received by winemakers from Austria, Chile, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Romania, Slovakia, and the Czech Republic. Chile, which took part in Le Mondial des Vins Blancs Strasbourg for the first time, won DRY WINE TROPHY in the RIESLING category.

“We aim to gather 1000 samples of the best white wines in the 5 continents. After having celebrated Chile in the latest press book, the 2021 edition’s country of honour is HUNGARY. We are preparing a focus on its wines and vineyards, namely Badacsony and Villány”, the organizers say.

The wines in the competition are divided into 12 categories:

1. Chardonnay
2. Chenin
3. Gewürztraminer
4. Muscat
5. Pinot Blanc
6. Pinot gris
7. Riesling
8. Sauvignon
9. Sylvaner
10. Viognier
11. Other grape varieties
12. Blended wines

Registration is open until August 31st. Any winery can take part in the international competition by paying €98 for a registered sample. Samples are accepted from June 1 to September 10, 2021.

Photo: mondial-vins-blancs.com, csodalatosbalaton.hu

The competition will present 1000 samples of the best white wines from 5 continents.