Wednesday 5th October 2011: The Rhône Valley: North vs. South!
When you hear the word ‘Rhône’ what do you hear? Do visions of cheap Côtes-du-Rhône from your student days still haunt your memory, or can you envisage nothing better than an intellectually stimulating Hermitage to contemplate? We decided to find out what our customers make of the Rhône and whether they prefer the North or the South, and then dash their preconceptions with an array of wines so delicious and varied, they might not look at another wine producing region for quite some time...
Leading the tasting was our main-man manager Marc Magnat, himself born only 10 minutes away from the very hilly slopes of Condrieu. After an introduction to the region with the help of a map and some anecdotes, we were diving right in with the most important representation of the area itself: the incarnations of terroir that fill the glass.
2010 Yves Cuilleron, Vin de Pays Viognier (North) - £17.99
This is a Perennial favourite here at Reserve, and after the 2009 which wasn’t quite as rich and aromatic, Yves has really hit the spot in 2010. Like many of the night’s wines, it split the room: many loved the ginger stone fruits and lovely texture the wine offered; some found it cloying and short on the finish. It was, at the very least, an excellent introduction to both the evening and the typicity of Viognier from the Northern Rhône.
With not much experience of white Chateauneuf, this lit-up the imagination of the room. Though some in attendance found the wine slightly overpowering, commenting that it needed food, the wine’s interesting and complex savoury and citric notes were a surprise to all. Evidence that CNDP is not all red.
Tavel is known for powerful and more structured pink wines. The wine had lovely fresh red and black fruit notes (one customer commented that it ‘smells like Ribena’) but the palate was more powerful, which a depth not commonly associated with rosé. The most playful wine of the evening.
2009 Domaine de l’Espigouette, Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge (South) - £11.50
Marc and I knew this was going to be loved. For what was the least expensive wine of the night, it was the easiest to enjoy. All the ripe raspberry goodness that you expect from a Grenache dominated blend, with lovely vanilla and hints of pepper. We love it, you guys love it. Win, win.
2009 David Reynaud, Crozes-Hermitage (North) - £18.99
I had expected this to be a runaway hit. The smoked meat characteristics and the intoxicating blueberry scents, entwined with the modern and almost New World rounded palate led me to believe that it would be the crowd-pleasing wine-of-the-night. Some people found it a bit weird, though experimenting with wine is as much about finding out what you don’t like as what you do. Intriguing and individual.
2009 Vincent Paris, Cornas ‘Granit 60’ (North) - £37.99
This was the sleekest wine of the night, and if the Beaucastel hadn’t have been on hand to blow every other wine out of the water, would have won the popular vote. Deep and complex with subtle and fine notes of violets, liquorice and white pepper, with an incredible tension and taut quality, it turned the heads of many of those in attendance.
2006 Chateau de Beaucastel, Chateauneuf-du-Pape Rouge (South) - £55.50
Once the glasses were poured, the whole crowd (who are usually pleasantly conversational) were overcome with silence and awe. All of the attention and concentration in the room turned to this wine: it deserved it, and repaid the investment. All of the different structural elements (the tannin, acidity, alcohol etc) and the flavour components (bramble fruit, earth, spice) were so well-balanced, that nothing stuck out, nothing jarred or clunked. The wine ‘made sense’, and everyone in attendance appreciated being part of the experience.
The Beaucastel, as well as being the most-loved wine of the night, was incredibly the best seller. Much to mine and Marc’s chagrin (both Syrah lovers) the South just edged the North in the Battle of the Rhône, but we were both stunned by how well the wines showed. All of our guests left happy, interested, only a little bit tipsy (after the freeforall for leftovers that ensued) and looking forward to the next tasting. If you didn’t join us last time, I hope you do this time.
If you would like to order any of these wines, please call 0161 4380101, email us at sales@reservewines.co.uk or pop into the shop.
Tuesday 5th July 2011: Wine Fair Blog; Memories and Photos
The beautiful view from the balcony...
So how do we feel now that it's over for another year? Well it's rather like the beginning of January, when everyone's heads are a bit sore from Christmas, and there's a slight feeling of depression at the thought of having to wait 12 months for the next one.
A fitting musical accompaniment to an excellent evening...
Nevermind, a good reminisce will make do for the moment...
One of many very good looking couples to attend...
The evening itself went remarkably smoothly (apart from the coach being late on the way back, sorry again for that) with no big hiccups and no disasters.
A lot of regulars attended, including this rather motley crew...
But you don't want to hear about the logistics! You want wines, gossip, atmosphere, prizes and cricket!
...and this fine gentleman, though his lady wife and mother-in-law aren't in this snap...
Well weren't the wines beautiful? My personal favourite may have been the Heytesbury Chardonnay, but that's just me... we didn't get to taste that many! What were your favourite wines?
Although the door policy wasn't too strict, as you can see...
I hope you managed to taste the wines by Eduardo Pulenta? Apart from doing the master-class, his Argentinean beauties had everyone in raptures.
We entertained many groups of friends...
The English fizzes proved very popular too... who would have though Kent was capable of producing such high quality sparkling wines? One to watch for the future.
And who said proper blokes don't drink wine?...
The venue itself was amazing. Modern, classy and very spacious: the perfect scene for such an incredible evening. The fact there was a balcony to relax and reflect on only added to setting.
Here's Marc thrilling some guests with his trademark French wit...
It was fantastic talking to so many people. One supplier said to me 'this is one of the best tastings I have ever been to' and the sincerity on his face was plain to see. I only hope the guests enjoyed it as much as we did.
And some lovely ladies on their way home...
The atmosphere was electric. There was just such a 'vibrant' (as one guest put it) feeling in the room, and everyone looked to be having a great time. The most fun you could have on a Thursday!
And everyone's favourite Dad, well on his way...
And let's not forget how fantastic a night it was for charity and for cricket fans. Plenty of cash raised for Activate Sport through the raffle and auction, and a bat signed by Lancs players and Champagne and fancy glasses just a few of the prizes won on the night.
And here's Kate and Ken: the latter gracing the tasting with his sleek stylings, the former filling half of the room!
The best thing about the evening is that many of you have lovely orders to look forward to! Clearly the best way to reminisce about the wines will be to have a case of them sitting at home waiting to be drunk. And if you didn't order (or you did and you run out), you can always come into the shop and ask the staff to help you find the wines you fell in love with...
And let's not forget the 'reserve angels', without whom the tasting wouldn't have been able to function...
So where does that leave you? You've had an excellent night, hopefully you've managed to spot yourself in a photograph, and you can bookmark this page if you want to show your friends. I know it's tough that it's going to be a year before another Summer Wine Fair, but at least in the meantime you can come into the shop, say hello to us, and get some more of the great wine you drank that evening just to jog your memory...
Thursday 30th June 2011: Wine Fair Teaser!
I just thought we'd give you a few photos to jog your (probably hazy) memory before we get the full blog and video to you... can you spot yourself?
two homeless people wandered in from the street... I mean beautiful Ladies of Reserve Wines!
...enjoying the Argentinean Masterclass
... a lovely turn-out, as you can see
I hope everyone was as happy as these two!
... man of the night Mark Chilton looking very important here
That's it for now! Check back soon for the full blog and infamous video...
Monday 2nd May 2011 - Organic, Biodynamic and 'Natural' Wines - watchwords or witchcraft?
We're not ones to judge. In fact, we love anything that makes wine more 'natural', in theory at least. A healthier vineyard, less manipulation of the vines and the grapes and preferably less sulphur have got to lead to a product I'd prefer to put into my body. But more importantly, how do you feel about?
Graham from Boutinot Wines, was our speaker at the tasting and gave an excellent description of Biodynamics - well not so much its workings, but how to view it... 'I may not understand or necessarily believe all of the more spiritual elements to Biodynamics, but if it makes a better wine than what would have been created if it wasn't Biodynamic, then something must be working'.
I don't think you have got to be dogmatic about it. We weren't, and our customers who attended weren't, but we did taste an excellent selection of wines that we like to call Organic, Biodynamic and of course 'Natural'...
Circle of Life White - South Africa, £17.50
This zingy white (which we were told is a blend of Chenin, Sauvignon Blanc and probably some Viognier and Chardonnay) was wine of the night for some people. It's weight and richness betrayed the Viognier, the apples and acidity the Chenin, the hints of tropical fruits the Chardonnay and the freshness and vegetal aromas the Sauvignon. Very clean, very fresh, very popular.
Adobe Gewurztraminer - Chile, £8.25
From Emiliana, the world's biggest Organic producers, this was great value stuff. Slightly off-dry with the all grapeyness, Turkish Delight and spice you want from good Gewurz, I found myself going back to this later in the night...
Without a doubt the strangest and most unique wine I've ever had the pleasure to taste. Not particularly Gruner-like, though there was some apple and pepper flavours, this was rich and oily, oxidised and oaky. None of the intense minerals and acidity you'd expect, instead freshly baked apple pie, buttered toast and spicy caramel dominated nose and palate. Some people were in love with it, some people hated it. Controversial, in the best possible way, with only a 'Minimal' dose of sulphur prior to bottling, too.
Honoro Vera Monastrell - Spain, £5.99 (£1 off)
You will often pay a premium for Organic wines, as there are more start-up costs in the vineyard compared to regular farming - not here though. All present and correct - soft red berry fruit and earthy, dusty tannins, just like you'd expect from Monastrell. And for less than six quid, too.
Pra 'Ripasso' Valpolicella - Italy, £20.99
Graham was quite adamant that we show this wine - one of his favourites. He said 'it shows the elegance of proper Valpolicella', at odds with the more modern and perhaps New World philosophy that you the more you pay the bigger a wine should be. The wine was impressive in its restraint, and for some people in the room, you couldn't beat the herbal flavours and the typical Italian acidity.
Emiliana 'Ge' - Chile, £35.49
This was heads-and-shoulders above the rest in terms of votes for wine of the night. When we had decanted it a few hours previous, the vanilla had been slightly overwhelming, but this had fallen away to reveal a sumptuous core of fig and blackberry and bramble. Rich, but certainly not overpowering, a real icon of Chilean wine and also the very first to be certified Biodynamic in the whole of South America.
Coll del Sabater - Spain, £18.50
Our only true 'natural' wine of the night in that it had been bottled without added sulphur, this was another which most people had never tasted anything quite like before. Earthy, dank and a little bit horsey (in a good way) it was very expressive - you could practically taste the earth. And at 5 years old, proving you don't always need added sulphur to go the distance.
For the most part we didn't enter a debate about the pros and cons of Organic, Biodynamic and 'natural' ways of farming grapes and making wines - there was no need. We were more than happy to spend the evening tasting some fantastic wines, and pondering the slightly unusual but certainly intriguing path many of them had gone down to end up in our glasses.
If you would like to order any of these wines, please call 0161 4380101, email us at sales@reservewines.co.uk or pop into the shop.
Friday 25th February 2011 - Classic Burgundy, New Context: Vincent Girardin
On Monday afternoon there was a buzz in the shop. Admittedly, that could have been because Marc and I had to been to the Specialist Importers Trade Tasting and were feeling light-head, but as I'm a romantic, I'd like to attribute it to our excitement at what the evening would hold. A tasting of no less than 10 wines by renowned Burgundy producer Vincent Girardin, presented to us by Marco, a man from the estate and a soon to be established Reserve Wines Legend. The evening started as most tastings do - Marc and myself frantically getting the shop ready for the influx of guests, which had been limited to twenty to increase the feel of intimacy and atmosphere, and accommodate everyone standing up. After Simon (from the supplier) and Marco arrived, I took Marco into the office to conduct an interview (see above). His personality and eccentricities, which would only be amplified with some good Burgundy, were already on show.
After everyone had arrived and Marco had treated us to an illuminating introduction to the geography of Burgundy and the wines of M. Girardin, we started to taste. The first wine was so good (Marco claimed) that one of our guests fainted! (Kristie, if you're reading, we're very glad you're okay!) Luckily, after she was taken care of, the evening got into full swing, and people were left to taste at will. I say taste: the wines were drunk. Scratch that - they were gulped. Here's what we heartily gulped:
2009 Pouilly Fuisse 'Vieilles Vignes' £17.99 The best value wine of the night. All of the easy, supple white fruits of the 2009 vintage with a lot of freshness and clarity. Medium-bodied, leesy with delicate tropical fruit notes - a Burgundy that matches new world Chardonnay on value and accessibility.
2009 Bourgogne Blanc, 'Mes Vieilles Vignes' £13.99 Another excellent value wine, and another showing the short-term appeal of the 2009 vintage. Not quite as much complexity as the Pouilly Fuisse but very well put together all the same - citric and slightly savoury.
