Grape Juice

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At some point or other, we all in the wine business have probably been asked that most intimate, reflective and often challenging of questions: why wine?

But really, what makes wine so special? I mean, you grow some grapes, squash them, add yeast, bottle it and then it makes you drunk, right?

Well yes, but here are just a few (and I'm talking tip of the iceberg) examples of the magical little quirks that, for me at least,  make it so very much more than that:

The vineyards of the famous Châteauneuf-du-Pape in southern  Rhône are strewn with large round stones called 'galets' or 'pudding stones'. These stones spend all day absorbing heat from the sun and all night warming up the vines. Nobody put them there, they're just there. But it's these stones that mean the wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape have more body, intensity and structure than most in the world, and warrant their esteem.

Despite the fact that the bottled product may spend months or years maturing in a cellar, be shipped around the world in planes, trains and automobiles, and spend goodness knows how long sitting on a shelf in a shop; many grapes are picked at night, when it's a bit cooler, to retain their freshness.

Some wines, particularly sweet white wines of Sauternes for example, are capable of aging over a century, and offer a different drinking experience on any given day of its lifetime. The French red Beaujolais Nouveau is best drunk within a matter of days.

Why wine? 

Because wine has more depth, more character, more expression of its origins, more heart and more soul than I can even begin to describe.  

Grape juice it may be, but my God it's special.

Look what the cat dragged in...

It's really amazing what you find lying around in your cupboards.

Here we have four wines that I've bought over the last four years and stuck in the 'not for immediate consumption' pile, hidden away in the closest thing I have to a cellar, behind the hoover in the hall cupboard.

Starting on the right we have that good old Oddbins favourite: 'The Chocolate Block' from South Africa's ever-zany Boekenhoutskloof. It's the 2006 vintage, I bought it four-and-a-bit years ago at my local Oddbins branch, well aware of the cult status it had amongst oddbinners at the time. The blend of Syrah (55%); Grenache noir (17%); Cinsault (15%);Cabernet Sauvignon (9%) and Viognier (4%) means it should have enough fruit and tannic structure to have settled down nicely over the 5 years since vintage and I'm hoping to pop it open in the not too distant future - watch this space.

Next up is a 2005 Abadia Retuerta Sardon de Duero 'Seleccion Especial' which apparently won the IWC red wine trophy in 2005 - so it must be good. I picked it up from the awesome little wine shop in North Berwick for about £20. Its a Tempranillo/Cab/Merlot blend with 18 months in oak, so I'm sure a couple more years in the bottle wont go amiss, but not much more.

Gewurztraminer sticks its exotic nose in next - Wolfberger 2008 from Alsace. Got it in Amsterdam last feb. Who's gonna argue with giving a Gewurz a few years in the bottle?

Finally making a well deserved appearance is a lovely little Pinot from Côte de Nuits Villages. Clos des Langres 2006 'Monopole'. £20-something after ex-staff discount (it pays to have had a few jobs around town) at Oddbins again, early this year. Who knows how this one will age? It's definitely going back in the box for a while though.

So there you have it - an eclectic mix, special perhaps because of memories more than aging potential, but should still be a pretty fascinating journey through a few years of wine.

Check back for tasting notes when they finally reach the glass!

Longing for Languedoc: 3 great wines for under a tenner

So I tweeted (or is it twote?) recently that the first wine we sold out of at work was rather interestingly a Picpoul de Pinet. How, I ask you, could I let something like that go by without passing comment, hmm? Well I just couldn't. So here are my thoughts on what turned out to be a trio of fab little wines from the South of France:


Baron de Badassiere is the name on the bottles here, the grapes from the Picpoul de Pinet region of Languedoc. The wines are made by kiwi winemaker Graeme Paul at a co-op named Cave de Pomerols.

Baron de Badassiere Sauvignon Blanc, 2009

Lemon-gold in colour, the Sauvignon puts forward fairly lively aromas of gooseberry, citrus fruits and green apple. The palate is refreshing and zippy, with a respectable transition from lemon and apple through to a surprising tweak of minerality. Varietal accuracy seems to be the goal with this one and it doesn't disappoint.

Baron de Badassiere Viognier. 2009

Although a bright looking wine in the glass, you really have to stick your nose in this one. The rewards are there however with lemon zest, apricots and orange blossom. On the palate, the apricot continues, with a twist of pink grapefruit. The Viognier finishes on a bit of a down note with a slightly over-ripe resemblance of tinned pineapple. Good all-rounder though.

Baron de Badassiere Picpoul de Pinet, 2009

A pale lemon-green wine here. The official tasting note from Liberty Wines says "fresh fruit aromas and some floral notes". My scribbled notes at the time of drinking say "youthful, pear, orange blossom, unripe mango, petrol". The quirkiness continues on to the palate with  good acidity and flavours of orange, grapefruit, pear and white peach. An elegant finish rounds off a wine that terms like 'more-ish' were coined for.


In conclusion then, at £8 a bottle I'd be satisfied with the Viognier, pleased with the Sauvignon and come back time and time again for that cheeky little Picpoul - a really great wine for the price.

All three are exclusive to Liberty Wines and can be bought (from me!) at Berits & Brown, Edinburgh.

Big thanks to Simon & Audrey for this one.

My first blog!

Well here it is - my first ever blog!

The excitement is almost enough to make me chew my own foot off, but fear not, I will contain myself.

The idea here is to write about wine. Drinking wine, buying wine, selling wine, drinking wine, studying wine drinking wine, and so on.

Firstly though, here's some of my background (with a few name-checks thrown in!):

My good ol' dad has always been a wine drinker so I guess I have him to thank for my ever being interested in the first place. Professionally, I started at Oddbins in Dunfermline many moons ago where Paul took me under his wing and showed me the ropes. I've since done some winey work for Sainsbury's, more Oddbins in Edinburgh, a brief stint at Valvona & Crolla and am now at a newly opened winebar/coffee shop/bistro/deli/little bit of everything Berits & Brown at the top of Leith Walk. It's fun, I like it there.

I am studying WSET Advanced at the moment (well, should be, but actually I'm blogging) with Case Studies Wine School and, under the very knowledgeable guidance of Claire Blackler and her crew, I am well on the way to passing my exam in a few weeks time.

Right, enough about me. Here's some links:

 Case Studies Wine School:
www.casestudieswineschool.co.uk

 Berits & Brown:
www.beritsandbrown.com/edinburgh