🍷 W1NG APRIL ICC TASTING NOTES – WINES OF URUGUAY

On 4^th April 2024 the Wine in Nottingham Group met for the latest tasting of the 2024 season. The theme of this tasting was “The Wines of Uruguay”.

I have already outlined the background for this tasting in the previous post, you can (re)read it by clicking back – so I won’t repeat it here. Suffice to say the wines tasted were chosen as a good quality reflection of what’s available from this emerging country.

Here are my notes:

ALBARIÑO RESERVE 2022 (BODEGA GARZÓN)   –   12.5 %   –   ND John Wines £19
This showed some floral notes on the nose, as well as the usual peach/pear fruit notes. The palate has mineral background to a quite rich stone-fruit centre, with increasing citric, lip-smacking acidity. A good full-ish, food-friendly version of the grape, which by proximity to its tasting last August invites comparisons with the “La Trucha” Albariño. This is indeed similar, and very good – but perhaps not quite sharing La Trucha’s fineness or subtlety.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^16.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁶/₂₀

“ESTIVAL” WHITE 2020 (PABLO FALLABRINO)   –   13.5 %   –   Wadebridge Wines £20
This blend of late harvested Gewürztraminer (60%) and Muscat (10%) with early picked Chardonnay (30%) has a very lemon scented, even lemon zest, attack presumably from the Chardonnay. Under that and a little recessed are the sort of ginger and floral hints one would expect from Gewürztraminer. The palate is a little unintegrated and has some lychee softness in the middle, but builds back to a lemon-peel freshness at the finish. This wine is discomforted by appearing after the Albariño, and tasted alone the next day has integrated a little more and appears fresher…
Ratings:        Quality:  ^15.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁵/₂₀

MARSELAN RESERVE 2021 (BODEGA GARZÓN)   –   12.5 %   –   ND John Wines £19
The Marselan grape, a Cab. Sauv. x Grenache – newly permitted in Bordeaux, has an open nose with herby hints (rosemary?) and red fruit. The palate has blackberry and sour red plum fruit with fine tannins and warm finish with a mineral and acidic backbone. Rather a nice wine and more satisfying, IMO, than a similarly priced Merlot – whose structural and viticultural qualities it might replace on a Bordeaux Estate? The next day it too was better integrated and resolved, allowing a bit more varietal distinctiveness. Good.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^16.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁶/₂₀

“NOTOS” 2020 (PABLO FALLABRINO)   –   13 %   –   Wadebridge Wines £20
Well – this Nebbiolo (with 10% Tannat) had fresh and dried berries on the nose together with (and I don’t think this is prejudgment) Tar and Roses!!! The palate is very dry but there is supple and subtle fruit underpinned with a long strand of fresh acidity and fine tannins lifting the wine into a complex finish. Lovely, not quite Barolo, but showing 90% of that wine’s attractions for 1/2 (?) price. The favourite on the night and mine too…
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁷/₂₀   Value:  ^16.5/₂₀

TANNAT RESERVE 2021 (BODEGA GARZÓN)   –   14%   –   ND John Wines £19
This very dark, vin noir has aromas of plums and a raspberry note with a spicy hint. The palate has a tannic profile distinctive of the grape but riper and rounder versions of it than found here in Uruguay (or in SW France) 15 years ago. This allows the fruit profile – the same plums and raspberry – to show too. In fact the wine reminded me of a (younger) 100% Tannat I tasted in Salies-de-Béarn (at Domaine Lapeyre et Guilhemas) last October. That said this is a little four-square at the moment, maybe needing another 2 or 3 years?
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁶/₂₀   Value:  ^15.5/₂₀

SINGLE VINEYARD PETIT VERDOT 2020 (BODEGA GARZÓN)   –   14.5 %   –   ND John Wines £27
This highly coloured wine has a spirity, even downright alcoholic, nose which masks a hint of blueberry fruit. The palate has a similar profile with Italianate flavours: leather and spice – masking, rather than complementing hints of blueberry fruit and wood. The woody sense is textural rather than the effect of oak: the wine is in 4th-use large casks for 12-18 months. This wine is very big, with big separate components achieving a long and impressive wine that somehow wasn’t very pleasurable. A day later there was some integration and maybe another half-point of pleasure. One can see what a small amount adds to a Bordeaux blend, but the least interesting red IMO, and quite expensive.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^15.5/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

A rather interesting tasting I thought, and in the opinion of the group too. A range of well made wines with distinctive character and – in the main – showing quality and interest throughout. Certainly in my mind it aroused an interest in the capability of Uruguay in the wine market and a curiosity to taste further…. Arinarnoa anyone?

À Bientôt

🍷 Uruguay Wines – Hidden Gems

The idea for a tasting on this wine topic came out of the W1NG tasting of Medoc Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels last December. The tasting group were discussing the list of newly permitted grapes in Bordeaux: Touriga Nacional, Marselan, Castets, Arinarnoa, Alvarinho and Liliorila. In particular Marselan, which I have tasted in some blends from Southern Rhone and Provence, provoked some interest – and I thought of sourcing some varietal examples. I found a Uruguayan Marselan of some repute, and originally I thought of conducting a tasting including Brazil and Peru in with Uruguay as a sort of “The Rest of South America” tasting. However, sourcing distinctive wine in our price range was difficult from Brazil or Peru. Either they were too “cheap and cheerful” or too international, or both. For example, the leading UK supplier of Brazilian wines lists 54 bottles – only 20 are in our price range and 14 of those are sparkling. Peru is even cheaper (and less cheerful?) – with the best source, funnily enough – in Paris!

Anyway, Uruguay initially seemed a more promising source of finer wine, and interesting varietals like Marselan and Petit Verdot – and so it proved…

Uruguay is a small country, slightly bigger than England, slightly smaller than Scotland and England combined. The country is about 500 kms wide at its widest, and about 600 kms from its most Southerly point (the capital: Montevideo) and the most Northerly point.

It shares borders with Argentina to its west and southwest and Brazil to its north and northeast, while bordering the Río de la Plata to the south and the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast. It is sparsely populated – only 3.5 million people live there, the vast majority along the north bank of the Río de la Plata, and on the S. E. coast of the Atlantic.

The latitude 34° South runs pretty well along the southern limit of the Country. This is an interesting parallel: it also runs through Chilean wine areas; Mendoza in Argentina; Cape Town in S. Africa; Sydney and Auckland – all wine regions! In fact, unless relieved by other factors (oceanic.. altitude…) wine making is difficult at hotter latitudes.

Uruguay consists, administratively, of 15 regions – and wine regions share the same designations. All produce some wine and most are home to at least 2 or 3 wineries – but there are only about 180 in the whole of the country. However most wine making is concentrated, like the population, in the Southern third of the country – along the Río de la Plata estuary and the coast with the Atlantic in the S. E of the country. Here the maritime influence of the ocean ameliorates climatic extremes, in a similar way to the Atlantic at the “other end” – near Bordeaux! In fact 5 of the 15 regions together produce 95% of the wine. The 5 regions making this vast majority are – in order of total production – Canelones; Montevideo; Colonia; San José and Maldonado. However, according to Elizabeth Yabrudy, this order is slightly rearranged when looking for fine wine – with Maldonado now close behind Canelones and Montevideo… In fact Elizabeth is an informative writer on Uruguayan wine – see this article from Wine, Wit and Wisdom blog.

