"Order my book on the Roussillon wine region (colour paperback) DIRECT FROM ME SAVING £4/€4 (UK & EU only), or Kindle eBook on Amazon UK. Available in the USA from Barnes & Noble in hardcover, paperback or eBook; or Amazon.com. For other countries, tap here." Richard Mark James

10 March 2014

English sparkling wine supplement

I've put together a 20-page special supplement on English sparkling wines, which is fizzing over with great 'Champagne' lookalikes, and taste-alikes, from a dozen exciting English wine estates, vineyards, wineries and brands featuring Digby, Henners, Hush Heath, Jenkyn Place, Danebury, Gusbourne, Chapel Down, Bolney, Bluebell, Ridgeview, KnightorFurleigh and many more. Plus a few facts, figures and comments on where the English fizz industry is at... Available as a PDF mini-mag - buy it by card or your own Paypal account (although you don't need one to do this or subscribe). Not free2view!


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21 February 2014

Languedoc & Roussillon: "wines of the mo"

Picked out from a South of France (goes to 'Sud de France Top 100' site, some of these wines were competition winners) tasting I did a few weeks ago for the www.niwsi.co.uk in Belfast, these wines were probably my favourite half-dozen from an interesting and diverse line-up, just for the pure pleasure of plonking a few tasty words out there in the blogosphere...

Domaine Denois 'Sainte Marie' Limoux blanc 2010 (single site "high-altitude" Chardonnay, barrel-fermented/aged) - the best of the three whites we tasted, I found it pretty much as I remembered it as per this note here (including more info on JL Denois and the wine). Touch of class. €15 cellar door.

Château de Cazeneuve 'Cynarah' Pic Saint-Loup 2011 (Cinsault, Syrah, Grenache) - attractive juicy ripe black cherry and liquorice fruit, soft tannins and rounded mouth-feel with a touch of earthy spice and mint. £12.95 the Wine Society. Previously on Cazeneuve.

Domaine Modat 'Comme Avant' Côtes du Roussillon Villages Caramany 2010 (Grenache, Syrah, Carignan from some of the oldest vines; half of it aged in new oak for 16 months) - a popular choice, I've already reviewed it here where you'll find more about the producer too. Nice mouthful of Med red, a tad expensive though. James Nicholson £14.95 / €21.80.

Pic by Ros Wilson
Château de Lastours 'Grande Réserve' Corbières 2008 (Syrah, Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre: oldest vine selection 30 to 40 y.o; 75% of the blend aged 1 year in French oak) - attractive maturing smoky savoury and dried fruit side vs concentrated and still fairly firm structure, well balanced too. c. €18. More Lastours here.

Laurent Miquel 'Bardou' Saint Chinian 2008 Grande Cuvée (mostly Syrah from selected sites on the Cazal Viel estate, 14 months in French oak - 55% new) - another pretty serious red I'd tasted previously (goes to my special supplement on St Chinian inc. profile on Miquel and notes on several wines), showing a fair bit of oak but it's concentrated and structured with nice fruit. £16 Excel Wines, €20.99 Dunnes.

Domaine Cazes Rivesaltes ambré 2000 (100% Grenache blanc fortified to 16% abv, aged 7+ years in old tuns, 118 g/l residual sugar) - classic style with enticing oxidized walnut/pecan notes, complex flavours with nice sweet vs tangy and savoury finish and a bit of 'cut'. Liberty Wines approx retail £15 half-bottle. Lots more old Cazes here.

20 February 2014

'Wines of the mo' - Germany, S Africa, Spain, France, Portugal, Argentina

rustenberg.co.za
My favourites - and many of the enthusiastic attendees - from around the globe tasted on a recent Saturday 'wine workshop' I ran in Belfast, which deserve a little more airing:

Germany, Mosel: Selbach-Oster Riesling Kabinett 2006

29 January 2014

Languedoc special: Saint Chinian wine touring

Alexandre Jougla checking
there's a spider in your wine...

I've published an 18-page Languedoc special supplement on lesser-known Saint-Chinian wine country, following an exciting trip there at the end of last year, which is not viewable on this blog! This mini touring guide features winemaker interviews and profiles with plenty of hot wine recommendations focusing on these estate wineries: Canet Valette, Cambis, Jougla, Cazal Viel and Laurent Miquel, La Madura, La Femme Allongée, Boissezon Guiraud, Milhau-Lacugue, Bousquette, Navarre, la Maurerie, Pech Menel...
There's also a spotlight on this year's 'Grand Cru selection' competition winners and my favourites (e.g. La Grange Léon, La Linquière, Borie La Vitarèle, Moulinier, Cave de Roquebrun, Les Eminades, Viranel, Champart among others...). Plus a few tips on good eating and places to stay in the Saint Chinian area, such as Château les Carrasses and Le Faitout restaurant, as well as some serious 'high-altitude' turnip talk (aka navets du Pardailhan)...

It's all now part of a massive French wine e-magazine HERE.

More St Chinian on this blog:
Languedoc special supplement 2015
Languedoc: Saint-Chinian 2010 vintage report
Or peruse the Languedoc winery A to Z in the right hand column for more estates in St Chinian...

23 January 2014

Wine Education Service NI tastings and courses

... Can be viewed on WineWriting.com: Wine Education Service NI tastings and courses: "The wine-tastic WES NI  courses and tastings being poured over the next few months, at the  Ramada Encore in Belfast city centre and tutored by RMJ..." Click there.

Wine Education Service NI tastings and courses UPDATE

Updated February 26

The wine-tastic WES NI courses and tastings being poured over the next few months, at the Ramada Encore in Belfast city centre and tutored by RMJ, are outlined below. All events run on Thursdays 7 pm to 9 pm, apart from the Saturday workshop (doh!).
Essential Wine Tasting five-week course - 3 April to 1 May £125 per person. More details here: wine-education-service.co.uk/introductory
Tour de France tutored wine tasting - 27 March £25.
Australia and New Zealand tutored tasting - 8 May £25.
Wines of Italy Saturday workshop - 31 May £90 including two-course lunch. More info here: wine-education-service.co.uk/workshop
More details about the two evening events above and online booking: wine-education-service.co.uk/wine-tasting-belfastYou can also pay for these tastings by PayPal using the button below. If you're a regular user of Local Wine Events.com, you can get in touch with me from this page: www.localwineevents.com.


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Header image: Château de Flandry, Limoux, Languedoc. Background: Vineyard near Terrats in Les Aspres, Roussillon.