I knew the Chinese were driving up the price of 1st Growth Bordeaux, but apparently they are also buying grapes to make their own wine.  Interesting….This could be huge for Califorinia and the Governator is even getting involved.  Cali certainly needs a boost in revenue.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s recent trade trip to China for the California Grown program highlighted the importance of the Chinese market for California products.

In a 2009 survey, the majority of Chinese grocery shoppers preferred grapes from California over any other source, including Chinese-grown grapes.

“From the beginning, we knew China had the potential to be a great market for California grapes,” says Kathleen Nave, president of the California Table Grape Commission, Fresno. When the market first opened in late 1997, California grapes were available in just three cities in that country. “Since then, we’ve expanded access to California grapes and promotion programs into all regions of the country.”

Last year, China was the number two export market for California grapes with nearly 4.2 million 19-pound boxes of grapes shipped to that country. Canada was the number one export market.

 The California Table Grape Commission was created by the California legislature in 1967 to increase worldwide demand for fresh California grapes through a variety of research and promotional programs. More at grapesfromcalifornia.com.

 http://californiafarmer.com/story.aspx/california/grape/demand/grows/in/china/9/42474

Clearly when people think of wines from America, California is the first state to be mentioned, followed by Oregon, Washington and probably New York in fourth. This article below by Ellin McCoy begs to differ as apparently Michigan is making some serious progress.  Plus the wines look like serious value for money. Check it out:

Just Because I’m in a Madhouse, It’s Not Crazy to Drink Local

By Elin McCoy – // Sep 13, 2010

Sipping pinot blanc in a former mental asylum, I’m testing my decision to drink local wine during my annual summer stay by Lake Michigan.

The whites at Left Foot Charley winery, housed in what was once the laundry of the state loony bin in Traverse City, are so crisp and savory they convince me my palate won’t suffer if, while here, I’m a “locapour”.

The word means someone who’s committed to drinking the vino of the region — say, within a 100-mile radius to a half-day drive of wherever they are. Coined by the Globe & Mail’s Beppi Crosariol a couple of years ago, it’s become the liquid counterpart to “locavore,” the buzzword of the growing “eat local” food movement.

When I travel, I’m usually a happy locapour. On Santorini this summer, I, and everyone around me, knocked back the Greek island’s edgy white assyrtikos every night with grilled fish. I did not feel Burgundy-deprived. Of course, I only stayed for a week.

Drinking local in most parts of America (read: outside California, Oregon, and Washington State), though, used to be very tough. Not so long ago there weren’t that many wineries in states like Texas or Colorado or Michigan and quality was hit or miss. I still recall my reaction to a tasting of 100 Michigan wines here 20 years ago — I was only willing to swallow three.

But wine is now produced in all 50 states, even Alaska, and ten have more than 100 wineries, inspiring website drinklocalwine.com. A lot of their wines are pretty good and, as with the best bottles in Michigan, many cost under $25. Reasons, in my book, to become a locapour.

Asylum Lawn

At Left Foot Charley, owner-winemaker Bryan Ulbrich fills me in on northern Michigan’s wine scene before I head to the tents on the asylum’s lawn for the annual Traverse City Wine and Art Festival, which features the 22 local wineries.

He points out a relief map on a winery wall that shows two green fingers of land — the Leelanau and Old Mission peninsulas — jutting into a blue bay of Lake Michigan. Just a few miles from where we’re standing, these narrow promontories are home to the area’s vineyards. Yellow pegs on 18 mile-long, 3 mile-wide Old Mission mark where Ulbrich sources his riesling, pinot blanc, pinot grigio, and gewurztraminer.

“We can make world-class examples of these whites,” he says, citing the sandy soil and the “lake effect” that moderates the harsh winters. Yet 2009 was a challenge, with heaps of snow and temperatures of minus 15 Fahrenheit (minus 26 Celsius).“We’re like old school Europe,” he admits, “you taste real differences in vintages here.”

Tart Lychees

At his tasting bar, crowded with weekend sippers, Ulbrich starts me off with a zingy 2009 Dry Riesling ($20) with the slatey taste of wines from Germany’s Saar region. The exotic 2009 Gewurztraminer tastes of tart lychees ($20). A very spicy 2009 Rose ($15) made from cabernet franc, millot (a hybrid grape), and lemberger, known in Austria as Blaufrankisch, is gulpably delicious.

