GLOBAL WINE

Pleased to get a bottle wine. Not any wine. My first Japanese wine. Not knowing anything about Japanese wine I was curious how does it taste like. Japanese cuisine is very different from what we are used to. I also have in mind small gifts Japanese clients bring while visting vignerons in this area. They are unique, completely different from our perception of sweets. 
The wine I was about to taste was even awarded with gold medal from Japan wine competition 2012, a indigenous grape Koshu. If you don't know anything about a product, a gold medal should give you a hint of quality...?
While puring the wine into glass everything was clear immediately. Almost no color which speaks about production method. And odour that reminded me on Pinela, a grape variety from Vipava valley. Young and fresh, yet less intense than Pinela. Another common point was acidity, both have higher acidity level. Two wines grown and produced far apart on the Globe, further is almost not possible. Why do they have so much in common? Is it global understanding of winemaking or globalization of taste? Is it realy necessary for a small vigneron from Vipava valley to think the same way as big beverage producer? Strange ways indeed....Curious for my next Japanese wine made of grapes.
   

SOMETHING ORANGE IN THE AIR

Last April Friday in Izola. Encouraged with last year's positive responses the second Orange wine festival took place. http://www.zakladi-istre.si/images/stories/2013/OWF_mailing_A4_SLO.pdf 
Even bigger and better organized, better promoted. Even more (orange) wine lovers came. Beautiful Adriatic town Izola was over swelling with life. It was a chance to taste wines from 55 producers, all s.c. orange wines from 6 countries, even Georgia. There were also restaurants and other food producers offering their bits to taste. Not orange, none of them. 
People were in good mood tasting, asking about wines and talking to vignerons. Later on, questions became not so important, more some wine in glass. As it says in brochure issued for the occasion, "orange" wines are predominantly produced nature friendly, some even with bio dynamic method. Predominantly? What is than common criteria for "orange" wine? The color? Nobody was asking what hue of "orange" makes a wine "orange"? Is it important? Obviously not. 
There is one common point of this event; seems like everybody had fun and enjoyed it. 

note something orange in a bowl...