McGuigan, The Philosophy 2010‏

A premium wine from Australia's McGuigan

A driver don't pick the cars. Cars pick the driver.
- Bobby Bolivia, Transformers (2007)

The more wines I try, the more I find myself drawn to the more restrained styles of northern Europe.

At their best, the cool-climate wines of Champagne, Chablis and the Loire have a piercing intensity, a compelling freshness and assertive subtlety.

By contrast, the New World styles of Australia and California all too often seem rather too big and brash; pimped-up and surgically-enhanced with too much of everything - except subtlety.

This The Philosophy from McGuigan underwhelmed me on our first encounter; re-sampled, it is complex and full of ... stuff. But not my thing.

Lots of ripe dark fruit - it reeks of cassis, blueberry and elderberry - slightly stewed; cool mint, pencil shavings, liquorice, roasted spices and fine tannins. Long and savoury.

But I still prefer more restraint.

Its blowsiness matches well with some poshed-up New World-style food - deconstructed cheese burgers with roasted peppers, stuffed with tomatoes, rosemary, garlic and chili.

The 2010 turns out to be its launch year and its aim is be a limited edition premium wine in a "claret style", selling for triple figures; oak, extraction and alcohol have been tamed, apparently. Rather like Sylvester Stallone in Cop Land, it is accomplished in its own, big, muscular way. But it is no John Gielgud.

Provided by the IWSC.

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Domaine de la Ferrandière, Languedoc

Domaine de la Ferrandière Languedoc

It is one of the happy accidents of nature that places where vines grow often happen to be very beautiful and blessed with good weather.

Making a virtue of necessity, many wine estates now also offer oenotourism - holiday accommodation amongst the vines.

Based in Aigues-Vives not far from the historic fortress-city of Carcassonne in Languedoc, Domaine de la Ferrandière is currently developing an historic property on the 100ha estate into five suites of luxury boutique accommodation.

The renovation will not be completed until the end of 2015, so in the meantime they sent me four of their wines to try.

Backed by Languedoc heavyweight Paul Mas, these are affordable, modern, uncomplicated, easy drinking wines - technically well-made and stylistically approachable, aiming for the broadest appeal.

Domaine Ferrandiere Sauvignon Blanc (£7.40) expressive and aromatic, kiwi-style gooseberries and cut-grass, with plenty of ripeness.
Domaine Ferrandiere Viognier (£7.60) the most interesting wine here for me; apricot and melon fruit with good underpinnings
Domaine Ferrandiere Malbec (£6.90) bright, ripe fruit, freshness and spiciness
Domaine de La Ferrandiere Pinot Noir (£9.99 - £7.49, Majestic) ripe berry fruit, soft texture

All wines available from Waterloo Wines; provided for review.

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Award-Winning France - Three Wines From The Co-op

Three award-winning, classy French wines from the Co-op - what's more, two of them are all on special offer until 3rd of January 2015.

So whether you are stocking up, or just popping out to replenish stocks, these three will turn any meal into an occasion.

The Champagne continues to impress - it is drinking beautifully even now, but will continue to improve with age and is a bargain compared to many better-known marques.

The Rhone red is a warming, spicy sort of wine for midwinter, whilst the Sauternes is a delightful (and ridiculously cheap) blend of complex sweetness and freshness.
 

Les Pionniers, Champagne 2006 (£24.99) Golden Sandy yellow, ripe orchard fruits and white peach, toasty leesiness, mouthfilling acidity and a fine mousse. Complex, well-structured and assertive.

Very Good. Drink as an aperitif, with seafood starters, mushroom paté or even alongside roast turkey.

 

The Co-op Chateauneuf du Pape 2013 (£13.99 down from £15.99) From the Rhone, Chateauneuf du Pape is a southern powerhouse of a wine.

 

Translucent ruby-purple; ripe, juicy, slightly baked but not jammy black cherry, plum and blueberry fruit with roasted spices. Supple texture and fine tannins.

 

Concentrated and long with savoury underpinnings.

 

Good. Match with roast red meat.

 

Chateau Roumieu Sauternes, 2009 (£7.99 down from £12.99 - half bottle) The four cool years since 2010 have not been kind to red Bordeaux, but the dessert wines have thrived.

 

Apricots, honeysuckle blossom, beeswax and candied lemons; sweet tropical fruits, sherbet, acacia honey, Sicilian lemons and overripe peaches with some musky beeswax.

 

Long, sweet-sour-savoury and complex. And delicious. And an absolute bargain.

 

Very Good. Match with Crème brûlée or lemon torte.

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Wind Up

Another year, another winding.

A tweet to @clockkeeper on Christmas Eve brought us the offer of winding up the Trinity College clock on Christmas Day.

We met in the usual place - under the clock itself - at a few minutes to midday and made our now familiar way up several floors to the little room at the back of the timepiece for more information on the clock mechanism whilst we wound the various weights, of which there are four in all.

This task completed, we were invited up some wobbly ladder-style stairs and out onto the roof for a view over Cambridge and more history - why the tiles at the top of the roof are smaller than those at the bottom; the age and history of the bells which were first cast over 400 years ago, but have broken, been melted down and recast since.

