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My favourites from the SuperValu Tasting

Posted by on June 28, 2016

SuperValu Tasting June 2016
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My standard intro here; as with the other multiples, SuperValu has no shortage of inexpensive wines, most of which are drinkable, usually with a few grams of residual sugar to smooth things out and mask any deficiencies. Fine for everyday drinking. However, excitement may be in short supply.

Here is my selection from the recent SuperValu tasting, showing many of the wines they source directly. SuperValu have made huge efforts to improve their range over the last year or two. There were some good wines. Two of the least expensive turned out to be amongst my favourites too. Naturally you should buy at the promotional price whenever possible.

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La Petite Perrière Sauvignon Blanc 2015 €11.99 / €9.00
Vin de France
Well-made fresh easy-drinking wine; light aromas, followed by good well-rounded yellow fruits, melon and pears with good acidity. Perfect all-purpose summer white at a keen price.

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Armas de Guerra Godello 2015, Bierzo €11.99 / €9
I am very fond of Godello (a Galician grape), but you will rarely find it at this price. This has decent light clean soft pear fruits and enough acidity to keep it refreshing. You won’t mistake it for one of the top whites of Valdeorras (also made from Godello), but at €9, this is quite amazing value.

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Pouilly-Fumé Guy Saget 2014 €18.99 / €14
Nicely aromatic, with medium-bodied green fruits, good acidity and a decent dry finish. Try with salmon steaks or goats cheese salad.

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Flor de Anon 2015, Campo de Borja €14.99 / €12.00
A delicious big fat ripe fruit bomb, this will go down a storm at barbeques, or drunk alongside any kind of grilled and roast red meats. Ripe strawberries, spice and a soft finish.

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Cantina Tombacco Aglianico Benevantano 2013 €12.99 / €10
If you have never tried Aglianico, this would make a great gentle introduction. Aglianico can be a bit brutal, all tannic power and firm savoury leathery flavours. This however, has smooth rich dark fruits and a lightly tannic structure. Drink with roast red meats, rich stews and pasta dishes.

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Carius Cairanne 2015, Côtes du Rhône Villages €14.99 / €12
Soft rich supple ripe red fruits, with a nice herbal twist. A good all-rounder, but maybe best with roast white meats. Good value too.

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The search for a decent pork chop.

Posted by on June 27, 2016
<strong>The search for a decent pork chop.</strong>

The search for a decent pork chop.
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For various reasons (including flavour), I only ever buy outdoor reared pork. For many years I was able to buy Marks & Spencer thick pork chops, at one stage even with a delicious kidney attached. These disappeared off the shelves recently, so I came up with a new idea – buy a loin roast and cut pork chops to your own specifications. I tried a shoulder roast, which was a bit tough, but the loin is very good. Better still, if you find pork chops tasteless, use a brine.

I have been brining pork roasts and chops for a few years now; it is very easy and really makes the pork taste amazing. You just need to make a basic brine by dissolving salt and sugar in boiling water, add flavourings and leave for a couple of hours. I do it overnight for a full roast, although you don’t get good crackling this way. Dry off before grilling or roasting and enjoy a really juicy flavoursome pork chop. I enclose a brief recipe below, but I change the ingredients nearly every time.

1 litre water
55 grams salt
30 grams sugar
All or any for the following seasonings: garlic (smashed); chopped onions; ginger; toasted cumin and/or fennel seeds, toasted and smashed; juniper berries, bay leaves, sage leaves; thyme, chili flakes.

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A weekend’s drinking and tasting.

Posted by on June 27, 2016
A weekend’s drinking and tasting.

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Napareuli Seperavi 2012, Marani, Georgia
13.5%
Not available in this country, but a very enjoyable interesting wine, with strawberries and red cherries mixed in with tobacco and an earthiness.

Flor de Crasto 2014, Douro
€12.95 from Wines Direct. Decent well-made wine with dark fruits and a good tannic structure. Somehow lacking excitement though. But ok at the price.

