Segura Viudas Brut Reserva NV (£8.99 Oddbins) Earthy lemon aromas, quite pleasant toasty notes, but then the finish is just too sweet and a little flabby. OK, but lacks crispness. C+
Raventós i Blanc Gran Reserva de la Finca 2005 (£21.99 Hamilton Yorke, Handford, Martinez, Davy’s Wine Shop, The Vineyard, SWIG) A slightly clay-like minerality here, again lemon (and citrus peel), with some of that bready complexity, and there’s also a hint of cocoa. Rich but dry, and while there’s some yeasty maturity, it still feels young. S(+)
Raventós i Blanc de Nit Brut Reserva 2007 (£17.99 Hamilton Yorke, Handford, Martinez, Davy’s Wine Shop, The Vineyard, SWIG) The fresh, earthy edge and biscuity bite of the l’Hereu, but infused with red berries, lovely balanced style, with plenty of fruit but also elegance and zest. Walks over most Champagnes at twice the price. S
Went to a slightly odd event last year organised by Francis Gimblett, an enthusiastic curly haired man who calls himself the Wine Adventurer. A few years ago, Gérard Depardieu was on Graham Norton’s show, and Francis was invited on to give his opinion on the wine Depardieu produces in Morocco. He liked it far more than he imagined, but the onslaught of campery and innuendo meant there was little time for him to find out more about the wine. Nor was there time at the end of the show – as the credits rolled, the burly Frenchman was whisked off into the night. There then followed several attempts to make contact, none of them successful. Undeterred, Francis got in his car, and set off to Morocco to see if he could locate Depardieu and his vineyard….
Did he find him? You’ll have to buy Francis’s book ‘In and out of Africa… in search of Gérard Depardieu’ in order to find out. Have to confess that the author’s speech at the launch of the book last autumn wasn’t sufficient to make me want to buy a copy, although my mate Stuart George did get his hands on one and reviewed it here. But the evening also included a tasting of some of the ‘better wines’ that Francis had come across on his travels through Algeria, Tunisia and Morocco. The blurb on the tasting sheet showed that he was under no illusions about their overall quality – ‘Better doesn’t always mean “good” and the line up includes the bad and a few ugly, along with hopefully some that will impress.’
And he wasn’t wrong. My notes include jottings such as ‘Why am I here?’, ‘Oh dear’, and ‘Is it me or are all these crap?’ But then a few signs of light appeared. Yes, the Lumière and Kahina reds made by Depardieu and Bernard Magrez were significantly better than most. But better still were two wines from Thalvin. Aït Souala 2004, a blend of Arinarnoa, Tannat and Malbec, was on the oaky side, but had plenty of dusty rustic fruit tinged with notes of violets and chocolate (if you’ve never heard of it, Arinarnoa is a Merlot x Petit Verdot cross developed in France in the 1950s – first came across it at Casa Valduga in Brazil of all places). Equally fine was the 2006 Tandem Syrah (Called Syrocco in the US I think) which is made in conjunction with the wizard of Crozes Alain Graillot. It’s a blackcurranty, plummy Syrah with some meaty reduced aromas, with a hearty warmth befitting the warm climate, but a bright balanced finish too. What prompted this post is that I’ve just seen that the 2007 is available from Liz & Mike Berry at Les Vins Fins de la Crau for £14.95. More wines like this please Morocco, these two were lovely.
Addendum: Just been informed that the Wine Society has the 2005 Tandem for £9.95 – here.
Just received the following e-mail from Nuno Araujo, one of the most enterprising and inspired winemakers in the Vinho Verde region, and the most subversive of the six producers that make up Portugal’s IWA (Independent Wingrowers Association). I haven’t been a universal fan of Nuno’s wines – some were just too ‘international’ and oaky – but the best were excellent, and I featured one of them in my Portuguese Top 50 back in 2008. Given Nuno’s passionate demeanour – he’s almost more Spanish than Portuguese – I hope this is just a temporary blip. It would be a tragedy for the region to lose one of its true movers and shakers Anyway, the e-mail…
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Dear friend,
Back in 1989 -twenty years ago-, at Quinta de Covela there were no vines, no appellation (or worse: vinho Verde…), no brand, nothing but a wild, amazing potential and a very promising estate to be.
