Amar on Barth Riesling Brut from the Rheingau

Hi, Jeroen here from VinoVonk and welcome to a new episode of Sparks at VinoVonk. The series in which I take you into the world of wine, innovative drinks, spirits, you name it. And today I have a really cool guest, Amar van Bubbels van Amar. Welcome Amar! Yes, thank you Jeroen.

Nice to be here with you again. And you sent a very nice bottle, so we will taste it together soon. But before we do that, Bubbels van Amar, are these your own Bubbels or do you import it? Can you tell us something about what you do? Of course.

I import Bubbels from Amar. It is a company that I have certain thoughts about. If I may, I will take you back very briefly to my grandparents who came from India. My parents who come from Suriname. And at home I grew up with the most fragrant herbs.

Spicy food. Spices, that love for flavors, was already there then. Yes, and in the end I brought that curiosity to taste and wine. I’ve tasted a lot of wine, I’m also a real bon vivant. I love good food, a nice drink and a wine pairing.

And above all, tasted a lot. With friends too. And ultimately further broadened my knowledge. Take training, get a wine license. But I wanted more.

I wanted to combine my passions that I have. That is creating and building something. Developing something that is not there yet. And on the other hand, a wine lover, as I just said. Appreciation for beauty and quality.

I also think I have a highly developed taste for food and, above all, I like gastronomy. I tried to combine all that and in 2023 I was on holiday in Italy at a wine resort in the summer. I sat there on a balcony with my family and my wife on Saturday with a delicious glass of Ca’ del Bosco Cuvée Prestige Brut. A delicious bubble. Well, we sat and philosophized a bit, looking out over the vineyards.

How great would it be to combine all those passions and start importing wine. And so we do. Two months later the company was born. There was a pallet in front of the door. Amar’s Bubbles was created.

Very cool. So you import sparkling wine and only do it from Italy? I don’t know, because this one comes from Germany. Right, right. No, of course, when you talk about Bubbels, everyone knows the champagnes and also the big names of champagnes, the Pommeries and the Moëts.

I specialize, I really specialized in sparkling wine in the Bubbels. And not only that, I also do champagnes from the Champagne region, but I also think it is very nice to, and that is also what the company stands for, what I stand for… actually introducing the whole world or people in the Netherlands to a lot of bubbles outside the Champagne region. I have them from Luxembourg, I have them from Germany, I have them from Italy, Austria, a very nice Sauvignon Blanc bubble for example. Yes and I just love looking for the most beautiful pearls from Europe.

And to give a platform here, because everyone knows the still red and white wine. But there are also so many beautiful bubbles, also so many beautiful bubbles outside the Champagne region. Sure, yes. And nowadays, very nice bubbles are also made in the Netherlands. Absolute.

So that’s all cool. You have a webshop, but do you only sell things through your webshop or do you also give tastings, do you have a shop? I have a webshop where you can also buy bubbles per bottle. I mainly focus on the events and the parties and the tastings as well. I have also developed arrangements for this on location, to organize the tastings based on that.

So I’m mainly on location. I am busy with tastings, champagne tables that I also take care of. Well, mainly concerned with that. And what does that mean on a champagne table? Yes, it is actually, as the name suggests, just a table with champagne.

Yes, it can be that simple. No, but it’s… Well, you go in different directions. One type of champagne or bubble, outside the Champagne region, which I also offer. In combination with a tasting.

For example, I recently attended an event in Amsterdam with a champagne table. The people are welcomed with a nice glass of champagne. And of course you can place such a champagne table anywhere. A very nice stadium box, for example, which also happens regularly. Or just very simple with the reception of your guests.

Super cool. Then I assume you tell them something nice about the Bubbels and then they think, nice, where can I buy that? Bubbles from Amar. Yes, exactly. And all those bubbles that I offer have a story behind them.

And that is what I stand for. I do stand for that experience, for that authenticity. Yes, there must be a story behind it. And all the wines that I import, I also go there myself. I want to experience the story too.

Want to feel the story. And if it feels right, I’ll import it. And that is what I try to convey, that experience and that feeling and that story. Interesting, but how do you arrive at, for example, if we take this one. This is a Riesling Brut from BARTH with an H from Germany, from Rheingau.

How did you come to this? Yes, I just search a lot. I’ll just start very broadly. This can be on different channels, even within the network on the internet. Yes, then I ultimately just make a selection that fits within my thoughts and what I stand for.