Tio Pepe Fino en Rama, Gonzalez Byass
Lovely vivid tangy dry sherry with delicious lightly toasted almonds and sourdough yeast (I’m making a lot of bread at the moment). Sadly all gone now; it lasted ten days, something of a record in this household. €18.99 from Bradleys, Cork, Winesoftheworld.ie and probably a few other specialist retail shops.

Palmento Vino di Anna, Vin Rosso
No vintage (although the XIV in the corner would indicate 2014), no regional indication, but it is made by Vino di Anna, the winery on Mount Etna owned by Anna Martens and Eric Narioo of UK wine importer Caves de Peyrenne.. Light slightly fizzy juicy strawberry fruits, with a nice earthiness. Pleasant interesting wine; just not quite sure I would pay €30 for it. Under Coravin, so I’ll try it again later.

Fattori Sauvignon Vecchie Scuole 2015, Sauvignon delle Venezie IGT, Terrini Vulcanici
Delicious fresh dry Sauvignon – this will certainly make it as a Top Drop white later this week. €19.95 from Grapevine, Dalkey.

Primitvo Lamie dell Vigne 2012, Masseria Guttarolo, Puglia
This too will certainly feature as a wine of the week; delicious complex powerful wine that was an utter joy to drink. €24 from Mitchell & Son, Green Man Wines, Terenure and Sheridan’s Cheesemngers.

Pinot Nero dell’ Oltrepo Pavese Poggio Pelato 2013, Tenuta il Bosco
Good concentration of leafy tangy plum fruits with a dry plumstone finish.
Enjoyable wine, but just didn’t have that sweetness that makes Pinot Noir so delicious. €16.95 from Fresh outlets.

Viognier 2015, Pays d’Oc, Delas
From one of the leading northern Rhône producers, an uncomplicated easy white wine with ripe, almost sweetish peach fruits. Light for a Viognier with 12.5% alcohol. Imported by Febvre, but not sure about retail price.

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Eight Green Bottles – a weekend’s drinking

Posted by on June 20, 2016
Eight Green Bottles – a weekend’s drinking

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Before the health brigade get going, this included Thursday, there are two of us and, as you can see, not everything was finished! From right to left.

Domaine Begude Le Paradis Viognier 2015, IGP Pays d’Oc, Organic

I don’t think the agents (O’Briens) are importing this, but they should certainly think about it. Just what you would expect from a cool-climate Viognier; lovely clean peach fruits, good acidity and a crisp dry finish. It doesn’t have the richness of Viognier from warmer climes, nor the bitter fruit-stone finish, but this is a very well-made refreshing wine.

Le Mas 2014, Coteaux du Languedoc, Domaine Clavel, Organic
€14.70 from Wines Direct

Jean Clavel was one of the great personalities of the Languedoc. His son Pierre now produces the wine. This is a lovely easy-drinking fruity wine, warming, lightly spicy with plums and a tannin-free finish. Great value too.

Domaine des Nugues 2013, Beaujolais Villages
€16.75 from Martin’s, Fairview & 64wine,Glasthule.

A delicious Beaujolais, humming with elegant crunchy red fruits. A wine of the week in the Irish Times a few weeks back.

Vouvray Sec le Haut-Lieu 1990, Domaine Huet

Dug out from the cellar and should have been dug out years ago. Old, madeirised and past it, unless you are into very orange wine.

Stemmler Carneros Pinot Noir 2012, USA

A present from my sister, who lives in California, last year. Nice wine – meaty, even v slightly bretty?, with clean ripe juicy plum fruits. Quite substantial and concentrated. very enjoyable with my roast chicken.

Tio Pepe Fino En Rama, Jerez

I love fino and I love the en rama style, which tends to have a bit more character.This is lovely; fresh, tangy, bone dry with almonds and citrus peel.

Verus Furmint 2014, Ormoz, Slovenia

A mere 12% but a delicious fresh fruity light white wine – will appear in the Irish Times a few weeks hence.

Dveri Pax Sipon/Furmint Ilovci 2011
€20.99 from Wines on the Green

Don’t be put off by the vintage; this is lovely wine. Will also appear in the Irish Times shortly.