End of 2009, we could find a well-established brand, an highly respected wine-style and a coherent wine family; COVELA wines are present in a large number of excellent wine-lists of top restaurants, in many countries.
For 20 years, we pursued the goal of uncompromising excellence in viticulture and vinification, creating and developing unique wines, with a specific personality. Trusting our believes and anticipating a general concern, we moved into organic farming and were pioneers in implementing Biodynamics.
Twenty enthusiastic years, creating and developing this wonderful and unique project, against all odds (“viticulture commissions”, low notoriety of the region and its wines, “jurassic” opinion-makers, etc.); year after year enjoying the growing quality and recognition of each vintage, putting COVELA on the world-wine map!
We were glad to say that both the market and the specialized press praised our vision and the wines produced.
Last year we were “caught” by a world-wide crisis (we could face it) and by a meanwhile nationalized bank (over 4,2 billion euros bail-out so far…), this one unwilling to backing us up (maybe there are more obscure reasons behind this attitude, and time will bring them to light), and resulting in a death sentence to the project. Unnecessary, unjustified and stupid decision, I think; but definite and real.
I am sending you this mail to let you know about this unfortunate situation, and to thank for your most valuable support and interest over the years.
With my best regards
Nuno Araujo
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(picture nicked from this part of Tom Cannavan’s excellent wine-pages – Tom, I owe you a beer)
Paris-based foodie David Lebovitz has just tweeted the following: ‘Reader just left comment about relatives who added Sweet ‘N Low to their wine in Paris because they thought it was too dry. Hilarious!’ (@davidlebovitz for more)
Reminds me of a comment I saw somewhere else on the Internet on a Pinot Noir whose identity I won’t reveal: ‘It was thin and very drying. I added Marques de Rojas [a Spanish red from Almansa] to it which didn’t seem to help so then I added sugar, which didn’t help either. Then I put some Cointreau in it which normally sorts out any wine, but that didn’t do any good. My wife added about a third of Port to hers which made it just about bearable. If that’s a Gold Medal New Zealand Wine then the rest must be piss awful.’
La Cuvée Mythique Blanc des Vignerons de la Mediterranée 2008, Vin de Pays d’Oc, France (£7.99 The Co-op – down to £3.99 10th Feb – 1st Mar) (Would love to give a link to the two Cuvée Mythique wines, but in classic French fashion, there’s no obvious web site…) Nice combination of aromatic complexity, fleshy fruit and minerally restraint. Peach, waxy pearskin, cream and nut kernel all bound up in a taut stony overcoat. Lots going on here but never in-yer-face, very moreish. B+
Paul Mas Estate Viognier 2009, Vin de Pays d’Oc, France (£8.99 Majestic – £5.99 if you buy two 2nd Feb-26th Apr)
(Even here, the web site is poor, and neither this nor the red seem to feature at www.paulmas.com)
Proper plump, plush Viognier, with lush peaches and cream fruit, but there’s also some freshness and tension here, plenty of fruit and flavour, but finish reined in by zesty acidity. B+
La Cuvée Mythique Rouge des Vignerons de la Mediterranée 2008, Vin de Pays d’Oc, France (£7.99 The Co-op – down to £3.99 10th Feb – 1st Mar) Classic southern French red, all meaty, herby intensity with gentle, mature plummy berry and raisin fruit encased in a refreshing white-peppery structure, rustic in the best sense of the word. B+
Paul Mas Estate Syrah/Viognier 2008, Vin de Pays d’Oc, France (£8.99 Majestic – £6.49 if you buy two 2nd Feb–26thApr)
Big, rich roasted meat aromas, then bold berry, blackcurrant and orange peel character comes through, along with a ferrous edge, young, wild wine with a promising future. S
Bisol ‘Cartizze’ Prosecco di Valdobbiadene Superiore 2008, Veneto, Italy (£22.99 Bibendum) Starts off lush and peachy, but then the minerally restraint kicks, adding a drier, more serious, clay-like edge and keeping you coming back for more. S-
