This tricky phrase in Polish - Szukając szmaragdów (pronounced shoo-kay-ons sh-marag-dov) - could be a way of checking your ability to pronounce a tongue-twister. Or it could be a task for someone going on a planned or unexpected wine tour of Wachau, one of the most interesting wine regions in Austria. But it wouldn’t be an easy task. Not anymore at least, due to climate change.
For some, “global warming” has become a very popular slogan recently, while others use it as an ideological picket; and some people even base their conspiracy theories on it – especially fans of Alex Jones* who see...
Stories
2020-10-23
Written by:
Anna Kruszczyńska
This year, the International Champagne Day is on the 23rd of October.
For those who love Champagne and for the beginners, please enjoy few facts and funny information about this wine.
Champagne is both a region (in France) and a wine name and only sparkling wine produced in Champagne region can be called Champagne.
First vine bushes were planted in today-called-Champagne region by Romans in 57BC.
First wines made in this region were still (not bubbly) and red, hence often compared with Burgundy wines and the rivalry between the Champagne area and Burgundy lasted for around 130...
2020-09-04
Written by:
Anna Kruszczyńska
I will always associate the name Płochoccy with a very good Zweigelt – it was the first Polish red wine which really surprised when I tried it a few years ago. That was a year of wine discoveries: single-variety Zweigelt wines, Polish wines in general and the first Polish red wine to suit my palate.
When I started to plan the list of vineyards I’d like to visit on our whistle-stop weekend wine tour in the Sandomierz region, I immediately placed the Płochoccy Vineyard at the end of Saturday as a kind of complement to the first day of tasting. As the second commercial vineyard...
2020-07-06
Written by:
Anna Kruszczyńska, zdjęcia własne i autorstwa Anny Pławińskiej
Winnica Moderna. Why the name Moderna? Apparently, the name of the winery came from a passion for modernism – the architectural style - shared by Nestor Kościański and two women, Nestor’s wife and his associate, who both happen to have the same first name: Katarzyna (or Kasia for short). What’s more, all the labels also express this interest in modernism and the buildings we can see on the wine labels were inspired by interesting examples of this architectural style that Nestor and both Kasias observed during their walks through the city of Wrocław.
We met Nestor in his vineyard on a hot...
2020-06-10
Written by:
Anna Kruszczyńska
The story of Maciej Łyko, one of the top Polish sommeliers and the winner of the 2019 Best Polish Sommelier competition, is a perfect example of how a lucky coincidence, hard work and persistence can totally change a professional career.
While studying pedagogy in Poznan, Maciej felt like he wanted something more and began to look for some work. He came across a job offer at the Mielżyński Wine Spirit and Specialties wine bar and wine store in Poznan. The owner, Robert Mielżyński, took a chance on Maciej. Due to the fact that there was a lack of people with wine or sommelier experience on...
2020-05-28
Written by:
Anna Kruszczyńska
Wine industry (including events organizers) faces a "new reality" with several possible consequences
Two days ago I'd been listening to a very interesting discussion between few wine producers, a representative of the company making closers for wine bottles and a person representing an organisation promoting wine and wine regions of Argentina. The experts were discussing how the wine industry should approach and deal with the "new reality". We are facing an important change and although it has started years ago, all restrictions related to Covid-19 situation has speeded up the process of redefinition of certain values and consequently define new modus operandi.
Many wine...
