Que Syrah, Syrah...Failed

Hello All,

This bank holiday, our customary wine-off didn't materialise, so we decided to set up something a bit special at home. We geared ourselves up for an awesome blind taste-off of two wines from one of our favourite regions and grapes; Hawkes Bay Syrah. Bottle covers, Riedel glasses and numbered place mats at the ready, D poured out mine blind and I returned the favour...

Two superb wines from the 2008 vintage, Craggy Range's Gimblett Gravels Syrah and Trinity Hill Gimblett Gravels Syrah. Unfortunately, it turned out to be an awesome fail...

The first wine didn't show well. The nose was every so slightly hot on a big sniff, hinting at oxidation. Despite the underlying redcurrant and berries with a white-pepper, it was slightly vinegary. Intense dark purple at the core it faded to a violet rim but no hint of oxidised brick red or tan. Was it faulty? It became riper and fuller after a while but still, the feeling that it wasn't right nagged.

The second wine was clean. Slightly lighter core with a delicious smell of blackberry crumble, red fruit and pepper. Smooth silky tannin and some oak hints but the flavour really wasn't doing much for us. We both preferred wine 2, coincidentally having poured Trinity Hill into each other's second glass. I incorrectly identified wine 1 as Trinity Hill as I knew that had a cork (vs. the screwtop on the Craggy), purely due to there being a greater probability of spoilage, and couldn't recognise the usual lushness associated with Craggy.

We were dumbfounded. A previous 9-pointer, the Craggy was certainly not showing well. We enjoyed the Trinity Hill but something was still amiss. Neither gave us the intense experience we normally associate with these wines. So what was it? I think I know...

Mood, disposition, call it what you will, but we were both absolutely knackered. We'd had a long weekend, just driven back from North Wales for 3 hours, overdosed on junk food, our mouths tasted like toilet brushes and we both hadn't felt well the previous night. We were nearly falling asleep on our noses watching the DVD with the wines in hand. Our senses were dulled. I've previously read about the Biodynamic debate, fruit days and leaf days and whether it is simply mood or circumstance only, but never really paid it any mind. Our wines normally taste great no matter what day it is and we'd never experienced any mood/tiredness related incidents, apart from the obvious cold/flu affecting your smell, and hence taste. Until now...£36 worse off...

So let this be a warning; Mood/tiredness/feeling under the weather can seriously affect your perception of a wine and ruin, what we envisaged to be, a momentous occasion.

Oh and to top it all off, our errant dog smashed the Riedel glasses. B@$£^&d.

I have to repeat it, purely because we were so looking forward to the wines. This time, I'll make sure we're in peak (drinking) condition!

Taking faulty bottles back...

The Craggy was certainly faulty in the end. By the following morning it had developed an oily, shiny film in the bottle and smelled horrendous. Being from the now defunct Oddbins, I could not take it back for a refund. I have absolutely no qualms about taking back a faulty bottle, but some people look down on that. Why? If you bought a steak and it went mouldy before the use-by date, would you not take it back? Fair enough, if you kept it out in the sun then it's your own fault, but if you kept it in the fridge, you should at least expect it to meet the date, and hopefully surpass it.

This leads on to the question of storage. "Ah but not keeping your wine in a cellar is like keeping your steak in the sun". Fair point. But, not many people I know have a cellar, and certainly can't afford to have one built into their homes. Storing bottles on their side (for cork closures anyway) and in a cool, dark part of the house (under the stairs, or in a cool cupboard) should suffice for a good few months of storage, at the very least. How long have the merchants/supermarkets/distributors been keeping them upright in boxes in their storerooms/warehouses, how hot did they get in the van/on the boat etc. Yes it could be my storage, but the vendors need to pull their bloody fingers out too!

My next investment is going to be a wine cooler cabinet for long-term storage so that I can minimise the number of off bottles that may be down to me. That way, I will have even less qualms about returning faulty bottles. I believe the majority are faulty on purchase, and that way, I can prove it!

Anyway, here's to a more positive tasting next time...

Cheers!

Speak to you soon,

WBFTF

Naked Again - part 2

Hello all,

Welcome to the final part of our return to Naked Wines. As mentioned in my previous post, these were provided as a preview for their upcoming "meet the winemaker" tasting tours.

No fuss this week; straight into it...

