|
!! Winner of the $70 Castle Glen Products Draw !!
Paul Winter
Paul is the winner of our May 2010 Subscriber's Contest Draw! Very shortly, Paul will receive his selection of $70 worth of Castle Glen Products. Best of luck to all of our subscribers for next month's draw!
|
| BLACK KNIGHT Liqueur (25% alc/vol) |
|
Part of the Castle Glen Aniseed Liqueurs Family
There is a bit of a love-hate relationship with aniseed and the general populous. It seems either you love black jelly beans or you hate them. Black Knight Liqueur is like a big alcoholic black jelly bean, full of flavour and rich in that distinct aniseed taste. Black Knight is very similar to the famous Black Samubuca. Because this wonderful liqueur is made in the special Castle Glen way with real aniseed, it is very smooth and very drinkable.
Black Knight is just a part of the Castle Glen Aniseed Liqueurs Family. We have many other delightful liqueurs that have that distinct aniseed taste. Wild Aniseed Liqueur is a white ouzo style Liqueur. We also have Yellow Strega Liqueur which is similar to the famous Galliano with aniseed and herbs. Castle Glen Absinthe Liqueur is also based on the very popular drink with aniseed.
For May we have created a Black Knight Liqueur Special. We have paired Black Knight Liqueur with Jelly Bean Liqueur (blend of 14 liqueurs) and White Heaven (White Chocolate Creme)! Let your curiosity get the better of you. Go ahead and try Black and White Shooter and our Jelly Bean Heaven Cocktail featured recipes for yourself. We hope you have as good a time as we had creating them!
|
Castle Glen Fortified Wine
The Next Wine Story |
|
How are Castle Glen Fortified Wines different from other commercially produced fortified wines?
Castle Glen Vineyard wines are different for a variety of reasons. We discussed in last month's April Newsletter that it is a combination of careful management of all of our practices that allows Castle Glen to achieve a preservative free wine.
Our Fortified Wines need to be produced in the same way as our wine. The wine we have created without preservatives is what becomes our delicious Fortified Wines. Beautiful, luscious, smooth Fortified Wines without the nasties added. We make a decision, dependant on the season, to put aside a certain amount to be fortified and matured in Oak Barrels - American or French.
How is fortified wine created? Fortified Wines are those that have been strengthened, through the addition of a spirit (at Castle Glen we use Brandy) increasing the alcohol level to between 15 and 20% v/v. The stage at which the brandy is added and the types of brandy used have an enormous impact on the style of fortified wine being made. Generally the earlier the brandy is added, stopping fermentation as the bacteria and yeast can no longer react with the sugar, the sweeter the resulting wines. After fortification, the wine is left to mature in oak barrels, sometimes for decades, maturing into complex, aromatic wines, with immense depth and concentration of flavour and colour.
Castle Glen Fortified Wines are Vintage Fortified Wines
As with all wines, the production of vintage style Fortified Wine begins in the vineyard. Vintage style Fortified Wines are made from most of the grape varieties grown at Castle Glen including Chardonnay, Semillon, White Muscat, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz with the exception of our Strange Varieties. Picked when the sugar level is high, and then crushed and fermented on skins to extract maximum colour and flavour, before pressing and transfer to tanks for further fermentation. A fortifying spirit - brandy is then added, increasing the alcohol level to about 18% v/v, and stopping further fermentation. The wine is then transferred to Oak Barrels, where slow controlled oxidation and further rancio character develops over a period of 5 - 15 years. Castle Glen Vintage Fortified Wines are non-filtered and racked off the barrels. They continue to mature in the bottle, making them a great cellaring fortified wine.
Vintage styles differ from Tawny as they are produced exclusively from grapes harvested during a declared 'vintage' year and then bottled after 5 - 10 years in oak barrels. Late-Bottled Vintage (LBV) is also produced from a single vintage year, but is only declared as vintage after the wine has been in a barrel for 4-6 years. We are not able to blend wine from different years. Therefore vintage fortified wines are only produced in years when the grapes ripen with all the right characters (high sugar level, intense varietal aroma, flavour and colour profile).
There are many Fortified Wines available in the market place. Tawny is a common Fortified Wine NS is made from the Shiraz grape. Generally this fortified is a robust wine with great depth. The Tawny is often seen by many fortified wine drinkers as a measure of a winery's ability to make a great Fortified.
