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Winery
Chene Bleu
Vintage: 2007
2007 was the year that saw California's wine industry pick up once again, after a troubling couple of years. Indeed, all across the state of California, fantastic harvests were reported as a result of fine weather conditions throughout the flowering and ripening periods, and Napa Valley and Santa Barbera wines were widely considered amongst the best in the world in 2007, with Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes packing in all sorts of fine and desirable features in this year. South Africa, too, had a much-needed fantastic year for red wines, with Pinotage particularly displaying strong characteristics, alongside the country's other flagship red wine grape varietals.
Over in Europe, France had another fine year, especially for white wines. Champagne wineries were very happy with their Chardonnay harvests, and the Loire Valley and Graves in Bordeaux are proclaiming 2007 to be a memorable year due to the quality of their white wine grapes. For French red wines, Provence had their best year for almost a decade, as did the Southern Rhone. However, 2007 was most favorable to Italy, who saw high yields of exceptional quality across almost all of their major wine producing regions. Tuscany is claiming to have produced its best Chianti and Brunello wines for several years in 2007, and Piedmont and Veneto had a wonderful year for red wines. For Italian white wines, 2007 was an extremely successful year for Alto Adige and Campania. Germany also had a very good 2007, with Riesling displaying extremely dry and crisp characteristics, as did Portugal, where Port wine from 2007 is said to be one to collect.
Varietal: Syrah
Known as Syrah in most countries around the world, and Shiraz in Australia and certain other regions of the New World, this grape varietal has proven over the centuries to be one of the most powerful and flavorful red wine grapes there is. It is now one of the planet's most widely grown grapes, and is a favorite with wineries as a result of its robustness and versatility. It isn't easy to identify many characteristics of this particular varietal, due to the fact that it is highly versatile and shows significant differences in flavor and character depending on the terroir it is grown in, and the climatic conditions of the region. However, Syrah is most widely associated with full bodied, strong and loud red wines, packed full of fruity and spicy flavors, held in a beautifully deep red liquid.
Region: Rhone Valley
There are few wine regions in the world with a history as long and illustrious as that of the Rhone Valley in France. For over two thousand years, wines have been produced in this region, benefited by the excellent, mineral-rich soils of the region, and the varied climate which allows a wide range of grape varietals to grow. The Rhone Valley is now split into two quite separate regions, with the north part being characterized by its cooler, continental climate and the limited number of grape varietals grown, and the southern sub-region being perfect for growing a wide range of grapes, and producing an exciting number of different wine styles. The Rhone Valley is associated with elegant, flavorful wines, and certain grape varietals such as Viognier and Syrah, which are adept at expressing the finer features of their terroir.
Country: France
France is renowned across the globe for its quality wines and the careful expertise which goes into making them, but what is truly remarkable about this relatively small country is the vast range of wines it produces in such huge amounts each year. Not only are the finest red wines in the world said to come from the beautiful regions of Bordeaux and Burgundy, but elsewhere in the country we find the Champagne region, and areas such as the Rhone Valley and the Loire, whose white wines consistently receive awards and accolades by the plenty. This range is a result of the great variety of climatic conditions and terrain found in France, coupled with generations of wine makers working within single appellations. Their knowledge of specific terroirs and grape varieties has, over time, perfected the production of wines within their region, and the end results continue to impress the world to this day.