Ulbrich produces no reds, though he consults with local wineries that do.

“I’m very harsh about the idea of reds here. I say, what’s the point? My wife says to shut up about that,” he chuckles.

The mental hospital closed in 1989 and a few years ago a developer began transforming the site’s several dozen yellow brick buildings into The Village at Grand Traverse Commons. In 2007, Ulbrich, along with bakeries, a coffee company and restaurants, moved in.

Blues Singer

I make my way through the Mercato, a series of food and clothing shops in spaces that once housed patients, to the festival’s big tents on the vast lawn. A blues singer tests a microphone; people rush for the food; and I show my plastic wristband at the entry to the wine tent.

Ulbrich is right about the quality of the rieslings here — many are light, German in style, with fine flavors but often not much fragrance. Chateau Grand Traverse, the first to plant vines on Old Mission in the ‘70s, pours a fruity, steely-dry 2008 Dry Riesling ($12.50).

I’m pleasantly surprised by the reds. A fragrant, berry- flavored 2005 Gill’s Pier Cabernet Franc/Merlot shows the region’s potential. Several cabernet francs remind me of Loire valley Chinons, especially the softly attractive 2008 Arcturos, Black Star Farms’ top label ($27.50). Shady Lane’s berry and plum-flavored 2008 “Blue Franc” ($23), a proprietary name for lemberger, has notes of cedar and a silky texture.

Plenty of hip experimentation is going on. Circa Winery co- owner David Bell, in owl-style glasses, long straight hair, black shirt and pants, admits, “We don’t really like riesling.” Their 2008 Requisite blends cabernet franc and pinot grigio.

While I’m certainly not giving up drinking international, there are pleasures to discover in becoming a locapour, especially during early fall. Just about every wine region will be holding a weekend tasting festival, like the one in Long Island wine country on Sept. 24 and 25. As an East Coast locapour, I’m putting it on my calendar.

Wines are displayed at the Traverse City Wine and Art Festival in Traverse City, Michigan. Due to state liquor regulations, volunteers must pour the wine, and the vintners can only explain and answer questions. Photographer: Elin McCoy/Bloomberg

Bryan Ulbrich, owner-winemaker at Left Foot Charley Winery, charts his excellent white wines at the Traverse City Wine and Art Festival at the Village at Grand Traverse Commons, formerly a state mental hospital, in Traverse City, Michigan. Ulbrich’s winery is in what was once the hospital’s laundry. Photographer: Elin McCoy/Bloomberg

A rose and dry riesling are among the wines being poured at the tasting bar of Left Foot Charley Winery in Traverse City, Michigan. The winery, in the former laundry of a mental asylum, sources all its grapes from nearby 18-mile long, 3-mile wide Old Mission Peninsula.

(Elin McCoy writes on wine and spirits for Muse, the arts and leisure section of Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are her own.)

Link to full article here: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-13/just-because-i-m-in-a-madhouse-it-s-not-crazy-to-drink-local-elin-mccoy.html

When I started this blog, I originally was going to focus solely on wine,  but how could I talk about wine and not mention food?  My lovely wife Lara is from the northwestern coast of Italy from a town called Genoa.  And yes, ham and salami are very popular there, but what most people don’t know is that Genoa is most famous for its Focaccia bread.   She has now perfected making this, and recipes will follow in due course.  Below is a bloomberg review on the new Italian supermarket in Manhattan called silly enough, EATALY.  This sounds like a fun place.  Maybe one day my wife could open a shop there?……hmmm…..I miss New York…what a fun city.

Batali’s Packed Eataly Has $193 Porchetta, Ridiculous Waits: Ryan Sutton

The line wound down Fifth Avenue from 23rd Street through Manhattan’s Flatiron district as security guards flanked multiple entrances to the former International Toy Center.

The hubbub wasn’t for a nightclub; it was for the first American outpost of Eataly, an Italian supermarket with a marquee’s worth of food-world royalty attached: mega-chef Mario Batali, his business partner Joe Bastianich, chef Lidia Bastianich and Oscar Farinetti, who also backs the chain in cities including Turin, Milan, Bologna and Tokyo.

