Spain: Monastrell - Alicante, Castilla La Mancha

Here's a swift trio of Spanish reds celebrating the moody Monastrell variety, aka Mourvedre or Mataro, which is grown substantially along and inland from Spain's Mediterranean coast, especially further south. The first one comes from near Albacete just inside the Castilla-La Mancha region on the border with Murcia, the grape's spiritual home perhaps, directly inland from Alicante where the other two are from.

Pago de Montal 2010 Monastrell - Smoky liquorice and peppery wild bramble fruits, firm solid and powerful with nice lingering dark vs savoury fruit. €10.99 ? Mitchell & Son, Dublin; £9.75 Martinez Wines, England.

Bodega Vinessens Sein 2011 Monastrell-Syrah - Enticing dark berry / cherry and black olive, concentrated with lightly firm tannins still, attractive savoury vs dark fruit finish. Good. €17.99 Wines on the Green/Celtic Whiskey Shop, Dublin.

Bodegas Artadi Laderas el Sequé 2012 Monastrell - Quite juicy fruity for Monastrell, more 'serious' on the palate with savoury black olive vs dark fruit and a touch of grip. Nice Med red. c. €15/£10 ? James Nicholson, Northern Ireland.

Spain, Catalonia: Priorat, Montsant, Terra Alta, Penedès, Empordà

Hot on the heels of the last post about my updated Cava guide (click there), here are fifteen more tasty Catalan recommendations sourced from fashionable (and dear) Priorat and the (better-value) neighbouring wine areas of Montsant and Terra Alta (inland and west of Tarragona), Penedès (west/north-west of Barcelona) and the perhaps lesser-known (name- and wine-wise at least as it's very touristy) Empordà region (Catalunya's north-eastern corner bordering France Med-side). Some of the prices indicated below were taken from Wine Searcher.

From facebook.com/lafouceller

Priorat
Clos Mogador 2010 (Garnacha, Carinena, Cabernet, Syrah) - a "famous" vineyard I believe, owned by René Barbier. Dense rich red, fair amount of coconut oak but it's intense concentrated and extracted, firm and fresh mouth-feel layered with dark cherry/berry fruit and savoury flavours, powerful and still young on the finish. Expensive naturally: about €70 in Ireland, at least £50 in the UK and $75-$100 in USA.
Álvaro Palacios 2012 Camins del Priorat (Garnacha, Carinena) - Delicious wild berry and herb fruit, pure and tasty, concentrated too with nice grip and lively finish. €27, £17.50, $21-$23
Cartoixa de Montsalvat 2009 Mont Classic (Garnacha, Carinena) - Baked maturing liquorice and tobacco aromas, extracted and concentrated, big vs softening, power and length; quite a mouthful! €22, $32-$34
Bernard Magrez 2010 Herencia del Padri (Carinena, Garnacha, Merlot, Cabernet, Syrah) - Light coconut tones and fairly perfumed ripe berry and cassis, beginning to mature turning savoury and tobacco, powerful vs soft tannins, quite elegant actually. €21.25, $20
Bernard Magrez 2005 Alegría (Garnacha, Carinena, Merlot, Cabernet) - Fairly oaky still actually vs smoky maturing dark fruit, quite concentrated, some grip still although nice texture and balance, coconut hints merge with lush spicy fruit. €49.50

Montsant

Cellers Baronia del Montsant 2010 Cims del Montsant (Garnacha, Carinena) - maturing smoky tobacco nose, sweet liquorice fruit vs a touch of grip, attractive savoury finish, drinking well now. €16.99, $15-$20

Catalunya

Ramón Roqueta 2012 Vinya Nostra Nit de Tardor (Garnacha, Samsó) - Dark berries with liquorice and spice, nice fruity mouthful, fairly soft yet quite concentrated with lingering dark fruit and wild herb flavours. €17

Ramón Roqueta 2013 Vinya Nostra Xarel.lo (100% Xarel.lo) - Aromatic green fruit with yeast-lees edges, crisp and zesty mouth-feel vs fuller oilier side, fair weight and flavour in the end. Nice white. €17

Catalunya/Penedès
Torres 2013 Vina Esmeralda (Moscatel, Gewurztraminer) - Aromatic Muscat nose with a touch of lychee, light and off-dry with zesty finish. €13.99, £7.50-£8.50
Torres 2011 Coronas Crianza (Tempranillo, Cabernet) - Vibrant berry fruit and subtle oak notes, tasty fruity vs savoury palate, lovely balance and style. £8-£9, €13.99
Torres 2010 Gran Sangre de Toro (Garnacha, Carinena, Syrah) - Smoky with a touch of oak and nice lively spicy ripe black fruits, quite concentrated with smooth tannins plus an elegant touch despite the Grenache oomph. €13.99, £8-£9.50
Torres 2009 Gran Coronas (Tempranillo, Cabernet) - Concentrated and stylish, savoury tobacco notes vs chunky and dark-fruity, drinking well now but will last a bit longer, very tasty red. €19.99, £11.50-£12.50

Terra Alta

Lafou Celler 2012 Els Amelers (Garnacha blanca) - Juicy and honeyed, zesty and lees-y vs quite rich, pretty intense with steely vs weighty finish. Very good white. €22, $20

