Latest news with #grapes
Times
19 hours ago
- Times
My boutique wine tour — Scandinavian style
Basking in the midsummer sunshine, Daniella Lundh Egenas stands among the terraces of Thora Vinegard, which roll down to the inky blue sea in the distance. 'This is potato land,' she says, gesturing around to neighbouring farmland on the Bjare peninsula. 'We get a lot of people driving up to ask if we sell potatoes. They get a bit of a surprise when we tell them it's actually wine.' In the southernmost Swedish region of Skane there's a new crop getting farmers excited: grapes. While each summer southern Europe bakes in record-breaking heatwaves that blister fields and devastate harvests, the wine scene in Sweden — which started as a niche movement in the 1990s — is quietly flourishing. At the Swedish Wine Tasting event last year, 12 local tipples went up against 12 from elsewhere in Europe — including England, France and Italy — in a blind tasting judged by 18 international tasters. The winner? A 2021 sparkling wine from Kullabergs Vingard — one of Skane's very own. With this new wine country comes a new tourism model. Previously bottles of alcohol were available to buy in Sweden only via state-run Systembolaget stores, but as of June 1 microbreweries and vineyards can sell bottles directly to customers, thanks to the overturning of a century-old law. One week after this change I head to the country's west coast with my sister, Claire (who had jumped at the chance to to be driven around wineries by me for four days), to raise a glass and tour the region that hopes to one day give Champagne a run for its money. Our first stop is Astad Vingard in Varberg, about two hours' drive north of Malmo. We pass wildflower meadows filled with lupins, grazing Friesians and perfectly symmetrical Falu barns painted in distinctive rust red. The farm here produced organic milk until 2010, when it pivoted to wine and now has ten acres of vines. Astad has been run by the Carlsson family for three generations, since 1946. Claes Bartoldsson heads the winemaking on the estate, having worked with the family for 17 years. 'We always have a shovel in the ground,' he says, showing me the new winery to be completed next month where guests will be able to book tastings and vineyard tours. He explains that Astad produces 20,000 bottles of sparkling wine a year, but in the next seven years capacity will increase to 200,000. 'People drink a lot of wine here, we're not making enough,' he says. Swedish wine is a brand new terroir, Bartoldsson says. 'In Burgundy they have their styles for chardonnay, they have their styles for pinot and they only need to do the best version of that. There's no place for experimentation: there's a set style, a set goal, and that's it; whereas in Sweden there are no rules — that's what makes it exciting.' The temperature in winter can fall to minus 25C here, so Swedish wine mainly comprises the solaris grape, which is often grown in cold climates to make still and sparkling white wine because it is hardy in frost and disease-resistant. 'You really need to love acidity to understand these wines,' Bartoldsson says as we sip his namesake cuvée, the Ang x Claes, which I can imagine enjoying on a long summer day (£65). Despite it being delicious, wine isn't (yet) the main draw at Astad. Most visitors come here either for the Michelin-starred restaurant Ang — which is part-giant greenhouse, part-contemporary art installation and serves a 20-course menu of dishes including white asparagus with lemon verbena and deep-sea Norwegian shrimp — or the spa, a sprawling Disneyland of lily-pad-strewn swimming lakes and eight saunas, including one at the edge of a lake with its windows below the water line. The showstoppers, though, are the 28 villas that stand around a swimming pond. My sister and I have great fun cold-plunging straight from the sauna in our rooms and gliding alongside the ducks until the midnight sun sinks beneath the horizon (room-only doubles from £271; • The best European city breaks Reluctant to leave Astad but eager to taste more Swedish wine we drive an hour south to the Thora