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Slovenia

Posted by on June 14, 2016

I was enchanted by my first visit to Slovenia a decade or more ago and have trying unsuccessfully to return ever since. This is a beautiful country making some seriously good wines; sadly we do not see nearly enough of them in Ireland.
I arrived last night in the Jerusalem-Ormuz region, in the Eastern corner of Slovenia, right on the border with Croatia, and a short drive from Hungary and Austria.

This morning the sun was shining, so I got up early and had a relaxing walk amongst the vines.

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My Favourites from the Marks & Spencer Press Tasting

Posted by on June 8, 2016

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Marks & Spencer hold press tastings twice a year, usually with about 80 wines on show. There is always an eclectic range. This year it included wines from Uruguay, Brazil and Bolivia along with all of the usual wine-producing countries. My take on M&S is you pay a little more and get a little more in return. Certainly the range is better than their supermarket rivals. There were some sub-€10 wines, and these were fine, but as argued many times before, pay a little more, and you will be rewarded with a much better glass of wine. Below a short selection that will provide plenty of options for summer drinking.

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Graham Beck The Rhona Brut Rosé, South Africa €22.50
A very stylish fresh crisp dry rosé with clean raspberry and redcurrant fruits. Nice wine.

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Langhe Arneis 2014, Cantina Ascheri, Piemonte €19.49
A classic of the style, with quince and yellow fruits, plenty firm mineral acidity, and a dry finish. Drink with charcuterie or rich seafood dishes. I see O’Briens advertise the same wine at €17.45 though.

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Thymiopoulos Malagouzia 2015, Greece €13.79
I have written about this wine before, but I like the plump rounded easy ripe peach fruits and subtle acidity. Try it with herby or lightly spicy fish and chicken dishes.

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Bourgogne Blanc Les Femelottes 2014 Domaine Chavy Chouet €22.50
Classic white Burgundy from a producer in Puligny-Montrachet, with crisp citrus acidity, subtle grilled nuts, and medium intensity yellow apple fruits. With white meats. Bubble Brothers offer the same wine for €28.50.

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Mayne de Beauregard Bergerac Blanc 2015 €11.79
This is the sort of inexpensive French wine that I love – the red is pretty good too. A blend of waxy Semillon (20%) and racy Sauvignon gives a wine that is so much more interesting than a pure Sauvignon. Fresh, crisp, dry with waxy green apples.

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Colinas del Itata Old Vine Field Blend Muscat Corinto €14.99
Made by de Martino from a mix of Muscat and Corinto grown in a 110 year-old vineyard. It has classic grapey Muscat aromas and fruit, good intensity and bone dry finish. A fascinating piece of history for €15.

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Amalaya Blanco de Corte 2015, Salta €13.99
Amalaya are the people who own Colomé, the world’s highest vineyard in the same region. This blend of Torrontés and Riesling has always been a favourite of mine. Fresh crisp and beautifully fruity, with a bone dry finish. A great all-purpose wine, and great value too.

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Mayne de Beauregard Rouge 2015 €11.79
The red version of this wine is possibly not quite as good as the white, but it still offers great value. Cool chunky plum fruits, with some dry tannins on the finish. Right up my street, and a perfect everyday wine to go with all sorts of red and white meats.

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Cornelia Swartland Red 2014 €14.99
Both red and white, made by Adi Badenhorst, one of the new stars of South African wine, offer great value. The red has lifted fragrant aromas, medium-bodied spicy dark fruits, and a rounded finish. Nice wine.

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Palataia Pinot Noir 2014, Pfalz €14.79
German Pinot tends to be very expensive, the Palataia being an exception. This is a light fragrant elegant Pinot with a touch of caramel, red cherry fruits and good acidity. Drink cool over the summer months with salmon or tuna.

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Craft 3 Malbec 2015, Uco Valley, Argentina €14.99
The Uco Valley produces a more elegant juicy style of Malbec and this is a good example of the genre; deep colour, fragrant nose and lively ripe blackcurrant and loganberry fruits.