Lafou Celler 2012 El Sender (Garnacha, Syrah, Morenillo) - Perfumed wild herb/violet aromas, lovely blackberry/cherry, soft tannins, lush vs powerful. Delicious red. €22, $18-$20

Empordà

Clos d'Agon 2010 Amic (Garnacha) - Maturing wild dark fruit nose, big mouthful with chunky vs maturing finish, quite good although not exactly a bargain. €23.75, £15.95

Spain: Cava guide updated

From www.crcava.es

I've updated and tidied up my now 15-page mini-guide to 'Creative Catalan Bubbly' country featuring new 'entries' from these wineries, big and small: Vallformosa, Chozas Carrascal, Segura Viudas, Freixenet, Marqués de Monistrol, Campo Viejo, Jaume Serra, Castellblanch, Marqués de la Concordia/The Haciendas Company, Castillo Perelada and Juvé y Camps. Also includes some latest thoughts and figures on Cava export markets and updated profiles on a couple of stand-out cellars.

This Cava mini-guide isn't viewable on WW.com, so you can buy the full PDF report for just £1.99 emailed to you once I get confirmation of payment. Hit the PayPal button below (select it in drop-down menu first) to pay by card or with your own PP account, although you don't need one to do so! More about card payments and general T&C by clicking HERE.

Select:

French wine e-magazine English wine guide Cava guide Slovenia & Croatia Portugal special

Austria: Jurtschitsch, Grüner Veltliner & Riesling 'Erste Lage'

In the racy footsteps of my recent post below on 2013 Grosses Gewächs Rieslings (links to it) from some of Germany's leading producers, Austria has introduced a similar vineyard ranking called Erste Lage (meaning something like Premier Cru) for the country's best-rated Riesling and Grüner Veltliner (mostly) wines.

The Jurtschitsch family wine estate, now run by Alwin and Stefanie (above), is located in the Kamptal region (found not far to the northwest of Vienna) and is made up of nearly 70 hectares (173 acres) of vines in several different undulating sites around the pretty town of Langenlois (there are a few top winery names based here so obviously well-situated for making very good white wines). The vineyards have been managed organically since 2006.
They appear to have good distribution around the world including ABS Wine Agencies in the UK (approx £ prices indicated), Quintessential Wines in Dublin (€ prices) and David Bowler Wine in NY USA - see www.jurtschitsch.com for more info about where you can find them (where the photo was downloaded from).

2012 Grüner Veltliner Loiserberg Erste Lage (13% abv) - Yeast-lees and maturing aromas with spicy floral edges, getting fuller and mellowing on the palate yet still pretty intense and fresh, subtle concentration. Less buzz than the 2013s though. £20 / €26.
2013 Grüner Veltliner Dechant 'Alte Reben' Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - Old vines. 'Gummy' zesty and 'chalky', steely vs oily mouth-feel showing good 'extract' and some roundness vs lively acidity and long finish. £23
2013 Grüner Veltliner Lamm Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - Pretty intense acidity and flavours, long linear palate showing fair weight too vs that crisp bite. Needs more time. £35
2013 Grüner Veltliner Schenkenbichel Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - More honeyed and richer with towards exotic fruit characters, a hint of sweetness adds roundness and weight vs steely acidity underneath and spicy tones as well. £35
2013 Riesling Loiserberg Erste Lage (13.5% abv) - Zippy lemon and lime aromas/flavours and 'chalky' texture, a light touch of sweetness and quite full-bodied on the final palate with intense and refreshing / 'mineral' and oily mix, tight long finish yet drinking fairly well now. £21 / €26
2013 Riesling Zöbinger Heiligenstein Erste Lage (13% abv) - Racy and classy Riesling with zippy 'chalky' mouth-feel vs aromatic lime fruit, tight and steely finish, more elegant and delicate. £21

Germany: Grosses Gewächs Riesling 2013

This dozen-strong Riesling-tastic selection (and one Pinot Noir) comes from a slightly esoteric tasting of some intense 2013 vintage wines, even if my notes did get over-eagerly filed away for a little ageing before seeing the light of day again...

Recapping on 2013 conditions in Germany then, budding was “very late” thanks to a cool spring followed by challenging weather during flowering, then a “mild summer” finally set in although picking was also delayed due to tiresome rain in September.

Muscadet: Guilbaud Frères

Pascal Guilbaud

Pascal Guilbaud and family are the latest in a long line of grape-growers and winemakers to be at the wheel of this eye-opening estate winery, which just goes to show that there's Muscadet and there's Muscadet. They've obviously managed to lift up this well-known (and often rather boring) dry white wine onto a higher dimension, stylistically, as I noted about their 2012 old vine cuvée, like "a mix of good Burgundy and Riesling." Which inevitably translates as their wines being a little dearer, but not by much for this quality. These three tried and tested below are all made from 100% Melon de Bourgogne aka Muscadet to you and me - I get the impression the latter name is perhaps considered an inferior moniker for the variety, especially by producers like the Guilbaud brothers who obviously take it very seriously... The Vintage House in London stock some of their wines priced about £10; also available in Germany and Belgium.