Vingard. Egenas explains that the warm sea air here acts as a buffer against winter cold snaps, and the soil is sandy and rich in limestone such as that of Burgundy and Champagne. Visitors can dine at the newly opened Flora restaurant, which serves Bjare chicken with cauliflower and rhubarb and white chocolate yoghurt with strawberries and camomile meringue, and has a window overlooking the winery (mains from £22, tour and tasting from £30; Egenas explains that there is heavy investment in winemaking in the region. Each vineyard I visit has a restaurant, hotel or bar attached — many of which are brand new. Egenas says that unlike in Denmark, where vineyards have long been able to sell bottles directly to visitors or in shops, Swedish wines have to work harder to compete with other European wines in restaurants, so taste better as a result. 'We need to have good quality wines to compete on a menu.' she says. We spend a morning at the dramatic rocky outcrop of Hovs Hallar Nature Reserve, where the Swedish director Ingmar Bergman shot the opening scenes of The Seventh Seal, in which a knight plays chess with Death. The west coast is home to many pretty fishing villages, such as Torekov, where there are clusters of cafés and fish restaurants by the port, and Varehog, where lunch at the excellent Bjare Fisk & Skaldjur might consist of whole turbot and pickles (mains from £12; • Stockholm's best hotels The Bjare peninsula's reputation as a 'potato land' certainly does it a disservice, as this is where Swedes snap up summer homes. The village of Bastad has some seriously swish yachts in the marina, and we check in to the historic Hotel Skansen, where Ludvig Nobel — Alfred's nephew — built a clay tennis court in 1907 that now hosts the Nordea Open on the ATP Tour. But the highlights for us are a morning dip at the wooden bathhouse and watching the sun set from the rooftop infinity pool and a colony of seals lolling on the rocks (B&B doubles from £206; In the afternoon we pop into Vejby Vingard, run by the eccentric, beret-wearing Jeppe Appelin, who has constructed Georgian-style wine cellar, complete with choral music. He makes smooth, organic orange wine in qvevris — 10ft-high, egg-shaped earthenware vessels that each weigh a ton — and at the courtyard bar a glass can easily lead to three, so you might have to book a taxi (tour and tasting from £46; 'Here in Sweden we don't have a wine culture,' Appelin says. 'We need to invent one.' Appelin tells me that despite the economic downturn in Sweden, farmers on Bjare — some of whom have owned their land for generations — are reluctant to sell and make room for new vineyards. 'They want me to grow potatoes,' he says. 'Suddenly I'm a threat to their history, their culture, their future.' Appelin has erected a billboard as you drive onto the Bjare peninsula proclaiming: 'Welcome to Bjare wine country.' You can understand why it might have ruffled some feathers. Our final stop is another hour's drive away, on the spectacular Kullaberg peninsula, where we are staying stay at the family-run Villa Brunnby (B&B doubles from £155; We spend a morning hiking the Kullaberg Nature Reserve, dipping into pebble bays for a swim in the sea. Lunch is on a terrace overlooking the sea at the idyllic Ransvik restaurant, near the town of Molle — a summery herring with salt-boiled beets and dill potatoes (mains from £14; Molle became notorious in the late 1800s for being the only place in Europe where men and women bathed together, in distinctive striped swimming costumes, in what was referred to as 'the sin of Molle'. A ten-minute drive down away is the Kullabergs Vingard, where the staff are still recovering from the party they threw on the day that the new law came into effect, when 200 people turned up to buy £16 bottles. The law still has some stipulations: visitors must take a 30-minute tour of the vineyard and cannot buy any more than four bottles each (tour and tasting from £34). There's also a wine bar in a pretty greenhouse and a restaurant with views of the vines that serves simple food such as rillettes, cheese and charcuterie to complement the wine (dishes from £7; • Great wine-tasting holidays in France 'This could be a revolution for the region,' Viktor Dahl, the chief executive of Kullabergs, says of the vineyard as we sip the aromatic, award-winning 2021 Immelen in its new shop. 