WINES of the WEEK, 22 January 2012

Just time to slot in a few recommendations before I head off to New Zealand for the Central  Pinot Noir Celebration, then to Waipara and Marlborough. Yes, it’s summer over there.

2010 Waipara West Pinot Noir, Waipara, New Zealand

For those left behind in the UK, a delicious, elegant South Island pinot noir, tasted over Christmas. Deep in colour, fragrant with roses, raspberries, cherries and sandalwood. Fresh, pure, polished fruit on the palate. Rounded and velvety with delicate, well-integrated oak and a clean cranaberry/cherry finish.  13.5% abv.

£18, Waterloo Wines, Lords Wines, Greensmiths, Martinez Wines

2010 Weinrieder Riesling Bockgarten, Weinviertel, Austria

Very pale. Mouthwatering pear and apple aromas with hints of spice and an intense mineral and citrus character. Dry, mineral, citrusy palate with an undertow of barely ripe apricot and fine, sustained acidity. Long and structured. Drink over the next eight years. 13% abv.

£12.15, Waterloo Wines

2009 Montirius Vacqueyras Garrigues, Rhône, France

One of four 2009s I tasted from this excellent biodynamic estate at what turned out to be a very good tasting of French wines from producers belonging to the biodynamic Biodyvin association. This Vacqueyras (Montirius iincludes vineyards in Gigondas) is a Grenache/Syrah blend (70:30) and, like all the reds, is oak-free, which gives wonderful precision and purity. It’s 15% abv but carries it effortlessly in perfume, pepper, sweet fruit, meat, spice and through concentration and silky tannins.

£12.95, Bery Bros & Rudd

2011 Yalumba Y Series Vermentino, South Australia

If you’re looking out for something lower in alcohol, this is ideal – 11.5% abv, light, crisp and refreshing, with a gentle floral and pear nose and delicate grapefruit and pear flavours. For once I haven't been able to get the putative stockists to confirm (it's a Sunday, I'm about to go to NZ etc), but I've been assured that the following have taken delivery or ordered in the last six weeks, so you ought to be able to get it from them without (much) delay. 
The rrp is £8.99 and the retailers are Gwin Llyn Wines, Hoults Wine Merchants, Nidderdale Fine Wines, Reserve Wines, The Bottleneck. 

WINES of the WEEK, 2 January 2012

Three rare and distinctive champagnes that deserve to be savoured when there is plenty of time, rather than given to partying hordes over the festive season.

2001 and 2002 Philipponnat Clos des Goisses

Unusually, Clos des Goisses has released these two vintages at the same time. 2002 was a stellar vintage in Champagne and 2001 was a washout, but Clos des Goisses isn’t like other vintage champagnes. It comes from an 5.5-hectare grand cru vineyard overlooking the Marne – a steep, south-facing hillside, divided into walled plots that have an average temperature 1.5ºC warmer than the rest of Champagne. It’s the extra sun and warmth that encourage Philipponnat to make a vintage champagne from the Clos nearly every year, even after a wet summer like 2001.

Both 2001 and 2002 are 65% pinot noir and 35% chardonnay and were disgorged in June. There’s no doubt in my mind that the 2002 is the greater of the two – riper, more concentrated, yet steelier – but the 2001, which is drinking well now and will continue to do so for five years, has plenty of charm and finesse. The 2001 is lightly biscuity, creamy and smoky on the nose with honeyed fruit – a cross between slightly bruised pears and bletted medlars – and it has fine, citrusy acidity and a mineral, smoky note on the finish.

The 2002 is fresh and much more perfumed on the nose, with peach, brioche and exotic spice notes. The palate has a malty, creamy, milk-chocolate richness with touches of coffee bean, and tight, firm acidity and a mineral finish.

The rrp for the 2001 is £142.49, Bordeaux Index and Fine & Rare sell it. 

The rrp for the 2002 is £180.99, but Joseph Barnes Wine Direct, in Saffron Walden, has it at £135 per bottle, with free delivery when you spend £100 or more (according to the website);  Millésima has it at £880 for six.
Also available from the UK agent Les Caves de Pyrène.