Forget about the dopey name. Eataly is full of wonders. Is there greater culinary transparency anywhere? The profusion of reading material on the walls tells us that the Iowa pigs were raised on clover, Michigan lamb reared on hay, Montana beef allowed to roam in pastures and Pennsylvania calves kept outside of cages. Why get anyone else’s rotisserie chicken when you know this $9 bird is moist, well-seasoned and antibiotic free?

The longer lines at Eataly are not for the take-away but for the restaurants. I waited 10 minutes just to speak with a host at a pizzeria that refused to serve me pizza — they were booked for the night.

No Escape

So I went to the fishery, where I was seated after 45 minutes. Ever go to a restaurant and think you could make it faster at home? Eataly provides the raw ingredients to follow through on that threat. “We eat what we sell; we sell what we eat,” is the mantra. I watched a live langoustine make a last ditch freedom attempt. Sorry bro.

There are 14 places to dine at Eataly, four of them actual restaurants, five if you count the piazza where you eat nutty, salty prosciutto di Parma standing up at tables so high no shorties need apply.

Take your glass of Prosecco or a super-strong Negroni and browse the aisles with caution. A 10-pound porchetta roast costs $193. Smaller portions were sold out by 7 p.m.

At Eataly, ambience takes a back seat to cuisine. Men in double-breasted suits quaff rose near the bottled chocolate milk station and I chewed through a $75 beef tasting menu while overlooking the olive oil department.

That six-course meal took place at Manzo, which I’ll review later this fall after contemplating how I feel about paying $133 in a venue lacking a clean, nearby restroom.

Creamy Mozzarella

For now, I can vouch for the take-home stracciatella di burrata (extra creamy mozzarella) and a $5 basket of heirloom cherry tomatoes. The produce section’s maitake mushrooms, at $7 a pound, were cheaper and prettier than any I’ve purchased at Whole Foods.

The people behind the meat counter were skinny while the vegetable butcher (his real title) was bald and fat. Go figure. Le Verdure, the mostly-vegan spot, serves real veggies cooked in olive oil and sea salt, as opposed to the silly soy-protein fake meat espoused by culinary crazies.

Try killer tomato soup, vegetable fritto misto ($21) and pesto lasagna ($16 — with dairy) whose firm texture bested a version I had at Del Posto.

I wish the restaurants would mix things up a little more. I couldn’t get pasta at Il Pesce, the fish spot, which dished out a pallid, underseasoned seafood soup ($12). Stick with the trio of crudo ($19) from Esca’s David Pasternack. Halibut belly with tangerine oil and pink peppercorns was a solid argument against overfished bluefin tuna. Finish with roasted orata ($24) which you debone yourself, after which the waiter congratulates you on your expert filet skills.

Seafood Pizza

They do serve fish at the pizza place, which I finally breached after an hour wait. Was it worth it? Not for undersalted fusilli in a paltry beef ragu. But definitely for what could be the city’s best seafood pizza, studded with a sufficiently briny (but not assertively salty) mix of creamy clams and squid over chewy, well-seasoned dough.

Skip the “traditional specialty guaranteed” $18 pie with mozzarella di bufala — it’s indistinguishable from the $13 non- buffalo version. Like any great pizza, the olive oil just barely cuts the tomatoes’ acidity; the cheese is warm, not blistered; the over-charred crust just barely droops in the middle. A second visit (to the newly opened takeout stand) proffered a crust with a lighter, more bearable wood-oven tang.

Yeasty Squares

Just crave a slice? No problem. A focaccia hawker sells yeasty squares of dough topped with tart tomatoes and musty pancetta. If only the casual spot here served dessert; when dinner’s over, most of the (excellent) gelato is sold out.

Eataly is at 200 Fifth Avenue at 23rd St. Information: +1- 646-398-5100; http://www.newyork.eataly.it

(Ryan Sutton writes about New York City restaurants for Muse, the arts and entertainment section of Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

LINK TO FULL ARTICLE:   http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-09-15/batali-s-packed-eataly-has-193-porchetta-ridiculous-waits-ryan-sutton.html

Below is a recent Wine Spectator article on which details an intriguing, albeit US biased survey about consumers’ views on value wines.   What I found interesting was that according to the poll, the most reliable source of value chosen was South America, with 43 percent choosing Chile,  followed closely by Argentina at 40%.  Also 30% believe 15$ and under holds the best overall value, whil 29% favor $15-20$ range.  

