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Primitivo Lamie dell Vigne 2012, Masseria Guttarolo, Puglia

Posted by on June 30, 2016
<strong>Primitivo Lamie dell Vigne 2012, Masseria Guttarolo, Puglia</strong>

DSCF6603Primitivo Lamie dell Vigne 2012, Masseria Guttarolo, Puglia

€24 from Sheridan’s Cheesemongers, Green Man Wines, Terenure, and Mitchell & Son, chq, Sandycove & Avoca, Kilmacanogue.

A superb wine, powerful and concentrated with morello cherries and plums, a lovely freshness combined with a slight herby funkiness and a long finish with a nice tannic bite.

Try it with substantial dishes; I drank mine with spiced, grilled lamb kebabs.

I have to admit I deliberately ignored this wine for a week or two. I had tasted far too many pumped-up, over alcoholic and over oaked wines from Puglia in my time. When I finally coravined it to try, I quickly uncorked the bottle and drank it. This is an absolutely gorgeous wine, powerful certainly, but complex and balanced with brooding perfectly ripe, but never over-ripe dark fruits, and a solid welcoming earthiness. Apparently Cristiano Guttarolo is a natural winemaker, growing organic grapes, and using little or no sulphur. I also tried his amphora wine called Joha, which I really enjoyed, but for me, this was the real star.

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l’Acino Toccomagliocco 2009, IGT Calabria

Posted by on June 23, 2016
<strong>l’Acino Toccomagliocco 2009, IGT Calabria</strong>

DSCF6597l’Acino Toccomagliocco 2009, IGT Calabria
13.5%
€26 from Sheridan’s Cheesemongers; Mitchell & Sons; Green Man Wines, Terenure; Blackrock Cellar.

Light and refreshing with earthy cherry fruits and some dry tannins on the finish. Intriguing stuff. I tried it with grilled pork chops that I hade brined with fennel seeds and garlic; it worked very well.

This wine is made from a completely unknown grape variety grown in one of the more obscure regions of Italy. The grape is Magliocco (no, me neither) and the region Calabria, the toe of Italy, sticking out towards Sicily. Most wine here does not make it to DOC status and is simply blended with lighter wines produced in the north of Italy. However, every now and again, you come across a really interesting wine, usually made from a local grape variety. L’Acino was set up by three friends, one a lawyer, one a film director, the third an historian. They bought some old vineyards, planted a few more, all with ancient local grape varieties. The results are very promising.

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Tenuta delle Terre Nere 2015 Etna Bianco, Sicily

Posted by on June 23, 2016
<strong>Tenuta delle Terre Nere 2015 Etna Bianco, Sicily</strong>

DSCF6724Tenuta delle Terre Nere 2015 Etna Bianco, Sicily
€25 from On the Grapevine, Dalkey; 64 Wine, Glasthule; Corkscrew, Chatham St.; Green Man Wines, Terenure; Baggot Street Wines.

Soft ripe pear aromas; beautifully balanced wine with clean minerals and pear and a subtle pear skin texture, with a hint of toasted hazelnuts, finishing very dry and long – an excellent evolving wine with fresh elegant precise flavours.

Lightly flavoured seafood dishes (prawns with pasta?) would allow this to show off nicely.

The wines produced on the slopes of Mount Etna have been the talk of the wine world for the last decade. A few determined wine geeks, followed by an ever-increasing horde of producers, have established, or re-established ancient vineyards, largely using indigenous grape varieties. The results have been spectacular; I intend writing an article for the Irish Times over the next few weeks, but in the meantime, I feature one delicious white wine, made from a blend of Carrica, Catarratto, Grecanico and Minella.

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Umberta, Cantina Viticoltori del Monferrato

Posted by on June 16, 2016
<strong>Umberta, Cantina Viticoltori del Monferrato</strong>

DSCF6598Umberta, Cantina Viticoltori del Monferrato
12.5%
€20 from Sheridan’s Cheesemongers.

Delicious refreshing sour damson fruits, with a lovely lively acidity and a strong mineral streak. Perfect served coolish with fatty pork dishes, or a medium-strength firm cheese.

The back label simply says Vino Rosso. There is no vintage either. This small cantina, founded in 1998 by a small group of like-minded growers and winemakers led by Fabrizio Iuli, is dedicated to making high-quality Barbera in the Monferrato commune in Piemonte. They decided to leave the DOC, arguing they the authorities simply support large producers of average quality wine. These wines are excellent.

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Langhe Arneis 2014, Cantina Ascheri, Piemonte

Posted by on June 16, 2016
<strong>Langhe Arneis 2014, Cantina Ascheri, Piemonte</strong>

Image 10Langhe Arneis 2014, Cantina Ascheri, Piemonte
€19.49from Marks & Spencer

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.