Here a map of the southern areas with 8 regions shown:

Florida           < 1%……………….. Montevideo 15%
Colonia         7% ………………….Lavalleja         < 1 %
San Jose      4% ………………….Maldonado     3%
Canelones   66%……………………Rocha            < 1%

S Uruguay Total ≡ 96%

Although Uruguayan wine production is small by comparison with its neighbours, it is still substantial. Argentina and Chile are, after all, the 6th and 7th largest wine-producing countries in the world with about 1.8 billion bottles; and Brazil third within S. America (and 15th in the World) with about 400 million bottles. Uruguay (23rd) produces about 110 million – a little more than Peru, but over 10 times as much as England – and a bit less than Switzerland, and a bit more than Croatia. [All figures 2022].

The grape most identified with Uruguay is Tannat, the grape of Madiran (and other S. W. French appellations). The grape is still accounts for about a quarter of planting and its significance as the (intended) signature grape of Uruguay clearly parallels that of Malbec in Argentina. However until the last ten years or so it was often big, alcoholic, rough and over-oaked. Now more judicious use of cooler sites, and more warm-climate winemaking techniques are producing lighter, and more region-specific styles. Some commentators have noted a change to bigger barrels, some oxygenation, a move to fresher styles using more Italian-style winemaking appropriate to warmer climes.

In some ways the influence of the Atlantic allows the possibility of more European profile of wines. But the maritime effect is less pronounced in the Estuary. Tim Atkin says: “This is not only about the ocean, Uruguay has also a marked influence from the Río de la Plata, the estuary formed by the union of Paraná River and Uruguay River. The vineyards closer to these rivers are warmer than those more to the east, where there is the major influence of the Atlantic.” In fact west of Montevideo that heat difference can be 2°C, more humidity, and a week earlier harvesting compared to, say, Maldonado. Soils differ too with a lot of clay amplifying the risk of fungal infections in the grapes.

On the other side – the more easterly region of Maldonado has the biggest influence from the ocean’s cooling breezes; more altitude; more varied geology with soil types including crystalline rocks with some quartz incrustations, alluvial and gravel soils in the valleys, and weathered granite…

I have chosen to base a tasting on two producers: Bodega Garzón from Maldonado; and Vinedo de los Vientos (Bodega Pablo Fallabrino) from Atlántida in Eastern Canalones – about 30 mile East of Montevideo and only 4 miles from the sea.

Bodega Garzón is where the billionaire Bulgheroni family, with help from Italian winemaking consultant Alberto Antonini, has spent the past 20 years turning former cattle grazing land and eucalyptus forests into the country’s most prominent winery. They have since become the standard-bearer for premium wines from Uruguay considered probably the best producer and certainly the best among large exporters. In November 2018, their pioneering status was recognised by Wine Enthusiast with the ‘New World Winery of the Year’ award. The vineyards at Bodega Garzón are a patchwork quilt of 1,150 individual plots of around 0.2 hectares in size, each plot carefully chosen for a specific variety according to its soil and microclimate. The winery is specially designed to operate as sustainably as possible, and is the first winery outside North America to pursue LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). Built on natural terraces, the winery uses cutting-edge technology and operates using a gravity system to ensure quality and energy efficiency at every stage of production.

Located 11 miles from the Atlantic Ocean, the estate has more than 1,000 small vineyard blocks covering hillside slopes, which benefit from varying microclimates, different levels of humidity and an intense canopy management. Well-draining granitic soils and cooling Atlantic breezes allow the grapes to ripen steadily. The vineyards are surrounded by lush forests, palm trees, rocky soils and granite boulders. Most of their wines are varietal and we’ll try their Albariño, Marselan, Tannat and Petit Verdot.

Bodega Garzón

Bodega Pablo Fallabrino

Our other wines will come from Vinedo de los Vientos, a Bodega owned by the Fallabrino family which produces limited run wines of the highest quality. The name means “Vineyard of the Winds” and is located near where the River Plate Estuary and Atlantic Ocean meet. Owned by the family since 1947, they upgraded to an ultra-modern winery in 1998 and over the past two decades have transformed into a world class winery. With an aim to produce great wines in small quantities, in 1998, the Fallabrino family completed, an ultra-modern winery with stainless steel tanks, pneumatic presses and French oak barrels. The winemaker Pablo Fallabrino, a laid-back good-natured surfer (he has a range of wines called Soul Surfer!), was warded WINEMAKER OF THE YEAR by the Tim Atkin MW Uruguay report 2023. Working with Italian grapes (Arneis, Barbera, Nebbiolo…) as well as Chardonnay, Gewurztraminer, Tannat (of course) and others – his approach is not to over-think the winemaking process. Instead, he runs with his instincts, takes chances and makes wines with his own personal signature. A Ripasso Tannat and a Sparkling Nebbiolo (!?) are among his 15 wines, but also an interesting white blend and a normal, still, Nebbiolo. We’ll try these last two.

The tasting will be on April 4th, notes will be posted here within the following 4 – 6 days.

À Bientôt

🍷 Medoc Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels – TASTING NOTES

The W1NG wine group met on Thursday December 7th to taste 6 (of the 14) 2019 Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels (CBE). All the wines were sourced from Tanners, in cases of all 14 CBEs. The average price is about £25 a bottle. The six selected were a cross section of the communes, the range of assemblages, and all having been rated by independent tasters – whose scores are recorded in the text.

The wines were tasted by the group on a cool-ish wet evening, with the six wines poured over an hour or so. In this setting its fair to say all seemed young. However there were 3 late no-shows, so there was a good sample-sized portion left in each bottle. I poured them all again 24 hours later, so they were all lined up in front of me to taste direct comparisons first, and then with food (sausages!). I think it both unsurprising and fair to say that every wine improved with the time – probably equivalent to 3 years or so in the cellar? The improvement was worth at least half a point for every wine and those are the scores I give below.
In most cases – with food things the wines seemed improved again… however this was uneven. Wines 1, 2 and 3 marginally, though 2 a little more; wine 4 actually seemed worse and 5 was not enhanced. The biggest difference was wine 6 which seemed better integrated and the food counterpointed some hidden complexity elevating the wine to equal top. If I was buying now for drinking in (say) 2027-2030 I’d think the 2 Saint-Estèphes (2 & 3) and the Margaux (6) would be the better bets!

