Wine is reduced to onlooker status as JANCIS ROBINSON MW spends a hard day at the office of Michel Roux Jr, trying six different food courses, each with a possible match of beer or wine - and beer is the winner: 'I can reveal that in only two out of the six cases did I prefer the wine to the beer. A result for brewers everywhere!' One of her favourite matches is Stilton and Brie with Brakspear Triple, which Robinson discovers is 'made using "the rare double drop fermentation system", which certainly tastes as good as it sounds, and I feel inspired to introduce it to the world of wine'.
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JANE MacQUITTY refuses to be duped by 'dodgy waiters and restaurants on the fiddle', and she offers her top tips for getting one up on the 'unctuous sommelier' with advice on how to detect a faulty wine and, perhaps more importantly, how to send it back: 'Be prepared for any number of excuses. Don't take it personally, stick to your guns and avoid losing your temper.' MacQuitty's top wines of the week include 2002 Boundary Road Shiraz, Margaret River (down 1.50 to 4.49 until 13 November; Co-op).
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VICTORIA MOORE continues her search for 'inexpensive, everyday' reds, coming away empty handed from a small Tesco branch, but making up the numbers at Booths with the 'gorgeous, savoury' 2003 La Sauvageonne Les Ruffes Cteaux du Languedoc (4.99) and the 'smooth, rounded, strawberry' 2001 Ochoa Tempranillo (6.99). Moore also comments that Booths offers a 5% discount with purchases of six bottles or over.
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TIM ATKIN MW goes time travelling and lands up in Tutankhamun's tomb. The mystery begins: 'The hieroglyph on its side suggested the jar had contained wine for the afterlife. But what sort?' The presence of tartaric and syringic acid leads to the first discovery: 'The Egyptians drank red wine.' His quest continues with the speculation that 'it tasted a bit like Madeira'. Ultimately, he decides that 'wine is basically the same drink today as it was when they sealed Tutankhamun's tomb'. Give or take a few advancements over the past 7,000 years, no doubt. Atkin's 'Best Cellars' from the Mediterranean include 2004
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'Wines today, like nappies and Mars bars, are regarded like any other "fast-moving consumer goods". Rapid turnover is what matters,' writes ANTHONY ROSE. 'So, as long as the customers' and supermarkets' interests coincide, why not have sell-by dates on everyday wines?' Pioneering the drive for freshness in the mass market is Orbital Wines' Nick Dymoke-Marr, who has 'put a sell-by date on the back label of his Stormhoek range from South Africa, adding screwcaps to boot'. Waitrose, which stocks the wines, agrees with the concept and says that many of its own-label bag-in-box wines have a best-before date, while Sainsbury's does the same for its Fino Sherry and boxes.
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'White is the new red,' says JOANNA SIMON. Red wines have been shunted into the background by the joint white and ros market, with Sauvignon Blanc and blended whites emerging as the chief beneficiaries. According to Simon, 'blends aren't an inferior species made from winery leftovers', and she recommends a few examples from South Africa to prove this point, including 2005 Charles Back Chenin Blanc/Viognier (7.99; Somerfield, Tesco).
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GILES KIME goes in search of soft velvety reds, and his selection takes in the 'dangerously drinkable' 2003 Cosumano Benuara Nero d'Avola/Syrah (8.49; Oddbins) and the 'wonderfully plummy' 2004 Chteau Pey La Tour Bordeaux (5.99; Tesco).
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JAMIE GOODE has gone autumnal, and 'with seasonal squashes and pumpkins to pair off', he suggests weighty wine matches. Two examples are 2004 Asda Chilean Chardonnay, Central Valley (2.97; Asda) and 2003 La Piuma Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (4.99; Waitrose).
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Spain's not just about Rioja, comments JOANNA SIMON, and she suggests a few gems - such as 2003 Castell del Remei, Gotim Bru (7.09-8.75;
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JONATHAN RAY abandons wine in favour of a day in the pub with the Beer Academy. A day-long foundation course teaches him all about the brewing process at the same time as reminding him that beer can be 'healthy and nourishing'. Ray quotes his tutor, enthusing, 'Beer is so good for you, it should be on the NHS as a prescribed medicine.' His top beers include Wychwood Whirlygig, Oxon (1.60; Asda).
