Showing posts with label alsace wine. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alsace wine. Show all posts

Tuesday, June 2, 2020

June 2020 - Traveling and touring to and in France - Reizen naar en in Frankrijk

After June 15 the situation will be as follows / Na 15 juni is de situatie als volgt:


EU citizens are allowed to travel free within Europe. So people from EU countries can go on a holiday within Europe and do (wine) tours. / Na 15 juni mag binnen de EU weer vrij worden gereisd. Dat betekent dat mensen vanuit Nederland vanaf dat moment weer in Frankrijk op vakantie kunnen en mogen (wijn) touren.

For people coming form outside of Europe, traveling in France is not yet possible. Expect a decision end of June / Voor mensen van buiten Europa wordt later in juni een beslissing verwacht over het open gaan van de grenzen.


Musea etc. are all open again. Outside of Paris bars and restaurants are also open, inside and outside on terraces. You have to keep at least 1 meter distance and wearing a facemask might apply./ Musea etc. zijn weer open. Bars, restaurants en terrassen eveneens; buiten Parijs mag u ook  binnen verblijven. U dient minimaal 1 meter afstand te bewaren. Zorg voor een mondmasker!

If you/we are allowed to (privately) tour again be sure that we have hand disinfectants and face masks available. We are (as always) touring with small private groups of maximum 8 people./ Als u/we weer kunnen touren, weet dan dat wij handdesinfectie middelen en mondmaskers beschikbaar hebben. Wij touren met kleine groepen van maximaal 8 personen.

Monday, January 28, 2019

The Alsace Grand Cru tours in 2019

The Alsace Grand Cru tours
The history of wine making in Alsace goes back to old Roman times. Castles dot the landscape, villages, churches, vineyards and wines, cuisine and traditions all make Alsace a unique and magical European experience.
Did you know that apart from Japan, the french Alsace region has the most Michelin * restaurants in the world? Did you know that there are recognised over 800 soil types in Alsace? Given the fact that most winemakers in Alsace make their wines in the wine field and not in the wine cellar that results in an enormous variety in smells and flavors. It also means that the wine year really make a difference.
Did you know that the great white grand cru wines often have an enormous aging potential?


On this tour you will find it all out ! We offer you the biggest names and visit wineries like Zind Humbrecht, Deiss,Trimbach, Hugel, etc.
You will visit the Confrerie St Etienne at the Chateau de Kientzheim with its history and with a wine cellar with over 65.000 bottles going back to the 1800's.
We have our lunches and dinners in the finest restaurants often Michelin starred.
The Alsace Grand Cru tour is your chance to visit and taste the very best Alsace has to offer.
What you will do and see
We will start with an introduction and overview. You will learn about the grand cru system. Understand what happens and what it means when winemakers are not allowed to irrigate their fields.
You will taste from dry to sweet; compare young and old.

Each day you will be in a different area. We will be in "bas rhin" in the north and "haut rhin" in the south, but because of the changing shape and presence of the Vosges mountains, there are a lot of different micro-climates within those areas. The micro climates all leave their trace and signature in the wines.
Our lunches and dinners
As stated we have selected some great restaurants. Apart from their rating in the Michelin guide they are also chosen for their location. On your tour we do not want to waste time on unnecessary driving. Wines during lunches and dinners are for your own expense, except for the last evening dinner where everything is included.


Who will be on the tour?
You will meet wine lovers that "know their wines" and also have been in other wine areas. But you will also meet "beginners" and people that want to get to know Alsace and its culinary highlights. Considering age: there will be  younger and older people from diferent backgrounds.
In other words the groups are mixed, but the thing everybody has in common is wanting to "wine and dine" on a high level, get to know the area and meet other people that also want to share that same experience.
Stay in a selection of fine hotels
Depending on the tour we sometimes choose one hotel for all our tour guests. On other tours we use three of the best hotels in Colmar that  are on walking distcance from each other. That means that you book the room(s) you want yourself.
The tour bus will always pick you up and drop you off at your place. On some evenings we can walk to the restaurant and back to the hotel.
Costs
The tour rate per person is: Euro 995,=
Once your Alsace Grand Cru Wine Tour begins you can relax knowing that the tour rate covers absolutely everything besides your hotel and breakfast expenses.
So: guides, all lunches and dinners, all tasting wines, excursions, all entrance fees, tasting fees, tips, taxes and gratuities are dealt with. Tipping is neither required nor expected.
Last but not least: you are not obliged to buy any wines on the tour but "if" you do, we can assist you in shipping those wines.


