Wine tastings

There are plenty of opportunities to enjoy wine tastings these days and they are no longer the preserve of the professional wine connoisseur. This is great news for the average wine drinker as tastings are a fabulous way to get to know your likes and dislikes, learn a bit about grape varieties, regions and styles, and let's not forget having a bit of fun.

Everyone has a different level of knowledge of wine but if a wine tasting is handled well it's an opportunity for everyone to enjoy themselves, ask questions and taste several wines in parallel. This last point is perhaps the most valuable in making progress with your wine knowledge. The problem with tasting wines infrequently is that it's hard to build up a palate memory of what certain wines taste like and what your preferences are. Most of us don't regularly open half a dozen wines at home and sip them side by side as this would be expensive. And without some guidance tasting wine on your own can be a little confusing.

Tutored wine tastings give you the chance to compare several wines simultaneously so you can really appreciate the differences between grape varieties and start to remember their characteristics. All very useful for when you're next in a restaurant or wine shop.

Now the dark nights are drawing in a relaxed wine tasting is an interesting way to socialise with friends. My diary is filling up with tastings for charity events, work nights out and groups of friends huddled together in kitchens. My tastings are not particularly technical, but I include plenty of stories about the wine regions and winemakers and project a few photos of my travels.

I'm not sure if people like the educational side of the evening, the story telling or just drinking wine with friends but it seems to work.

Meeting the Maker (Burgundy)

It's a bit more challenging than you might think travelling the fine fine wine regions of Europe in search of exquisite wines. I'm not saying it's not enjoyable but the pressure is on to find and meet lots of top quality makers, identify the very best and  forge a business relationship - all in a short space of time. As with most things in life it seems easy when it goes well.

Burgundy is one of the most famous wine regions in the world and it produces fabulous wines - both red (pinot noir) and white (chardonnay). The problem with famous wine regions is the prices. The Cote D'Or occupies the top end of Burgundy both in geography and prices. This is home to the likes of Meursault, Chassagne Montrachet, Nuit St Georges, Corton Charlemagne etc - wines beyond most people's price range. At the southern end lies the Cote Maconnais - much more affordable wines such as Macon Villages that you will find in most supermarkets.

However, it's the middle bit that interests me most, and this is where I began my search for a supplier for Hedonist Wines. The Cote Chalonnaise is probably the least well known part of Burgundy but produces excellent wines that mimic the style and quality of its illustrious neighbours to the north without the crazy prices. It also benefits from a higher concentration of 'grower-producer' winemakers - those who grow their own grapes and make their own wine (the majority of Burgundian wines are made by co-operatives who buy in the grapes and then blend, label and bottle the wines under their own name).

The Cote Chalonnaise is beautifully rural. Rolling hills, ancient woodlands, fields full of stocky white cows, and of course vineyards. I made an appointment to see Vincent and Sylvie Joussier at their Domaine de L'Eveche and things looked promising from the moment I arrived. A working winery with a picturesque walled vineyard rolling away from the front of the property, which I discovered is used exclusively for their Clos de L'Eveche red.

After introductions (including Trek the dog) we ducked under the stone staircase to the tasting room. Without reading too much into it - when a tasting room is a lesson in elegant rustic chic it conveys a good message about the aesthetics of the winemaker. Vincent introduced me to his range of red and white wines and they seemed to perfectly embody the simple sophistication of single variety Burgundian wines. The pinot noirs were soft and perfumed with an intense clarity of fruit that is hard to find in other grapes. The whites with their orchard fruit freshness had an understated quality and charm.

It was time to call off the search, which was very good news because it was getting dark and I had already tasted over 50 wines in Burgundy.

I would thoroughly recommend a trip to Burgundy at any time of year. The main town is Beaune, where you can enjoy an excellent introduction to the region's wine at the Marche Aux Vins and not surprisingly you can eat and drink exceptionally well. My favourite restaurant is the Piqu' Boeuf where you will be packed in with hungry locals.