2007 St. Aubin 1er Cru 'Les Murgers de Dents de Chien' £25.00 This was wine of the night for most people, not because it was necessarily the best, but because it was ready to drink and excellent value. Rich and expressive, it went down a treat.
2008 Meursault 'Les Narvaux' £40.00 The new vintage of this wine is bound to be majestic. Deep and intensely structured, for the moment it is tightly bound in unforgiving minerality. Give it a couple of years and it will be more than worth the wait.
2007 Meursault 'Les Narvaux' £40.00 This was really starting to shine. It has broadened in bottle over the last year, becoming more mealy and complex in the process. My personal favourite.
2007 Puligny-Montrachet 'Vieilles Vignes' £35.50 Elegance personified. This classy effort didn't give too many clues on the nose as to what the rich, minerally palate was holding. As clean as they come.
2009 Bourgogne Rouge 'Mes Vieilles Vignes' £14.99 Another victory for the much-heralded 2009 vintage. Not one for keeping but all the better for it - the dark cherry scented wine was so enjoyable now, why wait? The palate plumper than you'd imagine, too.
2007 Santenay 1er Cru Gravieres £25.00 So open, dark and earthy and enticing. Marco told me that a year ago this was very closed and un-giving and now - it explodes on the nose and palate. Vincent's first wine he ever made (though a different vintage, of course).
2008 Volnay 'Vieilles Vignes' £25.00 Showing its youth a bit this one, and although restrained in style, you could see it was holding something back. Scented and fine, and very promising. Subtle.
2008 Pommard 'Les Vignots' £29.00 Much more powerful than its predecessor, probably more enjoyable now and with more stuffing to improve over time. Rich with a good amount of tannin, dirty-berry fruit (in a good way) and a touch of spice. Awesome.
Twenty bottles of wine were drunk between twenty guests in only a few hours.
The wines were enjoyed by everyone, and it was fantastic to be part of such a lovely, appreciative atmosphere. By the end of the evening, everyone was pretty merry, including Marco, who had amused everyone around him by his interruptions and extravagantly animated explanations. After shaking my hand with one of his, and putting the other firmly round my shoulder, he proceeded to tell me, amongst other things, that the 'shop has very good energy' and that 'in a room, if you throw a cat, you should never put a bed there'. Odd? Yes, but he made sense at the time. He left after being dragged away by Simon, but not before kissing everyone on each cheek.
He later returned, knocking on the door to an uproarious reaction by those still inside, to collect his forgotten scarf. He attempted to say goodbye in slurred Italian/French/English and went to dinner.
If you would like to order any of these wines, please call 0161 4380101, email us at sales@reservewines.co.uk or pop into the shop.
Tuesday 22nd February 2011 - Cheese & Wine: a match made in Heaven?
Wine and cheese. Sounds simple, no? But with about as many styles of cheese as there are wine, it would be ridiculous to assume that they all went together. Quite the opposite. We held a tasting to find what we thought was best, but ultimately there are no right and wrongs. The most resounding result of the night was simple - people who attend a wine and cheese tasting generally like wine and cheese. Move over, rocket science.
After a short introduction by Marc on some general food and wine matching principles, we dug into the first pairing of the night.
Jansz NV Sparkler - Tasmania, Australia £13.99 & Parmesan
Quirky and a little bit unexpected, this went down a treat. One of my matches, I introduced it by proclaiming Champagne and Sparkling wine in general as THE best wine for food, owing to the huge range of styles and the generally high level of acidity. Blanc de Blanc for Fish & Chips, NV for cheeses and white meats, Rose for Tapas, Demi-Sec for fruit-based puds. All of them, one after the other, preferably!
Ballandors, Quincy - Loire, France £12.75 & Crottin de Chavignol
Goats cheese and Sauvignon Blanc might be clichéd, but damn is it good! The Loire Sauv was fresh and herbaceous, the mineral streak acting as a deft cutlass slicing through the soft, fatty creaminess of the cheese. B, E, A oootiful.
Turckheim, 'Brand' Gewurz G.C. - Alsace, France £17.75 & Munster
By far the most controversial pairing of the night, and like the last one, another French pairing from our French manager Marc. The Gewurz was truly sensational, honeyed and floral, spicy and delightful. The cheese was stinky and cloying. The general consensus was that the wine didn't have quite enough acidity to deal with the cheese, but that separately, they were pretty special.
I think just about everyone in the room was astounded by the unbelievable softness of this wine. By no means a traditional Rioja, but not a beefy modern one either. The year of oak beautifully consumed by the sensual, sexy red fruits, this was a real palate cleanser for the hard Spanish cheese. Marc's last pairing.
Duval, 'Entity' Shiraz - Barossa, Aus. £21.99 & Vintage Cheddar
This surprised a lot of people too. The Shiraz was beefy but so elegant and so primed for food too. Lots of dense black fruits with some spice and incense aromas, but refined and classy - the crunchy fruits playing off the crunchy cheese, both gradually melting in the mouth.
Niepoort, 'Tawny Dee' en Magnum - Douro, Por. £28.50 & Stilton
The best value Tawny Port in the world. Easy drinking but refined and full of savoury, nutty flavours (as one would hope) this was my last easy match with the stilton. As I rather cheekishly said to a customer who admitted that he didn't like Port, 'It has been scientifically proven that there is something wrong with you'. Too True, too true.
The cheeses are worthy of a mention too, which we had purchased from the Cheese Hamlet in Didsbury, a tiny award-winning cornucopia of cheeses and other gastronomical goods.
The night was a riotous success, with a real atmosphere amongst the conversation and consumption. The winning combination for the evening? A tie between the Parmesan and Jansz and the Quincy and the goats cheese. The French domination in this department has been challenged by... the Italian/Australian mongrel. I'd say Reserve Wines has it again for innovation!
If you would like to purchase any of these wines, most are on the website (you can find them by searching) or please call us on 0161 4380101, or if you live locally, we'd love to see you in the shop...
We've been needing to update the blog for a while as it's been neglected a bit since Christmas, and as we're starting our new monthly themes, it seemed apt to do one on Australian regionality as that is what we're focussing on in February. Upon investigation, I can see that we already have some notes on regionality from Kate when she visited. I think I'll steal a couple of her notes on the regions and add in some recommendations of my own!
Kate's article starts similarly to mine in that it had a 'call to action' to appreciate Australia's diversity, not just its 'Sunshine in a Glass' and the easy, commercial wines that we often find on our shores. Long-gone are the days of huge, over-oaked Chardonnays, Shiraz and Cabernet as sweet as chocolate and wines about as fine as a scruffy shoe. Now food-friendly and age-worthy wines are championed, with an ever-increasing appreciation of the varied terroirs that can be found on this mini-continent sized country. Australia, as a wine-producing country, deserves our full attention and appreciation.
Barossa Valley: To the North of Adelaide, this is a hot climate with lots of old bushvines on ironstone and limestone soils. Some of the oldest vines in the earth live here, and unsurprisingly we find some of its most distinguished wines. Grenache, Mourvedre and Cabernet all play a prominant role, but it is the Shiraz that takes centre-stage, with its rich and warm fruited wines. Try our Thorn Clarke Shiraz (£9.75) for the perfect introduction to the wonderful wines to be found here.
McLaren Vale: A cooler region than the Barossa, owing to the cool ocean wind that blows in. The wines, which are mostly red, are increasingly of excellent quality, in part owing to some stand-out producers. One in particular - Mitolo - often graces our shelves. The 'Jester' (£11.50) by Mitolo is one of our most popular wines and is extracted, rich and perfumed.
Margaret River: The warm conditions here are moderated by the sea breezes and it is Cabernet that is king here, often blended with Merlot and aged in fine-grained French barrels, the wines are leafy and elegant and somewhat reminiscent of Bordeaux. My bet is on the wines from Vasse Felix, and we have three absolute crackers from them to suit all palates and pockets - their Chardonnay (£13.50), which is filled with delicate tropical and vanilla favours; the Cabernet Sauvignon (£18.49), medium-bodied and classy; and their top wine 'Heytesbury' (£32.50), a Bordeaux blend with serious ambitions. Excellent wines all three.
Clare Valley: Riesling is the baby to watch out for here. The hot days and cool nights provide perfect conditions for this grape which in turn give wines that have good ripe flavours but retain their freshness and acidity. We have two crackers from the King of Aussie Riesling Jeffrey Grosset - his 'Polish Hill' (£22.99) which is dry and powerful, and his 'Off-Dry Riesling' (£17.29) which is ideally suited to all manner of dishes. Shiraz (particularly Jim Barry's Lodge Hill (£11.99) and McRae Wood (£23.99)) or Cabernet & Cabernet blends are the reds to watch for.
Eden Valley: Riesling too but they are quite different to the Clare Valley style. Much more austere and floral when young - with superb potential to age. Our Thorn Clarke Riesling (£9.99) is probably the best value in the shop.
Coonawarra: Here it’s got to be Cabernet every time. The famous glowing red soils or ‘terra rossa’ - shiny red earth over limestone that produces Cabernets of intense concentration & elegance with dark brooding blackcurrants which in time become earthy, smoky and cedary. Try Yalumba's 'The Cigar' (£14.99), named after the shape of Coonawarra, or look out for our new arrival Cabernet by Majella (£20.99), serious fruit with stuffing to last.
Heathcote: A real continental climate prevails here which makes it perfect for producing ripe intense wines that keep their acidity and balance. The interesting thing about Heathcote is there are a lot of smaller producers making some really unique wines.
Hunter Valley: Many of you will know this region and may have visited it. It’s the perfect area to visit if you’re in Sydney and thus a very popular tourist destination. It’s very warm with wet, humid conditions yet great soils/aspect/wind etc etc make this region responsible for producing some of the country’s most distinctive wines. We're currently looking for something from the Hunter Valley to complete the selection on our shelves. Any good ideas?
Tasmania: (Size isn’t everything!) Andrew Pirie has been a real pioneer for this area - after scouring the globe for a spot that was similar to the highly celebrated regions of Bordeaux and Burgundy he chose a site not far from Launceston in the North of the Island, since when this industry has gone from strength to strength seeing some really dramatic growth.
The cooler climate of Tasmania is ideally suited to the Pinot Noir and Chardonnay grapes producing fine, lemony Chardonnays and juicy, bright Pinot Noirs. Not a surprise then that shop favourite Jansz NV (£13.99) comes from here.
Not a definitive list, but if this piece taught you everything you needed to know, you wouldn't have any hunger to find out anything more! You can always ask us a question or look at one of our maps or even read a book whilst browsing. We hope you enjoy Discovering Australia as much as we do.
Monday 13th December 2010 - VIDEO: Christmas Port Special Offer
Kate sips on some Port to warm the winter nights...
Tuesday 7th December 2010 - VIDEO: Christmas Red Special Offer
Kate goes to town on our latest Christmas Special Offer... Vega Del Rayo Rioja Reserva £9.99 each or 2 for £15! Come in-store to get yours...
Monday 29th November 2010 - VIDEO: Christmas Rose Special Offer
Kate and Marc bond over a glass of Rose!
Monday 22nd November 2010 - VIDEO: Christmas White (and chocolate) Special Offer
Kate gets jiggy with a Sav and some chocolate...
Tuesday 16th November 2010 - VIDEO: Christmas Sparkler Special Offer
Here's Kate the Diva Leopard talking about Jansz with her arms...
Tuesday 9th November 2010 - The C-word
According to a British myth much spouted by generally grumpy members of the public, Christmas used to be an idyllic celebration when one turned to the focal points of family, religion and restrained festivity, but that it now joins the much maligned and super-commercial ranks of holidays such as Easter which have had the meaning sucked out of them. Of course, only some of the first part of that myth is true - there has never been a Golden Age within which Christmas has been perfect. And as for the latter part of that myth, Christmas may be bigger money and start earlier every year, but money doesn't ruin Christmas. The festive period is surely what you make of it.
Though we may be opening more expensive gifts on Christmas morning, and Mass may be the retreat of a dwindling committed few, Christmas is as special as it's ever been, contrary to what all ye naysayers say. Christmas is about a certain atmosphere and feeling at a special time of year, as well as a coming together of people. If that should start earlier then all the better. I for one, can't wait to usher in home-made mulled wine, guilt-free chocolate and warm & cosy nights at home watching bad films you've seen a million times.
Thursday 21st October 2010 - Paulo De Marchi: Man of Origin
'I want to talk to you... about wine of origin'. Short in stature and calm in manner, it is not easy to understand how the man before you commands attention, but when he talks, you listen. And this is a history lesson.
As Patriarch of the Chianti Classico estate Isole e Olena, Paulo De Marchi has developed it into one of the most respected producers in the region, through experimentation and hard work, and listening to what his wines and the land tell him. To have him in Reserve (one of only two stops on his quick tour before he heads back to finish harvest) is truly special - an event which may take hindsight and contemplation to consider its significance. Perhaps over a glass of wine.