Value Wines: Consumers’ Opinions, Uncorked

California’s Central Coast, Bordeaux and Spain top our readers’ wish list for values, plus other surprising results from our survey

Tim Fish
Posted: September 13, 2010

Wine lovers continue to buy cautiously and are interested in good value more than ever, according to the results of a recent survey conducted on WineSpectator.com.

“So many great values exist because of an oversupply of wine, that I am spending the same as last year but buying a lot more high quality wine for the dollar,” wrote a male consumer over 50 from the western United States.

Spending patterns have stabilized a bit—and even geared up somewhat—since last year’s dramatic decline in the wake of the 2008 financial panic and ensuing recession. About 40 percent of respondents said they are spending about the same as a year ago. (About 29 percent reported the same thing in a similar survey in 2009.)

Thirty-eight percent said they were now spending less on wine compared with a year ago (24 percent are spending a little less; 14 percent are spending a lot less).

By contrast, in the 2009 survey, 61 percent of respondents said they were spending less than they did the previous year. And while last year’s survey found only 10 percent of respondents spending more on wine, that number more than doubled this year, with 22 percent of respondents reporting increased spending.

Younger wine drinkers are even more enthusiastic. About 48 percent report they are spending more money than a year ago. That’s a good sign for those watching the drinking habits of this new generation of wine lovers. “I’m still learning about wine, and the more I learn, the more I spend,” wrote a man in his 20s.

Since everyone appreciates advice on a good bargain, we asked readers from which regions they would most like to have value recommendations (respondents could choose up to three regions.) Leading the pack in the New World, with 39 percent of the vote, was California’s Central Coast, which includes wines from Monterey, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. In looking for advice on Old World values, there was a three-way tie among Spain, Bordeaux and Tuscany, each with a preference level of 41 percent.

To help you uncover some of the well-priced treasures these regions have to offer, the Oct. 15 issue of Wine Spectator features a selection of our favorite bottlings from recent tastings, with a focus on the Central Coast, Bordeaux and Spain. (Look to our Oct. 31 issue for the best values on the market from Tuscany.)

In searching for your next values discovery, many of you said you look to the New World. When asked to identify the state or country viewed as the most reliable source of values, South America came on especially strong, with 43 percent of respondents choosing Chile, followed in short order by neighboring Argentina, at 40 percent. (Respondents were asked to identify their top three destinations for reliable value.)

“South America is awesome in the value category,” wrote a 30-something male from the Midwest. Other New World regions identified included California, chosen by 36 percent; Australia, preferred by 34 percent; and Washington, at 29 percent. Among Old World regions, Spain led the way with 36 percent, while France and Italy tied at 22 percent each.

While values are in demand, that doesn’t always mean the cheaper the better. Only 2 percent of respondents said they’re looking for wines priced less than $8. About 30 percent said they believe the $15-and-under category holds the best values overall, while slightly more than 29 percent favored the $15 to $20 range. “Value varies with the varietal,” wrote a Midwestern male consumer over 50. “To me, a great $40 Cabernet or Bordeaux is a value, as is a great $25 Pinot Noir and a great $20 Chardonnay.”

The fact that high quality, low-priced wines can be made at all—given the costs involved from vineyard to table—is still a source of wonder for some. “I am always amazed that so many values come from faraway places. How much profit can be generated after shipping and distributor costs?” wrote one respondent.

There was widespread agreement among respondents about how they most frequently consume value wines, with 72 percent saying they choose them to accompany casual, weeknight meals. Sharing values at parties was the second most popular response, with 54 percent. (The survey allowed readers to choose up to three answers among six possible values occasions.)

Drinking wine as an aperitif or as a stand-alone pleasure was reported by 52 percent of respondents, while 32 percent consume wine for purposes of education or exploration. In contrast, only 15 percent said they purchased value wines for (short-term) aging. One man over 50 from the Northeast, who often serves value wines for educational and exploratory reasons, wrote, “There is a certain satisfaction in serving a delicious $10 wine.”

No matter what the price, red wine was the drink of choice among respondents, with 82 percent saying that at least half of the wine they consume is red. Only 13 percent said that for white. “I don’t drink whites,” was a common refrain echoed by a female consumer over 50 who lives in the West. For every 10 bottles consumed, 55 percent of respondents would include a single bottle of sparkling wine, but 28 percent would include none at all. Rosé fared the worst, with 44 percent not drinking a single bottle out of 10, and 42 percent drinking only one bottle of pink.

