Beautiful Complex Cab

Tonight I really fancied something different, so I took a bottle out of 'The Cabinet'. This is a bottle I have had for some time. I don't really know what I was keeping it back for but I am glad I did. It impressed me and it was a lovely bottle to open - Happy Friday!

Katnook Estate, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2001, Coonawarra, Australia.

Smokey brooding dark berries, strong blackcurrant and blackberry aromas underlaid with cedar and cigar box. Mild hints of violets and mint. There is a bit of earthiness to this wine. It's beautifully complex. The smokey dark fruit carries over to the palate. Big thick drying tannins and lovely smokey wood, bonfire flavours. There is some spice and cigar and bramble flavours too. This wine is elegant and smooth. It has a silky texture. Each time you return to it, it gives you something different. It's like it is continuing to evolve in the glass. 4.6/5 (14% abv) About £20.

Jim Barry Cab

Jim Barry, The Cover Drive, Cabernet Sauvignon, 2006, South Australia, Australia.

Super ripe blackcurrant and blackberry fruit. Sweet fruit gum character to this wine. Sweet concentrated fruit. It almost smells like undiluted fruit cordial. You cant really pick up much else on the nose, because you cant get past the super ripe, sweet fruit aromas. Big drying tannins with darker fruits fill the palate with hints of oak, vanilla, and bramble. The first taste of the palate is almost a bit astringent but this mellows and releases the oaky flavours. The palate (after it's mellowed) is quite nice and more characteristic of Cabernet. Considering this is made by Jim Barry and the reputation that this wine maker has, I was expecting a lot more; so I am slightly disappointed with this wine. It will be interesting to see how this wine is showing tomorrow. 3.4/5 (15% abv)

'C'

Opened an interesting bottle tonight with a very intriguing label. Unintentionally I seem to have gone through a Spanish phase, so here is one more!

Bodegas Carchelo, 'Carchelo', 2008, Jumilla, Spain.

This wine won a silver medal at the International Wine Challenge 2009. The wine is made up of 40% Monastrell, 40% Tempranillo and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. Huge big dark berry fruits fill the nose. Cherry, plum and raspberry really stand out, with hints of cedar, eucalyptus and liquorice. The palate is very meaty and savoury. Big drying tannins give this wine some real backbone. The oak comes across slightly heavier on the palate, with some earthy minerality and hints of spice. This is a good wine with great length. This is a food friendly wine which would be ideal with red meat (grilled or roasted). In fact it went really well with the grilled steak and stir fried vegetables we had for dinner. 4.2/5 (14% abv) £8.99 Oddbins.

The Art of Mojito!

Cocktails are very fashionable; Mojitos and Margaritas seem to be all the range at the moment. I must confess, I am quite partial to a Mojito. So, I have decided to try to make them at home and perfect the 'art of Mojito'. Apparently, to get the best result you have to use Bacardi Rum - or maybe this is just the result of Bacardi's advertising! Anyway, the recipe I used tonight was:

1 teaspoon of brown sugar

1/2 lime (cut into 3)

8 mint leaves

50ml Bacardi white rum

A glass of crushed ice

some tonic water

4 drops of Angostura bitters

My first impression is that something is missing; I just cant put my finger on it. It does look quite dark and 'dirty' but I think this is because I used dark brown sugar as opposed to white sugar. The glass will definately need more crushed ice. The ice seemed to disappear quite fast after the rum was added. I possibly need to add more mint. The dominant flavours are the tonic water and the angostura bitters. I will tweak the recipe I have used and report back on the changes I make. As I said earlier, Mojito is an art - mastering this art may take some time but I am up for the challenge as the results will pay for themselves!

A Day Brightening Sauvignon Blanc

It has been a miserable, dreary day in Reading today. So this afternoon I thought I would open a bottle of Chilean Sauvignon Blanc; with the aim of bringing a bit of sunshine to this otherwise wet and winding Saturday!

Castillo de Molina, Sauvignon Blanc Reserva, 2007, Elqui Valley, Chile.

This is a bright, fresh, zingy wine with loads of ripe, juicy gooseberry and lime aromas. There is also some tart granny smith apples, passionfruit, pineapple and some real tropical notes to this wine. There are also on grass like aromas too. There's plenty of mouth watering acidity . This wine really awakens the palate. The gooseberry carries over to the palate and is the dominant flavour. There is also some stoney flinty minerality to this wine. The length is great and continues to linger. 4/5 (13.5% abv) £7.49 Majestic Wine

New Wine Toy!

