Don’t buy cheap Châteauneuf, this is far, far better Domaine La Haute Marone ‘Le Torrent du Trignon’ Sablet Côtes du Rhône Villages 2012, France (£11.99 D Byrne, The Vineyard, Highbury Vintners, Bacchanalia) There are lots of Rhône reds with similar warm plummy generosity and earthy spice, but this stands out […]
Monthly Archives: September 2014
Nearly very good, but suffers from the same problem as many Priorats… Sainsbury’s Taste The Difference Priorat 2011, Spain (£11 Sainsbury’s) I like the plump plummy berry notes here, and there’s also a fragrant herb-scented character breezing through the wine. However, some of the fruit seems to have been picked a […]
Sainsbury’s Taste The Difference Priorat 2011, Spain
Not a huge Pinotage fan, but I can imagine quaffing this with pleasure on a chilly evening Neethlingshof Pinotage 2012, Stellenbosch, South Africa (£8.99 Wine Rack) Classic Pinotage characters of spice-infused berries and bananas, along with notes of chocolate. There’s also a savoury tomato note in there too , alongside […]
Neethlingshof Pinotage 2012, Stellenbosch, South Africa
Verdelho doesn’t seem to be as popular as it was a few years ago – a shame when there are wines like this… Tyrrell’s Old Winery Verdelho 2012, Hunter Valley, Australia (£11.99 The Wine Society, House of Menzies, Amathus, vintagemarque.com) Imagine a wine that has the peachy weight of Chardonnay in […]
Tyrrell’s Old Winery Verdelho 2012, Hunter Valley, Australia
Just wish the person who made the first wine had been given the fruit from the second… Morrisons Claret NV, Bordeaux, France (£4.49 Morrisons) Hmmm. I don’t mind the leafy blackcurrant and blackberry character, sappy, earthy notes and fresh finish, but this is just too scrawny for real pleasure. C- […]
A couple of Merlot-y French reds
A very nice halfway house between the Loire and…no, not New Zealand, but South African or Chilean Sauvignon Dourthe La Grande Cuvée Bordeaux Sauvignon Blanc 2013, France (£9.29 Waitrose) Quite pungent, with citrus (grapefruit), nettle and blackcurrant leaf characters more reminiscent of the Loire, but while there’s a lovely tense […]