Whisky and Rummy Fortifieds are made from Cabernet or Shiraz grapes. At Castle Glen we add the wine fortified with brandy to oak barrels (American and French) that have been soaked in Castle Glen Whisky or Rum. This adds a completely different dimension to the fortified wine. These delectable Fortifieds are often sought after by lovers of whisky or rum.
Castle Glen also produces White Fortified Wines with its Semillon and Chardonnay grapes. These were commonly called Sherry and are now known as White Fortified Wines. The Semillon Fortified Wine is used to make the famous Castle Glen Dark Chocolate Fortified Wine. You will also find it used in Castle Glen Vineyard's White Ginger Fortified Wine, Oriental (Lime, Chilli and Ginger) Fortified Wine and Hot Chilli Fortified Wine. Like a lot of Castle Glen products it is the experimenting that allows us to come up with some unusual fortifieds.
An absolute favourite for Bourbon lovers is our Muscat (White) aged in an 8 year old Bourbon Barrel. We have just cracked the last barrel of the Muscat, a 1998 vintage no less. It is a fantastic vintage and also a sad time as this is the last barrel of the Muscat aged in a Bourbon Barrel. Due to the birds and the frost we have not picked a White Muscat grape in 5 years - there is no more until we pick again and then of course we will have to age the wine for at least 5 - 10 years.
Each barrel of Castle Glen Fortified Wine is chosen on its merit at the time of finishing and bottling. You will find that we often jump around the years instead of working our way systematically from year to year. This is caused by a number of factors, the most dominant being the age of the vineyard. Our older Fortified Wines, say 10 - 12 years old now actually came off what was a young vineyard of 10 years old. These fortified wines are not necessarily as good as a fortified that came out of the vineyard at 15 years of age, a 5 year old fortified wine. There is a great deal of dedication, time, money and patience that goes into making a great preservative free Castle Glen Fortified Wine.
|
Castle Glen Fortified Wines
Wonderful, Healthy Fortified Wines |
|
A Fortified Wine With A Twist - Liqueur Strawberry Chocolate Fortified Wine
A twist on the fortified wine this year is our unique Liqueur Strawberry Chocolate Fortified Wine. Instead of using grapes we have used strawberries, from Strawberry Fields in Stanthorpe, fortified with brandy and blended with Belgian Chocolate.
|
| Castle Glen Liqueurs News |
|
Pear Liqueur Coming Soon
We are busy making a new beautiful fruit liqueur made with real fruit. The pears are in the tank fermenting becoming a beautiful Pear Liqueur and will shortly be transferred to the cool room. They will be ready for filtering and bottling in early June.
|
| News from Castle Glen Vineyard |
|
New Releases
We have this week released the following wines:
2010 Pink Chardonnay - the now very famous "Wicked Witch"
2010 Chardonnay/Semillon Late Pick (Sweet)
In early June we complete the filtering and bottling of:
2009 Cabernet Sauvignon - Unoaked
2009 Montepulciano (Strange Wine)
2008 Shiraz - American Oak
|
| Beer News |
|
Wine Beers Available
There are plenty of beers that are now more than three months matured. The wine beers, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Chardonnay and Semillon Brew are finding their own niche with plenty of followers. Getting over the initial surprise of a wine beer, plenty of beer drinkers are trying the wine alternative. Give it a go yourself when you next visit our Cellar Door, Montville or Mt Tamborine outlets.
|
| Cellar Door News |
|
A Well Earned Rest
We (Carol-Anne and Cedric) are going on a break for 10 days. Off to the warm sun for a well earned rest. Peter from our Montville Store will be in charge at Castle Cellar Door accompanied by Roseanne. They will be able to assist you with all of your requests for tastings and purchase including Mail Orders.
|
| Montville News |
|
Beautiful Autumn Days
Rob has been holding the fort at Montville, whilst Pete trekked north with his lovely wife. He has been doing a fantastic job and we all thank him for his dedication to the cause. The weather is cooling at Montville bringing about lovely autumn days. It is a great time to take some time out, have a cup of coffee and cake or lunch at the many local cafes.
|
| Mt. Tamborine News |
|
Our New Store Manager
We are pleased to announce that our Mt Tamborine store is now back in full swing after a temporary hiccup. We are proud to introduce our new Store Manager, Leigh Connolly who has come all the way from Tasmania to join the Castle Glen family team. He is also 'Just Married' to a great Queensland lady. Go along to meet Leigh, he will be able to assist you with FREE tastings. A full range of products including Wines, Fortified Wines, Sparkling Wines, Liqueurs, Beer and Liqueur Fudge are available for tastings and purchase at our unique Cellar Door on Main Western Road, North Tamborine, opposite the lookout.