'It's going to be the start of a big change in tourism.' Sweden may have only a fledgling wine scene, but the green shoots are there. As champagne houses muscle in on land in Kent and East Sussex and English sparkling wine scoops up international awards, many Swedish winemakers are looking on with a dash of envy — and excitement. 'We look up to England a lot — what they have done there with wine is a very recent success story,' Egenas says. 'I think there are a lot of things that we can do the same, but we are still about 20 years behind.' I'm keeping hold of the few bottles that I took home in my suitcase — they may be worth a bit one day. Katie Gatens was a guest of Visit Sweden ( Fly to Copenhagen then take a train to Malmo (from £13;
News.com.au
2 days ago
- General
- News.com.au
‘Feels illegal': Shopper's supermarket hack to save cash
The supermarket grape debate has been reignited after a video went viral of a shopper showing off her produce bag 'hack' that allows you to buy as many grapes as you need, not just the quantity in the pre-portioned bags. In the short clip, Holly Moffatt is seen lifting grapes out of their original packaging and transferring a smaller amount into a brown mushroom paper bag. 'Feels illegal but actually it's a life hack. See this bag of grapes? You can take the grapes out and put them in a separate bag 'cause you just want a few. You don't want the whole bag,' she explained. 'I know it feels wrong but trust me, it tastes SO right,' she added in the caption of the video, which now has nearly half a million views. The grape debate The clip was instantly flooded with comments, each offering a different perspective on supermarket grape etiquette. Some viewers were quick to call out the move. 'You cannot do that,' one user argued, while another claimed, 'Bags like that are charged by the bags'. This confusion was echoed by many, as a lot of shoppers assume grapes are sold by the bag rather than by kilo. Can you actually do this? While Woolworths didn't want to weigh in on the discussion when approached for comment (pun intended), grapes are generally priced by the kilo at most supermarkets. This means that as long as the grapes are clearly marked as being sold by weight, for example, '$5/kilo', you are free to take as many or as few as you like, place them in a produce bag, and have them weighed individually at the checkout – but make sure to always check the price tag before trying this! 'Annoying' Despite acknowledging it was legal, some commenters pointed out that it's still 'annoying' for other customers and supermarkets do prefer to sell them by the bag. 'This is why they've started securing the bags,' wrote one, referencing the increasing use of tamper-proof packaging in some supermarkets. Then another noted that someone might pick up a full bag of grapes, expecting them to be the full weight advertised, and not realise some grapes have been taken out. 'I don't know about this one … legal yes, but annoying for the next person?' they said. Commenters support the idea However, many people have embraced the grape bag hack with open arms. 'Haha I do this all the time, and other shoppers look at me like I'm insane but I give them a little wave and a sideways dance,' said one fan of the technique. Another chimed in, 'You've just changed my life,' while others joked, 'Everyone does this – do people actually take the full bag?' Why this matters for your weekly shop Beyond just saving a few dollars, it's clear that this hack is a great way to cut down on food waste. As a sector, Australian households waste the most food – with an average of 2.5 million tonnes of food wasted annually. This translates to roughly four kilos per household per week and up to $2500. The ability to buy only the amount of grapes you need means less food waste and fewer soggy, forgotten grapes at the bottom of your fridge. Win, win!
