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[bamboo2] 29/2/2012 22:17

bottom fishing [or dredging!] recently. so tried the recommended wine from lidl. gulp.
WHO is recommending this outlet, famed for its tool section?



That's who.

The £3.99 rioja was okay!

[next time i'm in the area I'll try the £6.99 Chablis.]

Tonight Asdas chilean merlot/carmenere combo is also surprising us! £4.00!

[ducatiman] 28/2/2012 20:45

Another cracker from sainsbury, chilean taste the difference reserve pinot noir. Delish.

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 15:16

shore, a few are selling, do a search. they will ship but it is expensive. Transit van best, lol.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 15:01

I presume you can't get any over here?

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 15:00

shorecrab, no probs, I like to keep them to myself, lol, don`t want the herd descending on monsieur le brun.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 14:57

Thanks ducatiman, I can't reply 'cos I'm not blue.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 14:48

Same goes for many French wines. Try getting a really good Beaujolais over here. There are some good ones from small high quality independants, but most of the best cru villages doesn't get here. I pitched up at the cellars of a chap called Roland Despere in Fleurie and bought some direct that hadn't even been labelled yet, opened it back in blighty and it was absolutely scintillating. In fact, if you like red burgundy, the very top end of Beaujolais with about 10 years ageing is a good substitute, even though it's a different grape, and about £15 ish a bottle.

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 14:28

shorecrab, totally agree about burgundy, they keep the best for themselves!! I worked in Franche comte years ago and spent lots of time in burgundy and alsace. Will mail you name of an outstanding producer, his pinot beurot is to die for.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 14:25

Not tannins really in white wine, though you get tannins from new wood ageing. It's mainly to do with acidity, which is why Champagne lasts so long and ordinary ones can improve with a bit of keeping. Really warm places like Oz produce bags of fruit but often not much acidity, so you get big broad blousey flavours which pall because they lack acidic balance. That's why they pick at night. Of course you need a lot of concentrated fruit flavour with the acidity for a good keeper.

[bluebelle] 24/2/2012 14:22

We bought quite a bit of Burgundy in the 90s on a trip to Beaune and have all but finished it. I looked at the current prices recently and I'm afraid it's just more than I'm prepared to pay for a bottle of wine no matter how good it is!

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 14:18

ducatiman, if it's good, wine doesn't really get any better than Burgundy whether red or white for me - but it's an elusive and expensive holy grail. I've had some Yali wines from Majestic but not the pinot, so I'll try it - though there isn't a branch too near. I can't think of any other rot that isn't just harmful, but I doubt if much of the total production of Gewurtz is subjected to it because it's a natural thing that either happens or not (weather) and usually associated with sweet wines - which Alsace doesn't do much of. The wine I had the other night was Californian with mostly Gewurtz, and it was very typical of what you'd expect from the grape, but I know what you're saying.

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 14:17

something to do with the tanins bluebelle? Shorecrab will know.

[bluebelle] 24/2/2012 14:13

It's very interesting talking to our local vignerons about which wines will keep and which won't and how they will change over time. With Loire reds for example, 2003, 2005 and 2009 will keep forever - well, longer than they'll last in our house anyway- but many are good for a few years at most. Funny things is, they can tell which will and which won't by the time of the harvest !

The front of house couple at our local restaurant knew us well. We invariably drank the house white but, the last night we went before they left, he said they hadn't got any of the current year, but could they give us something else instead for the same price. He brought a bottle of 1991 (or 1992 not absolutely certain).
It was delicious. He told us it was the only year in about 10 years which had kept for anything like that length of time - the two years either side had had to be drunk within 2 years.

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 14:06

shorecrab, yes I am aware of the "noble rot" but was not sure if this was what they had on the gewurtz. Thanks for info and good to have an insder posting, lol. Gewurtz from Alsace is unique, have tried from other areas but it is not the same wine. Alsace pinot gris is unique as well, the same grape in burgundy goes under the name of pinot beurot and has a totally different taste but is also absolutely delicious. If you are in sainsbury shorecrab, try the yali pinot noir, especially if you are a fan of burguny pinot noir.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 14:05

My brother had a bottle of Grange '81 and at 20 years old we decided to crack it one evening. It was so big and dense and unevolved you'd think it had been in bottle for a year or two. It wasn't a nice drink and we were very surprised and annoyed with ourselves.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 14:01

Yes I think so too, and they have quite a lot of bottles you don't see elsewhere. Re. some of their very cheap stuff - I think they must be buying from people who are suffering from the recession and getting rid of stock at very cheap prices for cash flow reasons and before the wine is worthless. If you consider duty and other costs the wine must be costing them next to nothing.

[bigbigdave] 24/2/2012 14:00

Must uncork the '85 Penfold's Grange soon, been in the cellar far too many years.
Anyone here tried it?

[bluebelle] 24/2/2012 13:56

Co-op very underrated IMHO. Met an ex-buyer of theirs at a testing in France who was very impressive.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 13:55

ducatiman, noble rot or Botrytis - a beneficial type of mold which reduces water content, increases sugar and imparts a flavour. Used particularly in Bordeaux with Semillon grapes for high quality sweet Sauternes. Sorry, used to work in the trade.

[shorecrab] 24/2/2012 13:51

I did and strangely I was drinking a blend at the time that was mainly Gewurtz - a flavour I hadn't had for quite some time. Bit heavy on the oo laa laa. I do still buy from Waitrose 'cos it's the nearest and where the main shopping happens. They've a good price on Wairau Cove NZ Sauv Blanc - well under £6, and I've got a bottle of Argy Cab Sauv/Bonarda to try. Some of their regular stuff is a bit steep though and I've been finding good value in the Co-op as it happens.

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 13:50

volsung, he is French, lol. Gewurtz is one of my faves, there is a type that they leave very late before harvesting the grape, it gets a mold which gives a unique flavour but they can lose the whole crop due to frost. So it is not cheap.

[bluebelle] 24/2/2012 13:45

Yes. Mine was too ! Can you imagine what it must have tasted like ? !!!

[ducatiman] 24/2/2012 13:38

I am still buying the yali three lagoons pinot noir £7.49 as sainsbury, as good a pinot noir you will taste this side of a premier cru!
Did anyone watch the Raymond Blanc program on bbc 2 last night, lucky bar steward was offered a 40 yr old Gewurtztraminer, my mouth was watering.