Archive for October, 2008
SA Wine Exports on the Up
The bad news might raise eye-brows, but I find it always pleasing to report the good news. Today is no exception. Despite the international economic slowdown, South Africa’s wine export sales have exceeded all expectations. Wines of South Africa (WOSA) have reported that over 363 million litres have been sold abroad during 1 year ending [...]
Bottle Shock
I wish that movies with ‘wine’ as their central theme were made more often. It has been 4 years since the release of that classic ‘Sideways’, and now finally in 2008 we once again have reason to swirl our wine in delight.
The movie is called Bottle Shock and tells the true story of how Napa, [...]
Organic Wine: What’s the Big Deal?
What makes organic wine so special? Is it really that special? But wait a second… what IS organic wine? One hears vegetables described as ‘organic’ as if it were Mother Nature herself who conjured up the over-priced carrot in your shopping basket. So what about organic wine then?
‘One hears vegetables described as ‘organic’ as if it [...]
My Winning WINE Magazine Letter!
If you can recall I wrote an article entitled ‘It Must be Something in the Water’ posted on September 22nd 2008. In this article I shared my theory regarding the apparent ‘earthy’ characters present in some South African wines, as pointed out by UK wine critics.
Well, I took my theory a step further and presented [...]
Cellar Tips
Ever thought of building your own wine cellar? Or maybe you’re just curious as to how wine should be properly stored. Here are my basic cellar tips for all of the My Wine Cellar family to share…
The ideal temperature to store wine is between 13ºC-15ºC. However, variation in temperature is most critical and for this reason [...]
Wine Varieties: What’s the Difference?
Cabernet, Chardonnay… what’s the difference? Here’s something for all you budding wine novice’s out there. One of the first things anyone needs to understand before delving into the world of wine is how to distinguish between different wine varieties. There are 12 so-called ‘noble’ varieties all originating from Vitis vinifera, the grape-baring vine.
Here below are [...]
The SA Wine Industry: Some Good News
On average, the quality of wine stewards in South Africa have been continually criticized for their lack of knowledge and insight with regards to the South African wine industry. I think everyone has had their own experience of poor service in one way or another… warm wine, old wine, overly chilled red wine, overly filled [...]
Nanotech and Wine
I believe that the next age will be the age of Nanotechnology. Nanotech will undoubtedly change our lives in ways that can’t yet be comprehended. Science, medicine, engineering, agriculture, geology all stand to benefit from the technology. Even what we eat… and the wine we drink. That’s right… wine.
‘I believe that nanotechnology will have applications [...]
The Worlds Most Expensive Wine
Ever wondered what the world’s most expensive bottle of wine is? I’ll tell you… it’s a 1787 Chateau Lafite sold at a London auction in 2003 for a staggering 160 000 USD! (see picture below). The bottle of Bordeaux had belonged to third American president, Thomas Jefferson, and was bought by a Thomas Jefferson memorabilia collector.
What [...]
