What a shame.

 

R. really confessed to having opened this bottle ten years before (only joking, actually three days) and not vacuumed it. Which was a pity because I really enjoy Rhone whites. Chateauneuf du Pape Vieux Telegraph 2011 Le Crau Blanc is from only 5 ha out of 70 ha devoted to vines on the Mistral-exposed plateau. The site was started in 1898 and still owned by the Brunier family. The grapes are Clairette, Grenache Blanc, Bourboulenc and Roussanne (40:30:15:15).

A lovely bright, light gold appearance with some viscosity was followed by distinct aromas of preserved lemons with some honey sweetness. The dominant flavour was soft ripe peaches, the acidity being medium/low whilst an attractive bitter finish underlines the wine’s dryness.

There is a very interesting web link about the wine and its production by Kermit Lynch, a US wine merchant, where more details can be found. This would be a fantastic wine with Christmas Day turkey. The wine stood up very well to its overdose of oxygen. I look forward to tasting some more, preferably opened later!

[Richard: yes, my fault. Opened on Friday, friends round on Saturday when we drank something else and I rather forgot about it. I think it came from Tanners but can’t trace any details. We must try another bottle.]

 

Is it us ….?

Another champagne – this time Chartogne-Taillet’s Cuvee St Anne NV from the northern edge of the champagne region, NW of Epernay. It’s equal measures of Chardonnay and PN with a dosage of 6 g/l. I’ve kept this for about a year and I note that the Wine Society are selling it in their growers case again, but probably a later batch.

WS reviews are generally very positive about this – there is one bad review which seems a touch OTT, but we can recognise some elements of his criticism. The nose has a rich, bruised apple smell and the colour is distinctly yellow with small bubbles. The flavour is dry, of medium length and broad rather than linear but with a touch of lemon acidity. It has a saline quality and it started to improve the longer it sat in the glass (hence is it us…?). What was unattractive was it’s clagginess and a sugary back-note and we wondered if it would benefit from a higher proportion of Chardonnay. We’ve commented on this lack of a precision in champagne before where one’s mouth’s juices feel too thick. Maybe we like a much drier, more austere, style.

We’re still waiting for a wow factor fizz.

[Richard: I didn’t recognise this as champagne initially but I grew on me and I found more complexity, making me wonder if my palate needed clearing. Not bad, not great.]

A retaste

It’s always interesting to retaste wines, provided you can remember what they tasted like first time round. In this case I couldn’t – I could barely remember the name – but rereading our notes I see that we found, among other things ‘sweet overtones and piercing acidity’. This was 4 years ago. Now the wine (2009 Comte Philippe de Nazelle Vin de Pays Pyrénees-Atlantiques Cabidos Sec) is more orange/old gold than yellow with a funky, vegetal, bruised apple nose. Sweeter than expected to taste with some caramel – where had the acidity gone? But then a dry medium to short finish. I preferred this wine younger but it is, now, as then, not a wine you could drink too much of without food.

[Geoff: This was a fortunate find in my wine cupboard. At it’s peak of development, this was both rich and sweet but with a dry finish, albeit, as R. said, a touch short. What really brought it to life was cauliflower cheese and a pork chop because the richness of the food and drink were in harmony. No more left, sadly.]

A tale of two…chardonnays

Occasionally you get a wine where the taste is not what you expect, a recent example being the Ontanon Rioja which, to me, didn’t have any Tempranillo characteristics.

My first wine on Friday was another. Ostensibly a chardonnay but I couldn’t identify it. Deep yellow, some toffee on the nose, dry, saline, clean, linear – not complex. An interesting drink (2012 Maison Nicolas Potel Puligny-Montrachet) but just not typical.

The second (Joseph Drouhin Saint Romain 2013, 13%) was more like it. A bright yellow colour, more Burgundian on the nose, lemony classic layered taste with some spice, subtle power – no aggression. Very more-ish.

[Geoff: The St Romain is on sale in larger Co-Ops for £17 and is great VFM. It’s a classic southern Cote d’Or from the next village to Auxey. Now with some bottle age as well as spicy (quince?) nose, there is both freshness and a rounder quality to the taste. Lovely.

