Here’s something from the dark corner of the wine cellar,
Blanc de Noir. What the hell kind
of grape is that? Not a variety of
grape. It means white from black
and refers to using dark grapes to produce white wine. Most of the time you see it on the
labels of sparkling wines, many notably from the Champagne region of France.
But there are also lots of still wines that feature Blanc de
Noir. In Germany, much of the time
the B de N’s come from the Spätburgunder grape, the German word for Pinot
Noir. How in the living swamp of
Mesopotamia does Pinot Noir get translated to Spätburgunder? You’re about to find out. Spätburgunder means late Burgundy and
refers to the first vines of Pinot planted in Germany coming from
Burgundy. Also, Pinot matures
late.
But, lots of other dark grapes can do the job. In this case, my favorite German
weingut (wine grower and seller) Karl Dennhardt, used Cabernet Sauvignon and
Lemberger for his 2010 Blanc de Noir.
Pretty much everyone is familiar with Cab, but Lemberger?
Although not widely known by wine swilling Americans,
Lemberger vineyards stretch from Austria to Hungary to Germany. It’s also grown in Washington
State. It’s a late maturing, dark
grape, usually sturdy and rich in tannins, but there is also a softer side to
Lemberger and that’s what Dennhardt has tapped into.
But, let’s back up a sec. Black grapes, white wine? How does that happen?
Most grape juice is white, but when you squeeze the grapes and leave the
juice to soak in the skins, gradually the juice turns dark, absorbing not only
the color, but also the tannin.
So, guess what? If you want
a white wine from dark grapes, you juice the grapes and separate the juice from
the skins immediately.
In the case of Karl Dennhardt’s Blanc de Noir, you end up
with an amazingly sturdy and flavorful dry white wine. A fragrant, almost yeasty nose kicks
in, and your first sip offers notes of pear and plum. When I say notes, I don’t mean the whole damn song. Slow sip this dry white a moment and
let the nectar float to the back of the throat. You’ll see what I mean. It’s full, yet crisp, and lacks that heavily acidic finish
you find with many dry whites.
A note on temperature.
Lots of folks think if a white doesn’t have frost on the bottle it’s not
cold enough. Don’t believe
it. Try it cool, but not cold,
somewhere north of 60 ºF. If you
don’t like it immediately, give your taste buds a little more time to
adjust. You’ll start to pick up
flavors you didn’t know were there.
Another hint: If it’s not a
sparkling wine and the bottle says ‘Serve Chilled,’ I advise you to put it back
on the shelf. There’s something
the vintner doesn’t want you to know and he’s using the cold temp to cover up
the wine’s shortcomings.
Blanc de Noir pairs perfectly with avocados, salads light on
vinegar, shrimp cocktail, fish, ripe fruit, and light desserts. Don’t despair if you can’t find the
Dennhardt label. It doesn’t travel
far. Find another German Blanc de
Noir and enjoy the last days of summer, in a bottle. You’re gonna be sorry if you didn’t buy a couple of
bottles. Nobody drinks just one.