BBC News
3 days ago
- Climate
- BBC News
Vineyard helps Berkshire farming family cope with climate change
Georgie, Tom, Will, Sandra and Peter Carlisle decided five years ago to diversity their farm due to the warming before a vine even went in to the ground in West Ilsley, Berkshire, they had to monitor the weather across the farm for three years to find the perfect vineyard now spans 6.5 hectares, the equivalent of 10 football pitches. Once it is in full production the family hope to produce 100 tonnes of grapes a year, which equates to approximately 100,000 bottles of wine. The vines have been in the ground for two years and they have had to deal with some harsh conditions. A drought in 2023, a very wet 2024 but so far this year the family says the weather has been good to them. Anecdotally, the Carlisles say they have seen farmers across the country adapting to the warming climate and that growing grapes seems to be becoming more popular in the farming community."We wanted to make the most of the changing climate. It's getting warmer and warmer. We have the perfect soil for growing grapes," said Georgie brother Will adds: "The French climate is getting a lot warmer and where we currently are now, soil wise, we're exactly the same soil type as like the Champagne region."Climate experts say that the general weather trend, with a warming climate, will see winters become warmer and wetter and the summers hotter and drier. So far the weather this year has been good for the vines but they have had the ups and downs of the typical British weather since they were planted as Georgie explains: "We've had their frost fans on for about six or seven nights in total, which causes sleepless nights. We have to check their temperature all the time."The temperature varies from the top to the bottom of the field. "We had -1.8C at the bottom of the field and four to five degrees at the top. It is quite tricky to try and manage."Even the planting is taking the conditions into consideration and in the 6.5 hectares of vines they have three varieties of which is more frost hardy, is grown at the bottom of the field where it is cooler and towards the top of the field is Pinot Noir and Sayval. The farm produced 12 tonnes of grapes in 2024 and the family are hoping for more this season."This year it could be double what we had last year. Then double again next year, we'll see," said will tell as to whether the warming climate will be beneficial for making wine on the Berkshire Downs but the Carlisle family, for now, don't plan to expand the vineyard."Obviously, it's quite a big investment upfront. Every year that the yield will grow and grow with the age of the vines", said Tom. You can follow BBC Berkshire on Facebook and X.
Irish Times
01-06-2025
- General
- Irish Times
Ten things you need to know about wine
Wine is made by fermenting freshly gathered grapes. It can be red, white, rosé, sparkling or fortified. There are no rights and wrongs. Nobody insists that you like carrots; it's the same with wine. You like what you like . Price is not always an indicator of quality. But if you spend €10-€20 on a bottle, it will probably taste a lot better. Good glasses make a difference. Large tulip-shaped glasses make wine taste better. Temperature matters. Serve a white wine too cold and you lose flavour (about 10 degrees is good). Warm red wine can seem soupy and alcoholic (aim for 18 degrees, cooler than most house temperatures). Learning about wine should be fun and not feel like an exam. Work out what you like and what you don't, and take it from there. Start by trying wines made from the most popular grape varieties and the best-known wine regions. That will give you a good idea of what you like and what you don't. Taking a few notes is a good idea. Matching food and wine can make both taste better, but don't get hung up about it. Not all wine improves with age. Most wine is ready to drink the day you buy it. Wines with screw caps are not inferior. Sometimes they are better than wines with corks.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Climate change: How a warming planet could affect the taste of B.C. wine
Future sommeliers may have something very different on the nose, as climate change alters the taste of wine in regions around the world. A global study led by UBC researchers, and published this week in the journal PLOS Climate, found that temperatures during the grape-growing season have increased across the world's major wine regions — including B.C. — and that the heat is changing the taste of wine. For the study, researchers analyzed temperatures over the growing seasons in wine regions on five continents and studied 500 varieties of grapes. They studied the temperatures during dormancy, budding, and during harvest. The climate data will eventually allow scientists to recommend which varieties of wine grape are best suited to the changing climate in different regions, including those with unique climate challenges such as intense heat waves, drought and wildfire smoke. 'We want to be able to say to growers, OK, there's 1,000 varieties out there. Here are some recommendations on which ones to consider,' said Elizabeth Wolkovich, senior author of the study and an associate professor at UBC's faculty of forestry. On average, the regions have warmed by the equivalent of almost 100 extra growing degree-days, a measure of the cumulative heat that vines are exposed to, according to the study. Impacts of a hotter climate include lower grape yields, heat damage to berries and vegetation, and an industry that is rapidly working to adapt, the study says. Speaking Friday from Zurich, where she is working with colleagues who contributed to the global study, Wolkovich said this heat can affect harvest times and grape ripening, which changes the taste of the wine. 