We pour his first white, 2008 'Erbaluce di Caluso' from Paulo's Piedmont property Sperino as he guides us through his winding narrative paths, detailing how his family came by Isole e Olena, how wine-making in Lessona (Piedmont) has changed beyond recognition in only a handful of decades, and how he too came to be there. Made with native Erbaluce, the wine is fresh, simple, unoaked and a perfect introduction to a range of real diversity and quality.
'Why do you grow international varieties?' is aimed as a slight joke at Paulo, when we are tasting his Isole Chardonnay, as he talks about his 'wine of origin'. Recognising the apparent contradiction, he answers 'Chardonnay is not an international variety - it is a French variety.' The Chardonnay used to be blended with local varieties, but the Chardonnay stood out, whereas the local ones produced unappealing wines. 'Winemaking rule number one: you cannot just blend everything together to get good wine. If you blend good wine with bad wine, you just get more bad wine.' The results are in the glass. Crystal clear, elegant and savoury with a complexity to rival the best in Burgundy, but with an accessibility you couldn't find there (this being his '08), though it has plenty of life ahead of it. When I ask whether he would ever consider making wine in France considering he also made Syrah and both Cabernets, his silence and look of bemusement provoke a roar of laughter from the attendees. It is a question I already know the answer to.
'Back to Piedmont? I already have to do the drive every weekend!' Paulo exclaims as we move back from Tuscany to Piedmont to taste his next wine from Sperino, a rose. Expecting it to be underwhelming after the Chardonnay, it is held up by a spine of acidity and sweetness. Apparently the sugar levels were too high to convert it all into alcohol - 'We had to choose, sweetness and balance or dryness? We chose balance.' The wine, red liquorice flavoured, isn't my thing, but he is right: most importantly, it is balanced.
The 2006 'Uvaggio', again from Sperino, is a blend (Uvaggio translates as 'blend') of two thirds Nebbiolo, and the remainder Vespolina and Croatina. Scented, quite earthy and lacking in any Nebbiolo roughness, I note obvious parallels with red Burgundy. 'My son says in fifty years, people will be saying - isn't this red Burgundy like a wine from Piedmont!' Big laughs again. I wonder how much the landscape of Piedmont and Burgundy will change in fifty years, and whether Paulo's son's prophecy will ring true, especially considering global warming. It is a sobering thought.
After heading back to Tuscany for Isole's textbook Chianti Classico, which is met with approval from all those in the room, we move onto Paulo's Super-Tuscan 'Cepparello', which he notes 'has been my life's work'. He says this with such sincerity that I can't help but be moved. I (perhaps rudely) suggest I would like to have tried the '07, which has received rave reviews. He quips, 'The '06 is better! Don't believe point scores and Robert Parker!' He has bottled Cepparello under both screwcap and cork since '05. He says he is not happy when he opens old bottles with friends to find they are corked, but he is concerned that screwcaps make wines develop too slowly, and he has been experimenting with adding less sulphur to the wines under this closure. I would not be surprised if he came out one day as a keen ambassador on the side of the artificial closure. He finishes by saying that 'Wine is not a closure'. I'm unsure as to whether these quick-witted responses are rehearsed and re-used or off-the-cuff, but he certainly means every word: this is no sophism.
Over his wonderful Vin Santo (which he calls a 'lazy-winemaker's wine), he notes that, although he has moved towards 100% Sangiovese for his Super-Tuscan he 'is not convinced that 100% Sangiovese is best'. Conceding room for improvement in his 'life's work', he finishes his talk on 'wine of origin', insisting that he must listen to what the terroir and to what his wines tell him as to where to go next. He leaves after much applause, heartily shaking everyone's hand, to fly home and see what the harvest has given him to work with this year.
Friday 1st October 2010 - An evening with... Langmeil
The end of summer is perhaps not the best time to show off a bunch of rich reds from the Barossa Valley, but when we heard that Emma Shaw, Head of International and Domestic Sales at Langmeil was coming to the UK and willing to do a tasting with us, well we salivated like hungry dogs, or some other more appropriate simile. After all, who cares if it's (English late) Summer... good wines speak for themselves.
Two problems: one, Kate was not going to be here (she was raving in Ibiza, in case you didn't know); and two, we couldn't really close the shop with just myself and Benn (with our new manager yet to start) and so we thought - why not do a super-casual drop in session with a bit of food and do the whole thing for free? Yeah I know, how very kind of us.
Friday came and it was looking like the whole thing wasn't going to go off. We had problems with the van the day before so Benn was out doing deliveries, Emma was running late and I had managed to smash a bottle of St. Emilion in the cellar that had splashed all over my fancy trousers. We'd done verging on a million deliveries and still had more of our wholesale customers coming through the door as I was setting up the stack, getting the wines ready, cutting the cheese kindly donated by the Cheese Hamlet and scrubbing blackcurranty goodness from my outfit. Needless to say, I wasn't blessed with my usual calm demeanour.
That was the end of the bad luck and the continuation of what I can only describe as wine and cheese induced madness. Emma, who managed to stay talkative, helpful and informative and remember what wine everyone was on whilst dealing with 20 people+ at points (not to mention everyone else trying to muscle in on the action) must have thought we were the busiest wine shop she'd ever graced. Probably.
As well as mine, Benn's & Emma's efforts, the contributing factors that made the evening such an undiluted success were thus: the enjoyment and participation of everyone who paid us a visit, young and old, novice and expert; and just how well the wines showed. The 'GWH' Viognier was fresh and rounded; the 'Kegelbahn' Cab/Shiraz juicy and easy-going; the 'Three Gardens' SGM drier & structured; the 'Hanging Snakes' Shiraz/Viognier a mini Cote-Rotie; the 'Blacksmith' Cabernet was serious & smoky; and the 'Fifth Wave' Grenache, on show in celebration of International Grenache Day, was sensational, filled with deep, broad raspberry goodness. I can't remember the last tasting where all of the wines tasted showed well. Not bad for mostly rich reds in late summer...
Me and Benn were left to clear up, a little dazed at how quickly the busy evening had flown by. We were lucky enough to be able to get leftovers home and collapse into a glass or two.
Emboldened by what was surely one of the most memorable evenings we've had here for a while, we'll look ahead to the future to see if we could put on a similar show. After all, I think free wine and free cheese is always going to be a winner.
Thursday 30th September - 2010 A taste of Jerez, in West Didsbury
Come on, we've all done it. In a previous life we've scorned Sherry because it's 'uncool', because your Nan drinks it and because it looks naff on the shelves in the supermarket. And whilst at least those last two are certainly true, it doesn't mean that with a bit of experimentation, the lid on Sherry as not just an aperitif but as a brilliant full-time food wine, cannot be lifted and left revealed to anyone brave enough to swap Bristol Cream for Pedro Ximenez.
As one of our masterful arts of persuasion, we decided to put on a tasting with Pinchjo's Tapas Bar and restaurant, another staple of modern Didsbury life, and in association with the Sherry Institute of Spain. Combine these with ourselves at Reserve and you've got three businesses clearly very interested in dispelling Sherry myths and putting Sherry in a new and more fashionable light.
Interest for the tasting was phenomenal. I mean it was really crazy - we sold out in less than a day, and even had to fit some Sherry lovers in at the bar, true Spanish style, which is where I was squeezed, hiding from the cameraman, after I'd locked up the shop and sauntered over for some honest-to-god beautiful food and some great Sherries. The menu meandered between cured meats and cheeses (freshened up by some Manzanilla), asparagus and tomatoes (accompanied by a young, vigorous Amontillado), sea bream on a bed of spinach (complemented by a richer, older Amontillado) and spicy, roast chilli-chicken washed down with a rich, toasty and nut-filled Oloroso. All of which begun with an Aperitif of the Gods, Fino, of course; and finished with a majestic 15 year-old Pedro-Ximenez, dark and sweet, like a bonfire-toffee, Christmas cake & honey elixir.
Our guests, as you might have guessed, didn't need too much more convincing as to the versatility and variety in Sherry. The only question remains, after Austria and Xerez, which uncool region is Reserve going to conquer next? May no stone lay unturned in our quest to satisfy every palate in the NorthWest.
The Sherries were all by the producer Valdivia and are available in our shop. Prices are as follows:
Fino Seco 50cl - £8.99
Manzanilla Seca 'La Rubia' 50cl - £8.99
Amontillado Seco 'Dorius' 75cl - £16.50
'Sacromonte' Amontillado Seco 50cl - £17.99
'Sacromonte' Oloroso Seco 50cl - £17.99
'Sacromonte' Pedro Ximenez Dulce 50cl - £19.99
Please call 0161 438 0101 or email sales@reservewines.co.uk to make an order.
Friday 17th September 2010 - Reserve Wines: A New Vintage
Change is brewing at Reserve Wines. The sun is sometime out; the necessary rains have fallen. Those around me are preparing for hard-work. The new vintage is upon us.
It's been rather hectic around here recently. Nick, our longest-serving member of staff is now gone (to coach Man City academy, of all things) and several managers have come and gone. Me and Kate have been working like mongrels: irritated and not always completely productive. Luckily hope has arrived. Our super (and I say that with the proper enthusiasm) new member of staff Ben has been a saviour, getting stuff done and proper, his Australian accent adding some extra cheer to the shop. Soon our very own charismatic Frenchman Marc will be joining us as our manager, and our authentic & newly assembled jigsaw-puzzle Team of enthusiasts will be complete. It will be a wine shop like no other.
I myself am being utilised to tame that most difficult of beasts, the internet, in order to assess its prospects. Facebook, Twitter, our (nearly) brand-spanking-new website and of course this witty blog will mean I am in constant contact with you people in Didsbury... and beyond.
The metaphorical grapes have been harvested, pressed and the juices are starting to ferment. The initial reaction upon first taste is good - this is intriguing, exciting and with excellent potential.
Only upon bottling next year will we see if the 2010 vintage here at Reserve will turn out to be classic.
Tuesday 30th March 2010
Do you know what? I think I've had a complete brain shutdown re blogging for about 6 months, I entirely forgot that blogging was part of my daily routine until last week as I was lying in bed thinking about marketing strategy and remembered about our blog, or lack of blog actually - so here's the revival of the Reserve Wines Blog. I know many of you have felt that something fundamental has been missing from your life for the last few months. Well don't worry we're back, and with a new member of the team, Alison. Once she's settled in I'm looking forward to getting her 'involved' in the blogging...
Thursday 12th November 2009 - VIDEO: Bourgogne Aligote
Kate tastes Burgundy's best kept secret: Aligote (for some reason, she's on her knees).
Friday 6th November 2009 - VIDEO: Tawny Port
Back after some time, Kate tastes a "lovely" Tawny Port
Wednesday 4th November 2009
Oops, this appears to have become a bit of a 'Post occassional videos' blog rather than an actual blog. Sorry.
This is good news for us really as it means we've been rushed off our feet selling all you lovely people delicious wines, but doesn't really keep you up to date! We've also both been on holiday or off sick quite a lot recently - no excuses though!
My tasting highlight recently was a trip to London for a supplier event, the results of which will be on the shelves very shortly - some delicious Burgundy and a very exciting new Madiran!
Friday 28th August - VIDEO: Folding Hill
Wow, this is a first - a video tasting note, made by the winemaker, in his very own vineyard!
Saturday 15th August - Vajra Tasting Videos finally on line!
Well, it's been a while since I roused myself to Blog - far too busy chasing suppliers around the country making them send me the wines you all wanted at the Summer Fair! The main news from the shop is that it's HOT HOT HOT. In fact, we've got a special offer going - come into the shop and you can lose 2lbs in the sauna-like conditions when you buy any bottle of wine - or, in fact, even if you buy nothing at all! The sweltering heat seems to have got everyone reaching for the champagne this week as well, so I think I'll spend next week running around the country trying to find some more...
In between all this frantic activity, I've finally managed to get around to editing the video from our fantastic Barolo tasting in June. I've split it into bite size portions based on the wines we showed; you can find the videos next to the products in our catalogue, or all in one place here: www.reservewines.co.uk/acatalog/Vajra_Tasting_Videos.html
Friday 10th July
I've watched some footage from our Wednesday night Summer Wine Fair - it is absolutely class. We've got some great interviews..i can't wait to edit it and get it sent out. Thank you to all our lovely customers who attended the event, the evening had such a great vibe and it was created by all of you who attended - I was feeling a lot of love that night. thank you and watch this space for the pics and video clips.
Wednesday 8th July
Today is the day of the tasting of all tastings...our Summer Wine Fair. Over 170 wines on show, roulette wheels, blind tastings, Guess the Winemaker Games, Local Beers, Billecart Salmon champagne...the list goes on, we're all set for a great evening. We've got 300 customers joining us so watch this space for the reports tomorrow (and perhaps even some video footage - if anyone will agree to being filmed!)