ABC

It’s a phrase from the early 90s that is not often heard now, but may people remain firmly in the camp that is “Anything But Chardonnay”. I have no issue with people who don’t like Chardonnay, but I feel it’s only fair to balance the argument in favour of this iconic grape.

The public’s distaste for Chardonnay can be traced back to the influx of heavily oaked wines from Australia. This happened a long time ago now, but many people have still not recovered from the experience. These wines did no favours for Oz winemakers but Australian wine has moved on considerably since then, and it was never Chardonnay’s fault in the first place.
Excessive use of oak is simply poor winemaking. Blaming the grape is like blaming the bricks for a shoddy job by a cowboy builder. It’s also worth noting that if you put poor quality wine into barrels, you will only get poor quality wine out – it will just taste more oaky. So it’s not the barrels’ fault either.
Some of the most exquisite white wines in the world are made from Chardonnay grapes. Many people will enjoy a Chablis or an aged Meursault without knowing they are drinking Chardonnay. Good quality whites from places such as Burdgundy in France are fresh, lively wines with excellent structure – completely different in style to the cloying amber Australian Chardonnays of the 1990s.
In general most white wine is made without the use of barrels (fermented in steel vats and then bottled). But winemakers continue to use oak barrels to impart a delicate structure and flavour to their white wines. When this is done judiciously it will enhance the complexity of the wine while preserving the fresh orchard fruit flavours of the grape. Indeed, many winemakers will only use barrels for their best quality grapes as the process is more expensive than steel vats.
My advice to ABCs would be – don’t be afraid of Chardonnay, and don’t be afraid of some light oak. It’s time to forgive and forget because you’re missing out on some lovely wines.

Save me from laminated lists

Please excuse the nature of this blog post, because it is essentially a rant - but I have finally lost all patience with pub wine lists. My frustration is intensified by the vast improvement that has been steadily occurring on the food menus of 'gastro-pubs' in recent years.
In short - why do these pubs put so much effort into their food offering, yet show virtually no imagination or passion for quality with their wine lists? Surely I am not alone in loving both good food and good wine.
The lists I come across time and again are stuck in a massive rut. My heart sinks when I drift down the list of bland, mass produced nonsense that has been thrown together by a big commercial supplier. Clearly the only criteria is to include a stock number of reds, whites and a couple of token rosé and sparkling wines - all at prices that magically increase by a couple of quid at a time.
Why do pub owners think this is what we want? If we embrace shorter food menus with a limited number of dishes that are cooked to order with seasonal local ingredients why would we want laminated wine lists with over 30 rubbish wines that never change?
I frequently offer to supply my wines to pubs and restaurants, and some accept. But more often I hear the same two excuses:
1) We want to buy all our wines from one supplier because it's easier (that's just lazy)
2) Your trade prices are just too expensive (not if you want to serve decent wine to your customers)
It might be easy to order a complete list from one big trade supplier, and it might save a few quid, but that is simply not in keeping with attracting customers who are interested in the dining experience. I understand the concept of wine as a beverage. Sometimes you just want a glass of wine in the same way you might want a beer or a gin and tonic, and it's fine to have house wines that serve this purpose. But when customers are paying £20 a head for lunch or dinner they don't expect to wash it down with a bottle of plonk that in reality costs about £4.
The public's expectation for good food is now firmly established, so pub owners should realise that we also want to drink good quality wines at sensible prices with our meals. I personally think they are missing a commercial trick. If more gastro-pubs offered high quality wines at a fair mark-up this would simply give customers another good reason to eat there.
In the meantime, I'll have a pint of ale with my sausage and mash.

Everybody needs good neighbours

When I buy wine for my business I often identify a famous wine region and then look next door for a supplier. My rationale is straightforward - the most famous wine towns such as St-Emilion in Bordeaux or Sancerre in the Loire valley have gained their reputation from selling top quality wines. But because these wines are famous they tend to sell at a premium.

If you investigate wines from adjoining villages you can often be rewarded with wines of a very similar style and quality but without the elevated prices. The very famous wine regions probably occupy the prime locations but their immediate neighbours will grow the same grape varieties and benefit from almost identical soil, aspect, climate and rainfall. So it's no surprise that the wines will come very close in quality.

