This one does exactly what it says on the tin: black cherries, spice, mint, plums. It’s like chewing gum and walking….through a French orchard on a wet autumn day.
It cost me £9.99 from Virgin and is one of the better ten quid bottles from their stable.
Serve cool (not cold). It accentuates the mint. The perfect antidote for drab football matches, and a great partner for pizza.
I’ve just been dribbling all over the en-primeur Burgundy 2008 catalogue from the Wine Society. I lined up a number of superbly priced selections and my wobbly knees were barely capable of carrying me to the computer to place an order.
In a year that, according to most commentators was variable at best, it looked like les escargots had marked their prices down to reasonable levels. Then a prickly heat rose through my knees, groin, heart and ended in a face flush. The values were for half cases. Oh well, I am priced out again, so the catalogue was filed under B, for bin.
If, like me, you are a “W” man, and you fully expect the return of the recession (as soon as interest rates start creeping up again) then you could do worse than explore some cheaper areas of the home of wine. South West France seems particularly good value.
This Cahors red is made from the Malbec grape, but the taste reminds me more of Carmenère. Smoky autumn bonfires, apple and pear crumble, a touch of raspberry. Perfect for a cold night in with a steak when you need to impress (or apologise to) your loved one.
Cost me £7.25 from the Wine Society.
I was in New York City a couple of months ago and stumbled across a wine shop on the Upper West Side. I posed the shop guy a challenge. I wanted to take just one bottle back to the UK. What would he recommend? Something American, good value, underrated, and not available in the UK.
He suggested that I see through the marketing gimmicks of Cycles Gladiator and try the Cabernet Sauvignon at about 11 bucks. I’ve not tasted it yet.
At a California Wines event in London last month, I stumbled across the same brand. A number of thoughts raged. It’s available in the UK! And they do a Pinot Noir! And it’s the same cheesy label! And it tastes annoyingly good…
Being a wine snob, I normally hate own brands. Especially supermarket brands, even though they may well be the most reliable. Isn’t it more rewarding to seek out a tiny independent producer in the Andes that can only be accessed by chamois wearing crampons? A winemaker whose idea of export is chucking a couple of bottles to the next village idiot, 0.2 kilometres of un-navigable Amazon jungle away?
But I am not so sure if there is such a big difference between a carefully selected Sainsbury claret sourced from reputable Médoc vineyards, and a large scale “independent” brand such as Cono Sur, for example.
One brand that I occasionally (but not always) trust is The Wine Society. This Corbières is not rough and ready like the country wine I expected, but smooth and rich with strawberry flavours and spice.
Incredible value at £6.95. Sometimes one has to ignore the label and just get drinking.
Blimey! I didn’t mean to start World War III with my cast aside comment that Mark Hughes might not be the right manager for Man City. Even though I regularly tell anyone who will listen that I never approved of his appointment in the first place, even I, the Bathsheba Everdene to Mr Hughes’ Gabriel Oak, acknowledged that the least worst option was to give him more time to prove himself. Instead the Man City hierarchy (and I smell the ruthlessly inept Garry Cook behind this one) make us look fools again, executing a manager change with the dexterity, care and good intentions of Fred West laying a new patio.
I’ve held my tongue with remarkable virtue on the subject of Man City this season. Although I never favoured Mark Hughes’ appointment, neither do I support chopping and changing every five minutes. So I have been inclined to give him more time. After tonight’s abject 3-0 defeat at Spurs, I admit my patience is being stretched like a City banker’s tax return.
More time is something I ought to devote to US wines, largely ignored on this site – only 14 of Big Sam’s offerings ever receiving the courtesy of a mention. So here is a little redress.
Well, the stock markets are in another tizz. Up and down like the price of US claret. This time Dubai is the potential bad debt – yes the entire state! I am not sure what all the fuss is about. I understand the exposure is a mere £60bn – less than the Bank of England secretly lent to two British banks during the crumbliest stage of the credit crunch! Surely the emirate rulers can merely sell a few hundred Rolls Royces?
Oh well. If you are poorer than the Al Maktoums, here is a recession defying red. Yet another from South of France, Languedoc to be precise. I got mine from Majestic for £5.99 (2008 at £4.99 for two bottles or more at time of writing) and it tastes great. Rich yet not overpowering. Smooth yet not lounge lizard. Fruity yet not jammy. Tasty yet not over-alcoholic (13%).
The label recommends it for “convivial” occasions. I consider “carnivorous” equally valid. Also goes well with proletarian dishes like baked beans on toast. A proper bargain for these austere times.
OK, firstly a surprising admission. I have finally found it in my heart to give those blasted Aussies credit for something more than being reasonably adept at cricket.
Fred is completely tee-total. Whilst she is my wine “Nose” and can smell an Eton Mess on a Chateau Latour from 100 yards across a landfill site, ne’er a drop of liquor passes her lips. This poses a problem for a Wino like me. Every time I open a bottle I have to consume it all, save for tomorrow, or discard the un-drunk contents, which upsets my doctor, overfills the fridge, or keeps the drains clean accordingly.
So the thought of a boxed wine is most appealing. Hardys claim this new 2,250ml (3-bottle) enclosure keeps the wine fresh for 6 weeks!
Stumble It!