A hot Thursday 3rd July
WOW it is a warm day...especially when you're unloading a huge pallet of wine - well Nick did most of it i have to confess but I lugged a token few boxes just to get a bit of a sweat on. Alvario Palacios dropped in today - he's doing a brief tour of the North West and bobbed in to show us some of his wines. Alvario is very cool, he makes wine in Rioja, Priorat and Bierzo. We've stocked his Montesa Crianza Rioja for some time (since we opened actually) and i've always been a huge fan. More recently we've got La vendimia Rioja (less oak ageing) and his Les Terrasses Priorat. Today we tasted through his riojas including his White Rioja and then four wines from Bierzo. This is a really exciting region - see my video tasting notes i have wittered on about it before. The key grape of the region in Mencia and Alvaro's examples must surely be amongst the best out there. A brilliant balance of charm/elegance and power, if you're interested let us know and we'll get them in.....K
Monday 15th June
We've had a very busy couple of weeks, full of events and a great instore tasting last Thursday. Guiseppe Vajra was here from G.D Vajra in Piedmont. It was an absolute pleasure to welcome him here and the evening was superb. There was a great line up of wines starting with their Langhe Bianco (Riesling) through to their top Barolo (Bricco della Viole). They were stunning and Guiseppe spoke with real passion - we were all briefly transported to Northern Italy....happy days. We'll be selling tickets for the coach tour later in the year!
Wednesday 3rd June
Tuesday 19th May
Big meeting with Chris re all sorts, thankfully feeling much more with it after my weekend in Ibiza (and having to pay £10 for a G & T). Items on the agenda include more marketing ideas, and discussing all the details for our 6th Summer Wine Fair. I cannot believe we're on Fair Number 6! Any great ideas on how to make it the best ever would be much appreciated.
Thursday 14th May - VIDEO: Mystery Wines!
It's our second Mystery Wine Video, but this time Kate is doing the guessing. Will she be able to identify this wine when she tastes it blind - and will she be a winner or a loser? You'll have to watch it to find out.
Tuesday 28th April - Forgotten Port Vintages This morning I (just managed to) attend a tasting of Niepoort's vintage port at the Lowsy (oops, not a freudian slip honest, I meant to type Lowry) Hotel. The occassion was the declaration of the 2007 vintage (vintage port is not released every year, just in the very best, so the declaration of a vintage is always something to celebrate), so naturally we started with a cask sample of that. It's a bit disconcerting tasting a port that young - it has almost none of the characteristics I'm used to getting from older bottles, but shows lots of vibrant, concentrated fruit and fresh acidity. As well as this most recent vintage, we tasted 5 other ports, mostly from 'forgotten' vintages, which haven't been heavily written up in the wine press. Niepoort often gives us an opportunity to do this as the quality of his vineyard sites allow him to make a Vintage port more often than some of the larger, less quality-driven houses. The younger vintages were 2005, 2003 and 2000, the highlight of which for me was the 2000. Although the 07 and 03 show signs that they'll be longer lived and perhaps greater in the long run, the 2000 was the most balanced and harmonious, and had developped a clear identity as a port. We were then very lucky to taste a 1970 and a 1942! The 42 was absolutely fascinating, very complex and full of spicy flavours with lots of old wood, dried fruits and spirit. The 1970 though was on absolutely top form - bright, clean and fresh despite being over thirty years old, with a beauitiful balance of fruit, dried fruit and spice.
What a treat!
Friday 24th April
A bit weary today after last night's tasting and lugging lots of boxes around this morning! The tasting was great though, full of fantastic wines and not a little innuendo.
The Rhone valley was the theme of the night, with a focus on the southern Rhone, all very ably described by Ed Fancourt from local supplier, Boutinot Wines. We started with a deliciously fresh Viognier, then a Vin de Pays - the Chante Cigales Vignes d'Alexandre, which is only in the country due to a chance tasting by our supplier's buyer! A beautifully layered white Chateauneuf du Pape rounded off the whites and led into a light, delicate Cotes du Rhone Rose.
The red tasting started with three Cotes du Rhone: A generic Cotes du Rhone Villages (although Ed explained that whilst most Cotes du Rhone Villages is upgraded Cotes du Rhone - a lowlier classification - this is a de-classified single Village wine) then two wines from specific villages. Both these wines are produced by the same winery (Boutinot itself), and were of the same harvest so the comparison was fascinating. The first, Seguret, was big, showy and expressive whereas the Cairanne was poised, grown up and serious. Ed made a rather unfortunate dating analogy here which I won't repeat!
Next we moved on to the only Norther Rhone wine of the night, Roland Betton's Crozes Hermitage. This was a little older than the other wines of the night, and was certainly showing signs of developping secondary characteristics whilst being a spot-on example of the region's Syrah.
And finally on to what most of the room had been waiting for.. Chateauneuf du Pape. We tasted two wines from Chante Cigale, their Chateauneuf and their Chateuneuf Vieilles Vignes. The Chateauneuf is already from 50 year old vines, so the old vines need to be going some to beat that. And they do! Alex (the 25 year old, nightclubbing winemaker) has a single plot of 110 year old vines - that's pretty much as old as you get in france as they were planted just after the devastating phylloxera outbreak of the late 19th century. These are concentrated, powerful Chateauneufs, and the Vieilles Vignes showed amazing structure, minerality and awesome ageing potential.
Wine of the night? The Seguret seemed to go down best of all, yet a quick glance at my order sheets shows a little surprise: although the Seguret was the best-seller, it was quickly followed by the Chateauneuf du Pape.....White! Another sign that West Didsbury palates are a cut above the normal!
Anyway, enough of my waffle, here's a brief exerpt of what you missed:
Wednesday 22nd April
It's Chris' turn to taste this week, and he's trying a sparkling wine with a difference...
Wednesday 15th April
We've just tasted a brilliant new Rioja and we're on the ball this week so here's Kate tasting it.
The wine will be in the shop on Friday!
Saturday 11th April
Finally, I've had a spare five minutes to tell you a bit about my brilliant trip to Vinitaly in Verona. I got a bit carried away though, so I've put all the videos, pictures and information on a separate page - the videos are definitely worth a look, especially if you like Valpolicella or if your name is Humphrey!
As a teaser, here's a picture of the chapel at Villa della Torre in Valpolicella with new vineyard sites in behind
Tuesday 7th April
I'm rather jaded today after 5 days of tasting, eating and drinking in Verona!
Firstly, apologies to everyone who expected to see lots of blogs and video posted here over the last few days. Unfortunately the Internet connection at my hotel wasn't even up to the job of checking emails, let alone sending them out, blogging and uploading videos.
As you'd expect I've come back to quite a pile of work, but as soon as I've trawled through everything that needs my urgent attention, I promise to get everything posted.
For now, I'll jut say that I had a fantastic time, and will have to be restrained lest Reserve turn into an Italy-only shop!
Friday 3rd April
There's an extraterrestrial theme to this week's vidoe tasting note as Kate tastes the other-worldly Vin Gris de Cigare from Bonny Doon
Thursday 2nd April
I haven't managed to write since the tasting last week, already a whole week ago! The Judgment of West Didsbury was very interesting with the Old World beating the New World 3 - 2. However, the winning wines of the night (in terms of points scored) were both New World...I always enjoy tasting blind and seeing people's reactions, it's a great way to learn and there were definitely a few surprises for people that night. Chris went off to Vinitaly yesterday, his itinerary looked amazing, packed full of trips to wineries such as Pieropan, Allegrini and Ca dei Frati to name but a few. He'll most definitely come back a few pounds heavier. Keep an eye on the blog this week for latest updates from Verona. K
Thursday 26th March
A big thank you to Ian for the following tasting note. I made him promise me to give me some feedback on the Rion, Chambolle Musigny 2005 and this is his note (and a fine note it is) Watch this space for more Wine Chat from Ian
"Fresh after opening I thought it had a slightly porky nose with some fragrance developing at the end of each big sniff. Bitter leathery notes really predominated on the pallet with a bit of cherry upfront. We decanted it and left it in the kitchen to warm up a bit and it really started to come alive with the leatheryness dissipating, giving way to a long warm finish with hints of cherry. To begin with white pepper came through quite strongly and never really went away. Jo got some almonds after a while though. (On the pallet, not from the cupboard.) The porky nose that I got early on changed into a beef oxo cube after 40 minutes or so and throughout it all I got a definite hit of black sugar / treacle. A big wine to be sure, and one that will need to be tried again. One bottle wasn't enough to taste properly - it went down very easily both with and without food and we were left with none whilst feeling as if we'd only just started. (Obviously Jo can only drink bottles of wine costing more than £25....)"
Wednesday 25th March
We've name checked him a couple of times now, so we're delighted that the dashing Hamish has recorded a video tasting note for us
Monday 23rd March
I've just been fiddliing around with our videos, trying to get the quality better (Youtube is great but doesn't seem to communicate that well with our video editing program). I've discovered that they look much better when they are half the size, so from now on I'm going to make them smaller on this blog page.
If you find that they are too small for you, then you can view them full size here: www.youtube.com
On the wine front, I did a great Champagne tasting on Saturday night over in St Helens. Many stars of course, but for me Jacquesson's Cuvee 731 was the star of the night. It's showing sooo well, it's just a shame theres's not much left!
Friday 20th March
It's Mother's Day on Sunday, so today I'm tasting my mum's favourite wine!
Friday 13th March
Hope you're not getting spooked...This week has been a quiet one on the tasting front, the highlight being the Cote Rotie from Robert Niero that Kenny and I had on Saturday night. What a wine. I have a list of jobs to do today ( mainly marketing) but one of my customers popped in the shop early this afternoon and lent me "1001 Wines You Must Try Before You Die"...so I'm getting seriously distracted. Thanks for the loan though David!
Tuesday 17th March
It's a double tasting note this week as Chris and Kate try a wine for the first time!
Wednesday 11th March
Kate returns with another great dance performance (plus a tasting note on the latest addition to our range of Logan wines from New South Wales)
Tuesday 3rd March This is a photo of me in the loo at Mossimans...now that is a toilet...check out the wallpaper!
Friday 27th February 2009
What a fantastic tasting last night. We were delighted to welcome James Yeo and his friend Gerrie Wagner from Strandveld winery in South Africa to the shop.
(P.S. Sorry Gerrie, we called you Harry all night! Not good form.)
Wednesday 25th February
After yesterday I've well and truly decided that I am destined for a more charmed existence....!! I mooched around the streets of Knightsbridge thinking I could really get into this life, I reckon I could even enjoy clothes shopping around there. Yes Chris and I headed to the big smoke for some fine dining at Mossimans Private Dining Club in Belgravia, and fine dining it was. Not overly extravagant but high quality food, great atmosphere - staff were lovely and friendly - not too serious and stuffy. I loved it. I'm trying to work out how i can download the pics off my i phone so i can post them because the room was exquisite. If you fancy treating your other half next Valentines Day you can hire out a very 'intimate' room for 2 at £800/head - apparently the waiters have to knock before they enter...
Friday 27th February
Friday 20th February
A slightly subdued Kate tastes brand new bio-dynamic wine from McLaren Vale
Wednesday 17th February
Back on track after a long old day yesterday, those very late nights on a school night really seem to take their toll nowadays. Today I'm focussed and ready for action, time to catch up on emails/blogs and twitter - have you seen this yet? My husband has been raving about it for the last year or so and it seems to be getting some real following now. It's a whole new world of social interaction, tweets and twestivals. Check it our at www.twitter.com
Tuesday 16th February
We had our belated Christmas bash last night...and we certainly made up for not having one last year!. We tasted a spectacular line up of wines including a 1971 and 1976 Riesling Spatlese, top end Priorat (did you like that one Nick?) our new Brunello from Constanti, St Joseph from Cuilleron...and the list goes on. I fear we may have bored Alpha PC Paul (our IT Director) rigid with endless wine chatter but he made up for it later with his dancing, he is truly gifted. K
Friday 13th Feb - Kate's Valentine Love Wine
Tuesday 10th February
Great tasting today at teh Bridgewater, and for once we didn't spend the whole day tasting expensive wines and found some brilliant wines between £5 and £10. Look out for some great new Rioja, Cotes du Rhone and Beaujolais (to name a few) in the next few weeks. Oh, I tell a lie, we did taste an Amarone (not exactly cheap at £20 but we needed one that's a bit less dear than Allegrini's £40 beauty), but you can't expect us to spend the whole day on cheapies, Tim!
