WINES of the WEEK, 13 May 2011

It had to be Languedoc this week. These three were tasted at Stone, Vine & Sun’s aptly named Beautiful South tasting the day after I judged at the prestige Wines de Languedoc competition, both events held at Sud de France’s swish Cavendish Square premises in London.

2010 La Begude L’Exotique, Haute Vallée de l’Aude, France

I’m not sure whether I should be mentioning this, because there’s very little of it, but who could resist a Languedoc grüner veltliner? (No, not exactly a permitted grape variety anywhere in France.) It’s actually 80% grüner, blended with 20% chardonnay which was barrel-fermented in old oak. The result is delightful – aromatic and peachy with a silky texture and appetisingly fresh, green pear and citrus/lime flavours and finish. 13% abv. I’d drink it as an aperitif to make the most of it. Domaine Begude is owned by James and Catherine Kinglake – Brits.

£11.25, Stone, Vine & Sun

2007 Domaine des Trinités Languedoc, France

An unoaked blend of 70% grenache, 20% syrah and 10% carignan with a nice touch of maturity. Dry, spicy and garriguey, with dried-fruit and red-cherry flavours and soft tannins. Very soothing and relaxing. And inexpensive. 14% abv. I wasn’t wowed by the Trinités viognier, but there’s a very good, more expensive red cuvée called Les Deves (50% grenache, with syrah, carignan and some mourvèdre), which Stone, Vine has at £11.75. The estate is owned by Simon Coulshaw (English), who trained at Plumpton, and his Spanish wife.

£8.50, Stone, Vine & Sun

2008 Domaine du Méteore Saint-Chinian Clos du Bijou, France

First vintage of Méteore’s Saint-Chinian, from vineyards just over the border from Faugères, the estate’s home appellation. A smoky, mineral, peppery blend of unoaked grenache, syrah and carignan, 50:35:15, with lovely, full, red-berry fruit, fine tannins and elegant, spicy length. 14% abv. A triumph.

£9.50, Stone, Vine & Sun

WINES of the WEEK, 6 May 2011

Wines of the Week 6 May 2011

A couple of highlights from Majestic’s summer tasting in London.

2010 Nathalie Lafond, Reuilly Cuvée Nathalie, Loire, France

Reuilly is always worth looking out for as a cheaper alternative to nearby Sancerre and 2010 is a textbook vintage for all these Central Loire sauvignon blanc appellations. This is a new cuvée using Lafond’s best grapes. It has a delicious spicy, minerally character and grassy, herbal, green-apple fruit with real depth, texture and tang. 12.5% abv.

£9.99, or £8.99 if you buy 2 or more bottles, Majestic.

2008 Descendientes de J Palacio, Pétalos Bierzo, Spain

This shows just how good north-west Spain’s mencía grape can be in the right hands. Deep in colour, succulent and full, but also refined and elegant, with spicy, herby, sweet-blackberry fruit, touches of dark chocolate and licorice, and supple tannins leading to a fresh, polished finish. 14% abv.

£15.99, or £12.99 if you buy 2 or more bottles, Majestic.

WINES of the WEEK, 29 April 2011

2010 Tingleup Vineyard Great Southern Riesling, Western Australia

Latest vintage of this consistently good wine – surely one of Tesco’s best own-labels (it’s in the Finest range). Petrol, zesty lime and flowery notes on the nose and a mouthwateringly fresh, fruity palate with apple and peach, then spicier apple and lime on the finish and racy acidity which makes it seem drier than it is. No petrol on the palate, incidentally. A perfect aperitif, but also good with smoked fish, salads, slow-roast tomatoes, capers etc. And only 11% abv. tesco.com/wine has the 2009 at £38.40 for 6 (£6.40 a bottle), which is probably a bargain. I haven’t tasted the 2009 for a while, but this wine usually keeps well.

£9.29, Tesco

2010 Domaine Houchart Côtes de Provence Rosé, France

Everything a dry pink from Provence should be – lively and refreshing with juicy red fruit flavours, a touch of spice, a supple mid-palate and a crisp, dry finish. The only thing it’s emphatically not, which so many Provence rosés are, is expensive – in fact it’s great value. It’s a grenache-based blend, with some cinsault, mourvèdre, cabernet, syrah and other bits and pieces, and the grapes are directly pressed, except for 10% which is free-run juice from a cold-maceration of red wine grapes. 13% abv. The estate is at the foot of Mont Saint Victoire and the current owner, Geneviève Quiot (Quiot of Châteauneuf fame), is the great granddaughter of the founder Aurélien Houchart, who was, apparently, a lifelong friend of Cézanne. I love connections like that.