As for which wines you consume most often, bottlings from North America dominate. Of every 10 bottles consumed, 62 percent of respondents said that four or more are from California, the Pacific Northwest and other regions in the United States and Canada. Sixty-eight percent said they drink one or two wines from Australia and New Zealand out of every 10 bottles; 69 percent said the same for South America and 45 percent reported that consumption level for Europe.

Among female survey-takers, the numbers were a bit different. Just more than half said that five or more of every 10 bottles consumed came from North America. About 46 percent said one or two bottles were from Europe, while 43 percent choose a single wine from South America and 37 percent a single wine from Australia and New Zealand. Only a third of women said they are buying less wine than a year ago, while two-thirds were buying the same amount or more. In addition, while red was still the color of choice, almost 60 percent said that one of every 10 bottles purchased was a sparkling wine, and 40 percent said that one in 10 was a bottle of rosé.

Finding high quality values that offer plenty of room for exploration in terms of flavor, type and style can be challenging, given the vagaries of production and distribution. But consult Wine Spectator’s Oct. 15, 2010, value charts or the Value Wines section of WineSpectator.com, where we include only wines that are made in good quantities, adhere to quality and price criteria and were tasted by Wine Spectator editors over the past six months, so many should be available at your local wineshop or grocery.

If you are interested in finding the best values from California, Spain, Bordeaux and beyond, here’s your chance. You made the call, and these wines deliver the goods.

View charts of our Value Wines Survey results (in PDF Format)

link to article: http://www.winespectator.com/webfeature/show/id/43572

I have never tried any English wine even though I live in London.  I have heard good things though, and apparently this particuliar  English “sparkling wine” is serious indeed.  I need to do some more research on this one….my review coming in the future, stay tuned…..See telegraph article below:

English wine beats champagne to win Decanter

trophy

A little known English wine has beaten world-famous champagne houses to “remarkably” win one of the most important awards in the wine industry, being named as the best sparkling wine in the world.

Ridgeview, Grosvenor Blanc de Blancs, 2006, made from grapes grown in Sussex, picked up the Decanter international trophy for sparkling wine over £10 last night.

It beat more than 700 Italian prossecos, Californian sparkling wines, Australian fizzes as well as illustrious champagnes from Charles Heidseck, Taittinger, Moët & Chandon that were submitted.

The wine, which costs £21.95, was deemed higher quality than champagnes costing nearly three times as much.

English wine has been winning an ever greater number of awards and plaudits in recent years, but this is the first time that any vintage from this country has won an Decanter International trophy.

Christelle Guibert, the tastings director at Decanter, said: “What a result. As if further proof was ever needed, this unequivocally rubber-stamps England’s membership to that exclusive club of truly world class, sparkling wine producers. Up against a clutch of Champagne’s finest, Ridgeview has produced a stupendous wine that defeated them all. It’s a truly remarkable win.”

Though Ridgeview is relatively unknown outside of the wine world, it has been steadily garnering praise. Last year it beat its better known English rivals such as Nyetimber, Chapel Down and Balfour to be crowned Best Wine in England in the English & Welsh Wine of the Year Awards. Waitrose and Oddbins, the high-street wine merchant, has stocked it for a number of years.

The Decanter judges described the wine as, “lemony, floral nose which is elegant, discreet, biscuity and youthful. Refined and refreshing palate, with lemon rind, vivacious acidity, minerality, precision of flavour and plenty of élan. Stunning.”

Ridgeview Estate is a family business with a 16-acre vineyard on the South Downs. Set up husband and wife Michael and Christine Roberts in 1995, it is now a fully-fledged family business with their daughter Tamara, their son Simon and his wife Mardi all working for the winery.

 

Set up husband and wife Michael and Christine Roberts in 1995, Ridgeview Estate is now a fully-fledged family business

 

Ridgeview, Grosvenor Blanc de Blancs, 2006 costs £21.95

link to article here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/wine/7974936/English-wine-beats-champagne-to-win-Decanter-trophy.html

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Here is a recent bloomberg article on one of my favorite value Argentinian reds, Clos de Los Siete.  It is widely available and always a joy to taste.  It is muscular malbec with bordeaux in mind.  If you are a light beaujolais fan, this is not for you…This wine is strong like bull, not weak like lamb…my review to follow in due course…..

