'I taste a lot of rubbish so that you don't have to,' says TIM ATKIN MW. Out of the 10,000 wines he tastes per year, Atkin reckons that only 500 are worth a second look. And although there might be a couple of good ones that slip through the net, Atkin maintains his customary modesty: 'I am generally a
Read more...GILES KIME suggests a few food-and-wine matches, such as 2004 Cono Sur Pinot Noir (4.99; Sainsbury's) with teriyaki salmon and sesame noodles.
Read more...JANE MacQUITTY selects her choice of the best 25 wines for under 8, including 2004 Mcon Ig, La Crepillionne Chardonnay, Domaine Fichet (6.95; Stone, Vine & Sun) and 2003 Icardi Barbera d'Asti, Tabaren, Cave Pierino (7.99; Oddbins).
Read more...NIGEL SLATER admits that he finds 'some, if not most, pontificating on wine and food "marriages" somewhat unconvincing'. He gives TIM ATKIN MW one lunchtime to change his mind. The savoury highlight is baked red mullet with preserved lemons, served with 2005 Kaituna Hills Sauvignon Blanc, Malborough (6.79; Marks & Spencer). While the sweetest sweet thing is mincemeat and apple tart with 2003 Mission Hill
Read more...JAMIE GOODE is well aware that 'brandy suffers from a somewhat fusty reputation these days'. But he's keen to buck the trend and
Read more...'I hate tasting wine in public,' confesses JANCIS ROBINSON MW, following the seventh annual Pol Roger Business School Alumni Blind Wine Tasting Challenge. One of the offending wines was a 'red Champy 2003 Pernand Vergelesses that I for one would have taken for a particularly exuberant Rioja'. The factual quiz was just as taxing as the tasting for those who didn't know that Winston Churchill is likely to have had around 42,000 bottles of Pol Roger opened for him between 1908 and 1965. 'Pol Roger is now branching out and clearly hoping to establish itself as the leader in the field of blind wine tasting sponsorship,' notes Robinson.
Read more...For good or bad, 'Italian red wines have gradually become riper, softer, fruitier and more New World in style', says JOANNA SIMON. For an example from Chianti, try 2003 Badia a Coltibuono (9.99; Tesco). Simon's wine of the moment, however, is 2003 Tortoise Hill Red, South Africa: 'an unusual but delicious blend' of Zinfandel, Shiraz, Touriga Nacional, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Moving on to spirits, her top choice is Reyka Vodka (15.99-19.99; Harvey Nichols, Peckham's).
Read more...ANTHONY ROSE also has Australia on the brain: 'Australian wine is squaring up to French at every level,' he asserts. He predicts that 'over the coming year, Shiraz is likely to remain the dominant force in Australian wine', while 'Cabernet from Margaret River and Coonawarra should stage a comeback'. Rose's top weekend wine to 'splash out' on is 2003 Hewitson Old Garden Mourvdre, Barossa Valley (16.95, or 15.25 each bought as a case; Berry Bros & Rudd).
Read more...MATTHEW JUKES goes red and gets serious with his own take on a few good-value winter warmers. Among his favourites are 2003 Robert Mondavi Woodbridge Shiraz (6.49; Sainsbury's) and 2005 Diemersfontein Pinotage (7.99; Waitrose). Although,
Read more...'Drinkable wine has never been cheaper,' says RICHARD EHRLICH, but he's still not happy. And this is because the low prices are brought about by supermarkets that 'screw such harshly ungenerous terms out of their suppliers'. Trade up a notch, says Ehrlich, and fork out for something better, such as 2002 Doa Dominga Carmenre Reserva, Chile (6.99; Sainsbury's).
Read more...A Sainsbury's selection from RICHARD EHRLICH: El Burro Kickass Garnacha (4.99, down from 7.99), Fuller's London Porter (1.32/500ml, down from 1.76) and 2004 Villa Wolf Pinot Noir Ros (4.99, down from 6.99).
Read more...Some of us might enjoy the run-up to Christmas, some of us might even have fun on the day itself, but not JONATHAN RAY: 'I must confess to finding both journey and destination pretty grim.' Drink your way through, is his advice, and a cracking fizz to start things off is Mumm Demi-Sec Champagne (22.49; Waitrose). For party wines that won't break the bank, Ray suggests 2003 Tiki Ridge Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay, New Zealand (4.99; Waitrose) and 2004 Sainsbury's Australian Merlot (3.99).
Read more...Stuart Husband attends the second quarterly Lunch Club at the Moro restaurant in London. Someone asks if ros is 'in'. 'Very much so,' comes the reply, 'but not Mateus Ros.' Rioja is the order of the day. The next Lunch Club, in January, is based on Sherry.
Read more...For a 'cheat's dinner party' of leek vinaigrette with eggs and chives, Moroccan spatchcock with couscous and tzatziki followed by caramelised roast apples, GILES KIME recommends 2004 Shingle Peak Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (7.29; Sainsbury's), 2004 Errazuriz Estate Shiraz (5.99; Sainsbury's) and Muscat de St Jean de Minervois (3.99 for 37.5cl; Sainsbury's).
Read more...Jamie Goode struggles to match wines to winter veggies, of all things. He goes for fruity, flavoursome reds for glugging. They include 2002 Don Reca Limited Release Merlot (9.99; Waitrose, Sainsbury's); 2004 Caves Saint-Pierre Ctes du Rhne Villages Preference (6.99; Tesco); 2001 Kingston Empiric Selection Durif (5.99, Morrisons); 2004 Nepenthe Tryst (6.99; Oddbins, Asda, Waitrose, Somerfield); and 2004 La Basca Uvas Blancas, Via de la Tierra de Castilla y Leon (4.99; Marks & Spencer).
Read more...JAMIE GOODE is bowled over by South Africa, saying, 'The wine scene is so vibrant here that it's hard to keep check of what's going on.' He advises on a few top bottles such as 2005 Vergelegen Sauvignon Blanc, Helderberg (7.99; Tesco, Sainsbury's) and 2004 Porcupine Ridge Syrah, Coastal Region (6.99; Waitrose).
Read more...The Gaucho Grill chain of Argentinian restaurants impresses ANTHONY ROSE with its wine lists, the fruits of Phil Crozier's passion. Notable mentions come for Vicien Bonarda, 2005 Crios de Susana Balbo Torronts Cafayate, Norton Privada, O Fournier Bcrux Tempranillo and 2002 Finca Flichman Paisaje
Read more...A 'paradigm of modern rural Englishness' is how VICTORIA MOORE describes the Wiltshire village of Heytesbury, where she drank Wylye Valley wines - all of them whites and named after fishing flies: Watson's Fancy, Teal and Green, and Coachman. 'Never mind headlines about sparkling English wine beating Champagne in blind tastings,' she writes. 'Only when we see more of it drunk thoughtlessly will we begin to be a proper wine-producing country.' Nevertheless, in her Drinks Q&A, Moore recommends Chapel Down Extra Dry NV (11.99; Sainsbury's).
Read more...Deep in the Wicklow Hills of Ireland, JONATHAN RAY meets 'the Brooke Shields of cows', one of a herd of 100 that supplies milk for Baileys. It's 100% natural, no preservatives, using top-quality cream from the healthiest of cows, eating the lushest of grass, apparently.
Read more...JANE MacQUITTY gets 'heartily fed up of other commentators whingeing about' high alcohol levels. She asks so what if a blood, guts and thunder Aussie red weighs in at 14.5% alcohol, or a majestic, dark, brooding South African Syrah at 14.7%, as long as the wines is balanced and the alcohol integrated.
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