£6.95, The Wine Society

2007 Castello della Paneretta Chianti Classico Riserva, Italy

A dark, young, but very approachable riserva, with sweet, spicy, smoky sandalwood aromas, ripe cherry fruit, a nutty, smoky richness and softly grainy tannins. It’s 90% sangiovese and a comparatively high (for Chianti Classico) 10% of the traditional canaiolo. 14.5% abv. Ready now, but there’s no hurry to drink it. I was going to recommend it last week as a perfect match for Easter lamb or capra, but I got waylaid by other wines. Still, there’s no law against eating lamb or kid this week too, and it would go equally well with a steak, a butter bean and chorizo stew, a really good pizza, Comté, Manchego etc.

£12.99, Marks & Spencer

WINES of the WEEK, 22 April 2011

2010 Garcia Viadero Albillo, Ribera del Duero, Spain

Another obscure grape variety this week, but a Spanish white, albillo, which has been in Ribera del Duero for hundreds of years but which is rarely grown now because the DO doesn’t extend to white wines. Yolanda Garcia Viadero is determined to keep the flame burning, however, and has produced this appealing, medium-bodied dry white. It has floral, fruity aromas, peach, pear and a fresh herbal note on the palate, a soft mid-palate and a clean, citrus finish. Good as an aperitif and also with white fish (eg baked, herb-crusted cod). 13% abv.

£9.69–£10.99, Harvey & Sons (Lewes), Wine Time (Carnforth), winetimes.co.uk.

2008 Mas La Chevalière Peyroli, Pays d’Oc, France

Michel Laroche of Chablis fame is behind this Languedoc white, a blend of chardonnay and viognier (85:15) from the Peyroli vineyard which lies at a relatively lofty 400m. Moderate temperatures and the viognier component give lifted apricot and peach flavours and refreshing acidity; maturation in French oak gives breadth and succulence. 13% abv.

£9.50–£10.90, Robin Greatorex Wines; slurp.co.uk. For more stockists, contact Liberty Wines.

2008 Mas La Chevalière Roqua Blanca, Pays d’Oc, France

The red from Laroche’s Languedoc estate is a 50:50 syrah:merlot blend aged in French oak for 18 months. It has bright, fresh blueberry and blackberry fruit with touches of sweet vanilla balanced by savoury black-pepper, mineral and woodsmoke flavours and supple tannins. 14% abv.

£10.90, slurp.co.uk. More stockists from Liberty Wines.

WINES of the WEEK, 15 April 2011

Wines of the Week 15 April 2011

International Wine Challenge-induced delay in posting this week, but here they are:

2010 Domaine Bellegarde Cuvée Tradition Jurançon Sec, France

Latest vintage of this consistently good dry Jurançon. Fresh, sappy nose with touches of apricot and minty herbs, and a zesty palate with flavours of apple, orange and minerals. No oak, lovely purity. 13% abv.

£11.95, Yapp Bros.

2009 Hilltop Premium Red, Eger, Hungary

A juicy, peppery, velvety red with spiced-plum fruit and crunchy fresh acidity. It’s a blend of cabernet franc and cab sauvignon, with a bit of kékfrankos and merlot, and it’s from what was apparently a very good year for Hungarian reds. I can’t claim any in situ experience of the vintage, but am willing to believe it on the strength of the three Hilltop reds The Wine Society has just introduced (the other two are a straight kékfrankos and a straight cabernet franc, both £9.50). This blend is 13% abv.

£7.50, The Wine Society.

2007 Racemi Sum, Torre Guaceto, Puglia, Italy

This is a gem, made from a Puglian grape variety that was nearly extinct until Gregory Perruci decided to revive it. It’s a full-bodied southern Italian red with a sweet perfume reminiscent of primitivo and a similar sweetness of fruit, together with lots of earthy spice and nutty richness, but grippier tannins and fresher acidity. Sum is named after the truly obscure grape variety susumaniello. 14% abv.

£9.95, The Wine Society

WINES of the WEEK, 8 April 2011

2007 Hatzidakis Pyrgos Assyrtiko, Santorini, Greece

An extraordinary wine – rich, dry, complex and thrillingly fresh. Only a few hundred bottles are made from Hatzidakis’s oldest assyrtiko vines grown in Santorini’s unirrigated volcanic-ash soils. It’s fermented very slowly with natural yeasts and is then aged in old oak. The result is a deep yellow wine which is honeyed, rich, creamy and spicy, yet dry, deeply mineral and fabulously clean and fresh. 14% abv. It’s one of several fascinating wines I tasted last week at Theatre of Wine in Greenwich, a shop owned by ex-actor Daniel Illsley and stuffed with exciting bottles. There’s now a branch north of the river, too – lucky Tufnell Park residents.

£29, Theatre of Wine.

