It Must Be Wine O'clock

Spain’s new wave of white wines: Godello

Vionta Godello Monterrei 2018

Spain offers a rich hunting ground for interesting and refreshing white wines. Albariño is probably the best known but Verdejo, Garnacha Blanca and Godello are others well worth trying. Each of them brings features of their regionality to the table; factors such as climate, terroir, aspect and viticulture all have a role to play.

This Godello wine is a fine example of what the grape is capable of. Grown predominantly in Galicia, it is less well-known than that other Galician delight, Albariño, and has different characteristics. With less acidity than Albariño, typically a Godello is a richer and fuller wine, with more texture.

The Vionta Godello 2018 is from the Monterrei region, just on the border with Portugal. Here the climate is warm and dry, ideal for ripening the grapes, but still under the influence of the Atlantic to ensure sufficient acidity. Vionta takes its name from a small island just off Spain’s Atlantic coast and the island’s silhouette appears on the label.

A dry, medium-bodied wine with medium acidity and a long finish, it has aromas of blossom, apple and pear on the nose, and grapefruit and peach flavours on the palate. It is a ripe, well-balanced, silky wine which is fine by itself or as a perfect match for seafood.

Available from Slurp (£13.95)

Moulin-à-Vent: the King of Beaujolais

Moulin-à-Vent, Domaine De Roche-Guillon 2015

Just south of Burgundy lies Beaujolais, home of the Gamay grape. There are 10 Beaujolais crus, each with their own distinct personality created by a combination of factors including climate, soil, altitude and aspect.

The four key crus are Brouilly, Fleurie, Morgon, and Moulin-à-Vent, with the first two producing lighter, more perfumed styles, and the last two producing more structured wines which generally age well.

This Domaine de Roche-Guillon wine is from the vineyards of Moulin-à-Vent, where the grapes are grown in pink granite soils rich in manganese and iron. This accounts for the dark ruby colour of the wine, and its structure and complexity.

A medium-bodied wine with medium tannin and a long finish, it has aromas of black cherry, raspberry and a hint of forest floor on the nose, and flavours of black cherry, with a touch of spice and smokiness, on the palate. This is a complex wine that has developed well with age and is representative of a very appealing wine from this terroir. It goes well with charcuterie, duck, grilled meats, and soft cheese such as Brie or Camembert.

Available from Sandhams (£14.98)

Why not try an Australian Riesling this weekend?

Tim Adams Clare Valley Riesling 2020

Although we might automatically think of Germany when we think of Riesling, the grape is very adaptable and is grown in many different parts of the world. The common denominator is its preference for cooler, more temperate environments, where the longer growing times enable the grapes to retain their characteristic acidity as they ripen. Clare Valley in Australia is one such environment.

And while we might associate Australia with a hot, dry climate, that is only half the story. The warm climate in South Australia’s Clare Valley is tempered by cool afternoon breezes and cold nights and many vineyards are planted at relatively high altitudes of up to 570 metres. This can result in the production of very elegant examples of Riesling, which are dry in style, with lime and citrus aromas, and high acidity.

This Tim Adams Clare Valley Riesling 2020 is a very good example of a fresh, vibrant, refreshing Riesling. It’s a dry wine with quite high acidity and floral characteristics, with lime, grapefruit and apple on the nose, and peach flavours with a slight minerality on the palate. It has a long finish and can be drunk by itself or with seafood, salad or chicken dish.

Available from Tesco (£10)

Take your knowledge of wine to the next level

Are you looking to develop your knowledge and enjoyment of wine, either as a hobby or for career reasons?

Then look no further.

Whether you are new to wine, a wine enthusiast, or working in hospitality, the Wine and Spririt Education Trust (WSET) has the course for you and Cambridge Wine Academy offers classes for WSET Levels 1-3. Steve Hovington is currently teaching the courses online and they cover the same content as classroom-based courses in normal times.

I completed my WSET Level 3 wine course at Cambridge Wine Academy last year and passed with Distinction, as did several others in the group. Steve is a first-rate teacher and was highly supportive throughout the course.

For further details, check here.

A date for your diary – Thursday July 1st, 7pm-9pm

VIRTUAL WINE TASTING: WHERE THE WIND BLOWS – 8 GREAT WINES FROM 8 WINDY WINE REGIONS

If you’d like to understand more about how and why wind is such an important vineyard factor, and taste some great wines from South Africa, the Rhône Valley and Argentina along the way, then this online wine tasting, organised by Steve Hovington from Cambridge Wine Academy, is for you!