Here are my notes:

1 CHÂTEAU LESTAGE (Listrac-Médoc)   14.5 %  
[The Assemblage of this wine, in %, is: Cabernet Sauvignon (CS) 31   Merlot (M) 64   Cabernet Franc (CF) 3   Petit Verdot (PV) 2]
Quite a recessed nose with some hints of an earthy berry fruit. The palate has quite a soft acidity and not strong, but rather coarse tannins giving a muddy character… a little improved later with the same earthy fruit softening the tannin but still a bit muddy,
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁵/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

2 CHÂTEAU LE BOSCQ (Saint-Estèphe)   13.5 %
[CS 46  M 46   CF 2   PV 6]
A darker nose with recessed black fruit and some non-fruit elements (tar?). Immediate strong tannins but finer – the other way round to the previous wine’s. Palate has woody hints and strong citric acidity giving a fresher feel with the fruit only appearing near the end. More going on than the previous wine and some time to wait.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^15.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁵/₂₀

3 CHÂTEAU LE CROCK (Saint-Estèphe)   14 %
[CS 46  M 43   CF 7   PV 4]
Fruitier nose with black berry flavours apparent. Quite firm but balanced tannins combining with a freshening line right to the long finish. This has everything one expects from this level claret and showing signs of integration already – very good. The highest scoring in other comparisons and the favourite wine with the group on the night… for me too – both then and a day later.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^16.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁶/₂₀

4 CHÂTEAU DE MALLERET (Haut Médoc)   14 %
[CS 54  M 44   CF –   PV 2]
This is inky dark with spicy plum notes on the nose. Open and much more approachable with the same plum flavours – dense and smooth but rather too simple for me. Later even more so but much of these qualities disappeared with food. A little too much of a quaffing wine? This Château changes their assemblage quite a lot from year to year – I wonder if this is designed to make a wine that is more approachable when young?
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁵/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

5 CHÂTEAU BELLE-VUE (Haut Médoc)   14 %
[CS 48  M 30   CF 1 + Carménère 1   PV 20]
This has an initial pungency, with almost medicinal notes – later some dark peppery fruit. Tannins rather prominent and a rather iron mineral undertone with that slightly medicinal element penetrated the fruit in the mid palate. This wasn’t helped with food and rather disappointed…
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁵/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

6 CHÂTEAU D’ARSAC (Margaux)   13.5 %
[CS 72  M 28   CF –   PV –]
This has more open fruit on the nose – raspberry and blackcurrant. The palate has a long lifting acidity mingling with the fruit in the middle palate. The tannins are dryish and on first taste concentrated towards the finish. But the overall package seems lighter after so much tannin before, but later this lightness appears only due to that contrast. With food this comes into its own showing its complexity and interplay well. Undoubtedly young and comes a little behind the Le Crock but with food pretty much its equal
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁶⁺/₂₀   Value:  ^15.5/₂₀

A rather cerebral tasting with wines that are so similar and relatively young in their journey towards maturity. All have perceptible tannins, similar fruit levels in the dark red to black range, and refreshing acidity. Thus the distinctions exist in the structure: quality of the tannins: supple or harsh; fine or coarse; strong or light… or in the length, interplay and timing of the lines of fruit or aciditity.. or whether fruit concurs with the tannins (Wine 1) or acidity (3 & 6) or tannins concur with acidity or all three lines intermingle! Such a preoccupation with structure makes for quite a rarified tasting… but a beguiling and interesting one in my opinion.

À Bientôt

🍷 Medoc Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnels

Bordeaux red wine – claret – is renowned for the world’s most famous wine classification system ever devised:  1855 Classification of Crus Classés. This divided the top 61 wines into five tiers, according to their price at the time. However it’s association of price with quality has remained and accentuated that link, and now the self-fulfilling nature of the classification is immovable.

However the term “Crus des Bourgeois” meaning wine estates owned by the town-dwellers of Bordeaux (the Bourg) is first recorded in 1740. Recognising the fact that that wine merchants had a concentration of wealth and vineyard ownership in the area, stemming from tax exemptions conferred by the English 300 years before…

For a detailed explanation of the History of the term Cru Bourgeois and an explanation of the New system of classification – and the results – see the Press Kit of the Alliance des Crus Bourgeois du Médoc.

The term Cru Bourgeois persisted as a sort of quality shorthand, and indeed just 3 years after the 1855 Classification there was a proposed 3-tier ranking of 248 such crus. At the time, integrating these with the main 1855 classification (as divisions 6, 7 & 8?) was discussed but never formally taken up.

However the idea that there was a layer (or 3) of good wines below the Crus Classés persisited, and in 1932 that the first real classification was created under the supervision of the Bordeaux Chamber of Commerce and the Chamber of Agriculture of the Gironde, listing 444 “Crus Bourgeois du Médoc”. Although this classification was never submitted for ministerial approval, it served as a reference for several decades.

However it was not until 2003 that a ministerial order approved the first official classification of the Crus Bourgeois du Médoc which recognized 247 châteaux out of 490 candidates classified as 151 “Crus Bourgeois”, 87 “Crus Bourgeois Supérieurs” and 9 “Crus Bourgeois Exceptionnels”.

However this just brought to a head a fundamental tension in the very idea of this sort of classification – 1855 included! That is – is classification a status of the Estate, or an expression of some sort objective (?) quality of the wine??

The last 3-tier classification in 2003 was annulled in 2007 due to disputes, conflicts of interest and legal action, and since 2010 there has effectively been a single annual Cru Bourgeois imprimatur of the wine quality – not the châteaux. Several châteaux opted out, including six or the nine 2003 Exceptionnels: (Chasse Spleen, Les Ormes de Pez, de Pez, Potensac, Poujeaux and Siran). They have formed their own marketing group called “Les Exceptionnels“. Three other notable châteaux have always stayed outside: Haut-Marbuzet; Sociando-Mallet; Gloria.

The re-emergence of Medoc Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnels on the market following the re-introduction of the 3-tier system in February 2020.

The new system (with effect from the 2018 vintage) is a 5-year quality mark rather than a legal ranking of properties or land, and has 14 Exceptionnels. It has a series of explicit criteria for inclusion at each level: tasting; environmental; quality management and marketing. So it conveys a more enduring approval of the property without tipping over to permanent status.

It seems, so far, that the top of this tree should be a reasonable indication of quality – alongside, perhaps, the famous châteaux in “Les Exceptionnels” group or otherwise outside – 9 are mentioned above.

I’ll picked out 6 CB Exceptionnels of the 14 to taste, hoping they cover the different communes included and give a cross-section of grape assemblage (varying from twice as much Merlot as Cabernet – to the other way round). They also have the benefit of having been all tasted and assessed by other tasters.

The six we’ll taste next week are: Château Lestage (Listrac-Médoc); Château Le Boscq (Saint-Estèphe); Château Le Crock (Saint-Estèphe); Château De Malleret (Haut Médoc); Château Belle-Vue (Haut Médoc); Château D’arsac (Margaux).

Tasting notes will be posted sometime around December 14th.