'Most of the wine you drink from Europe and North America is already a different flavour profile due to climate change than you drank 30 or 40 years ago. The biggest obvious change is that the grapes are more sugar rich, and that means they are also higher in alcohol,' she said. As the weather gets warmer, the grapes develop faster. For instance, she said the grapes are ripening in parts of France in late August instead of September. 'When they ripen in late August, and are exposed to hotter temperatures, the grapes build up sugar faster. The grapes you harvest have higher sugar acid ratios, so the balance in the wine is different.' The acidity, which gives the wine its zest, declines in warmer weather while pigments in wine called anthocyanins, which give the wine its colour, break down. Tannins may not develop if the grapes are plucked too early to compensate for the heat. 'I would say it would taste a little bit more like jam, or what you would call like a fruitier wine, and it would maybe be generally a little darker, less light in the flavour profile, and, on average, a little bit less complex for a red wine,' she said, but emphasized that expert winemakers are skilled at compensating for this change. Around the world, scorching heat, wildfires and other climate-related disasters have already decimated crops, including here in B.C. The province's wine industry is still recovering after two years of climate-related crop losses in the southern Interior. Record-breaking heat, wildfires and smoke tainted grapes, while a destructive cold snap in 2023 and 2024 caused significant crop loss across the province. Varieties of grape most affected in B.C. were Syrah, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, with projected losses of more than 65 per cent, according to a report last year from Wine Growers B.C. Wolkovich said there are hundreds of varieties in Spain, Italy and Greece 'that you've probably never heard of' that could work well at some point for B.C. growers as the heat intensifies. One example is Xinomavro, a wine grape that tolerates the dry heat of Greece. The difference is Mediterranean regions like Greece have longer growing seasons than B.C. so the trick is to find varieties that have a shorter ripening time but are also heat-resistant. On that note, Wolkovich also said there are varieties from the mountainous regions of Spain that B.C. growers haven't tried that could work well as the temperatures increase. 'So regions in Spain that are at higher elevations have shorter growing seasons, but they also are hot — the way the Okanagan is hot. And I know that certain vineyards have looked into them and would love to try them.' She said the problem isn't that the consumer won't want to drink these hardier varieties, but that there are hurdles in Canada to importing the rootstock. Kathy Malone, chair of the B.C. Wine Grape Council research and development committee, said winemakers are wary of testing new varieties when it takes years for the grapes to grow and mature in flavour. Malone, who is also a winemaker at Hillside Winery and Bistro in Naramata, said there are efforts underway to get experimental plots going in B.C. 'You could have very small plots of varieties that no one's ever heard of and make a small amount of wine, but then you could blend that into another wine.' She said it's very difficult for B.C. winemakers to make decisions about new varieties that will be cold-resistant and that the focus should be on the warming climate and what varieties will survive intense heat. After last year's cold snap, Hillside will be planting the Malbec variety, which is less cold-hardy than Merlot but will do much better under the increasingly hotter Okanagan summers. 'I don't think there was much Malbec planted in the 80s and 90s, because it requires longer hang time and more heat. But now we're getting that heat more and more,' she said. 'The seasons are expected to be hotter and longer moving north. In some areas, like in Napa, it's a challenge because it's too hot and they have berries drying up on the vine.' For the study, scientists developed climate metrics for the world's wine regions that spanned the annual plant cycle of a calendar year. They found the biggest impact is in southern and western Europe, where the number of days over 35 C is the highest of all regions, with nearly five times as many extreme heat days compared with 1980. 'The temperature increases here (in B.C.) aren't as dramatic as in Europe, which is something that as a community, we're still trying to understand,' said Wolkovich. Growers are testing methods to adapt. Some are using shade cloth to protect vines from heat while others are planting new rootstocks and varieties. The study also looked at regions affected by wildfire smoke and how widespread fires in Australia led to technologies and approaches that could be used in California or in B.C. For example, some winemakers are now installing sensors in the vineyard to know when smoke is about to affect the grapes. ticrawford@ With files from The Canadian Press 'Clean slate' to reshape B.C. wine industry, after climate-related catastrophes Anthony Gismondi: Wineries step forward to fight climate change Anthony Gismondi: Assessing how deep freeze affected B.C. vineyards remains a work in progress