Billecart-Salmon Brut Sous Bois

This new cuvée is a blend of the three grape varieties, pinot noir, chardonnay and pinot meunier (nothing unusual there), but vinified entirely in oak barrels – a return to the past. It’s pale in colour with a nose rich in fruit and honey and with the oak giving an underlying, subtle vanilla and almond sweetness. The palate is full and dry with intense, fresh, candied citrus-peel fruit, a crème caramel flavour and smoothness, a touch of almond and admirably insistent acidity.  

£50.95, We Love Champagne; £56, James Nicholson

WINES of the WEEK, 21 December 2011

1988 Hugel Alsace Riesling Vendange Tardive, France

This 23-year-old, late-harvest riesling was one of the joint highest scorers, with 94/100 points, in The Wine Gang’s November report http://thewinegang.com/. It’s a fascinating, food-friendly wine, not least because it doesn’t actually taste sweet. It has honey, beeswax and apricot flavours and a rich, almost oily texture, which all indicate noble rot, but the lemon and lime intensity, the petrolly mineral notes and zesty, crystalline acidity make it taste little more than off-dry (12.5% abv).  

To prove the point, at The Wine Society’s annual festive dinner in London last week, at which the wines of Hugel were matched to the cooking of Emile Jung (3 Michelin stars when he was at Au Crocodile in Strasbourg), it was served with zander and mousseline of pike with crayfish tails in a riesling sauce. (I know what you’re thinking: what a tough life I do lead. Thanks, it’s nice to be appreciated.) You could also drink it as an aperitif or with a hard cheese such as Cheddar or Parmesan. Etienne Hugel said that the reason Hugel still has stock of this (The Wine Society shipped it only recently) is that the vintage was overshadowed by the more showy 1989 and 1990 vintages. The other wine served with the zander-pike-crayfish dish was Hugel’s 2005 Riesling Jubilee – a brilliant match. It's not currently on the Society’s website, but you can order it by phone (01438 741177; code AL6301, £22 a bottle).  

Another useful (and delicious) discovery was pinot gris with artichoke, a veg which can be so tricky with wine. The 2005 Hugel Pinot Gris Jubilee (£11 for 37.5cl; 14% abv) was seamless with the artichoke which accompanied pressed duck, ceps and celeriac purée. The 2009 Jubilee Pinot Noir, also served, was particularly good with the bird itself (the Society has bought this wine but isn’t listing it yet – it has plenty of time to go).

A few more festive treats.

2007 Caiarossa, IGT Toscana, Italy

If you haven’t bought your red for the goose or turkey yet, this lush, velvety Tuscan would do the trick, although you could equally well serve it with beef or venison (I had it with beef cheeks braised in red wine with shallots and chestnuts). Or put it aside for Christmasses to come. It’s cabernet franc and merlot (half the blend), with cabernet sauvignon, sangiovese, alicante, syrah and petit verdot from biodynamically cultivated vineyards in the hills behind Cecina. Apart from being fleshy and supple with soft tannins, it’s fragrant and spicy with fresh blueberry fruit and touches of herbs and chocolate (14.5% abv).

£39, Berry Bros & Rudd

2010 Atalayo do Mar Godello, Monterrei, Galicia, Spain

Godello is probably never going to make waves like albariño – there’s far less of it planted for a start – but it’s a dry white to look out for. This one, from old vines fermented with wild yeasts and aged on its lees for two months, has a light spritz and mouthwatering saline freshness, citrus peel, peach and apricot fruit, creamy texture fruit and lemon/lime finish (13% abv).

£10.99, Virgin Wines

2004 Veuve Clicquot Brut, Champagne, France

Maybe I shouldn’t have been surprised at how good this vintage Veuve is, but I was. The honeyed, toasty nose leads into a palate that balances freshness with sweet, elegant fruit, rich, spicy, toasted-hazelnut flavours and fine, appley acidity. Perfect now, but with years in it (12% abv).

£45.29, selected Sainsbury’s, and Ocado; £48.88, Fortnum & Mason

2010 Blind River Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand

Dark, full and rounded with succulent, sweet cherry, plum and raspberry fruit, a satin-smooth texture and a more savoury, nutty, spicy character that, given some age, will probably become more gamey. 

