Wednesday, December 30, 2015

December 2015: Quentin Sadler

Quentin Sadler presented an excellent evening of “Whats new from Chile” Sadly we only had a limited turnout, but perhaps to be expected in the week before Christmas. They missed a treat. Quentin is an excellent speaker and brought along some good Visuals as well as the wine.

The Wines:

2013 Undurraga Sibaris Leyda Sauvignon Blanc Viña Underraga, D.O. Valle de Leyda - £8.99

2013 Corte Ignacio Chardonnay Concha y Toro, D.O. Litueche, Rapel Coastal - £8.95

2012 Errazuriz The Blend White Viña Errazuriz, D.O. Valle de Aconcagua - £18.99

2013 Reserva de Pueblo País Miguel Torres Chile, D.O. Secano Interior Curicó - £7.50

2011 Errazuriz Wild Ferment Pinot Noir Viña Errazuriz, D.O. Valle de Casablanca - £15.00

2013 Gallardía del Itata Cinsault De Martino, Secano Interior Coelemu, D.O. Itata - £12.50

2011 Tabalí Reserva Especial Syrah Viña Tabalí, D.O. Limarí Valley £10.99

2008 Eclat Old Vine Blend Valdivieso, D.O. Valle de Maule - £14.00

The 3 best were widely reckoned to be
The Pueblo Pais – at £7.50 from the Wine Society (a real steal.)
The Tabali Reserve at £10.99 from Majestic, and
The Eclat Old Wine Blend at £14.00 from Winedirect.

All 3 are inky black full bodied items, so pay your money and take your choice!!

Wednesday, November 25, 2015

November 2015- Food and Wine Matching by Peter Freeman

Peter Freeman presented food and wine matching for Christmas.... Sadly, I couldn't be there, working in remote Scotland but I'm told it was a good evening, and for the record the wines were:


1) Champagne 1er Cru Ludes NV Monmarthe "Prestige"   

2) Pedro's Oloroso 

3) Gewurztraminer Grand Cru Kaefferkopf 2013 Domaine Freyburger  

4) Bellingham Estate Chenin Blanc 2014
5) Moulin a Vent 2012 Domaine du Gueret

 6) Vina Pomal Reserva 2010
7) Sauternes 2012 Guinabert "la Courrege" 

8) De Bortoli Liqueur Muscat

Monday, October 19, 2015

October 2015 - Laithwaites Beaconsfield


Presented by Dan, the Manager of the Beaconsfield Shop, and Craig Duggan from Head Office. Dan did most of the talking, and preseted some very decent wines, and in the spirit of the UWS, went somewhat off-piste with some less well known wines & grape varieties.

I have to admit, I wasn't aware that Laithwiates have retail shops – I thought they were On-Line/Mail Order only. In fact they have about 20 shops, mostly in the SE but some up in the Midlands and West country.

We got off to a slow start, but it got noiser and noisier as we went on.. All very good wines

For me the best vfm were the Orgoglio and the Corsiero Nero. The Orgoglio is actually the Muscat of Alexandria grape creating a very nice easy drinking white, while the Corsiero Nero is the little known Nero de Troia grape, which is more rounded and accessible than its better know relative the Nero d'Avola. An honourable mention also goes to the Lobo e Falcao from Portugal.

STUMBLE VINEYARDS WHITE PINOTAGE - South Africa 2014- £8.99
ORGOGLIO BIANCO ZIBIBBO - Sicily 2012 - £11.99
LOBO E FALCÃO BRANCO - Portugal 2014 - £9.99
LE C DU CHAI BORDEAUX AOC -2013 - £13.99
CORSIERO NERO DI TROIA – Puglia 2014 - - £9.99
HJ FABRE BARREL SELECTION MALBEC - Argentina 2013- £14.99
BLACK DUCK DURIF -SE Australia 2014 - £9.99
REDHEADS BARREL MONKEYS SHIRAZ – McClaren Vale, Aus. 2014 - £13.99

Tuesday, September 29, 2015

September 2015 - Broadening your Horizons

This month we had our very own Tony, presenting unusual wines from unusual countries – or “Broadening your Horizons". He went to a lot of time & effort finding and sourcing all these wines with a couple of good finds. All the wines are from M&S, except the Macedonian.

