What's in a name? That which we call Morillon by any other name would smell like......... Chardonnay!

Cencibel, Ulle de Llebre, Aragonez, Valepenas, Tinto de Toro, Tinto Pais and Tinto Roriz. What do all of these things have in common? Well they are all names for the same grape and with the exception of three of them, these are names for the same grape in the same country. And by no means are these the only names for this grape. I have in my notes about thirty synonyms for this wonderful grape of Spain most commonly called Tempranillo.

There is this geeky thing on the web called the Geilweilerhof database that has every conceivable synonym for every conceivable grape on the planet that I visited it often when I was studying for the test I took in August in 2007.

I remember one of the questions on the test was “ What is Mataro called in France?”

Whatever! Well if I had not studied this weird quirky subject, I would have gotten that wrong on my test. (Actually I think I guessed at that one.)

In Austria common grapes have all sorts of silly names. Chardonnay is called Morillon and Feinburgunder but in France the aliases include Aubaine, Auvernat, Beaunois, Epinette Blanche, Petite Sainte-Marie and Weisser Clevner!

Also in Austria Pinot Blanc is called Weissburgunder and Klevner, Blaufrankish is known as Lemberger in Washinton State but it is also called Kekfracos in Hungary! And some of the other grape names, although they might not have synonyms in other countries are equally silly, Zierfandler, Rotgipfler and Blauer Wildbacher just to name a few.

Don't get me started on Switzerland! The most important grape in the country that makes fab watches, (and is a great place to keep your cash if you have lots) is Chasselas. But it has three different names, Fendant in the Valais, Dorin in the Vaud and Perlan in Geneva!

If you travel to Pourtugal some of the grapes of Spain have totally different names. Tempranillo is Aragonez in the south and Tinto Roriz in the area where Port is made. Mencia the grape of Bierzo is called Jaen. Garnacha (called Grenache in France and Cannonau on the Island of Sardinia) is called Alicante, but that’s not to be confused with Alicante Bouschet which is a cross between Grenache and Petite Bouschet.

Malbec is a classic grape of France that has about 34 different names including Pressac, Auxerrois, Cot and Grifforin. But as the black grape, Malbec is called Auxerrois in Cahors in Southern France. But Auxerrois in Alsace and Chablis is a white grape while in other parts of France Malbec is called Cahors!

Nebbiolo is called Spanna in Gattinara and Ghemme, Picutener and Pugnet in the Carema DOC of N.W. Piedmont and Chiavennasca in Lombardy. At least these grape aliases are confined to the same area of Italy!

Welschriesling in Austria is not to be confused with the Riesling of Germany, which is called Riesling Renano in Italy. But there is a Riesling in Austria that should not be confused with the true German Johannisburg Riesling, which is known by the name Rheinriesling, aka Olasz in Hungary.

Ugni Blanc or St. Emilion (not the AOC in Bordeaux) in Cognac and Armagnac is called Trebbiano in Italy with the exception of in Tuscany and Umbria where it can be called Procanico. But don’t call Trebbiano d’Abruzzo Trebbiano because in actuality it is the grape Bombino of the Abruzzo.

Every now and again people comment about how much fun it would be to study the subject of wine implying that studying about wine includes the constant consumption of wine. All I can do is think about explaining what really goes into studying about wine (see above) and then I decide against it and say, “You got that right!” with a conspiratorial wink.

Oh and a quick hint about Greek grape names, if the name of the grape has a lot of X’s or multiple K’s of the word tiko or mavro imbedded somewhere in the name, it is a grape grown in Greece.

OY!

"Oh bliss! Bliss and heaven! Oh, it was gorgeousness and gorgeousity made flesh. It was like a bird of rarest-spun heaven metal or like silvery wine flowing in a spaceship, gravity all nonsense now. As I slooshied, I knew such lovely pictures!"

Alex in A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Santé

i vini di Italia

Umanità. . . Possiede due benedizioni supreme. Primo di questi è il Demeter di dea, o la Terra qualunque nome che lei sceglie chiamarla da. Era lei che ha dato all'uomo il suo nutrimento di grano. Ma dopo che è venuta lí il figlio di Semele, che ha uguagliato il suo presente inventando il vino liquido come il suo regalo all'uomo. Per ha riempito di quel regalo buono, soffrendo l'umanità dimentica il suo dolore; da esso viene il sonno; con esso l'oblio delle difficoltà del giorno. C'è nessuno altro medicina per la miseria.

L'Euripides c. 485 - 406 A.C.

