The Riesling Revolution

The Riesling Revolution

Journey to the heart of this great Variety

Ballymaloe, 7pm on Thursday 17th May 2012 €25

Riesling presents a conundrum. For some it produces the greatest white wines in the world, yet by others it is often misunderstood and ridiculed. This unique presentation, organised in association with John McDonnell, Wine Australia Ireland,  with three winemakers from around the world, chaired by Irish Times wine writer, John Wilson, and 12 wine tasting, aims to resolves these two disparate points of view.

Joining us to present the evening are 3 winemakers from 3 of the great Riesling growing regions of the world.

‐ Tim Adams is based in Australia’s Clare Valley and since establishing Tim Adams wines in 1984 has developed a reputation as a brilliant and fiercely independent winemaker.

‐ Based in Germanys Rheingau, Carl Ehrhard expertly marries tradition with innovation in making and packaging his delicious range of wines.

‐ Owing some of Alsace’s most respected vineyard sites, Séverine Schlumberger of Domaines Schlumberger is custodian of both this famous house and it’s vineyards.

Although from different parts of the world, Séverine, Carl and Tim share a passion for Riesling, a passion they will share with us on Thursday May 17th at Ballymaloe. The evening will be hosted by John Wilson, Irish Times Wine Scribe, and self confessed “Riesling disciple”.

The cost per person for the tasting is €25 Euro and bookings can be made direct with Ballymaloe House res@Ballymaloe.ie and 021 4652531.

You Little Beauty

Beverley, Fleur and Emma

What a cracking week last week. The highlight though was a wonderful Little Beauty Wine Evening in Latitude 51 in Cork’s city centre. Over thirty wine lovers assembled in the beautiful tasting room upstairs and were treated to a wonderful talk and tasting by Fleur McCree, owner of Little Beauty. More than two hours of stories and talking about the five delicious limited edition wines (Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Gewurztraminer and Pinot Noir) on show that evening. Fleur and the crowd were in flying form and it was great fun. And very educational too !

One of the guests, Cork’s own Billy Lyons was kind enough to write a lovely piece on his site. Thanks Billy ! Here’s the link

A huge thanks to Fleur for coming over. In addition to a wonderful tasting, we also had a great series of meetings with customers in the Cork area. Thanks to Beverley and Emma for being such wonderful hosts. Their beautiful wine bar is a must visit. Do yourself a favour and call in for a glass of wine, a craft beer, some delicious food and / or some gourmet coffee/ tea.

Photo used with thanks to Billy Lyons 

L’Atitude 51 “Meet the Winemaker” Evening with Little Beauty from New Zealand

Its an honour for Wine Alliance to be part of L’Atitude 51′s first event in their “Meet the Winemaker” series

Fleur McCree, owner of Little Beauty of Marlborough, New Zealand will present a flight of five of her limited edition wines in a guided tasting in the newly opened L’Atitude 51 Wine Workshop (on the first floor) of . . . .

L’Atitude 51.

1 Union Quay,

Cork City 

021 2390219

Thursday February 9th From 7.00pm – 9.00pm

Entrance Fee is just €12 and places are very limited.

The line up includes a tasting of  . . . . .

• Little Beauty Sauvignon Blanc
• Little Beauty Riesling
• Little Beauty Pinot Gris
• Little Beauty Gewurztraminer
• Little Beauty Pinot Noir

Canapés & Snacks will also be served on the evening

Fleur will walk us through the New Zealand wine landscape and will then focus on her beloved Marlborough and her privately owned vineyard. If you want to read up on Little Beauty, check out their website here

L’Atitude 51 is the perfect location for a tasting. Centrally located in in the heart of Cork’s city centre, the owners Beverley Mathews and Emmanuelle Legrand offer a beautiful selection of wines (including a big selection by the glass), craft beers and gourmet coffee and tea. They also offer a delicious selection of homecooked food in a lovely relaxing setting on the banks of the lovely Lee across the road from Cork’s City Hall.