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Dominio del Plata Terroir Series Malbec Cabernet Franc 2015 €15.99
This is made by Susana Balbo, one of the leading winemakers of Argentina. I loved the mix of ripe blackcurrant and savoury fruits with nice slightly grainy tannins. Perfect with your steak, or any other grilled red meat.

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A weekend’s Drinking of Wine, Beer, Gin and Tonic Water

Posted by on June 7, 2016

Two beers at the weekend, both consumed after a few hours in the garden. I also tried out the Herbal Crest tonic water, made with kefir water, with my Bertha’s Revenge gin. It was excellent.
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Eight degrees Barefoot Bohemian Pilsner
Lightly spicy with a subtle bitter twist. Perfect summer drinking.These guys really make great beer in every style.

Wicklow Wolf A Beer Called Rwanda
I had a bottle of this coffee flavoured beer lying around; I had forgotten how good it is. Lovely medium-bodied ale with a very pleasant fruitiness.Wicklow Wolf are another of our best craft brewers.

Goisot 2008 Bourgogne Aligoté
I bought a case of this and have been slowly consuming it over the last five years. It is still very good, but starting to fade a little. Lovely crisp slightly nutty fruits. Light and very enjoyable.

Delheim Chardonnay sur Lie 2013, Stellenbosch
A sample from O’Briens (€21.95) that went perfectly with my salmon cutlets. Rich and creamy with toasted nuts and some spice. Lovely wine.

Domaine d’Eole 2015, Coteaux d’Aix en Provence
€16.95 from Whelehans. A lovely rosé full of exuberant young strawberry fruits. Also matched very nicely to my salmon cutlets.

Fleurie2014 Domaine de la Madone
A wine of the week in Saturday’s Irish Times. Light vibrant and deliciously fruity; it improved as the evening went on, suggesting it will be even better with a little time. €17 from Mitchell & Son.

Maison Plantevin Côtes du Rhône 2014
An organic red from Wines Direct (€13.95) and great value for money. Rich and warming with lovely ripe red fruits. Went really well with my barbecued chicken.

Fernando de Castilla Antique Amontillado
The leftovers from a Spanish wine talk I gave down in Ballymaloe last week, this is a brilliant sherry, all grilled almonds and other nuts with a crisp bone-dry long finish. €39.95 per 500ml bottle from Searsons.

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LIDL ITALIAN WINE PROMOTION

Posted by on June 4, 2016

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Following on from Aldi last week, Lidl held a smaller tasting to highlight their forthcoming Italian wine sale. As per my comments on the Aldi wines, there were plenty of incredibly cheap, drinkable but unexciting wines, and a few worth trying out as well. The Italian Wine Sale, part of the ‘Italiamo Food Theme’ starts on 13th June and continues while stocks last. There are nineteen wines in total. In July, Lidl will also be introducing a range of craft beers from Ireland, the UK, and Belgium; I will post notes next week on these.

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Soave Classico 2015 Corte Allodola
€9.99

Clean fresh crisp apple fruits with a rounded finish. A very nice well-priced summer wine.

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Gavi di Gavi 2014
€9.99

Light fresh pear and stone fruits with a crisp dry finish. As with the Soave above, an inexpensive refreshing summer white.

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Morellino di Scansano 2014
€9.99

Ripe jammy, easy dark fruits. Juicy and very gluggable. Perfect with all sorts of barbecued red and white meats.

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Chianti Classico Riserva 2011
€9.99

I have written about this wine before. I would hesitate to describe it as a classic Sangiovese, and I don’t know how Lidl find a Chianti Classico at such a cheap price, but the ripe rounded sweet cherry fruits are very seductive and this is an inexpensive crowd-pleasing wine.

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Barolo DOCG 2012
€14.99

The most expensive wine at the tasting. This has some of the classic tannic grip and acidity of the Nebbiolo grape, along with some light savoury fruits. A little more fruit and it would be a good wine. As it is, this is an astonishingly cheap price for a Barolo, and worth trying out with grilled red meats if you are a Nebbiolo fan. But rounded and fruity it ain’t.