Cheers (and bottoms up),
Cedric and Carol-Anne Millar
|
|
Fragrant Beef or Pork Short Ribs with Black Knight Liqueur, Ginger & Leeks
Beef short ribs are seared on top of the oven, covered with a fragrant sauce, then oven-braised to tender perfection. This dish is even better when made a day in advance.
Serves 4
Ingredients:
1 1/3 cups drained canned whole tomatoes, coarsely chopped or use fresh tomatoes chopped
½ cup soy sauce
½ cup Aussie Sling or any Fortified Wine in the cupboard
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
¼ cup of Black Knight Liqueur - ½ cup if you want a rich Aniseed taste!
1 Kg of beef short ribs on the bone (each 3 to 4 inches long)
Freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ tablespoons vegetable oil or more as needed
6 cloves garlic, smashed and peeled
1 piece fresh ginger (about 1 inch), peeled and cut into 8 slices
2 red onions cut into rings
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
500gm mushrooms
3 medium leeks (white and light green parts), cut into 2-inch-long julienne strips (2 to 2-1/2 cups), rinsed, and dried
Sea salt
Method:
1. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 150 ° C
2. Put the tomatoes, 2/3 cup water, the soy sauce, Aussie Sling and brown sugar in a bowl, stir and add the Black Knight Liqueur.
3. Pat the short ribs dry with paper towels and season them with pepper.
4. In an ovenproof pot that's large enough to hold all the short ribs in no more than two layers, heat the oil over medium-high heat.
5. Put as many ribs in the pot as will fit without crowding and brown them on all sides, about 2 minutes per side.
6. Transfer to a platter.
7. Brown the rest of the short ribs, adding more oil if needed, and transfer to the platter. Pour off the fat from the pan, reduce the heat to low, and add the garlic, ginger, and onions, stirring and pressing them against the pot, for 1 to 2 minutes to bring out their flavour.
8. Return the short ribs to the pot and pour the tomato and soy sauce mixture over them, then add sliced mushrooms.
9. Bring to a simmer and cover.
10. Transfer the pot to the oven and braise the short ribs, lifting and turning them about every half hour, until the meat is very tender and starts to fall off the bone when pulled with a fork, 2-1/2 to 3 hours.
11. Transfer the short ribs to a serving platter (or if you're working ahead, transfer them to a baking dish; refrigerate, covered, when cool).
12. Pour the remaining sauce into a large, clear measuring cup.
13. When the fat rises to the surface, after about 5 minutes, spoon it off and discard. (Or, if you're working ahead, cool the sauce in the pot, refrigerate it, and skim the solid fat off the top. When it's time to reheat the short ribs, return them to the pot and heat gently in the oven.)
14. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
15. Add the leeks and cook, stirring frequently, until they begin to brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
16. Reduce the heat to medium low and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until tender, about 3 to 5 minutes.
17. Season with salt and pepper.
18. Reheat the sauce, season generously with pepper and more salt, if you like, and pour it over the short ribs.
19. Scatter the leeks over the top and serve.
20. Can also be served with steamed rice as an alternative.
Cooking Ahead:
Cooking and cooling the braised ribs at least a day before serving helps the flavours marry and makes degreasing easy.
|
Just remember. If you are going to Drink,
Drink Healthy, Drink Castle Glen!
|
May Special
Black Knight Liqueur Special
- 1 x 700ml Black Knight Liqueur
- 1 x 50ml Jelly Bean Liqueur - FREE
- 1 x 50ml White Heaven Liqueur (White Chocolate Creme) - FREE
Website & Cellar Door Price $50.00
Order Now
Save $15.00
Shop Price - $55.00
Save $17.00!
All prices include GST
Prices do not include
Postage & Packing
|
|
