Please The Palate |

At the table with Vino Nobile

This story originally appeared in the Napa Valley Register. I am writing my column this week from Montepulciano, where I just finished being a judge at A Tavola con il Vino It...

31 August, 2016

Meet the WineWeirdos

This story originally appeared in the Napa Valley Register.

Everyone is a wine critic, or at least everyone has an opinion about wine. With all of the thousands of wine producers, grape varieties and wine regions around the world, it helps to be able to turn to a source to help guide us.

Some people like the professional wine critic who scores wines. But sometimes a number does not tell us enough. Descriptions, anecdotes and insights can be a better way to understand a wine and help us connect with what we may like.

Meet the WineWeirdos.

24 August, 2016

Domaine Laroche and the elegant wines of Chablis

This story originally appeared in the Napa Valley Register. “Many people do not think Chablis is chardonnay but just a dry white wine that people love,” explained Gwenaël Laroche of Domaine Laroche as she spoke. “Chablis is in a class of its own.”

Chablis is located in the northernmost region of Burgundy, France. With a cool continental climate and soils consisting of limestone over marine fossil-rich Kimmeridgian clay, Chablis is home to chardonnay, and only chardonnay, making one-third of the total production of white wine in Burgundy.

“Chablis is the real image of Burgundy,” Laroche said. There are 40 Premier Cru vineyards and seven Grand Cru vineyards in Chablis. From one vineyard to the next, the notion of terroir is expressed in each wine, which has its own style.

Domaine Laroche is showcasing the terroirs of Chablis in their portfolio of wines. Michel Laroche, husband of Gwenaël, grew up in Chablis where his parents had six hectares in the 1960s. As a young adult, Michel created a negociant business in which he was buying and selling juice.

With the money he made, he bought 40 hectares (100 acres) in 1990. Today, with 90 hectares (220 acres), Laroche has 30 hectares in Premier Cru vineyards and six hectares in Grand Cru vineyards. In fact, Laroche is the largest land owner of Grand Cru vineyards in Chablis.

10 August, 2016