Being next door to a famous wine region tends to have a positive effect on the resident winemakers who aim to emulate the quality of their illustrious neighbours, but set their prices realistically lower. This healthy competition is very good for the consumer as it provides a choice of similar wines at different price points.

Using the examples I mentioned above, next door to St-Emilion you will find the appellation of Cotes de Castillon. Apart from being stunningly beautiful this region makes top quality wines with some vineyards on the  ridge arguably occupying better terroir than some St-Emilion vines. When you visit these wine regions in person the geographic similarities and proximity are very evident.

A good example of how this proximity works in practice is in the way winemakers use expensive oak barrels. The famous wineries of St-Emilion buy them new every year and the Castillon winemakers re-use them when they are one year old. The Castillon wines consequently have a little less structure and ageing potential, but they are excellent value for money and great wines in their own right.

If you find yourself in the Loire valley you may well be drawn to the picturesque town of Sancerre where the pristine tiled streets and chic wine shops remind you you're in an important wine town. Sancerre is lovely and the wine can be great, but I would recommend a short drive south-west to Menetou-Salon. This appellation enjoys a beautiful rural setting and you will find delicious sauvignon blanc wines without the tourist prices.

Sauvignon blanc wines

Vintages

Every day when I speak to friends and customers I am reminded how complex the world of wine is. As I've mentioned in previous posts there are ways to simplify wine and build knowledge, but it strikes me there is one defining aspect to wine that applies universally - its vintage.

Many people assume vintages are complex and don't even try to understand how the date on the bottle can affect its quality or price. Let's clear up the basics. The vintage when describing wine is simply the year the grapes were harvested. Every still wine has a vintage and the year should be displayed somewhere on the label. This is not to be confused with "Vintage" Champagne. Non-vintage Champagne is often blended from several different years' production and so doesn't display a year on the label. In exceptional years some makers will offer prestige Vintage Champagne made of grapes exclusively from that year and this will be labeled accordingly. A similar classification system is used for Vintage Port and both are more expensive than non-vintage.

Back to still wine. If you drink the type of branded wine that can be found in every supermarket it is unlikely to vary from year to year - as this is exactly what the makers are aiming for. Other wines that are more characteristic of their region and grape variety will certainly vary each year and it's worth understanding this. It's probably fair to start with a couple of generalisations. Most white wine can be enjoyed young and will not improve much, if at all with age. Most red wine will improve with a bit of age as this allows time for the sharp tannins to soften. However, all wine goes off eventually.

The next step is to understand that some years provide near perfect conditions for wine growing, while other years can be average or poor. Unfortunately these weather conditions can be quite localised so that a great vintage in France may not be so good in Spain. And the same goes for different regions within the same country.

Once you're aware of vintages you will be amazed at how many restaurants display specific vintages on their wine list but will serve you a younger wine without comment. If I ordered a bottle of 2005 red Bordeaux from a wine list and the waiter arrived with a 2007 I would ask to choose something else - because I happen to know that 2005 was a much better year than 2007. I'm not always that fussy. Wines from warmer climates such as Argentina or southern Italy tend to be more consistent, so the winemaker is arguably more important than the vintage.

Unless you have a savant-like memory for these things it's unlikely you will be able to remember the good, the bad and the ugly vintages for multiple wine regions. So the easy thing to do it to look it up (see link below for a good vintage chart). It might then be worth trying to remember the good recent vintages for your favourite type of red wine so you will be armed with this knowledge next time you are perusing a wine list in a restaurant.

If you want to get more sophisticated you can also layer on the 'approachability' of the vintage. Put simply an approachable vintage is one that reaches its peak reasonably young. For example 2005 was a great year for red Bordeaux but it has taken many years to reach maturity, whereas 2009 is also a great vintage for red Bordeaux but it already tastes good now.

