Wine notes

As the wine industry continuously evolves, we asked three experts to tell us about the latest trends, what consumers are looking, how international wine competitions are judged and how restaurateurs should select bottles.

CHRISTY CANTERBURY MW

Journalist, public speaker and wine buyer christycanterbury.com

Natural and orange wines

Sommeliers continue to be fascinated by natural and orange wines. I have yet to meet a consumer that likes a still wine that turns out to be fizzy or an orange wine with fierce tannins that is served too cold. If you want to be part of the natural and orange wine trend, make sure your wines are approachable so that the average consumer can enjoy them. If not, you'll see beer and cocktails beating your wine list.

Demand for sparkling wine

Sparkling wines are soaring in sales as people feel they can finally celebrate after almost two years in lockdown. In New York City, there are stories that there will be Champagne shortages during the holidays. At least the idea of hoarding Champagne isn't as bleak as hoarding toilet paper! Wine competitions

Competitions vary greatly, and the guidelines and the realities of judging are different for each competition. First and foremost, make sure the head judges have well-honed palates. There's no point in submitting wines for amateur judges. Secondly, only submit wines that will be sold in the market where the medal or award is issued.

Beyond Burgundy

In the U.S., consumers are looking beyond white Burgundy — due to escalating prices — into other high-end white wines. Consumers are also buying directly from wineries more often, taking advantage of wine club offers and special cuvées that are not available elsewhere.

Making the restaurant wine list

First, rarity and exclusivity are great attributes to have on a wine list. If you have the same wines as everyone else, your list isn't unique. This doesn't mean the wines have to be expensive, just harder to get. Second, don't overcharge for the wines, even if they are rare. Consumers know when they're being taken advantage of, and there's always another restaurant that is aching for their business.

HADY KAHALE

Head of wine buying Naked Wines US us.nakedwines.com

Sustainability

One of the top trends is sustainability through the whole production chain. Also, the online sale of wine, which grew exponentially because of Covid-19. Champagne in fashion

Although it depends greatly on the market, sparkling wine is faring better in general compared to regular wine. Champagne producers can’t keep up with the demand, as markets are reopening and overdue celebrations and events are being scheduled. Prosecco Rose was added to the Prosecco DOC, which created new demand for an already successful category. Furthermore, the world is discovering traditional sparkling wines, like Cava, Cremant de Bourgogne and Cremant de Limoux, and loving them! Judging wine

Some competitions have strict guidelines, but the majority ask judges to give each wine a bronze, silver, gold or doublegold rating with a score and few tasting notes without specifying criteria. Judges will rely on their experience and will ask themselves many questions, including: Is the wine faulty? How does the wine compare to the rest of the flight? Is it expressive? Is it balanced? Is it typical of the variety or the region? How much would I pay to buy this wine? Experimenting with new categories

People are experimenting with orange,

still wines. Consumers are waking up to the notion that Champagne is not the be all and end all. Cremant is doing very well, as more people are realizing that it is made in the same way as Champagne — as is Cava and English sparkling wine, by the way — and, as we all know, prosecco sales have gone through the roof. The biodynamic movement

Biodynamic wine production uses organic farming methods while also following the philosophy of Rudolf Steiner's (the inventor of the concept), treating the earth as "a living and receptive organism” and also employing soil supplements and mixtures prepared according to biodynamic formulas. Natural wine is not a crystalclear concept, as there is no legislation defining what this category exactly means. In general, natural wines have low or minimal intervention, with no additives like sulfites.

Restaurateurs take note

When selecting the best wine for a restaurant, the following should be taken into consideration: Does the wine fit my cuisine? Does the wine fit my clientele? Is the price right? Is the margin right? Will it leave a smile on my clients’ faces?

of regions or grapes and how much they usually spend. At the start, it can be trial and error until a pattern develops. That said, in order to know your customers, you have to know your wine. Most consumers actually know very little other than what they have been exposed to, so conversely it can be quite easy to sell a wine if you are passionate about it and clients feel they have learned something from your recommendation.

MICHAEL KARAM

Wine writer and wine marketing and branding consultant instagram.com/michaelkaram.wine

What’s trending?

The wine industry is being shaped by new, ecofriendly packaging while trying to remain competitive after Covid-19. Cremant, Champagne and Cava

The global percentage of sparkling wines produced is around 2.5 billion bottles, so it is less than 10 percent of the volume of Winning wines

At international competitions, judges look for value (price point versus quality), as well as balance (integration of fruit, tannins, acidity, alcohol, etc.) Pandemic consumption

Consumers were drinking better wines with the money they were saving by not going out during the pandemic, so I guess it’s just a case of introducing their palates to (supposedly) better wines, perhaps from regions or from grapes they had never explored or tasted. On the menu

When selecting wine for your customers, you need to see what they like in terms low-alcohol, natural, organic and many other wine categories. Nevertheless, the classics still remain on top, accounting for more than 85 percent of sales.

