Laithwaites Mystery Case - Part 2

Hello all!

Continuing with the Laithwaites Mystery Case this week we unfortunately had 3 reds that were corked! The odd bottle; fair enough but 3 in a case? Highly unusual. Anyway, true to their word, one swift email to customer services and I was offered a £25 refund; no quibbles. You can't really argue with that.

Anyway, what we did manage to drink were...

Croftwood Estate, Chardonnay, South Eastern Australia, 2009

Made by Andrew McPherson of the "McPherson Family Estate" brand that is also sold by Laithwaites. In fact, Laithwaites tend to do that; sell multiple different "Branded" wines that actually come from the same producer, McPherson is one, Sam Trimboli another, Opi Sadler another... to name but a few. Are they falsely inflating their range??? Anyway, this Chardonnay is lightly oaked and comes in at 13%.

The Look: Pale gold with very apparent green tinges.
The Smell: A burst of tropical fruit, lemon/lime citrus and a "nutty" oak character to it.
The Taste: Lovely smooth texture, plenty of citrussy fruit. Not massive acidity but enough to give it a firm freshness and balance. Some minerality showed in the form of a grapefruity-bitterness but not overly harsh. 
The Score: Lovely. A drinkable refreshing Chardonnay at a great price 7/10.

VFM: This is normally £5.99 so we were penalised a little by the £6.42 case-average. Even so, you can't fault the value for money at VFM =  At this price VFM is great at 1.09

The Forefather, Gran Reserva Malbec-Shiraz, Mendoza, 2008

Named after the Frenchman; Miguel Pouget who first brought Malbec to Argentina in 1853. Apologies again for the lack of proper photo, some over-zealous recycling took place again, so this was taken from the Laithwaites page here: 14%.

The Look: Very dark, opaque, plummy-purple, violet rim.

The Smell: A heady mix of smoky, leathery raspberry and blackberry. Something floral and something like a mix of deodorant and a hard day?
The Taste: Bright, hot and acidic. But, a nice fruit quality. It overcomes the hotness on the mid-palate but then returns and drowns out the fruit with burning alcohol. Not great. Maybe a slightly bad bottle or on the turn. The nose is clean but the taste...?
The Score: Assuming it is clean then its not very good. Unbalanced by hotness. 5.5/10. One to try again to confirm maybe?

VFM: This is normally £7.99 so the £6.42 case-average saved us a bob or two. Despite the taste, the VFM remains good at 0.86 (but only 0.69 at normal price), however, I would avoid this one, unless I can disprove on the next tasting...

So there we have it. A fairly limited selection this week due to faults. We have 3 whites left to finish off with next week...

As always...

Speak to you soon.

Cheers

WBFTF

Laithwaites - Mystery Case

Hello All.

I've always been a fan of these. Don't ask me why, because I don't really know. Logic tells me that I should avoid paying for wine when I haven't got a clue what it is. However, whether cleverly marketed by means of words like "Surprise", "Mystery" and "Discovery", or whether the bargain-hunter in me is hoping to scoop the ever-elusive £600 case,  I still seem to buy them fairly regularly.

So what the hell is a Mystery Case I hear you ask? Basically, it's a collection of random bottles put into a case for £69.99 (or £59.99 if you're buying any other 12 bottles with it). Often made up of Bin Ends (when they tidy up the leftover bottles in cellars) but you can find some of their regular range plonked in as well. You can get mixed (6 white, 6 red), all whites or all reds. See the Website for more details here:  Each case promises a "Bargain" with savings of £17 guaranteed, although I've always been a bit suspicious of those figures (we'll examine it at the end of the case). Including delivery, and assuming you're not buying 12 other bottles it works out at £6.42 a bottle. Not bad at all. 

You can get some lovely bottles. You can get some not-so-lovely bottles. It really is a gamble, but we've been fairly lucky so far and had some nice ones. Anyway, you're always covered by the 100% guarantee from Laithwaites - if you don't like it or it's off, email them and they'll send you a voucher, usually for more than the wine was worth in the first place. Cool beans.

Anyway, what were the first four like...

A.R.H. Family Vineyard, Shiraz-Cabernet, South Australia, 2009

Made by the Hickinbotham Family and named after Prof. Alan Robb Hickinbotham, apparently one of the founding fathers of Australian wine. Matured in a mix of French and American Oak. A big one at 14.5%.

The Look: Unsurprisingly; a deep, dark, nearly opaque, plummy-purple with a violet rim.
The Smell: A lovely mix of blackberry, blueberry, violets, spice and chocolate.
The Taste: Loads of blackberry fruit.  Chocolate and spice. Smooth mouthfeel from the integrated tannins. Delicious. It doesn't say what the blend ratio is but I'd guess it's the majority being Shiraz and a small amount of Cab, say 85/15 at a guess?
The Score: Very fruity, but at the same time refined, complex and classy. 8/10.  Recommended!

