The £135.00 Seasonal Cellar September 2010 Tasting Notes

You can join our Seasonal Cellar club online or by phoning 01502 727222.

White wines

2009 Viognier, Villa du Clos, Vin de Pays d’Oc

Stéphane Vedeau owns a 50 hectare estate in the Rhône and heads up a youthful team. Enthusiasm is the order of the day here. All the vines are cultivated with regard to the environment and so no herbicides or pesticides are used. Spreading his wings, he consults for other vignerons throughout the Languedoc and bottles some of the wines where he advises, like this one, under his own label. Hints of ginger and spices with some cloves from the new oak. Viognier is synonymous with viscosity and mouth-feel; this is no exception. Always hard to match with dishes because of its delicate peachy flavours and soft palate, perhaps this is the perfect wine for spicy oriental food.

2009 Laudun, Château Courac, Côtes-du-Rhône Villages Blanc

Laudun is previously famous as the place where Hannibal forded the Rhône on his way to attack Rome and as the home of a local doctor who, out of curiosity, imported vines from the USA and unwittingly brought in the phyloxera plague that devastated the vineyards of Europe. Frédéric and Josephine Arnaud took on the 90 hectares estate of Château Courac in 1995 have, mercifully, no wish to add to the great feats of this small town beyond that of making great wine. This is made from scintillating, cold-fermented old-vine Clairette with its hint of spicy pears and food-friendly richness. We loved the grip of this wine and personally would use it as ‘contemplation’ wine but even then perhaps the odd slice of dried sausage (wild boar would be good) would set it off perfectly.

2008 Aligoté, Domaine Sarrazin

In any quiz, most people when asked to name the grapes of Burgundy, come up with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and if pushed, maybe Gamay. Aligoté has forever been the forgotten grape – but in this day of ubiquitous, global varietals – we rejoice in its individuality. The Sarrazins ply their trade from a very pretty, somewhat lost corner of the Côte Chalonnaise, 20 miles south of Beaune. Their cellars are in Charnailles, a hamlet next to the village of Jambles – a name to conjure with, being neither a French leg nor a quite a jumble! The family vineyards extend over 35 hectares, and although they are predominantly Bourgogne Rouge and Blanc merchants, they also have vines in Givry, Mercurey and Maranges. Their Aligoté vines are densely planted on the slopes around Charnailles in order to restrict yields to achieve around 60 hectolitres per hectare. This has a pretty, floral nose with enticing notes of crème brulée. The Aligoté’s hallmark acidity lifts and underscores the wine’s freshness, with its smooth, rich mouthfeel and peachy finish. Recommended with cold meats and freshly picked garden salads.

2008 Pouilly-Fumé ‘Fine Caillottes’ Domaine Pabiot

Jean Pabiot and son Alain are the proud guardians of a winemaking tradition stretching back six generations. Their sizeable domaine comprises an enviable portfolio of chalky Sauvignon Blanc vineyards in Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé. Wines from the latter perfectly express the appellation’s classic smoky, minerally character, highlights perfectly the difference in soil, geology and climate to that of New Zealand, where the same grape has much more exotic tones. The grassy nuances and soft asparagus notes of this current vintage leave nothing to be desired. Great with goat cheeses, oysters and baked cod, in fact, if you visit the area, it is almost impossible to get away without sampling Pouilly or Sancerre with the famous Crotin de Chavignol goat’s cheese. Pick one that is neither soft and very fresh or, bullet hard, mature but ‘al dente’. The flavour is strong but not overpowering and will blend perfectly with a mineraly Sauvignon such as this.

2006 Riesling, The John Forrest Collection, Marlborough

Cheery Kiwi winemaker and micro- biologist John Forrest has assembled a range of wines reflecting his exuberant personality and on-going experimental quest to capture the ‘essence of place’. John is the original unreconstructed Riesling Man; he has been growing, experimenting and exhalting everything Riesling for the past eighteen years. He narrowed down umpteen of his Riesling sites to just two, finding that a combination of the fruit from both the stony, young soils from the Wairau River, and the free-draining Renwick soils satisfied his dream of making the ultimate Riesling. The Riesling picked from the Wairau provides the intensity, delicacy, minerality and citrus elements, while the latter brings the tropical richness. An unrivalled match with grilled fish, with its flavours of stone fruit, white peaches and lifted lemon zest. Why not over indulge and find another new world dry Riesling, from the Clare Valley in Australia for example, and try both side by side. This will, we hope, prove to you that dry Riesling is wonderful and in particular John Forrest is one of its greatest exponents.

2009 Pinot Gris, Sidewood Estate, Adelaide Hills

Sidewood Estate is a privately owned vineyard, nestled in the cool climate region of the Adelaide Hills in South Australia. Owen and Cassandra Inglis purchased the estate from the Lloyd Family of Coriole in 2004. Their grapes are carefully hand-picked from selected rows across their 300 acre estate. The aim is to create stylish and elegant wines that are focused on quality and underpinned by the impeccable wine making skills of Natasha Mooney, who has worked for some of the big and great in Australia as well further afield in Oregon. This newly release Pinot Gris was cold fermented, on its own yeasts, for between two and three weeks, and to make the difference, was left on its lees for several weeks, to take on complexity and character. Bottled after 5 months, this has orange blossom aromas, with lychees and guava on the palate. Worth mentioning is this Pinot Gris’ low sulphur and histamine levels. The Inglis family suggest drinking this with fleshy fish curry, or failing that, chowder.

