Independence Day!

In the true spirit of continued independence of the American Colonies, our 4th July Wine on Wednesday focused entirely on... British and French wines.  Well, of course.

Vicky started us off with a lovely sparkling wine from the Camel Valley in Cornwall.  It was fresh and crisp and very good - but I didn't make any tasting notes as I was too busy saying "hello" to people and playing with the Wine on Wednesday mascott, Caspar the Wonderdog.

In true Wine on Wednedsay tradition, weblind-tasted pairs of wines - but Vicky let us know that in each case, it was a show-down between a British and a French wine.

PAIR ONE - WHITES

Wine 1 was a much darker colour wine, just slightly floral boquet, and dry and minerally on the pallette.  Wine 2 was a much lighter, really pale-looking wine, with a more heady nose (I got a tiny hint of vanilla in amongst the citrus), and a crisp, acid gooseberry flavour.

We were nearly unanimous in our guess that Wine 1 was English, and that the paler more sophisticated Wine 2 was French (we mostly thought it was too good to be an English wine) but Cath stuck to her guns that Wine 2 was probably the English one.  We all preferred Wine 2 to a greater or lesser degree.  Darren thought it might be a Loire Pouilly-Fumé, I thought it might be a Pino Gris.

However, we were all counfounded (except for Cath, who was just a bit smug)! Wine 1 was a French Sancerre (Domaine Vacheron 2011 from the Loire), whereas Wine 2 was an English wine: Chapel Down Bacchus 2010, the Bacchus grape being the closest English equivalent to Sauvignon Blanc, I guess, grown with grapes from Kent and Essex.

PAIR TWO - REDS

Both were very similar colour, but Wine 3 smelt rich, fruity and sweet, whereas Wine 4 had a much lighter nose - smelt like a UK wine we thought!  However, upon tasting, the big strong Wine 1 was sharp, young, very acid and with a slight fizz - not as much as a frizzante and the fizz soon died away - all that led us to rapidly change our views and peg this rather disappointing wine as from the UK.  The Wine 4 was a much more impressive prospect on tasting - tannin-rich, heavy, sour berry acid, far more depth and sophistication.  So our votes swung round towards French – and it came to getting a bit more specific.  Michael thought it could be a syrah; Darren and Nish thought maybe a Burgundy - and they turned out to be right.

Wine 3 was Glyndwr Red 2010, from a family run vineyard in the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales.  The product description on the Waitrose website lists the grape varieties as Rondo / Regent / Triomphe d'Alsace, and says: "A red is still a rarity in Wales."  "Long may that continue," said Vicky.  Wine 4 was a Gamay grape - Bouchard Père et Fils 2010 Fleurie, Beaujolais, Burgundy, and very nice it was too.

PAIR THREE – REDS

I hope this was all just left over from the Jubilee...

As always, my tasting notes on the final pair of wines are slightly less thorough (and somewhat wine-stained!).  Vicky had a couple of bottles of each of the wines, and its fair to say our ‘tasting’ turned into ‘drinking’ with the ones we liked!  Wine 5 was light, acid, young, metallic – I didn’t like it very much, and guessed it was UK.  The guessing it was UK wasn’t because I didn’t like it very much – just in comparison to the other wine, it was (in my mind) much more likely to be ours.  Wine 6 was big heavy, tarry, heavy on berry and spices and a hint of liquorice.  Michael & I decided Wine 6 must be a French Syrah – however Darran was fairly certain that  Wine 6 was from the UK, even going as far as to guess the vineyard might be the Bolney Estate.

Imagine Darren’s disappointment (and mine and Michael’s delight) when Wine 6 was revealed to be a Languedoc Syrah.  I thought this was a very good wine, loved its smoothness and richness – certainly my red wine of the evening.  Wine 5 was indeed the UK wine - Bolney Wine Estate’s Dark Harvest 2009.  After a quick audit and taste of Darren’s wine glasses, turns out Darren had his Wine 5 and Wine 6 the wrong way round – so he was spot on with identifying the Dark Harvest.  Didn’t change any of our opinions that it wasn’t a particularly good when compared to the Balthazar Syrah 2010.

So another Wine on Wednesday with a strong British wine showing – though the Welsh red didn’t put in a very good showing in comparison to the Welsh white which we had a few months ago ((Monnow Valley Huxelrebe/Seyval Blanc: Welsh Table Wine 2007 – LINK TO POST).

THE WINE LIST

Sparkling

Camel Valley Brut 2010, Cornwall (Waitrose, £23.74)

Wine 1

Domaine Vacheron 2011 Sancerre, Loire (Waitrose, £18.04)

Wine 2

Chapel Down Bacchus 2010, Kent (Waitrose, £10.44)

Wine 3

Glyndwr Red 2010, Vale of Glamorgan, Wales (Waitrose,£11.86)

Wine 4

Bouchard Père et Fils 2010 Fleurie, Beaujolais, Burgundy(Waitrose, £10.44)

Wine 5

Bolney Wine Estate Dark Harvest 2009 West Sussex (Waitrose,£9.01)

Wine 6

Balthazar Syrah 2010 Vin de Pays d’Oc, Languedoc (Waitrose,£10.44)

Wine on Friday

Word of the day: Keming - the result of improper kerning.

