Wines from grapes grown in higher altitude areas with cooler climate has become quite the trend recently. This specific growing environment gives intense flavor but elegance and freshness to the final wines. To highlight and champion these conditions more and more winemakers are starting to use alto as a marketing and labelling term to show their grapes were grown in high altitude vineyards.

Alto means high, referring to altitude when talking about wine, in both Spanish and Italian. Recently higher altitude locations have been planted more and more. A few decades ago, these areas were not seen as suitable for growing quality grapes as the climate back then was too cool. Today, with many producers witnessing a rising temperature, and a lot of new techniques in the vineyard, these areas are finally becoming viable. The higher you plant the cooler the temperature will be, but you will also receive more sun which in turn helps ripen the grapes. The temperature will be quite warm during the day, but very cool at night. This leads to ripe fruit aromas developing during the day, followed by a cool nighttime keeping the fresh acidity in the grapes, the best of both worlds for the grapes.

In Italy this development has been very prominent in northern Piemonte in the last decade. There is now talk about an area called Alto Piemonte, comprised of a few different wine regions. They are all located higher up in the mountains, and like the most famous wines from Piemonte many are based on the Nebbiolo grape. The most well-known wine regions would be Ghemme, Gattinara, and Boca.

But Alto Piemonte is not the only area where the term is used. In quite a few cases, in both Italy, Spain, Argentina and Chile the term can be seen used as part of a producer name or even as the name of a specific wine, sometimes to convey the wine is from a high planted vineyard. It is not uncommon however for winemakers to use the term to show it&rsquo;s their highest quality wine, not a wine from high altitude.

More wine growers have shown interest in high altitude vineyards lately, and the record of the highest planted one is something a few are trying to beat. It&rsquo;s safe to say the positive effects the altitude has on the growing grapes mean these vineyards are here to stay, and terms as alto may be used in more languages soon.

Wines from grapes grown in higher altitude areas with cooler climate has become quite the trend recently. This specific growing environment gives intense flavor but elegance and freshness to the final wines. To highlight and champion these conditions more and more winemakers are starting to use alto as a marketing and labelling term to show their grapes were grown in high altitude vineyards.

Decoding the wine label: Alto

Brut is a word often seen on labels for different kinds of sparkling wine. As you may have discovered when drinking these wines, it indicates that the wine is dry, meaning there is no perceived sweetness in the wine. But how about Extra Brut or Dry, what do they mean and are they the same as Brut?

Decoding the wine label: Brut

Semi-sweet Riesling, a type of wine falling out of style. It’s a shame, since these wines are perfect to pair with flavorful cuisines like Asian or Mexican, or simply drink as they come under the summer sun. The higher level of sugar left in the wine also means that the alcoholic fermentation was stopped before finishing, providing a wine with lower alcohol level and therefor easier grabbing a second glass of.

Decoding the wine label: Spätlese

Have you ever heard the word Xinomavro? Most have not. It is however a word on many sommeliers’ lips today, as it happens to be considered the grape variety with the highest quality in Greece, and one that is trending at the moment. The fact that Greece have been making wine for a long time comes as no surprise, but they have never exported an amount to make sure wine lovers around the globe tried it. With the growing wine tourism many have discovered these wines and are serving them in wine bars and restaurants in many countries today.

Decoding the wine label: Xinomavro

Chianti Classico, Valpolicella Classico, Soave Classico… Why do all these Italian wine regions have the Classico addendum and what does it mean? What is the difference for wines labeled as Classico?

Classico is a wine term in Italy seen on a few wine labels and it indicates that the wine’s from the historic center of the region, the heart. Using Chianti and Chianti Classico and their Sangiovese-based red wines as an example, Chianti is a rather large wine district within the Tuscany region. Chianti Classico is located withing Chianti as the central part and the one that originally existed. Back then this smaller region was actually called Chianti, but as the region grew the quality of the wine plummeted and the well-known characteristics of these red wines were watered down. The reputation took a hit and sales diminished. Eventually this led to the creation of Chianti Classico, which would be drawn from the original Chianti borders to recover the typicity of these wines. Today the quality of both Chianti and Chianti Classico have risen a lot due to modern techniques and knowledge about pruning, planting and temperature control in the winery.