Red wines

2009 Côtes-du-Rhône ‘Premiere Côte’ La Ferme du Mont

Stephane Vedeau owns this 50 hectare estate and heads up a youthful team. Enthusiasm is the order of the day here. All the vines are cultivated with a regards to the environment and so no herbicides or pesticides are used. We visited the cellars on the day that the mobile bottling plant had arrived and France were playing in the world cup. It was chaos, we tasted in a corridor with people dashing to fetch capsules or to hurry over to the TV to catch up on the latest score. Stephane remained calm throughout and his wines shone through. Première Côte is grown in the Village of Courthézon (one of the villages included in the appellation Chateauneuf du Pape). The soil is composed mainly by large pebbles. The region has a warm, dry climate, which is nonetheless modified by the influence of the powerful mistral wind. The combination of these factors permits an environmentally friendly approach to viticulture, with minimum intervention.

2007 ‘Les Grandes Crêtes’ Pic Saint Loup, Coteaux du Languedoc

Enough has been said about Stéphane Vedeau, perambulating wine consultant to southern Rhône and Languedoc vineyards. Although his influence in this wine should not be ignored, what sets Les Grandes Crêtes apart is the viticultural zone of the Pic Saint Loup, Coteaux du Languedoc. The Pic is a massive chunk of limestone, which forms the backdrop to the vineyards, manipulating and influencing the multiple microclimates to be found here, thus allowing Mourvèdre to ripen in the hotter spots, whilst cooler conditions can also be found for the Syrah. Grenache being a sun-seeking southern variety, is very much at home here. The vines are grown on rising ground at 400 meters above sea-level. This has lovely, defining acidity with bags of cassis and berried black fruit. This is crying out for a rustic casserole or maybe a liver and bacon hotpot.

2008 Monastrell, Casa Castillo, Jumilla

Propiedad Vitícola Casa Castillo (Julia Roch e Hijos) is a family owned property devoted to the husbandry of a two hundred hectare vineyard in the arid Murcia region of south-central Spain. Pioneers in Jumilla, Casa Castillo have been instrumental in showing the potential of this region. The wines produced are notable for their concentration of flavours and this is due to a particularly dry climate and surprisingly low night time temperatures which lead to small, flavour-packed grapes that are given the luxury of slow development, thanks to the cooler nights. The Monastrell (aka Mourvèdre or Mataro) grapes undergo a cool fermented then a short period of ageing in French and American oak for 3 – 6 months, which has concentrated its deep purple hue and its smoky black fruit and liquorice flavours. Lovely, velvety texture with good length and spicy finish. Do as they do in Jumilla and drink this with roast leg of sheep. You may be able to find some hogget at your local butcher as this is becoming increasingly popular, pack it with herbs and garlic and cook it long and slow. Just right with this flavour packed red.

2008 Trincadeira ‘Villa Santa’ Jaoa Portugal Ramos, Alentejo

Jao Portugal Ramos is a one man dynamo who has created a substantial winery, some 250 hectares of his own vineyards with even more under contract. Innovative yet mindful of good traditions, his winery is home to novel methods of getting more colour into his wines, yet stands alongside old fashioned foot-treading lagaars, and is a benchmark for Portuguese wines. The Trincadeira grape, known in the Douro as Tinta Amarela, has ripe and powerful fruit, with lovely spice / cinnamon tones from six months in new French oak. This impressive wine rather shows how far Portugal – the country and the man, have been able to push the boundaries of quality and interest in Alentejo wines. Although Portuguese cuisine is synonymous with sardines and bacalhau (dried and salted cod), one can always have too much a good thing and in this case it would not even be that. We would suggest game or simply roast beef.

2008 The Berry Box, Findlayson Family Vineyards, Stellenbosch

Edgebaston Wines are made by David Finlayson, third generation of Finlaysons, on the 22 hectares of family vineyards between Stellenbosch and Klapmuts. He strives to farm the land, grow the grapes and make the wine in as environmentally friendly manner as possible, whilst ensuring that each wine is world class. David, recently ex renown Glen Carlou winery, has made wines in Australia at Peter Lehmann, in New Zealand with Te Mata, and also at Château Margaux.. The vineyards are planted on the schale slopes of the Simonsberg range of hills, and face north east around to southeast. The family has become famous for its modern ‘fruit driven’ approach to winemaking, which is born out in this blend of five classic grape varieties that offer an unrestrained explosion of black fruit flavours. Shiraz, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Made with great care and attention, this shows masses of black fruit, yet set off by great elegance. Could be the best yet from the Findlayson stable – a new wave South African classic.

2007 Pinot Noir ‘The Tatty Bogler’ Bannockburn Estates, Otago

“The Forrest family have decamped from Marlborough way down south to Central Otago to make this superb, spicy, gamey and decidedly luscious Pinot Noir.” Jane MacQuitty, The Times. Well, not so much decamped as spread their wings to include planting a vineyard in Central Otago with partner Rob Robertson. Otago has become the area to grow Pinot; the new hot-spot in the world’s undying quest to establish a rival growing are to Burgundy. John Forrest is no fool, got to the party early, and bagged some great land upon which to plant vines in Waitaki in North Otago and Bannockburn in Central Otago – and Tattybogler Pinot Noir is the combined result. The former vineyard provides the sweet fruit with the textured earthiness of the latter. Rob Robertson was keen to invoke his Scottish ancestry, hence the wine’s unlikely name, with its reference to hobgoblin and crow scaring. This has the true sweet, red fruit edge of Pinot and is at its best when its natural fruit acidity can cut through rich dishes (boeuf bourguignon, Coq au vin, Shepherd’s pie) and let the fruit shine through.

You can join our Seasonal Cellar club online or by phoning 01502 727222.