Happy vintage hunting...

www.erobertparker.com/newsearch/vintagechart1.aspx

www.hedonistwines.co.uk

Let's talk about Burgundy

I love wine and I think about it a lot. But there is one type of wine that seems to have a peculiar hold over me that I still don’t quite understand. Red Burgundy is a curious and enigmatic wine made from pinot noir grapes. At the top end of Burdundy - the Cote D’Or, the combination of this delicate grape and the near perfect terroir results in the most expensive wines on earth (they are more reasonably priced if you go a bit south).

But more so than most wines it is very variable – largely because of the weather in Eastern France, so most vintages fail to deliver to their full potential. In the occasional years when the weather is just right the prices sky-rocket and makers sell out in no time. Not a great buyers wine then, especially when there is so much choice out there.

But those who like it never give up on red Burgundy and I have to count myself in that number.  The problem starts when you have a good one. Even very good red Burgundy does not reveal its charms easily. It has a light texture – slightly translucent in the glass, and can often open with pungent aromas of forest floor and wet hay. It needs lots of time to breathe and soften after opening – up to 2 hours in a decanter.  But when it’s ready it releases the purest expression of the grapes from which it is made, and has an intense, luxurious bouquet that reminds me of drinking expensive perfume.

Once you know how good it can be it’s hard to forget. And no other wine can deliver the same experience.  I have a strong liking for many types of wine, but red Burgundy is the only one that haunts my mind.


Buying it is often a gamble because quality and style vary massively from maker to maker, and from one sub-region to the next. Another curious feature of Burgundy is the predominance of cooperatives, who buy grapes from vineyard owners and blend and bottle the wines under their own label. There is nothing wrong with cooperative wine, but I’ve always preferred my wine to come from grower producers – there is something more satisfying about its provenance. So to satisfy my cravings I have sought out a maker I like and I now only buy in good vintages.

Enough from me. I think Miles from the film Sideways explains it better:

“Only somebody who really takes the time to understand Pinot's potential can then coax it into its fullest expression. Then, I mean, oh its flavors, they're just the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and - ancient on the planet.”

Meeting the Maker (Rioja)

I run a wine business importing wines from small producers in Europe. The journey started in France a couple of years ago, selecting the best grower-producers I could find in the key winegrowing regions. My criteria are pretty straightforward – excellent examples of their region and grape variety, good value for money, small production. After some success meeting talented winemakers and forming business relationships my customers were starting to mutter about a lack of Rioja. Always a popular wine in the UK, the region has undergone significant investment and modernisation in recent years and I wanted to seek out an exclusive Spanish supplier for my list.


Undaunted by my lack of Spanish, I invested in some audio CDs in preparation for the trip. Next came the research. Delving through wine encyclopaedias is necessary in unfamiliar territory. I knew I would be out of my comfort zone so I did some reading and absorbed as much information about the region as I could and lined up appointments with prospective supliers. The final part of my due diligence was to compare Rioja wines from other wine merchants to get my eye in.


I landed in Bilbao and jumped in the hire car (a nice mini) and headed off in the direction of Rioja. Within the hour the countryside began to take on the familiar features of wine country. Most vine growing regions are very attractive and Rioja is no exception. A large verdant plain with gently rolling hills, narrow lanes disappearing into the vines, and clouds gathering above a dramatic shelf of rock that provides a stunning backdrop to the scene. The main road though the region is straight and recently surfaced. Along the way you can’t miss the modern architect designed buildings of the bigger wineries – evidence of that huge investment. In the distance I spotted my destination – a walled town called Laguardia on a hilltop. A pocket sized gem, it’s about 500m long with the entire town enclosed within the thick stone walls.

The streets are narrow and cobbled and a relaxed vibe pervades with little to do except stroll around, look at the church, eat and drink. By midday I was seated outside a restaurant in the sunshine with a plate of local cheeses and cured meats and a chilled glass of the local Joven (a young un-oaked red). The local produce is fantastic. The Chorizo is fresh, bright paprika-red, spicy with a soft chewy texture. The manchego cheese is crumbly and moist with an enjoyable crunchiness - like top quality parmesan. The Spanish take as much pride in their produce as anywhere else I have travelled in Europe. They also take their socialising very seriously indeed and after sunset the locals begin the customary procession from one tapas bar to the next, chatting loudly and enjoying life. The town is authentically Spanish with little evidence of tourist trade. There are only a couple of hotels and one very good restaurant that attracts food lovers from far and wide.