Arneis is a local Piemontese grape variety, and the name of the wine. The sandy soils of Roero are said to produce the best wines. This wine is from the wider Langhe area. I am very fond of Arneis; it has a cool, mineral quality and makes a pleasant change from many of the better-known grape varieties.

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Fossil 2013, Vale da Capucha, Vinho Regional Lisboa, Portugal

Posted by on June 9, 2016
<strong>Fossil 2013, Vale da Capucha, Vinho Regional Lisboa, Portugal</strong>

IMG_4469Fossil 2013, Vale da Capucha, Vinho Regional Lisboa, Portugal
€16.95 from Green Man Wines, Terenure; Jus de Vin, Portmarnock; Morton’s Ranelagh; Drink Store, D7; The Corkscrew, Chatham Street.

Delicious cool minty herbal aromas, and lovely rich peach fruits, opening out beautifully on the long dry mineral finish. There is a sightly salty touch to it. Lovely wine.

Drink with all manner of fish. I can see myself drinking this alongside a bowl of mussels, clams and other shellfish with a handful of herbs thrown in at the last minute.

I have written about Pedro Marques of Vale da Capucha before; he is one of the rising young stars of Portuguese winemaking. His wines, both red and white are captivating, and certainly worth seeking out. For the moment they are very reasonably priced.

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Morgon ‘Les Charmes’ 2014, Bret Brothers

Posted by on June 9, 2016
<strong>Morgon ‘Les Charmes’ 2014, Bret Brothers</strong>

DSCF6709Morgon ‘Les Charmes’ 2014, Bret Brothers
€35 from Wines Direct, Mullingar & Arnott’s, Dublin.

Superb wine; fragrant, forward aromas of strawberries with an earthiness; light on the palate with intense

I would drink this with a plate of really good charcuterie. Salami and Beaujolais make a great match. But a pâté en croute sounds perfect.

I had a memorable visit to the Bret Brothers a few years back. They make a range of excellent age worthy white wines from their vineyards in the Mâconnais. This is new to me however; a red wine from the Beaujolais region. As with many of their wines, it is made from biodynamically grown grapes. Morgon is one of the top ‘crus’ of the Beaujolais, producing wines that can taste very like Pinot Noir when aged; and it is worth ageing the wines of Morgon and Moulin-a-Vent. This wine is expensive, but well worth it.

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Torbreck Woodcutter’s Semillon 2013, Barossa Valley

Posted by on June 3, 2016
<strong>Torbreck Woodcutter’s Semillon 2013, Barossa Valley</strong>

WoodcuttersSemillonTorbreck Woodcutter’s Semillon 2013, Barossa Valley
13.5%
€24.95 from O’Briens

This is an unusual but very enjoyable wine. In the past, Dave Powell’s white wines were very full-bodied and oaky (I quite liked them), but he seems to have toned down the oak a bit and possibly picked earlier to get a fresher more balanced style.

This has delicious floral and toasted almond aromas, medium-bodied waxy lemons and honey on the palate and a bone dry finish. I would happily lay down a few bottles, as I suspect it will age for another five years. Right now, I would drink it with grilled and barbecued fish or chicken dishes.

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Cheverny ‘Rouillon’ 2015 Clos de Tue-Boeuf

Posted by on June 3, 2016
<strong>Cheverny ‘Rouillon’ 2015 Clos de Tue-Boeuf</strong>

ImageCheverny ‘Rouillon’ 2015 Clos de Tue-Boeuf
12%
€22.95 from Blackrock Cellars, 64wine, Glasthule & Le Caveau, Kilkenny.

Not many wine geeks will have heard of Cheverny. It is one of those very obscure appellations of the Loire Valley. The white wines are a blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Arbois, Chardonnay or Pinot Blanc. The red is also a blend, of Gamay and Pinot Noir or Cabernet Franc.

Thierry Puzelat is one of the leading exponents of natural winemaking in France. His wines are made with no added yeasts and little or no sulphur. When they work, I find them spectacularly good, although I have tasted a few very barnyardy examples in the past. This was delicious, a refreshing fruit-filled wine with redcurrants and raspberries and a fine elegant acidity and an earthy touch. Serve cool with all sorts of pork and chicken dishes.

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Domaine Saumaize St. Véran ‘en Crèches’ 2014

Posted by on May 26, 2016
<strong>Domaine Saumaize St. Véran ‘en Crèches’ 2014</strong>

Saumaize-Saint-Veran-en-Creches-bottleDomaine Saumaize St. Véran ‘en Crèches’ 2014
13%
€23 from Grapevine, Dalkey; Cabot & Co, Westport

A very satisfying wine with delicious plump fresh fruits that unfurl slowly on the palate, with a crisp mineral edge. Fermented and aged in cement and stainless steel tanks so no oak flavours; just pure ripe fruits. Drink with seafood or chicken dishes. I suspect this would go very nicely with cod or hake with a buttery sauce.

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