Decoding the wine label: Classico

In the rarefied world of fine wine, where bottles can command prices equivalent to luxury cars, authenticity is everything. Laurent Ponsot's gripping memoir "FBI: Fake Bottle Investigation" reads more like a high-stakes thriller than a traditional wine book, chronicling his relentless pursuit of one of the wine world's most infamous counterfeiters, Rudy Kurniawan.

From Burgundy's Vineyards to the FBI's Most Wanted: A Winemaker's Quest for Justice

Chablis – one of the more popular styles of wine today and a region known by many. Most are familiar with the word Chablis and the light, fresh white wine with a touch of minerality it brings. Even though it’s a renowned wine, few knows what it really is.

Decoding the wine label: Chablis

Many grape varieties around the world of wine have names local to the region or country they’re grown in, even though they’re exactly the same. The most famous example would be Syrah in France where the same grape is named Shiraz in Australia. Another variety with two names is Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris.

Decoding the wine label: Pinot Grigio

Have you ever seen the term sur lie on a wine label? It’s not a grape and not a wine region, but a winemaking method used to give certain styles of white wine a rounder texture and a more complex flavor profile.

Decoding the wine label: Sur lie

Atera

Camila Alvarez

Atera:

RT: Hello and Welcome to CorkRules!&nbsp;

A podcast where we review a wine list from your favorite restaurants. I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Camila Alvarez, wine sommelier and consultant.

Bonjour Camila,&nbsp;it&rsquo;s great to have you join our CorkRules Family from Paris!

CA: Hello Robert!

RT: Before we jump in, let&rsquo;s talk about CorkRules.

We created CorkRules to demystify wine list&rsquo;s because we know from experience, that sometimes wine lists can be intimidating, and even a little daunting.

Our aim is to help prepare you to navigate that list, find those hidden gems, value wines or that special bottle that will take your dining experience over the top.

RT:&nbsp;So, sit back and listen as we review your favorite wine list.

RT: Today we are talking about Atera New York&hellip;.It has a great energy and wine list to match. Maria I can&rsquo;t wait to hear what do you think of their extensive wine list?

CA: A long wine list, from France, USA, Germany, Austria, Italy, and Spain. They also have different vintages from the same producer which allows comparisons to be made. A remarkable proposal in this wine list is the sweet and fortified wines, I have not seen many wine lists with this specialty, and I find it incredible, all the methods of sweet and fortified wines are in this wine list.

RT: That&rsquo;s great, as you looked at the list did you see anything jump out at you?

CA: Well still I am surprised about the fortified and sweet wines from this wine list. The sherry wine from Equipo Navazos, &ldquo;La Bota N. 24&rdquo; is wine that was selected from the oldest fino solera, on average this wine has 20 years. As I expected, this wine is so complex in aromas, flowers, almonds notes, some toffee, a little bit of dry fruits.

RT: Ooohh those sound great.

So, Camila, their list seems to have lots of ways we could go but was there anything that you would say is a &ldquo;must-try&rdquo;?

CA: This wine list is colossal, amazing and difficult to choose only one must try.

From the old world, I want to suggest an area of France that is not so famous, but that produce amazing wines. From Savenni&egrave;res AOP, this appellation is in Val de Loire, for white wines.

The wine is from Nicolas Joly, Les Vieux Clos 2019, it is one of the best in the Savenni&egrave;res sub-appellation, the golden colour and the aromas of anis, lime and honey are found in the mouth, this wine has a great potential of aging.

The amazing Chenin blanc in all the potential and Nicolas Joly is the pioneer in biodynamic wines, this wine is very different from other chenin blanc, there is no intervention in this wine, almost as natural wine. This wine is a must to try if you want to taste wines in different styles.

RT: So, this list has so many great choices, what other wines would you suggest for our second or third course?

CA: I would like to suggest another white wine, but from Willamette Valley from the Eyrie vineyards; the Eyrie 2018, chardonnay from Dundee Hills, It is a distinctive wine from Oregon.

Great chardonnay with similar aromas as burgundy chardonnay, vastly different from those of California. Aromatic, fresh flavours and easy to taste the minerality in this wine.

For the second course, I think great to taste some Greek wine, this country with a vast history in wine production and particular grapes varieties, it is an excellent choice for a second course. In the middle of the Naoussa region next to Macedonia, we found the wine producer Kir-Yianni and the magnificent Ramnista, Xinomavro 2004, this grape variety Xinomavro called &ldquo;the acid-black&rdquo; is the symbol of the Naoussa wine region and the most successful appellation in Greece.

