Surprises at November’s Wine Fairs: Vin la Braşov and RoVinHud 

November is among the most active months in the world of wine. It is the time when, at the end of the harvesting campaign, both wine cellar owners and oenologists have the necessary time to present themselves to the public. We are glad to see more and more events dedicated to quality wine, some of them with a longstanding tradition, others just starting.

Vin la Brasov 2-4 November

At its first edition, “Vin la Braşov” Festival is an innovative concept aiming to bring together wine and theater. The partnership with the Sica Alexandrescu Theater has gathered over 30 wine and spirits producers in the foyer, both domestic and foreign. At the end of each fair day, visitors could choose one of the theater plays or continue the tasting at one of the partner locations, Terroire Boutique du Vin, Belvedere or party in the club Times.

The fair included three masterclasses. The first one, by Eduard Jakab, focused on aspects regarding the wine tasting technique and some tips on culinary associations and was intended more for beginners in the field. The second masterclass, supported by Daniel Vrănescu, focused on sparkling wines and their production methods, highlighting differences both in terms of quality and price. The last masterclass, belonging to Andrei Lung, focused on gin, talking about production techniques, different styles, and of course, using it in cocktails.

RoVinHud

Already at the fifth edition, this festival with a big heart brings together wine lovers, international experts and producers’ representatives, all under the noble idea of helping people with disabilities. Unlike other fairs and festivals dedicated to wine, it distinguishes itself by a large number of masterclasses dedicated to specialists and supported pro-bono by international experts.

This year, the participants had a choice between 12 masterclasses, with various themes including champagne, volcanic wines, sherry, Tokaji wines, a Davino vertical, and a meeting with Masters of Wine and Master Sommeliers where they discussed the topics covered in the recently released books and many more. The organizers of the festival also awarded for the first time the title “Winemaker of the Year”, obtained by Aurel Rotărescu from SERVE.

The fabulous world of sherry wines

One of the most exciting masterclasses at Rovinhud 2018 was that of Kormos Zoltan DipWSET dedicated to sherry, a style of fortified wine from Spain. Contrary to the general perception that these are just sweet wines, in fact, only two of the seven samples submitted fall within this classification.

Sherry wines are created in a unique barrel system called solera, where barrels are overlapped in rows containing wines of the same age. What is specific to the solera system is that periodically, a fraction of the contents of the new barrel is moved to the older wine barrels, while from the barrels on the last row with the oldest wine, a fraction is bottled. Meanwhile in the newest barrels fresh wine fermented, called “sobretabla” is added to continue the process.

Moving wine from one barrel to another has the role of maturing and giving it a particular character. Noteworthy is that once moved into the older barrel the newer wine gets its character in less than three months.

During the presentation, seven types of sherry were tasted. Specifically to sherry are the oxidative notes that include flavors of nuts, almonds alongside tobacco and spices. Differences between styles can be seen in the colors of the wine but also in their consistency.

The presentation also included some culinary associations for these types of wine, which, although come from white grapes, can accompany, by their complexity, all kinds of dishes.

Thus, for fish and seafood one can try fino or manzanilla, for poultry meat Amontillado and Palo Cortado are more suitable, while red meat pairs best with oloroso. Dried Cream or even Pedro Ximenez are recommended for desserts.

Up next…

At the end of November, between 23 and 25, Good Wine will also take place, a fair at its 22nd edition. Several masterclasses have been announced, including La Rioja, Zetea spirits, and terroir specific presentations.