We’ve had some fine first days of summer and the warm weather has been a welcome change to the strange and monotonous life we have been living during covid-19. And to celebrate The oncoming summer we have found a gem from one of our favourite regions, Burgundy.

A little over a year ago we actually had the Chardonnay from the Maison Roche de Bellene as our wine of the week but this week we have gone for their Pinot Noir. At 199,90 NOK it is a great price for a wine from the most expensive wine region In the world and their quality really shines through.

Maison Roche de Bellene Pinot Noir Vieilles Vignes - 199,90 kr

Beautiful bouquet with fresh strawberries dominating, hints of raspberries and red berries from the Forrest as well. Great minerality and good structure in the mouth. It is very fresh and fruity and so easy to drink. A great wine to enjoy blin good company!

If I where you, I would consider stop reading right now and head to Vinmonopolets app and order this bottle. Last time we checked the production of this beauty was limited to 7-800 bottles, and the price is only 249kr. They will run out soon! This is the best kept secret at Vinmonopolet. This is a 15 year old Cremant priced ridiculously low :)

Ok, so this is a rare find. We've tasted it once before, when visiting this producer in Burgundy, some years back. They produce millions of excellent Cremants every year, but only a handfull of these vintage bottles. "The market is too small for vintage Cremants", they told us. So focus is good quality for the masses, and making some of these just for fun.

You could check out our Cremant story here:

The thing is, as we talk about in the film, that Burgundy produces the highest quality still wine in the world, so chances are that sparkling Burgundy should be pretty good.

As John Kaare says in the story: "In my opinion a vintage Cremant from Burgundy, is better than a vintage Champagne". And this is coming from a guy who knows his bubbles.

Nothing says early summer to more than eating freshly caught shrimp and accompanying them with a good white wine. And nothing, to me, is better with shrimp than the wines from Chablis. The unique terroir in Chablis makes the wines form there perfect with seafood in general, but there is something with Norwegian shrimps and a good Chablis. On a warm summers day there is nothing better.

​This week’s wine comes from one of the most famous and respected wine makers in Chablis, Jean-Marc Brocard. He makes both Grand Cru, Premier Cru and regular Chablis, but this week we will focus on the “small Chablis”, Petit Chablis. When talking of Chablis, we have to talk about the terroir and the terroir in Chablis is probably the most famous one in the wine world. Named after a little town in the south of England, Kimmeridge, and was formed in the late Jurassic. At this time the Chablis area was covered by an ocean, so we find a lot of sea fossils in the terroir. But it’s not the only terroir in Chablis, you will also find Portland soil. This soil is slightly calcareous, marly and contains no fossils. It produces wines with more fruit character, with little minerality.

​Jean-Marc Brocard’s Petit Chablis is planted almost exclusively in Portland soil, making it his fruitiest wine while also being fresh and very drinkable. The freshness and good fruit makes it a great compliment with the salty shrim

Brocard Petit Chablis 2018 194,90 kr

Bright yellow colour. Very fruity on the nose with lime, grapefruit and passion fruit dominating. Very fresh and good length in the mouth. The acidity is well integrated and helps give a long and fine aftertaste. Can be enjoyed by itself, but is perfect with shrimp.

There are so many mouthwatering aromas in this jewel from the Jura mountains in France, that it's hard to contain myself.

We love the Jura region. Neighbouring the world famous Burgundy region, it holds many of the same advantages. But with different micro climate and techniques unique here, they have developed several fantastic wines.
You can take a deep dive in our first "Drink" episode here:

Our wine of the week comes from a great and traditional producer, Domaine Rolet. 

​Spring time is Rosé wine time! The sun is out, it’s getting warmer and warmer day by day, the flowers are blooming, in general it’s a good time to enjoy some light and refreshing wines. Maybe that is why Rosé wines are is so popular now. It signals that something we love is just around the corner – summer! And this weeks wine is really a warm day in a bottle. 