À Bientôt

“We’re only in it for the money…”

Over the last 3 or 4 weeks – for a variety of reasons – I’ve spent a bit of time thinking about wine and value. In general, all other things being equal (they never are), if you pay more for a wine it’ll probably be better than a similar style wine that costs significantly less. This rule-of-thumb, I’ve always believed, applies more directly to whites than reds, and the extra price might not always be justified by a smaller jump in quality. However there are even more complications…

I was reminded of one complication when, due to lack of planning, I had occasion to buy a cheapish, supermarket, white wine to start a risotto. I alighted on a Languedoc Viognier with an unusually low alcohol content and price. After using some in the risotto we sampled it and found a light, quite simple, refreshing wine with a nice acidity and balanced hints of apricot. Often I find Viognier has a tendency to be flabby, with too much apricot and oiliness, especially warm climate versions. At this level of wines from this grape paying more seems to get you more: more oiliness; more alcohol; more apricot; more flabbiness. In such a situation I’m inclined to pay less and get a leaner wine. Unless you want to go up to Condrieu and get more complexity, balance, length… that seems to work out for me.

The next week I was tasting with Brigitte Bordeaux while she tasted for the Wine Trader top 100. Tasters for this list are from Independent Wine shops themselves so, although this is a blind tasting, after evaluating the wine the taster is asked to consider the RRP against their notes and score and decide if they would stock the wine in question. This involves a judgement of value against quality in offering the wine for sale. We had another grape where often paying more often just gives you more, bigger wine, rather than better balanced wine – Gewürztraminer.

I rarely drink Gewürz unless eating Thai food, or something similar – aromatic, medium spiced dishes. So when I last bought Gewürz I looked at quite a big Alsace co-op where they list their wines giving exact alcohol and residual sugar levels (as is quite common in German lists, but rarer in Alsace). Now residual sugar and alcohol often pull in opposite directions – for a given wine the longer you ferment the alcohol goes up and the sugar down. So a lighter wine will have the lowest total levels of these two, in this co-op’s case the lowest in both measures of 4 candidates was the same wine – so I bought it (about 10 € in France + delivery) – and it does its job very well. For interest it had abv of 13.0 % (the others 13.3 – 13.5) and sugar also 13 (g/l) so not really dry, but others were up to 24!

I was reminded of this wine too when tasting Alsace with Brigitte – and found a GC Alsace Gewürz (Kirchberg de Barr) which had a supple acidity to counter its tropical fruit. It was 14.5% abv, but had therefore left little sugar unfermented. It did have a range of fruit rather than a single intense note and an interesting grapefruit-tinged acidity… £25-ish though.

At least formally, all this reached a dramatic climax with the W1NG group’s April tasting led by BB, featuring 3 blind pairs of quite disparate costs in a “Cheap v Expensive” comparison (or “posh v plonk”) tasting. Average full costs were £13 versus £33 per pair.

First up was a French Chardonnay pair:
POUILLY FUISSE 2020 VV (Deux Roches) £31 v ICARE CHARDONNAY 2021 (Languedoc) £13
One had oak notes and a linear fruit acid thread, restrained but persistent and slightly closed, attenuated by a mineral hint that suggested waiting. The other was open, richer but simpler with nutty hints. It was quite hard to score these – as the main charms of the first wine (which turned out to be the more expensive) seemed to be waiting for time and food, whereas the simpler attractions of the second wine were there right now. The expensive wine clearly a better wine, and suggested pleasure to come but was it worth the extra in the glass right then? No – but would it be ever be worth that much extra?? Good question – I couldn’t help thinking one might find a more pleasing all round wine somewhere in the middle.

Next came two Left Bank clarets:
CHATEAU FORCAS-DUPRE 2013 (Listrac) £16 v CHATEAU LA GARDE 2013 (Pessac-Leognan) £33
These are both more-or-less equal Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot and both about 13% abv. Both were rather hard, with tannin the killjoy in one and astringent acidity the other. The fruit was subjugated in both behind a dry – in one case saline – grip. Some fruit in both but not much expression. One wine was a little longer and the saline tannin grip betrayed the PL as opposed to the Listrac which was overwhelmed with acidity. I didn’t like either much, I think I prefer – if prefer is the word – too much acidity to too much tannin. Is lack of impression because 2013 was a rather difficult year? Perhaps… but one would expect more differences at these two price points.

Finally Rioja – in fact two 100% Tempranillo
RIOJA RESERVA VINA ALARDE 2016 £10 v RIJOA RESERVA TAHON DE TOBELAS 2015 £33
This comparison was was clear as the wines were very different: oak, depth and clarity on one hand; freshness, simple fruit and dash on the other. It’s obvious which was the more expensive wine but right then in the glass I can’t say I preferred it, and if that’s the case wouldn’t one rather pay £10 rather than £30+ ??? This brings me back to my remarks at the beginning – if one is paying more for Rioja one doesn’t just want more extraction, more oak, more alcohol! But I feel a little like I did with the first pair, sure I could find something offering the best of both worlds for somewhere in the, rather wide, middle ground.

So – quite an illuminating tasting – with a moral that one needs to taste – or trust the taste of someone (critic or supplier) – the wine in question before venturing anything above your ordinary outlay. Thanks to BB and to everyone there for the evening.

Finally as a Coda: BB and I met again to taste 10 (or was it 11) Rosés at the end of the Top 100 tasting. This was amazingly varied and we found some nice wines at all price points. However a real star (at £20ish) – I think for both of us – was a Romanian wine made from a grape called Busuioaca de Averesti.

This was lovely: with a passion fruit and grapey nose and a refreshing acidity with grapefruit tinges and a slightly sweet red fruit palate with a vinous food-friendly grip. A perfect summer Rosé that would cope with tapas or spicy nibbles. I would probably score it as a good 17 (/20) in this blog’s usual scoring system… I hope BB will stock it this summer?!

That’s it for now – indeed probably for 3 or 4 weeks – until then…

LOIRE CABERNET FRANC – TASTING REPORT

On 2^nd February 2023 the Wine in Nottingham Group met for the first tasting of the 2023 season. The first “normal” tasting since March 2020 – nearly 3 years. A few members have left, a few old members returned and a couple more likely to return sometime soon. So – the group is now 28 strong (plus myself or Kathryn from Brigitte Bordeaux – or both of us) so the maximum of 30 is much the same.

The first tasting of the season was Loire Cabernet Franc – with the wines all 100% Cabernet Franc and sourced across the Central area of the Loire: Eastern Anjou and Western Touraine. The wines come from an area not much more than 20 miles across, although predominantly Cabernet Franc vineyards extend another 20 miles or so both South West and South East.