It put Potel’s PM in the shade. This might be going through a dumb period but there was not the richness and generosity of the StR. Okay, I expected better although classically PM is on the lighter, brighter end of the Cote d’Or spectrum.]

Number 19046

That number refers to the bottle we drank. The total production of Terra Verde Tasmanian Pinot Noir 2018 (£9.99) was 30,000, so our bottle was almost two thirds of the way through the bottling run. The photograph is an example of the current obsession some makers have with provenance. We’ve got information overload in quite a few instances. Would bottle 19046 taste different to bottle 19047? Or 29,999? Or 14? I doubt it. The wine’s bottled and then labelled presumably in sequence, so it’s just a matter of where it stands in the line.

Okay, I’ll stop going on about it. The wine itself  (grapes hand-picked btw) had a rich, sweet red berry nose, was a low intensity red with the usual watery PN rim. The palate was not in the gushing New World, anxious-to-please style but much more restrained, almost under-developed and slightly green. As R. said “more interesting”. I wonder if the vines were still relatively young.

We need to know what vine row the grapes came from. Vine numbers would be useful, as would their planting dates, depth etc etc. Are you still awake?

[Richard: over the last few years we tried most of the Aldi ‘Lot’ series. Too many to link but my memory is that we liked most of them, to a lesser or greater degree. Then, suddenly, this one appeared, no series number as previously so it might be a one-off. Plenty of info on the back table as well – it was ‘vinted’ (not a word I know) in March and April last year, using grapes from all over Tasmania. When we try a wine like this we always ask – is the style Old or New World? This was the former and all the better for it, with a spicy sour cherry taste which I liked.]

Intensity plus

Whenever we read about Ribeiro the name of Vega Sicilia comes up. Here’s Vin Cognito’s reference, the first sentence in their description of Acon Crianza 2013, “To call this a poor man’s Vega Sicilia would be to do it an injustice.” I can write as one who has never tried VS (or is ever likely to) I’m going to use a more down-to-earth comparison and describe the Acon we tried as tasting like Rioja on speed. Everything was intensity plus.

Ruby red core with a brick rim and bags of viscosity (it’s 14.5%), the wine had the classic vanilla nose which suggest American oak barrels (see below *). There were spices and cedar wood notes on the nose. All of these were intense and obvious in the taste along with some strong tannins. This was a wine that would suit those who like big classic flavours – it would probably be even better on day 2.

*Vin Cognito state that it’s aged in “Bordeaux barrels”. However it seemed too vanilla-laden to be in French oak which has a less obvious sweet vanilla note. In which case, perhaps they are referring to the size.  Even as a crianza it is aged for 38 months which suggests there were tremendous tannins to soften.

[Richard: we may not ever drink Vega Sicilia but we have tried, recently, another wine from the same maker – Alion, which we liked a lot. This was a modern interpretation of Tempranillo and  – compared to another recent effort – I liked it a lot. Fresh but weighty, easy to drink with some complexity. And it was better on day 2 and even day 3.]

 

Like Frank Sinatra?

The winemaker Vina Tondonia in Rioja has rightly got itself a name for producing excellent wines. Long established (142 years), they own vineyards, make their own barrels and won’t release wines until they consider them ready to drink. We’ve blogged their white wine before but I think this is the first time we’ve tasted the red. This was from the 06 vintage. It’s blend is 70% Temp., 20% Graciano, and two 5%s in Garnacha and Mazuelo, is only 13% ABV and is made in the ‘Bordeaux style’ which I presume to be a lighter red.

The colour had the trace of brick on the rim but with a ruby core. There was a odour of vanilla (American oak barrels, then) but not very strong and it didn’t dominate the red fruits and fresh acidity of the wine. The taste was the same red fruits with some lovely savoury flavours and, quite noticeably, tannins. This wasn’t a generous Rioja, more old style, and certainly needs food and a long period of decanting. Personally, I enjoyed its youth but I think it’s just at the start of a very long drinking window. The best is yet to come.

[Richard: the white Tondonia is a lovely drink so I was expecting quite a lot from this, especially at the price (Waitrose £22 with 25% off). But I was rather disappointed. The Rioja characteristics I usually enjoy were muted, apart from the thin mouthfeel – not a criticism. Unlike Geoff I don’t think there is much more to come and it certainly didn’t develop over the evening. I’ll stick to the white.]