So why not come along and sample each of these beautiful limited edition wines for yourself

Thursday February 9th From 7.00pm – 9.00pm

To book a place, call L’Atitude 51 on 021 2390219

On the road again . . . . . .

Hi,

I’ll be spending plenty of quality time bonding with my beloved car over the next three weeks. In addition to visiting my customers on the east and west coasts, I’ll be taking part in wine fairs too. Always great fun !

The next wine fair is with Der O Sullivan in Tralee this coming Friday, the 2nd December. It starts at 7 (ish) and ends at some stage later in the night. Who knows when Its always a fantastic event and the who’s who of Tralee and greater Kerry will be there to sample the wines on the night. Der and his team always put on a wonderful show and the delicious home cooked dishes will compliment the lovely wine selection on show from a select few of his wine suppliers.

I have been asked to show the following wines

Kangarilla Road Shiraz 2009

Little Beauty Sauvignon Blanc 2009

Little Beauty Riesling 2009

Little Beauty Pinot Noir 2009

Its always a very lively event with a great crowd so that should be great fun

Hope to see you on my travels

Little Beauty of New Zealand Wine Dinner in Partridges, Gorey on November 24th

DUE TO CIRCUMSTANCES BEYOND THEIR CONTROL, PARTRIDGES HAVE HAD TO POSTPONE THE SCHEDULED WINE DINNER THIS THURSDAY. IT WILL BE RESCHEDULED FOR ANOTHER DATE IN THE NEAR FUTURE. APOLOGIES TO THOSE WHO BOUGHT TICKETS FOR THE INCONVENIENCE CAUSED. PARTRIDGES WILL BE IN CONTACT WITH ALL CONCERNED. THANK YOU.

Partridges of Gorey would like to invite one and all to a special wine tasting and dinner in their wonderful restaurant on the 24th of November. Fleur McCree of “Little Beauty” will come from New Zealand to present her beautiful selection of wines. Partridges are creating a special menu for the night to match each wine perfectly. Fleur will tell stories of her homeland, the wine trade and perhaps the odd reference to being Rugby World Champions !

Partridges have only 38 places, so do not wait to book your table. Tickets for an evening cost €40 per person and will include a superb three course dinner and five Little Beauty wines to try including a single vineyard Sauvignon Blanc ; Riesling ; Pinot Gris ; Gewurztraminer and Pinot Noir.

As an extra incentive, Partridges would like to offer a 10% discount on any wines bought or ordered on the night.

For more info phone 053-9484040 or email info@partridges.ie

All photos are copyright of Little Beauty & Kevin Judd

Little Beauty Dry Riesling Limited Edition 2009 Marlborough, New Zealand

Country / Region : Marlborough, New Zealand

Year : 2009

Grape Variety : Riesling

Style : Citrus, Crisp White

ABV : 12.5 %

Drink By : 2015

Price : €17 to €19 RRP

The Winemakers

Little Beauty is a privately owned, Single Vineyard range of wines from Marlborough, New Zealand. Very authentic. Their range includes five varieties (Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Dry Riesling, Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer).

Discrete, characterful. The vines are grown on three different sites. The lower terraces contain stony silt loam soils with fine sandy loam topsoil and gravels over alluvial gravels. Considerable stone is evident in the topsoil profile. Upper terraces contain friable silt loams over blocky silt loams on gravels. The winery uses sustainably accredited winemaking techniques compliant with international specifications.

Little Beauty’s winemaker is Eveline Fraser, formerly head winemaker at the famed Cloudy Bay.

The Wine

The Little Beauty Dry Riesling 2009 has enticing aromas of honey-suckle, beeswax and lemon-zest intermingled with lemon blossom and grapefruit skin. Time in the glass reveals obvious minerality.

The palate is fine with a zesty citrus tang. Yellow citrus fruits, reminiscent of your Mum’s home-made lemonade together with subtle ginger characters. …will evolve well.

Serve Chilled. Superb match with salads and cheeses.