Wines made from Sylvaner grapes of Slovakia
Discover the best wines made with Sylvaner as a single variety or as a blend of Slovakia.
The sylvaner is grown mainly in Germany and Alsace. The buds are somewhat cottony and the young leaves are green. The same applies to the ribbed branches. Once mature, the dominant colour is golden-green and small elliptical berries with small to medium-sized bunches can be seen. The ripe fruit is then adorned by five-lobed leaves. This variety is susceptible to chlorosis, gray mold, powdery mildew and mildew. It is also sensitive to frost and wind because of its long branches. It can be grown in any kind of soil, although it prefers stony, sandy and light soils. It is indeed moderately acidic and offers a complex set of aromas such as bitter almond, fruity and floral background. The taste has an excellent mixture of honey and candied or dried fruits.
Slovakia (officially The Slovak Republic) is a landlocked country described as being either at the eastern edge of Western Europe, or the western edge of Eastern Europe. This dichotomy reflects the state's recent history, a story of political unrest common in this region. The lands that are now Slovakia were an integral Part of Hungary for almost 900 years, but became independent when the Austro-Hungarian Empire was dismantled after the First World War. Almost immediately, Slovakia aligned itself with Bohemia and Moravia (the modern-day Czech Republic), Silesia and Carpathian Ruthenia to form Czechoslovakia.
Starting with the 2021 vintage, non-late harvest Alsace Riesling must be ‘dry’, as defined by EU regulations, according to a proposed decree agreed by a two-thirds majority of the Alsace Winegrowers’ Association (AVA). Winemakers backed the plan at a vote in Colmar last week, although it requires approval from France’s appellation body, INAO. The move comes in addition to the introduction of a standardised way of communicating sweetness levels on Alsace AOC still wines. As per EU rul ...
I’d like to say we took advantage of the lockdown and its related commotion to do a stock-take, explore new avenues, turn over intriguing stones, widen and deepen our drinking, taking careful notes as we went. Sadly, no. I won’t say we got stuck in a rut, but we did tend to stick with comfort wines – and “comfort”, in our case, means familiar. Regular readers of this quarterly column can probably guess the labels on the resulting empties. We have a wider range of comfort foods, I’m afraid, than ...
On 28 October 2022, the second edition of Barolo en primeur will take place. A collaboration between the Cassa di Risparmio di Cuneo Foundation, CRC Donare Foundation, and the Consorzio di tutela Barolo Barbaresco Alba Langhe e Dogliani, it’s an auction of unique Barolo wines with social responsibility at it’s heart, aiding local not-for-profit organisations and charities, as well as those further afield. As with last year’s auction, 14 barriques will be auctioned by Christie’s simul ...