After deferring the honour a couple of times, Emma and I finally managed to get around to hosting a Wine on Wednesday. The theme for the evening would be the classic choice for wine novices like us: bottles that we thought looked pretty! This lead to two quite unexpected consequences:

1. All of the wines we chose were from France, Italy and Portugal. New world wines seem to have less appealing labels!

2. A number of the regular Wine on Wednesday attendees are massive typography geeks. Who knew that kerning could spark such heated debate…

Without further ado, here is a list of the wines:

Fizz: Italian Conegliano Valdobbiadene (Prosecco) - £11

White 1: Italian Orvieto Classico 2011 (Grechetto) - £8

White 2: French Pouilly-Fume 2010 (Sauvignon Blanc) - £14

Bonus round: French Blush from Aix en Prevence (grape unknown) - £20 for magnum

Red 1: Italian Dogajolo Super-Tuscan 2010 (Sangiovese blend with Carbernet) - £10.50

Red 2: French La Galine Minervois 2009 (Syrah blend with Grenache) - £7.50

Port : Taylor’s 10-year-old tawny port - £18

The Prosecco, as Juliet rightly pointed out, is excellent with crisps. An extremely light and dry fizz, suitable for all manner of snacks and canapés. The favoured white was the Pouilly-Fume, which was more complex and better rounded than the Italian Orvieto.

The blush from Aix was a bit of a disappointment. The lovely colour and nicely embossed label made promises upon which the wine itself could not deliver! Despite the slightly nasty taste, we did manage to drink more than half of the magnum: a testament to the dedication of the group. We’re looking forward to finishing it so that we can use the bottle as the base for a lamp!

The real highlight of the evening was the 2009 La Galine from Minervois in Southern France. A really deep flavour accompanied by a great aroma; very cheap at £7.50 (before discounts - I think we got it for £6.50). Special mention must also go to the Super-Tuscan for having such an incredible label, but also for having a wonderful nose and a lovely drinkable texture (although it was a bit young for Michael’s taste!).

We concluded the evening with port and cake. Taylor’s 10-year tawny is a great port: it’s got exactly the right amount of sweetness to compliment all of my favourite puddings! My dad can make a bottle of this last several Christmases, but our lack of port glasses and Dan’s determination to serve it in whole pints has meant that it now sits on my drinks shelf almost depleted!

I’m afraid I didn’t keep a precise total of the points that I handed out during the evening, but it’s I think it’s fair to say that the winners were Darren and Nish with 17.5 points each. Michael finished mid-pack with 5 points (after recouping some early smugness-related losses), and last place was unquestionably Dan with an impressive -397.

Thank you all for coming! Looking forward to the next one.

Ben

Where in the world....?

Darren's Wine on Wednesday theme was: "Wines from places in the world you'd forgotten or didn't know made wine."  

A promising start, for sure.

However (and unsurprisingly), Darren chose some superlative wines.  We were supplied with a list of possible countries and grape varieties/blends - including a few obvious red herrings (like Wales).  We then had to see if we could identify the country and the grape, and then guess the price banding (under £8, £8-£20, over £20).

I made it easy for myself, and just guessed "Wales" every time - mainly from a misguided sense of semi-national pride (I assume I only have semi-national pride, being only half Welsh).

Surprisingly, we weren't too far off, all of the time!  Hot country versus cold country, based on taste and smell, was an important differentiating factor, and helped us narrow things down (those of us who weren't just guessing "Wales").

Even more surprising - the outstanding white wine of the evening was a fantastic aromatic dry white wine.... from a Welsh vineyard just north of Monmouth!   It was the Monnow Valley Huxelrebe/Seyval Blanc: Welsh Table Wine 2007.  The wine really caught us by surprise, not least because it is really well priced (most good English wines I've had have been £12 plus).  Annoyingly, this was possibly one of the only guesses I made that wasn't Wales.  

The red wine of the night, for me, was the last (which I don't think had too much to do with it!): the Orovela Saperavi from Georgia.  Nish was right on the money as she knows her Georgian wines, and it was a big rich intense wine which I really really enjoyed.

The full list, with tasting notes from the suppliers:

Sparkling

BRAZIL: Miolo Brut Millesime: £16.49 (South American Wines Online)

A Pinot Noir and Chardonnay blend.  Light yellow presenting a green reflection with fine and resistant bubbles. Complex and pleasant range of fruit and aging bouquets (yeast maturation).  Balanced acidity, fine body, leaving a pleasant taste in the mouth.

