Category: John Paul
Italy Wine Expert Rates Romanian Wine
Posted Thursday, June 04, 2009 by John D Paul
An Italian sommelier, trained and certified in the study of wines, got his first taste of Romanian wine Thursday, thanks to our group. PierAlberto Merli runs Gustolab in Rome and the Leonardo di Vinci school. Both units study and teach about the culture surrounding food and drink. Merli rated the Romanian Merlot he tasted as “good” but lacking the power of an Italian wine. Merli is shown in the photo above with Journalism Professor Nancy Benson.
Merli travels to the US frequently to speak about food and wines and how they affect culture. He’s due to be in Champaign-Urbana in July.
Revealing Romania Trip Winding Down
Posted Thursday, June 04, 2009 by John D Paul
Our two and a half week international reporting class that took us through Romania and Italy is coming to an end. We leave Rome for home on Friday. The group has seen interesting, amazing and historic things and met many interesting people on the venture through Romania.
We have each learned to find and interview sources in an international destination, how to interview with the use of a Romanian or Italian translator and we’re all learning about multimedia journalism. Obviously we’ve discovered many things about Romania, Italy and the function of the European Union. Even though the trip is ending, our work is not over. When we return, we’ll each have to edit our stories for presentation in a radio and television program. The Revealing Romania radio program is going to be aired on WILL-AM and the television program will air on UI-7.
Romania’s Heroes Honored on Ascension Day
Posted Thursday, May 28, 2009 by John D Paul
Many Orthodox Romanians took time Thursday to remember the heroes who fought for the country through the years. One such ceremony was held at a war memorial in the small village of Floresti, outside of Cluj.
About 60 Orthodox residents of the village of Floresti gathered at a World War I monument at one o’clock local time to reflect, pray and remember the nation’s heroes. The short ceremony was led by an Orthodox priest in the center of Floresti. Floresti is about 30 kilometers from Cluj-Napoca. Thursday marks Ascension Day in the Orthodox faith. That’s the day Christ ascended into heaven after he was crucified and resurrected. A group of sixth grade students was among those gathered in Floresti to remember their community and country’s heroes. One teacher said it was important for the youngsters to remember what those before them have done for the country.
Romania Rallies to Vote in EU Election
Posted Tuesday, May 26, 2009 by John D Paul
Across Romania, people are seeing signs and rallies about the upcoming election to the parliament for the European Union. A rally designed to attract the youth vote was held Tuesday in central Cluj for residents of the PSD or Social Democratic Party. Each nation in the EU holds its own election. Romania’s will be held in June.
Tuesday in central Cluj, more than 100 people gathered to watch a youth rally on behalf of the slate of PSD candidates. The red-clad, young dance troupe performed to high energy music and did bicycle tricks for the crowd of onlookers. This will be the first time Romania’s youth gets a chance to participate in the EU parliamentary elections since Romania joined the EU in 2007. Romanians can vote when they turn 18. A total of 37 EU deputies will be elected from Romania. Each of the three major parties has its own slate of candidates. The PSD and PDL, or Liberal Democratic Party, were approaching potential voters over the lunch hour Tuesday in Cluj. The parties, including the PNL, or National Liberal Party, are trying to convince voters that the election is an opportunity for Romania to have a say on a global stage.
Observers say most Romanians don’t care much about the EU elections. They’re more excited about this fall’s presidential election in Romania, when incumbent Traian Basescu of the PDL faces re-election.
The top issues in that presidential election are fighting corruption in Romania, reforms to the judicial system and human rights issues.
Watch the High Energy Youth Rally for Romania's PSD Party:
Watch the High Energy Youth Rally for Romania's PSD Party
Romania’s Castles A Big Attraction
Posted Monday, May 25, 2009 by John D Paul
Peles Castle, located in Sinaia in the region of Translyvania, is often called the “Pearl of the Carpathians.” Romania’s castles attract thousands of visitors every year. UI journalism students were among those touring this castle and the Castle Bran nearby recently
The class of UI journalism students visited two of Romania’s famous public castles Sunday. Peles was built for King Carol I and his wife Queen Elizabeth. The ornate castle features more than 160 rooms.
The so-called Dracula’s castle is near Brasov. The Castle Bran also attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors each year and is among Romania’s most famous tourist destinations.
Romanian Wine to Improve Image This Year
Posted Sunday, May 24, 2009 by John D Paul
The head of a Romanian wine industry trade group says he expects his group will start a “Buy Romanian Wine” campaign later this year. Ioan Stefan said the Wine Exporters and Producers Association is drafting a new marketing plan to increase exports to Europe and the U.S. Meantime, one of Romania’s leading wine critics says Romanian wines have great potential in the U.S, if the nation loses its image as the home of Dracula. Radu Rizea is senior editor at vinul.ro, a wine website and magazine known for critiquing Romanian wines.