Today, one of my birthday gifts arrived. It is a filter and funnel by Screwpull. This is something I have been after for some time. I have quite a few bottles which I have been ageing. Over time these bottles will naturally develop sediment as part of the ageing process. When it comes to decanting these bottles, having a filter will make it so much easier and the end result 'cleaner'. This filter is exactly what I was after. The filter is 'double filtered', with two opposing layers of gauze to ensure the wine remains pure and free of sediment. As it only arrived today the filter hasn't been tested yet - I will let you know how I get on!

Friday Night TV and Rioja

I fancied something reassuring and comforting tonight, so I opted for Rioja. This is a bottle that I have had for a while, so tonight I decided to open it an see if the waiting has been worth it.

Castillo San Lorenzo, Rioja Reserva, 2001, Spain.

This wine is made from a blend of Tempranillo, Mazuelo and Graciano grapes. Nice rich cherry and plum aromas. There is a warming spiciness to this wine. There are hints of pepper, cinnamon, juicy red fruits, crushed raspberry and vanilla. Like last nights wine, oak has obviously been used but thankfully not too much. There is more oak character in this one compared to last night's but it sits well with this wine. There are some big drying tannins in this wine, leading to a long finish. The palate has thick darker fruits, some pepper and cedar flavours with some more rounded oaky plum finishing it all off. This is a nice wine that I am glad I kept back for a couple of years and just as glad I am drinking it now. 3/5 (12.5%)

New Glasses

Today I managed to pick up a set of Riedel wine glasses. These are the Shiraz/Syrah glasses. They are part of the 'O' range. These glasses are stemless. These are the first stemless glasses I have had. Riedel claim that they have shaped their glasses to perfectly bring out the flavours and aromas of each grape variety. You can buy glasses aimed specifically at Cabernet, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Shiraz, Port and many more. These glasses have a really good reputation but the proof of the pudding is in the eating as they say...or in this case drinking!

It will be interesting to try a Shiraz/Syrah in a 'normal' wine glass and in a Riedel side by side to see if there is really as much difference and enhancement as they say there will be.

Thursday Tempranillo

Bodegas Fuentespina Granate, Tempranillo, 2006, Ribera del Duero, Spain.

NIce big red fruit aromas. Red cherry and plum are the dominant characteristics. Hints of vanilla come through accompanied with hints of earth. Smells like a fruity but 'rustic' wine. There is some spicy raspberry making an appearance here too. There is a thick textured full palate. Oak has clearly been used but not to excess, which is prevalent in many wines from Spain. Darker spicy red fruit continues on the palate. Big drying tannins give this wine some weight. Good length of after taste to this wine. 3/5 (13.5% abv) £7.99 Majestic Wines

Vouvray is great!

Vouvray is great stuff; so tonight I came home from work and cracked open a bottle.

Domaine Bourillon-Dorleans, Vouvray, 2007, Vielles Vignes, La Coulee d'Argent, Loire Valley, France.

Sweet peaches and nectarines dominate the nose. There is a wonderful eruption of white fruit with the slightest hint of mango, pineapple and jasmine. The white fruit continues onto a delicate palate with some apricot flavours. This is backed up by crisp acidity and some minerality. Beautiful length and finish to this wine. This is a good example of Loire Valley Chenin Blanc. Vouvray had the ability to age well (in good conditions). It would be interesting to see how this wine would develop over the years. 4.5/5 (13% abv) £7.99 Majestic Wine.

Organic Shiraz

This is my first ever organic wine. So tonight I thought I would bite the bullet and delve into a new wine world.

Gemtree Vineyards, Tadpole Shiraz, 2008, McLaren Vale, Australia.

This wine is organically produced with zero filtration, zero fining and minimal intervention. This is a dark inky wine. There are lovely big violety red berry fruits accompanied with plenty of plum and raspberry. This wine if full of sweet rounded ripe fruit aromas. It has a silky smooth texture, fine tannins and great length. There is a nice complexity to this wine. The palate has slightly darker red fruit, lots of savoury meatiness and a good sprinkling of pepper (but not too much). The wine over delivers for its price point. 4.5/5 (14.5% abv) £7.99 Oddbins.