About the wine, full-body wine with very soft and elegant tannins, the aromas of red grapes fruits like cherry and strawberry are one of the characteristics of this grape, maximum age potential of 9 years and it is great to with some cheese or white meat.

RT: Ooh, Terrific.

Camila, speaking of price, sometimes people have a budget in mind.&nbsp; any other great value wines you&rsquo;d point us to?&nbsp;

CA: Great value and excellent quality wine is the wine from Cornas appellation called &ldquo;Granit 30&rdquo; 2017, from the producer Vincent Paris. This wine is produced only in 6 ha, and they produce in a sustainable culture. About the wine, is a 100 % Syrah, deep red colour with amazing notes of red and black fruits, black pepper and some hint of animal notes due to the oak aging. Great potential up to 15 years. A wine with a great value for money and amazing quality.

RT: Now Camila, what if I have a big client dinner or special occasion where I want to take it up a notch?

CA:&nbsp; &nbsp;As this wine list is very large, it is a little bit difficult to choose only one. During a special dinner, I will go for a legendary winery in Italy, more exactly the Piemont, 6 Cappellano, Pi&egrave; Franco, Serralunga d&#39;Alba, 2016. This is a 100% Nebbiolo, this grape variety is like the pinot noir in terms of tannins and body, soft and elegant wine with notes of flowers like the rose and red fruits.

RT: Cabs are always a good call for me, especially with meats/steaks. &nbsp;

CA: I 100 percent agree

RT: Camila Thank you so much for all your great suggestions and helping us navigate Atera&rsquo;s wine list. I can&rsquo;t wait to go back and try your great suggestions.&nbsp; &nbsp;

To our audience, Thank you all for joining us here on CorkRules.

If you would like us to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to: <a href="mailto:Info@corkrules.com">Info@corkrules.com</a> or visit our web website where we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists.&nbsp;

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

Thank you.

&nbsp;

BRAT

Bocca di Lupe

Gap Weekend: A Film Shoot in Wine Country

Alba Restaurant

Alba

10 Greek Street

L'Auberge Chez Francois

Andrew Edmunds

Salt Seafood and Oyster Bar

Matteos Ristorante Italiano

Matteo's

di Montalcino is a historic winery in the heart of Tuscany, known for producing some of the finest Sangiovese-based wines in the world. The winery is dedicated to capturing the unique character of the Montalcino region in every bottle.

Luxe, intimate spot for inventive, multicourse New American tasting menus & cocktails.

Viva Garcia

Brera Osteria

Buddy V's

Yardbird

CHICA Las Vegas

Chica

Bar Zazu

Hell's Kitchen, Las Vegas

Brera

Jasmine

homepage

CorkRules application allows you to discover wines at your favorite restaurants, learn with friends and be confident with price transparency. Order wine with confidence at restaurants and retailers. Get personalized recommendations. #DrinkWhatYouLove

Atera

Krug Grande Cuvee eme Edition Brut, Champagne NV

Champagne, France

Edition

Krug, Brut Rose, Champagne NV

Champagne, France

Grace Wine, Grace Rose NV

Japan

Jean-Claude Ramonet

Bouzeron 2018

Aligote

Burgundy, France

de la Grange des Peres

Domaine, Pays d'Herault, Blanc 2018

Languedoc, France

Terroir Al Limit Soc. Lda. Priorat Les Manyes 2018

Garnacha

Catalunya, Spain

Domaine du Gour de Chaule

Cuvee Tradition Gigondas 2015

Grenache

Gigondas, Rhone, France

Elk Cove

Mount Richmond Pinot Noir 2019

Pinot Noir

Yamhill-Carlton District, USA

Volpaia

Chianti Classico 2019

Sangiovese

Chianti, Tuscany, Italy

Arboleda

Chardonnay 2014

Chardonnay

Aconcagua Costa, Chile

Weingut Brundlmayer

Kamptaler Terrassen Gruner Veltliner, Kamptal DAC 2021

Kamptal, Austria

Dashe

Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel 2017

Zinfandel

Dry Creek Valley, USA

Dashe

Dry Creek Valley Reserve Zinfandel 2017

Zinfandel

Dry Creek Valley, USA

Dubost

La Ballofiere Morgon 2019

Gamay

Beaujolais, France

Dubost

Beaujolais Villages Blanc 2019

Chardonnay

Beaujolais, France