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Great wines on our doorstep – now’s the time to try English & Welsh wines

June is a good time to celebrate at the best of times – the weather is usually quite pleasant, gardens are awash with colour and with the Summer Solstice and Midsummer’s Day in quick succession, there are plenty of reasons to crack open a bottle. And this year June just got even better – with Welsh Wine Week this week (4-13 June) and English Wine Week fast approaching (19-27 June), now is a perfect opportunity to discover the delights that English & Welsh wines have to offer, and support our nation’s wine growers, as well as local wine retailers and other businesses, at the same time.

English and Welsh wines have come of age. Although wine making on our island has been around for centuries, even twenty years ago, you’d find few people who had much praise for English (and Welsh) wines. Then came the Nyetimber effect when a couple of enterprising Americans decided they could produce sparkling wine in a part of England where the soil and climate were similar to those in Champagne and set about proving it, and the rest, as they say is history. Fast forward to 2021 and there are some absolute delights to tempt your palate, both in terms of sparkling and still wines.

I had an opportunity recently to take part in an online wine tasting featuring English and Welsh wines, run by Steve Hovington from Cambridge Wine Academy. Steve is a very knowledgeable and entertaining presenter and it was an interesting, informative and very enjoyable evening. We covered a range of wines – white, red and rosé – and it was a real eye-opener. I hadn’t realised that there are such high quality wines being produced on this sceptered isle of ours; indeed, there were several wines that had it been a blind tasting, you might well have thought were from one of the more established wine-producing countries rather than from England or Wales.

English and Welsh wines are most definitely worth exploring. Here are a few to get you started:

Still Rosé by Hattingley 2020

This is a blend of Pinot Noir, Pinot Noir Précoce and Pinot Meunier grapes grown on the chalky soil of Hattingley Valley in Hampshire. Pink salmon in colour with aromas of raspberry, cherry and a hint of pear drops on the nose, and flavours of raspberry and strawberry, with creamy notes, on the palate, the wine is well-balanced with ripe fruit flavours and vibrant acidity. A light, refreshing wine with a long finish. Perfect for a summer’s evening and if you closed your eyes, you could be forgiven for thinking this was a Provençal rosé.

Available from Grape Britannia (£15.99)

White Castle Pinot Noir Reserve, Monmouthshire, 2018

I think this is probably the first Welsh wine I have tried. And what a fine example it is. No wonder it’s an Oz Clarke favourite – it’s a very impressive wine. This Pinot Noir Reserve 2018 is made from Pinot Noir Précoce grapes and has aromas of red berries and vanilla, with a hint of oak and smokiness on the nose, and ripe red fruit flavours of raspberry and strawberry on the palate. It is a light, well-balanced wine which will go perfectly with Welsh lamb or a cheese platter.

Available from Grape Britannia (£27.50)

Knightor Three Barrel Bacchus 2019

Well, if you can’t get to Cornwall right now, let Cornwall come to you! This very aromatic, off-dry Bacchus (great name for a grape variety!) has a different character from a typical Bacchus wine and with its high level of residual sugar, is reminiscent of a German Kabinett wine. It has quite pronounced peach and elderflower aromas on the nose leading to crisp, red apple and elderflower flavours, with a hint of oak, on the palate. A well-balanced wine with a long finish, this Three Barrel Bacchus is a perfect match for Cornish cheeses and fruity desserts.

Available from Grape Britannia (£16.99)

One other wine which was hugely impressive was the Gutter & Stars Bacchus 2020, I Wanna Be Adored, and all the more so since this was Cambridge-based Gutter & Stars debut vintage. Cambridge is known for many things but who would have thought it was also the home of an urban winery! It was a very appealing well-balanced wine but with only 400 bottles produced for this first vintage, it has quickly sold out. However the winery is set to release two more wines this year – a Pinot Noir and a Chardonnay – so keep an eye out for these.

Look out for more reviews of English and Welsh wines in the coming weeks. Cheers!