Monday 9th February
Ah, Kate your tactics are not as good as mine - I shared a bottle with Roz so managed to get a good dose of deliciousness! I spent Friday night at a beer festival in Ilkley (I know, wrong side of the Pennines) which was rather enjoyable, although I don't appear to have taken any professional tasting notes. Can't think why. It's a bit snowier over there, as we found out when we tried to move our car out of the car park on Ilkley Moor - it took 20 minutes and 3 random blokes to push us out! Clearly I need to put on some weight!
Monday 9th February
My Mum and Dad are off to Australia for 2 months today....they are off to Melbourne to visit my brother and his family (where temperatures hit 46 degrees on Saturday). In honour of their leaving we had a dinner last night which gave me an excellent opportunity to try one of our new wines, Ca dei Frati, Pratto. Some you of you will know this winery, they use exquisite bottles for their wines and the juice inside is also pretty darn good. This is their flagship wine, a blend of Lugana, Chardonnay and Sauvignon - it really was brilliant - the only downside was i only got one glass. K
Tuesday 3rd February
Well as I write Chris and I should be sitting down to a delightful lunch in Belgravia BUT instead I'm spreading some Philadelphia LIGHT onto my ryvita and boiling the water for my Slim a Soup. Yes we were due to be in London today but the weather was against us... Anyway that gives me a good opportunity to do some blogging. And I haven't had chance to tell you about the lovely group of winemakers who visited us last week, we discussed the fantastic opportunities for making Bordeaux wines more accessible for the UK market. I am 100% behind these sorts of intiatives and because an area like Bordeaux is complicated and confusing for a lot of us making it more accessible is definitely the way forwards. Channel M came down to film it, although i've missed the footage so if anyone comes across it please let me know.
A P.S for Tuesday 27th January Here's us receiving our award...
Tuesday 27th January
Good afternoon and a warm welcome to 2009....as you well know I'm not the most consistent blogger on the planet and I'm very ashamed to admit that this is my first blog of the year. I'm sorry! However, I do write with lots of exciting news, now we've probably told you some of this already but just in case...we won the International Wine and Spirit Competition for the UK Best Independent Wine Merchant! WE found out just before Christmas but in the festive mayhem we didn't really get a chance to celebrate so we're going for it now. We have loads of fantastic press including my first ever radio interview, a presentation here at the shop last week and we're off for a rather posh meal in London next week. So lots of things to enjoy, and who knows we might even get a Christmas party this year!...(I'm getting my head pecked about being a miser - not true of course) K
Friday 16th January Oh dear, there's a bit of a gap between this and the last entry, isn't there.
Anyway, Happy New Year. Hope you all had a great festive season.
Clive from Nautilus Estate in New Zealand just left the shop so I thought I'd tell you about his wines. A classic Kiwi range including Sauvignon Blanc, on good form as ever, Chardonnay (great value, in an oakier style) and a Pinot Noir which is more refined than I remember.
Clive also presented me with an interesting excersise. He'd brought cask samlples (wine direct from the barrel of a vintage that hasn't yet been bottled) of three different Pinot Noir clones from the same vineyard in the 2008 vintage. Clones are vines of the same grape variety but with tiny genetic mutations within them which change the chracter. Pinot Noir winemakers are particularly obsessed with them. Two of the clones were Burgundy or 'Dijon' clones (667 and 777 I think he said) and one was a mutation of the 'Ata Rangi' clone - stolen from the Domaine de la Romanee Conti vineyard and used in a number of Kiwi plots inlcuding Ata Rangi (allegedly). The idea of the excersise was to show that each clone has a defined character.
A great idea this, as we hear about these things but rarely get a chance to taste them. The three wines (which were vinified and aged identically) were really quite different with the 667 being expressive, fruityand light with relatively low in tannin. The 777 had deeper flavour but a more closed nose, and more spice and the biggest tannic structure of the three. The Ata Rangi clone was the most balanced, complete wine, with a bit of everything and a real sense of harmony. The most revealing aspect of the tasting though was when Clive blended a wine in front of me (well, tipped all three glasses together - very scientific). The resultant wine was the best of the three (which is the idea of blending after all) and had an element of all three clones, but a noticeably longer finish with a noticeably different fruit character than any.
Next time, we'll get him to do it at an in-store tasting!
Tueday 9th December Here's Kate trying one of our brand new 'Logan' wines from New South Wales - complete with song and dance!
Tuesday 18th November...yikes! Gosh I'm so sorry i haven't written an entry for so long. It's getting to that time of year when things start to go a bit manic and I get completely focused on other things - I know it's feeble but there you go. So the past few weeks have been a whirlwind, lots of tasting events, the launch of our home delivery service, reserve@home, and the lots of work for Christmas. Infact I was so exhausted that I just had to have a few days away with the girls last weekend, bliss. This week is our birthday week, we've been open FIVE years, to celebrate we're having a few glasses of fizz on Saturday and would be delighted if you could join us. It's an open house so just pop along when you get chance. We've got a DJ, nibbles, ICONS tasting and I may even do a dance for you if you're lucky.
Wednesday 12th November
Mystery Wine - can you guess what it is?
Email your answer to sales@reservewines.co.uk by the end of today for a chance to win a prize!
Tuesday 28th October
Kate gets a bit of Bordeaux...
Tuesday 21st October
Back off hols yesterday to the usual chaos, but just time to tell you about my week. This is a picture of Roz and I expertly sailing our yacht on the Ionian (yes, OK if you sail you can probably tell that we're not really experts but we enjoyed it anyway). Definitely a holiday I'd recommend - you're far too busy thinking about not sinking the boat to notice you're relaxing! Sad (but not surprising) to say that we became known as the 'G+T' boat, but I did manage to sample a couple of bottles of the local blog. In fact I filmed a video tasting note whilst out there, but then managed to lose the camera! Wine highlight was Robola of Cephalonia - really dry and crips with Riesling-esque acidity - and the lowlight was the result of the vast quantity consumed on Saturday night! That reminds me, I must order some more Greek wines...
Monday 20th October (2)
Chris makes his debut Video Tasting Note
Monday 20th October
Well I have been slack...almost 10 days since a blog entry although I do have a list of valid excuses...Chris on hols so double the workload, renovations at the shop (have you noticed the new shelving??), AND my birthday (yes officially 34 now - still feel young and spritely thought and that's all that matters isn't it?). Interesting week last week, we had Stephen Pannell over for a mini masterclass - he was superb and his wines equally as impressive. Steve has worked all over the place, in France for, among others, Domaine Dujac & Pousse d'Or, in Lenswood for Tim Knappstein and Barolo with Aldo Vajra. He then spent 10 years working for Hardy's as chief red wine maker before starting life as a consultant. We tasted through his range of wines from his deliciously refreshing Grenache Rose through to his deliciously perfumed Nebbiolo...here's Steve in action.
Friday 10th October
Kate again, tasting a hot-blooded Chilean white
Monday 6th October
Yet another great trade tasting at the Bridgewater Hall today. This time for a potential supplier showing some delicious Burgundy, Bordeaux and Rhone wines as well as a classy range from New Zealand Highlights for me were a big and powerful Rasteau (actually proabably not the best wine on show, but memorable for its force of personality) and some delicate and elegant Alsatians - a Pinot Bland and Grand Cru Muscat. For once, this trade tasting was compact and Bijou- a perfect size to prevent wine fatigue!
Thursday 2nd October Kate tastes a rare, museum release Aussie Shiraz
Also Monday 29th If you missed out on our tasting on Thursday, take a sneaky peak HERE at what went on - there's a great vido of Bruce there too.
Monday 29th September I'm feeling a bit sorry for Kate today - I spent a beautiful weekend in the Lakes with stunning weather, and Kate's gone up there today in what looks like somewhat less encouraging conditions. I hope she enjoys her wedding anniversary nevertheless!
Anyway, I had a great weekend, lots of good walking and dinner (and sleep) at the fabulous l'Enclume in Cartmel. The food was fascinating - Simon Rogan seems to have a fascination with little balls of pure flavour which burst in the mouth, certainly the most unusual Hotpot I've ever had! Wines were, naturally delicious although I'd like to have seen some more interesting Kiwi wines (really, Cloudy Bay isn't good enough these days) and at least one each from Portugal and England! All in all, thouroughly recommended!
Friday 26th September Wow, what a great tasting last night. A collection of superstar Tuscans, all of which were in commanding form. Favourites? Personally I loved the Cepparello, but was outvoted by the tasters, most of whom preferred Fontodi's Vigna del Sorbo (not that I was averse to that!)
Thanks to all who attended for making it such a great event, and many many thanks to Bruce for giving us such great insight into the wines! C
Thursday 25th September David Holridge on today's 'Grape Gossip'. Subject: Dessert Wines
Your article was interesting but I was surprised to see no mention of the sweet wines of Layon and Vouvray made with chenin. The Layon wines, particularly Quarts de Chaume, are. to my palate often more interesting than their more expensive bretheren.
Just a thought.
David
Thanks for your comments - I agree that the sweet wines from the Loire are very interesting (in fact, if you read my 'Sipped and Savoured' of the Cordon Cut you'll see that I recommend one). I simply chose to (attempt) to keep it simple and keep to wines I see as better known where I haven't specified.
Good spot though!
Chris
Anyone else out there got any great sweeties they want to share?
Tuesday 23rd September
Oops, haven't blogged for a while - which is a pity after quite an eventful weekend which included nearly being run down by my predecessor, Carley! I write today after an interesting tasting. Not just interesting for some delicious wines (mmm, Condrieu), but also because it was in the Bridgewater Hall, right opposite the Labour Party conference. Talk about armed guard, there were snipers and guards all over the place, just to protect us from politicians!
Anyway, on the more important subject of wine, I tasted some great stuff, including the aforementioned Condrieu (see Sipped and Savoured in a couple of days), a textbook Riesling Ausles and a really classy single vineyard Malbec. I also may have found a replacement for the much lamented Cray!
So, be warned, the city centre is crawling with gunmen!
Thursday 18th September Thanks to Rob from For the Love of Wine, he's just popped in as part of his UK Tour 2008. What we love about Rob is he always brings us quirky wines to try, wines that really get you thinking. For me the most unusual was the Fiano & Malvasia blend (with 12 months barrel fermentation AND 12 months oak ageing...now that really got us thinking.....
Monday 15th September
Wow, what a great weekend. Roz and I headed down to London for a wedding, and a little bit of wine tasting. The wedding was great - reception on a boat cruise on the river Thames at night. I didn't know that the Greenwich Observatory projects a laser along the Prime Meridian at night - time travel into the bargain! I managed to sneak a bit of tasting in though, and tried one or two fantastic wines, including a 1959 Lynch Bages (very posh) which was fascinating - a real whiff of honey, and lots of tertiary flavours - and my first sip of Chateau d'Yquem. So multi-layered and complex, despite being a bit closed (2003 really is a bit young for this wine). I may have to abstain for a bit, just to keep the taste in my mouth!
We're tasting this really quirky wine from Cantine Carpentiere today. It's made with a grape called Nero di Troia which is not a hugely well known variety so I thought I would write about it. It's a red grape variety grown in the Italian region of Puglia, it is thought that it's named after the town of Troia..(whose founder was the Greek hero Diomedes who had destroyed Troy). According to the Oxford Companion it's on the decline - plantings have fallen from 5,000ha in 1982 to 3,000 in 1990 SO we have to buy it to ensure its continued existence!!
PS This wine is also known as Uva di Troia, Sumarello, Uva di Canosa, Uva di Barletta, Troiano, Tranese, and Uva della Marina.
Friday 12th September
I had an amazing night yesterday at the Lowry restaurant in the company of two brilliant Chilean winemakers - Felipe from Tabali and Maria Luz from Casa Marin. They were very different (in personality and approach), but both make awesome wines and are at the forefront of modern Chilean wine.
Felipe (he's the one standing up - good rugby-playing stock as you can see) is the winemaker for Tabali in the Limari valley - a very dry region to the north of Santiago. He's very lucky in that Tabali is funded by the richest man in Chile, who's more interested in wine than the bottom line, so has relative freedom in his approach. Although he comes across as very commercially aware, and aware of how his wine fits into the market, when you scratch below the surface he's ultimately passionate about the quality of his wines. We tasted his Viognier, Chardonnay, Reserve Pinot Noir (delicious - we'll be getting some of that one in) and Shiraz.
Maria Luz is a little more difficult to see - she's the lady in the orange. She's the owner and winemaker for Casa Marin and incredibly independently minded - I loved her approach and was truly inspired by talking to her. She seems to have a sixth sense about her wines, and how they work in the vineyard, and everything from grape harvesting (by hand) to vinification is done with such care. The best thing about her was that she's not bothered about making a Sauvignon Blanc that tastes like a Kiwi, or a Sancerre - she just wants to make the best wine she can from the vineyards and grapes she has. Everyone should try her wines - they are absolutely amazing and unlike anything South American you've ever tasted!
