France | The Wine Analyst

Domaine Pavelot, Sous Frétille 1C 2012

Burgundy remains one of the great destinations for many a winelover. Highly reputed for the finest wines in both white and red, known for the nearly incomprehensible patchwork of microclimats

Sebastien Bobinet, Hanami 2012

We are staying in the Loire with a focus on red this time. For a long time I only really cared about the great white Loire chenin blanc wines as

Francois Chidaine, Les Choisilles 2009

One of the first grape varieties that I fell in love with was Chenin Blanc. In most circumstances it leads to nice but rather conventional wines with aromas of ripe

The downside of creating natural champagne

I applaud all efforts, experiments and innovations that lead to a more natural and more sustainable way of making wine. This does not however mean that all developments discussed over

Biodynamic conversion in practice – Francis Boulard

Biodynamic or natural viticulture is a challenge in the Champagne. In my first post on the topic I mentioned that the focus with most growers lies on securing yield, ensuring that

The dosage experiment

The other day we tested whether you could tell the difference in dosage levels or not. I opted for one of my favourite Champagne growers, Fallet-Prévostat. It is a tiny

Dosage – less is not always better

As attentive readers will recall, our champagne is currently maturing “sur lie”. The alcoholic fermentation is done and if all goes well, autolysis, the interaction between the dead yeast cells

Natural winemaking in the Champagne

Fair warning – This may be a bit too much on the technical side for some readers, but stick around and learn something! Biodynamics and natural winemaking are hot topics in

Terroir geekery at Laherte Frères

Success in the Champagne is dependent on different factors. The Grands Marques have the luxury of being able to source their still wines from the entire region and have as

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