Le Clos du Pont Muscadet Sèvre et Maine 2009 - Sourced from a well-exposed sunny spot from a vineyard planted in "clay on schist" with 30 to 40 year-old vines. 2009 enjoyed a particularly hot summer with "selected, very ripe grapes" coming in to the cellar. The fledgling wine spent "several weeks in vat on lees" before fermentation in large oak casks, then aged for more than two years in barrel afterwards (not new oak though), which is unusual for Muscadet - most of it doesn't get any near wood or isn't aged even, made and kept in stainless steel tanks.

Seemed surprisingly youthful for its age, kind of like 'flat' Cava or Champagne with toasty almond, yeasty and appley aromas and flavours, maturing savoury and nutty notes contrasting with that crisp appley side, complex ageing and rounded finish yet still quite steely underneath. Unusual and well tasty. €10.55 cellar door.

Château de la Pingossière 'Vieilles Vignes' Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie 2012 - From "silica, schist and Gneiss soils" (for all you geologists out there), picking started late in 2012 due to a late winter freeze (causing a fair bit of damage too limiting the final crop) and slow start to summer. This vineyard is found in the Vallet village area on a hilltop, planted with 35 to 45 year-old vines. Yeast-lees stirring was done once a week for the first two months, then ageing on fine lees for 10 months "partly in underground vats and partly in old tuns in the cellar." (It must all be in the geeky detail you might be wondering..?)

Very nice style mix reminiscent of Burgundy vs Riesling, quite concentrated and intense, crisp and 'salty' with 'mineral' celery tones vs more savoury baked apple, long fine fresh finish vs nutty oily texture. Very good. €7 cellar door.

Le Soleil Nantais Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur lie 2014 - From "different parcels in silica-clay soils around the village of Mouzillon and schist soils around Vallet." Younger vines aged 20 to 35 years. In 2014, vintage conditions were all going fine up until a rather rainy August, but which was followed by a great September (like just about everywhere). Seven months on the lees in those "underground vats" and stainless tanks.
Refreshing and crisp with nice 'chalky' texture vs ripe apple and melon flavours, again has good depth of character and racy acidity to finish. €6.50 cellar door.

More info: GUILBAUD-MUSCADET.COM

By the way, all Loire Valley words and wines will be moved from WineWriting.com (links to page where it is at the mo) to this blog sooner or later...

Wine tastings & workshops in Belfast September to November

The autumn programme for wine tastings and workshops scheduled to run in Belfast city centre (Ramada Encore Hotel Cathedral Quarter) by Wine Education Service NI (that's me) from late September to late November 2015 is as follows (drum roll)...
Booking options are at the bottom:

Saturday 26 September: Spain and Portugal one-day workshop £90

"We'll taste and talk about a dozen or so red, white, rosé and fortified wines selected to highlight the very different regions, grape varieties and wine styles found across the 'Iberian peninsular'. This will include well-known 'classics' such as Rioja, Port​/Douro Valley and (real) Sherry​; but throwing in a few surprises too like Galici​a and Vinho Verde for dry whites, serious reds from Dao or the Alentejo and not forgetting the wine 'super-state' of Catalonia, home to some great reds, whites and Cava..." Includes two-course lunch at the hotel.

​​Thursday 29 October​ 7-9 pm​: ​​France vs ​​the 'New World' classic grape varieties tutored tasting £28.95

​"​We'll compare three or four pairs of well-known grape varieties from different regions of France ​with​ certain Southern Hemisphere countries, 'classic' styles of say Chardonnay, Riesling, Syrah/Shiraz, Malbec... (two of each). Which is 'better', or are they just different?!"​

​​Saturday 14 November ​11 am-​2 pm​: "off the beaten track" ​wine tasting and ​lunch £49

"Come and explore the lesser-known, although certainly not less exciting, wine world with this morning tasting of about eight diverse high-quality wines from countries such as Lebanon, Austria, Hungary, Slovenia, Croatia, Greece and fine English sparkling wine too. Includes a two-course lunch at the hotel afterwards."

​​Thursday 26 November 7-9 pm: Italian wines​ £28.95

​"​At​ ​this wines of Italy ​evening tasting​, we'll take you on a guided tour around several of this very​ varied country's wine producing regions ​by​ tasting and talking about ​a carefully selected range of​ tasty red and white​ wines. These will probably include classics from northern Italy, such as Piemonte and Veneto, central Italy such as Tuscany and Umbria, and the deep south e.g. Sicily, ​Campania,​ Puglia..."

Book online on our site:

Wine-education-service.co.uk/wine-tasting-belfast
Facebook.com/WineEducationServiceNI (you have to sign in to FB). Or you can pay by card or your own Paypal account using the PP button below (you don't need an account to do this though). You can change the quantity of tickets on the secure web form:

Select event:

Spain Portugal workshop 26 Sept £90.00 GBP France vs New World 29 Oct £28.95 GBP Off the beaten track 14 Nov £49.00 GBP Italian Wines £28.95 GBP

Languedoc: more photos

Marc Coulet pours Mas Brunet red al fresco.

The gang modelling more of those Terrasses du Larzac hats

Off the beaten track leading from Le Pont de Diable just outside Saint-Jean-de-Fos (between Aniane and Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert).

Tarbouriech oyster farm near Marseillan, Etang de Thau.

