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sparkling wines

Champagne for the Festive Season with Essi Avellan MW

Summary:  End of the year celebrations mark Champagne’s high season. It is a must for toasting to the new year with, but Champagne also has its festive place on the dining table. In this Master Class Essi Avellan will discuss wine and food pairing explaining the typicity of different styles of Champagne and summarizing keys to successful combinations. Why not pair the entire menu with

Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco DOCG with Alan Tardi

Summary:  Sure, everyone knows Prosecco — or at least thinks they do. But most people are familiar with only the very tip of the iceberg, which also happens to be the simplest, most commercial part of it. In this webinar we’ll take a close look at the unique winegrowing area of Conegliano Valdobbiadene, located in the hills north of Venice where

Crémant de Bourgogne with Robin Kick MW

Summary: Crémant de Bourgogne is the 3rd largest AOC in volume in Bourgogne after Chablis and Mâcon AOCs, comprising around 11% of the region’s wines. While it is generally considered a ‘modest appellation’, it was not always as such. Bourgogne’s ‘mousseux’ wines were amongst the most prized and sought-after in the region in the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. This webinar

Demystifying Winemaking : Part 3: Everything Else You Wanted to Know but Were Afraid to Ask! with Nova Cadamatre

Summary:  We have finally reached part 3 of our winemaking series with Nova Cadamatre MW.  In this final webinar, Nova will go over the general production methods of Sparkling and Fortified wines including traditional method sparkling, tank sparkling, and different fortification timings and age factors that influence the final style of wine.  It is ideal that either part 1, part 2 or ideally both have been watched before watching this webinar because this will build on the

Franciacorta and Trento: A Tale of Two Cities

The story goes that a couple of years ago, at a high society charity event in Milan a noted British rock star was served a sparkling wine that impressed him so much that he asked to be introduced to its producer who happened to be present at the event, and to whom he is reported to have said “This is the greatest Prosecco I’ve ever tasted”. The wine was in fact a metodo classico riserva made by one of Franciacorta’s top producers. The anecdote may be apocryphal, but it could easily be true. The big wide world (and not only – the misconception is also becoming common in Italy) has started to perceive anything Italian with bubbles as Prosecco, without distinction of origin or refermentation method.

Franciacorta with May Matta-Aliah

Summary:  Contrary to popular belief Franciacorta is not a new wine region in fact wines have been produced in this region since the sixteenth century. However, the modern history of the region began in 1961 with the production of the first sparkling wine in the region by Franco Ziliani, winemaker at the Guido Berlucchi winery. The popularity of these wines attracted the attention of

Meunier: The Black Sheep of Champagne with Alan Tardi

Summary:  Meunier has always been somewhat marginalized in Champagne despite the fact that it occupies a third of the territory under vine. Many Champenois consider it mere filler to bulk up the ‘star players’ Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, while for others the late-budding early-ripening variety represents little more than an insurance policy against frost. But Meunier has its own unique

Take a Walk on the Wild Side: A New Look at Lambrusco and Traditional Balsamic Vinegar with Alan Tardi

Summary:  Lambrusco has a bad rap. Many wine drinkers dismiss it as simple sweet commercial fizz. And perhaps much of it was when it made its international debut in the 1960s and ‘70s. But that was a long time ago. And there’s much more to Lambrusco than many are aware. In this webinar we will investigate the ancient origin of the Lambrusco family of grapes in an atypical growing area in the Po River valley, focusing on three of the most important, site-specific