Wednesday 10th September
Here I am again - this time with a cheeky number called 'Cuatro Pasos' - watch the video to find out more
Tuesday 9th September Whoppee- I've just had a brand new sofa delivered, and it's sitting in my lounge looking very lovely and comfy. Can't wait to get home and use it properly tonight!
Anyway, while I was waiting for it to show up (why are all delivery slots 11-4 - just to make sure they take up your whole day!) I was hunting around on the internet and came across a gallery in Spain which is doing Wine and Art tastings - El Greco and Airen etc etc. Not sure how they came up with the match but I suppose it makes sense. You could taste something ultra-conservative from Bordeaux whilst studying Old Masters, and then a weird and wonderful new-world project in front of some Jackson Pollock
Not sure what a gallery would think if I just turned up with a few bottles though. Maybe I should try...
Monday 8th September Kenny and I went to a wonderful wedding yesterday. It was the marriage of our friends Debbie and Mark at Knowsley Hall, WOW what a venue!. It was a Jewish ceremony so we had Kosher wines at dinner, I was wondering what exactly makes a wine Kosher SO today I made it my business to find out. I found the following information on www.wineacademy.com:
Kosher wine "basically means the wine is suitable for consumption by those observing the Jewish Dietary Laws. The word 'kosher' simply means clean or pure. To be certified as kosher, the wine & winery equipment has to be handled by an orthodox Jew. This is high in nuisance value to the winemaker but does not affect the winemaking process. So there is no contradiction that a kosher wine may be a wine of the highest quality. Kosher wines do not come into contact with any animal or diary derivatives for fining purposes (like gelatin or casein). Some wineries may flash pasteurize their wines so the wine stays kosher when served by a non-observant person. However this is only required by the strictly religious, usually in a banqueting situation. This normally applies to the more inexpensive wines" Now all we need to do is source some...
Friday 5th September Chaos reigns today - video recording, deliveries (most of which were wrong), and of course lots of customers! Plenty to keep me busy though, which is good really cos it's not like I can get outside and play golf!
Tuesday 2nd September I'm totally over-excited today becuse I can finally bring you my first ever Video Tasting note. How great is that?
Monday 1st September Eugh, what a weekend - rather a heavy night on Saturday at a party with Roz's work - free bars seem such a great idea at the time. So I'm not really in any fit state to be inspired about wines today - but I did love the Lagrein we showed in the shop on Saturday - it was on stonking form and it's a treat to try something unusual and yet so drinkable!
Friday 29th August
The second part of our Organic chilean sample tasting finished to day with a delightful Gewurz and a rich and delicious blend of Chardonnay, marsanne and Viognier. Two to look forward too when they come in next week!
Here's a picture of Kate tasting - watch out for the video, coming soon
Thursday 28th August Looks like my job's under threat - ousted by a 1-year-old, who'd have thought! That'll teach me to take time off I guess - a great trip to see the folks in Devon (not too wet, to my great surprise), play a bit of golf and generally chill out. It's funny, but when i go down there, I seem to end up drinking more beer than wine - Devon has some superb breweries - but there's always time to pick up a bottle from the Sharpham vineyard (my favourite down there, maybe because it's jsut around the corner from my mum's! I was supposed to take loads of photos, but as usual forgot, so you'll just have to imagine the rolling hills of Devon covered in healthy vines...
Tuesday 26th August Here's the new member of our executive team, albeit a rather inexperienced one. This is my little niece, Bethan, who popped in to visit Chris and I this afternoon and gave us her thoughts on the high level decisions we were making....
Saturday 23rd August What a way to start the Bank Holiday, waking up to a completely blue sky. I've had a tasting this afternoon with Tony Cloke, aka Dagger, despite us having had a rather hardcore day at our friends wedding yesterday. Tony works for Plantaganet Winery based in Mount Barker in Western Australia, we tasted the Hellfire Bay red (2005) and white (2007), Omrah Unoaked Chardonnay (2007) & Pinot Noir (2007) and finally the Plantagenet Shiraz 2005. I have to confess that my palate took a bit to get going, it was suffering from severe fatigue and a couple of the wines were a little shy initially. It was interesting for me to taste these wines as I visited this winery in March 2007, just as these wines were starting their journey from vine to wine. The 2005 Plantagenet Shiraz was interesting, a really well made, balanced wine, The cooler climate of Mount Barker is perfect for making slightly more elegant wines than Mclaren Vale or the Barossa and this wine really highlighted the regionality you can find within Australia. Many thanks to Dagger, it was great to see him as always....
Thursday 21st August A big thank you to all the lovely people who have been voting for us in the UK Wine Merchant of the Year Competition. We really appreciate it and we're going to do everything we can to bag that prize!! As the bank holiday approaches I'm wondering whether we'll at last have an opportunity to get out the bbq's? Will the rain give us some respite for a few days (although I'm sure Kenny, my husband, once told me that in Manchester August was the second wettest month after February....although I'm prepared to be challenged on that)
Tuesday 19th August Just back from a truly inspirational course for women in business, it was led by a lady called Gina Lazenby who is absolutely superb. I would strongly recommend her courses, you can read all about her and at www.thehealthyhome.com. I now feel revived and ready for some serious action! My brain is brimming with great ideas, now just need to find the time to get them going...watch this space.
Thursday 14th August This is me looking unimpressed about the quality of a wine he's tasting (Lebnanese - don't ask!). My desk doesn't always look like that, I promise! To start with, it's usually covered in random bits of paper and all sorts of files, and secondly there's normally a distressing lack of bottles of wine. Still hunting for a great Lebanese wine though
Tuesday 12th August I'm very excited today as we've finally managed to sort ourselves out putting videos on this very website! Expect plenty of fun and games from here on in. Here's one of our favourites from the summer fair - you can see more by clicking here
Monday 11th August Oh dear, it seems that Kate may have had a couple of bevvies yesterday - 'I'm just very tired' she says - that's what comes of owning a wine shop! My weekend was a little more sedate - if you call Tenpin Bowling sedate - but I still managed a couple of rather nice bottles, and will be extoling the virtues of Bandol for some time to come!
Saturday 9th August Window change day today - what a day to do it. Poor Wendy got a little wet going outside to check her handywork. This picture almost looks like it's sunny, but believe me the rain was pouring down. Perfect then for a nice summery window!
And here's the finished article! Note beach-style hampers and lovely sea-shore pebbles, plus the perfect British seaside holiday effect of rain on the windows!
If you haven't spotted it from the front page of our website, Reserve now has a YouTube page. We'll be posting lots of great videos there, from customer tasting notes to winemakers who come in to see us. You may even get some video of Kate and I! We're starting off with some video of revellers at our summer fair, so Click Here to link through to our YouTube site and watch!
Thursday 6th August It wasn't a total hammering thank you (although I played like I was drunk). Nick did however play the most amazing trick shot I've ever seen - ask him about it next time you're in. Amazing though, three dedicated wine lovers go out for a round of golf, and what do they drink in the clubhouse afterwards? Cider, of course! C
Wednesday 5th August Well Chris and Nick have been getting hammered (as in severely beaten I hasten to add!) on the golf course by one of our favourite suppliers 'hotty scottie'. Well i say hammered, that may be a little unfair but it certainly sounded as if Scott was a bit of a pro. Thankfully Scott had left me with a bottle of one of Jim Barry's top wines, The Benbournie. From 2002, which was a great vintage in Australia, The Benbournie is a straight Cabernet Sauvignon. On the nose there is real complexity, all the deep dark fruit aromas you might expect but also mint, and a Shiraz like spiciness - cinnamon & tobacco characters as well as green peppers. On the palate it's superbly silky with the mint from the nose and mulberry & blackcurrant flavours working beautifully alongside a more spicy earthiness. It's 15% alcohol but I think it's well balanced with everything else. The best thing is I get to take it home tonight and sup at my leisure..... K
Saturday 2nd August Well I'm back from a fabulous two week break in the South of France. What a place! We stayed in a beautiful village called St Jeannet which is nestled in the mountains and overlooks Antibes/Cagnes sur Mer/Vence and St Paul de Vence. I would strongly recommend it, if you want to really kick back and relax - this is the place. The village itself is stunning, it has about 3500 inhabitants and has everything you need - a butchers, a general store, a couple of restaurants and bars, a little tourist office and the obligatory 'pharmacie'. The best thing of all is it even has its own vineyard, happy days!. We could drink wine that was made just down the road. Its a pretty small operation selling most of their wine to local restaurants and shops or at the cellar door, but it was really charming. I spent a couple of hours tasting through their range and chatting to the daughter of the winemaker, they make 2 whites, 2 roses and 2 reds and are the only producer to use a very old method of putting their wine in glass containers and leaving them in the sun for 6 months before transferring it to oak barrels. They also make 3 sweets wines, a vendage tardive, a botrytised style and a third that is left in the glass containers for 2 years before being bottled. The local shops were also superb. The butcher was quality, it was like the local meeting place, whatever time of day you went in it was always busy...one Saturday I spent a hour just waiting to get served! Jean Pierre (the butcher) possibly could have done with a couple more staff to help him out but it was clear that it's just doesn't work like that there, he was the butcher and that was that, no assistant required you just learn the art of patience. And I'm telling you his meat was worth the wait. We ate superb veg straight from local gardens drizzled in local olive oil (the man who made that had 13 children!!). It was true local shopping and it felt (& tasted) great. K
Friday 1st August
Ahh, lovely August, and finally some signs of fight from England's cricketers. All is well with the world! Tried the Marin Old Vine Garnacha last night. It had gone down a storm at the Wine Fair, and I can certainly see why - very appealing, vanilla, lots of fruit and a nice soft mouth feel. Great stuff for 7.99. I've been looking into wine preservation kit today - all those funky cabinets that would allow us to serve tasting samples all week. Unfortunately, it seems that the government doesn't like them much - they've forced a major department store to get rid of these because they weren't serving standard wine measurements. Now I don't know about you, but this just seems like petty bureaucracy - customers want to be able to taste wine before they buy, and not get legless while doing it! What do you think?
Thursday 31st So the second part of my 'corked wine' saga involves actually getting to open a good bottle of the Schieferterrassen. The price has gone up a bit for this vintage (2006), but it's worth the extra - slatey, mineral, generous with the warm citrus fruit and some interesting bits and pieces waiting for a little bit more bottle age to release them. Kate and I also tried a whole range of potential new Rhone wines today. Highlights included a very nice white Lirac, and a couple of delicious Cote Roties. 2005, so not really ready to drink and i'm afraid we may fall out over which we prefer!
Wednesday 29th July I seem to be having really bad luck with buyiong corked wine recently - I must be getting everyone else's 1 in 10! No matter, last night the corked Schieferterrassen 'forced' me to open a bottle of 1996 Haut Medoc which was delicious - not a great Chateau but a good year, and starting to take on something a little bit animal - very interesting!
Monday 28th July Phew, what a scorcher! I spent all yesterday lounging in the sun - garden and pub - it's ages since I've had such a lazy Sunday. It was a bit of a cider day yesterday, but I did manage a little bottle of Oremus Tokaji Late Harvest. It was totally delicious (I'd forgotten that you can drink sweet wines on their own!) - lots of apricot and marmalade flavours. I tried their 5 Puttonyos in Barcelona at the start of June - next stop Aszu Essencia (actually I'm having to be very restrained in not buying this - one of our suppliers has some 1973)!
Saturday 26th July
To celebrate the sunny weather, I've opened a Rose in the shop today (can you believe it?). I couldn't make it too easy though, so I've gone for the Navajas Crianza Rose from Rioja. Un unusual move this, to oak-age a rose, but it gives the wine a more serious edge, with a lovely vanilla nose a little reminiscent of Allende Blanco. I've also opened Mount Horrock's 2006 Watervale Riesling. i didn't realise until researching the wine today that Mount Horrocks wines are vinified at Jeffrey Grosset's winery - that's one hell of a name to live up to! The wine itself is much more approachable at a young age than Jeff's, having already developped a smokiness to the nose and a richness to the palate that Polish Hill takes years to find - making me a very happy bunny C
Friday 25th July Ok Ok, I said I'd blog every day, but a man's allowed a day off, surely? The good weather's finally returned - it seems all we have to do is mention chilled red wine and the sun peeks out from behind the clouds! We might finally start selling some Rose! For me though, yesterday was perfect for a round of golf and then dinner in the garden with a lovely G+T - Perfect! I've had a bit of an abstenious week this week, but did try the Domaine de Bel Air Pouilly Fume which I'd missed at the Wine Fair. What a pleasure to drink a proper French Sauvignon Blanc which doesn't try to compete with the Kiwis on fruit. Mineral, herbal and light, with just a touch of gooseberry. Perfect summer drinking! C
Wednesday 23rd July The thing about holding brilliant Summer Fairs is that at some point you have take delivery of all the wine orders - that's a pallet from 17 different suppliers in two weeks so if I look a bit hot and bothered when you come in, that's why! Speaking of tastings, I'm starting to think about our Autumn series. I definitely like the sound of a Port tasting towards Christmas, but am open to ideas about other themes. I've already had a couple of suggestions, the best of which was 'Bordeaux on a Budget' for those of us who can't afford to drink Mouton Rothschild all the time! Email me here with your ideas Chris
Tuesday 21st July You can tell I've been manic the last couple of weeks - the wine fair takes up so much time! Nearly there now though - just need to deal with the ridiculous number of deliveries coming in. My favourite wine from the fair? Billecart Vintage - I can still taste it! Having said that, I have since tried a bottle of the Primitvo from table 16 - absolutely stunning and awesome value. Definitely one for the shop shelves
Any way, more recently I nipped over to Headingly to endure a day at the Test match. I don't think I've ever seen a team bowl so well for so little reward (shame about the wood-wielders though).