Wines of Lebanon

Lebanese winemakers need all the help they can get. We have a great industry, so Lebanese consumers should learn to curb their status anxiety and stop buying foreign wines on the assumption that they are better. For example, Bordeaux makes nearly 500 million bottles a year, and yet only a tiny percentage is legendary; most of it is quite ordinary.

We take a look at some of the most interesting local and international wines to hit the market.

INTERNATIONAL WINES

GANCIA ATTO PRIMO

Italian sparkling wine producer Gancia releases Atto Primo fruit-flavored 5.5 percent ABV sparkling wines. The new four flavors – lychee, peach, mango and blackberry – contain less than 100 calories per 4oz serving. GANCIA gancia.com

LOS VASCOS CROMAS CARMENERE

Los Vascos winery introduces its new range of Cromas wines. Over 30 years ago, Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite) fell in love with a vineyard nestled in the heart of the Colchagua Valley and worked with them to write the Los Vascos story. Fruit of those new terroirs, CROMAS Cabernet Sauvignon Grand Reserva and CROMAS Carmenère Gran Reserva, replace Los Vascos Grande Réserve and Carmenère Grande Réserve. Each CROMAS wine has its own color, painted on the label, that tells the story of the wine in the bottle. Aged for 12 months in barrels, the wines reflect the specificities of the Chilean terroirs and the knowhow of the team. DOMAINES BARONS DE ROTHSCHILD lafite.com

SWIFT WINES BLANC DE NOIR 2021

Made with Gamay Noir grapes, lightly pressed to lower color extraction. Fermented cool and in-tank, to make a texture and taste that is fresh and crunchy. This enjoyable blend of land, climate, vines, people and culture represents a wine worth celebrating. The 2021 growing season was long, marked by warm days and cool nights, allowing for natural acidity, giving this wine poise and drive with an abundance of fruit concentration. SWIFT WINES swiftwines.co.nz

NICK SPENCER 2021 GRENACHE PET NAT

A sparkling wine, made from Grenache and Sangiovese using a traditional method of sparkling wine production that predates the Champagne method. The wine is not disgorged and carries the yeast lees from fermentation. NICK SPENCER WINES nickspencerwines.com.au

LOUIS ROEDERER HOMMAGE À CAMILLE

Named after one of the most remarkable figures in the history of the Louis Roederer Champagne House, these two wines (Coteaux Champenois appellation), Camille Charmont 2018 red and Camille Volibarts 2018 white, allow fine wine drinkers to discover another facet of the unique winemaking expertise of this family-owned Champagne House. Whether it is the red (a 100% Pinot Noir from a 43-ares plot in the Charmont lieu-dit in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ) or the white (a 55-ares plot of old historic Chardonnay vines in the Volibarts lieu-dit in Le Mesnil-Sur-Oger), these limitededition cuvées are an exciting representation of the vitality and finesse of Louis Roederer's wines, in a single-varietal and single-vineyard wine with an identity of its own. LOUIS ROEDERER louis-roederer.com

LEBANESE WINES

LE VIN DU MARJE ROSE (ROSE) 2020

Finesse, fresh, flexible, the Rose of the Vin du Marje is characterized by its remarkable liveliness and tenderness - its touch softens the mouth with a fruity sensation. The peculiarity of this wine comes from its region - the aroma recalls the soil from the south of Lebanon which offers a soft Mediterranean climate. Enhanced by direct pressure - this wine is a specific combination direct combination of the mixture of Tempranillo and Syrah grapes. LES VIGNES DU MARJE lesvignesdumarje.com

LE VIN DU MARJE BLANC (WHITE) 2020

First born of the south of Lebanon. The white wine of the Vin du Marje is an explosion of aromas resulting in a peculiar mixture of Sauvignon Blanc, viognier and Muscatel wine small grain. It offers a balanced harmony of acidity and a strong and intense flavour which is, at the same time, delicate. Its yellow color reflects the rays of the sun from the south of Lebanon - its place of origin. LES VIGNES DU MARJE lesvignesdumarje.com

MEKSASSI

Aware of Meksassi's potential, the potential of Meksassi, we vinified it to create a balanced wine that delivers aromas of green apples, lime, apricots and white flowers of Southern Lebanon. In the mouth, it presents excellent acidity combined with the Meksassi signature mouth feel and aromas of waxed honey, stone fruit and hints of jasmine tea, producing a sustained finish. Meksassi can be drunk young although it has good aging qualities. Meksassi is an ancient indigenous grape of Lebanon, native to the Jezzine area in southern Lebanon. It often grows wild, trained around huge native oak trees and even electric poles. KARAM WINES karamwines.com