LANGUEDOC SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT 2015

Prime real estate, pretty middle of nowhere 

somewhere near Aniane, Languedoc.

My 2015 Languedoc special report is now available as part of a massive French wine e-magazine HERE. 

Douro Valley: Quinta de la Rosa, Pinhão

Quinta de la Rosa (above) is well-known for its Vintage Ports - I bought a half-bottle of their 2009 for €15 when I went there at the end of June by the way (update: click here to see my review of this delicious fortified red) - and sublime old Tawnies. They also make red, white and rosé Douro wines, like everybody else in this region nowadays; and I was quite impressed by this tasty dry white quaffed that evening, nicely chilled of course:

Port: Pinhão, Douro Valley

Vineyards around Pinhão on a 'steep' theme.

Photos by RMJ.

Port & Douro Valley: Quevedo

I talked to smiley Oscar Quevedo (right) and tasted some of the Quevedo family's Ports in their wine tasting cellar cum shop in Vila Nova de Gaia in late June, which is quietly tucked away behind Ramos Pinto and the other side of the pretty Santa Marinha church from Sandeman's. They have six vineyards totalling about 100 hectares:

Portugal: Port and railway theme

Top: railway bridge in Pinhão, Douro Valley. One down: barrels in Pinhão station for when the loo's closed. Next down: the station as photo'ed by everybody ever. Bottom: Porto São Bento station.

Australia: Tasmania

Looney Tunes' Tasmanian Devil
downloaded from You Tube.

Australia's island state of Tasmania lies due south of Victoria (there's 450 km of ocean between Melbourne and Devonport on the north coast), and its wine-producing areas are roughly on the same longitude as the northern part of New Zealand's South Island. Vineyards are a relatively recent thing in this wildly beautiful place - present-day production essentially dates from the 1950s at the earliest, although some plots were planted before the mid 19th century. To name just two highly regarded pioneers as examples, Graham Wiltshire established Heemskerk in the 1960s and Dr. Andrew Pirie Piper's Brook Vineyard in 1974. Wine-growers/makers like them and the next generation have shown in a fairly short space of time that Tassie has fast become the cool climate region of Aus (even if on a limited scale and thus wines on the dear side), especially for aromatic white varieties, top Pinot Noir (which now accounts for almost half of varieties planted) and fine fizz too. See winetasmania.com.au and tamarvalleywineroute.com.au for more info.

So here are four well-known Tas wineries and notes on some of their wines, tasted in London and Dublin on different occasions. The AU$ prices are cellar door and £ prices as per stockists mentioned.

Tamar Ridge - Tamar Valley
Owned by Brown Brothers, their vineyards are located near Launceston in northern Tasmania and the Devil's Corner cellar is on the east coast. UK importer is ABS Wine Agencies, available from Fine Wines Direct UK and Bin Ends at the Bear among others.
2013 Tamar Sauvignon blanc – hints of gooseberry and green pepper vs a fatter riper edge, crisp and juicy with lingering green berry fruit. Au$28, £14.99
2013 Devil's Corner Riesling (from two specific vineyards) – yeasty vs oily nose with light lime fruit, quite intense and 'mineral' with tight vs oily texture; nice style. Au$20, £14.49
2010 Kayena Vineyard Riesling – complex maturing oily notes vs intense 'mineral' palate with long zesty finish, drinking nicely now but will last longer. Yum. £14.99

2011 Tamar Gewurztraminer – quite elegant lychee and rose water style, rounded and mature, drink up now. £11.49

2013 Devil's Corner Pinot Noir ("small amount of barrel ageing") – light and fruity with cherry and herby berry, soft and elegant mouth-feel with a touch of grip and tasty juicy fruit. Au$22, £15.99

2011 Pinot Noir Kayena Vineyard – showing more depth and savoury development, firmer palate yet still silky with fresh structured feel vs attractive sweet/savoury fruit, still quite closed up actually. £15.99

Jansz is a consistently very good bubbly brand made by the traditional or Champagne method, or 'Méthode Tasmanoise' as they call it on their site in typically Aussie two fingers to the French style. The proof is in the pudding as we say...
Jansz Premium Cuvée NV (Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Chardonnay; 2+ years lees ageing in bottle) – Nice toasty touches on the nose, elegant vs yeasty profile with crisp steely bite vs lingering oat biscuit flavours, mouthwatering and tasty finish; good stuff. Au$22.95, £13-£15 Wine Direct, ND John, Hennings.

Jansz Premium Rosé NV (up to 3 years lees ageing) – Similar in some ways, more delicate even with subtle red berry and chocolate cake notes, yeasty vs refreshing crisp finish. Yum. Au$24.95, £14.95 Wine Direct, ND John.
Jansz Vintage Cuvée 2007 (Chardy, Pinot; 4.5 years ageing) – complex nose with toasted oat biscuit, lots of rich yeasty flavours vs again very crisp and well balanced; lovely classy fizz. Au$38.95, £21-£22 Frazier's, Field & Fawcett, Slurp.