Rizea has sampled wines from around the world. He thinks Romanian wines will get better and challenge some of the best wines by 2015. He believes it will take that long for the relatively young grape vines around Romania to mature to produce rich, complex wines. Rizea spoke with me this week at Bucharest’s only wine bar, a small place in the oldest part of the city. He said Romania’s image is still not good in the United States where he believe the Eastern European nation is better known for Dracula, communist leader Nicolae Ceaucescu and former Olympian Nadia Comaneci, who won gold medals in 1976. “It’s hard to compete in a large country like America without being a major supplier,” said Rizea.
Radu Rizea speaks about improving Romania's wine image in the U.S.:
Radu Rizea speaks about improving Romania's wine image in the U.S.
Touring and Tasting Romanian Wines near Ploesti
Posted Friday, May 22, 2009 by John D Paul
On Friday, two of us toured the Halewood vineyards and estate in the Delau Mare region of Romania, north of Bucharest. Halewood is a British owned wine company which produces several wines, including Pinot Noir, Cabernet, Sauvignon Blanc, Shiraz, sparkling rose, Merlot and a wine native to Romania called Feteascu Negra. Halewood is considered one of the “new” wineries in Romania, which began to grow in the late 1990s when privatization of the wine industry began in earnest.
The Delau Mare is considered Romania’s best region for red wines. Halewood wine executives Mihai Chitic and Valentin Resteman led the vineyard tour. We saw nearly 150 hectares of planted vineyard where the grapes are still very tiny, less than the size of a peppercorn, caper or BB. Chitic told me he believes there is great potential to increase the sale of Romanian wines, especially to the US, if the wine owners did a better job marketing their products overseas. The Halewood executives say the company currently exports about 62% of its wines.
A Visit to Romania’s Major TV News Network
Posted Thursday, May 21, 2009 by John D Paul
University of Illinois journalism students visiting Bucharest visited Romania’s version of CNN Thursday. The group toured Realitatea TV, which is a nationwide news channel can be watched by nearly every Romanian.
Realitatea is part of one of Romania’s largest media conglomerates, owned by Realitatea-Catavencu. The corporation runs 25 media outlets from the news channel, with main headquarters located in a large old building in central Bucharest. Realitatea TV covers news throughout the nation 24 hours per day, seven days a week. It would be similar to CNN, MSNBC or Fox News in the United States. The corporation also owns and operates newspapers, other TV channels including a business channel, movies, magazine, radio and new media. The Realitatea website is Romania’s number one site for news among Romanians. The head of corporate relations for the corporation told the Illinois journalists 700 of the companies 2,500 employees are journalists. Realitatea TV has six local stations, which help the network cover Romania, spread around this Eastern European nation.
Because of a slowdown in Realitatea has suffered a decline in advertising revenue like many other media outlets, but the corporate spokeswoman said the ownership has promised employees, journalists and the public "we will not layoff people due to the economic crisis."
No Romanian wines in UI wine class
Posted Tuesday, May 12, 2009 by John D Paul
A wine appreciation class at the University of Illinois does not sample wines from Romania. The Food Science and Human Nutrition class is one of the most popular on the Urbana campus. It teaches students, who must be 21 years of age, to appreciate wines from around the world.
The class, FSHN 304, is titled Introduction to Wine Science. The class, often called “wine appreciation,” is taught by enology specialist Bradley Beam, who has a background in horticulture and grape growing and wine production. The students meet each week at Bevier Hall on the University of Illinois campus to sample a variety of wines. They must first take notes on the sensory characteristics of the wine including the “nose” or aromas they detect in the wines including odors from oak, vanilla, rubber, fruits, grasses, berries and even leather. They examine the color or clarity of the wines and then sample a small taste of the wine. The students also learn about the value and importance of wine production in the US. Beam says he has used many wines from Europe, Australia and South America in the class, but not wines from Romania, which are considered unknown by many American consumers.
UI Enology specialist Bradley Beam teaches wine class:
UI Enology specialist Bradley Beam teaches wine class
Growing Economic Optimism in Romania
Posted Monday, May 11, 2009 by John D Paul
A University of Illinois history professor says there is a sense of economic optimism among a growing number of Romanians. Keith Hitchins specializes in the history, economics and culture of Southeastern Europe, including Romania, Hungary and Central Asia. In March, he told a class of journalism students that despite a recession, Romanians are optimistic about their future. Hitchins also said thousands of Romanians who fled the country in the last decade are beginning to return to their native country.
Prof. Keith Hitchins addresses an increasingly optimistic Romania:
Prof. Keith Hitchins addresses an increasingly optimistic Romania
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