'English wine is no longer the joke it once was,' says Owen Elias, winemaker at Chapel Down in Kent, talking to JONATHAN RAY. Ray is keeping Elias company on a visit to Jean-Philippe Archambaud, winemaker at Simonnet-Febvre in Chablis, but ends up feeling a little out of his depth once the chatter turns to rainfall, sunlight hours, sugar levels and acidity. Although he's back in the frame when the tasting of 2003 and 2004 Chablis begins: 'The wines differ across the quality levels, but their hallmark remains a soft, gentle butteriness with elusive hints of honey and an appealing freshness.' A return match is on the cards for next week, with France putting England to the test. Wines of the week include 2004 Vergelegen Chardonnay, South Africa (7.99 as part of a case; Majestic).
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'The death of the high street has been greatly exaggerated,' claims TIM ATKIN MW. It looks as though there are going to
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'This week's WOW' from MATTHEW JUKES is 2005 Stormhoek Sauvignon Blanc, Western Cape (5.99; Asda, Oddbins, Sainsbury's) - 'a wickedly refreshing wine'.
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If you're looking for a wine to go with bruschetta of red pepper and goat's cheese, GILES KIME says you can't go far wrong with 2005 Vergelegen Sauvignon Blanc (7.99; Majestic).
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RICHARD EHRLICH pays a visit to the retail giants and comes away with a festive medley from each. A good white from Marks & Spencer is 2004 Pouilly-Fuiss (9.99), while one of Ehrlich's favourite reds from Tesco is 2001 Chteau Martin (6.99, down from 9.99).
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JANE MacQUITTY goes up a price bracket into the 'under-12' range and recommends her Christmas selection.
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JAMIE GOODE gets friendly with the environment, saying, 'The number of organic wines, made by people who care about the diversity of life in their vineyards, is on the up.' His 'clear-conscience' tipples include 2004 Carmen Nativa Chardonnay, Maipo (7.99; Oddbins, Booths) and 2004 Chapoutier Ctes du Rhne (6.49; Waitrose).
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You might be able to take Christmas out of Port, but
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MATTHEW JUKES's wine of the week is 2004 Zamora Zinfandel, Lodi, California (6.99; M&S). He also recommends 2005 Stormhoek Pinot Grigio, South Africa (5.99; Harrogate Fine Wine), 2003 Seghesio Barbera, North Coast, California (19.45; George Hill of Loughborough, Liberty Wines, Valvona & Crolla of Edinburgh), 2004 The Storm, Reserve Sangiovese/
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'Australia is alone in how seriously it takes wine marketing,' says JANCIS ROBINSON MW. The University of Adelaide has 600 students in its wine business and marketing school, compared to 10 students in the MBA course run by the University of Bordeaux, she reports. But while the clever Australians have 'seen their global market share zoom skywards over the past decade', there's no longer enough jobs for the growing multitude of wine-marketing graduates. Robinson talks to one such graduate, Jennifer Lynch, who has brought her skills to Britain, 'where there is a desperate need for more marketing expertise in the wine business'. When asked what could be done for French wines, Lynch suggests: 'De-mystify! Adding things like back labels and better labelling in general will help them enormously.'
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JONATHAN RAY is really struggling: 'I've almost run out of goodwill to all men and we're not even there yet.'
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With the party season in full swing, VICTORIA MOORE picks out some festive winners, pointing out that 'you can get a very decent bottle of still wine for the price of the cheapest bubbly'. Among her suggestions are 2005 Knappstein Hand Picked Riesling (6.99, or 5.99 when you buy two; Majestic) and 2004 La Serrana Tempranillo, Vino de la Tierra Castilla y Leon (2.99; Majestic). Or if you must stick to sparkling, a 'ridiculously good deal' is Duval-Leroy Premier Cru Fleur de Champagne (13.99, down from 20.99 until 8 January 2006; Waitrose).
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It's tradition versus science for ANTHONY ROSE this week, as he reports on events from the recent harvest. Technology is
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'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
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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.
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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).
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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
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JAMIE GOODE is well aware that 'brandy suffers from a somewhat fusty reputation these days'. But he's keen to buck the trend and
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'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.
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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).
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