Spain’s new wave of white wines

Botijo Blanco Garnacha Blanca, Valdejalón 2019 (Spain)

Though Spain is best known for its red wines, it is quietly, yet assuredly, making a name for itself as a key white wine producer, with lots of interesting indigenous whites to discover. Albariño from Galicia in the north-west and Verdejo from Rueda in Castilla y Leon have already begun to make their mark but there are also several less familiar grape varieties that are bringing a wide diversity of styles to Spanish white wine. Garnacha Blanca is one of them.

Garnacha Blanca is not a new grape variety. A cousin of the red Garnacha Tinta (Grenache) variety, it has been around a long time and is believed to have originated in Aragón in north-eastern Spain. It is also widely planted in Catalonia, where it is known as Garnatxa Blanca and where the Denominaciones de Origen (DOs) of Terra Alta and Alella are producing some very appealing wines, as well as in Rioja and Navarre. It is also found across southern France, particularly the Rhône Valley, where it known as Grenache Blanc, and in other regions of the world such as the US and Australia.

This Botijo Blanco Garnacha Blanca from Valdejalón in Aragón was recently awarded a score of 93 points (Highly recommended) in a Decanter panel tasting (May 2021). It is a dry, medium (+) bodied wine with high acidity, medium alcohol, and a medium (+) finish. It has aromas of blossom, apple and peach on the nose, and flavours of lemon, grapefruit and peach, with a hint of spice and minerality on the palate. An excellent match for seafood dishes, particularly oily fish. We had it with grilled mackerel and it went down a treat.

Available from Jascots (£10.85)

There’s a lot more to Spanish red wine than Rioja – Bobal for example.

There’s a lot more to Spanish red wine than Rioja. Not that there is anything wrong with a good bottle of Rioja of course. But if you are looking for something new, the Bobal varietal from south-eastern Spain is experiencing a revival.

Though it may not be very well-known internationally, Bobal is Spain’s second most-planted red varietal after Tempranillo and records show it was already being cultivated in the Valencia region as long ago as the fifteenth century.

Although it flourished in its homeland, on the international front Bobal was dismissed as a rather non-descript, rustic wine that was produced in bulk for a largely domestic market. However in recent years, the varietal has begun to see somewhat of a revival, thanks to a small group of dedicated producers and more effective marketing. Things are beginning to change for the better for Bobal, evidenced by its first panel tasting by Decanter magazine in April 2021.

Bobal is grown in the Levante region of Spain, on the Mediterranean coast south of Catalonia, where it flourishes in the Denominaciones de Origen (DOs) of Ribera del Jucar, Manchuela and particularly Utiel-Requena. The vineyards of this last DO are located on a plateau 600m-900m above sea level and some 70km inland from Valencia, where the altitude, climate and well-drained soils create a perfect growing environment for the grapes.

This Beso de Rechenna Bobal Crianza 2017 wine from Utiel-Requena DO is produced from old vine grapes that give low yields of intensely flavoured fruit. It has been aged for at least 24 months, 6 months of which were in oak barrels.

It’s a very appealing wine with herbaceous and red fruit aromas, with oak and tobacco notes on the nose, and flavours of cherry, plum, blackberry, and vanilla on the palate. A medium bodied wine with medium tannins, medium (+) acidity and a long finish, this is a well-balanced wine with excellent structure and complexity. A fine example of a resurgent indigenous grape variety that goes very well with lamb or a casserole.

Available from Slurp (£9.95)

Topa! Cheers! Try this Basque delight!

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A few years ago, some very good Japanese friends of ours introduced us to the Basque wine Txakoli over dinner and I was hooked. They had just returned from visiting San Sebastián and highly recommended it for a city break. And then when my wife and I visited for ourselves, we realised why – it’s a charming city on the Bay of Biscay, surrounded by lush green hillsides, with attractive beaches, a delightful old town, and some stunning architecture.