Antoine Simoneau, Sauvignon Blanc, Touraine, 2010

Made in the Touraine winery that has been in the Simoneau family for generation upon generation (since 1790!). Touraine in the Loire Valley is a source of Sauvignon Blanc considered slightly more down-to-earth than the over-hyped Sancerre and heady Pouilly-Fumé but can be a source of great value wines, when compared to those two. This is 12%

The Look: A crystal clear, watery-white with very slight lemon tinge.

The Smell: Grassy, minerally and lots of gooseberry. Slightly floral too.

The Taste: Very fresh, bright acidity with a strong burst of ripe gooseberries and a lemon/lime hint. Backed up by a savoury green pepper and mineral edge. Long tangy finish.

The Score: Not a stunner but a well-made, pleasing wine. 7/10.

VFM: At £9.49 this is on the high-side for Touraine, but still giving good VFM at 0.74. Angels would probably find the price more in line with other Touraines with their 33% off (£6.26). Really the price for this should be around £7.99 - there's a glut of other Touraines about, possibly better than this, at that price. 

Mauricio Lorca, Angel's Reserve Torrontes, La Rioja, 2010

Very little information regarding this, either on the website or the bottle other than the "passionate winemaker" and it's from Argentina's La Rioja. This is 13%

The Look: Pale but fairly deep lemony yellow with green hues.

The Smell: Intriguing smells; woody, herby, slight smoke, hedgerow and elderflower.

The Taste: Slightly smoky and sauvory on the first sip, that gives way to dry, herby elderflower, then florality, finishing with a flat, very bitter, vaguely grapefruity tang.

The Score: Lacks any sort of Wow. Interesting flavours let down by a poor, way-too-bitter finish. 6/10.

VFM: At £8.99 this gets a reasonable VFM at 0.67. Again, "Angels" would probably find the price a bit more palatable, but I would suggest better Torrontes alternatives in this price bracket with a little effort.

Domaine O Vineyards, Trah Lah Lah, Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

This one was faulty so  I can't comment. Did show promise with some smoky plum on the nose but was hot, musty and bitter - faulty.

So, there we have a return to Naked Wines. Some good value wines, especially if you're prepared to commit to the Angels scheme (£20 a month for 33% cashback on purchases) but nothing mind-blowing I'm afraid. Who knows, maybe the next case will convince me that it's worthwhile...

As always, speak to you soon

Cheers

WBFTF

Slurp.co.uk - value wines for January pockets!

Slurp (www.slurp.co.uk), according to their website, are the UK's largest online retailer of wines, beers and spirits. Quite surprising, considering who else is out there (Majestic, Waitrose Direct, Tesco, Berry Bros etc.). They are also growing. Growing at such a rate that their Chief Investment Officer, back in May 2010, saw it necessary to inform the Decanter (magazine) staff and readers that they are doing very well indeed. All this in a recession? Well done to them.

It's no secret; online retailers can offer better value (less overheads due to the lack of need for real estate for shops, staffing, etc... etc.), but whether they do offer real value is usually down to the individual retailers, their range and pricing. I try to promote buying online as a great way of getting value for money.

So, what is the Slurp range like? If I'm permitted to use a colloquialism; it's berserk. (NB: That's good!). Literally thousands of wines. The Slurp Express range (where you can order single-bottle quantities) for mixed cases of 6 or 12 bottles has over 1200 wines alone! They also offer a large range of "fine" wines if you're after something special, but as it's January, we'll concentrate on the "value end"...for now.

The one minor gripe I have with the website is the search function - it can be misleading. Don't get me wrong, it's very comprehensive, you can filter by Grape, Country, Region, Vintage, Price, ad infinitum. However, when you do filter by a category, further irrelevant option are not removed. For example, select Argentina as a country and you will see the 1978 vintage displayed, along with all the others. BUT, as you might guess, clicking on 1978 does not yield any wines. Similarly, if you pick Chile for example, the Region options still show things like Barossa, which is clearly not relevant, but to the novice might mislead. Oh and don't type in "wine" from the homepage search to try and separate out the beers and spirits - you get 0 results! LOL.

Anyway, the wines... So, I received a case of six, 3x reds and 3x whites and a mix of old and new World, showcasing some of their value wines, all between £6 and £9 a bottle. Here's how they went down...

First the whites...

Alpha Zeta "S", Soave, 2009

Made in Veneto by the Kiwi export Matt Thompson, 75% Garganega and 25% Trebbiano di Soave 12.5%

The Look: Golden with green hints. Deeply coloured.
The Smell: Delicate at first (straight from the fridge) but warmed up to give orchard fruit, peach, apricot, floral whiffs and spiciness.
The Taste: Again, restrained at first but developed into pear, peach and apricot. Hints of honey, marzipan, lemon/lime and spice. Balanced acidity and a mineral finish. A good food wine, it won't overpower it.
The Score: Pretty decent. Don't serve too cold and have it with food 7/10.
VFM: At only £6.60 a bottle this is very good value VFM = 1.06.