Back on the ground floor, we learnt that the clock keeper has added a Guinness World Record to his already impressive list of achievements, not least of which is imbuing small children with an infectious fascination about the physics of natural forces using bouncy balls, slinkies and spinning tops.

 

There was also mulled wine - purely for seasonal purposes.

 

It is as if your best geeky childhood friend grew up to be a PhD in physics at one of the greatest universities in the world but still kept all his cool toys that you used to go round to play with: "And what does this one do?".

 

A very special way to celebrate Christmas Day.

 

As for the rest of the day, it was far more conventional; presents for the children at the start of the day and a roast dinner afterwards before settling in front of the various TV specials.

 

But for a couple of hours, we exercised our brains and our winding arms with the greatest of views in the best of company.

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Three Bergerac Wines

Three wines from Bergerac

 

Bergerac sits as an eastern rump-end beyond Bordeaux; further inland, with a more continental climate but mostly the same Bordelais grape varieties, it makes wines with a bit more gutsy effusiveness than its more-aristocratic neighbour.

 

Mayne de Beauregard, Bergerac 2013 (£7.99, Marks & Spencer) Pale in the glass and light at just 12.5% - more fresh and Loire-esque than southern. A blend of Cab, Merlot and Cab Franc, the Cab Franc seems to dominate, with cherries, red plums and classic pine needle aromas.

 

Juicy and refreshing - a classy, well-balanced and enjoyable quaffer.

 

Bergerac Rouge, Château Tour des Gendres 2013 (£7.95, The Wine Society) A darker, bigger, more-substantial beast from an unusual blend of Merlot and Malbec.

 

Complex nose of dark fruit, spice and undergrowth; more ripe dark fruit, spiciness, concentration and grip on the palate with a persistence and firmness on the finish.

 

More plumpness, presence and complexity than the Beauregard. Good.

 

Matches well with toad-in-the-hole.

 

Château Les Sablines Monbazillac 2012 (£9.99 / reduced to £7.99 until 30/12/14, Waitrose) Golden Sandy yellow, with aromas of orange blossom, musky roasted peaches and beeswax. Sweet ripe peaches, barley sugar, candied lemons and tropical fruits with good freshness.

 

A less expensive, if less-complex, alternative to Sauternes.

 

Match with creme brulee or lemon torte and Chantilly cream.

 

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Three New World Wines for Christmas

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Three New World Wines for Christmas

Three bold, characterful wines for Christmas from Sainsbury's, Majestic and Waitrose

If you want to make an oenological statement this Christmas, these three New World wines are a good place to start; with more sunshine, ripeness and stuff going on generally, they will definitely get a party started - assuming that's what you want to do:

Marques de Casa Concha Cabernet Sauvignon 2012 Sainsbury’s £11.99
Lots of ripe cherry, cassis, cedar, and smoky tar; big, dense and concentrated, this is a turbo-charged, 80s power suit of a wine - complete with filofax, house-brick mobile phone and electro-funk soundtrack.

Match with plain roast beef or lamb; don't be afraid to decant for several hours.

The Ned Noble Sauvignon Blanc £12.99, Majestic (Mix and Match 2 bottles save 33% - £8.65)
Golden, viscous nectar with a pungently kiwi nose; lusciously sweet apricot, honeysuckle and refreshing exotic fruits combine with floral honey.

Match with crème brûlée or lemon torte and Chantilly cream.

Old Boys 21 Years (50cl) NV Waitrose £21
Unusual fortified Australian tawny, aged for 21 years in barrel. Neither a port, nor a sherry, nor a Madeira, but resembling a curious blend of all three, with roasted nuts and sweet spices, treacle-and-toffee, raisins and dried red berries with a fresh, savoury complexity.

Match with Christmas pudding or mince pies and brandy butter.

Provided for review.

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Two Villa Maria Reds

Two Private Bin reds from New Zealand's Villa Maria

New Zealand winery Villa Maria produces well-made reliable wines with a New-World clean-ripeness and a cool-climate freshness. They are always well-balanced and drinkable.

But they rarely make a wine enthusiast's heart beat faster - they are as safe, reliable and unexciting as a Volvo, a bit pipe-and-slippers.

These two wines would be safe options if you have a mixed audience of people to entertain and want something of above average quality, or if you want to make a first foray into New Zealand wine and are looking for an easy start point with nothing strange or challenging.

There's nothing not to like here.

Villa Maria Private Bin Pinot Noir 2013, £12.99 (Asda, Budgens, Co-op, Morrisons, Taurus Wines, Vino’s Edinburgh. Hailsham Cellars, Matthew Clark, www.nzhouseofwine.co.uk)

Sweet ripe red fruits and plums, very Burgundian nose with mushrooms and woodsy undergrowth and spice with a touch of toasty oak. Clean and fresh; well put-together. Very pleasant.

Villa Maria Private Bin Merlot / Cabernet Sauvignon 2012, £12.99 (Majestic, Morrisons, Globe Wines, Matthew Clark, www.nzhouseofwine.co.uk

A Bordeaux blend, but in a much riper, bigger and more expressive style - fruit-forward, lots of sweet, ripe dark cherry and plum; very clean and well-made with supple tannins.

Provided for review.

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