Vintage

I opened this wine with yesterdays Spaghetti Bolognese, looking for something big and bold to dance windmills around our taste buds and seal the food and wine partnership with a kiss.  It is interesting to take a wine that one doesn't know and pour glasses for our dining companions before sitting back and waiting for comments.   This signature blend of shiraz (sirah) and viognier did just that with Anthony holding up his glass and egging on other people to taste it.  A good sign!

Blended wines often give us something special to enjoy.  If a winemaker takes the trouble to blend two different wines and then declare it the signature wine then we can be assured it is worth a gamble.  The aromas on the nose of this particular tinto nectar attractively mixed dark plum and spice with echoes of liquorice and oak vanilla rounding it off.

In the mouth the wine is smooth with plenty of its' own character - brilliant with red meat dishes that have bags of herb flavour.  Needless to say this bottle didn't last long. It is a very enjoyable wine with a sophisticated edge… drink on!

Imported by Harlington Wines (awaiting UK stockists & will update).

A perfect red wine for Christmas period eating shenanigans.  It's a rustic red cherry, hints of strawberry, raspberry and vanilla flavoured compote to tickle the taste buds of festive tinto fanciers.

Immediately one "gets" the 100% tempranillo grapes expressing themselves in a mellow mature style.  The year and a half in American oak give it the vanilla bounce; the two years in the bottle round of any edges and soften the tannins so you are left with a glass of very fine Rioja.  Time and effort has gone into this bottle so enjoy it!

RRP £12.99  Available from: Majestic, www.yourfavouritewines.com, www.everywine.co.uk and www.rhythmandbooze.co.uk

There is something about the label of the champagne Folies de la Marquetterie that reaches out to the natural born hedonist and screams: "Open me and drink me!"… and so we did - our first drink on Christmas morning.

The grapes are picked from the area close to the Taittinger family home and this wine is made in limited quantities, only containing the juice from the first press.  Dip your nose in deep to catch the effervescing wine on the tip and breathe in through the nostrils to experience the brioche and hints of peach.  The fruits express themselves more fully when the liquid gold asserts it self on the palate and the flavours of pear, peach and subtle toasted bread rebound like atoms in a hadron collider, propelled instead by an excellent balanced acidity.

All in all, a champagne to drink… and drink again!

RRP £51

Fortnum & Mason, Harrods, Alfred the Grape, www.everywine.co.uk

I was walking along the Chiswick High Road on Sunday and darted into the Wimbledon Wine Cellar, a really good fine wine shop with helpful staff and a few outlets spotted about London (Flagship store in Wimbledon strangely!).  We’d been invited to our neighbours for a Christmas drink and I thought I’d see if there was something unusual I could take over for fun.  I queried the girl at the counter for a suggestion and was promptly escorted to the back of store and introduced to a very helpful Gregg Glass from Compass Box Whisky Company (www.compassboxwhisky.com).  Before us stood five bottles making up the Compass Box range and I readily accepted the invitation to taste them.

I personally struggle with very peaty whisky but it does still intrigue me.  I was pleased that we started with the very subtle Asyla Whisky, a blend of malt and grain whisky.  This is, Gregg pointed out, very unusual as there are not many producers blending grain and malt - we’re more familiar with the blending of different casks.  As a non whisky drinker I found this a really accessible whisky to start with.  It had a pleasant fruity sweetness and a complexity gained from being made from 10 and 12 year old whiskies.

As we moved through the range the intensity of the smokiness and peaty characteristics started to get stronger.  As I said before, I am intrigued by the power in these drinks but have to limit my intake.  The Peat Monster was delicious and packing the style of overt punch and peatiness emanating from the high quality Islay single malt, an Islay South Shore malt and a peated Speyside malt, all aged in American casks.  It is worth ordering a bottle of this to taste with friends for fun - it is a great experience.  Tasting it next to something milder or that has been aged in different casks is a great way to remember the differences between them.

The last whisky I tasted which I loved was called ‘The Last Vatted Malt’ and not part of the range before us but is about to be released (see the web site for more information).  This was quite special.  It had delicious subtle dried fruits and hints of smokiness but nothing overpowering. It had been aged in 36 year old sherry casks to give it a fully rounded body; definitely has that “just one more glass” factor!

If you’re looking for a whisky experience that will pleasurise and educate your palate then try Compass Box Whisky.  The range suits all tastes and combines really good value and quality.

Available from:
http://wimbledonwinecellar.com/
www.milroys.co.uk

Also find more information at www.compassboxwhisky.com

Now the fifth largest wine producer in the world, it wasn’t until the 1990’s we started to see Argentine wine exported for the rest of the world to enjoy. Nowadays a mouth watering Malbec or a fresh glass of Torrontes are a wine tasters staple, but nothing can compare to acquainting your taste buds to the local flavours quite like visiting the vineyards themselves.
Here are three of our favourite places to stay on a wine fuelled trip to experience a truly unique Argentine wine experience.

Cavas Wine lodge

Sitting just 30 minutes outside of Mendoza – Argentina’s most famous of wine regions – Cavas Wine Lodge is nestled beautifully between 900 of Argentina’s finest Bodega’s (Vineyards). Worth the 

trip for the stunning setting alone, this chic boutique hotel has a truly fantastic wine cellar showcasing 250 carefully selected wines from the local region. And for those wanting to find a new way with wine, Cavas Wine Lodge even offers a range of amazing wine based spa treatments – Crushed Malbec Scrub anyone?