White

India: Jewel of Nasik – Sauvignon Blanc. £7 – Worth a punt. Pretty decent white.

Japan: Sol Lucent Koshu – Koshu. £13. Koshu is apparently Japans Number 1 grape. Well, no. Just don't. Tasted of almost nothing. There are a million better ways of spending £13 per bottle

Croatia: Marko & Marino – Malvasia. £10. Rounded, Well bodied. Reasonable.

Red

England: Spirit of London – European Grapes. £16. This is a wine made in London of European grapes. Its OK. But you can get the same quality for less than half the price. Why bother? I can't really understand the target market here.

Macedonia: Aemilia – Shiraz, Vranac, Petit Verdot £9.99 (Waitrose) – Pretty decent. Deep black, good tannins. Worth a go.

Israel: Raconati – Carignan, Petit Syrah. £10. A very decent wine - But you can (could?) get it at £6 online if you buy a case. Which would be a steal.

Georgia: Ordvela – Saperavi. £16.99. A very respectable wine, and just a little different. Might be worth trying, but it is a touch on the pricy side.

Greece: Anthemis – Vind de Liqueur of Samos. A good sticky..

A good evening...

Thursday, September 3, 2015

August 2015 - Brazilian Wines – Nicholas Corfe of Go Brazil

Nick presented some excellent wines, which are also excellent value. Brazil is not the first country that comes to mind when you think of wine, but the south of Brazil is roughly the same latitude as the wine growing areas of Chile,Argentina and Uruguay. Most of the wines here come from that area, with the Rio Sol coming from 8 degrees off the equator – which gives 2 crops a year!

The favourites were the Sanjo Moscato, which is a classic muscat – tasitng of grapes, clean, fresh and well made; the Amadeu sparkler which compares very well with many Champagnes at the same price; and the Assinatura which was the star of the evening – even at the price. Nick kindly gave us a modest discount and we rustled up enough to order 4 cases of wine – 16 of the Assinatura, which speaks volumes of how well liked it was.

All the whites were clean, fresh, well made, so chose your poisin, the reds also very good although the Rio Sol is perhaps a bit so-so.

All in all some great wines, and well worth investigating. Give them a go.....

AmadeuSparkling Brut Champenoise 2013 12.5% £17
Sanjo Moscato 13% £9
Campos de Cima Viognier 2014 13% £11
Sanjo Nubio Sauvignon Blanc 2013 13.5% £12
Rio Sol Shiraz/Cabernet Sauvignon 2011 13% £9
Pizzato Fuasto Tannat 2010 13% £11
Sanjo Nubio Malbec 2013 12% £13
Campo de Cima Assintura 2014 13% £18

Monday, July 27, 2015

July 2015 - Greek Wine from Maltby & Greek

Maltby and Greek are a specialist in all things Greek, trading out of Maltby Street market and Druid Street in Bermondsey.

Stephanos presented us with a range of wines, from fizz to a vino santo

Domaine Karanikas Brut Cuvee Speciale -, Xynomavro, Amyndeon NV. £23
Domaine Spiropoulos - Moschofilero, Mantinia 2014 £12.90
Alpha Estate - Malagouzia Amyndeon 2014 £12.80
Domaine Sigalas - Assyrtiko, Santorini 2014 £16
Domaine Sigalas – Mandilaria Mavrotragano, Santorini 2014 £15.70
Vourvoukelis – Limnio Xanthi 2013 £15.80
Alpha Estate Old Vines Reserve Xynomavro, Amyndeon 2010 £17.50
Domaine Sigalas Vinsanto Assyrtiko-Aidani, Santorini 2004 - £29/500ml

The wines are pretty good, but sadly are expensive for what they are – the Greeks only export a very small proportion of their wine. Probably the best, to my mind was the Old Vines reserve, which probably is worth the money.