White Wine 1

URUGUAY: Gimenez Mendez Sauvignon Blanc: £9.99 (South American Wines Online)

This wine has a very pale hue, in fact it is almost crystal clear, showing just a faint tinge of straw. The nose is very pungent, filled to the brim with grassy, weedy, green capsicum aromas. It has a very full-on character on the palate, with a very firm and forceful structure. There is plenty of tart acidity, a lot of green, grassy character, and again a pungent style as on the nose. A firm although slightly juicy style, dominated through to the finish by that firm acidity.

White Wine 2 

SLOVENIA: Puklavec and Friends Sauvignon Blanc 2009: £6.40 (Waitrose Wine)

This is a wonderfully fresh and aromatic white bursting with grapefruit and lime flavours, notes of freshly cut grass and a long finish with a twist of minerality. Grown on steep terraces near the village of Jeruzalem in Slovenia, the Sauvignon Blanc grapes are hand-harvested to ensure optimum quality. An excellent wine to enjoy with mildly spiced dishes.

White Wine 3

WALES: Monnow Valley Huxelrebe/Seyval Blanc: Welsh Table Wine 2007: £6.90 (Tanners Wines)

Madeleine Angevine, Huxelrebe and Seyval Blanc vines grow on the steep valley sides above the River Monnow, just a mile north of historic town Monmouth. A light, aromatic and fresh, medium-dry wine which is best served chilled.  Flavours of peach and apple.

White Wine 4

INDIA: Ritu Viognier 2010 Baramati: £8.54 (Waitrose Wine)

Indian wine is increasingly making a name for itself around the world for modern, well made styles that speak of the unique land they come from. This delicious Viognier encapsulates the sunny days and cool nights the Baramati region enjoys with its crisp, aromatic style. The wine is bursting with aromas of white flowers and ripe peach and fresh apricot fruit flavours.

White Wine 5

URUGUAY: Pisano Rio de los Pajaros Viognier: £12.95 (South American Wines Online)

Aromatic and fruity, with generous flowery aromas from apples and pears. Reminiscence of figs and citrus on the palate, balanced by delicious acidity and a long finish.

Red Wine 1

PERU: Tacama (Peru) Gran Tinto 2005: £8.99 (South American Wines Online)

Tacama's Gran Tinto is a 12.5% alcohol blend of Malbec, Tannat and Petit Verdot that pours a deep crimson colour. The nose has copious ripe, black fruit, with plummy depth and a touch of sweet, damp earth and violet. On the palate there's a little lick of firm, liquoricy structure here, with a nicely tart and juicy black cherry acidity, overlaid with much softer blackberry and spicy fruit compote flavours. A nice, easy-drinking wine this with very good balance.

Red Wine 2

MEXICO: LA Cetto Petite Sirah, 2008, Baja California, Mexico: £7.80 (Tanners Wines)

A deep red - opaque, but young with a vibrant purple rim. Lovely perfumed edge to the aroma. Palate is big, flavoursome and ripe. An interesting rustic edge leads the finish with an inky, dry, well rounded end. Needs some substantial foods.

Bonus Red Wine

CHINA: Dragon Seal NV: Not for sale in the UK

“DRAGON SEAL vineyards are located in Huailai county, 120Km northwest of Beijing. Since 1987, Chinese agronomists and French winemakers carefully crafted Dragon Seal wines respecting French traditional methods to achieve the best quality, getting DRAGON SEAL wines among the top international wines.  Deep ruby red colour, with flavours of red and black fruits and subtle oaky notes. Excellent with red meats, can perfectly accompany any meal.”

Red Wine 3

GREECE: Tsantali Organic Cabernet Sauvignon 2008/09 Halkidiki: £6.83 (Waitrose Wine)

This is a juicy, medium-bodied and elegant Greek red made from organically grown Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Halkidiki is in Macedonia, on a peninsula south of Thessaloniki. The wine has a firm structure with notes of cassis on the palate, making it a cracking partner to lamb and moussaka, or enjoy with mature cheeses.

Red Wine 4 

GEORGIA: Orovela Saperavi 2004: £15.19 (Waitrose Wine)

A deliciously rich red, Saperavi is an old grape variety indigenous to Georgia, a place which is regarded by many as the cradle of winemaking. This limited-production wine is in a modern, fruit-forward style. The palate shows intense flavours of blackberry and cherry, with a long, smoky finish.