Vinas de Cafayate

Cafayate is a lesser known yet stunningly beautiful wine region in Argentina’s North West region in the province of Salta. This up and coming region is becoming famous for its delightfully crisp Torrontés with help from the low humidity and mild weather of the valleys. Stay at Vinas de Cafayate, our favourite hotel at foot of the majestic San Isidro Hill, and the perfect base to visit the best wineries in the area - from the traditional and prestigious Etchart to small and premium wineries such as Finca Las Nubes de José Luis Mounier and El Porvenir. 

For more information please contact www.exsus.com

This semillon driven white wine from the Entre-Deux-Mers district is lovely.  The blended grapes of sauvignon blanc, muscadelle and semillon are all very well balanced with perfumed aromas and hints of banana - unusual but very pleasant.

The taste is fruit sweet with lovely minerality that gives one a good sense of the "terroir" (Growing conditions including soil and climate)  in this area of SW France.  A really good wine selected by the ever dependable Wine Society, and a testament of good modern style wine making from the Despagne family in Bordeaux.

Château Bel Air, Perponcher Réserve 2010, Bordeaux
£8.50, stockist: The Wine Society
Buy it online here

Although your humble editor would not necessarily pair red wine and chocolate (I'd more likely suggest a bar of the dark stuff and a glass of Madeira for sweetness balance) I have to show respect to the eminent Sir David Attenborough who in an interview with the Mail On Sunday, attributes the food and wine combination of Cadbury's Fruit & Nut bars and red wine, especially in polar winter conditions, to his own longevity.

With Sir David's stout constitution and zest for bringing the natural world into our living rooms, this has to be a tip worth passing on!

This well made Beaune Premier Cru 2008 made by Louis Jadot is a very tasty intro to the wines of the Southern Côte-d'Or in Burgundy.  The character of these wines is unique, yet very approachable and the fruit is intensely red fruit with mild tannins.  The characteristic I love in these wines is the earthiness that sometimes verges on "farmyard".  

Beaune wines go especially well with meaty dishes, casseroles, gamey foods and especially the Christmas cooking menu.  If you can't find the Louis Jadot then ask your local wine merchant what wines they have from the Cote de Beaune; I'm sure they'll have some good advice of their own!

Louis Jadot Beaune 1Cru, 2008

Available in: Majestic, Leamington Wine Company, Rhythm & Booze and many other wine retailers for approximately £16

Marta served a dish of oven roasted lemon chicken - wow - herbaceous and juicy it was the perfect match for the Taittinger Prestige Rose.  This is very popular rose champagne and rightly so.  After a mouthful of chicken coated with the flavoursome oils, the strawberry flavour leads the charge of red fruit intermingling for a great tasting sensation.  Really delicious.  The fresh acidity clears the palate leaving a space for the next desirable forkful of food! Other guests seemed surprised that champagne would be served with a main course but everyone agreed that it is a pairing that should be indulged more often.  Very pleasurable indeed!






and finally…. we closed off with a bottle of Taittinger Nocturne NV, blue cheese and chocolate truffles.  The Nocturne is aged on its lees for seven years before disgorging and has a very high level of sugar (17g) that dictates its sweet style.  Sweet champagne made with so much class does not get enough
appreciation.  It is a powerful wine with intense ripe fruits including peaches and pear.  The flavour stays in the mouth for a long time and loves squaring up to the cheese.  I was hoping to have this with cheesecake but forgot to buy it in!


These last two champagnes displayed two varied styles very well for two very different situations.  We closed the night with glowing smiles and much talk of the next tasting… so any tips of champagne … please let me know. 

Cuvee Victor 2002 from Mandois - 100% Chardonay

Mandois is a terrific Champagne maker from just outside Epernay in the heart of the Cote des Blancs and the Cuvee Victor is astoundingly good.  Everybody bowed to this wine.  It is beautifully elegant and simply creates a lasting smile on the tasters face.  It has an extremely low dosage of sugar.  Considering a bottle of champagne may have in the region of 10 - 15 g of sugar this has hardly any at all.  It is, however, aged in the bottle to curb that tartiness and round of the edges.  The result is utterly charming with toasty pear and lemon.  I could drink this all day everyday!

Taittinger Vintage 2004

Not to be outdone the 2004 vintage Taittinger came storming in and held its own.  This is also a fabulous wine that can be sipped, tasted and glugged in one sitting but appreciating it with the brillet cheese and enjoying the subtle grapefruit and baked bread aromas made it a joy.  If this was share tipping site I'd write "Strong BUY!"

Heidsieck Heritage Brut NV

Not being a vintage champagne like it's two cousins in this round we automatically felt a little sorry for the Heidsieck.  But why did we bother - this champagne rose to the occasion and boxed happily above its' weight displaying fine form and all the characteristics of a decent bottle of bubbly - no wonder M&S et al are so happy to stock it.  Medium bodied with lots of brioche - not packing the punches of the other two though.

To summarise, these are all good wines but the Mandois really stole the show - maybe even the evening.  I think it was a unanimous top rated performer!  Mandois has recently won a reward for making the best chardonnay in the world - that's not to be sniffed at.  His wines are hard to get in the UK for some reason but if you can lay your hands on them then it is must!