Flavorful Botrytis dessert wines

Padmini asked me if I enjoyed wine. I told her the wine I enjoyed most is now too expensive for me and my preference is a good Botrytis dessert wine. Pick your bouquet. Choose from Tokaji Aszu from Hungary, Beerenauslese or Trockenbeerenauslese from Germany, Anjou moulleux, sweet Vouvray, Sauternes, Quarts du Chaume, Rochefort or Bonnezeaux from France or Amarone or Recioto di Valpolicella from Italy. The complex combinations of colors, flavors, consistency, alcohol content and degree of dryness or sweetness can vary considerably, depending on the wine you select. Many different types of grapes can become complex and flavorful Botrytis dessert wines.

Botrytis cinerea is a fungal growth that can destroy grape vines and their fruit. The powdery fungus due to specific weather patterns form on the leaves and fruit and creates this "noble rot" that makes the leaves and the fruit to shrivel up and reduces the grapes' water content while leaving the sugar intact. When harvested and processed, these grapes yield a concentrated and intensively sweet juice. When you buy Botrytis dessert wines, you get a highly prized and distinctive golden wine.

Look for a wine that fits your price range as well as your palate. The specialized conditions required for noble rot to occur make Botrytis dessert wine a rare and expensive delicacy. Because of the risks involved, relatively few wine makers produce Botrytis wines, so prices can be higher than some other dessert wines.

Store and chill the wine as appropriate for the type that you purchased. Ask your wine store for advice on storing opened and unopened bottles. Remember that some vintages should not be cellared.

Botrytis wine is enjoyed with dessert or as dessert.

Technorati Tags: Art of Living

Vote Result

Score: 9.0, Votes: 2