VFM: This is normally £7.99 so the £6.42 case-average works well in our favour. At this price VFM is exceptional at 1.25

Solar de Coteba, Cabernet Sauvignon, La Mancha, 2008 

Made in Castilla-La Mancha in Spain from 40 year old low-yielding vines. Reasonably high altitudes (600m) allow cool nights to counterbalance the blazing sun and produce concentrated flavours and aromas in the grapes. There is a small percentage of Tempranillo in the blend, apparently, but labelled as varietal Cab Sauv.13.5%.

The Look: A dark, inky-black/purple, not fully opaque and with a ruby-red rim.

The Smell: Very nice - Oaky, spicy blackcurrant and blackberry. Some vanilla.

The Taste: Warm and spicy with lots of fruit and creamy Cassis. A "mouthful" feel to it. Bright acidity.  On the verge of being too "hot" - needed a bit more restraint.

The Score: Very nice, but just too big for its structure to handle, too much alcohol apparent. Just misses a recommendation at 7/10. 

VFM: This is normally £6.99 so the £6.42 case-average gives us a small saving. At this price VFM is albeit very good at 1.09

 And on to the whites...

Les Vertus d'Antan, Colombard-Gros Manseng, Cotes de Gascogne, 2008 

Made in Gascony, south of Toulouse. Here Colombard grapes are often made into wine to be distilled into Armagnac. However, this one has been blended with the little-known Gros-Manseng which should add freshness, spice and florality at the fairly low alcohol level of 11.5%.

The Look: A deep gold colour.

The Smell: Citrus, grapefruit and spice on the nose. Very aromatic!

The Taste: Very bright lemon/lime zing to start, followed by a grapefruit-like bitterness. The acidity is very strong, leading to a "spritzy" mouthfeel but there are no bubbles in this! Mouth-puckering, but refreshing.

The Score: Nice, but a little overdone on the acidity. 7/10. 

VFM: This is normally £7.49 so the £6.42 case-average gives us a reasonable saving. At this price VFM is again very good at 1.09

Visionario, Bianco delle Venezie, 2009

Made in the delle Venezie IGT (Indicazione Geografica Tipica) which signifies quality but is less strict than the DOC/G rules. Venezie encompasses many regions in Northern Italy including Veneto and Trentino-Alto Adige. An undisclosed white blend here at 13%.

The Look: A pale, medium yellow.

The Smell: Sweet toffee-apple, floral, hints of grass and tropical fruit.

The Taste: Slightly off-dry with lots of fruit-character, peach, apple, toffee. A bit sweet but balanced by the acidity. Very gluggable but a bitterness on the finish let it down.

The Score: Chill it fiercely and swig it back. Not bad at all 6.5/10. 

VFM: This is normally only £5.99 so we've paid a little more for it this time around. However, still very good value at VFM =  1.08. saving.

So, there's the first four. Not bad at all. Nothing mind-blowing, but a very good Shiraz and some perfectly good wines for the price.

Part 2 next week. Bring it on...

As always, speak to you soon!

Cheers!

WBFTF

Some In-betweeners and Upcoming Celebrations

Hello all!

So we're between cases right now, while we wait for some wines from The Wine Society. I chose some of their own-label type stuff in a mixed case entitled the "Society's Top Sellers" - anyway, I'll elaborate on all that and what it was like shopping with them when we get stuck into the wines.

I think we're going to have a pause from the formulaic "mixed-12" reviews for a short while, and indulge ourselves a little. D and I both share February as our Birthday month so I thought we might have a couple of special bottles. Nothing too extravagant mind, it's not like we're going to be tucking into the Mouton or any of our other investments, or anything like that. No, nothing flash, but possibly something that may not be considered entirely frugal. So yes, if you can bear with us, for the next week or two, there might be a little change of focus, price-wise, but overall, my working class sensibilities will have the ultimate say on how much we spend!

Everything we drink over the next two weeks will be written up. I've bought D a few of the Concha Y Toro Trio Cab Sauv 2008 that she loved (maybe I'll make her write a tasting note for it!). I've been collecting the odd "nice bottle" with every order we've placed so far, so have a reasonable stock built up from Majestic, Oddbins, Laithwaites, Slurp and Virgin.

We started the ball rolling this week with the superb "Ladies Shiraz" as the staff at Oddbins called it. We bought two of these before Christmas and they were supposed to go into the cellar (i.e. wardrobe) for a few years. But....as you can guess, we couldn't resist. The other one is staying there though... Honestly.