K​rüger and Rumpf may sound like a spoof detective show from the old DDR, but the fact is that they are a reputable wine growing family that have made top quality wine in Nahe since 1980. Like all German wine growers, Riesling is the grape they grow the most, but their Spätburgunders are also getting rave reviews and thats the grape their Rosé is made from.
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The vineyard for the Rosé is in a cool part of the Nahe which means that the grapes are harvested in late September, when they are ripe, aromatic and with moderate sugar content, giving a light and refreshing wine without too much alcohol. 

Krüger-Rumpf Pinot Noir Rosé Dry 2019 - 164,90 kr

The colour is light and bright pink, almost a peach colour. On the nose you get wild strawberries, raspberries and hints of cherries as well. It had good acidity and minerality giving a fine freshness in the mouth. Easy to drink and enjoy as we wait for summer to come.

Everything is blossoming. Nature is shifting gear and brighter days are ahead. For many this also means lighter choices when it comes to wine.
This last winter we presented one of the great reds from this Chateau in Beaujolais, France. Our wine pick off the week is their lovely white. Grape is 100% Chardonnay and the vintage is 2018.

​Choosing wine to go with your barbecue can be difficult at times. There are many different flavours to consider and often there are elements that can be very dominant and put everything else, especially the wine, in the shadows. But there are a few things you can remember when finding a good wine to accompany the food. Because there are a lot of great wines that are made with the barbecue in mind. With that lets look at what you need to consider.

What’s on the grill?

​The first is easily enough, but there are some things to consider here as well. Because you don’t have as much control with the heat on the grill as you do in your kitchen you will get more of a burnt crust on both the meats and the vegetables. And let’s be honest, that’s why we use the grill, we want that burnt hard, often caramelized crust that gives that extra spice to the dish. So, consider the burning.

​Then of course there is the meat. Beef, pork, sausages, everything is used on the grill and they do get a different sensation when grilled.
Some try fish and that can be fantastic, but you must take more care to the fragile loins when grilling fish.
And then there is vegetables. Many like to change up the grill with some nice crisp vegetables to change the dish up a bit and have a more complete meal. Eggplant, squash, carrots, corn or pepper, there are many great vegetables that taste fantastic when grilled properly.
But know what we said in the beginning, with the delicate flavours of the meats, fish, or vegetable, you will get a burnt sensation as well and you will need to find something that complements this.

And let’s not forget about the sauce! Grill sauces tend to be quite sweet and full bodied and they have a lot to say when choosing the wine. Often it can be smart to start with the sauce when choosing a wine. Is it sweet and “American” or is it more of a savoury sauce, or maybe it’s very spicy! This will be particularly important when choosing a wine.

One grape stands out

​When traveling all around the world we almost always find that the food and wine made in the place we are visiting are made with regards to each other. So, when choosing a good barbecue wine we should look to the countries with great barbecue traditions. USA, Australia, South Africa, and Italy have great barbecue tradition, but Argentina stands out even in this crowd. They lover their barbecue like we Norwegians love our skiing! If it isn’t barbecued it isn’t food might as well be the country’s slogan. And when drinking the Argentinian wine, you get a sense of this as well. Because the Malbec grape is perfect for barbecue. It has an inherent sweetness to it, much like the Riesling has in Germany. The wines are dry but feel sweet. And this sweetness is perfect with the burnt sensation that we get with food that has been on the BBQ. And being a Bordeaux grape, it also has some tannins, although they are finer than the ones we would find in France, so the wines can handle the fat from the meats or the sauce. It really is a match made in heaven.
Now a BBQ dish isn’t too refined most of the times. This is a meal that is meant for sharing and being among friends outside. So you don’t have to go for the most expensive and refined wines. Save those for another time. When barbequing you want an easy going wine that complements what comes of the grill.