Sunday, June 21, 2015

June 2015 - Ian Webb, Aldeby WInes, Languedoc Roussillon

An excellent evening, presented by Ian Webb of Aldeby Wines. Those who weren't there missed some great wines and some really informative spiel from Ian. These wines all offer something a little different. Languedoc Roussillon grows a phenomenal amount of wine, a lot of which is of less common grape varieties – like Picpoul, Rousanne, Carignan, Mourvedre, Grenache – so if you belong to the ABC club, these are for you!

White Wines

Grange des Rocs, Picpoul de Pinet 2014
AOP Picpoul de Pinet

Daumas Gassac, Reserve de Gassac, Blanc 2014
VdeP de l'Herault

Chateau Mourgues de Gres, Terre d'Argence Blanc 2012
IGP VdeP du Gard.

Red Wines

Chateau Mourgues de Gres, let Galets Rouges 2012
AOP Costieres de Nimes

Close de l'Azerolle, Veilles Vignes 2013
AOP Minervois

Domaine d'Auphilhac, Montpeyroux 2012
AOP Montpeyroux

Chateau Ollieux-Romanis, Atal Sia 2011
AOP Corbieres-Boutenac

Fortified Wine

Mas Amiel, Vintage 2012
AOP Maury

For me, all the whites offered something out of the ordinary, a little different, while the reds were more individual. The first and last reds are both well balanced, the middle two more tannic and harsh – but Ian assured us that they both need a couple more year in bottle.

The gem of the evening was the last – a vin doux naturelle, pure grenache fermeted to 4-5% only, then stopped by fortifying to 18% with ethanol. Fan- tastic...

Ian doesn't sell direct, but all these wines are available mail order from a variety of suppliers. All worth trying.

Saturday, May 30, 2015

May 2015 - Gilbert Winfield - History of Wine

An excellent and informative evening, working our way through the history of wine. Presented by Gilbert Winfield. The idea was to work our way back trhough the history of wine, looking at traditional grape varieties and/or historical wine methods
Starting, here in England with a sparkling wine – English fizz can now hold its head up in the world of wine with some superb offerings
Then moving to Santorini where the vines are trained as “basket vines” to minimise the effect of hot wind and sun. And then on through the eastern med, taking in Sicily, Turkey, Lebanon and finally to Georgia, which is generally reckoned to be the oldest wine culture in the world (Also Armenia as well) We finished off with a Lillet Blanc – made famous by the recent Bond film, a Vin Doux Naturelle from Bordeaux, which was quite a nice way to finish off

Chapel Down Sparkling Brut, Sussex, UK
Hatzidakis Assyrtico 2014, Santorini, Greece
Cos Pithos Rouge 2011, Etna, Sicily
Kalecik Karasi 2012, Vinkara, Turkey
Ch. Ksara Reserve du Couvent 2012, Beeka, Lebanon
Pheasant's Tears Mtsvane 2012, Khakheti, Georgia
Lillet Blanc, Vin Doux Naturelle

I'd be pushed to say any of the wines was “excellent”, but there is some good stuff in there, and it's always good to try these things. The Pheasant's Tears was “interesting” - its made in the ancient traditional way of “Kveri” - 400 litre amphorae, lined with beeswax, sunk into the ground. One of the bottles was a golden yellow, the other quite cloudy and tasted something like fermenting apple juice. According to Gilbert, it does often come out like that.

It was generally reckoned to be a very good evening.

Monday, April 27, 2015

April 2015 - the AGM & "Taste the Difference"

Phil and Tony had selected 8 wines of 4 vareties. Each pair had a more or less costly sample, and were presented blind - with lots of bacofoil round the bottles!!