£14.99 if you buy any 2 bottles of New Zealand Wine (otherwise £18.74), Majestic

WINES of the WEEK, 18 December 2011

As usual the Co-op, or The co-operative, as it brands itself, has some very good Christmas offers. Below are four of the reds; prices valid until January 3 inclusive.

2006 Marqués de Valido Rioja Reserva, Spain

Attractive, mature, soft-textured Rioja with sweet, spicy fruit set against savoury, smoky, meaty, notes and nutty, slightly resiny oak. 13% abv.

£5.49 (down from £10.99)

2009 Château Brassac, Bordeaux Supérieur, France

Easygoing, modern-style, Merlot-dominated Bordeaux. Ripe, smooth black fruit with a soft, dry, cedary edge; clean and supple. 13% abv.

£6.99 (down from £11.99)

2005 Château Saint-Paul, Haut-Médoc, France

Nicely dense, harmonious cru bourgeois with textbook blackcurranty fruit, savoury, spicy, cigar-box flavours and modulated tannins. Balanced and well sustained. Perfect now, but it’ll be on form for another three or four years. 13% abv.

£9.99 (down from £14.99)

2010 La Grange St Martin Côtes du Rhône Réserve, Rhône, France

Rounded, juicy, peppery red with an undertow of spiced hot-chocolate. Made largely with fruit from their own vineyards by the Perrin family of the Châteauneuf-du-Pape estate Château Beaucastel. £13% abv.

£5.99 (down from £10.99)

And now for something completely different:

2011 Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough, New Zealand

Superb new vintage from Kevin Judd. Tinglingly fresh, juicy elderflower, herb and lemon flavours with a mouthwatering saline, mineral character and a fine chalky texture. Great length and presence. Just one criticism: a bottle weighing 727g when the average is abut 500g. This wine is far too good for a macho, heavy bottle.

£15.99 from independents (Swig, Taurus Wines, The Secret Cellar and many more)

WINES of the WEEK, 7 December 2011

Two of the wines I tasted from The Wine Society’s Small Wonders 6-bottle case of reds from around the world have already run out and been replaced by others, so if you want a case – and I highly recommend it – you’d better be quick. It costs £89, which is great value. One of the replacements, 2008 Katnook Estate Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon, I haven’t tasted, but here are brief notes on the the other five. All can be drunk now, but there’s no hurry over any of them.

2004 Château Ampélia, Côtes de Castillon, Bordeaux, France

Cedar, cocoa, spice and black fruit. Dry, soft but structured, polished and fresh on the finish. Perfect for drinking now and over the next two or three years. 13% abv. 

2007 Lanzaga, Rioja, Spain

Lovely cherry perfume and fruit on the palate, with liquorice, spice, chocolate and vanilla. Supple and fleshy, but with a firm central core. Impressive modern Rioja that will provide a good five years of drinking pleasure. Made by Telmo Rodriguez. 14% abv.

(£14.95 by the bottle)

2009 Mount Koinga Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand

Fragrant red berry and bergamot nose with honeyed redcurrant fruit on the palate and refined chocolaty richness. Pure and clean-edged. A single-vineyard made for The Wine Society by Paul Pujol of Prophet’s Rock. 13.5% abv.

(£17.70 by the bottle)

2007 Meandro do Vale Meão, Douro, Portugal

The second wine of Quinta do Vale Meão, and very good it is. Deeply scented with violets and black fruit and touches of black olive and liquorice. Full and concentrated palate with dark fruit, chocolate and black pepper underscored by oak. Long, silky, supple. Drink any time over the next five years. 14.5% abv.

(£16 by the bottle)

2009 Mascarello Dolcetto D’Alba, Bricco, Piedmont, Italy

Full, succulent dolcetto packed with plum and cherry fruit and sweet-earth and undergrowth notes underpinned by fine, grainy, dry tannins. From the top of Mascarello’s Monprivato vineyard. Drink over the next three or more years. 14.5% abv.

WINES of the WEEK, 18 November 2011

2010 Forrest Semillon, Marlborough, New Zealand

The first Forrest semillon for ten years. Normally, they get so little of it they blend it into the sauvignon blanc, but the 2010 semillon was exceptionally ripe and aromatic, so they kept it separate, fermenting 10% in old oak and all the rest in tank, and keeping it all on its lees for six months. The result is a full-bodied and nutty wine with ripe peach, fig and gooseberry fruit, a leesy richness to the texture, a touch of vanilla, and zingy acidity. Well worth the wait and the effort. 14% abv.