A Seasonal Supplement

A special seasonal update to the Wine on Wednesday blog (on a Wednesday, fittingly enough), but actually due to getting rather over-enthusiastic at Michael's yesterday. Michael and I had each bought a bottle of Collioure "Folio" 2009 Coume del Mas, a 14% Grenache Blanc from Languedoc-Roussillon when we tasted it as part of The Bottle Apostle's Natural Wines tasting in September. Tom from Bottle Apostle had chosen the Folio as the production process is not mechanised at all, it is all done by hand, horse-drawn ploughing, and they keep treatments to "a minimum" (though of course that may hide a multitude of sins!). I remember being impressed with the wine, and drawing a little smiley face next to it on my notes from the evening (part of a complex emoticon-based wine note taking technique I'm developing, of course) and it must have stood out enough to buy a bottle. I even went as far as to stick a little silver star on the bottle when I put it in the wine rack at the flat, which occasionally serves as a reminder to myself that I shouldn't just knock a particular bottle back or use it for cooking. However, drinking Michael's bottle of Folio with him last night made me realise it was clearly the stand-out white wine I'd tasted this Christmas. Served at only just a bit cooler than room temperature, it had a rich nutty complexity which I won't be able to describe in detail now as I don't have a glass in front of me. But it was a really REALLY good white wine, and I'm kicking myself for not including it in the Wine on Wednesday Christmas Special. So take this as my evangelism for Collioure "Folio" 2009 Coume del Mas, £24.50 from Bottle Apostle. And Michael, you're welcome to come round and drink the bottle I have here in return, any time you want!

Wall of Wine Christmas Special

It was Wine on Wednesday's Christmas Special last night, and it was my turn to host.  We upped the budget a bit, with a view to finding some good wines for seasonal giving or drinking.

The Wall of Wine in action

I also decided to up the stakes on the Wine on Wednesday format by introducing the amazing Wall of Wine!!! (C) (Patent pending) (All Rights Reserved) (etc etc!).  As you can probably tell, I'm easily impressed by a cheap gimmick.


The objective of the Wall of Wine was to drive a rigorous data-driven analysis of the wines we drank based on empirical evidence and plenty of Blu Tack.  Well, we didn't quite get there, but amazingly, nor did it descend into a drunken Pin The Tail On The Donkey.  Divided into two teams, we tasted blind and used the Wall (TM) to guess the prices (Y axis) and score the wines in terms of how much we linked them (X axis).  


The wine descriptions below are lifted from either the wine merchant or producer's websites, and the cheeses lean heavily on Wikipedia.  Verdicts are the panel's own.

Careful deliberation

Round 1 – Lets Get Fizzy


A. Franciacorta Brut 2007 Fratelli Berlucchi (12.5%, Lombardy, Chardonnay & Pino Bianco 90%, Pinot Noir 10%) £22.00, The Bottle Apostle
Thanks to the ambition and vigour of then young winemaker, Franco Ziliani, the Berlucchi winery has become the primary name associated with Franciacorta DOCG. The region has adapted the Champagne model with invariable ascendancy. Endless foaming mousse, doughy and creamy aromas rounded with creamy almonds.


B. Prosecco La Marca Treviso Extra Dry NV (11%, Treviso, Prosecco) £8.49, Majestic
Made from Prosecco grapes grown by a number of growers on the hills and plains around Treviso, close to Venice in northern Italy.  Soft pressing is followed by cool fermentation in stainless steel, for delicate and fresh fruit flavours.  Pale and elegant, with a subtly perfumed bouquet, and youthful pear, melon and citrus fruit characters.  Retains a little hint of sweetness which balances the crisp acidity and persistent fizz.

Parmigiano Reggiano, 2 year (£35/kg, The Deli Downstairs)
Coloured light straw to yellow straw, Parmigiano Reggiano has a granular, soluble and crumbly structure.  The cheese is made from grass-fed Cow’s milk, and is aged for a minimum of 12 months. Produced near Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena and Bologna – only cheese produced in these provinces may be labelled “Parmigiano-Reggiano” under the European PDO protection.


Our Verdict
I wanted to try a pair of non-Champage sparkling wines to try.  Both wines were really great. The Franciacorta was more aromatic and floral than the Prosecco, and everyone guessed correctly that it was going to be the more expensive wine - however, opinion was divided between which was nicer, so the Prosecco La Marca Treviso represents really good value as a very tasty sparkling wine at £8.49.  Both went extremely well with the cheese - and I'd go further and say that the combination worked so well because they each brought out different qualities in the other, and I think you get something special by having them together.  Our top seasonal tip is definitely to serve a bit of parmigiano reggiano or grand pardano with your fizz this Christmas!




Round 2 – I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas (and a better name for this round!)


C.  Sancerre Comte Lafond 2009/2010 Ladoucette (12.5%, Loire Valley, Sauvignon Blanc) £23.00 Majestic
Ladoucette is one of the top Pouilly-Fumé producers and this is his marvellous Sancerre.  Pale golden-green. Remarkable and aromatic intensity on the nose. Floral notes of white flowers such as hawthorn, acacia, old rose, and elderflower. This is backed up by blackcurrant buds and wild flowers. It is lively on the palette, with very pleasant acidulous characteristics prolonged by light fruity notes. Full and refreshing, it is dominated by flinty stones and chalk typical of fine Sancerre wines.