Anyway, I promise to blog more often from now on!
Wednesday 2nd July Getting quite excited now about the wine fair. I've been doing all your recommendations today and it reminded me how brilliant our wines are! I'm really looking forward to trying some more new wines from our new Italian supplier as well as finally getting to taste Billecart-Salmon's vintage champers. Mmmmmm. C
Friday 11th july Phew, what a night! Many of you were there last night at our summer fair, braving the elements (and boy were they fierce in the afternoon) and enjoying another great tasting. I think the stress of turning up at the Northern at 3 in the afternoon to find the Marquee a long way from ready meant that I was more chilled for the tasting itself this year! Top wine for me was Billecart-Salmon 1998 (predictably!)
Monday 23rd June 2008 I've had quite an abstenious (for me) weekend, mainly because Roz did the Leeds 10k on Sunday, so no booze Saturday night! I was pleased to see her looking so fresh at the end as she's doing the Great North Run in the autumn! A bit of a greek orientated week in terms of wines - getting a bit giddy about the new wines! Check out Sipped and Savoured for my thoughts! C.
Tuesday 10th June No camping out necessary, thanks as the weather was stunning up there (who needs a greek island anyway?) Actually, Skye has had 8 weeks with very little rain and is having real water problems, to the extent that Talisker is not actually distilling any whisky at the moment and won't be until they've had quite a lot of rain! By the way, if you're ever on the island, the distillery is well worth a visit and you get a really good in-depth tour, 6-dram tasting session (the 25 year old is really quite brilliant) and a nosing glass for only £15! I still prefer and Islay though. C.
Wednesday 28th May Many thanks to everyone who attended our Simply Sauvignon evening hosted by myself & Chris - we certainly had a lot of fun. It was one of those evenings when all the wines just seem to show well and it really highlighted the different styles of both grapes. The Northern Italian ,Vie De Romans Sauvignon Blanc was stunning, Isabel was great as always and the Balgownie Estate Cabernet Sauvignon was a beautiful example of just how elegant Australian wines can be. Chris has now gone off on his hols for a couple of weeks - up to Skye so let's hope the weather clears up a little or I can see him just camping out in the Talisker distillery.... K
Tuesday 13th May How about this, I've just read an article (yes it was work i wasn't just skiving!) that I thought was rather interesting. Apparently as a result of ongoing global warming, China is destined to become the worlds number one wine producing region. I'd never really thought about it before as we see very little of their production over here but I guess they do have the space!. I imagine that at the moment they don't really have the right skills and expertise in place but if the right people head that way then the opportunities are vast. So if your dream is to abandon the rat race and set up your own vineyard forget the South of France - maybe China is the future! K
Monday 12th May Yum. Just arrived back from Luso on bridge street, where Kate, Nick and I tasted some delicious Portugese and Spanish wines. Our friend Raymond rarely comes up with bad wine, and today was no exception - especially on the Portugese front. Kate and I were both very impressed by Lavradores Feitoria's 'Meruge', as well as some delicious and delicate Godellos from Northern Spain, one of which was barrel - fermented but surprisingly elegant. We also had another chance to fall in love with Barbeito's stunning single harvest and single cask madeiras, and Niepoort's great LBV - including a 1996 which showed some deliciously mature characters. And last but not least, the charming Ignacio (who really does look like an archetypal conquistador) from Bodegas Tradicion showed his very rare and old sherries - incredibly complex and unlike anything I've tried before. C
Thursday 1st May Ahh, spring has arrived and I can finally break out the shorts (don't worry, unless your my wife, that's just at home!) Time to think about drinking Rose too (no fear!) Must mention though two stunning wines I showed at our wine course yesterday. Isole e Olena Chianti Classico had a beautiful ripe, sweet dried fruit character (the 2002 vintage, i'm afraid so you'll have to wait for 04 to reach that stage!) and the forward thinking, immense and incredibly impressive Allende, Rioja 2002, which will age for years! C
Tuesday 15th April Just about surviving in here. Actually, the lads decorating the office have been very quiet and helpful - and it's nearly done and looking like the office is going to be great, so I'm looking forward to seeing the finished article at the weekend. Meanwhile, I can certainly vouch for the drinkability of our 'Steal of the month' this month (the Masquerades) having taken 60 bottles down to a friend's 30th party last weekend - it went down very well - too well in fact, although I had a remarkably small hangover! And the best bit was that the party was in a restaurant that let you have seconds of dessert. how great is that! Apparantly the record is 7 helpings, which was a sorely tempting target, but I chickened out after 1. Never mind. C
Thursday 10th April Just back from a superb few days in France - not far from Bergerac....wow what a treat! Great food, great wine and even great weather infact it was about as good as it gets really. it was my first trip to this area of France and I completely fell in love with the place. The wines were really interesting, I tried Vin de Peche which I'd never had before - a great aperitif. Lovely to meet up with the Katzenellenbogens from Didsbury who were over there for an extended break and took us to one of their fave restaurants "La Gabarrier", which is set in the most beautiful surroundings on the banks of the Dordogne. The highlight was definitely the gorgeous homemade ice cream "aux noix" I think I put half a stone during that three hour lunch session! But well worth it!. So after four days of complete gluttony it's back to the porridge at breakfast and salads for lunch....sooo boring.
Wednesday 2nd April Finally, a round of golf in the sunshine - about time! Anyway, you don't want to hear about me hacking my way around the Mersey valley, you're more interested in the great wines I've been drinking. I've been striking lucky this week with some real crackers, so didn't have space for them all in Sipped and Savoured. The three highlights have been Weinbach Muscat, which had some fascinating meaty/savoury notes to balance the fruit, Rozaleme Bobal/Tempranillo from Utiel-Requena (another of the myriad up-and-coming Spanish regions) which had fantastic spice and good deep fruit flavours all topped off with a sprinkling of vanilla oak, and finally (but probably my favourite), Jacky Blot's Taille aux Loups Montluis, which was simply top class, heavenly Chenin Blanc. Think I need to watch my spending this month though, more Rozalemes than Weinbachs. C.
Friday 12th March Hey check me out, two blogs in a week! Buzzing today though after last nights brilliant Australia tasting. 30 people crammed into the shop and tasted some outstandin wines from the Eden, Clare and Barossa valleys. It's not often you get to taste so many top class wines in one tasting, so to have Mesh, Jim Barry McRae Wood Shiraz and Yalumba's Octavius (their top wine - dark and brooding with intense, complex flavours waiting for a cople of years bottle age to be released) last night was a real treat. Thanks to everyone who came along, and also to Scott Edge for bringing the wines along and telling us all about them C
Wednesday 12th March Well Alistair Darling had a nice surprise for kate when she got out of her exam today. We promised not to moan so I'm not going to, but I will point out (as I'm sure will many others) that it can't be a coincidence that duty on spirits has gone up for the first time in 10 years - clearly Gordon is slowly letting go of the purse strings! On a wine note, I'm pleased to see customers siding with me - Ataraxia Sauv is better than the Chard, as I said Kate! Not that I'd refuse a glass of either! it was also good to see Nick in one piece after holding a tasting with a lively hen party. I did hear mention of 'Butler in the Buff', but you'd have to ask Nick about that! Must go - but I'm really looking forward to the Aussie tasting tomorrow - should be top drawer. C
Wednesday 5th March Exam time again. I am desperately trying to squash in revision snatching any free time I can to cram. I'm sitting the last 2 exams of my Wine and Spirits Diploma next week. It's a strange thing revising for wine exams, the word revision generally tends to conjure up dreary images - sitting for hours on end at a desk when the sun is shining and everyone else seems to be having a superb time. However with wine I actually love all the in depth learning (it's not like sitting a physics exam - apologies if your passion is physics but was my worst subject at school) and nowadays it's difficult to find the time for such detailed research. So all in all it's not too distressing, what is distressing is the cost of the train fares to get down to London to take the bloomin' exams!!! K
Tuesday 26th February Tasting time again yesterday. This time at SITT, which is a fab tasting with lots of different suppliers, but also a great chance to catch up with your mates! Good news from the tasting is that we've found some fab new Greek (yes, I did say Greek!)wines, and good news from the revellry afterwards is that neither Kate nor I had a hangover this morning (despite an impromptu late night brewery tour at the Marble Arch). Top wine of the day, though was a 1905 Madeira (not for sale, even to us) which was incredible - and still full of acidity after all these years! C.
Saturday 16th February 2008 I'm sure you don't really want to hear about my Valentines night, but I'm buzzing about the wine consumed so I'll spare you the gory details and cut to the chase. If you've not already tried it, get your hands on a bottle of Ata Rangi, Pinot Noir and drink it - it really is stunning - super complex, silky and beautifully balanced - I think Roz was a bit fed up that I paid it more attention than her! C.
Wednesday 6th February 2008 Gosh my life has been transformed by my new van which is a TURBO Citroen Berlingo. After 3 years of chugging along in a sluggish older model even the slight bit of zippiness is a novelty for me AND it has side opening AND a CD player. I tell you what this is called living the dream. Chris and I are now debating the new branding for it, you may remember the previous tasteful van. Well this time Chris has suggested either a huge champagne bottle on the roof or covering the van with cork. I have to say that I'm not wildly excited by either BUT I would get noticed. Any ideas? K
Tuesday 5th February 2008 Oh dear, I've just realised how long it is since I updated this I must make it a February resolution to blog daily. My excuse is that I've been far too depressed about turning 30 a couple of weeks ago - just a good excuse to drink some great wine - Fish and Chips and Billecart Blancs de Blancs Champagne really does work well! I spent the weekend in Alnwick getting blown around by the wind and walking on the beach - very nice. Anyhow, I promise to blog more often from now on. C
Tuesday 22nd January 2008 Mmmm I've been dying to tell you about some of the great wines we tasted today. We've been looking for some new Burgundies - red and white, and think we've found some corkers. There were some brilliant Rieslings - all German, and a range of dry to off dry styles. A nice new producer called Loichet, who showed a great, full style Pernand-Vergelesses at a fab price. We also tasted a Savigny-les-Beaunes which smelled of Beetroot. You won't be seeing that on the shelves! Red-wise, we had a great Pinot Noir from Oregon - Domaine Drouhin (good tip, Mr Moore!) and a stunning Savigny 1er Cru, which has great ageing potential as well as drinking well now. C
Monday 21st January 2008 Wow what a weekend I've had. Many of you will have seen my Mum and Dad around the shop in December, they were absolute legends - my Dad was working 6 days a week. As a thank you I took them to the Lakes this weekend & we stayed at the Drunken Duck. What a superb place, lovely food - I must have eaten enough to keep me going for the next week..I am seriously on a mission to 'cut down' this week (sooo boring) - great accommodation and the wine list is pretty good too (plus the delicious local beers - they have their own microbrewery next door). And you'll never believe it but who should we meet whilst we were there, two of my very lovely customers..Craig and Hywel, what a small world it is hey...but boy is it full of delicious Cognac. So it is a week of restraint for me, well maybe not an entire week but certainly a couple of days or so!
K
Wednesday 16th January 2008 Popped down to the big smoke for a tasting today - alongside alongside illustrious names such as Oz Clarke and Steven Spurrier no less, and of course Nick Lewis of Reserve! Tasted my first glass of Le Montrachet ever - and boy was it good, super complex, ethereally beautiful - I can see why people pay so much for it! Also tried a couple of cracking Champagnes and one or two nice Bordeaux - not wines we stock yet, but I'll be sure to let you know when we do! Nick enjoyed the mature Tuscans, something he was really looking forward to, but not as much as getting chatted up in the toilet by a drunken wine boor! Nice.