‘Satan’ of Grape Consulting Blends Own High-Alcohol

 Red Wine

Clos de los Siete wine. The $19 red wine, principally malbec, is from Mendoza Valley in Argentina, made by Michel Rolland and partners.

Bordeaux vigneron Michel Rolland, consultant for more than 100 wineries in a dozen countries, is blamed by some for fostering the fashion for high-alcohol cult wines like those from California’s Harlan Estate and Staglin Family. Yet a recent tasting of Rolland’s seventh vintage of the Argentine wine Clos de los Siete shows he is able to make a 21st century-style red at the top of its class. And with the 2008 vintage, he does it for only $19 a bottle.

Clos de los Siete is a blend of 56 percent malbec, 21 percent merlot, 11 percent syrah, 10 percent cabernet sauvignon and 2 percent petit verdot. It’s made in the Uco Valley south of Mendoza, Argentina’s top wine region, where malbec is the principal fine-wine grape.

Plenty of sun, high humidity and low rainfall coupled with sandy soil and clay provide ideal conditions for such varietals, and they come together in Clos de los Siete’s soft and velvety texture of the merlot, intense fruit of the syrah, mild tannins from the cabernet, and ballast and spice of the late-ripening petit verdot. The blend may change in any vintage and the wines are neither fined nor filtered — processes used to remove solid residues.

At 14.5 percent alcohol, Clos de los Siete might bolster the characterization of Rolland as an advocate of reds whose deliberately overripe fruit, high alcohol, and long aging in oak produce “fruit bombs” that win medals in competition. Many critics, myself included, decry such wines as often being out of balance, headache-inducing and closer to Port than red wine.

‘Satan or Savior’

A New York Times article on Rolland was entitled “Satan or Savior: Setting the Grape Standard.” In the 2004 documentary film “Mondovino,” Rolland is shown advising clients to use a technique called micro-oxygenation that can help tame tannins and soften wines.

“That movie is all crap!” Rolland bellowed in a phone interview. “In some European wineries micro-oxygenation is helpful, but you don’t need it in New World wines because there is so much sun to build up the sugars.”

Rolland has six formidable partners in Argentina, including Rhone Valley vigneron Catherine Pere-Vigne and Benjamin de Rothschild, owner and chief executive officer of LCF Rothschild Group. With such resources he was able to switch traditional Argentine “parral” trellising and pruning methods to traditional systems used in Bordeaux. Drip irrigation keeps the vines “stressed,” to allow the bare minimum of water. Grapes are all handpicked, and the wines aged for 11 months, 70 percent in new French oak, the rest in vat.

U.S. Market

Of the property’s 850 hectares, 430 are currently planted. This year the output is a hefty 50,000 cases exported to 57 countries, with 30,000 going to the U.S. Rolland thinks 100,000 cases is possible, noting “We will follow the market as to future production.”

Rolland and his partners are aware they may have a big winner on their hands with Clos de los Siete, which means that consistency is key.

“In many ways it is more difficult to make 50,000 cases than 10,000 because you have to take care of everything before blending,” he said. “With small production, a winemaker has the luxury of selecting from many parcels of grapes and wines; with big production, you have to get the best on a large scale right away. And with global export, the labels cannot have any variance or mistakes about what’s in the bottle.”

Rolland chose Argentina because of its terroir, labor costs, and the open-mindedness of the New World. And he loves the sunshine, which builds up the sugars that convert into 14- plus percent alcohol.

“When you have that much sun, you don’t need or want to manipulate the wine to have more alcohol,” he said. “It’s the natural way of the fermentation.”

Controversy may yet swirl around Rolland and his methods, but Clos de los Siete proves that he can make a serious red wine to rival cult wines 10 times the price. At least he can with 50,000 cases. When Clos de los Siete gets to 100,000 cases, things should get interesting.

(John Mariani writes on wine for Muse, the arts and leisure section of Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

The Clos de los Siete winery in Argentina. The state-of-the-art winery, owned by vintner Michel Rolland and international partners, annually produces 50,000 cases for export to 57 countries.

Michel Rolland, partner and winemaker of Clos de los Siete wines in Argentina. Terroir and sunshine make consistency key to the production of its 50,000 cases annually.

Clos de los Siete wine. The $19 red wine, principally malbec, is from Mendoza Valley in Argentina, made by Michel Rolland and partners.