And finally I ended up here at BARTH. At one point I had a list. I really wanted to import a German and a Riesling bubble. Yes, I came across a bit… with Mark, the owner of this house, I came across his story on his website and I contacted him.

We made an appointment because we clicked. I then drove there, got a tour, we started talking and we clicked and it felt good. I think it’s great to create a bridge to this very beautiful bubble. Mark, what appeals to me is that he stands for innovation. Is always working to further innovate the Riesling grape.

That is why he is also known as the Riesling master in Germany. He also has the still wines, but he also has the Sekt, the bubble, of which this is one of. The best part is, this is the… Entry-level I’ll just say that and that does not mean that the quality is less, this is the cheapest bubble from its line. And that goes up to the highest, the Grosse Lage.

The first and only Grosse Lage in Germany. Bubble variant. Well, he also developed and released innovation based on his passion and what he stands for. Yes, and I like that. Super cool.

So there is a Grosse Lage, sparkling wine. I thought only still wines were allowed in the Grosse Lage. How interesting. Yes, that’s right and you can actually only see that. He is the first and I think still the only one in Germany with such a classification.

I don’t have to tell you that, he might have a number of listeners, comparable to Eerste Lage, comparable to the Grand Cru in France. And that says something about, that is a kind of indicator of quality. And that says something about that wine. I would actually like to invite you again if you are ever near Nijmegen, where I come from, where I live, to just drop by. Then we will taste the most beautiful ones again, including this Grosse Lage.

Interesting, we will definitely do that. The search often starts online. You may come to tastings and meet makers. What attracts you most? What makes you think yes, I want to continue with you.

I want to do something with your wine. As I just said, that feeling just has to be right. I’ll take it back to Italy, or Ca’ del Bosco, that winery where it all started. What really appeals to me, for example, is how they have set up their company and the thinking behind it. They stand for quality and I also stand for quality.

All my bubbles that you can get are all made using the Champagne method. And that is the minimum that I also convey. Authenticity. They stay close to themselves. They are not guided by external factors, by the masses, but they remain very close to themselves.

And they all have a love for nature and a love for the grapes. On those kinds of aspects, and if at some point you talk to the owner of such a winery, in this case it is Gilberto in Italy, yes, then you hear and then… you just feel the passion and I have that passion too. You just feel whether there is a click or not and that is the most important thing for me and if that click is there and the wine is of course very tasty, then there is a match and then we continue together. Very nice story.

Before we taste it, can you tell us something about this wine? Yes, this is the Riesling Brut. And the Brut says something about, well, the sugar content it contains. This is a very nice Sekt. Aged for 24 months in the bottle.

And not very long, and that has to do with the fact that BARTH has tried to… precisely because of those 24 months to preserve those typical aromas and that tightness of the Riesling grape, and at the same time long enough to get a little more structure and a little more of that complexity in the second fermentation in this bottle. So that is what you taste: really the Riesling grape and at the same time you also taste more of that layering. Interesting. And this is a Sekt that is made by himself with grapes that he has grown in his vineyard. Yes, yes, yes.

BARTH comes from the Rheingau region. In my opinion, the second largest region when it comes to wine growing in Germany. And he himself is in Hattenheim. Interesting. What I also thought was a really cool element was that you hung your own card around it.

So imagine that you give this as a gift, then it is not just an introduction to the wine, but also to a company that tells you, well, this leaves you wanting more. Well, you can always order again yourself. I have cooled it well, then we will open it. I have my Riddle Riesling glass from the Performance Collection ready. I think, Riesling calls for a Riesling glass.

Yes, seems good to me. Look, that’s a nice sound. That is completely messed up. Super beautiful. Nice color too.

Well, it really comes… Well, it’s like a very large bouquet of flowers that is released. Really typical Riesling. Really a bit of that apple lime, a bit of peach. Yes.

Honey. Cheers! Cheers, Jeroen! Yes. This is really a very nice wine.

That’s beautiful, isn’t it? Yes. Yes, typical Riesling, but really just a very nice integrated bubble. Not very heavy with toast or wood. Just really fruity properties of Riesling.

But also what you just said, nice structure and incredibly tasty sour. What you often see is that the acid decreases somewhat due to the second fermentation in the bottle. Maybe just walk back a bit. He still has that crackle. It’s really fresh.