Résumée - Alsace Grand Cru tour from Colmar 

  • 4 nights, 3 tour days 
  • Exclusive touring: minimum of 4 couples or 8 people, maximum 8 couples or 16 people
  • Air conditioned mini-bus with driver 
  • 7 tastings, more than 60 wines, compare many grand cru's 
  • 3 lunches, 3 gourmet dinners (one with Michelin *) 
  • Stay in one of three of our preselected hotels in Colmar 
  • Tour rate per person: Euro 995,,=,  
    • including all tour transport, all tastings, 3 lunches, 3 dinners 
    • excl. hotel and breakfasts
  • We can assist you in shipping your wines 
  • Your tour host : drs. J. Pieter Smits

Please check our Event planning for available tour dates​ in 2019 and 2020.
For Alsace book here!

Wednesday, July 5, 2017

JoliSoleil USA Wine Club

Shipping wines bought on a tour
People touring with us often have the problem that they cannot take many wines home when they have to fly. That is why JoliSoleil Winetours started to provide a wine shipping service for tour clients. We can ship the wines people have bought on a tour to many countries in the world.

Shipping wines to the USA
In 2016 we went one step further for our American customers. We started the JoliSoleil USA Wine Club.You can now (re-)order wines from Alsace, Burgundy and Tuscany from your home, to your home. We take care of all duties and custom papers. The wines will be delivered by UPS on your doorstep. For some wines this is the ONLY way to get them as they might not be imported in your country.


Of course there are shipping costs but as the wines are not consumed in France or Italy, you do NOT pay the 20% French (VAT) or Italian taxes on the bottle. All and all shipping wines has become easy and affordable now!



ONLINE SHOP
To start with in our Wine Club we made:
  1. a selection of 8 Alsace wines from two wineries: Jean Paul Schmitt and Louis Sipp.
  2. a selection by JoliSoleil of Burgundy wines in a subscription for 1 year. You will receive 4 times 2 boxes or 12 bottles, so 48 bottles per year.
  3. a selection by JoliSoleil of Tuscany wines in a subscription for 1 year. You will receive 4 times 2 boxes or 12 bottles, so 48 bottles per year

  • You can order these wines ONLINE in boxes of 6 via our Website or direct.
  • The quoted prices in this webshop are including all shipping costs and insurances. Our shipping partner is Mbe. The wines will be delivered by UPS.
  • Registering in our Club means that you will receive our Newsletter and special offers. There is no obligation for a Club member to buy, but we are sure you will find something. 
Remember for some of our wines this is the ONLY way to get them in the USA. So ..... apply for our Newsletter or better:

Become a member and start shopping today !

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Looking back to 2016 en forward to 2017 !

Looking back to 2016: We did three exclusive more day tours in Tuscany
and numerous one and more day tours in Alsace and Burgundy.
We met so many interesting and sweet people again this year. Thank you all !

For the first time we shipped local wines in cooperation with IZIwine and Burgundy Online to mainly the USA but also to countries like Australia. More to come in 2017 with our WineClub.

Last but not least we did some great genealogy research (thanks to Terry Smits) and tours. Ancestry research brought us to Verdun, St Avold, numerous locations in Alsace and also to Germany.


"A bientot en 2017"

Thursday, March 3, 2016

Great wines from smaller French and Italian wineries now available in the USA. Join the JoliSoleil USA Wine Club

People touring with us often have the problem that they cannot take many wines home when they have to fly.
Wine in your cabin or carry-on luggage is generally not allowed. An exception might be wines that you have bought in a tax free shop at the airport.
Wines in your checked baggage is accepted. As wine normally contains less than 24% alcohol there are no restrictions on the quantity. BUT individual airlines often have weight limits to your luggage. Typically this is 23 kg. for international passengers and as you have also your clothes etc., and other souvenirs this can be a problem.
For each country there are different import laws ( duty, tariffs and quantity limits)

In the USA: for personal use; there are very low per bottle duties and taxes varying from
$ 1,= to $ 2,= per bottle. So for travelers from the USA it is interesting and absolutely possible to bring some wines. We offer Lazenne products to make transport more convenient. The weight problem remains though.

