Decanter December 2015

Grover Zampa, Nandi Hills, India Situated on a sloping hillside in the Nandi Hills, this 18-hectare vineyard contains some of the oldest vines in India, harvested first in 1992. Owner Grover Zampa Vineyards was the first to plant French grape varieties in India, after exploring the country to find the perfect site. In a nine-year study, where 33 grape varieties were planted in locations across India, Nandi Hills stood out for its mild and cool climate and light soils. Red and loamy with plenty of basalt and quartz gravels, these were strikingly different from the usual Indian dark-soil vineyards. The vineyard is planted to Viognier, Sauvignon Blanc, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, and was the source of the wine that won India its first International Trophy, at the 2014 Decanter Asia…

John Stimpfig ‘The thirst for experimentation and progress is intoxicating’ HAVING RETURNED FROM a week in the Cape, I can’t recall ever having been so enthused and enthralled by a wine trip. In my notebook, South Africa is now a strong contender for the world’s most improved and exciting wine nation, bar none. Its transformation is rapid and ongoing. The pace of change and achievement is staggering. It’s not just making exceptionally good wines at different price points, it’s also fashioning unusual, fascinating and delicious wines with a real sense of style and place. There is so much varietal innovation that it’s difficult to keep up. For instance, I tasted Vermentino, Assyrtiko, Mencia, Albarinho, Verdelho, Nero d’Avola and Tinta Barocca. In fact, 60 new varieties have been imported into the…

Early signs of a great 2015 vintage by Richard Woodard Photograph: Jean-Bernard Nadeau/Cephas EUROPE Early reports suggest that 2015 could be a vintage to remember across Europe and beyond – but warm, dry conditions could impact yields and restrict volumes. Producers were dusting off the superlatives in winemaking regions from Rioja to Germany, while California reported great potential, in an early and low-volume harvest. In Bordeaux, four out of the five hurdles for a great vintage identified by winemaking consultant Professor Denis Dubourdieu had been cleared, with the fifth – good weather during harvest – looking promising as Decanter went to press. Burgundy has the potential to produce a ‘great’ vintage, although a cooler August may prevent 2015 from scaling the heights of the finest years. The consensus in Champagne…

France takes to (occasional) wine drinking Photograph: Per Karlsson, BKWine 2/Alamy Stock Photo FRANCE France is showing early signs of rediscovering its love affair with wine, with the number of teetotallers dropping for the first time in two decades. According to a government survey, growing numbers of young people and women are drinking an occasional glass of wine, after a 40-year period during which French wine consumption almost halved. The survey of 4,000 people by government-affiliated body FranceAgriMer found more French people were drinking wine than five years ago, with a six percentage-point rise in occasional wine drinkers, who made up 51% of all respondents. what is clear is that for a long time women and young people were not drinking at all, and they are now having an occasional…

Around the wine world Torres hails revived grapes SPAIN Two red wine grapes brought back from the brink of extinction by Spanish wine group Torres could help the company manage the effects of climate change, it believes. Torres said the two grapes, Moneu and Gonfaus, have ‘great promise’ for red wine production, in the latest stage of a long-term project to investigate and resurrect around 40 historic Spanish varieties cultivated in Catalonia. While many are deemed unsuitable for wine blends, Torres is already using a couple of ancestral varieties – Querol and Garró – in its Grans Muralles blend. It thinks Moneu and Gonfaus could follow a similar path, and may be useful in dealing with the effects of climate change in Catalonia. ‘The Torres family discovered that these two…

In brief Beaujolais winemakers and négociants have agreed prices for the 2015 harvest – but discontent has continued following protests by producers. An unofficial agreement states that négociants will buy bulk wine for Beaujolais-Villages and primeurs 2015 at a minimum €200 per 100 litres – equivalent to about €1.50 per bottle. Producers are unhappy with pricing because of this year’s high quality and low yields. Billionaire wine collector Bill Koch has had his court victory against Eric Greenberg for selling fake wine upheld. The verdict by the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals in New York follows an award to Koch of US$12.4m in April 2013, after Koch accused fellow wine enthusiast Greenberg of knowingly selling 24 fake bottles of Bordeaux at a 2005 Zachys auction. Treasury Wine Estates has…