Dalrymple Vineyards

This "premium" 12 ha estate is found in the Pipers River region northeast of Launceston, was planted in the early 1990s and is now run by viticulturist / winemaker Peter Caldwell.
2011 Piper's River Estate Chardonnay – complex lees-y oaty and buttery nose, savoury and nutty palate, soft and delicate with nice maturing vs still structured profile, long tasty finish; delicious wine. Au$35, £21-£25 Free Run Juice, Australian Wine Store.
2011 Pinot Noir – perfumed sweet/savoury nose, pure and elegant, lush s/s fruit vs crunchier fresher side, light bite of tannin vs silky maturing Pinot finish. Aus$36, £25 Australian Wine Store, Free Run Juice.

Mega brand Hardy's does also do a selection of high quality limited edition wines - after all they do own some historic vineyards - and their Eileen Hardy label is among them. They're sourcing fruit for the Chardy and Pinot from Tassie...
2012 Hardy's Eileen Hardy Pinot Noir (13.5% abv) - Perfumed and floral with sweet/savoury cherry fruit, quite delicate vs concentrated too, lovely lingering floral Pinot fruit on a silky backdrop. Yum although expensive: €45 in Ireland, UK: £35 Majestic Wine.

Champagne: Drappier IV 'Quattuor'

As an appetiser to all my Champagne talk fizzing up on a handy new archive page, and a Champagnes de Vignerons special feature (links to it: 'growers' Champagnes, i.e. smaller vineyard owners who make Champers from their own grapes rather than selling them to the big houses) coming out after the summer... Here's a note on a very tasty and unusual (and rather expensive alas) special cuvée made by the perhaps less well-known brand Drappier (outside of France at least).

Drappier's Quattuor IV or 'Blanc de Quatre Blancs' is a blend of four white varieties, 25% of each including three "forgotten" and now replanted grapes Arbane, Petit Meslier and Blanc Vrai in addition to good-old Chardonnay. Their blurb also informs us that "only natural compost" was used in the vineyard, and "minimal added SO2 (the standard wine-making preservative) and unfiltered..." The dégorgement (when sediment is removed after second fermentation and lees ageing for "at least three years" in bottle) took place in January 2014, meaning the wine's had nearly another year and a half maturing gracefully before release.
12% abv: This bubbly shows fair class with its enticingly toasty yeasty nose and honeyed oat biscuit notes, fragrant and fruity too; quite rich baked biscuit and brioche flavours vs fine steely mouth-feel, fresh 'cut' and very dry appley finish (the dosage is only 4.2 g/l residual sugar, about one half to one third of the usual amount for 'Brut' styles); tight crisp and long with delicious complex lingering yeasty tones.
Costs about €60 a bottle in France. The UK agent is Berkmann Wine Cellars in London (where I downloaded the bottle shot from), who told me this Champers is mostly sold in restaurants, such as Les Mirabelles near Salisbury, Burythorpe House Hotel in North Yorks, Lake Road Kitchen in Cumbria, Andaz in London, Midsummer House and Alimentum in Cambridge and The Fat Duck in Berkshire. Approx retail price is £50 e.g. Hedonism wine shop in London. Dublin: €84.95 at The Corkscrew.

South African Shiraz update: Cloof

Following on from my recent piece on South Africa: Pinotage & Shiraz / Syrah, I've added two more tasty Shirazes ("sexy" even...) to this and featured them below as well, which are definitely worth throwing out there into the digital wine sphere (they've been winning a few medals recently too: find out more on their site). Both come from Cloof Wine Estate in the Darling region (about an hour or so north of Cape Town) and are 2012 vintage: 'The Very Sexy' Shiraz and Cloof Shiraz. Click on the highlighted link at the top to read the original post. These reds were both aged for 15 months in barrel with more new oak used for the second one, which is also only made from selected bush vine fruit with much lower yields. UK importer: Berkmann Wine Cellars, Cloof Wines UK; online: SA Wines Online, Wines U Like, All about Wine (£ prices stated). O'Brien's in Ireland (€) and many other international distributors (see site as linked above).

2012 Cloof 'The Very Sexy' Shiraz Darling (14.5% abv) - Attractive style, deep purple black, nice peppery black fruit nose with earthy gamey edges even and a hint of coconut oak, quite punchy and spicy mouth-feel, ripe and rounded with light coco texture vs a tad of dry grip, enticing lingering ripe vs savoury fruit with some freshness too. Next day: more savoury and peppery with roast red pepper tones vs fairly rich dark olive vs blackberry and meaty edges. Drinking nicely now although there's no hurry. R75, £12-£13, €15.49.

2012 Cloof Shiraz Darling (14.5% abv) - Apparently there's more oak on this wine but it doesn't really taste of it apart from a background note/texture. Nice wild herby/minty aromas with dark berry, cassis and cherry and liquorice vs savoury tones too; rounded and powerful with attractive tannins vs sweet fruit, roasted red pepper and meaty undertones, light bitter twist and grip on the finish vs a bit of punch and sweet/savoury flavours. Next day: meatier, mintier and spicier and a tad oakier wierdly (?) with that funky roasted red pepper vs cocoa/mocha notes too, sweet dark fruit vs firm and punchy vs rounded and textured, pretty concentrated as well with that light bitter twist adding a bit of edge. R120, £35?