Here are my notes:

CRÉMANT ROSÉ “ÉTINCELLES” nv (Ansodelles)   –   14 %   –   Grower €15  (UK £27)
“Étincelles” is a Pétillant Naturel (Pet Nat) wine made in a single fermentation ending in the bottle, and no dosage with sugar and yeast for a second fermentation. This method (also called méthode ancestral) produces less bubbly, fresher, fruitier and more grape-specific flavours. In this case the herby acidity with raspberry and strawberry fruit common in Cabernet Franc. The mousse is light and the wine shows a citric acidity, although more in the middle palate than in the more usual attack as with Champagnes and other Crémants. As is common in the Loire, serving this with dessert would work well – but a very nice aperitif too.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^15.5/₂₀   Value:  ^15.5/₂₀

SAUMUR-CHAMPIGNY “CHARL’ANNE” 2015 (La Cune)   –   13.5 %   –   Grower €14  (UK £25)
Rather typical Franc nose, light spice, some herbal notes and red fruit. Palate follows evenly with a mineral, pencil-lead note emerging and then developing to earthiness at the finish. Well balanced with an even structure and lightness that speaks of Saumur-Champigny. Rather a good representative of the appellation!
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁶/₂₀   Value:  ^15.5/₂₀

CHINON CLOS DE LA LYSARDIÈRE Vieilles Vignes 2017   –   13 %   –   Grower €14 (UK £24)
This is a similar colour with, at first, a more restricted nose and mineral, more chewy attack. With time the wine softens and opens certainly revealing green capsicum and leafy notes but a bigger darker fruit and some length. Very comparable to the previous wine in quality: a slightly deeper palate and a slightly more uneven structure, and clearly a little younger…
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁶/₂₀   Value:  ^15.5/₂₀

SAINT-NICOLAS-DE-BOURGUEIL “DIONYSOS” 2018 (Mortier)   –   13.5 %   –   Grower €15 (UK £25)
This has a nose of ripe black and red currants, with a sweeter palate, and the acidity delayed to the mid-palate. This has a quite big-boned quality with a black pastille sweetness, and early earthiness. It lacks the length, structure and finesse of the other wines but against that has depth and a more international profile.
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁵/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

BOURGUEIL “LES MARQUISES” 2015 (Audebert)   –   13.5 %   –   Grower €16 – (UK £25)
This and the next wine are both from over 40 year old vines in two vineyards less than a kilometer apart on the same coteaux in Benais. They are cultivated and vinified identically by the same man – so differences are likely attributable to the terroir. This is higher (20m or so), more exposed to the West and with deeper and more clay-based topsoil. This has a Franc nose with supple red fruits, even a cherry hint. Hints of spice, herb and warmth on the supple tannins and an integrated acidity. Overall – a rather complete wine, pretty well at peak.
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁷/₂₀   Value:  ^16.5/₂₀

BOURGUEIL “LE CLOS SENECHAL” 2015 (Audebert)   –   13.5 %   –   Grower €16 – (UK £25)
This has a more sheltered, southerly aspect and a soil with more limestone. The flavour components are similar to the previous wine, but all more recessed and enveloped in a more defined structure, cleaner and harder. There is more acidity and tannin but then below that – some satisfying depth and fruit and slightly more complexity. It seems “cooler” and in need of a couple of years, then it may be better than all the others…
Ratings:        Quality:  ^16.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁶/₂₀

So, do the wines show the rarified distinctions between the main appellations? These wines are all from 40-55 year old vines, grown on Agrilo-Calcaire soils, with some variations in the topsoil (in relation to depth, and to other components in the clay). I think it fair to say that the differences are less than that of any of them to a wine made from vines on sand nearer the Loire itself. That will be open, dashing and raspberry fruited for immediate quaffing with Bistro food. These are all a bit more serious – yet they do – in my opinion – display subtle differences that speak of their origin.

In general the Saumur-Champigny showed a pleasing lightness; after a while the Chinon showed supple depth. The Saint-Nicolas was rustic and surprisingly big; while the Bourgueils showed more structure and in different ways, I think, more complexity.

Overall I thought quality and typicity were very good. In food-suitability and profile the easiest comparison for these sort of wines would be to a right bank Claret, an area of similar stylistic range. I think these wines would, at least, hold their own against a selection of those costing 50% more. Now, if only we knew someone who lived in the Cabernet Franc wine area…

Jusqu’à la prochaine fois

A Halloween Burgundy Tasting – not so scary!

The W1NG Group met at the ICC on Halloween, for a tasting of Burgundy that turned out to be more treat than trick.

Admittedly the average bottle cost was about £26, even allowing for some “tricks” for getting discounts which probably means that most buyers would find the average nearer £30 now. Nevertheless is did show – all in all – that at this level Burgundy can be something special. We’ll discuss what that is later, first – here are my tasting notes:

BOURGOGNE CHARDONNAY 2016 (Coche-Bizouard, Meursault) –  14 %   –  Wine Soc  £23
This had a stone fruit nose with citric notes, the palate showed this as long lemon acidity, some restrained fruit and a long mineral line. Quite rich but with an unmistakably Burgundian counterbalancing grip. Very satisfactory and good value when compare against our specific white Burgundy Benchmark set at £30.
SCORE: 16 VALUE 16.5

POUILLY-FUISSÉ “PENTACRINE” 2015 (Saumaize-Michelin)  –  13.5 %   –  SVS £27.50
This is much richer, with (too much) creamy texture – and a much warmer citric acidity, more mandarin than lemon. Pliant and a bit loose. It’s only the slightly restrained fruit and some mineral backbone (much less pronounced than the previous wine), that suggest a Burgundy origin rather than a cooler New World wine. Many liked this wine, and against a couple of £25 New World Chardonnay it would do well, but not for me in this company:
SCORE: 15 VALUE 15

CHABLIS 1^er Cru “MONTMAINS” 2016 (Simonnet-Febvre)  –  13 %  –  Waitrose £28
This has a lighter and cooler nose, but open with hints of yellow fruit. The nose is reflected by the first palate, which also yields a stronger acid line persisting right through the middle palate. Lovely balance, length and refreshment with hints of subtle fruit and a mineral base weaving a complex pattern. This grower makes 5 Premier Cru Chablis, priced from €22 at the cellar door. This one was my favourite white of the night:
SCORE: 16.5 VALUE 16.5

ST. AUBIN 1^er Cru “SUR LE SENTIER DU CLOU” 2014 (Clair)  –  13 %  –  SVS £24 (for the’18)
This has some components that say “Burgundy”, a lightish vegetal nose, some pretty fruit and a light, but present, structure. However the components lack depth and development, and it’s all over a bit quickly. We are working against a £40 benchmark now, so:
SCORE: 14 VALUE 15

GIVRY PREMIER CRU CLOS SALOMON 2019 (Clos Salomon)  –  13.5 %  –  Wine Soc £29
This has ample and sweet red fruit, on the nose and palate. Rather pretty and open, but lacking much depth despite some more vinous components. Rather new world in style – only a vague herbal note mitigates against an open and angular style. Quite a nice wine, but not impressively Burgundian:
SCORE: 15 VALUE 15.5

MONTHÉLIE PREMIER CRU CHAMPS FUILLOT 2019 (Changarnier)  –  13.5 %  –  Wine Soc £35
Very farmyard nose, with animal and vegetal notes, later a hint of heavy (violet? lily?) fragrance underneath it all. A complex wine with some sweet fruit (dark cherry?) soft but still slightly grainy, almost chocolate, tannins; mineral and a warm acidity. The wine has development in the glass (and undoubtedly in the cellar), and is unmistakably, satisfyingly Burgundy! The favourite red of the group by a clear margin and my favourite wine of the whole night too. In fact this is, I think, only the 3rd sort of Monthélie I’ve drunk, (I’ve twice bought cases of 6 in the past) and they have never disappointed. The grower only makes 1,500 bottles of this wine a year – an indication of the small volumes available for wines at this level!
SCORE: 17 VALUE 17

So – is it necessary and worth it to go up to, or at least towards £30 or £40 to get the real Burgundy? For me, on the basis of this tasting I would certainly say yes. Although the first white undoubtedly offers a value option, and evidence that bargains can be found. However, sometimes the best value is not just the cheapest, and the most expensive wines were worth the extra IMO!