And here they are

Sauvignon Blanc
Mountain View Sauvignon Blanc 2013. Luis Felipe Edwards. £5.99
Klein Constantia Klein Constantia Sauvignon Blanc 2013 Constantia £14.99

Chardonnay
Saintsbury Chardonnay 2012, Carneros (California) £22.50
McGuigan Chardonnay 2103, SE Australia £7.99

Cabernet Sauvignon
Cousina-Macul Antiguas Cabernet Sauvignon 2011. £9.99
Silver Ghost Cabernet Sauvignon 2013/14 £4.99

Shiraz
Parcel Series Shiraz 2012, Western Cape £8.99
Kangarilla Road Scarce Earth 2011, McClaren Vale £23.00

A good evening was had. The 2 real surprises were the Chardonnay & Shiraz selections;
On the Chardonnay, the McGuigan was widely preferred - the Saintbury was a very 1990's chardonnay - very heavily oaked, which is now very unfashionable.
The Shiraz - the Kangarilla Road Scarce Earth is truly superb. Every so often, you come across one of these pricey wines which is worth the money - this is one of them. I suggest you take a deep breath, and splash out. It is so good.....

Sunday, March 29, 2015

March 2015 - Gonzales Byass by Ben Wise


Ben Wise of Gonzales Byass presented us with 8 wines. GB is best known for its sherries, but does much more than that and Ben gave an excellent presentation of 3 sherries, 1 dessert wine and 4 wines.

  1. Tio Pepe Palomino Fino 15%
  2. Vilarnau Cava (Barcelona) . Brut Reserva 11.5%
  3. La Miranda de secastilla 2013 Garnacha Blanca 13.5%
  4. Beronia Rioja Reserva 2010 – Tempranillo, Graciano y Mazuelo 14%
  5. Finca Constancia , Otero (Toledo). 2012 – 14%
  6. Del Duque 30yr old amontillado 21.5%
  7. Matusalem 30 yr old Oloroso 20.5%
  8. Tintilla de Rota de Finca Moncloa. 14.5% 2011.

Tio Pepe is perhaps the best known, named after Manuel Gonzales' Uncle Jose (“Tio Pepe”) who offered to assist Manuel, on the condition that he could have a corner of the Bodega for his own project – which was a Fino sherry, now known as Tio Pepe. It is still a great wine. It has to be drunk fresh – once opened treat it just like any other white wine.

Wines 2 – 5 are all good, and well worth seeking out. My favourite was the Finca Constancia red – inky purple – a blend of mainly Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon, with small percentages of Shiraz, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Graciano.

The two 30 year old solera sherries are very intense and well worth seeking out, if only for the experience. Personally I find the Del Duque too austere – intense, dry but overpowering, while the Matusalem I absolutely adore – all the intensity, but with a bit of sweetness from the 5% PX grapes added. Fantastic.

The last bottle is a rarity – only just over 2000 bottles were made last year – its a dessert wine, made by raisining the grapes, fermenting to 5% then stopping the fermentation by adding alcohol to 14.5%. Truly amazing. The grape variety, Tintilla de Rota is an old grape variety native to the Cadiz region.

A truly excellent evening.

Thursday, February 26, 2015

February 2015 - Slovenian Wines by Stasa Mozetic

Presented by Stasa Mozetic Flauto of Blice Wines, we had some excellent Slovenian Wines as follows:

Whites

Winery - Hlebec Sipon,  2012, Ljutomer--‐Ormoz 14%
£15.59

Winery - Bregar Pinot Grigio,2010,Brda,13.5%
£18.98
Winery - Reja Rebula, 2009, Brda, 13.0%,
12months in Acacia wood barrels;
Bronze Decanter World Wide Award 2011, London
£23.99

Winery - Bregar Malvasia, 2010, Brda, 13.5%
Silver medal at Malvasia Festival Isola, Slovenia, March 2013
£18.98

Winery - Reja Rose, Pinot Grigio Rose, 2012, Brda, 13.5%
£20.99

Reds

Winery - Hlebec Zweiglet, 2012, Ljutomer--‐Ormoz, 12%;
£15.59

Winery - Lisjak Merlot, 2007, Vipava Valley, 12.1%,
12 months in wood barrels
£19.99

Winery - Persolja Pinot Noir Barrique 2008, Brda, 13.7%,
5 years in barrique,
£26.99

The Whites were excellent, the reds good - although I'm not convinced by the Zweigelt. Its  a German/Austrian red grape hybrid, which we don't see often here - probably with good reason.
Overall, good stuff - but they are expensive!!