D. Kings Fumé 2009 Stanlake Park (12.5%, Thames Valley, roughly 25% each of Ortega, Regner, Scheurebe and Bacchus) £12.00, Stanlake Park
The owners of Stanlake in the second half of the 20th century were the Leighton family, of which Jon Leighton had the vision to create a Vineyard in the late 1970’s, which became established as Thames Valley Vineyards. Under winemaker Vince Gower, the estate continues to add to its reputation as one of the best in England.  Kings Fumé is named in honour of King Charles 1st who donated a special window dated 1626 in Stanlake Park. The wine is aged in French Oak casks.  Soft vanilla oak and buttery fruit characters are perfectly integrated with hints of fresh garden mint.  On the wine list of the Dorchester Hotel in London.


E. Cloudy Bay 'Te Koko' Sauvignon Blanc 2008 (13.5%, Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc) £30, Majestic
The 2007 Te Koko is an intriguing and alternative style of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.  Aromas of lemon thyme, mandarin blossom and stone fruit combine harmoniously with ginger spice and nutty savoury tones, underlined by exotic tropical notes.  The many-layered palate is creamy and textured, balanced by a clean, mineral acidity.  The wine has excellent persistence of flavour and intensity.


Manchego La Mancha (£25.50/kg) with Dulche de Membrillo (£26.50/kg, both from The Deli Downstairs)
Manchego is a sheep’s milk cheese made from sheep of the Manchega breed, which is aged between 60 days and 2 years.  Manchego has a firm consistency and buttery texture, which varies in colour from white to ivory-yellow and the rind from yellow to brownish beige.  The cheese has a distinctive flavour, well developed but not too strong, creamy with a slight piquancy, and leaves and aftertaste characteristic of sheep’s milk.  Dulche de Membrillo is a sticky, sweet, reddish hard paste, made from quince fruit, sugar and water and cooked over a slow fire.  It is sweet and mildly tart and often served with Manchego cheese.  It is sometimes known as a “fruit cheese”.


Our Verdict
The whites included a couple of surprises.  Firstly, the Cloudy Bay Te Koko was extremely disappointing.  Far and away the least appealing to any of our tastes - which is a shame as it was a pricey bottle and the Cloudy Bay reputation meant I was expecting something really special.  Not one for anyone's Christmas Stocking!  The Sancerre was fantastic, and though not cheap I would say it was worth it and scored pretty well on the Wall.  


The coup of the evening, though, was the Kings Fumé.  My friends Ali and Laura introduced me to  Kings Fumé and had it as the white at their wedding.  It nearly didn't make it onto the list as it was difficult to source, but I visited Ali, Laura and some other friends in Wokingham a few weeks ago, which was only a 10 minute drive from Stanlake Park in Twyford, so I popped in and picked up a couple of bottles.  Interestingly, people's mind's changed on the Kings Fumé during the tasting - from initial excitement at the nose and taste, through a phase of 'I'm not so sure'... and then after a little bit, a general consensus of really liking it.  After that, when we went through the wines, people were VERY impressed that it was an English wine, and then EVEN more impressed that it was a very good English wine at a sensible price.    Its a bit difficult to source without getting a case - but I think we're going to get a case between the Wine on Wednesday crowd and share them out as it is a very good wine with the added kudos and interest factor with it being English!  


The manchego and membrillo were a perfectly good accompaniment to the whites - but it certainly wasn't as good a pairing as the sparkling wines with the parmigiano reggiano as the combination of wines and cheese didn't really do anything special.

Round 3 – Seeing Red


F. Domaine les Yeuses 'Les Epices' Syrah 2008 Vin de Pays d'Oc (13.5%, Languedoc, Shiraz)  £8.99, Majestic
Not far from the Mediterranean, Domaine Les Yeuses is near Mèze in the Languedoc region. Jean-Paul and Michel Dardé work together with winemaking consultants to ensure the best results from the soil, vines, grapes and climate.  It has wonderfully spicy, perfumed Syrah fruit and an elegant softness and roundness which mark it out as a wine of quality. The finish is long, with an intriguing bitter-sweet pepper note.


G. Mollydooker The Boxer Shiraz 2009 (16.5%, McLarren Vale, Shiraz) £25.00, Majestic
Matured in American oak, The Boxer Shiraz has a very deep garnet-purple colour and intense blackberry, liquorice, tar, menthol and cocoa bean aromas.  Very full-bodied and with medium-firm fine-grained tannins and generous, warm-berry flesh, it is nicely balanced by crisp acid, finishing long (91 points, Lisa Perrotti-Brown, www.erobertparker.com).   Mollydooker use nitrogen to protect their wines from oxygen so that they can reduce the amount of sulphites. When the wines are young, the nitrogen tends to flatten the fruit flavour of the wine (nitrogen effect). Shaking the wine releases the nitrogen (you can hear it hissing if you hold the bottle to your ear after doing the Shake) and the full flavour profile is restored.


