Bit of a mish-mash – but a nice mish-mash… Cantina Gadoro Beneventano Fiano 2013, Campania, Italy (£8.99 Waitrose) Reminds me of a white Bordeaux with a dollop of Viognier in there. Tinned pear, nutty, peachy exuberance and a touch of vanilla all reined in by a spine of herbal freshness. […]
Monthly Archives: March 2015
Let’s see if we can understand why the Chileans mistook Carmenère for Merlot for so long… Montes Alpha Merlot 2012, Colchagua Valley, Chile (£12.99 Philglas & Swiggot, D.Byrne) Typical Chilean imprint of blackcurrant pastilles, also note sof rosehip and mulberry, but while the fruit is generally quite juicy, there’s also […]
Merlot and Carmenère – can you tell the difference?
Shaw + Smith M3 Chardonnay 2013, Adelaide Hills, Australia (£24.99 Majestic, Bentley’s Wine Merchants, CellarVie Wines, D Byrne & Co, Harrods, Leamington Wine Company, ND John Wine Merchants, Noel Young Wines, Ozwines.co.uk, Philglas & Swiggot, Provender Brown, Taylor’s Fine Wines, The Secret Cellar, Shills of Cockermouth, Slurp.co.uk, Winedirect.co.uk) Initially shy […]
Chardonnay from Australia, France, South Africa & California
Groszer Wein Blaufränkisch 2012, Südburgenland, Austria (£15.90 per litre Newcomer Wines) Lots of juicy ripe plummy berry and blackcurrant here, with earthy, meaty notes adding a savoury wildness, and herbs coming through in the finish. Tasty and slightly naughty. S(-) Groszer Wein Blaufränkisch ‘Vom Riegl’ 2012, Südburgenland, Austria (£22.90 per […]
Three Blaufränkisch-based reds from Groszer Wein in Südburgenland, Austria
Not much quality-wise between these two, although they are different in style – a blend of the two worked very well! Asda Extra Special Pays d’Oc Viognier 2013, Languedoc, France (**£5 Asda) This has the nutty pear and peach flavours, but they’re reined in by crisp citrus acidity. Maybe the […]
Two Viogniers from the Languedoc
Encino Bierzo 2013, Spain (£13.99 Naked Wines) Starts off a bit stinky (something I’d say about rather a lot of Bierzo) but after a while and some judicious swirling, a juicy wild and spicy wine emerges, with soft berry and plum fruit pepped up with a hint of gingerbread. Good […]