After realising I have built up rather a large collection of wine, as dealt with here, I decided to host a rather informal wine-tasting evening in the flat on Saturday 13th December. Despite being the day after the rather late-night departmental Christmas party, people were feeling pretty chirpy and in the mood to sample the 12 wines I’d selected.
Sim, a law school friend and fellow trainee, was an absolute star and prepared canapes, including sausage rolls, bruschetta and spinach and ricotta snacks…
Here’s the wine list with some comments (usually the ‘blurb’ amended by me) on each one:
BUBBLY:
N.V. Valdobbiadene Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Ca’ Rosa (Italy, Veneto, Prosecco di Valdobbiadene)
A fizzy fruit bombshell. Light-weight and gently aromatic, with crisp, delicate fresh apple flavours.
WHITES:
2008 Crowded Hour Chardonnay Steve Grimley (Australia, McLaren Vale / Hunter Valley)
A subtly-gentle, lushly-fruited chardonnay with a nice touch of citrus for extra refreshment.
2008 Churchaven Chardonnay Chenin Viognier (South Africa, Coastal Region, Paarl, Wellington)
Made by a small, farmers co-operative using premium grapes grown high up on the sun-drenched slopes of Wellington, this top-class blend of Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc and Viognier is just the thing for adventurous wine drinkers looking to shun nondescript, so-so wines. Zippy, citrusy and ever so slightly apricot.
2008 De Martino Sauvignon Blanc 347 Vineyards (Chile, Central Valley, Maule Valley)
This is the Six Million Dollar Wine! It has been developed after 11 years of exhaustive and very expensive research into exactly the right place to plant each grape in Chile. 347 vineyard research plantations are what it took! Think of it as a kind of super-acceleration of the French process that took 400 years. What does it taste like? Like MTV have gone and pimped up a Sancerre.
2007 Fattoria Sovestro Vernaccia di San Gimignano (Italy, Tuscany, San Gimignano, Vernaccia di San Gimignano)
Fresh, nutty, leafy on the nose – in fact textbook Verdicchio. Ditto the palate, which has a nutty roundness, crisp pear flavour and good, lemony acidity. Verdicchio isn’t a showy wine, but this has more to it than the average Pinot Grigio and it goes well with food, because it has substance, but no bullying flavours to put up a fight. This is an exciting alternative, if you’re bored stiff with Chardonnay or even Sauvignon Blanc – Vernaccia di San Gimignano is the grape handily enough, and it makes fresh wines of seldom paralleled perfume, with a really floral, zesty, dry palate of citrus fruit and almonds.
2007 Soaring Kite Viognier Riesling Steve Grimley (Australia, South Australia, Clare Valley / McLaren Vale)
Viognier and Riesling might sound like aromatic overload, but it works a treat here. The Eden Valley Riesling (just over a third of the blend) gives lime juice zing and acid backbone; the Adelaide Hills Viognier provides the stuffing, with classic apricot and peach flavours. It’s a wine that can handle spices, but nothing too hot. Elegant and restrained with heaps of fruity flavours; lush.
REDS:
2005 Landelia Malbec Single Vineyard Alto Agrelo (Argentina, Mendoza, Lujan de Cuyo)
This winery has had Paul Hobbs as a consultant, a man who achieved the dazzling feat of scoring a perfect 100 from Robert Parker for his wine. He is one of the world’s great winemakers and you can feel his touch in the Landelia. Argentina has NEVER been this good. This Malbec blows you away. It’s like a combination of New World punch and French sophistication in one bottle.
2007 Andrew McPherson Full Fifteen (Australia, Victoria, Central Victoria, Nagambie Lakes)
His brief for the Full Fifteen was to create a huge black spicy red that would be smooth and immensely drinkable. On its maiden vintage in 2003, it scooped three medals. This vintage is a mix of mainly Cabernet Sauvignon, Ruby Cabernet with a drop of Syrah, all deliciously ripe and improved by a touch of oak-ageing. A heady 15% too!
2003 Concha y Toro Cabernet Sauvignon The Wine Society’s Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon (Chile, Central Valley, Maipo Valley)
The climate and soil here produce a classic style of cabernet sauvignon with typical aromas of cedar and blackcurrants, combined with a sophisticated palate which balances power with elegance. All the wine has been aged in barriques, 225 litre oak barrels, for about eight months, which concentrates and develops the flavours, and softens the tannins, resulting in a fresh and intensely flavoured palate with a fine-boned structure.
DESSERT WINE:
2004 Château Doisy-Daëne (France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes)
Predominantly Sémillon for a lemony flavour and waxy texture. Spiced up with 20% Sauvignon that adds a racy acidity and freshness, with a luscious, honeyed and elegant fruit that is balanced by a pretty botrytis character and great acidity, which gives finesse. Finely poised, graceful and delicate, never cloying, this wine is a splendid example of its genre.
The most popular white was the 2008 De Martino Sauvignon Blanc and the most popular red was the 2007 Andrew McPherson Full Fifteen. Most of these wines were bought through either Virgin Wines, Waitrose or HJB Wines. Each wine is linked to their entry in Cellartracker.
[...] Greg N Baker | Wine Tasting 2005 Landelia Malbec Single Vineyard Alto Agrelo (Argentina, Mendoza, Lujan de Cuyo) This winery has had Paul Hobbs as a consultant, a man who achieved the dazzling feat of scoring a perfect 100 from Robert Parker for his wine. … Greg N Baker – http://www.gregnbaker.com/blog/ [...]