Cabrales D.O. (£31.00/kg, The Deli Downstairs)
Artisan cheese from unpasteurized cows milk, sometimes blended with goat and/or sheep milk –though all of the milk comes exclusively from herds raised in a small zone of production in Asturias, in the mountains of the Picos de Europa in Spain.  The cheese is aged in limestone mountain caves with a high relative humidity, which favours the development of the penicillium moulds that produce the veins in the cheese.  It has an extremely strong flavour which can be very complex when made with mixed milks.


Our Verdict
Firstly, I have to 'fess up and say that I only picked the Cabrales as a bit of a joke.  It is not one for pairing with the reds, but it is by far and away the strongest and wierdest-tasting chesses I've had in a long time (at one of the Bottle Apostle/Deli Downstairs wine & cheese evenings).  The cheese makes the inside of your mouth crawl and go squeaky - it is a most bizarre sensation, and I thought I should share the experience with the Wine of Wednesday lot.  I'm sure they thanked me for it.


The two syrah/shiraz were night and day.  Les Epices was certainly not a bad wine, but thin and pale compared to the stonkingly strong The Boxer (I'm assiduously avoiding writing anything along the lines of 'that wine packed a punch', etc etc).  I'd wondered whether a well-recommended wine like Les Epices might prove a barginous surprise - but it couldn't touch a beast like the Mollydooker.  And The Boxer is a fantastic red wine; rich, chocolatey, warm, and I think worth the price tag as a very special Christmassy red.

The final walls

Round 4 – Just Deserts


H. Il Passito di Corzano 2000 Vino da Tavola (11%, San Casciano, Trebbiano 80%, Malvasia 20%) 375ml  bottle £36.00, Bottle Apostle)
Since the introduction of the DOC “Vin Santo del Chianti” in 1995 this wine is not allowed to be labelled with the denomination “Vin Santo” as the alcohol level must not be inferior to 13% by vol.  Manual harvest, followed by the grape clusters being hanged and dried for 5 months.  Fermentation in small oak barrels (caratelli), matured in the barrels for 8 years.  Tastes of fig, raisin, grape.


I. The Ned Noble Sauvignon Blanc 2010 (10.5%, Marlborough, Sauvignon Blanc) 375ml bottle £12.49, Majestic)
Botrytised grapes have been specially selected from amongst the vines of the Waihopai River vineyard to make this wine. The fermentation process takes a lengthy 6 months and extracts huge flavours from the shrivelled berries.  Intensely sweet, yet balanced with a mixture of crisp citrus and fresh melon flavours, and as such, never cloys. Lingers long on the palate.


Taleggio (£25/kg, The Deli Downstairs)
Taleggio is a washed rind and smear-ripened Italian cheese (meaning it is smeared with bacteria or fungi, often from an older cheese).  It has a strong aroma, but its flavour is comparatively mild with an unusual fruity tang.  Its crust is thin and studded with salt crystals.


Our Verdict
Nish was quick off the block in identifying the Il Passito as Vin Santo - but unfortunately lost out on a technicality (see the description of the wine)!   The Il Passito is a lovely dark, sweet grapey wine - a very good desert wine and I liked it a lot.  The Ned was far paler than the Il Passito, and far sweeter and more citrus fruity, compared to the complexity and depth of dark fruit, grape and current taste of the Il Passito.

However, the desert wine round provided far and away the best pairing of the evening:  Il Passito with Taleggio.  Taleggio is a cracking cheese in its own right - rich and thick and creamy.  Put it together with the rich sweet Il Passito, and you have an absolutely fantastic combination.  They contrast and build on each other, bringing out flavours and sides of the wine and the cheese that neither can show on its own - and in my opinion shows how a proper cheese and wine combination should work.

Three is the Magic Number

Brought to you by the Number Three and the Letter Milkthistle

The first Wine on Wednesday Worksheet!

Wine on Wednesday Number Three happened last week, and Vicky hosted.  This month, Vicky wanted us to put our money where our mouth was - or rather, guess the prices of the various wines and rank them in order of how much they were - as well as guessing the grape(s) and region!  No mean feat - but Vicky was very well prepared and gave us all little worksheets to fill in!  There was also a column on the worksheet headed "Alcohol".  Presumably, intended for us to guess the alcohol content of the wine.  Mine merely ended up with a tick in each box - because I was pretty certain (as the night went on) there was definitely alcohol in there!