Wine Education Service NI summer and autumn events

First of all, a reminder about the next evening tasting at beginning of July in Belfast:

North & South American wines tutored tasting

Thursday 2 July 7-9 pm - £27.50

"A whirlwind mini-tour across the American continent, northern and southern hemisphere, taking in 6 to 8 wines (depending on numbers) from the US, Canada (maybe), Chile, Argentina and any surprises from South America I can lay my hands on!"

Book online: Wine-education-service.co.uk

New Zealand: Tindall Vineyard, Marlborough

Based in Blenheim in deepest Marlborough wine country, I'm told this family estate is named after Henry Tindall, "grandfather of brothers Clyde and Nigel Sowman," who are now in charge working with well-known winemaker John Forrest. They've created three pretty stylish classic varietals, even if on the dearer side, which are produced by "certified organic grape-growing." UK importer is Awin Barratt Siegel Wine Agencies: available from Smithfield Wine, Hannibal Brown, Rannoch Scott, Dorset Wine, Field & Fawcett, Darcy Wine, Slurp, Steep Hill Wines, Ministry of Drinks, Harrison's Vintners, Cork & Bottle, Christopher Piper, Wine Lines... (the average £ prices quoted). Apparently also available in Ireland, and in the Netherlands from Tamis Wijnen. tindallvineyard.co.nz

Sauvignon Blanc 2013 - lively and pure ripe gooseberry fruit on nose and palate, intense and crisp mouth-feel with nice long finish; classic NZ SB style. £11-£13

Chardonnay 2010 (barrel-fermented, 20% new oak) - enticing maturing fruit with oaty buttery aromas / flavours, elegant balanced style with tasty finish, drinking nicely now. £11-£13

Pinot Noir 2009 - lovely maturing sweet/savoury Pinot nose, soft and silky mouth-feel with subtle concentration and weight vs tasty complex and delicate finish. £17-£19

Italy: Campania

Is Campania one of Italy's most exciting wine areas? It surrounds the region's capital Naples and spreads up and down the coast and inland, where the best-known vineyards lie on steep hillsides; as well as on the Vesuvius foothills and on the coast and islands of Capri and Ischia. Although it's a very southern region, Campania plays host to several excellent white varieties such as Falanghina, Fiano, Greco and the even more obscure/rare Coda di Volpe. On the red front, there's a fair amount of the sometimes star Aglianico grape planted, although I did find some of these a tad firm and extracted even after a few years ageing. The wineries tasted and reviewed in this post are found in the neighbouring subzone appellations of Sannio, Greco di Tufo and Taburno. € prices quoted are cellar door.

Downloaded from www.facebook.com/AnticaMasseriaVenditti
See bottom of post for notes on their wines

Cantina Fontana delle Selve 2013 Falanghina, Sannio DOC - exotic peach and banana notes, quite soft and juicy vs underlying 'chalky' acidity.

Cantine Iannella 2013 Greco di Tufo DOCG - lively lemon apricot and yellow flower aromas, subtle yeasty edges and zesty texture, nice fresh vs weighty finish.

Vigne di Malies - Sannio DOC
Opalus 2013 Falanghina - quite rich and characterful, zesty and juicy vs fatter banana fruit, good wine.

Fojano 2013 Fiano - zesty and intense with floral notes and 'chalky' texture, juicy and delicate then weightier on its very nice finish.

Callida 2013 Coda di Volpe - zesty and 'chalky', tighter structured white with long intense finish.

Aedo 2013 Greco - more exotic perhaps and zestier, quite intense too with tasty complex finish.

Cantina del Taburno
Falanghina 2013 Sannio - lighter style perhaps, still nice and zesty / 'chalky' with long mouthwatering finish. €7.30

Greco 2013 - delicate and 'chalky' with floral celery tones vs juicy pear and ripe peach, crisp and tight on the finish. €7.50

Fidelis 2010 Aglianico del Taburno DOC - lively berry and cherry fruit vs firm structure, nice sweeter and perfumed fruit finish with liquorice notes vs that dry grip. €7.30

Bue Apis 2008 (100+ year-old Aglianico) - dark and smoky with peppery liquorice vs savoury aromas/flavours, still fairly solid structured palate vs lush dark and spicy fruit. Pretty serious red, needs food and a substantial bank account... €45.

La Fortezza
Falanghina 2013 Taburno DOC - quite concentrated peach and banana fruit vs zesty crisp mouth-feel, very nice. €7.50

Fiano 2013 Taburno DOC - similarly concentrated, a little richer and more exotic with rounder palate then zesty long finish. €8

Greco 2013 Taburno DOC - again quite rich vs intense, oily vs nutty palate with tasty long finish. €8

Cantina di Solopaca
Falanghina Frizzante Beneventano IGP (aged 1 month on the lees) - attractive style light fizz with floral notes and 'chalky' crisp bite.

Falanghina del Sannio 2013 - quite 'mineral' / 'chalky' texture with crisp delicate length.

Falanghina Spumante Brut, Sannio DOP (10 months on lees in tank) - a touch yeastier, fairly light and delicate too with refreshing frothy finish.

Fiano 2013 - nutty and intense with tight and crisp mouth-feel, lots of interesting flavours on the finish.

Intenso Moscato Dolce (5.5% abv) - lovely fresh Muscat aromas vs yeastier side, light and easy-drinking, nice sweet fizz.