Vidal, Natural Ferment Chardonnay, Hawke's Bay, 2007

From the exquisite Hawkes Bay region of NZ, where wild yeasts were allowed to complete the fermentation, apparently. A big one at 14.5%

The Look: A lovely pale gold.
The Smell: Tropical fruit and grapefruit with a "flinty" minerality. Hints of smoke and spice.
The Taste: Zingy acidity, smooth and a lovely minerality. Tangy, spicy with hints of orange, cream, smoke and citrus. Beautifully complex, lots of flavour and intrigue. Delicious. High alcohol not at all noticeable.
The Score: Great, one of the best Chardonnays we've had recently. Something different from the hordes of apply/citrussy "clones" on the shelves. 8/10. Highly Recommended
VFM: This has very recently gone up from £8.65 to £9.50, which is a shame and impacts the VFM, but still pretty good at VFM = 0.79.

Monte Clavijo, Rioja Blanco, 2009

A Rioja Blanco here made from 90% Viura and 10% Malvasia. 12%

The Look: A pale gold.
The Smell: A bit reticent, even when "warmed up" but hints of citrus, spice and minerals.
The Taste: Mainly apple - green apple. Fresh acidity and a decent long finish. Some lemon/lime and maybe hints of orange or orange blossom? Good with a creamy prawn spaghetti.
The Score: Nice. Not mind-blowing by any stretch, but a reasonable food-wine. Not much flavour for drinking on its own. 6.5/10.
VFM: Again, great value as this is only £6.10. VFM = 1.07.


And the reds...

Concha Y Toro, Trio, Cabernet Sauvignon*, Maipo Valley, 2008

Something special from Chilean giant Concha Y Toro. The asterisk* is because although Cab is the dominant grape, there's also some Cab Franc and Shiraz in the blend - hence the "Trio". Highly Parker-rated this one at 90+ points and also highly praised by Decanter in a recent Chilean Cab tasting. 14%.

The Look: A super-dark, intense black-purple only lightening slightly at the rim.
The Smell: Spicy, smoky, peppery black fruits on the nose. Similar to an an Elqui Syrah. Hints of mint/toothpaste and cherry too. A beauty.
The Taste: A lovely fresh acidity bursts into minty blackcurrant from the Cabernet, followed by spice and a perfumey blackberry/raspberry from the Shiraz and some slight graphite with violets from the Cab Franc. Hints of redcurrant and pepper. Smooth tannin. Excellent and would keep well I imagine.
The Score: Unsurprisingly, Parker and the Decanter lot were spot-on. Very good indeed. This is now D's favourite wine (she reckons it's a 10!). I kept my cool, but still I think it deserves an 8.5/10 and is unequivocally Highly Recommended. Maybe in a year or two this will be a 9, or maybe the ever-elusive 10? For under £10??? Wow...
VFM: At only £8.65 a bottle this is very good value VFM = 0.98 and the quality to price ratio that makes this all worthwhile.

Borgo Selene, Nero Mascalese/Nero d'Avola, 2008

A 50/50 blend of two grapes here from the Island of Sicily. Fairly light at  12.5%

The Look: An intense dark purple, violet rim.
The Smell: Smells like a cross between Malbec and Cab Sauv; blackcurrant and spice with smoky cherry. Smelling blind I would have said Cab.
The Taste: Bright red acidic fruit with lots of blackcurrant too. Smooth velvety tannin, revealing oaky vanilla. Some cherry on the finish. Great with Bolognese.
The Score: Lovely. Not mind-blowing but a solid wine for the price 7/10.
VFM: Once again, great value as this is only £6.65. VFM = 1.05.

D'Arenberg, The Stump Jump, GSM**, 2008


A big (14%) blend of **Grenache/Shiraz/Mourvedre from South Australia.

A real shame here, we were looking forward to this, and it did show promise with spicy black fruit, however, a deep sniff resulted in a burning sensation in the nose - possibly faulty...

...confirmed on the taste - too acidic, "hot" and Porty so I'm not sure if it was oxidised, volatile acidity or both?

Anyway, one in 12 they say, and we've had a reasonably good run lately so were probably due a bad one. That said, D'Arenberg wines are normally superb, even the entry-level ones like this, and at £8.95 I'll most likely give it another shot some time.