£14.99, Adnams

2011 Las Mulas Sauvignon, Central Valley, Chile

From the organic San Luis de Alico vineyard. Smoky, slightly flinty aromas and a vivid, grassy palate with hints of pineapple sweetness and mint. Lovely bite and freshness.

£8.99, Waitrose and vintagemarque.com

2009 Domaine de Mourchon Tradition, Côtes du Rhône-Villages Séguret , France

In this vintage I prefer the unoaked Tradition, Domaine de Mourchon’s original red, to the more expensive, older vine, oak-matured Grande Réserve and Family Reserve Grenache. The latter pair, made from very low yields (around 20hl/ha and 15hl/ha and vines aged 60–100 years), are impressive in a monumental way, but just a bit too ripe and alcoholic for my taste. There’s also a 2009 Châteauneuf-du-Pape but I won’t be tasting that for another month or two. Apparently the 2010 vintage is back to normal.

The 2009 Tradition, made from two-thirds grenache, a quarter syrah and a tenth carignan, all aged around 40 years and vinified and matured in concrete vats, has an alluring perfume – floral notes, blackberries and a fleeting whiff of ripe apricot. The palate, with its blackberry and black pepper flavours and hints of clove and licorice, is ripe, fleshy and smooth, but framed by soft, grainy tannins and enough acidity to give life and freshness. 14.5% abv. Drink over the next four years.

£12.99, Averys.

The Big Red Wine Company, which stocks the entire Domaine de Mourchon range, doesn’t have the 2009 Tradition yet, but does have the the 2007 (£11.25) which was very good when I tasted it a couple of years ago and should still be.

2009 Viñalba Malbec Syrah, Rio Negro, Patagonia, Argentina

An 80:20 Malbec Syrah blend, half of which was aged in French oak for 12 months. The oak gives polish and a fine, smoky, toasty edge to the dark, concentrated, beautifully fresh fruit and the spicy, more savoury flavours. 14.5% abv. Very good value. 

£8.48, Asda

WINES of the WEEK, 14 November 2011

Having missed a few weeks while getting Gourmet off the ground and preparing for The Wine Gang wine fairs, I'm now throwing a few mid-week wines in. Dudley & de Fleury is well worth a look if you're after some well-chosen wines from small, family-run French operations. The focus is on the south of France, but they venture into other areas and countries too. Below are some highlights from last week’s tasting (sadly, Fanny Sabre-less – don’t ask). I didn’t like everything, especially not the bretty, volatile Garsinde from La Grange de Quatre Sous, and prices are highish, but mostly the wines are all about quality and individuality. Many people will know of Domaine Jones (below) but, for those who don't, it's the tiny (3.3ha) estate established in 2009 by Katie Jones, ex sales and marketing director of the Mont Tauch wine co-op. The vineyards are in Maury and Tuchan and the wines from her debut vintages are incredibly impressive (aka delicious).    

Froment-Griffon Brut Tradition NV Champagne, France

Champagne made from a high 85% pinot meunier at a tiny, family run co-operative in the premier cru village of Sermiers in the Vallée de la Marne. Lightly honeyed, peachy fruit, soft textured and well-rounded with a zippy, fresh finish. A crowd-pleaser, but well made and by no means run-of-the-mill.

£19.95

2008 Virgile Joly Rouge! Coteaux du Languedoc, France

Organic, unoaked blend of syrah (50%), grenache (40%), cinsault and carignan. Juicy, raspberryish fruit with peppery, smoky flavours, soft tannins and a clean, dry, fresh finish.  Don’t serve too warm.  

£12.95

2010 Domaine Jones Dry Muscat, Vin de France

Fragrant, grapy and gingery with perfumy white-peach fruit. Refreshing and dry and more substantial in the mouth than you might expect.

£13.95

2010 Domaine Jones Blanc, Vin de France

Grenache gris with a smidgen of muscat. Rich but effortlessy fresh dry white with mineral, peach and citrus flavours. Delicious.