Plunkett Fowles, Ladies Who Shoot Their Lunch Shiraz, 2008

A kind-of "Artisan" producer, blending cool wines in the awesomely named "Shire of Strathbogie" in Australia's State of Victoria. This is sold at Oddbins. Big at 14.5%

The Look: Super-dark, inky black-purple. 100% opaque and dense almost to the rim.

The Smell: I could pick out blackberry, plum, white pepper and bitter dark chocolate.

The Taste: Big and bold. So much fruit! Initial tastes were blackberry, smoky plum, violet and dark chocolate. Warmth but not "hot". Not an incredibly long finish but decent length. Fruit intensifies with time leading to intense black berries and a chocolate/coffee/mocha finish. Superb. Great balance.

The Score: Intense. Fruit first. Complexity second. Perfect amount of both. Could have been longer but very good indeed. 8.5/10. Highly Recommended.

VFM: Ok so VFM really isn't the main concern during this period of "treats" but what the hell...Normal price is £16.99 giving a VFM = 0.5 but when purchased with 5 other bottles (of anything) the 20% discount applies meaning £13.59 and a more palatable VFM = 0.63. Well worth it!

So after our Birthdays pass we'll return to more frugal ways and a nice mixed case from The Wine Society... Although we may need a dry week to sober up, in-between! I'll let you know how we get on!

As always...

Speak to you soon!

Cheers

WBFTF

Laithwaites Experts' Choice - final part

Welcome to the final part of the Laithwaites Experts' Choice review. If you're not familiar with the Blog then please see my other posts over to the right and down a bit in the Blog Archive, and read my welcome notice here: 

Ok, so we are down to the final four bottles from this case, all white. Again, these were again served up blind, without me seeing the bottles. First up...

Prospector's, Viognier, Clare Valley, 2009

From winemaker Neil Pike, the grapes for this are grown on the eastern side of the cool-climate Clare Valley of South Australia. 13.5%

The Look: Fairly pale-mid-yellow.

The Smell: Slightly muted, maybe it was served a bit too cold. Maybe apple and citrus hints.

The Taste: Nice acidity, almost giving a bubbly feeling on the tongue. Smooth. Apples, citrus and maybe apricots.

The Score: This is good. Easy drinking and a long refreshing finish. 7/10 Recommended

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a good VFM = 0.78, At its regular price of £8.99 it is more or less identical value.

 

Il Papavero, Pinot Grigio, Sicily, 2009

By winemaker Scipione Giuliani. My experience with this label is a generic sweet red plonk that somehow manages to be Laithwaite's most re-ordered red wine! Let's see if this is better... 13%

The Look: A pale watery lemon yellow.

The Smell: Unmistakeable "fruit salad sweets" smell of Pinot Grigio. Tropical, pineapple.

The Taste: Suprisingly good. Tropical fruit but with that slight bitterness of grapefruit on the mid-palate. Pineapple to finish. Lovely. Good refreshing acidity.

The Score: Good, fruity, easy-drinking, refreshing acidity...well done 7/10 Recommended

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a good VFM = 0.78, but at its regular price of £6.99 it still gets a very good VFM =  1.0. one to get on its own or in a cheaper mixed case.

 

Angove, Gewurztraminer, South Australia, 2009

Normally associated with the Alsace region of france, these folks (descendents of a Cornish doctor who emigrated to Oz in the 1880's and grew grapes as a hobby!) gave it a bash. 12.5 %

The Look: A lovely golden yellow with slightly green tinges.

The Smell: Big whiffs of Lychees, ginger, and lots of flowers and herbs. There's a lot going on in the glass!

The Taste: Not quite as powerful as the smell suggests, but lovely tastes of ginger, grapefruit, herbs, flowers and minerals. Complex falvours, just a bit restrained.

The Score: This was actually my first Gewurz! And I liked it! Will be on the lookout for more. Good stuff here, very enjoyable... 7.5/10 Highly Recommended for the experience!

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets an pretty good VFM = 0.84, BUT, this is avaialble for £7.49 in single bottle quantities so cheaper, and better value to go for one of those, giving excellent VFM =  1.0. So one to try on it's own or in your own mixed case.

 

Domaine Mercadier, Chardonnay, Vin de Pays d'Oc, 2008

A Chardonnay from the warm southern Languedoc-Roussillon  region. 12.5%

The Look: A plae lemonny yellow.

The Smell: Quite floral. Apricots and honey. Nutty-sweet like almonds maybe?

The Taste: Definite honey. Nectarines, peach, slight minerality and some floral hits. Smooth. Almost like a good white Burgundy. Very slightly "too noticable" on the alcohol front, slight burn. spicy finish.