Cono Sur Brut NV, Bío-Bío, Chile (£9.99 Morrisons, Oddbins, Tesco.com) Toasty sweet’n’sour Riesling character comes through strongly on the nose, also in the mouth. It tends to take over what without it would have been a quite elegant wine. Shame. C+
Codorníu Reina Maria Cristina Cava Brut Reserva 2007, Catalonia, Spain (£18.99 Majestic) Relaxed, confident style, showing some maturity, but still with a core of earthy citrus fruit, and a touch of herbs, a touch of sweetness, but nicely balanced. S-
Petaluma Croser 2006, Piccadilly Valley, South Australia (£16.06 Bibendum – £11.08 in the sale from Feb 2nd-15th) Showing some creamy, even cheesy lees edges, along with some of the strained chocolatey richness of a touch of oxidation. But these are all in balance with the rest of the wine, and the bready/biscuity citrus and pineapple get their chance to shine. Rich but dry, classy style. S
Champagne Moutard Cuvée des 6 Cépages 2004, France (£37.50 – Sommelier Wine Co, Markinch Wine Gallery, Winos, Den Boer Wines, Kevin O’Rourke Wines, Divine Wines, Vineyards, Cherchez le Vin, Ashbourne Wines, K D Brands Ltd, John Gordons Ltd, Beverley Bollons, The Larder, The Naked Grape, Bacchus)
(the 6 Cépages are Arbane, Petit Meslier, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir & Pinot Meunier)
Not much on the nose, or in the mouth. Has a creamy, herby edge, but not a great deal of flavour coming through at the moment. Nor with further time – am I missing the point here? B
Australia Day + 1, so a few hangers-on from the haggis adventure, plus a moody but not all that magnificent Italian…
Jacobs Creek Grenache Shiraz 2008, South Eastern Australia (£5.99 Tesco, Asda, Ocado) Quite light, almost refreshing, sweet raspberry aroma and flavour, slightly jammy, but then the more earthy gravitas of Shiraz comes through. Good, easy commercial style, almost chillable. B
Peter Lehmann Layers Red 2008, Barossa, Australia (£10.50 SWIG) Liquorice and earth, slightly jammy dodger-like sweetness, big, quite fleshy, concentrated and juicy, and the blackberry and plum fruit isn’t overripe, but seems not to be quite sure what it wants to achieve. B
Wyndham Estate George Wyndham Founder’s Reserve Shiraz 2005, South Australia (£9.99 Majestic) Big, pungent, peppery, inky, has a pleasing black fruit and herb intensity, but there’s a slightly ‘processed’ feel to it, along with some vanilla that detracts from that nice fruit. But a decent glug all the same. B(+)
Castello Banfi Rosso di Montalcino 2007, Tuscany, Italy (£15.07 Bibendum – sale price from Feb 2nd £7.82) Vague brown sugar, black cherry and Cola, touches of vanilla and bayleaf, but ultimately quite simple with not much in the way of aroma, and a finish that’s just that bit too dry and charmless – too controlled. B-
For a few hours each year, Burns Night in Scotland and Australia Day in, er, Australia coincide. So why not celebrate both at once, with some Aussie wine and a nice haggis…?
Cantina Tramin Lagrein 2008, Alto Adige, Italy (£11.49 Hallgarten Druitt, www.wineman.co.uk, www.everywine.co.uk) Refreshing, genuinely light-to-medium-bodied red, almost Dolcetto-like, with crunchy, earthy black fruit (especially cherry) and fresh, sausage-friendly finish. B+
The Society’s Exhibition Chianti Classico 2007, Tuscany, Italy (£11.95 The Wine Society) Modern and fresh, but has this lovely velvety Morello cherry, cherry kernels and blackcurrant, quite full but fragrant, almost violet-like edge, smooth, but with structure of slightly grainy tannins and fresh acidity. S(+)
Château Fabre Gasparets Corbières-Boutenac 2005, Languedoc, France (£9.50 The Real Wine Company) The strawberry-rich flesh of Grenache, the plummy floral edge of Syrah and the wild meatiness of Mourvèdre all bound together by the held together by the peppery/stalky/spicy character of ripe (but not raisinny) Carignan. S-
Ferngrove Shiraz 2007, Frankland River, Western Australia (~£9.50 Seckford Agencies) Quite full-bodied but it’s the fresh berry and blackcurrant fruit that shines through. Add in tinges of violets, liquorice and vanilla and you have a very tasty wine for drinking any time over the next three years. S(-)