£17.95

2009 Domaine Jones Rouge, Vin de France

Old-vine grenache with a touch of carignan. Sweet, but fresh, pure fruit with nutty, mineral and pepper notes and fine tannins.

 £16.95

2009 Lucien Lardy Fleurie Les Roches

Beautifully scented, pure red fruit and rose petals. Rounded and silky but with mineral length and fine tannin. Quite pinot noir-like. Could become burgundian with age.

£17.95

2010 Gonard et Fils Viré-Clessé

Quite creamy and ripe, but with good acidity and lots of mineral, citrus and apple alongside the riper apricot. Structured and textured.

£16.95

WINES of the WEEK, 11 November 2011

2009 Louis Jadot Marsannay (Blanc), Burgundy, France

Fresh, creamy nose with malty, light buttered Brazil-nut oak. Full, but quite tight and mineral on the palate with a creamy texture and zesty acidity. Fermented and aged for 14 months in French oak barrels. Eminently drinkable now, but will benefit from another year. 13% abv.

£17.99, or £15.99 when you buy 2 or more, Majestic

2010 Howard’s Folly Alvarinho, Vinho Verde, Portugal

From the subregion of Monção e Melgaço where Vinho Verde is allowed to be 100% alvarinho. This is David Baverstocks first white under the Howard’s Folly label, and very good it is. Ripe, sweet citrus and olive oil aromas. Intense, vibrant palate, with dried apricot and really zesty lemon fruit and a mouthwatering, slightly salty, sea-breeze finish. Good acidity and substance. Will take a bit of age. 13% abv.

£12.95, Hercules Wine Warehouse (herculeswines.co.uk)

2009 Domaine des Crès Ricards, Alexaume, IGP Mont Baudile, Terrasses du Larzac, Languedoc, France

I’ve recommended this new red before (if not here, then in House & Garden or Gourmet), but I tasted it for a second time recently and was impressed again. Very spicy on the nose with some crisp black pepper, perfumed berries and an attractive hint of Carignan leather. Full, smooth, clean palate; spicy, nutty, slightly chocolaty and honeyed, with deep, blackcuranty fruit. It’s a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and Carignan grown in soils with large Chateauneuf-type pebbles and it’s a Jean-Claude Mas wine. 13.5% abv.

£9.99, Majestic

2007 Viña Mayu Syrah Reserva, Elqui Valley, Chile

I must have recommended this Chilean syrah in the past too but, again, I re-tasted it recently and it deserves another mention. Sweet, ripe and blackberryish on the nose with a welcome herbal freshness and the vanilla and chocolate of oak. Weighty but fresh on the palate, with a savoury combination of pepper, smoke, tar and liquorice in harmony with sweet, fresh, red fruit and evident but not overpowering oak (60% of the wine was aged in new and used French barrels for five to eight months). 14% abv.

£9.15, Asda

WINES of the WEEK, 28 October 2011

Continuing from where I left off, below are some of the reds at under £10 from the annual tasting of The Bunch, a group of six independent merchants whose slogan is ‘for wines less ordinary’ – a fair claim. There’s also another Symington single quinta port – one that wasn't at the London tasting, which is why I forgot to include it last week. First, though, something else I failed to mention last week: the Spanish white wine taste-off in London between two estates – the all-Albariño wines of Pazo de Señoráns (Rías Baixas) and the wines of Can Ràfols dels Caus in Penedès. Each showed 11 vintages going back to 1996. I gave my equal highest scores to three wines: 1996 and 1999 Pazo de Señoráns Seleccion Añada ­– thrillingly fresh on the nose, deep and complex on the palate; and the 1999 Can Ràfols dels Caus, a wonderfully, rich, intense and steely 100% chenin blanc from a single vineyard. So I gave my highest scores to the two oldest wines and one that was only a little younger. Who says Spanish white wines don’t age?

1999 Quinta da Senhora de Ribeira

Lovely single quinta port that can be drunk any time over the next 15–20 years. Fragrant, intense and densely flavoured with black fig, cassis, violets, spices, a touch of eucalyptus and ripe, rounded tannins. When a Dow’s vintage is declared, this quinta’s wine goes into it.

£65, The Wine Society.