The Score: This is good. A much better alternative to expensive white Burgundy for those, like ourselves, who are budget conscious. 7/10 Recommended

VFM: Again, this is another one cheaper on its own: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a VFM = 0.78, but you can get this on its own for £6.99 it still gets an excellent VFM =  1.0. 

 

So, a strong finish for the laithwaites case. All four scoring 7 or more and recommended. Good going. That brings the average score of the case  to 7.79/10 and therefore the overall VFM to 0.87. Not bad at all. I'd advise you all to look into Laithwaites, they're a great bunch with great customer service. This case wasn't too shabby at all so I think we'll be returning here in the not too distant future to seek out even more quality and value.

 

 

Semi-blind tasting continues...

So as I've said in  previous posts, I'm trying to develop my blind tasting skills. D serves them up at random, with bottles hidden from view and I have to guess at the 

• Grape type
• Country or Region
• Year
• Alcohol level

So, here are my notes, transcribed directly from my note book:

Wine #1:

Mid to pale yellow. Quite muted nose, maybe apple and citrus. Nice acidity, almost bubbly feeling. Apply, citrus, apricot? Smooth like Viognier but can't taste any mellon or peach. 13.5%. Young, 08 or 09. Pinot Grigio?

The guess: Pinot Grigio (wild guess), Er, Italy I guess... 2009, 13.5%

The reveal: Australian Viognier, 2009, 13.5%! Oh well, way-off here! I should have listened to myself with the smoothness comment! Silly boy again!. NOTE TO SELF: Remember the smoothness! And Pinot Grigio does not tend to tast like Viognier!

 

Wine #2:

Palewatery mid yellow. Quite sticky, 13.5% or high residual sugar? Smells like "Fruit salad sweets" and I've smelled this before in wine! Pinot Grigio! Dry, grapefruit, slight bitterness on mid-palate. Pineapple and tropical fruit. Lovely. 2008.

The guess: Italian Pinot Grigio, 2008,  13.5%.

The reveal: Italian Pinot Grigio, 2009, 13%. Oooooh, so close!  NOTE TO SELF: Not too bad!

 

Wine #3:

Lovely golden yellow. Is that a green tinge? High alcohol? 13.5% Lovely smell of lychees, gingery, herbs and floral notes. Same on the taste, but with a slight bitterness. Minerally. Not as tasty as the smell suggests. Still very good!

The guess: I might be cheating a bit here, but I remembered the case had a Gewurz, and although I've not had one before, I know it's associated with the smell of lychees! Gewurztraminer. Er, anywhere? 2008. 13.5%

The reveal: Australian Gewurztraminer, 2009, 12.5%. Ok so I was off on the alcohol, didn't know where it came from or what year, but I got the grape. NOTE TO SELF: You cheated. 

 

Wine #4:

Medium yellow with pale lemon hue. Chablis? Smells a bit like Chablis. Apricot, honey, slightly floral, maybe almonds or something nutty-sweet? Taste is honey, melon, nectarine, delicate, floral, subtle minerals, peach. Smooth like Viognier. Spicy finish. White Burgundy maybe? No, no apples or citrus. Chardonnay blend? Old world, I think, but where?

The guess: Ok, wild guess: French Chardonnay blend, 2007, 13%.

The reveal: French pure Chardonnay but from the Languedoc, 2008, 12.5%! Ah damnit, recognised the chardonnay but the warmer region led to more honey/spice and threw me off track. NOTE TO SELF: Almost there, you knew it wasn't chablis and it was Chardonnay but dismissed the other characteristics as a blended grape.

So, there we have it. Next time around, the final part of the Tesco case and then on to some new wines. Woop woop.

Speak to you soon!

Cheers.

WBFTF

Bank Holiday Wine-Off

Ok so I’m a little late in writing this one but I’ve been suffering from a migraine since Monday. Today’s the first day I can even look at a computer screen!

First up, thanks to our friends for hosting this and orchestrating the whole thing! The original plan was to bring a couple of wines (maximum spend £25 per bottle) for a head to head taste-off. However, when we got there the aroma of delicious food wafted through the air as we were greeted with a glass of Prosecco. To our surprise, a very well structured evening had been planned out with various courses of food for wine pairing and comparing/contrasting. I’d rustled up a couple of gems from my cellar (read wardrobe) for the occasion.

The Prosecco Ca’ Rosa NV (Oddbins £8.99 here: ) was very good, bready, great bubbles and plenty of acidity on the bright finish. 7/10. The first dishes to be brought out were pan-seared tuna with sweet pepper and chive and hot-smoked salmon with crème fraiche and lemon on a crostini. Accompanied by the rest of the Prosecco and a very minerally "Groovey" Salomon Grüner Veltliner from Austria (Oddbins £8.49 here: ). Its restrained fruit and light structure lent itself very well to the fish course. Hints of apple and pear with a good acidity and smoothness. However, I don’t think it would have shone on its own. 6.5/10. Food was superb.