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'The online tippler's review' is a growing trend, writes RICHARD EHRLICH. Waitrose has joined ranks with Oddbins in a move to include customer wine reviews on its website. Not everything is published - for example, a bottle of Menetou-Salon accompanied by the comment 'I enjoyed this wine with cigarettes' didn't make
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Portugal rules, according to TIM ATKIN MW. Chelsea Football Club's Portuguese manager Jose Mourinho has given his country's wine the seal of approval after sharing a bottle of Barca Velha with Sir Alex Ferguson, and this 'plug for a Portuguese wine was welcome because it's so rare'. Atkin bemoans the fact that 'our high-street retailers have virtually given up on Portugal'. And even worse, 'Mateus Ros & still accounts for 40% of Portuguese wine sales in the UK a rather depressing story'. He's 'more convinced than ever that the country is producing some fantastic-value wines', and his top choices to prove this point include 2004 Quinta do Ameal Loureiro Vinho Verde (8.40; Corney & Barrow) and 2003 Quinta do Vallado Douro Reserva (17.99; Bibendum).
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JANE MacQUITTY is not happy with the British public, saying 'the average spend [on a bottle of wine] remains a depressingly low 4.09'. Supermarkets are still ruling the roost, and MacQuitty urges readers to spend a bit more. Her recommendations include
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ANTHONY ROSE plays his part in the latest top-100 list, helping consumers to 'sort the wheat from the chaff'.
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It's family time for VICTORIA MOORE, as she discovers that her parents' wine cellar is in need of a few 'big wintry reds that will go with anything and don't require special treatment, and which average 5 a bottle.'
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JANE MacQUITTY discusses Hiroshi Tanaka's invention for speed ageing wine. She recommends 2004 The Little Penguin Chardonnay and Shiraz (3.99 each; Sainsbury's), 2004 Cuve St-Vran and Mercurey, Blason de Bourgogne (6.49 and 7.98; Tesco), 2002 Montagny 1er Cru, Vincent Bouzereau (12.99; Majestic) and 2000 Pavillon des Conntables, St-Julien, Bordeaux (14.99; Majestic).
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'Things are looking a little brighter for Bordeaux's wine business,' says JANCIS ROBINSON MW, following the latest reports from this year's harvest. With fine-wine trading on the up, due to the imminent inclusion of wine in pension funds, Robinson takes a look at the past 10 vintages from France's famous wine region. 'Drought was a serious problem' in 2005, 'but rain arrived in time to save the crop'. The 2003s 'have calmed down considerably, almost as though they've had a cold shower,' she reports. 2000 was the 'please-all, big-boned vintage', and 1997 brought 'mild, well-mannered wines for drinking now'. Detailed tasting notes on all of the vintages are featured on the Purple Pages of Robinson's website: www.jancisrobinson.com
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ANTHONY ROSE delves into the changing role of the sommelier and takes a look at two new books on the subject: Thirsty Work by Matt Skinner (17.99; Mitchell Beazley) and Drinks by Vincent Gasnier (30; Dorling Kindersley). The increasingly popular Skinner steals most of the column space, with Rose commenting, 'If someone is going to get my 19-year-old son and his ilk across Jacob's Creek and beyond, Skinner has the knack.' Gasnier doesn't fair quite so well. While Skinner is 'refreshing' and 'selective', Gasnier's 'undoubted passion and knowledge are deflated by a dj vu image fest'. If you fancy splashing out this week, Rose's choice would be 2003 Cte Rtie Les Essartailles (25, down to 19.99; Majestic).
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JONATHAN RAY visits Super-Tuscan Tenuta dell'Ornellaia, where he finds wines to rival the best from Bordeaux.
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JAMIE GOODE comes up with drinks for Caribbean food. They are Havana Club 7 Aos rum (15.99; Oddbins), 2004 La Chasse du Pape Chardonnay/ Viognier (4.99; Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Co-Op, Asda), Sailor Jerry Spiced Caribbean Rum (12.99; Waitrose), 2004 El Prado Tempranillo Ros (3.99; Tesco) and Duval beer from Belgium (1.48; Tesco).
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