Whites 1 & 2
The first white tasted like a saivignon - very green, apply and grassy, with a slighly buttery hint in the nose, and just a hint of zestiness to taste.  I initially went with the consensus that this was a New Zealand sauvignon - and guessed at about £7.99 a bottle.  As soon as I tried the second wine, though, I changed my mind.  The second was a classic New World sauvignon blanc; much headier lychee, tropical fruity nose and a sweeter but still crisp taste.  More boozy, too.  Clearly (I thought) this must be an Aussie wine, about £5.99 a bottle.  The first wine was much more refined, and therefore I changed my mind and plumped for it being French.  Here's what they actually were:

• White #1: Arnaud de Lassalle 2009/2010 Puilly-Fumé, Loire, France (Sauvignon Blanc 12.5%) - £12.34
• White #2: Brancot Estate Sauvignon Blanc 2010 Marlborough, New Zealand (Sauvignon Blanc 13%) - £6.15

So - not too far off!  Well, I was off on the pricing for the first wine more than the first - but I succesfully pegged the first wine was old world, and that it was more expensive than the first, which I was very proud of.  (Emma, first time to Wine on Wednesday, started to detect a slightly competitive, braggy streak... but I have no idea where she got that impression from!!)

Whites 3 & 4
The next two whites where fantastic.  The first of the pair was honey-smelling, but crisp and bitey minerally - chardonnay for sure (we guessed).  The second was oakier, more buttery honey smelling and a huge smooth delicious expensive taste.  I put #3 down as a £6.99, but really thought the second was something special, and put it down as £21.99.

• White #3 Pascal Bouchard 2010 Chablis, Burgundy, France (Chardonnay, 12.5%) £9.49
• White #4 Vincent Girardin Le Limozin 2009 Meursault, Burgundy, France (Chardonnay, 13%) £28.49

Not too shabby, again.  Should have been able to figure out the first wine as a Chablis, I thought - but its always much easier once you know.  And though I wasn't spot-on with the cost, was definitely in the right ballpark.

Reds 1 & 2
I'm not nearly as confident or experienced on my reds (getting my excuses in early, see!).  The first red was really good; a rich, treacly smell, and a sharp, acid, sour, tanniney taste.  Actually, on the nose, I did get a hit of the slight stinkiness I've now come to associate with "natural" wines - which I think Michael & Vicky also recognised.  But I was all over the place in terms of trying to guess what is was - maybe a beaujolais, a grenache, a pinot noir?  Probably French, but maybe Italian.  Price?  Hmmm, tastes pretty good, easily £10.99.  The second red was equally delicious, but totally different; spicey cloves and leather on the nose - but still smelled sweet - and it had a soft taste, leathery again, slightly sour acic after-taste.  Grenache?  Merlot?  Um, French (when in doubt, eh?).  And probably an £8.99 kind of wine.  OK, so here's what they actually were:

• Red #1: Chateau Musar 2003/2004 Bekaa Valley, Lebanon (Cabernet Sauvignon/Cinsault/Carignan, 14%) £18.04
• Red #2: La Rectorie 2009 Côtes du Ventoux, Rhône, France (Grancahe/Syrah, 14%) £4.74

Wow!  Lebanese?  Not a hope in hell of me guessing that - and I'd not heard of Cinsault or Carignan grapes before.  Chateau Musar has a bit of a cult following, apparently - and (cribbing from the notes Vicky provided) "based on Bordeaux grape varieties, with a very ripe fruit character, and complex leather, musk and dried fruit notes.  The very 'natural' fermentation techniques make it one of a kind."  OK, Über-compeitive mode kicks in when I realise that despite not having a clue about what this actually was - I definately recognised the "natural" wine stink!  That's got to count for something, right?  Right?  

I was really surprised that the second wine was less than a fiver.  I'd say this was extremely good value as I enjoyed it and would have spent more.  Why oh why is there not a Waitrose in Dalston yet?!?

Reds 3 & 4

The final pairing of the evening, and the first a big blackcurrant jammy sweet smelling Rioja.  Probably.  Well, definately something Spanish - and probably expensive, £18.99.  Done, filled my form in.  Next!  Ah, well, still dark fruit and rich and sweet, probably something French and at a guess, Bordeaux. £9.72 (a very precise, if slightly random, guess). Come on Vicky, what are these?!?  (I think its fair to say that I'd been enjoying drinking the previous wines as well as tasting them.  The final pair:

• Viña del Perdon 2000 Gran Reserva, Navarra, Spain (Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon/Graciano, 13.5%) £6.32
• Domaine Heresztyn Vieilles Vignes 2007/08 Gevrey-Chambertin, Burgundy, France (Pinot Noir, 13%) £24.69

Well, the Spanish wine was very typically Spanish - but I didn't get the grapes and I would have been over-paying!  Good to know that you can get a nice big wine like that at a very reasonable price.  And I still struggle to tell the difference between a Bordeaux and a Burgundy (they both begin with a "B", no wonder!) so completely failed to spot either the grape, or that it was not a cheap wine by any means.

So I've learnt that either I'm much better at blind tasting whites, or I'm much better at blind tasting before I've had 4 glasses of white!  Either way...... a fun and informative night!