So, there we have it. Some great wines from Slurp but most importantly, great value. All had VFM scores in the region of 1.0 which is where you want to be for this price bracket. Well done Slurp and thanks for finding D a new favourite wine - you realise she'll be wanting a case off me now for her birthday don't you? I can't wait!

As always...

Speak to you soon,

Cheers
WBFTF

Oh and if you're interested in Wine Investment you can read our story of it here:

Oddbins - Part 1

Welcome to the first part of the Oddbins case, handpicked mixed-12 according to my rules. We had a sparkler to kick things off and that was followed by 3 reds. Here's how they went down...

Lindauer, Special Reserve Brut Cuvée, NV

A sparkling wine from New Zealand, made from Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.  Non-Vintage (NV). Embarassingly, I forgot to note the alcohol level, but sparklers tend to be around the 12% mark.

The Look: A huge suprise actually - it's PINK!!! I was expecting this to be a sparkling white (which it still is, kind of). An almost Rosé-like salmon pink. Some skin contact with the Pinot grapes has coloured this with a pink blush.

The Smell: Lovely smell of sweet biscuits or more accurately perhaps, "crumble mix".

The Taste: Strawberries and pink-lady apples! Very nice. Good acidity. Good bubbles. Neither of which were too aggressive.

The Score: Great stuff. Reasonably priced to celebrate any occassion and won't break the bank. 7.5/10. Recommended.

VFM: This normally goes for £11.99, making it good value when priced against Rosé champagne and gives a reasonable VFM = 0.63. However, I only paid £8.14 a bottle on-average after discount so the VFM increases to 0.92. Great value for money.

 

Bodegas Renacer, Punto Final Malbec, Mendoza, 2009


The 2008 was a Gold Medal winner at the recent Decanter World Wine Awards but they'd run out of that so I settled for the 2009. Actually 97% Malbec with 3% Cabernet Franc added to the mix. 13.5% alcohol.

The Look: A dense, dark, opaque purple with a violet rim. Also came with the most bonkers cork I've ever seen (see pic below main pic) - Bright fluorescent orange plastic. Certainly distinctive!

The Smell: Initial smell is smoky, leathery, black cherries, blackcurrant and almost Bordeaux-like hints (no doubt coming from the Cab Franc which I didn't realise was blended in until writing this). After a while, more fruit was dispalyed especially blackberry.

The Taste: Spicy, plummy and black cherry-like taste. Warming i.e. warms the chest! Balanced acidity. Not too harsh but fresh. Some tannin present. And a decently long finish. After an hour or so, much more blackberry and sweet black fruit was evident.

The Score: The more we had the better it became. Developed into a stunner 8/10. Recommended

VFM: Normal price of £9.99 yields a VFM of 0.80 but at the case average price VFM = 0.98. Very good value, either way.

 

Villa Wolf, Pinot Noir, Pfalz, 2008

This one was actually off (volatile acidity). I swear that it changed in front of my eyes, fine one minute, faulty the next! But more than likely, my palate didn't immediately pick up on it. A shame, we were looking forward to German Pinot (or Spätburgunder as they sometimes call it, which translates to "Late Burgundian".

No score unfortunatley.

 

Craggy Range, Block 14 Syrah, Gimblett Gravels, 2008

Ever so slightly pissed off that I ordered the 2007 but the 2008 came. 2007 was superb for the Hawke's Bay area of NZ. 2008, in all honesty, I know nothing about. Anyway, this is from the Gimblett Gravels area, the spiritual home for New Zealand Syrah (never called Shiraz here for some reason). 13.4%

The Look: The bottle is majestic! Class oozes from the label and colour scheme. The wine itself a super-dense, completely opaque purple. Only a very slight lightening at the rim to a violet colour.

The Smell: Straight from opening it exudes a peppery, spicy scent mixed with dark fruits such as blackberry, blueberry, plum and something floral like violets or lavender. D says "Soap and sweetcorn" - I agree with the "soap" possbily coming from the lavender/violets but "sweetcorn" I couldn't smell! :)

The Taste: Right this bugger wasn't cheap so I was determined to write as detailed an account as possible. The bottle was left open for an hour before tasting:

The first thing you notice is a striking, vibrant acidity.

This then flourishes into black fruit across your tongue - blackberry, blackcurrant and slight hints of blueberry.

Then it delivers a spicy, peppery after-kick.

Mouth-feel is very smooth. Some tannin evident.

Lovely long finish. 