What is that elusive Burgundian character, that’s worth paying for? For me, it’s a level of complexity and balance that combines a notable fruit with structure and other flavours without becoming overpowering or one-sided. Finesse, in a word. I think the most expensive wines – both white and red – showed that a bit better than the cheaper wines in this tasting. It might not be enough to warrant the price increase in everyone’s mind (and wallet) – but it does in mine.

Happy tasting…

À Bientôt

“I started out on Burgundy, but soon hit the harder stuff…”

Actually, in this case, Bob Dylan is wrong – no wine is harder than Burgundy.

To be fair I’m referring to difficulty, whereas in 1965 Bob was pastiche-ing tabloid moral-panic headlines suggesting progression from (then much weaker) marijuana use to crazed junkies…

However Burgundy is hard for a couple of reasons. Firstly it’s very (frighteningly, scarily…) expensive. Secondly it is organised into seemingly countless appellations, each with several tiny named sites, with many different wine-makers within every site. The is true for white wines – nearly all from Chardonnay, and even more so of reds, from Pinot Noir.

Of course these two factors interplay. Small production volumes (when you drill down to a good grower’s exploitation of a small portion of a small, famous site) – obviously drives up prices. That knocks on to prices over the whole area.

Our wine group now is looking at basing its tastings on an average (UK) cost of £20 a bottle. Thanks to issues I will not mention, that’s about 25% increase (current inflation isn’t yet in this calculation as most wine stocks were purchased 6 -12 months ago) over 3 years. We have come to expect a certain standard at that price point. However I have searched through a few wine-merchants lists to get an idea of Burgundies of comparable quality and I think that point is around £30 for white Burgundy; £40 for red Burgundy!

Burgundy is really 5 areas, as this map shows:

Chablis is disconnected and away to the North West, on a unusual soil structure, but is definitely part of the region, and nearly all it’s wine is based on the white Burgundy grape – Chardonnay. The other regions are all further South and East on the West Bank of the Saône river – at varying distances.

They comprise, going South: the Côte de Nuits (mainly red); the Côte de Beaune (both red and white); the Côte Chalonnaise (mainly red, some white); the Mâconnais (nearly all white).

Overall there is more than twice as much white still wine in Burgundy as red, adding to the upward pressure on price for reds. There are over 100 appellations and 4000 growers – adding to the granular sub division that also increases rarity. This matters because one can discern appreciable differences due to site with two grapes that respond to terroir as closely as Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. So one really might prefer a wine that’s made in small volumes to any others from the same appellation…

Many of the very best wines come from Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune, collectively called the Côte d’Or. The very top wines are often in 4 figures per bottle, very good wines in 3 figures certainly. Here sites are graded Generic, Village, Premier and Grand Cru. The map below shows the complexity of the area:

Red shading indicates Grand Cru, Yellow Premier Cru or Village Wines, Green Regional Wines.

So – if wines are that expensive how do you find value:

There are four strategies:
1). Look at wines from other countries: mainly New World: New Zealand, Australia, South America, even USA…
2). Look at less prestigious areas, villages, and sites – and also good growers’ less expensive wines…
3). Look for sale bargains, bin ends, from good retailers – but be careful, some times wines are discounted for a reason…
4). Go to Burgundy in person and buy for yourself – a strategy that can be combined with 2). A halfway house to this is to buy en primeur from a trusted merchant – but you need to know a bit about what your doing.

Let’s discuss reds – Pinot Noir – first. I’m not really persuaded that strategy 1) works. Don’t misunderstand me – I have had lovely Pinot Noir from Oregon; Patagonia; Central Otago; cool areas of Australia – even Italy… But I don’t think I ever found they were quite Burgundy. They were all on a bigger, looser scale somehow, the may have had the beguiling fruit or the power, but rarely both and never the finesse…

My inclination is to concentrate on strategy 2). Look at slightly more out of the way villages. This means in practice the slightly higher, more westerly or southern villages of the Côte de Beaune, or even further South in the slightly less refined but impressive areas in Chalonnaise. Monthelie, Auxey-Duresses or St Romain rather than Volnay or Pommard; Pernand-Vergelesses or Savigny rather than Aloxe-Corton; or south to St Aubin, Santanay, Maranges or further into the Chalonaise for Mercurey or Givry. Another possibility is lower status wines from a top grower. I once found a truly wonderful Côte de Nuits Villages from an Aloxe-Corton grower – a wonderful wine that only lacked a little of the length and complexity of his top wine, and a quarter of the price!

For whites all the same things apply, in my view, but life is made easier by two other, large, areas also capable of very good wines: Chablis and Macon… The very top wines from Chablis are comparable with a top Côte d’Or whites at about half the price, although in a slightly more linear and austere style – which might be preferable in some situations or for some palates. By going down to Premier Cru can be a reliable source of reasonable (in this context) value. One can also find some similar styles in white Mercurey or Givry though they are uncommon, especially in the UK.

Macon provides bigger wines, more in the Côte d’Or style and the top examples, Pouilly-Fuissé for example, can provide good value. Again, some top producers (e.g. in Mersault) will produce a Bourgogne Blanc that may well punch well above its weight and be good value compared to the “real thing”.

We will try examples of Chablis, Pouilly-Fuissé, and a super-value Bourgogne Blanc; and then reds from St Aubin, Givry and Monthelie on Monday. All will be leading up to – but not reaching – our Burgundy Benchmarks (£30 whites / £40 reds).
Are even these “good value” wines worth it?

We’ll see – a report should be with you in 4 or 5 days.

À Bientôt

THE WINE-IN-NOTTINGHAM-GROUP MEETS AGAIN

On 9th June 2022 the Wine in Nottingham Group met for the first time since early March 2020 – 27 months. Of 33 people in the group at that time, only two have withdrawn, while a couple are not ready to return quite yet. A further 5 were away but sent apologies. So, 24 us gathered to catch up and sample so special wines.

The highlight of evening was undoubtedly seeing old friends – only about a third of whom I’d seen in person in that long dark social-winter. Nevertheless the wine opportunity was also something special. Just before Covid I had planned to commemorate the 20th Birthday of the Wine Group (April 2000!) with a selection of high scoring wines.