A bit of a stink....

Michael, Vicky & I went to the Bottle Apostle Natural Wines evening on the 14th of September.  The redoubtable Tom introduced us to the very broad concept of "natural wines" and what that term seems to cover in the industry; aspects of organic, low- or non-interventionist practices, biodynamic and sutainable viticulture.

Organic wine really only refers to the growing of the grapes and what is going on before the grapes get into the winery itself - but organic certification differs so widely across different wine-producing countries, that there are lot of very grey areas and it is difficult to know what is and isn't allowed for a wine to achieve that "organic" status.

Natural wine, then, is a much broader term, which has no legal meaning or certification - but is used to get a handle on what takes place in the winery.  A "natural" wine might be made with a minimum chemical or technological intervention; with low irrigation or low water; with a minimal of additives such as sugars, acidity adjusters, foreign yeasts, bacteria, or additives for colour, texture or minerality; minimal fining (use of coagulants such as egg whites or fish scales to remove haze from the wine) or filtering; no forced oxygenation; minimal or no added sulphur.  The key here is that so-called "natural" wine production is going to differ vastly from vineyard ot vineyard - so read up on the wine or producer and their statement of beliefs and processes.  Another key thing I took away is that caveats abound - "we make minimal  use of....."; "with the minimum of..." gives producers a lot of leeway to say that though they aspire towards organic or natural practices, if something goes a bit wrong, they'll probably resort to tried and tested interventionist methods rather than risk costly problems with their wine.  That assumes, though, that we're talking a decent-sized producer with ample resources who has made a conscious decision to go down the "natural" route.  Some smaller producers, are almost "natural" by default; such as the tiny productions of Luke Lambert in Yarra Valley, Australia, who makes wine in his garden shed, and for whom non-interventionism is a factor of minimal production costs and lack of industrial facilities.

The Daisy Steiner approach....

The other areas Tom touched on were "sustainable" practices such green, wild-life friendly approachs - which I think most people are familiar with these days (certainly anyone who listens to The Archers....); and "biodynamic" wines.  A biodynamic approach, among other things, uses prescribed calendars (such as phases of the moon) determining when to do certain things in the wine-making process.  Some producers are timing tastings with the "fruit day" of a particular grape.  There also seems to be a lot of burying things in other things and then digging them up later; bury take an animal's scull/intestine/hoof/bladder/rectal canal [delete as appropriate], and stuff it full of stinging nettles/faeces/barley/low-fat cream-cheese [as above], bury it, leave it a year, and then dig it up and add the contents of the scull to the soil.  At lot of this stems from the synthesis between science and mysticism that Daisy Rudoph Steiner devoted a lot of time to studying.

The wines themselves were.... a mixed bag.  My biggest takeway from the night is that some of the natural wines are REALLY stinky.  I mean, REALLY.  One of the wines we tried was Vin de Table Blanc "Valacabrieres" de Fantine NV Carole, Olivier & Corine Andrieu (13%: Terret: Languedoc) which uses no added sulphur in the production process.  From the look of it, it may as well have been decanted into a specimen  bottle as a caraffe - thick, cloudy and piss-coloured.  And it stank of manure.  Taste-wise, it was more like a cidre-deux than a wine - but interestingly after we'd been off and tasted some other wines, I was curious to try this one again and after about 30-40 minutes breathing time, the wine smelt more like stewed apples, and the taste was much more winey, still with a strong sweet appley taste but a hint of melons.

My favourite wine of the evening was Collioure "Folio" 2009 Coume del Mas (14%: Grenache Blanc: Roussillon) which was from a a non-mechanized producer where everything is done by hand or horse, which was a fantastic, intense white (though I didn't write down any probably tasting notes for this one, other than a big smiley face and a "Yum" to remind me to buy a bottle!).

Second favourite was Luke Lambert's Syrah 2009 Yarra Valley (13.5%: Australia) - as mentioned above, Lambert produces the wine in his back garden shed - the wine still had the hint of that stinkey manure smell which permeated 4 or 5 of the natural wines we tried, but was much more spicey and rich in its bouquet and was a gorgeous, rich, sweet wine.  He produces so little that his wines always sell out - but at £41 a bottle, I'm sure I could find an equally interesting and tasty non-natural wine at a much better price.

The final wine of real note was the Brunello di Montalcino 2004 Il Paradiso di Manfredi (13.5%: Sangiovese: Tuscany).  At a whopping £66 a bottle it was by far the most expensive of the "naturals" (they averaged about £20 a bottle), and is a biodynamically produced wine, fermented in concrete vats with no foreign yeast.  It had a stinky (again) nose mixed with tobacco, and a dark fruit, dry, earthy, leathery taste which was very pleasant.

My conclusion: a little intervention goes a long way (and is probably no bad thing!).