Another Oloroso…

And another from Waitrose in the 25% off promotion, so a reasonable £13 (50cl). This (Oloroso ‘Pata de Gallina’ – Juan Garcia Jarana Lustau Almacenista 2003, 1|38) was a twenty year old Oloroso with a rich layered nose of orange, dates and figs leading on to a complex palate with a very dry, very long finish. However the richness of the mouthfeel makes it seem fuller and sweeter than it is. Liz, our guest taster, greatly enjoyed it. The wine is matured by Jarana and bottled by Lustau.

A mismatch (?) – round 2

Two champagnes tried on Sunday. I took notes on the Tesco Finest Premier Cru Brut, surprisingly shown as ‘currently unavailable’ on their website. It’s made by a big co-op so there should be plenty. A big mousse with very small bubbles, pale yellow, green apple nose, a big attack on the front palate which faded quickly, no complexity, rather raw and acidic, lacking in elegance. The IWC stickers raised expectations which I didn’t feel were met. A decent ‘party’ champagne if you can get it at a reduced price, which is often the case.

The Boizel was from a half case bought en primeur a couple of years ago and is within the WS drinking window so I was expecting something special. A much better nose than taste, the latter being rather ordinary with little depth or complexity. I’ll try again in 2021.

[Geoff: If (and it’s a big ‘if’) my memory serves me well, the Tesco’s fizz was impressive last year, richer and more balanced in its acidity. I bought a case of six for Christmas visitors. I won’t be doing that this year.

And, I’m sorry to say, I was disappointed in the Boizel’s style. Considering it’s a vintage champagne it lacked the depth of flavour that characterises that style. It seemed … well, just okay. Light mousse of small bubbles, cooked apples smell and taste but wanting some complexity. It will need keeping to develop some interest for this taster.

I like conjecturing – so here goes. The Boizel, the Wine Soc’s Gratien and Tescos champagne all taste young and acidic. Has the impending Brexit forced champagne houses and importers to get stocks into the UK , stocks that would be normal kept for longer in the cellars? Just a thought.

Premier Cru on Tescos label means that its grapes have to come from Premier cru vineyards (there are 44). However the designation hasn’t changed for one hundred years and is not really as an effective quality guide as we might expect.]

A mismatch?

Another sherry comparison, instigated by a visit to Aldi who are selling a fino (and a cream) in their Exquisite range for 5.99 (50 cls.). It’s made by Pedro Rodriguez & Son. It was tasted alongside a £23 Hidalgo Fino Especial La Panesa. The latter is eulogised by Baiocchi as being “easily one of the most complex, umami-forward finos on the market”. It is the bodega’s “crown jewel” with an average are of 15 years and minimally filtered. A flyweight vs. a heavyweight, then?

Appearances: Aldi – bright, pale lemon. Hidalgo – nearly clear pale tan.

Noses: Aldi – green apple, chamomile, lemon pungent. H. – gentle, wood, floor polish, beeswax.

Palate: Aldi – slight richness, apple, dry, long, complex . H – saline, beeswax, very long, deeper notes, gentle.

I could happily drink both. The Aldi wine is good as a light aperitif fino whilst the Hidalgo would be much better with food throughout a meal, as well as an aperitif. The tasting showed how styles of sherry vary dramatically even inside the descriptors of fino, manzanilla etc etc. Very interesting comparison – and a well done to Aldi.

[Richard: we were walking into Aldi and I noticed a woman of a certain age loading shopping into her car, including a bottle of the above. Sherry (or, at least, dry sherry) not being something Aldi normally stock we had a look and found it on the ‘Christmas Specials’ shelf. The makers (a Barbadillo offshoot) also made the Mil Pesetas manzanilla blogged a few weeks ago. At £9 bottle equivalent it is approaching Tio Pepe territory  and it’s not that good but, nevertheless very drinkable as an aperitif.

The Panesa is very different, much older, driven cork, heavy bottle, darker colour, more complex and penetrative and, of course, more expensive – from Gourmet Hunters and hard to find in this country.]