For a lot of (smaller) French and Italian wineries exporting their wines to the USA is very difficult. Rules and laws vary from state to state. Sometimes wine labels must be altered. This means that a lot of high quality wines that are offered in Europe for a reasonable price are simply not available in the States. It is frustrating for the people that have toured with us and learned to appreciate the local wines often cannot continue their experience. That is why we have founded the JoliSoleil Wine Club. Four times per year we will send you 12 bottles of French or Italian wine strictly for your personal use. We arrived at "12" bottles per time because the shipping price for for example 6 bottles is relatively high per bottle.

We select wines that are not available on the USA market because there is no official importer. We collect the wines personally at the wineries in Alsace, Burgundy and Tuscany. For Alsace they normally will be lieu-dits and grand cru's. For Burgundy premier or grand cru's; For Italy DOC, DOCG and also IGT wines.
Per 12 bottles each time you will find 2 wines of 6 different wineries. Sometimes they will be 2 bottles of the same wine, sometimes they will be 2 different wines from that specific winery.

Although the shipping costs of course add to the price, our goal is to offer you wines on a quality level that you cannot get for our prices on your local markets.
Each shipment will be accompanied with a newsletter describing the wineries and the wines. Each time you will also get food pairing suggestions.

A subscription is per year or 4 shipments with a total of 48 bottles per subscription. You can start any time in any quarter.
Please register here!

Friday, December 18, 2015

Lunch or dinner on our Alsace wine tours - maybe in Ammerschwihr?

One of the reasons we ended up in Alsace in 1999 and decided to live there permanently in 2003, is the great choice of good restaurants.
In France a healthy and beautiful plate is always important. And of course the search for matching wines is a pleasure.
In Alsace we find German cuisine, French cuisine and a melting pot between the two. There is a high number of Michelin * restaurants. This probably has to do with several factors, like the European parliament, Germany being close, tourism, etc..

In Ammerschwihr in the heart of the wine area an interesting place opened recently: Restaurant "Julien Binz". Chef is the former cook of "La rendez vous de Chasse" in Colmar. He is also known as the writer and editor of "Le Journal de Julien Binz" (for the dutch: the "Horeca Misset" of Alsace) about culinary news in Alsace.

Maybe it is his reputation, maybe he just has his publicity machine in order, but Binz was on France3 the other day.


Julien Binz opens his own restaurant in Ammerschwihr

We hope to try out this place soon. Passing the village often when wine touring, it might be the beginning of a delicious partnership.

Tuesday, May 26, 2015

Alsace: Grand Cru Schlossberg

The Grand Cru system in Alsace dates "only" from 1975.
The first area getting the nomination "grand cru" of now 51 areas was the Schlossberg. Schloss is german for castle. And with castle we mean the castle of Kaysersberg in this particular case.

The soil is mainly granite which gives clearness, freshness and minerality. As it does not rain much in this area and the water rushes down, the grapes sometimes really suffer looking for water on this plot of land.
But .... suffering is mostly positive for the smell and taste. The balance between acidity and sugar is very distinctive in Schlossberg.

Grand Cru Schlossberg, le film (5 min)A découvrir, à goûter, à partager, sans modération aucune ! Alors…Prêt ??...3, 2,1…Dégustez :-)

Posted by Grands Terroirs d'Alsace on Thursday, 21 May 2015

Tuesday, April 7, 2015

New domain "winetour.alsace" added

Alsace: Got new domain: "winetour.alsace".... fun!

So you can try out http://winetour.alsace
Now what new "email" to make for Alsace?
cool@winetour.alsace
or
jolisoleil@winetour.alsace
or
luxury@winetour.alsace.,...

To be decided later :)

Cheers!


 
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