My blog started in July 2013 and the current scoring system was initiated at that point. In the 7 years between then and the Covid stop I have only awarded 7 wines more than 17 points (out of 20) – about one a year. So I decided to show those wines, sometimes in more recent vintages, and sourced them in 2020. So we decided to go ahead with those wines.

It wasn’t the most analytical of tastings, the social excitement, a compressed timescale and 7 wines meant we had only 15 minutes with each wine compared to the normal 20. So I’ve decided to quote my original notes and scores and make relative comments:

HENRIQUES AND HENRIQUES 10 YEAR OLD SERCIAL, Madeira DOC – 20 % – Wine Society – £20 (½l)
In February 2017 I wrote: “Just Lovely! Notes of citrus, flowers, blossom, over-ripe peach… Palate has a smoky Madeira base, but dried fruit sweet hints undercut and lengthened by a dashing supple acidity that goes on and on, a wonderful aperitif as it gets the juices flowing: evocative, dashing, sensual and sensational! I think this is my preferred version of Madeira as it’s so versatile and unusual…  Score 18”
This time we tried 2020-sourced 10-y-o, so the wine is essentially the same in relation to the tasting. Indeed there is not a word I need to alter – nor the score!

GRAND CRU KAEFFERKOPF 2002  (Schaetzel) (Alsace, France) 13%  £16 from the grower – rare now.
In July 2014 I wrote: “Golden colour. Diesel / polish nose, with honey, citrus and a hint of stone fruit on the nose. Palate is dry with a sour stone fruit character. Very long and mouth watering. The fruit grows slowly through the tasting. Lovely!… Score 18”
Now there is more diesel, more mineral and less fruit, much more austere but as complex though through multifaceted mineral rather than fruit , still just as good? Maybe a little past its pleasure peak – half a point off?

BARBARESCO “ELISA” 2008 (ADA NADA)   –   14 %   –   Grower £26 (UK £40)
In February 2016 I wrote: “This nose is quite open for Nebbiolo – pungent even: meat, lilies, liquorice, plums. The palate has cherry and plum fruit but a definite tarry body and a slightly bitter-chocolate finish. Very expressive and warmer and more evolved than similar wines. Probably near its best. Score 17.5”

Now this is more liquorice, darker pruney fruit, rounder smoother but loosing a little dashing freshness. Perhaps a little less interesting, but showing more power and would be for a deeper flavoured food selection, I probably would not alter the score…

CHÂTEAU PRADEAUX BANDOL 2006 – 13½%  – (Leon Stolarski £23 – but now France Retail £24)
In February 2015 I wrote: “At first the nose is pungent with farmyard smell, then more damp forest and then higher notes of baking spice, floral hints and even marmalade (?). The nose is so eventful and complex one delays actually tasting the wine. The palate has dry tannins with a lifting acidity and a current of blackberry fruit and a kirsch tinge. Again developing and satisfying, a wine one could spend time with – lovely! Score 18.
This time we were tasting the 2013, so a wine tasted at 9 years old as before. But this seemed quite a lot younger, much recessed nose a similar but lighter nose. It changed in the glass and opened a bit towards the 2006 profile. A much less impressive vintage (Bandol 2013 is ** in general while 2006 was ***), and definitely a point lower – but an impressive wine nonetheless..

CHÂTEAU MUSAR (HOCHAR, BEKAA VALLEY) 2010   –   13½ %  (Now £34)
In February 2019 I wrote: “This was a very hot dry year and Musar lost about half of its Cabernet to drying out. So the mix is about equally Cinsault, Carignan and Cabernet with – especially the last – contributing dried berries. The result is amazing with hints of oily Amarone-style bitter cherry, some prune and some savoury notes in a sprity package. The palate is balanced by lovely supple acidity with some Italianate leather hints, very ripe plum fruit and some spice. One would probably guess at a, very good, Amarone – but this has a slightly wild complexity. Just fabulous and worth the money IMO…. I wish I’d bought more Score 18.”
This is very similar – if anything a little darker, rounder and with more sweetness to the fore, in the form of a blackcurrant pastille hint. Making it even warmer and more pleasurable and maybe a half point higher. Also the crowd favourite with about 41% of the vote (that’s a familiar figure…).

KRÖVER KIRCHLAY AUSLESE EDELSÜß 2010 (Müllen) Traben-Trabach, Mosel 7%   Grower  £19
In November 2015 I wrote: “Beginning of diesel hints, soft fruit and slatey mineral on the nose. Palate has dazzling warm precise acidity – with notes of orange, other citrus peel and peach, with lip-smacking food-demanding acidity. Lots of sweetness (maybe over 100g/l) but what supple but focused acidity, combining delicacy and power. Just Wunderbar… Score 18.5 .”
Another wine where the notes could be repeated exactly – there is a little more diesel, a little more mineral, a little more peach and – to my palate – a perfect old-style German Riesling. It could attract a little more in the score too, but it’s already a very high score – still my favourite…”

GEWÜRZTRAMINER VENDANGE TARDIVE 2014 (Turckheim)   –   13½%   Virgin Wines £30
In July 2018 I wrote: “This has big obvious Gewürz perfumes: tropical fruit; rose; ginger – with a baking-biscuits note and honey. The palate is enormously rich and that gives an impression of greater sweetness than it’s 50-60 g/l of residual sugar, maybe half that of a full dessert wine. Luscious, honey mango, passion fruit palate that goes on forever – just wanted some blue cheese or a passion fruit Crème Brûlée. A lovely thought to end this season’s ICC Tastings… Score 17.5.”
This was shown in the 2017 vintage so slightly older at the point of tasting, but seemed sweeter than the notes above and although impressive it is a little less fresh and interesting as a result. 2017 was a bigger vintage in general in Alsace and sometimes that works to the detriment of all but the most carefully made sweet wines. Half a point lower maybe, which would drop it out of qualification for the very tasting it concludes.

A suitable paradox to end the delayed conclusion to the 2020 season.

I’d like to thank those attending for the honour of their evening, and my readers for the honour of their attention.

Stay safe – À bientot

FEBRUARY ICC TASTING NOTES – CATALONIA

The ICC group met on Thursday 13th February 2020 to sample wines from Catalonia, with a “second half” focusing on Priorat.