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Aldi Press tasting

Posted by on May 28, 2016

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Aldi held their summer wine tasting recently in the Cliff House – a lovely venue for a tasting. As usual at the Aldi event, some decent wines and jaw-dropping prices. As argued here before, these days wine producers can make large quantities of inoffensive, largely off-dry white and red wines at incredibly cheap prices. But don’t expect too much in the way of excitement. There were some nice wines here, but they were usually up at the €13 a bottle level – and at that price, the other supermarkets and some independents can compete quite successfully.

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Philippe Michel Crémant de Jura
12%
€10.79

This has featured many times before; it is still one of the best-value bottles of fizz in Ireland. Crisp green apple fruits, very gluggable and streets ahead of most Prosecco in my book.

Exquisite Collection Blanquette de Limoux
12%
€13.99

Slightly unusual nose (possibly the Mauzac) with some elderflowers; a very pleasant light fruity bottle of fizz. Made by Jean Claude Mas, as were a number of French wines at the tasting.

Exquisite Collection Rías Baixas Albariño 2015
12%
€8.99

Good ripe, off-dry pear fruits, with plenty of zesty acidity and some length too. Well-made wine.

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Vouvray 2015
11.5%
€8.99

A very nice medium-dry wine with lots of acidity, genuine Chenin Blanc fruits – pears and quince, with a touch of honey.

Exquisite Collection Riesling 2015, Clare valley, Australia
13%
€8.99

Classic Clare Valley Riesling with crisp green apples and plenty of citrus acidity. Well-made wine.
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Exquisite Collection Ch. Latour Laguens, Bordeaux
13%
€9.99

I forgot to write the vintage down for this wine; it is a good clean Bordeaux with nice warm fruit and a rounded finish. Good value for €9.99

Ch. de Caussagues, Corbières
13%
€6.99

Amazing price. Light sweet jammy fruit. An option for those on a very tight budget.


Toro Loco Bobal Merlot 2014, Spain
13%
€6.79

The cheapest wine at the tasting I think, but not the worst. Light easy juicy fruits with a sweetish finish.

Lot 12 Anjou Chenin Blanc 2012
13%
€12.99

I have written about this wine before, from Ch. de Fesles, one of the posher Chateaux of the Loire. Very crisp and dry, in fact razor sharp, with lightly honeyed green fruits and a bone dry finish. Good wine.
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Lot 14 Minervois La Livinière 2014
13.5%
€12.99

Fragrant, elegant wine with warm plum fruits and some spice. Well-made fairly-priced wine.

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Lot 15 Grès de Montpellier 2014
14%
€12.99

Good rich savoury fruits, with light tannins. Nice wine with plenty of stuffing; with red meats.

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A Week in Pictures

Posted by on May 5, 2016

A busy week, and I haven’t got around to writing much about it. But a few pics below:

Did a tasting of Manchego and wine at La Touche Wines in Greystones, all part of Spanish Wine Week, after which Damian opened a few very nice (non-Spanish) wines…

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West Waterford Food Fest in Dungarvan, where we talked and drank beer, gin and wine, the first two from local producers Dungarvan, Metalman and Blackwater Gin, and then ate Eunice Power’s delicious food

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On Monday a fascinating blending masterclass from Bollinger, where we tasted the first blends of Vin Clair from various different grapes, regions, vintage and style.

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Went to the Outsiders tasting – a group of foreigners who have set up shop in the Languedoc. Some very interesting wines and nice people too. Most are seeking an Irish importer.

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A lovely juicy Merlot, available through jnwine.com – €14.75/£8.99 a bottle

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Jan & Caryl Panman, Ch. Rives-Blanques, Limoux – lovely fizz here

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Seriously good wines from Nadia Bourgne at Ch. La Madura

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Vianney Fabre – Ch des Angles – very elegant wines

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Rutger & Angélique Grijseels, Cotes du Rhone – lovely warming reds and very well made white wine.

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