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Wines in the press March 26-28

Published:  28 March, 2011

The Guardian
There was a time when matching food and wine was simple; white wine with fish, red with meat.

But that was when there was a limited range of wines to choose from, says Fiona Beckett. In her opinion, it's far more useful to think about the way a dish is cooked and the temperature at which it's served. She places raw or lightly cooked dishes such as salads and steamed or grilled fish alongside a crisp, dry white wine, or a bold, dry rosé such as the organic Château de Caraguilhes Rosé 2009 Corbières (£7.99 at Waitrose.) She would also recommend a lightly chilled, Loire red such as Sainsbury's Domaine du Colombier Chinon 2008 (£6.15).

Sometimes it helps to envisage a fruit that goes with a dish too, she adds. The classic combination of pork and apple, could lead you to the conclusion that a Riesling or Chenin Blanc - might make a good partnership and suggests trying Tesco Finest Ken Forrester Chenin Blanc (on offer at two for £10).

The Telegraph

Bob Lindo of Camel Valley vineyard, isn't very good at watching others work, says Victoria Moore. "We put this in ourselves," he says about the actual road they are driving along. Moore says Bob and his wife Annie planted the first vines here in 1989 and their wines now take on rivals from all over the world - and win. It has just been awarded best international sparkling rosé in the Bollicine del Mondo contest and son Sam has been awarded British winemaker of the year for two out of the past four. The strange thing is that when originally bought this farm they weren't looking for a place to grow grapes at all - they only decided to after they noticed what a sun-trap it was.

The Lindos now concentrate on varieties; Bacchus, Seyval Blanc and Reichensteiner, and Pinot Noir. Camel Valley is founded on graft, says Moore. But her favourite thing about Bob Lindo's vision is that he thinks English wine should be tasted on its own terms: "We've never been Champagne looky-likeys. They make millions of bottles a year and they don't want another few thousand from Cornwall. We should be separate, distinctive," he says.

The Independent

Terry Kirby's best buy wines include for a Sunday lunch; the Wither Hills Pinot Noir 2008. Having reinvented Sauvignon Blanc, he says the Kiwi wine-makers of the Marlborough area have turned their attention to Pinot Noir, with considerable success. This is a perfect wine for an early spring lunch of roast lamb or duck - medium-bodied, elegantly structured, made with intense fruit flavours and given a touch of French oak (£12.99, Waitrose.) For a weekday supper he thinks the The Society's White Burgundy 2009 remarkably pure, austere, clean, mineral quality demands an equally straightforward grilled white flat fish for a midweek treat. (£7.50, thewinesociety.com.) In his bargain basement he roots for Palais des Anciens Côtes-Du-Rhône Villages 2008 as great match for beef bourguignon because of a robust complexity that belies even its full price, (£5.49 - on offer Co-operative stores).

The Financial Times

Jancis Robinson MW, says she has never before seen such agony, angst and euphoria associated with blind-tasting wine as at the Oxford and Cambridge Club last month. There was an element of military precision about the triumphant Cambridge team, who were just three points ahead after the white wines had been tasted (368 to 365) but ended up winning by 669 to 611, she adds. Wines included some "decidedly off-piste ones" and a Savigny so short of fruit that it was virtually unrecognizable. The Oxford team, was much more varied in its performances than Cambridge. But Robinson hails the 26-year-old Oxford captain James Flewellen as the single most impressive taster of the lot. Most excitingly for those of us in the world of wine, he is seriously considering a vinous career, she says. "Snap him up, someone!"

The Mail on Sunday


Washing up wine glasses is a task that requires concentration, a steady hand and attention to detail, says Olly Smith. Some say only use hot water, some say soap and others insist that white wine vinegar is the only appropriate cleaner. When drying them, if you leave them upside down on a dishcloth you risk a musty odour, or if you leave residual soap in the glass it'll kill the next wine you drink. You may think this is all a bit pernickety, but trust me, says Smith, wine glasses are amazing at picking up odours.

As for the choice of glass -here's what you need to know. Frosted or coloured glasses are out. Use flutes for Champagne, for reds the tradition is to go for larger glasses, and for whites, smaller. As for brands; Riedel has a wine glass for pretty much any wine you can think of. But there are plenty of other good wine-glass manufacturers out there, from Dartington to Schott Zwiesel, he says. Smith rates the Austrian company Zalto particularly highly as its glasses are delicate and elegant to hold, and beautifully designed for enjoying wine.