Other options
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But let’s not forget that there are other options as well. Of grapes that should suit BBQ very close to the top of my list you will find Cabernet Sauvignon. Most famous for being the main grape of the left bank Bordeaux wines a good Cab has a lot of structure and can have a lot of fine sweetness to it as well, especially in the new world wines. Mostly these wines will handle fatty meats and rich sauces.
And when in Italy, you will of course try and Italian wine. A good Barbera from the Piemonte or a Sangiovese from Tuscany will be perfect with a lot of BBQ’s.
And let’s not forget the whites. With the fish dishes you can use any of your favourite white wines, but I find that a good Chardonnay with finely integrated oak has the right weight to handle the burnt character of a BBQ.
The BBQ is a social happening so for the lazy days you will meet up with friends in a park or by the sea, get a reasonably priced wine. If you have invited someone over to you garden and are going to impress, like Finn-Erik likes to do, then you can splurge for a more pricy wine.

​Alamos Cabernet Sauvignon 2019 – 136,90
A little bit more structure as you would expect from the Cabernet, but still a fine choice with any BBQ. Try this with a good beef.

I choose April – so said the famous Norwegian author Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson in his  poem from 1869. And he was probably thinking of days like the ones we are having now, with beautiful weather all over the country, sunshine and temperatures closer to 20 than 0. So, inspired by him, we had to choose something Norwegian for this weeks wine.

​As we do not grow wine in Norway – yet – this weeks wine is a cider. And followers of this blog will know – we LOVE Norwegian cider. It’s so sharp and precise in both it’s bouquet and in the mouth. And as spring time is also perfect for Rosé wines we have chosen a Rosé cider for this weeks recommendation. 

​The producer Åkre Gard is located on the west side of the South Fjord in Hardanger and have established themselves as one of the best cider producers here. The cider from them tends to be a bit more acidic, maybe because of the climate is a bit colder than for example in Ulvik? That means the cider is often very sharp and precise and great with food. Their rose though is perfect to enjoy by itself. So delicate and fine it just makes you want to drink more and more.

​Åkre Gard Edel Rosesider - 159,90 kr

Such a beautiful rose colour! I can admire this the whole day long. The raspberries dominate the bouquet with hints of red apples in the back. It is such a fine scent of fruits and berries, like walking through a garden when it is ripening. In the mouth there is a sweet feeling at first, but the acid soon kicks in to give a perfect sense of balance. This will work perfectly with salads and barbeques, but let’s be honest – you will have drunk every drop long before the food comes to the table. Pure pink perfection indeed!
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This is a returning favourite and its back with yet another brilliant vintage. This white Beaujolais from master producer Jean Paul Brun is a catch for palette  and wallet.

We first visited Jean Paul Brun back in 2010 and really fell in love with his wines. 
You can check out one of our first ever Kultour stories here:

This brilliant man makes fantastic reds, a wonderful Cremant and our wine of the week that is his white. Made from higher altitude vineyards, hand picked grapes and only using natural wild yeast. It's a 100% Chardonnay, no storage on oak and a minimum of 6 months in the bottle. It's a lot of wine for the price.

A Happy Easter to everybody. We hope people are being able to relax in these strange and sometimes troubling times. When we are all stuck inside, quarantined with our loved ones, or just ourselves, so enjoying a good bottle of wine at the end of the day will for the readers of this blog be a welcoming time of the day. For this week’s wine we have travelled to the sane country in North America – you know – the country with a leader that actually knows how to lead.

​Canada isn’t perhaps the a country most people think of when it comes to wine. We think of Canada as a cold country, more like Norway than a the wine growing countries we know in Europe. But Canada has been producing wine for over 200 years and the Vikings did call it Vinland …

​This week’s wine comes from Quails Gate, situated in the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia. The vines are beautifully situated above Lake Okanagan and are all south facing so the get a lot of sun exposure. The soils are rich with volcanic rock, clay, gravel and glacial till adding to the great minerality and freshness of the wines. 

Quails' Gate Chardonnay 2016 – 200,- kr

At first whiff of this wine I thought I was mistaken and had opened a Chablis! High praise indeed, but deserved. There were also some great and pleasant lime notes. In the mouth good acidity and minerality that gave the wine a freshness to it. The flavours ranged from pear and lemon to vanilla, butter and walnuts. A great and complex wine.