Next came duck carpaccio (although slightly over-done for our benefit; we’re not fans of raw meat) with duck crackling on a leaf of bok choi, and chilli infused cheese with tomato and basil on a sponge-like base that I’ve never seen before! Two of my wines were up; the 5th growth Chateau Lynch Moussas 2006 (Laithwaites, £16.50, not available from here anymore but try elsewhere), from Pauillac, Bordeaux and a grand-old Rioja Gran Reserva from 1998, the Fortaleza de Imas (I think I only paid £10.49 for it – must have been on offer, Laithwaites, Not available any more :( ). The were up against The Tin Mine 2006 (Oddbins, £10.99, here:), from Stellenbosch South Africa. A blend of Shiraz, Cab Sauv, Merlot and unusually, Primitivo. This had lots of cherry and blackberry but the alcohol was still a little overpowering leaving a burning sensation on the tongue. Another few years in bottle should see this emerge! 6/10. The Bordeaux was typical deep red/mid purple in hue, with cherry, blackcurrant and oak smells. Tannic and almost porty in taste. Lovely but not superb 7/10. The Rioja, in all honesty, I was hoping that it hadn’t gone off, after so much bottle age and not having much luck with Rioja. So what a great surprise it was…Lovely brick red colour with brown tinges, showing its age. Raspberries, strawberries, oak and spice smells and tastes. So full of fruit, not muted at all. Fantastic. Clear winner of the round here, and everyone in agreement. 9/10. Food was lovely.

The next round would be a difficult one. My Trapiche Orellana Single Vineyard Malbec, Mendoza 2007 (Laithwaites, £22, here) would be up against two other wines and have to accompany honey & mustard glazed Lamb with baby onions and red wine sauce, and red Thai Lamb curry in a courgette “bowl”. First up was the Cono Sur 20 Barrels Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon, Maipo Valley 2007 (Oddbins, about £18 but not available any more from here), traditionally an excellent pairing with Lamb. It lived up to tradition – very deep purple with a powerful blackcurrant smell. Lots of blackcurrant fruit and still plenty of tannin. This was surprising as I’m familiar with other Cono Sur offerings, often leaving me less than pleased. However, this one really is a cut-above. Very good 7.5/10. Next up was Edgebaston The Pepper Pot (Oddbins, £12.99 here:), Stellenbosch, 2009, a blend of Syrah, Mourvedre and Tannat. A very similar deep purple to the Cab Sauv. Lots of pepper, spice, plums, blackberry and blackcurrant. Stood up and punched through the curry with ease, still displaying lots of fruit. This was really, very good. 8/10. Last up was the Trapiche. I was expecting big things from this, especially being a Malbec fan and its price. A nose of cherry and tobacco, maybe hints of leather. A lighter red than most Malbecs, more reserved, more finesse than the teeth-stainers, but to its detriment. Spicy black cherry and blackberries, plenty of tannin but, ultimately, disappointing for £22. The acidity was still a bit harsh. One to put away for a few years and try again, 6.5/10. So a clear winner for this round was the young South African blend, the cheapest of the three at £12.99 and literally blowing the others out of the water. Superb stuff, I have to get some! Food was great.

Finally, the two heavyweights were up. Pitted against each other, dark chocolate (70% cocoa), chocolate with chilli and a selection of cheeses and crackers. First was the Matetic Vineyards “Corralillo” Organic Syrah Reserve 2006 from San Antonio, Chile (Oddbins, £16.99 here:). A very dark purple, almost opaque with ruby at the rim of the glass. A powerful smell of caramel, pepper, nettles, maybe damsons and dark chocolate. Very little fruit on the nose which was surprising as it had massive fruit on the palate. Very complex, lots of flavours to try and pick out, with refreshing acidity. Very nicely done but atypical if you’re used to big Aussie fruit-bomb type Shiraz. Cool climate Syrah is typified here with great fruit but above all complexity. It stood up to the dark chocolate and was great with the saltier or smoked cheeses. Great stuff 8.5/10. The Enamore 2007 Malbec, Shiraz, Cabernet, Bonarda (Oddbins, £15.99, here:) followed, with a lovely sweet raisiny smell. Made in the style of Amarone where the grapes are partially dried. Sweet raisins, plums and blackberries on the palate. The elements of alcohol, tannin, sweetness and fruit combined perfectly here into a fitting end to the night (well, almost) and went well with the sweeter cheeses. All in all, a bit too sweet but well done 7/10.