2009 Gonnet, Ventoux, Rhône, France

Perfumed, ripe and spicy with juicy, raspberryish fruit. A sort of baby Châteauneuf-du-Pape from the family that owns Font de Michel. 14% abv.

£7.50, Adnams

2010 Domaine des Filles de Septembre Tradition, Côtes de Thongue (IGP), Languedoc, France

Youthful, juicy, spicy, earthy Mediterranean red with a herby garrigue accent and some carignan grip and dryness. 14% abv.

£8.50, Yapp

2009 Domaine Camp Galhan, Les Pérrassières, Duché d’Uzès, (IGP) Languedoc, France

Full-bodied, full-flavoured, warm, spicy, grenache-based red with succulent fruit and balancing dry tannins. 14% abv.

£9.50, Yapp

2010 Bodegas Monteabellon, Avaniel, Ribera del Duero, Spain

Richly fruity, unoaked tinto fino (aka tempranillo) with flavours of chocolate-coated, wine-soaked cherries, a minerally, peppery undertow and some useful ripe tannin in the background. 13.5% abv.

£9.75, Berry Bros

WINES of the WEEK, 22 October 2011

Wines of the Week resumes its normal, erratic service today, at the end of a week when, maddeningly, I had to miss the tasting of 2009 Grands Crus Bordeaux in London, but made up for it by attending the Symington family’s tasting of single quinta vintage ports from seven of their 26 quintas. It was a tasting that demonstrated the longevity and quality of these single quintas and their very different and distinct characters.

We started with all seven 2006s: there wasn’t a weak link, but the star was the dazzling Quinta do Vesuvio which, without question, has 50+ years ahead of it, if anyone keeps it that long, and we went back to an absolutely glorious 1950 Graham’s Quinta dos Malvedos. Three bottles of the 1950 were opened for this London tasting which means the Symingtons now have only three bottles left. They would have had four, but someone dropped one a couple of weeks ago when it had been brought up from the cellar for the joint MDs (Team Sym?) to taste for the first time… Glad it wasn’t me. The other five quintas are Dow’s do Bomfim, Warre’s da Cavadinha, Graham’s do Tua, Dow’s Senhora da Ribeira and Cockburn’s dos Canais.

Berry Bros & Rudd has the 2006 Quinta do Vesuvio at £82.

Back to earth. Below are brief notes on some of the whites from The Bunch’s annual tasting last month. I had no voice and the mother of all colds, but worked my way through a respectable number of wines, including the two dozen on the Under-£10 table. Overall the latter was an impressive group – and varied, too, despite the fact that more than half were French, all 11 of the whites were European and all but two of the 13 reds were European. I’ll cover some of the reds in the next installment.

The Bunch is a group of independent wine merchants, the membership of which has changed a bit over the years, but currently the six are: Adnams, Berry Bros & Rudd, Corney & Barrow, Lea & Sandeman, Tanners and Yapp Brothers. Long may they survive and, even better, flourish.

2010 Petite Gasconne Blanc, Côtes de Gascogne (IGP), France

Vivacious, juicy, light white with zesty peach and apple fruit. Made (and wisely screwcapped) by the excellent Producteurs Plaimont co-operative group. 11.5% abv.

£6.49, Corney & Barrow

2009 .COM Branco, Estremoz, Portugal

Sappy Portuguese white with herby lime flavours, good weight in the mouth and a fresh finish. It’s made from indigenous varieties with a little viognier by Tiago Cabaçao and it really is called dot com. 13.5% abv.

£7.50, Adnams

2009 Château Grinou, La Combe de Grinou, Bergerac Sec, France

Delightful semillon/sauvignon blanc blend with aromas of elderflower and fresh minted peas. Gives similarly priced white Bordeaux a run for its money. 12% abv

£8.29, Corney & Barrow

2010 Domaine Félines Jourdan, Picpoul de Pinet, Languedoc, France

Apples, herbs, and a zesty, salty, mineral freshness. Textbook Picpoul from this consistently good estate. 13.5%.

£8.95, Berry Bros & Rudd; and even more tempting £7.75 from The Wine Society

2010 Terras d’Alter, Terra d’Alter Branco Reserva, Alentejo, Portugal

Another great value Portuguese white. Vibrant, fresh pear, apple and herb aromas and flavours and pithy acidity. Made by Australian Peter Bright. 13.5% abv.