Finding wine suppliers inevitably requires a fair bit of sampling with lots of variation in quality. The one constant is the warm welcome and the sense of pride each maker exudes. A wine grower-producer is a curious combination of farmer, craftsman and artist. They work the land and rely on the weather like any farmer but they must also use their knowledge and skill to create a high quality product that is stable and undergoes the right chemical processes at the right time. Finally they must impart an individual style to their wine that sets it apart from others and becomes a substance of pleasure. This is a broad set of challenges and it’s impossible not to admire those who get it right.


I arrived at Pago de Larrea in Elciego a short drive from Laguardia around midday. Luis Larrea met me outside the winery and suggested we went to see his vines. His family owns a single vineyard of approximately 16 hectares. It is set in a picturesque valley on a gentle slope with the vines bordering the banks of the river Ebro. Truly this is prime vine growing soil. His father had enjoyed success in a bigger winery and sold out to start a family business. Year on year he acquired adjoining parcels of this lovely terroir and now the entire production comes from this single vineyard. Back at the modern winery I met the rest of the family as we sampled all 4 wines (3 reds and a white) over bread, paté and cheese. Each of the wines was instantly pleasing in a subtle way that suggests a depth of quality and confidence. A tour of the wine making facilities and cask storage convinced me about their quality control. Luis and his family are an extraordinarily polite and friendly bunch. And when they asked me to stay for lunch I had no hesitation in accepting.


By coincidence they had invited around 20 of their private customers for a friendly gathering and long lunch that same day so I spent the next few hours mingling with northern Spain’s wine lovers and eating delicious traditional dishes that were served to complement the range of wines. I eventually made my exit into the baking heat of the afternoon and felt drawn back to the lovely vineyard. I walked along the lower edge and soon found a narrow path leading away from the vines and directly to the gravel banks of the river. Content, I swam in the river and rested on the banks looking at the vines. I decided to add Luis to my supplier list.

Available in the UK from Hedonist Wines

Where to eat in wine regions (Saint-Emilion)

When visiting wine regions I am frequently struck by the simple quality of the food that is served in the local restaurants. I guess it is no surprise that in a region inhabited by proud winemakers the restaurant owners demonstrate a similar passion for food. After all, the enjoyment of fine wine can only be enhanced by good food.

In the heart of wine regions the menus seem to defer to the wine lists, which is uncommon elsewhere. When the wine is centre stage this can lead to a pleasing simplicity of dishes that are designed to complement rather than dominate.

The trick, as always is to follow the locals. I find out where the winemakers eat and go there. Here is where I recommend you eat, should you find yourselves in Saint-Emilion in France:

L’Envers du Décor

Saint-Emilion produces world class wine and also happens to be a UNESCO World Heritage site. So it’s a pretty good place to visit if you like wine, and beautiful places. Set into the hillside overlooking the Dordogne floodplain the town is arranged over several tiers. Follow a series of stone steps up through the middle of the town and eventually you will arrive at the L’Envers du Décor restaurant.

It has an unassuming exterior, looking more like a bar. The inside is relaxed-cool with tables veneered with the sides of wooden wine boxes bearing the famous crests of the local chateaux. A narrow side alley leads to a beautiful walled courtyard where diners spill out on warm days.

I ate inside where the atmosphere was vibrant and pleasantly French. Fortunately I ordered before the rush – the restaurant soon filled up with large family groups, couples enjoying a romantic lunch, and winemakers talking business together.