Steve is a very knowledgeable and entertaining presenter and this promises to be an interesting, informative and very enjoyable evening. I have attended several of his virtual wine tasting sessions this year and it is always a lot of fun.

Wine samples and tasting notes will be delivered or posted to your home and a Zoom link to join will be provided.

For details and to register, here is the link.

A celebration of Welsh wine.

Last week was Welsh Wine Week. And what better way to celebrate it than to drink Welsh wine? Hot on the heels of the English wines I recently enjoyed, I followed it up with a Welsh wine-tasting session dedicated to the excellent wines from White Castle Vineyard, located near Abergavenny in Monmouthshire.

Organised and hosted by Matt Hodgson from Grape Britannia, it was a great session, with participants able to take part both in store and online. Not only we were lucky enough to try five wonderful wines, but the inimitable Robb Merchant, the co-owner of White Castle Vineyard, joined the event via the wonders of Zoom, to talk about his wines and his vineyard’s journey to its current position as one of Wales’ finest. Robb is a really engaging speaker and is a passionate ambassador for Welsh wine.

A combination of factors including the protection of the Black Mountains, the three local rivers (Usk, Monnow and Wye), the relatively low levels of rainfall, the sandstone rock shelf, the clay and loamy soil, and the gently sloping, south-facing aspect of the White Castle vineyard all converge to create a unique micro-climate which, together with the hard work and dedication of Robb and his wife Nicola, has enabled them to produce a range of top-quality, award-winning Welsh wines. Indeed, just recently, the vineyard’s 2018 Pinot Noir Précoce Reserve was awarded Silver in the very prestigious International Wine Challenge (IWC) Awards 2021.

Gwin Gwyn 2019

One of the pleasures of drinking Welsh (and indeed English wine) is the opportunity to try unusual grape varieties that are not typically found in wines from the other more common wine-producing countries.

This Gwin Gwyn – Welsh for white wine – is a very good example. An aromatic blend of Phoenix (60%) and Seyval Blanc (40%) grapes, it has pronounced aromas of elderflower on the nose, and flavours of pear, grapefruit and lemon on the palate. It is a dry, low alcohol wine (11%) with fresh, soft acidity and a pleasant crispiness. A perfect match for crab salad, it will also go well with a cheese platter.

Siegerrebe 2018

Siegerrebe is another unusual grape variety. It is believed to be a cross between Gewürztraminer and Madeleine Angevine, and was widely planted in Germany before falling back in recent years. The grape grows well in cooler climates and so it very much at home in the UK, and is also found in Canada.

A dry wine with medium acidity and relatively low alcohol (11.5%), this Siegerrebe 2018 has a distinct peachiness with a hint of grapefruit and Turkish delight on the nose, and peach, lemon zest and lychee on the palate. It’s a fresh, well-balanced wine with a long, slightly spicy finish – a wine to enjoy by itself or with a spicy Asian dish. Robb from White Castle also recommends it with blue cheese.

Harry’s Rondo NV

This is a blend of grapes from the Rondo 2018 and 2019 vintages and works very well. Harry’s Rondo NV is a dry, medium-bodied wine with pronounced aromas of black fruit on the nose, and blackcurrant and plum flavours, with a touch of spice and oak, on the palate. It’s a smooth, well-balanced wine with a lovely long finish. Perfect for drinking by itself, or with a meat dish.

Pinot Noir Reserve 2018

This is a very impressive wine which was recently awarded Gold in the very prestigious Decanter World Wine Awards 2021. Made from Pinot Noir Précoce grapes, it is a light, well-balanced wine. It has aromas of red berries and vanilla, and a hint of oak and smokiness on the nose, and ripe red fruit flavours of raspberry and strawberry on the palate. It’s a perfect match for Welsh lamb or a cheese platter.

Regent 2017

A popular grape variety in Germany, the Regent grape copes well with cooler climates, and this wine is a fine example of what it’s capable of. It’s a dry, well-balanced wine with medium tannins and a long finish. It has aromas of dark cherry and blackcurrant, with a touch of smokiness, on the nose, and ripe fruit flavours of raspberry and plum, with a hint of chocolate and cinnamon, on the palate. This is a perfect match for Welsh lamb. If you like Beaujolais, you should try this wine!

It’s an exciting time for Welsh wine in general right now and White Castle Vineyard is in the vanguard. Watch this space!

All the above wines are available from the White Castle vineyard, and from Grape Britannia.

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)