£9.95, Lea & Sandeman

UNMISSABLE CHRISTMAS WINE FAIRS

Normal service will resume for Wines of the Week shortly, but in the meantime here’s something to fix in you diaries: The Wine Gang Christmas Wine Fairs In London and Edinburgh ­– the tasting events of the season. We’ve got a brilliant line-up of wines and exhibitors at each, together with sit-down Masterclasses with great speakers and great wines and the inimitable Wine Walks led by the five of us – so that’s Tom, Anthony, Jane, David and me let loose in the hall at pre-ordained times with a gaggle of followers visiting stands to taste favourite wines – everything from the great classics to the fascinatingly quirky. As for the Masterclasses, they’re a bargain, which is why Bollinger was an instant sell out. Sorry about that, but it still leaves Michel Chapoutier, Yalumba icons and Bodegas O Fournier in London, Chablis (including grand cru), the gems of Chile, magnificent Malbecs and hidden Portugal in Edinburgh. Once you’ve bought a ticket for the relevant fair, you can book any or all of them. The Wine Walks are free (because we love doing them): all you need to do is sign up on the lists on the day.

You can get all the details and buy your tickets for London here and for Edinburgh here, but these are the vital statistics:

Saturday 29 October 2011, 12 noon to 6pm, Vinopolis, London SE1.

Saturday 12 November 2011, 12 noon to 6pm, The Merchants’ Hall, Edinburgh.

Earlybird tickets, £15; full-price tickets £20.

London Masterclasses, £15. Edinburgh Masterclasses, £10.

Once you have a ticket, you can come and go during the day, so, if you want to nip out to Borough Market, get lunch or whatever, you can.

There will be more than 600 wines open for tasting in London – and last year the average price per bottle across the 600-plus was not far short of £14. That’s how seriously our exhibitors take visitors to The Wine Gang events. In Edinburgh there’ll be 300 wines priced from £6 to £80. As I say, that’s how seriously exhibitors take you – and us.

You can see the complete list of exhibitors here but, to give you a taster, exhibitors at both include The Wine Society, Majestic, Waitrose and M&S, generic bodies such as Wines of New Zealand and Wines of Argentina and producers such as Blason de Bourgogne, Yalumba and Concha Y Toro. In London, we also have the likes of Lea & Sandeman, Armit, Liberty Wine and Corney & Barrow. In Edinburgh we’re welcoming Valvona & Crolla, Great Grog, Lockett Brothers and House of Menzies among others.

You don't have to be a member of The Wine Gang to come to our Wine Fairs, but it helps! Join here

WINES of the WEEK, 1 September 2011

If anyone thinks that Portuguese white wines start and finish with Vinho Verde, they’ve got a treat in store. Portugal is terribly underrated as a white wine producer. These two are from The Wine Society, but they’re not the only good ones they have – nor the only good Portuguese whites out there. The Sauvignon is a new one from the south west and gives the Loire a run for its money. All we need now is some good weather.

2010 Herdade do Esporão, Verdelho, Alentejo, Portugal

Very floral and perfumy but also smoky; ripe and fairly full-bodied, with an exotic smokiness, lime-cordial intensity and satisfying, refreshing acidity. Delicious. Made down in the south from estate-grown, unoaked-verdelho by Sandra Alves, under the eye of David Baverstock. 13.5% abv.

£8.50, The Wine Society

2010 Dão Sul, Cabriz, Dão, Portugal

Sweet citrus, spice and herbs on the nose and mouthwatering, stony-mineral, smoky, herbal flavours with tangy acidity. Medium-bodied. Very restorative. A blend of malvasia fina, encruzado, cerceal branco and bical (just as you thought). 12.5% abv.

£6.95, The Wine Society

2010 Sensas Sauvignon Blanc, Côtes de Gascogne, France

Really aromatic sauvignon from the Gers – all gooseberry, grassy, herbal aromas with vivid gooseberry fruit on the palate, a nicely chalky texture and a zesty finish. It’s an Alain Grignon wine made by Xavier Roger, a native of the Loire, a region where they know a thing or two about sauvignon. 12.5% abv.

£7.49, Majestic