But that’s not all. San Sebastián (Donostia as it is known in Basque) is a top culinary destination, famed not only for its dozen or so Michelin-starred restaurants, but also for its pintxos bars. All around the narrow alleys of the old town, you can try these tasty culinary bites held together by a cocktail stick, or pintxo. And all washed down with the local white wine, Txakoli. What’s not to like?

Made from the indigenous grape varieties Hondarribia Zuri and Hondarribia Beltza, Txakoli is a light, refreshing, zesty, slightly effervescent, dry white wine, perfect for drinking as an aperitif, with pintxos, or the fresh fish and seafood dishes for which the Basque Country is famed.

It’s not always easy to find Txakoli in the UK but I recently saw that Slurp were stocking this Txakoli de Getaria, one of the three Txakoli sub-regions and the closest to San Sebastián, and I had to try it. And I’m so glad I did!

With intense aromas of apple, pear, lemon and grapefruit, and a hint of blossom, the Hiruzta Txakoli Hondarribia 2019 is a delightfully refreshing wine. It is light and zippy, with an attractive effervescence and a hint of sea breeze, a wine which has the taste of summer written all over it.

Relatively low in alcohol, it is a well-balanced wine with a long finish and is a perfect match for seafood. We had it with some home-made pintxos, and it made me want to book the next flight to Northern Spain. If only we could … but at least we can get a bottle of Txakoli!

Available from Slurp. £14.95

Sunshine and spice from the Southern Rhône – Esprit des Trois Pierres Costières de Nimes 2019

Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas, Vacqueyras – well-known wines of the Southern Rhône region of France, characterised by vibrant, fruity wines with a touch of spice and earthiness. The terrain is known for its stony soils, covered in ‘galets’, the round pebbles shaped by the actions of the Rhône Valley glaciers and the River Rhône over millennia.

These stones are key to the successful ripening of the grapes – not only do they absorb the heat from the daytime sunshine and release it again during the night, they also protect the vines and the soil from the strong winds known as le mistral.

These conditions are perfect for the Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre grapes that dominate the vineyards here. Grenache is the mainstay, bringing concentrated, spicy red flavours to the blends. Syrah adds extra colour and tannin and Mourvèdre brings intense black fruit flavours, and often gamey, meaty notes.

This Esprit des Trois Pierres Costières de Nîmes 2019 is from the most southerly AOC of the Rhône valley, and one which is somewhat overshadowed by its more renowned regional neighbours. It has the characteristically robust, spicy flavours of red wines from this appellation.

A dry, medium-bodied wine with high alcohol and medium tannins, this is a well-balanced wine with a medium (+) finish. It has aromas of raspberry, blackberry and plum, with hints of spice and pepper on the nose, and blackberry, pepper and liquorice on the palate.

An excellent match for grilled meats, casseroles, and goat’s cheese.

Available from Waitrose. £8.99

Old and wise – a Carignan vieilles vignes wine to tempt your palate

If you enjoyed the Gascony white wine I recently reviewed, why not try this Carignan Vieilles Vignes (old vines) from neighbouring Languedoc? Carignan is an often under-rated grape variety of the Languedoc-Roussillon region but has lots to offer the wine enthusiast with its depth and vibrancy, and its notes of red and black fruits. Grapes from old vines tend to produce smaller volumes of wine per hectare but the grape juice is more concentrated in flavour, producing better balanced wines with greater depth and intensity.

This Roche de Belanne Carignan Vieilles Vignes 2018 from Pays d’Hérault is made from 100% Carignan grapes from 40-year old vines. It is a dry medium-bodied wine with high acidity, medium tannins and medium alcohol. With aromas of ripe strawberry and cherry, and a hint of vanilla, on the nose, and flavours of strawberry, blackberry and a touch of liquorice on the palate, this is a well-balanced wine with a long finish. A very good match for grilled meats, or a hearty casserole, it will also go very well with firm cheeses.