Loosen Riesling and Aussie Pinot Noir

Admittedly there has been a lack of posts lately. Last week I was at Hillsong Conference Europe at London's Excel centre. During the conference it was my birthday. When conference was over my wife surprised me with 3 days at Euro Disney. It was a great opportunity to get away and just be kids again! Needless to say that while I was away I was unable to post anything! So tonight, I have opened two bottles: a Riesling and a Pinot Noir.

Dr Loosen, Bernkasteler Lay, Riesling Kabinett, 2004, Mosel Saar Ruwer, Germany.

Dr Loosen wines provided me with my first experience of Riesling (the Dr L range) and the love affair has continued ever since! This is a lovely golden wine. Hints of white pear and luscious lime. There is a real sweetness to the nose but not quite like honey. The nose really wants you to get into the rest of the wine. My mouth started watering just from the smell! Real concentrated sweetness to the palate, it's super sweet like a Muscat. Some honey comes through on the palate with the smallest hints of pear and citrus. Mild acidity, beautiful, elegant, smooth textured wine. Good length and balance. 4.7/5 (7.5% abv) About £12-14

Scotchman's Hill, Pinot Noir, 2006, Geelong, Victoria, Australia.

Perfect cherry red pinot colour. This is a great example of Aussie Pinot Noir. The nose erupts with cherry, soft plums and raspberry. There is a slight smokiness to this wine, with some cedar coming through with some cinnamon too. The palate is very soft. The smokiness continues with a solid backbone of fruit. You get darker red fruit on the palate than you do on the nose. The cedar also continues on the palate along with some peppery spice and drying tannins. Great balance and length finish off this wine. 4.7/5 (14.9% abv) Majestic Wine £12.99

Monday night wine.

Quinta Generacion, 2004, Colchagua Valley, Chile.

This wine is produced by Casa Silva and is made up of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Carmenere, 15% Shiraz and 5% Petit Verdot. This is a huge fruit forward wine. The nose is bombarded by black wine gums and violets. There is also thick concentrated blackcurrant, ripe rounded plummy fruits, hints of raspberry, mint, eucalyptus, black cherry and tobacco, with subtle edges of vanilla and cedar. This wine is a mine of flavours and aromas. The palate has a beautiful texture with some nice peppery spicy flavours accompanied by lots of plum and berry fruits. Nice drying tannins which are not as big as I thought they were going to be. There is some bitter greenness to the aftertaste. The length is nice and long. 4/5 (14.5% abv) £12.99 Oddbins.

Possibly the last BBQ of 2009!

We had some friends over on Saturday - good friends! So, simply based on the fact that the weather was dry, we had a BBQ! This could well be one of the last BBQs of 2009 - much to my disgust! So we opened a Fleurie as we stood around the BBQ and opened a Syrah as the night progressed.

Bouchard Pere et Fils, Fleurie, 2008, Beaune, Cote d'Or, France.

Lovely sweet cherry, plum and raspberry on the nose (red as opposed to black cherry). There is a mild spicy edge to this wine too but not with too much pepper. The palate is nice and smooth. The is quite a restrained wine with nice refined tannins. The cherry and plum continue through on the palate, but with a bit more spice. This is a good fruity wine (good for the fact that it is still so young, however I would only keep it for a max of 2 years). This is a wine that is best drunk young 4/5 ( 12.5% abv) £9.99 Waitrose Wines.

Mayu, Syrah Reserva, 2006, Elqui Valley, Chile

This wine is full of ripe red berry fruits. There is also some blackberry, blackcurrants and violets here too. There are also hints of raspberry, vanilla and wine gums. There is a sweet concentrated aroma with mild hints of cedar. The palate has silky smooth tannins and more of those ripe berry fruits. There is also some peppery spice which makes a big appearance. This is a big mouth filling wine that has great length and finish. 4.5/5 (14% abv) Majestic Wines

Cono Sur Reserva

Last night we had dinner at friends. It was a fab evening and it was great to catch up. We had Coq au Vin, so the obvious choice and the oh so French option to accompany the meal was Pinot Noir. To add a twist to this I decided to go with a New World Pinot rather than stick with a classic french example - and it went really well.

Cono Sur, Pinot Noir Reserva, 2007, Casablanca Valley, Chile.

This is a good wine; it is more complex than the normal Cono Sur Pinot Noir. Nice cherry and plum aromas, hints of raspberry with cedar and leather. There is a slight greenness here too. The palate is full and quite smooth with nice acidity. The length is long with more of the plum and cherry coming through, accompanied with some spicy pepper. The tannins are smooth.

4/5 (14% abv)