vegetable dish Archives - It Must Be Wine O'clock

Wine of the Month – another outstanding wine from Gutter & Stars! A real treat for the palate …

Gutter & Stars ‘Fight the Power’ Ortega 2022

This is another outstanding wine from Cambridge’s urban winery, Gutter & Stars. Made from 100% Ortega grapes grown at Yew Tree Vineyard in Oxfordshire, the wine was fermented in oak barrels before further ageing on the lees.

The result is a perfectly balanced, inviting wine with a velvety mouthfeel and a lengthy finish. It is, quite simply, a real pleasure to drink!

With honeysuckle, peach, and pear drops on the nose, and peach and citrus fruit flavours on the palate, this is a wonderful expression of the Ortega grape. Enjoy it as an apéritif, or with a seafood, chicken or vegetable dish.

Available from Gutter & Stars and Grape Britannia (£25-£30)

A very appealing Pouilly-Fumé to tempt your palate …

Jean Vincent Pouilly-Fumé 2021 (Loire Valley)

Produced from Sauvignon Blanc grapes grown on the flinty soil of the Central Vineyards of the Loire Valley, this is a very appealing Pouilly-Fumé.

With aromas of honeysuckle, apple and pear on the nose, and flavours of gooseberry and citrus fruits on the palate, this is a smooth, well-balanced wine with a lengthy finish and the smoky, flinty characteristics of a Pouilly-Fumé.

Perfect as an aperitif, this wine will also go well with seafood, a vegetable dish, or goat cheese.

Available from Majestic (£21.99, Mix Six £18.99)

A great value Viognier from Languedoc

Abbotts & Delaunay Viognier Les Fleurs Sauvages 2020 (France)

Stretching along the Mediterranean coast from Italy to Spain, the vineyards of southern France offer a huge diversity of wine styles, both red and white. Many of the wines of the Languedoc-Roussillon area of this region of France have the Protected Geographical Indication (PGI) designation Pays d’Oc, as in the case of this Viognier 2020.

Though Viognier is best-known as a grape variety in the Northern Rhône, where the Condrieu wines are the celebrated appellation, there are significant plantations in Languedoc and this 2020 vintage from Abbotts & Delaunay won Silver in the International Wine Challenge (IWC) Awards in 2022. And deservedly so.

With pronounced aromas of peach, apricot, nectarine and blossom on the nose, and ripe stone fruit flavours and a hint of honey and almond on the palate, this is a fresh, lively wine with balanced acidity. An elegant wine with a creamy mouthfeel and a lengthy finish, this is perfect as an aperitif, and will go well with fish, or a vegetable dish.

Available from Majestic (£9.99, Mix Six £7.99)