Yes, for example with the Grosse Lage, it is just the other way around. But that is also from a Riesling grape. But then it is really a bit more complex. A lot more complex. Here you can really taste the tightness and fruitiness with a light elegance.

But the typical Riesling grape is really recognizable here. And then all the bubbles from BARTH. They are also ecological and vegan. That’s also very nice about all the bubbles it produces. Yes, because it also says on the back of the bottle that it is certified organic.

Yes. And eh… That seems like quite a challenge to me, because Rheingau is not known as a very dry area. No, that’s right. He is also known for this, as I just said, innovation.

Especially to really lead the way and come up with new things. You can also see that in his bottles, you can also taste it and that also makes it beautiful. Super cool. I am very impressed and you say that this is the entry-level, but I don’t really think it is entry-level. What is the consumer price of this?

This is €19.95, consumer price. The cheapest bubble for me is €14.95, that is the Luxembourgish one. And bubble is simply labor intensive, which is why the price is a bit higher than the other wines. But for €19.95, for such a beautiful bubble, that is very competitively priced. Yes, absolutely.

Aged in the bottle for 24 months. Most champagnes are around 15 months, that’s a minimum. So this has been going on for a lot longer. And yes, you really have something unique. Definitely recommended.

Yes, absolutely. And another nice thing about this Riesling Brut from BARTH is that it was also sent to all subscribers’ homes in the December edition of Wine Life. Who could also enjoy this very beautiful Riesling from the Rheingau. Very nice to hear. Did you happen to hear what people thought of it?

No, not yet. Not yet. Of the next edition, but not this one yet. No. Interesting.

So they make this one, this is a Brut, but then they have the Grosse Lage, but do they also have something in between, do they also make an extra Brut, a Brut Nature or a slightly sweeter variant? Yes, they don’t really have the sweeter variety. The sweetest version of the bubble. They have different types between this Riesling Brut and the Grosse Lage. I have almost all types of BARTH.

Each BARTH bubble has its own character and is also unique in its own kind. For example, I have a red bubble of 100% Pinot Noir. Really just a dark red one. BARTH’s Lumpy too, yes, it’s really great. Pinot Blanc.

I have the Erste Lage. Well, very nice. A very wide range. Super cool. And how do you see the future in terms of bubble?

I look forward to that very positively. In August I will have only been in business for two years with my company. And I really notice, after a year, but now certainly after a year and a half, that the company is growing enormously. And the popularity in Bubbels is also increasing. People also want…

more experience, which is what I also stand for. So I also expect that, just like how BARTH innovates, I also expect that many other countries with wine producers will really innovate within sparkling wine. The best thing about the Bubbels is that they are often known to be served with an aperitif, or as an aperitif, at a reception, or with something to celebrate. What I mainly stand for, which you can also see in my tastings, is that I also pour them. Besides the fact that they are often fresh, you also get more and more beautiful bubbles that are also very complex.

Long fermentation in the bottle, which you can also serve beautifully with a dinner. I do expect that there will be much more attention to this in the future. As a final question, can you give us a little insight? Will there be a special bubble in your range soon? Something you are working on?

If this works, people will be amazed. I recently discovered, as I just mentioned, that I think they are the most beautiful pearls. I have a Sauvignon Blanc from Austria. I imported that. That is simply a very special Sauvignon, simply as a still white wine.

And then this as a bubble, I love that. I have already tasted them and I have already made an appointment to visit there. It may be in a different region. I am active in the Champagne region and, especially among small and medium-sized wine producers, I have found a Grand Cru champagne house that certainly has competitive prices, especially compared to big names. Yes, I have discovered some really nice champagnes there and they will soon be on the website.

Interesting. And you already mention the website, where can people order this? Yes, BubbelsvanAmar.nl. I am also very active on Instagram. You can also find me on Instagram Bubbels van Amar.

I have a lot of information on my website. Also the webshop. So you can view everything there. Do you have questions, do you want advice? Please feel free to contact us via WhatsApp, call.

No problem. I think along with you, I advise. I hope that I can make many people happy with… with bubbles and the most beautiful pearls of the sparkling wine that I have in my range. Nice to hear.

I will include all links to all channels in the show notes. You can find it somewhere below. Amar, thank you very much for your time. Thank you very much for these bubbles. Soon also a written article on VinoVonk.com.

I’d say cheers and see you next time. Cheers!