Solopaca Rosso Classico 2011 Sannio DOP (60% Sangiovese 40% Aglianico, 18 months in barrel) - enticing smoky dark fruit nose with dried cherry and liquorice, firm and fresh mouth-feel vs savoury maturing notes and cooked berries, drinking well now.

Aglianico 2011 Sannio DOP - more structured and grippier vs ripe damson and kirsch flavours, fairly firm and tight still but drinking well enough now.

Masseria Venditti
2013 Assenza Barbetta Sannio DOC (Barbera, organic, no added sulphites) - shows lots of enticing vibrant berry cherry and cassis fruit vs lightly grippy texture, fairly intense actually with peppery liquorice on a long finish; very good.

2009 Marraioli Aglianico Sannio DOC (organic, no oak) - smoky & leather tones with liquorice and meaty edges, attractive firm vs sweet texture, very nice smoky finish; concentrated and tasty red.

WES NI: North & South America tasting 2 July

North & South American wines tutored tasting Thursday 2 July 7-9 pm - £27.50

"A whirlwind mini-tour across the American continent, northern and southern hemisphere, taking in 6 to 8 wines (depending on numbers) from the US, Canada (maybe), Chile, Argentina and any surprises from South America I can lay my hands on!"

Book online: Wine-education-service.co.uk
Facebook.com/WineEducationServiceNI

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N/S America 2 July £27.50 GBP

South Africa: Pinotage & Shiraz / Syrah

darlingcellars.co.za

Traditional vs new South Africa perhaps? Maybe not: I was at least curious to 'revisit' the sometimes unloved Pinotage variety and see how the wines have changed over the past few years. And likewise, although hardly ever unloved, for Syrah or Shiraz (seems to depend on whether the producer feels they're aiming for a French or New World style, or their marketing angle), which is a relative newcomer to South Africa and, going back in time a little, sometimes ended up as rather clunky overblown reds. So, the big "42"? Well, it's not hard to find good wines made from either, or a mix of the two even. Here are 30-odd that did it for me - some of them are pricey though by the way - mostly varietal Pinotage or Shiraz with a few blends of the two or other combos.

2012 Spice Route Pinotage Swartland - smoky nose with coconut edges, lots of spicy fruit and oomph with subtle oak backdrop on the palate, firm mouth-feel but not over-extracted. Good mouthful of flavour although should be for £11.49-£12. Vineyards Direct, SA Wines Online, Lea & Sandeman.

2009 Spice Route Terra de Bron Syrah Swartland - quite concentrated with perfumed sweet berry fruit, turning savoury vs still firm on the finish with attractive ripe fruit. Good Rhone-y style, expensive though: £18-£19. SA Wines Online

2010 Glenelly Syrah Stellenbosch - vibrant and spicy with white pepper tones, punchy and concentrated palate with alluring minty side too, dry yet nicely textured tannins. £12 Tesco.com Wine Direct.

2011 Ernie Els Proprietor's Syrah Helderberg (+5% Viognier) - fairly tightly structured wine, spicy blackberry fruit develops vs again well-done tannins. Still a tad young really with promise. $27-$40 Wine.com, Cape Ardor. £21.75-£22.50 SA Wines Online, Wine Direct.

2010 Rustenberg Buzzard Kloof Syrah Stellenbosch - fairly rich and concentrated with more coconut oak, quite austere big Northern Rhone style perhaps needing even more time in bottle... £16.69 SA Wines Online, £15.70 (casex12) Wine Down.

2011 Kaapzicht Pinotage Stellenbosch - quite concentrated with peppery cranberry and red pepper notes vs a darker smokier side, tight and firm mouth-feel vs stylish spicy/sweet/savoury combo finish. £14.69 SA Wines Online, Tanners.

2010 Kaapzicht Estate Pinotage (barrel selection) - more obvious oak but it's richer and more concentrated, showing enticing sweet/savoury development, punchy and spicy vs nice lingering maturing fruit. Yum - typically it's their dearest one: £27.99 Virgin Wines.

2013 Darling Cellars Black Granite bush vine Shiraz Coastal Region - spicy minty style with ripe berry fruits, quite soft and juicy vs punchy finish. Attractive now. £8.50 Amazon (case x 3), Wine Down £7.99 (case x 12).

2013 Darling Cellars Chocoholic Pinotage Coastal Region ('Ripasso' style with some dried grapes) - lush and smoky vs peppery and herby, big solid finish layered with chunky sweet fruit. £8.95-£10.99 The Drinks Shop, Great Grog, Oxford Wine Co., Paul Roberts Wines, Tesco.com, Harvey Nichols.

2012 Baker Station Reserve Shiraz Franschhoek Cellars - fairly rich and spicy with light coconut grain, firm 'chalky' tannins plus a bit of weight and roundness, drier on the finish. £7.49-£8.95 Fine Wines Direct, Village Wines, Corks Out, SA Wines Online.

2013 Rib Shack Red 'Extra Smooth' Pinotage/Shiraz Douglas Green - spicy berry and smoked red pepper then juicy and fairly soft palate, nice 'commercial' style. c. $10 widely available in the US; £7.39-£7.99 Amazon (case x 3), SA Wines Online.