So, after everything had been tasted, there were murmurings of our Rioja being the wine of the night, which I was both surprised and pleased with. However, it was decided to go through them all again in the same order but a bit quicker to see if anything had changed or opened up marvellously. Most wines, we all found, had opened up, over the several hours, and were displaying more fruit characteristics and a bit more nose. However, we were all far too pissed at this point to make proper judgements, so I guess wine of the night remains undecided.

At some point, all the wine had disappeared and someone decided it would be good to move on to Jaeger and Palinka (Hungarian moonshine made from fruits and honey) which was over 60% alcohol by volume! Lovely fruity/honey followed by HOLY SHIT MY MOUTH AND CHEST ARE ON FIRE. It made D sick and made me sick the following morning. Palinka: 3/10.

NOTE TO SELF: Never, EVER, drink it again!

When I can face it, I’ll be drinking some wine again and posting the reviews here!

Cheers

WBFTF

Laithwaites Experts' Choice Part 2

Hello again. Welcome to the 2nd part of the Laithwaites Experts' Choice case review. If you're not familiar with the Blog then please read my welcome notice here:  and see my other posts over on the right and down a bit!

Bit of a departure from tradition this week - 4 reds on the trot! The final 4 whites will be covered next time around. Also, only one was served blind as my memory had a slight renaissance and I remembered that there was an Italian Negroamaro in the case along with an Aussie Shiraz and Argie Malbec so I didn't think it was fair.


Anyway, enough of that, let's get on with it....

La Pompadour, Corbieres, France, 2007

A juicy Corbieres from the largest appelation in the Languedoc-Roussillon area of Southern France. A blend of Syrah, Grenache, Carignan, Mourvedre et al. 14.5% alcohol.

The Look: Dark, almost opaque purple, lightening to a burgundy at the rim.

The Smell: The initial smell is like cherry, liquorice and cloves, not dissimilar to mulled wine. More blackberry and spice as time went on.

The Taste: Big. Cherry, blackberry, spice, something sweet like almonds or vanilla. Tannic. Oaky. Alcohol is powerful, maybe slightly overpowering. Like the smell, blackberry came out on top after a while.

The Score: Good, but not quite balanced. Alcohol a little overpowering burning the mouth slightly. 6.5/10 

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a reasonable VFM = 0.73.

 

Masseria Cavallo, Negroamaro, Puglia, Italy, 2008

A beauty from Puglia in South-East Italy. Negroamaro is known for its perfume and "earthiness", whatever that is! 13.5% alcohol. Let's see...

The Look: Quite a dark red with purple tinges. Almost completely seethrough and white at the rim so not a big one this...

The Smell: Smells beautiful. Strawberries, flowers (violets maybe?) and something savoury.

The Taste: Very smooth, smoky strawberries. Very Pinot Noir like. More spicy red berries on the finish. Went great with our Domino's Pizza and tasted great after it. Lots of fruit and tannin.

The Score: Very good. Like a good Pinot but with a difference. 7.5/10 Recommended.

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a pretty good VFM = 0.84, BUT, pick this one up on its own for £6.99 giving a much better value of VFM = 1.07.

 

Three Bridges,  Show-Reserve Shiraz, Riverina, Australia, 2007

Something potentially very special here. A show-reserve Shiraz with only 150 cases produced. From the Riverina area of New South Wales and made by Ex-Boxer Bill Calabria. 14.5 % alcohol. Let's take a look...

The Look: Super dark purple turning to violet at the rim. Opaque.

The Smell: Bluberries and menthol. Mint. I got a distinct "toothpaste" hint. Lovely.

The Taste: Bramble fruit, black plums, maybe mint or menthol. Spicy and tannic, will age well. Oaky. Ripe. Slightly overpowering alcohol not quite balanced yet. Finish is not very long.

The Score: Good, but not quite balanced. Alcohol a little overpowering and the finish is gone in 10 seconds. Needs time to develop complexity and balance out maybe? 7.5/10 Recommended - On the basis that you put this away in your cellars (or in your wardrobe like me, if you don't have one!) for a year or two and revisit it. It will probably be worthy of the 7.5 then, or better. For drinking now? Maybe not. 6.5 to 7/10 at the moment.

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a pretty good VFM = 0.84, but this is £10.99 separately so get it in a mixed case.

 

Fabre Montmayou, Malbec Gran Reserva, Argentina, 2008

Coming out of Mendoza, Argentina, this Gran Reserva has been aged in 100% French Oak barrels for 12 months. Big at 14.5%. I hope this is good...

The Look: A deep, inky, iodine-like purple. Lip, teeth and even glass-staining!

