Behind the Cork™ - LAN Rioja Reserva

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2012 LAN Rioja Reserva

Recently I featured LAN Rioja Crianza as the Behind the Cork™ wine of the week. Now we step it up to the LAN Rioja Reserva.

This Rioja is from vineyards in the Rioja Alta and Alavesa subzones with an average age of vines
being more than 25 years.

This LAN Rioja is produced from 92% Tempranillo and 8% Mazuelo grapes. It is fermented in stainless steel tanks, and undergoes three weeks of maceration with frequent pumping-over to ensure a good color extraction. It is then aged for 18 months in hybrid barrels of French and American oak. LAN Reserva then remains another 20 months in the bottle to complete its rounding off.

The LAN Rioja Reserva is a medium ruby red in color with black cherry, black berry and raisin on the nose. It’s big on the front end with bright fruit flavors, jammy cherry, low acid and a hint of chocolate on the delicate finish.

Chill this LAN Rioja Reserva to 63 - 66 degrees F and enjoy with bold cheeses, grilled meats or just by the glass. Cheers!

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Stefanie Schwalb, Gregory+Vine

Blind Wine Tastings Allow for the Removal of Any Bias

Have you heard of blind wine tastings? No, it doesn’t involve blindfolds. That could get messy.

What a blind wine tasting means is that the taster is ‘blind’ to things such as where the wine is from, the winery that produced the wine and the price of the wine.

So, in a blind tasting, wine bottles are covered (usually in a bag), the foil capsule that covers the cork is removed, and the cork is pulled and placed out of sight. The price of the wine is also concealed.

The thing that isn’t blind to the taster is the topic of the tasting, such as the grape varietal being evaluated or the region where the wine was produced. So, a blind tasting could be conducted on Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa. Or, Pinot Noir from Oregon. Or, wines from Bordeaux France. This way the blind taster at least has some point of reference and common denominator to use when evaluating the wines.

Being ‘blind’ to the wine producer and the price allows for a fair comparison between the wines. This removes potential bias when evaluating wine and allows for wines to be analyzed without any preconceived notions.

Then, at the end of a blind wine tasting, the brown bags come off, the winery labels are exposed and the details of the wines are brought to light. And, even for professionals, this can result in some raised brows. They can be surprised both ways - seeing the label may shock them compared to their notes. A highly touted winery’s wine may not have scored well, or a lesser-known winery may have scored unusually well. That’s the beauty of a blind tasting. Every wine gets a fair chance in the evaluation.

So, this is how the reputable wine publications do wine reviews - blind. This ensures that we as consumers are getting a fair and unbiased evaluation of a wine.

This can also be a fun thing to try at home. You don’t need to have a lot of bottles - two or more will do. Just ensure they are of the same varietal or composition. Then taste them focusing on the sight, smell and taste. Score each of them and then pull off the bags. You just might surprise yourself! Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - Beronia Rosé

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2019 Beronia Rosé ($12.99)

Here’s another returning star to Behind the Cork™. This Beronia Rosé is from the Rioja region of Spain. It is produced from 70% Tempranillo and 30% Garnacha.

Both the Tempranillo and Garnacha grapes underwent cold pre-fermentation maceration for several hours to extract as much of the primary aromas as possible.

Next, they underwent static debourbage at 41 degrees F. This is a process in which the must of a wine is allowed to settle before racking off the wine, thus reducing the need later for filtration or fining.

Finally, alcoholic fermentation took place and the wine rested in the bottle for at least two months before being released to market.

The resulting wine is bright pink-orange in color, has bright floral aromas of rose petals. On the palate it’s light and refreshing with flavors of candied cherries and citrus. This is a dry rosé that’s perfect as the days get warmer and outside activities are in full swing.

Enjoy this Beronia Rosé with or without foods. Cheers!

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Rebekah Polster, Donna White Communications


Apple Wine versus Apple Cider

Did you know that there is such a thing as apple wine? Well, indeed it exists!

While the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) states that fermented apple juice that is under 8.5% alcohol by volume (ABV) is cider or ‘Hard Cider’, it considers any fermented apple juice above 8.5% ABV as wine. So, the really hard cider is technically wine!

It turns out, not just any ordinary apple is used in the production of most hard cider and apple wine. Their production requires apples with higher tannin and higher acid levels. Most apples used for cider and wine are little known varieties that are grown just for fermentation. And, unlike fermenting grapes into wine, apple wine requires sugar be added to the juice for it to end up with 12% alcohol or higher.

You may find that Apple wine will taste a little harsh at bottling time. It needs time to age in the bottle. Typically, an apple wine will be very drinkable at around three months of aging and at its best at around nine months. Beyond that it will slowly fall off in flavor.

So, there you go. Who knew? A glass of apple wine just may be in your future. Cheers!

Behind the Cork™ - Bodegas LAN Crianza

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2016 Bodegas LAN Crianza

This Bodegas LAN Crianza is from Spain’s famous Rioja region that is best known for its Tempranillo that is a full-bodied wine that is typically high in tannin.

The winery’s name LAN represents the initials of the DOCa provinces Logroño (which today is Rioja), Álava and Navarra.

This LAN Crianza is produced from 95% Tempranillo and 5% Mazuelo that were selected from 10 to 20-year-old vines.

The de-stemmed grapes were lightly crushed and fermented in stainless steel tanks. Maceration occurred in contact with the grape skins for 15 days along with pumping the juice over the cap of grape skins daily for develop maximum color and aromatic extraction.

This Bodegas LAN Rioja wine is labeled as “Crianza.” One of the translations of the word “Crianza” is ‘aging.’ And, indeed, this style of Rioja is required to be aged for one year in oak. This LAN Crianza was aged for 14 months in combined American and French oak barrels followed by 9 months of rounding in the bottle prior to release.

On the nose this wine has notes of black cherry and plum along with floral notes and spice. On the palate it’s fully-bodied with big dark fruit flavors, mild acidity and highly tannic.

Chill this one to 60-64 degrees F and give it plenty of time in a decanter to help soften the tannins. Then, enjoy this big red LAN Rioja with pasta, pizza, poultry, or grilled red meat. Cheers!

Disclosure of Wine Sample Submission: I received this sample at no cost for review. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Sample Provided by Stefanie Schwalb, Gregory+Vine