2014 Douglas Green Pinotage - spicy smoky roasted red pepper notes mingle with peppery berries, again quite soft and juicy mouth-feel. £6.59 SA Wines Online.
2012 Bellingham Basket Press Syrah Stellenbosch (+ a splash of Viognier) - a touch of coconut grain with spicy berries, quite elegant and tight actually with subtle long finish. £11.60 Amazon (case x 3), £11.79 SA Wines Online.
2012 Boschendal Bush Vine Pinotage Stellenbosch/Darling (25+ year-old vines) - concentrated spicy berry, again tightly structured and quite elegant vs big and punchy, still needs some time in bottle but impressive. About £15.
2013 Brampton Estate Pinotage - spicy berry on the nose with roast red peppers, juicy vs grippy palate, attractive style.
2012 Brampton Estate Shiraz - peppery blackberry notes, then tight and 'chalky' tannins with nice combo of almost crunchy vs sweeter fruit, promising. £10.19 SA Wines Online.
2012 Welgemeend Amadé Grenache Syrah Pinotage Paarl - earthy and peppery, quite restrained and firm on the palate vs nice sweet berry and spice, fairly tightly structured 'Euro' style.
2012 Doolhof Dark Lady of the Labyrinth Pinotage Wellington - toasty roasted red pepper plus a smoky darker side, coffee and dark chocolate too, quite soft and silky though with tasty savoury flavours as well. £10+ UK, about $20 in the US.
2010 Major's Hill Pinotage Robertson - smoky roast red pepper and spice vs maturing savoury notes and a touch of coconut grain, fairly full and punchy on its lightly grippy finish. €17-€18 Searsons Wine Merchants, Baggot Street Wines (Dublin). £18.90 Catchpole Cellars.
2013 Lutzville Ebenhaeser Pinotage/Shiraz Oliphants - quite intense and spicy with firm tannins vs vibrant berry fruits and coffee vs roasted red pepper finish.
2012 Lutzville Pinotage François Le Vaillant - touch of coconut spice and grain vs fairly concentrated palate with spicy berry fruits, grippy but nice tannins with attractive savoury vs spicy combo finish. Good.

2014 Lutzville Shiraz - lively blackberry with blackcurrant too, juicy with a touch of grip then nice punchy peppery finish.
2012 Oak Valley Shiraz Elgin - coffee and mocha tones with spicy red peppery edges, lively and juicy palate with structured vs softer mix, smoky 'cooler' style.
2012 Ormonde Chip off the Old Block Shiraz Darling - intense mint/eucalyptus edges vs smoky dark berry fruit, quite concentrated and chunky/grippy vs attractive sweet/savoury fruit on the finish. Good stuff.
2012 Balance Pinotage Western Cape (mostly Swartland) - spicy nose with coffee vs red pepper, lively smoky berry fruit, soft-ish tannins with a little depth and grip to finish.
2010 Somerbosch Shiraz Stellenbosch - maturing savoury vs minty spicy nose, some firmness on the palate still vs nice maturing fruit with spicy berry and coffee tones, drinking well now.
2013 Cavalli Cheval d'Or Black Beauty Shiraz Western Cape - mocha vs roasted red pepper notes, peppery blackberry too with smoky savoury hints then lively finish with light grip. £10 Hard to Find Wines.
2012 Saronsberg Shiraz Tulbagh - coconut oak touches, fairly concentrated though with nice texture, still quite structured with peppery berry finish, needs a few more months/years to round out. £20 Adnams.
2011 Post House Missing Virgin (70% Pinotage 30% Petit Verdot, 15.5% abv) - lush and dark with a touch of oak vs attractive savoury side, chunky firm tannins vs rich and concentrated with gutsy finish for sure. Irony. About $30 in US, Classic Drinks in Ireland.
2012 Cloof 'The Very Sexy' Shiraz Darling (14.5% abv) - Attractive style, deep purple black, nice peppery black fruit nose with earthy gamey edges even and a hint of coconut oak, quite punchy and spicy mouth-feel, ripe and rounded with light coco texture vs a tad of dry grip, enticing lingering ripe vs savoury fruit with some freshness too. Next day: more savoury and peppery with roast red pepper tones vs fairly rich dark olive vs blackberry and meaty edges. Drinking nicely now although there's no hurry. R75, £12-£13, €15.49.

2012 Cloof Shiraz Darling (14.5% abv) - Apparently there's more oak on this wine but it doesn't really taste of it apart from a background note/texture. Nice wild herby/minty aromas with dark berry, cassis and cherry and liquorice vs savoury tones too; rounded and powerful with attractive tannins vs sweet fruit, roasted red pepper and meaty undertones, light bitter twist and grip on the finish vs a bit of punch and sweet/savoury flavours. Next day: meatier, mintier and spicier and a tad oakier wierdly (?) with that funky roasted red pepper vs cocoa/mocha notes too, sweet dark fruit vs firm and punchy vs rounded and textured, pretty concentrated as well with that light bitter twist adding a bit of edge. R120, £35?
The two reds above were both aged for 15 months in barrel with more new oak used for the second one, which is also only made from selected bush vine fruit with much lower yields. UK importer: Berkmann Wine Cellars, Cloof Wines UK; online: SA Wines Online, Wines U Like, All about Wine (£ prices stated). O'Brien's in Ireland (€) and many other international distributors.