Mark Lipton wrote:
> wrote:
>
> > In his book Vintage Wine, on p 411 Michael broadbent notes:
> >
> > "In documents and on labels the spelling would vary. I have noted
> > Essencia, Eszencia, even Esszencia or Esszenzcia. Whether or not
> > prefixed Aszu, the wine was generally the equivalent of 7 or slightly
> > more puttonyos and rarely marketed in its pure state."
>
> This latter sentence I find puzzling. I think that there is a very real
> and distinct difference between Aszu Eszencia and Escenzia, the latter
> being restricted to the fermented free run juice from unpressed grapes
> (in essence [pun intended] what would bleed out of the bottom of the
> barrel) and as scarce as hen's teeth.
Broadbent probably has tasted more true essence than any living person
in Western Europe. He has had the famous 1811, that was imported into
the UK in the 1930s, the true 1945, etc. I think he very well knows
what he is talking about from the tastings of many of the old and
recent wines that claim to be essence. I think he is saying that the
mentioned wines are not nearly rich enough to be pure, free run classic
essence(or perhaps a weight is being applied to produce more "free-run"
juice).
> > I have even heard, perhaps from Hugh Johnson, that very long ago, some
> > Aszu and/or true essence was somewhat fortified with brandy. I have
> > also seen sparkling Montrachet listed on a restaurant wine list from
> > the late 1880s.
> >
>
> I don't see any reason why someone might not have made sparkling
> Montrachet in the 19th Century: there were no AOC restrictions then, and
> Blanc de Blancs have a long history in Champagne.
The main reason is economic. Montrachet was also considered the top
white Burgundy in the 1800s, and there was no need to resort to a
perversion of a sparkling Montrachet to sell it at a high price for
then, even if laws did not prevent that. What likely was labeled
sparkling Montrachet, to bask in the glory of Montrachet, was a
sparkling Puligny or Chassagne -Montrachet, if you were lucky. Since
the unofficial borders of Burgundy extended to the Rhone, and perhaps
to Italy and North Africa back then, your sparkling wine might even
have been at least part from these regions. A few years ago I e-mailed
Clive Coates about the menu from the old Delmonicos in NYC that listed
sparkling Montrachet, since Coates probably knows as much about
Burgundy as anyone outside of France and has met most of the main wine
producers. To my surprise, Coates briefly answered to the effect that
sparkling Montrachet was highly unlikely since this was before AOC
laws, and everything could and did happen back them. This was during an
era when control of food and drug laws was very lax in both the US and
most of Europe. In the US you could buy medications over the counter
that were mainly cocaine and heroin. Complexion pills containing
arsenic were available. Snail juice was sometimes used to thicken and
stretch cream. Lead compounds sometimes found their way into food and
drugs, and on, and on. The problems became so severe in the US, that
pure food and drug laws had to be passed, the federal government had to
start inspecting many drugs and foods, etc. At least mislabeling of a
drink or food was a minor problem on comparison to some of the
dangerous foods and drugs available back then.