2009 Vignoble Guillaume Pinot Noir, Vin de Pays de Franche-Comté, France

Xavier Guillaume’s pinot noir outshines most Bourgogne Rouge at the same price. Fragrant, supple and fresh, with crisp, summer-pudding fruit and a delicate, oh-so-burgundian, savoury, mineral undertow. Drink at the cooler end of the red wine temperature spectrum. 12.5% abv.

£11, Theatre of Wine.

2009 Domaine Philippe Gilbert Menetou-Salon Rosé, France

Lovely, aromatic, pinot noir rosé from the Loire. Fresh, crisp and elegant, but much more fruit and succulence than most pink Sancerres. Biodynamic. Not cheap, but it doesn’t deserve to be. 13.5% abv.

£14.50, Theatre of Wine.

WINES of the WEEK, 1 April 2011

2007 Taste the Difference Priorat, Spain

I don’t really know how they can sell low-yielding old-vine red Priorat at such a low price, but they are and it’s worth recommending. It’s a 60:40 blend of mazuela and grenache – dark and full, but not massive, with sweet plum and cherry fruit, Priorat’s savoury, mineral signature, well-handled oak and a solid base of supple tannins. Should last a few years. It’s made for Sainsbury’s by the giant, Montsant-based Cellers Unió co-operative. 14.5% abv.

On offer at £7.49 until April 26, then back to £9.99, Sainsbury’s.

2009 Franschhoek Vineyards Semillon, Franschhoek, South Africa

Another case of I-don’t-know-how-at-this-price, especially as this white, from vines around 80 years old, is fermented and aged in barrel. It’s fresh, rounded and textured, with nutty, sweet-lemon and apricot fruit, pithy, grapefruity acidity and a touch of spice. A bargain – and not too alcoholic either: 13.5% abv. One of many very good and interesting new wines at The Wine Society.

£6.95, The Wine Society

31 March 2011

This is going up a day early because today is the last day you can buy it at the considerably discounted price. Tomorrow it goes up on Armit's website at the higher price. Yes, it’s April 1^st tomorrow. No, it’s not an April Fool.

2001 La Rioja Alta Viña Ardanza Rioja Reserva Especial, Spain

Only two previous vintages of this reserva have had Especial appended, the 1964 and the 1973, so it’s pretty clear how highly La Rioja Alta rates the 2001. Justifiably so. It’s a glorious wine. Very aromatic and high-toned, with berries, sweet herbs, spicy oak, and touches of almond, resin and milk chocolate on the nose. Very silky and smooth on the palate; full, round, ‘sweet’, almost no discernible tannin but remarkable freshness. It went beautifully with roast Gressingham duck and stood up perfectly well to an oozing, although not particularly pungent, Camembert. It has 20% garnacha (80% tempranillo) and was bottled in September 2005 after three years in used American oak. It’ll see in its 20^th birthday. 13.5% abv.

£170 per case of 12 in bond today, then £229.65 per case in bond from tomorrow, Armit.

WINES of the WEEK, 25 March 2011

Three wines that won’t break the bank.

2010 Cuvée de Richard, Comté Tolosan, France

This has always been a useful, light white at a refreshingly low price, but the 2010 is a step up. Perhaps it’s the smidgen of sauvignon added to the colombard/ugni blanc blend for the first time. Anyway, it’s sprightly, zesty and grassy with a light top-note of sweeter tropical fruit. 11.5% abv.

£4.79, Majestic

2005 McWilliams Mount Pleasant Elizabeth Semillon, Hunter Valley, Australia

A classic Hunter semillon now at a fascinating and delicious stage of maturity – straw, toast and honey flavours blending with pithy lemon and a pinch of white pepper, and with the slightly oily texture of semillon cut by knife-edge acidity. 12% abv. Great value.

£9.99, Wine Rack; £10.70, Slurp.co.uk

Château Camplazens La Garrigue, Coteaux du Languedoc La Clape, France

Aptly named, garrigue-scented, medium-bodied red, from a region which doesn’t often manage to make characterful wines at this relatively modest alcohol level (12.5%). Soothingly supple with spicy, red-cherry fruit and an undertow of aromatic herbs.

£7.99, Wine Rack

WINES of the WEEK, 18 March 2011

Matošević Alba Barrique, Istria, Croatia

The only thing not to like about this wine is writing out the name with the accents on the producer’s surname – and perhaps the price, but you’re paying for quality and rarity. It’s a barrel-aged white made by Ivica Matošević from malavasija istarska, the malvasia indigenous to Istria, and it’s grown on eight hectares near Grimalda (a village said to have Istria’s most beautiful view). Medium-full, deliciously mineral, smoky and fresh, with spice, honey, citrus and green olive flavours and an olive-oil texture. 13.5% abv. Imported by D’Issa, which has a stall in Borough market for its Croatian food specialities and should have its website up and running soon.