The menu du jour is the most reasonably priced option and typically offers very traditional French dishes. If you are less adventurous the à la carte menu is varied enough to cover most tastes. I pondered a hearty sausage casserole before going for a safe steak frites. The food is very satisfying without being extravagant. The steak was faultless and cooked ‘à point’ (medium) although this always arrives slightly rarer than it would in the UK. Accompanied with a basket of delicious fresh bread, a lightly dressed green salad and a huge wooden handled steak knife I had everything I needed (I had already ordered a large glass of nicely aged Saint-Emilion grand cru).

The service was efficient, professional and reassuringly nonchalant. The wine list is obviously extensive with plenty of wines by the glass. However it’s hard to resist ordering a bottle. A waiter will bring a beautiful glass carafe to your table and decant the wine with delightful ceremony.

This is a straightforward, authentic brasserie-style restaurant which scores highly for food, atmosphere and wine list. What more do you want?

L'Envers du Decor

Why is choosing wine so difficult?

Most people I speak to are completely baffled by wine but wish they could understand it better. There is no shame in this because wine is a fairly impenetrable subject. The volume of information to absorb is immense so to gain a comprehensive knowledge of wine requires constant learning and can literally take a lifetime. Wine is a particularly confusing product to understand for several reasons. It’s made from a wide variety of grapes, it’s made in many different ways, every country and region classifies their wine differently, and even the same wine changes from one vintage to the next.

Taking time to read the labels may not help because there are few requirements to label wines consistently beyond the alcohol content. Some wine labels promote the grape, others the name of the Chateau or winemaker, and some highlight the region it comes from. When we wander into a supermarket wine aisle and are confronted with up to 300 different wines, it’s hardly surprising that most people go straight for the one they drank last time. We would do the same if confronted with 300 brands of mustard.

Retailers are well aware of this and consequently promote a few wines to help customers choose. The problem is that big retailers focus on wines that offer consistency from year to year, low prices, and recognisable brands that customers can spot on the shelves. So they tend to buy from high volume commercial wineries that meet these criteria. Unfortunately these wines are rarely the best examples of their type and certainly not what the locals drink.

Supermarket promotions and unhelpful wine labeling are unlikely to change overnight, or even in the next few years. To gain confidence in buying wine, we really need to gain some knowledge and not rely on the winemakers or supermarkets to steer us in the right direction. With some basic knowledge we can all start to make our own decisions about what are good, bad and average wines – instead of just buying wines we have drunk before or simply using price as our guide.

So how do we make it easier?

Wine has a confusing array of variables such as grape variety, region, production method and vintage. The answer is to think about each aspect of the wine separately and then layer your knowledge as you gain more understanding. For example the best place to start is the grape variety. Try one grape variety at a time, avoiding blended wines if possible (this information is usually on the back label).  Most wine regions are reasonably consistent with their predominant grape variety. For example nearly all white wine from Burgundy in France is chardonnay, and in the Loire its sauvignon-blanc. Learning these links between regions and grape varieties will help you identify wines that should taste similar.

The next step is to start understanding the variations in style between regions and countries. For example a New Zealand sauvignon-blanc will be very zesty with tropical fruit flavours of pineapple and grapefruit, while a French version will be similar but more subtle – with more citrus flavours of lemon and lime. Once you have begun to understand grape varieties and how they are represented in different regions you are well on the way to understanding the basics of wine. You can do this for several different red and white grapes and this will give you a good basic knowledge of what to expect when you buy a wine you have never drunk before.

Once you know what you like you can start moving up the price range to see how the quality improves. Most wine regions have a classification system that indicates the quality of the wine. Unfortunately these differ from country to country and even from region to region so you will have to do some reading. Again, if you stick to one country or region at a time it makes the task much more manageable. Most classification systems indicate that the wine comes from a specific area, and that it’s made from certain permitted grape varieties.

Beware of assuming that price always equals quality, or that a wine with a higher classification will always taste better. For example if you like red Burgundy (pinot noir grape), you’re probably better off finding a good vintage rather than paying for a higher classification. Above all it’s important to have fun learning about wine and not get bogged down with the detail. In the end it’s a product that is made to be enjoyed – so it’s worth remembering that.