Kyoho Wine

 I finally got a bottle of the Kyoho wine and tasted it. But before I write about its taste etc, let me tell you a little bit about the winemaker first. No he's not Japanese but hails from Israel, so we end up with an interesting combination of Israeli winemaker makes wine from a peculiarly Japanese grape in Australia. Could be great, or disastrous. But well, it was neither. The merchants who sold the wine suggested that this wine might be paired with Peking Duck, various desserts, some sushi handrolls and Foie Gras. The wine has some residual sugar but the medium sweet palate and body is insufficiently supported by enough acid to stand up to foie gras. The same would probably go for Peking Duck. Never got round to trying it with dessert but fruit based ones might work. As for the "foxiness' or characteristic Kyoho aroma, it was muted enough by the wine-making process not to get in the way. So here are my impressions of the wine: golden orange with pink tints, the wine was sweet and fruity on the nose. Sweet Kyoho fruit was evident on the palate with slight spritz with enough acid following through to the finish. I would just drink it by itself, but more to find out what a Kyoho wine is like.

The 4 grapes called Bonarda

There are four red wine grapes commonly referred to as Bonarda. Th Argentinians grow one of these, which turn out to be be of French origin, Courbeau Noir, otherwise known as Charbonneau from the Savoie region. I have tasted some examples of these Argentinian wines, which will be dealt with in another tidbit later. The other one I have tasted is Croatina, named for its Croatian origin - the grape used in the wine above. I have not been able to taste the other two yet - Uva Rara (which despite its name is not actually rare) and Bonarda Piemontese which makes a light fruity wine from the area around Turin. 

Table and wine grapes

Usually table and wine grapes are quite distinct, with most table varieties unsuitable for wine-making and most wine grapes having too tough a skin for serving as is. Of course there are exceptions with the Muscat family of grapes being the most familiar ones. Yet those who have followed this blog will sometimes see a grape being mentioned as also sold for the table, or words to that effect. Examples include Chasselas and recently Trollinger. I am however "inspired" to write this entry because I have found someone making wine with the above grape - Kyoho. No, it's not by an eccentric Japanese (at least not in Japan), as the wine comes from Australia!

Wine grapes are higher in sugar (nearly 25% by weight) when ripe, and have thicker and tougher skins which contain the flavourings and colour essential for red wine production. Table grapes are less sugary (15% by weight) and have thinner skins and smaller seeds. Some may even be bred seedless. The lower sugar means the resultant wine will have lower alcohol whilst the thinner skins and smaller or non-existent seeds will deprive the wine of many interesting flavour and colour compounds. That has not stopped some winemakers from using say Thompson Seedless/Sultana in making wine (either alone or in a blend). Kyoho has an additional disadvantage - being a vinifera-labrusca hybrid it has the distinctive "foxy" aroma, which whilst much appreciated by Japanese consumers of table grapes, is shunned by wine drinkers. Now all I need is to get a bottle and taste it!

100 points for a pair of Ozzie fortifieds

If you think that I have a penchance to seek out different wines (especially those not costing an arm and a leg) which have been awarded 100 points by Parker and his team, you would certainly have reason to allege this. After all, I have blogged about Lafite 1982 and Tirecule la Graviere 1995 Cuvee Madame, both of which I have tasted and Strawman and Pajzos 1993 Ezsencia, the pleasure of which are still to come. You will also notice that three out of the four that I have blogged about are actually sweet wines, and I have at various points remarked how sweet wines (even those with RP100) are still so unfashionable not to be the target of speculation and hence unreasonable prices.

I shall now add a pair of non-vintage Australian fortified wines to this hallowed collection. Both are from the Buller winery and they must represent the pinnacle of achievement for Liqueur Muscat and Liqueur Tokay.

Wine cups and mixed drinks

This is actually not  a mixed drink made with wine because it was a glass of a non-alcoholic version of sangria, but the proper adult version certainly is a wine-based drink. This photo also contains another point of interest, the little pottery cup balanced over the glass, containing a slice of bread spread with herb butter as an amuse-guele; is this the modern interpretation of the origins of tapas?

For this mini-series, we will try and explore some drinks based on wines, from Kir to Sangria to various wine cups and even cocktails, such as Buck's Fizz and Bellini. As it is summery and hot, we will leave such hot wine-based drinks as mulled wine to a  wintry season, either as independent tidbits, or as a mini-series if I can dig up enough material for a few blogs.

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