The history of Italy is filled with mythical gods, wars, volcanoes, emperors, popes, and ruling families (that contributed to many of those popes) that spans thousands of years. The lore of the Roman, Grecian and Etruscans gods can be found in carvings and paintings in much of the artifacts found from all over the country. Some of the most powerful gods were the gods that governed sunlight, medicine, war, hunting, love and of course wine.

There are archeological digs that have discovered artifacts that include amorphas and goblets with carvings of Bacchus, the Roman god of wine. There is evidence in those paintings and carvings and in writings of a cult called the Bacchanalia. The cult was banned in 186 BC by the State because it’s nature-worshipping themes were not in tune with the Roman Republic. Julius Caesar lifted it, some 100 years later, in response to popular pressure as Bacchus became a favorite among the rich and powerful most notably Mark Antony who saw himself as a new Dionysus. The common denominator in this cult was the worship of the creation of wine and included lots of wild dancing and dressing up as mythical creatures, or possibly undressing, probably while consuming…. well…wine.

I certainly would love to have been there, but something I find very interesting is in some of the archeological digs that we (I) were talking about before we (I) got side tracked, there have been grape pips or seeds that can be carbon dated to 4000 – 6000 BC. Archeological scientists can also tell if a seed is cultivated or not cultivated and these are seeds that have been cultivated meaning they have been manipulated by man to produce a superior result.

Science proves that the production of wine precedes all of the mythology and lore of the gods of Greece, Rome and the Etruscans (whose god of wine was called Fufluns) and was possibly made by future family of the Tautavel man. And since Tautavel is in the heart of the Cote de Roussillon Villages in the south of France, I would think that would make sense.

That also means that wine has been made on the boot shaped peninsula for that amount of time also, and the wine produced today is evidence of that. One of my favorite places in Italy to discuss is Piedmont. Some of the best wines in the world come from there. Most notably, the mighty Barolo and Barbaresco made from Nebbiolo. Grapes for Barolo are grown in the vineyards in and around the hill top town of Alba, and the neighboring communes of Castiglione-Falleto, Monforte d'Alba, Serralunga d'Alba, Barolo, and La Morra.

Generally speaking, the Barolo sourced from vineyards near the first three communes are the biggest wines made, while the Barolo from the latter two communes are more refined and a bit more graceful. The Nebbiolo for Barbaresco is grown in and around the villages of Barbaresco, Neive, and Treiso, which are adjacent, to the North East of Alba.

There are differing schools of thought in the production of Barolo and Barbaresco. Wines produced in a traditional style will use extended maceration, not attempting to smooth out the grape tannins in any way and produce a wine that probably needs upwards of 10 years in bottle.

Traditionalists include: Bartolo Mascarello, G. Conterno,
G. Mascarello, Pio Cesare, Bruno Giacosa, Produttori del Barbaresco and perhaps, to some extent, Aldo Conterno.

Barolo and Barbaresco produced in a newer style uses new oak in the form of smaller barriques. Vanilla, spices and creaminess may all be evident in this style of winemaking. Tannins are managed better and the producers tend to strive for an approachable style of wine that is more fruit forward.

Non-traditionalists include : Domenico Clerico, Aldo Conterno, Prunotto, Marchesi di Gresy, Ceretto, Gancia, Conterno-Fantino and Angelo Gaja.

There was also a movement in the mid nineties where several prominent producers introduced legislation requesting the they be allowed the add no more than 10% of another grape, most likely Dolcetto or Cabernet to make their wines more accessible in great vintages or fuller bodied in weaker vintages. The opponents to this cited heritage and tradition. The decision was made by the consortium to stick to tradition and allow only Nebbiolo. Many wine makers now use the Langhe DOC on their wines forsaking the DOCG Barolo or Barbaresco to make the style of wine they prefer.

No matter what the style, the wines produced here are fabulous and can be found in all priced ranges. There are also plenty of other wonderful wines from Piedmont. Other reds like Barbera and Dolcetto that are made for more immediate consumption. Softly sparkling wine made from Moscato from the village of Asti. Crisp interesting whites made from the Cortese grape in the village of Gavi and Arneis from Roero. And of course Angelo Gaja makes a world class Chardonnay from vineyards named after his daughter Gaia and his grandmother, Clotilde Rey appropriately called Gaia & Rey.

And of those are materials for many rambling to come.

Mankind . . . possesses two supreme blessings. First of these is the goddess Demeter, or Earth whichever name you choose to call her by. It was she who gave to man his nourishment of grain. But after her there came the son of Semele, who matched her present by inventing liquid wine as his gift to man. For filled with that good gift, suffering mankind forgets its grief; from it comes sleep; with it oblivion of the troubles of the day. There is no other medicine for misery.

Euripides c. 485 - 406 B.C.

Santé