Here are my notes:

MAS SARDANA CAVA BRUT NATURE (Massard)   –   11½ %   –   GWW £14
A spritzy nose with an orchard – mainly pear – tinge, and some bready notes. Palate also has apple and pear and a soft long acidity, fresh and vinous showing little of the (Macabeo?) gluey note common in Cava – but a very light mousse, almost a good still Xarel-Lo with a sherbet twist!
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁵/₂₀   Value:  ^15.5/₂₀

CORONAS TEMPRANILLO 2016 (Torres)   –   13½ %   –   Waitrose  £10
An open, quite typically Tempranillo, nose – red berry fruit and a hint of spice, and of wood. A juicy palate with the oak showing through softened tannins rather than vanilla. Slightly simple but great value.
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁵/₂₀   Value:  ^16.5/₂₀

COSTERS DEL SEGRE “NALTRES” 2014 (L’Olivera)   –  14½ %   –   Stone, Vine & Sun   £16
This blend of (mainly) Cabernet and Grenache, has a slightly burnt nose. The palate has berry fruit but rather over-ripe and spirity, recalling raspberries preserved in Brandy. Many non fruit dark elements too – smoke, pepper, liquorice…  Rather grainy and tannic but interesting.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^14.5/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

NEGRE PRIORAT 2018 (Finca Tobella)   –   14½ %   –   Stone, Vine & Sun   £17
This is mainly (58%) Syrah, and the nose is quite quiet with a slightly cedar hint. Palate is smooth and (too?) easy drinking with black- and blue- berry fruit. Against this smooth background – a slightly obtrusive salty, liquorice element. Young but quite smooth.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^14.5/₂₀   Value:  ¹⁴/₂₀

RETRAT DEL PRIORAT 2014 (Massard)   –  14½ %  –   Naked Wines   £19
This is Carignan (60%+?) dominated, and shows that variety’s sharp red fruit. On the nose a spirity red fruit and the palate has a long line of cranberry / redcurrant acidity lifting fresh fruit and heavy alcohol. Slightly less typical but impressive balance between freshness and depth.
Ratings:        Quality:  ^15.5/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

“THE OLD MULE HOUSE” PRIORAT 2016 (Luca Hodgkinson)  –  14½%  –   Naked Wines  £21
This is all Grenache and shows a more complex nose of fruit-acid and some plum and plum-tomatoes hints. The palate has good but integrated acidity framing and lifting soft tannins, fruit and alcohol, hints of liquorice again but more subtle. Very good – and my favourite.
Ratings:        Quality:  ¹⁶/₂₀   Value:  ^14.5/₂₀

An interesting tasting of two halves! A vinous but not that “bubbly” a bubbly; followed by a wine of great value, and a big dark brooding Costers; the second half showing the Priorat style with 3 different leading grapes! The Priorats were all impressive and showed some similarity of style – low yield / high alcohol / high extraction, quite open, big wines. Although the success of the style with different grapes is more varied. In particular I wonder if Syrah is the right grape for that style. A majority of those present picked the last wine – 100% Grenache – as their favourite… me too!

À Bientôt

FEBRUARY ICC WINE THEME: CATALONIA

Catalonia is one of 15 regions in mainland Spain, although it is economically about 20% of the country. It occupies a triangle in the North East corner bordered on the North by France, on the South-East by the Mediterranean, and to the West by Aragon. Each of these borders is some 200k long. The Catalan people and the Catalan language spread over the French border into Roussillon up to, and past, Perpignan.

Catalonia produces just about 10% of Spain’s wine, and – not surprisingly given its economic power and fierce independence – has developed and modernised rather like a small separate country. In fact it has about the same production volumes, at better quality levels, as Greece or Bulgaria.

Catalonia is famously associated with Cava. It produces about 95% of all Cava, nearly all in Penedès. In all Catalonian wine is – very roughly – half Cava, and a quarter each of Red and White.

As well as the general Denominación de Origen (DO) for both Cava and Catalunya, there are 9 other DO areas in Catalonia. Going roughly North to South these are: Empordà-Costa Brava; Pla de Bages; Alella ; Penedès; Tarragona; Conca de Barberà; Montsant; Terra Alta; and inland Costers del Segre, composed of 4 or 5 separate enclaves in the Lleida province.

In addition there is one, very highly prized, DOCa (Denominación de  Origen Calificada): Priorat – in the South surrounded by Montsant. Both these areas centre on old vine Garnacha (Grenache) and Cariñena (Carignan).

Here’s a map of all the Catalan areas:

As to grape production: over 20 varieties are grown, but the top 9 make up over 86% of production. Led by the Cava grapes: Macabeu (which makes up nearly 1/4 of all Catalonian grapes); Parellada and Xarel-lo; the rest of the top 9 are Tempranillo; Cabernet Sauvignon; Samso (Cariñena /Carignan); Grenache; Merlot and Chardonnay.

Well over 80% of Catalonian wine is DO or better, compared to under 40% for Spain as a whole. Not all these DOs are significant to the UK drinker. New developments are seeing some good wines from Conca de Barberà; Terra Alta; and Costers del Segre – but otherwise the main areas we see are: Cava; Priorat / Montsant; and Penedès.

One of the most significant wine areas is DO Penedès, along the coast South-West of Barcelona. This is famous for Cava and the Torres house. Torres has been highly influential in the modernisation and internationalisation of Spanish wine after the dark days of Franco, it accounts for about 8% of the Catalonian wines we see in the UK. And although it produces a lot of wine including some international styles it hasn’t completely forsaken its family-run, terroir-driven ethos.

Torres is based in Vilafranca del Penedès, and makes around 30 wines in Catalunya including some very recognizable names: Viña Sol and (the very good) Viña Esmerelda among the whites; and Sagre de Toro  and Gran Sagre de Toro. The last two wines are based on Grenache and Carignan – with the Gran version supplemented (characteristically of Torres) by Syrah! Another example of their approach is Coronas a Tempranillo, sometimes with a touch (5%) of Cabernet Sauvignon and Gran Coronas – a Cabernet Sauvignon with a touch (this time 15%) of Tempranillo and aged to Reserva level (aged for at least 3 years with at least 1 year in oak).

Last time we focused on Catalunya we concentrated on Cava and Torres (and therefore Penedès). That was in October 2013 and you can still see the relevant posts below.

On this occasion we’ll split the tasting in half. The first half with a Cava, and reds from Torres and another up and-coming sub-region: Costers del Segre. The second half will focus on Priorat.

Priorat wines were unknown 40 years ago, but were revived by growers like Palacios, Gil and Barbier and became a big hit with influential critics. Priorat is a small but highly rated region in Catalunya, holding a prized DOCa (DOQ in Catalan) second historically to Rioja. It’s one and a half times bigger than Bourgueil (a comparison example that has a similar number of producers) but produces 2m bottles – less than a quarter of the wine of Bourgueil, and only 2 or 3% of all Catalan wine. The local soil, called Llicorella in steep sites of particularly poor quality, made up of quartz and slate, limits yields to about 5 hl/ha.

The vineyard plantings in Priorat are approximately 39% Garnacha (Grenache), 27% Cariñena (Carginan), 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Syrah, 6% Merlot and 2% others. The blend of each Priorat red varies depending on the producer. Accordingly we’ll taste 3 wines where the dominant grapes are – in turn – Syrah, Canignan and Grenache.

The notes of wines in this tasting will be posted in 3 or 4 days.

À Bientôt

Tags Catalonia, ICC TASTING, Wine, Wine Theme this Month

Categories CATALONIA, ICC TASTING, Theme Notes, Wine