There are hints of Aussie Shiraz at the fruit end, but more complexity and the peppery-ness (if that's even a word) sets it apart. Absolute class. After an hour or so even more fruit, aroma and spice came out.

Still a bit young.   With time, the remaining tannin will integrate seamlessly and the vibrancy of the acidity should fade slightly giving even more pleasure. The bottle says it's capable of being aged up to 7 years from bottling date (so 2015 effectivley). I'd say in 2 years it'll be at its peak, but hey, I'm no expert!

The Score: Absolute class. Delicious. Damned expensive.  9/10. Highly Recommended if you've got 20 sheets burning a hole in your pocket! If this was £12 a bottle I'd be out robbing Grannies to pay for a case. At £18.99 is it worth it? Phooo, tough decision. I'd like to say yes, and I think I'm going to...Yes it is worth it, but not very often. Once a year treat I think.

VFM: Normal price of £18.99 yields a VFM of 0.47 which is immaterial really, this is a treat, not value for money drinking. The case price averaging out to £8.14 eases the pain a little giving VFM = a whopping 1.11.

So, that's the first part of the Oddbins case done. 3 out of 4 recommended (one highly) and one faulty. Not a bad start at all. We'll be getting stuck into some whites this week, so as ever...


Speak to you soon.

Cheers

WBFTF

Virgin Wines - Final Part

Welcome to the final part of the Virgin Wines case, handpicked mixed-12 according to my rules. The last three bottles (remember one was for cellaring) were a white and two reds...

Miudino, Albarino, Rias Baixas, Spain, 2009

This Albarino comes from Rias Baixas in the North-West corner of Spain, bordering Portugal. Albarino, for me, typically has smells and tastes of Peach Schnapps. Think Archers and lemonade but dry and less sweetness. Let's see...12%

The Look: A pale lemonny yellow. Again!

The Smell: The typical smell for me of peach schnapps and maybe toffee or toffee apples?

The Taste: Tastes much the same - ripe peaches, peach schnapps but with a lovely citrus edge. Fresh acidity. Good, long, crisp finish.

The Score: Very well balanced, well-integrated fruit, alcohol and acidity. 7/10. Recommended, on the basis that if you haven't had Albarino before then you should try it!

VFM: Normal price of £9.49 yields a VFM of 0.74 but at the case average price (including discount) it gives VFM = 0.92. Good value.

 

The Seventh Row, Petit Verdot, Western Cape, 2010

Petit Verdot is most common in Bordeaux blends but more recently it's becomming popular as a single varietal wine, especially from the New World, often Australia, or as we have here; South Africa's Cape region. I must admit, it's my first one...14%

The Look: A dark plum-purple, fading to a violet at the rim.

The Smell: Intense smell of violets with some caramel-like sweetness. Think "Parma Violets" kids' sweets and you're close. Some blackcurrant leaf smells too. Very nice.

The Taste: Intense violet taste, sweetness, nice fresh acidity, some good tannin. "Substantial" is the word I'm looking for. Feels like there's really something in your glass. We had a glass and popped the screw-cap back on 'til the following day - it was even better then, more aroma, more fruit taste - which leads me to beleive that this needs to be opened an hour or two before drinking to get the best out of it! 

 

Word of warning too: This is a real tongue, teeth and lip-stainer! Be careful having this with polite company. Luckily we don't know anyone like that so polished the lot and laughed at our black mouths! I've just realised that this is possibly the longest tasting note I've ever written so I need to shut up and and score it...

The Score: Very good. It does actually make sense as a single-varietal wine. 7.5/10 And again, Recommended, on the basis that if you haven't had Petit Verdot on its own before then you should try it!

VFM: This is good value here. Regular price £7.99 giving it VFM = 0.94 or 1.0 at the case-average price.

 

Fabre Montmayou, Barrel Selection Malbec, Patagonia, 2007

A real gutter. We were really looking forward to this, having really enjoyed (and recommended) this producer's Gran Reserva Malbec, but - It was faulty. Volatile acidity - was very hot and vinegary in the mouth, burning the gums. A damn shame. It was refunded though, so I may get another bottle sometime.

 

So to sum-up the Virgin Wines case: 4 recommendations. 1 highly recommended. One absolute horror. One faulty. The rest were reasonable. Not too bad. I will probably buy from here again, but will keep an eye out for discounts rather than pay in full.


My hand-picked Oddbins choices next time closely followed by reviews. We're getting through some wine lately!

Speak to you soon.

Cheers

WBFTF