C
Saturday 5th Januray 2008 Happy New Year Everyone! It's finally back to normal after a manic Christmas for all of us - both in the shop and at home. Thanks for all your business last year, and for making it a record Christmas for Reserve. As this blog is really about wine, I guess I should fill you in on what I've been drinking. Actually, it could take quite a while to go through everything I opened over Christmas, so let's just stick to the highlights. My surprise white was Denis Race Chablis 2005. I'm not always the biggest fan of Chablis, but this is fantastic; great minerality, brioche notes, some good fruit and even a whiff of parmesan! On the red front, I loved Abadia Retuerta Seleccion Especiall 2005. From the same stable as Rivola (which many of you may have tried), the 2001 vintage of this won the Red Wine trophy at the 05 International Wine Challenge, so it's definitely worth keeping a bottle a couple of years - if you can bear to leave it in your cellar!
C
Monday December 17th Well, we're truly up and running for Christmas now - I spent all last week lugging boxes after Kate and Nick hurt their backs on consecutive days (nice timing!) Thank god for Jim (Kate's Dad for those who haven't met him at one of the Wine Fairs) who's been a real trooper helping out. Thankfully, though I've had time to try one or two nice bottles. I was impressed recently by the Domaine les Chenets, Crozes Hermitage, which is really nicely balanced, with enough tannins to balance some red meat, and I was blown away (again) by the Ataraxia Serenity, which is just so full of nuance that it's almost imossible to describe the flavours! C
Saturday December 8th It must be Christmas - we've been so busy that I've not had a chance to witter away on here. Never mind, though, it's great to see so many of you in the shop, and it's much more interesting to talk than write about wine! The shop's finally coming together for Christmas. The VIna Bosconia 1981 is in stock at last, and we've just had a pallet of the brilliant t new Aussie sparkler from the makers of Jansz. Dune NV is their Victorian wine, and has £2 off this month so get some while it lasts! Finally, Happy Birthday to Tim, my brother who is 28 today - catching up again! C
Friday 30th November 2007 I'm still on a high this morning after a great Christmas fair last night. Thanks to everyone who attended - I'm sure I'll be speaking to most of you soon to sort out your orders! Everyone had different favourites, but my pick of the night was Charles Melton's Nine Popes, which has brilliant concentration of fruit. From what I can tell, the two 'star wines' for the night were, predictably, Pascual Toso Reserve Malbec, and the brilliant new Hawkes Bay Syrah from Tinpot Hut. If you missed the evening, make sure you make it in the summer - if the wines are as good as last nights, you'll be in for a real treat. C
Friday 23rd November 2007 Yesterday saw the return to the shop of one of my all-time favourites, Eroica Riesling. This Washington State wine is a collaboration between Chateau Ste Michelle and the legendary Dr Loosen, and I was pleased to see that the 06 vintage is as good as ever. Searing acidity, a floral lime fruit nose with touches of smoke, and a complex palate, full of citrus and green apple flavours, a steely minerality and even a touch of aniseed. I really could drink this all year
C
Thursday 22nd November 2007 Back off holiday, and straight into the madness of organising Christmas - at least I've had a relaxing week in sunny Devon to prepare (and sample a few wines). My vinous highlights recently have been the awesome Larredya Jurancon Sec - brilliantly balanced, honeyed and complex; San Felice's Poggio Rosso Chianti Classico Riserva 2000, which I showed at a tasting on Tuesday and blew me away; and a couple of corking reds from the Huerta de Albala estate near Cadiz - big, rich beasts, but worth the hangover! So, loins well and truly girded and off we go....
C
Tuesday 12th November 2007 A friend of mine emailed me this joke last week and I it made me chuckle
Giving up Wine I was walking down the street when I was accosted by a particularly dirty and shabby-looking homeless woman who asked me for a couple of dollars for dinner. I took out my wallet, got out ten dollars and asked, 'If I give you this money, will you buy wine with it instead of dinner?' 'No I had to stop drinking years ago', the homeless woman told me. 'Will you use it to go shopping instead of buying food?' I asked. 'No, I don't waste time shopping,' the homeless woman said. 'I need to spend all my time trying to stay alive.' 'Will you spend this on a beauty salon instead of food?' asked. 'Are you NUTS !' replied the homeless woman. ' I haven't had my hair done in 20 years!' 'Well,' I said, 'I'm not going to give you the money. Instead, I'm going to take you out for dinne r with my husband and me tonight.' The homeless Woman was shocked. 'Won't your husband be furious with you for doing that? I know I'm dirty, and I probably smell pretty disgusting.' I said, 'That's okay. It's important for him to see what a woman looks like after she has given up shopping, hair appointments, and wine.'!
Tuesday 6th November 2007 Today I've been blown away by my niece, who is a mini miracle! So dinky and tiny but she could grow up to be the next Prime Minister. It's quite extraordinary really, I can only imagine what it feel likes to be a parent - to have produced such a perfect little being. Aside from that I'm writing my first blog entry...Chris has just gasped in amazement that I've actually managed to get my head round blogging.. So what have I been doing on a professional level, well lots of work with Wines of Portugal promoting their wine (some of you know these very well already....Andrew and Mead for example). As Chris kindly mentioned, I did a short slot on Channel M last Friday promoting a couple of delicious Portuguese reds which was rather fun despite spilling the wine all over the table. And we've hooked up with both One Lounge Bar and Greens to further the Portuguese cause so if you're out and about in West Didsbury over the next couple of weeks check out both venues for they have a couple of great offers on. Ok time for tea but promise to write again soon.
Friday 2nd November 2007 Consider my Riesling obsession officially re-ignited - I cracked a bottle of the new vintage Pacific Rim last night, and it's just brilliant - stunning acidity, great sweet lime aromas, and a fresh citrus palate with just a touch of sherbet. Come on, join the Riesling Revolution!
Thursday 1st November 2007 She's been trying to keep it quiet, but the word is out! Kate is making a Television Appearance to remember tomorrow. Check her out on Channel M's breakfast show at about 7.45, where she'll be expanding on our Portugese theme. That's the last time she entrusts me with any secrets!
She's also just become an Auntie,so congratulations to Mark and Hayley on their baby girl.
Wednesday 31st October 2007 I love Halloween - it's always great to sell wine to a girl with a large sword through her head!! Speaking of strange, you may have caught a couple of men having a mid-life crisis on TV and trying to match wine to cars! Drop me an email (chris@reservewines.co.uk) if you have any other weird tasting ideas - you never know, we may just try them out! C.
Friday 26th October 2007 Well, you can tell it's half term - we've been busy all week! What I didn't expect was to sell a bottle of dry Hungarian white on the very first day it was on the shelves - hey, why not, it's a fantastic wine - lychees and rose petals all the way with a spicy finish. Pop in and check it out - it's not on the web yet.
Tuesday 23rd October 2007 Having finally got over our cup final defeat on Saturday (bad luck – no deal on South African wines!), it’s full steam ahead planning Christmas (don’t worry, we won’t put the decorations up yet!). We’ve also been pounding the streets in the last few weeks, putting flyers through peoples doors – I seem to be losing weight already.
More tasting today, and we found some crackers. A couple of new German wines – including a great value Auslese – and a stunning 1981 Gran Reserva Rioja (Vina Bosconia) which we’ll have in over Christmas. At £50, its not cheap, but boy is it worth it!
15 October 2007 - A taste of Malta I’ve just come back from holiday to find the normal pile of work waiting for me – but it’s so much easier when you have a week in a Maltese palace behind you. Don’t be holding your breath for a sudden influx of Maltese wine at Reserve. Malta’s infertile soil should be great for vines, but the temperatures are just a bit high in summer for most of the grapes they try to grow. Having said that, wineries that stick to warm climate grapes like Syrah get some half decent results and I also had a nice Vermentino. Beer was good, though. C.
1st October 2007 – Tasting in Birmingham Yet another tasting for me today – well, I had to go really as Kate was in Paris for her anniversary! Two stars this time; firstly, the amazing Allende Rioja Blanco – a perfect example of how to oak age where the oak complements and enhances the fruit rather than dominating it. Just awesome! The other star was a cheeky Jurancon sweety from Larredya – not in stock yet in the store, but a fascinating drop, and well worth looking out for in the coming weeks!
26th September 2007 – Another mammoth tasting Ok, so not quite on the scale of 100 wines, but quite a few nevertheless – and hopefully some new crackers for the shop.. Stars today were undoubtedly the wines from Pirie in Tasmania. It’s difficult to fault anything in the range, but I was really blown away by the unoaked South Chardonnay, and the Pinot Gris. Also enjoyed a quick chat with Neil Culley of Cable Bay and Culley fame, who pointed out that 2007 was a great vintage in Marlborough, and worth looking forward too! A tip (well) in advance of Christmas – or anytime you want an interesting dessert wine – pick up a bottle of Pertaringa Estate’s ‘Full Fronti’ – a rutherglen-style Muscat with some fascinating ‘rancio’ flavours, lots of marmalade and a sherry-style dry finish.
20th September 2007 – Funky Chile! Controlled chaos in the store this evening, as 35 people packed in to listen to the words of wisdom of local wine guru, Fergal Tynan, and –far more importantly – taste some stonking great Chilean wines. The theme of the evening was new, top quality Chilean wines – the number of trophy winners on the table was phenomenal! For me, star of the show was Altair’s ]LINK] – a structured but elegant Cabernet, Merlot and Syrah blend from Cachapoal, and everyone there was very pleasantly surprised by the outstanding quality – and maturity – of these wines, especially considering that some of the wineries only started releasing wine in 2002!! A few of the more hardcore drinkers retired to the Met afterwards for a couple of swift jars, and to continue sampling until the staff got fed up and kicked us out (you know who you are!)
18th September 2007 - Visit from Pulenta Estates An early start for us today – Eduardo from Pulenta Estate in Mendoza, Argentina was already here when I arrived for work, straining at the leash to show us his wines. Considering that the winery was only built in 2002, it’s incredible how settled and developed his wines are. Those who have tasted them will be happy to know that they’ve increased production of their brilliant La Flor wines to meet the incredible demand for them, so get stuck in and enjoy the fresh, citrus and cut-grass Sauvignon Blanc and the rounded, fruity Malbec. The biggest surprise for me, though was the meaty, red fruit Malbec Rose – quite a confession from a self-confessed rose-phobe!
12th September 2007 Phew! I’m exhausted – I must have tasted 100 wines today, at an extensive trade show in London. It’s worth it though – I think we’ve picked up a few beauties, and it’s great to be reminded of how good the wines we already stock are. My best wines were: Tinpot Hut Sauvignon Blanc – great, passionfruit scented, capsicumy kiwi sauv; Mount Horrocks Watervale Semillon – rich round and sexy; Ata Rangi Pinot Noir (no surprise there, then) and the brilliant value Delta Vineyards Pinot, which really punches above its weight for earthy complexity. After spitting all those wines out, there’s always one you have to swallow – today it was the absolutely incredible Capezzana Vin Santo – an awesome, nutty, honeyed sweet wine from Tuscany, which has incredible complexity, and really needs some time spent over it.
10th September 2007 Those of you who aren fans of their Viognier will have noticed the Fonty's Pool wines on offer in the shop this month, which Kate and I were lucky enough to taste with Paul (the spitting image of Paul Robinson, bizarrely), their new CEO at a dinner today.
This was a great opportunity to taste different vintages of his best wines together, get an insight in to the winemaking, and to give him some feedback. The Pinot Noirs caused much comment – after the magnificent 2004 (currently £2 of in the shop), the 2006 seemed very young – and hopefully we’ve persuaded Paul to ship some of the 2005, which we were originally going to miss due to its cork closure. The ’04 was definitely the most popular wine of the night, and we had to hide some under the table to make sure we could drink it with our meal!
6th September 2007 Welcome to the Reserve Wine blog, where Kate and I will be keeping you up to date with what we’ve been up to and the wines we’ve been tasting
Life’s been a bit of a whirlwind since I joined Reserve in June, first with the barely controlled madness of the Summer Fair, latterly working hard to produce our new newsletter and make our website as funky as the shop.
Last week I was fortunate to meet the lovely Kate Galloway, winemaker at Alpha Domus in Hawkes Bay, New Zealand. A flying visit to the shop, really, but I did get to taste through her range. Kate spends a lot of time in France, and that shows through in her wines, which show more restraint than most Kiwis! The key to her wines, I think is the minerality that runs through them all, and is especially distinctive in the Viognier and the brilliant Un-oaked Chardonnay, which really is a lesson to all those who claim not to like the variety.
But star of the show had to be her AD Semillon 2002. The AD range are only made in the best years, and this barrel fermented wine really is a beauty. Creamy, honeyed green fruit flavours dominate the warm, rich palate, which is balanced and freshened by a fantastic acidity, and the aforementioned minerality. Look out for it in the shop soon!