The Smell: Boosh! You get hit with blackberries, smoke, sweetness and hints of leather-jacket-smell. Intoxicating. D says "Blackberry crumble!".

The Taste: Smoky, spicy blackberries, maybe plums and cherries too. Tannic but smooth. Went great with peppered steaks and just got better as the bottle was devoured. More and more blackberry fruit developed.  If I was being very critical I'd say the acidity is still a bit harsh and needs time to mellow. This will be absolutely superb after another couple of years in the bottle.

The Score: This is very good indeed, with the potential to be amazing with time. 8/10 Recommended - now, BUT, should get even better with time!

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gets a good VFM = 0.90, but this is £12.99 separately so get it in a mixed case. Although, even for £12.99 I think this might be worth it.

So there you go. Not a bad finish to the reds of the laithwaites case - 3 recommendations. For value, get the Negroamaro on its own. For a potential great wine, get the Malbec. And if you fancy putting one away for a while to see if it gets better then maybe the Shiraz.

 

Next time, back to the usual 2 reds & 2 whites, from the Tesco case and after that, I'll finish up the Laithwaites case with the 4 remaining whites - all blind - (I haven't got a clue what's left in there! LOL. Should be a laugh, I'm even worse at blind-tasting whites than reds!)

 

Speak to you soon.

 

Cheers

 

WBFTF

 

Laithwaites Experts' Choice Part 1...and (semi) blind tasting

Ok here we go...

Welcome to the first reviews. If you're not familiar with the Blog then please read my welcome notice here:

I asked D to serve these to me randomly from the Laithwaites case, labels hidden, so that I didn't have any preconceptions. Also, I want to develop my blind tasting skills as I'm still a beginner in this respect. Anyway, more on that below the reviews. First up, two reds...

Los Rosales Chapel Vineyard Merlot Reserva 2009

Grown on steep slopes in the Rapel Valley in Chile, in the tiny vineyard of an old church apparently. Cool. 14% alcohol

The Look: Very dark red with a purple tinge, almost opaque.

The Smell: Spicy blackcurrant and blackberries after a while.

The Taste: More redcurrant/red berries than the smell suggests. Quite acidic. Slight tannins present. Young. Develops well after an hour or so, open an hour before or leave your glass sit for 20mins. Then the lovely blackberry aromas and tastes take over. Went great with our Bolognese and tasted even better after it.

The Score: Not bad at all, but not mind-blowing either. 6.5/10

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gives VFM = 0.73, but the bottle price when you buy 6 separately is actually cheaper at £7.46 giving a VFM =  0.87 and better value. One to buy separately.

 

Pago de Cirsus Seleccion Especial, Temperanillo-Cabernet-Merlot 2006

This comes from the Navarra appellation of Spain, oak-aged and produced by Spanish movie-maker Iñaki Nuñez. 14.5% alcohol.

The Look: A deep purple, turning to a crimson red at the rim.

The Smell: Smells "warm", plenty of alcohol in this one. Spicy, plummy, blackcurrant and redcurrant.

The Taste: Very spicy, cabernet-like but with a long finish of quite sour redcurrant. You can taste the oak aging. Again this needed time to develop, After a while, strawberry jam smell was evident and the harsh, sour red finish changed to a lovely gentler raspberry. We had this with home-made sweet and sour chicken (of all things!) and it stood up well. After food the tannins were more present.

The Score: Pretty good. Needs time in glass or bottle though to get rid of the harshness. 7/10

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gives VFM = 0.78, ever so slightly more expensive when you buy 6 separately at £8.99 giving a near identical VFM.

And then two whites...

 

Esk Valley Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough NZ 2009

Made by acclaimed winemaker Gordon Russell in the Hawkes Bay area of New Zealand, but with grapes sourced from Marlborough. 13.5% alcohol.

The Look: A pale watery, whitish yellow.

The Smell: Unmistakeable New World Sauv Blanc! Lime, citrus, cut grass, tropical fruit and peas in a pod. D says "Mango Yoghurt".

The Taste: Very fresh and zingy, good acidity but not mouth-puckering. Again lime, citrus and tropical fruit evident. Beautiful. Long finish.

The Score: This is great. 8.5/10 Highly Recommended. This would challenge a £22 bottle of Cloudy Bay. D loved it. I loved it.

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gives VFM = 0.95. Great Value. You can buy it in quantities of 1-bottle, 6-bottles or 12 at £8.99 giving a near identical VFM.

 

 

Domaine Dampt Vielles Vignes Petit Chablis 2008

From the Petit Chablis AOC appellation. Made by three brothers, Eric, Emmanuel and Herve Dampt. 12.5% alcohol.

The Look: A pale medium-yellow.