Available from Sandhams (£8.99)

Gascony – a quiet corner of France that punches above its size

As regular readers of my blog will know, I am quite partial to wines from South West France, where you can find a real abundance of interesting and often unusual grape varieties. The huge diversity of grape varieties and wine styles found in this region is what makes it so compelling for the wine enthusiast.

Domaine La Hitaire ‘Les Tours’ 2019, Côtes de Gascogne

Ugni Blanc, Colombard and Gros Manseng are three grape varieties in this white Gascony blend and they complement each other very well. Ugni Blanc, known as Trebbiano in Italy, is a widely grown but relatively bland grape variety on its own but is often used in blends where it can contribute its natural acidity and floral notes. It is also used as the base wine for Cognac and Armagnac. Colombard brings with it flavours of peach and nectarine and Gros Manseng is an aromatic grape variety bringing crisp, slightly spicy flavours to a blend.

This is a dry wine with relatively low alcohol and a crisp, refreshing acidity. It has aromas of lemon, grapefruit and apple, with floral and herbaceous notes on the nose, and flavours of peach, nectarine and lychee, with a hint of spice on the palate. Well-balanced with a long finish, this is a perfect apéritif wine, and will go well with goat’s cheese, seafood, or a slightly spicy dish.

Available from Majestic £8.99 (£7.99 Mix Six)

An interesting blend from Lebanon – the Domaine des Tourelles Blanc 2019

If you tried and enjoyed the Lebanese red wine I recently reviewed, you might like to try this interesting white wine blend from the same winery, the Domaine des Tourelles Blanc 2019. The vineyards are in the Bekaa Valley, at an altitude of over 1,000m.

This is a blend of Viognier (65%), Chardonnay (20%), Obeidi (10%) and Muscat d’Alexandrie (5%). Obeidi (or Obaideh) is a grape variety indigenous to Lebanon and is a grape that is high in sugar and low in acidity. Known for its flavours of honey and lemon, Obeidi is traditionally used in producing Arak, a grape brandy. Viognier is an aromatic grape variety with pronounced floral aromas and stone-fruit flavours; it is particularly associated with wines of the Rhône Valley, and at its finest in Condrieu in the Northern Rhône.

The Domaine des Tourelles Blanc is a dry, medium-bodied wine with high acidity and medium alcohol. It has a distinctive golden hue and pronounced aromas of jasmine and blossom on the nose, with flavours of pineapple, peach, apricot, and a touch of spice on the palate. It’s a crisp, refreshing, well-balanced wine with a medium (+) finish.

We had it with Nasi Goreng and it matched very well. It will also go well with grilled fish or light starters.

Available from Slurp (£10.95)

A Balkan treat – a little gem from North Macedonia

Although the wines of North Macedonia are not particularly well known outside the Balkans, wine production in the region has a history going back some 4,000 years and the country produces some high quality wines from a range of indigenous grape varieties such as Vranec, Stanušina and Kratosija for red wines, and Žilavka and Smederevka for white wines.

The Tikveš region in central North Macedonia is home to the Kratosija grape. Genetically similar to the Primitivo grape associated particularly with southern Italy, and the Zinfandel grape grown in the United States, the Kratosija grapes produce intensely fruity, high alcohol wines with medium tannins.

The Tikveš Kratosija Crveno Macedonia (2019) wine is produced by the Tikveš Winery, one of the biggest and oldest wineries in the Balkans. Founded in 1885, the winery has benefitted from massive investment in the last twenty years and if you are looking for a fine example of wine from North Macedonia, this fits the bill perfectly.

This is a dry, full-bodied wine with medium (+) acidity and medium tannins. It has aromas of raspberry, blackberry, plum and blueberry on the nose and flavours of blackberry, cherry and plum on the palate, with overtones of vanilla and spice. A well-balanced wine with a long finish, it is a perfect match for roast lamb.

Available from Slurp (£8.95)