£22.50, Cartwright Brothers in Borough Market

2007 Bodegas Abanico Manium Crianza, Bierzo, Spain

This is from low yielding, old Mencia vines, grown and hand-tended on steep, terraced slopes. It’s fragrant and juicy, medium-bodied and nicely chewy, with sweet strawberry and red-cherry fruit gently underscored by the nutty, spicy flavours of classy French oak. It’s 14.68%, but wears it lightly.

£13.20, Bancroft Wines

WINES of the WEEK, 11 March 2011

2009 Teruzzi & Puthod Rondolino Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Tuscany, Italy

A sappy, leafy-fresh nose with touches of almond and spice, then an ultra-fresh, medium-weight palate with herby, lemony fruit and a hint of honey and fennel. A perfect wine to wind down with at the end of a working day. 12.5% abv.

£8.99, Waitrose

2008 Sportoletti Assisi Rosso, Umbria, Italy

A juicy, ripe and fleshy blend of Sangiovese, Merlot and Cabernet, oak-aged for extra richness and spice. Not complex, but deliciously, even dangerously, drinkable. Very good value at under a tenner. 14.5% abv.

£9.95, Lea & Sandeman; £11.35, Bancroft Wines

2008 Pitchfork Cabernet Merlot, Margaret River, Western Australia

Deep colour with ripe cassis and fresh mint on the nose – very Margaret River. Clean, well-defined palate with the focus on bright fruit, balanced oak and supple tannins. 14% abv.

£10.80, Bancroft Wines

WINES of the WEEK, 4 March 2011

2009 Avalon Archangel Pinot Noir, Central Otago, New Zealand

I know we had a New Zealand pinot noir last week, but this one from further south is quite different. The Terraces from Marlborough is broader and fleshier. This has wonderful purity, clarity, elegance and fragrance – all cranberries, cherries, nutmeg and a hint of coffee with a satin-smooth texture. Very grown-up pinot noir, and the 2008 was just as good, which bodes well. Vagabond, a shop lined with enomatics for sampling the 100 wines, opened last autumn in Fulham, west London, just near Fulham Broadway, and is well worth a detour. 14% abv.

£23.95, Vagabond; vagabondwines.co.uk

2009 Laura Ascheri Vermentino, Liguria, Italy

A medium-bodied, dry white that is both zippily refreshing and mouthfillingly satisfying. It has quince, pears and custard on the nose, fresh herb and citrus flavours, a hint of honey and a mineral finish. Particularly good with fish and dishes with lots of fresh, leafy green herbs (basil, coriander, flat-leaf parsley), lemon, garlic and a touch of chilli. 13% abv.

£22.85, Vagabond, vagabondwines.co.uk

2010 Mas des Mas Pinot Blanc Zucco Vineyard, Languedoc, France

A successful first pinot blanc from the indefatigable Jean-Claude Mas. Zucco is a two-acre vineyard more or less in the the foothills of the Montagne Noire and the wine is just as it should be – delicately floral with pear and citrus flavours, a pinch of spice, a rounded, soft texture and crisp finish. A good aperitif; also goes well with goat’s cheese salad and simple risotto. 13.5% abv.

£7.99, on offer until May (then back to £9.99), Majestic

2009 Paul Mas Estate Single Vineyard Collection Malbec, Gardemiel Vineyard, Languedoc

Deep purple with malbec’s trademark Cahors flavours of blackberry, damson and licorice, and some ripe, chunkyish tannins and acidity softened and fleshed out with oak. 13.5% abv. Well worth buying at the offer price.

£6.49, if you buy two or more (£8.99, singly), Majestic.

WINES of the WEEK, 25 February 2011

Better late than never. Don't ask. OK, let's just say that enjoying myself in the Napa Valley and failing to sync the ipad correctly combined to get in the way.

2007 Montana ‘T’ Terraces Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand

Montana’s top pinot noir, and very sumptuous it is – deep flavour, long finish. It comes from the Wairau Valley part of Marlborough and has an expansive, sweet, pinot noir perfume, lush, cherry and plum fruit flecked with vanilla, savoury richness and a lovely, silken texture. It’s ready now, but isn’t going to fall off its perch anytime soon. 14% abv.

£14.81, Gondola Wine; £15.59, Ocado

Waitrose Solera Jerezana Fino del Puerto Sherry, Jerez, Spain

Delicious, fresh and equally complex fino from the house of Lustau. On the one hand Marmitey, savoury, smoky and nutty; on the other tinglingly lemony and fresh. It could hardly be better – and certainly not at this price. 16.5% abv

£8.19, Waitrose