The Smell: Not much evident straight from the bottle. Slight smell of smoked cheese. Took on a lovely honey and peach smell after a while.

The Taste: Honey. Brandy. Peachy/apricoty taste. Quite restrained, not a fruit explosion by any means.

The Score: This was reasonably good. When I found out it was Chablis I expected a little more from it. 7/10

VFM: at the case price of £8.92 a bottle it gives VFM = 0.78. However, to purchase this separately in quantities of 6-off or 12-off it costs £11.99 giving a VFM = 0.58. One to get in a mixed case.

So there we go. First reviews done. The next four bottles will be from the Tesco case and I'll alternate it that way. Two whites and two reds each time until the cases are gone. Then I'll move on to a different vendor.

 

My (semi) Blind Tasting...

Ok, so I don't think I've told you yet but, my memory is appalling! Or maybe I have? :) The only thing I can remember about the contents of the Laithwaites case was an Argentinian Malbec and an Australian Shiraz so I asked D to pick the wines at random but leave these two out. I really want to develop my blind tasting skill (NB: I have no training in this apart from drinking wines!). D suggested this would be a good way and I agreed. I said I'd  have a stab at the:

• Grape type
• Country or Region
• Year
• Alcohol level

However, since I did buy the cases myself, then my sub-conscious probably knows what's in there, even if my short-term memory doesn't! Hence, it can only be termed semi-blind tasting. Being a novice, I thought this would be quite a challenge. Here's what I wrote about each wine in my note book:

 

Wine #1:

Dark red, purple tinge, almost opaque. Shiraz maybe? Not Shiraz from the smell. Blackcurrant and spice smell but not Cab Sauv. Blackberry. Taste is more red berries. Acidic. Young 2008. Slight tannin. About 13.5% alcohol from the stickiness. Merlot? No too dark. Stumped - can't place country or grape. If it's Chilean Merlot I'll kick myself...

The guess: None. Baffled by this. 2008 and 13.5% alcohol.

The reveal: Bloody Chilean Merlot!!! 14%. 2009. I got that it was young and alcohol to within 0.5% but not the grape or region. NOTE TO SELF: Merlot can be very dark. Go with your instincts!

Wine #2:

Deep purple, crimson rim. Smells "warm" - must be from a hot place. Spicy, plummy black/redcurrant. Big alcohol. 14%. Very spicy. Long finish. Sour redcurrant or something similar. Cabernet-like but too spicy. Blend? No, can't pick out any other varieties of grape. It's been aged so 2007? Somewhere hot...Italy? Like Cabernet but spicy...Primitivo or Montepulciano?

The guess: Italian Montepulciano, 2007 and 14% alcohol.

The reveal: Bugger. Spanish Temperanillo-Cabernet-Merlot, 2006 and 14.5% alcohol. I got that it was aged and the alcohol but dismissed a Cabernet based blend as too spicy. NOTE TO SELF: If you can taste Cabernet it probably is! Temperanillo can give a redcurrant spicyness!

Wine #3:

Very pale watery yellow. Sauv Blanc? Smells of lime, citrus and cut-grass. YES!!! Sauv Blanc! Peas. Tastes of tropical fruit, citrus and zingy lime which means new world. Very fresh acidity. Definitely not France.Young, 2008 or 2009. Quite sticky but difficult to judge whites. Between 12.5 and 13% alcohol. Not overpowered by cut grass so maybe not NZ. Chile? NZ or Chile?

The guess: Chilean Sauvignon Blanc, 2009, 13% alcohol.

The reveal: Bollocks! It's NZ Sauvignon! I got the grape and the year, and the alcohol to within 0.5% but dismissed NZ and chose Chile. NOTE TO SELF: Recognise the hints in the glass!

 

Wine #4:

Pale medium-yellow. Not much on the smell. Is that smoked cheese? Bloody hell, strange. Not a very distinct taste. Honey, brandy, maybe some peachy/apricotty hints. Not enough peach shcnapps for Viognier. Baffling. More limey acidity after a while. Smoothness says it could be oaked. Phoo, I'm stumped. France? Loire? No, not Sauvignon. Chardonnay blend? No, not enough fruit.

The guess: Complete wild guess: Italian Pinot Grigio. 13%. 2008.

The reveal: Uh-oh. Petit Chablis 2008, 12.5%. NOTE TO SELF: You know what Chablis tastes like, you should have got this!!!

So, overall, not bad for a novice BUT, I really should listen to my instincts and learn to recognise tastes/smells/colours that I've seen before to narrow things down. Also, more aromas and flavours develop with time so leave them for a while before making the guess!

Anyway, I look forward to (semi) blind tasting the next wines...

Speak to you soon,
WBFTF