Château de Bellevue, Fleurie, 2016, France

Posted on August 1, 2021 by richardgore1200

Buy a good Beaujolais is my advice and this one from Fleurie from Château de Bellevue is one of them better examples and certainly one that you should start drinking so you know what to least benchmark against.

It’s dry, light with good acidity you get aromas of red fruit but when you taste it it there there flavours of raspberry strawberry but with hints of chocolate, liquorice and hints of caramel and oak but all nice to balanced.M

My biggest regret is only having one bottle of this as it’s a really good example and at around £10 Super value.

Saint Péray, Grain de Silex, 2015, Rhone, France

Posted on July 31, 2021 by richardgore1200

Saint Péray, Grain de Silex, 2015, Rhone, France

I do like a Rhône valley white but this one from Saint Peray has passed its best though, which is a shame because you can still taste what was.

You get hints of ripe citrus, grapefruit with honey on the nose and with flavours that follow on with peach, almond, melon with buttery notes and a grown up feel. It’s a very acidic wine dry but with good body and I suspect if I had drank this after 2 or 3 years from bottling it would have been a really excellent wine. So lesson learnt, don’t save what you think is great wine to long.

Saint Péray, Grain de Silex, 2015, Rhone, France

Posted on July 28, 2021 by richardgore1200

Saint Péray, Grain de Silex, 2015, Rhone, France

I do like a Rhône valley white but this one from Saint Peray has passed its best though, which is a shame because you can still taste what was.

Anthony Joseph Vidal, Legacy, Syrah, 2014, New Zealand

Posted on July 21, 2021 by richardgore1200

Anthony Joseph Vidal can make wine, good wine but at £30 a bottle it needs to be really good.

This Legacy, Syrah from the Hawks Bay area has some fine qualities. There are aromas of plum and raspberry with notes of spice, for the flavours get more darker fruits Oak and some very fine tannings which are slightly out of balance with the fruit flavour. On the plus side I got no hangover after having an entire bottle of this wine one evening, which shows this is pretty good, it’s just not £10 good.

Anthony Joseph Vidal, Legacy, Syrah, 2014, New Zealand

Campo Viejo, Reserva, 2015, Spain

Posted on July 19, 2021 by richardgore1200

Campo Viejo, Reserva, 2015, Spain

Another Rioja, which let’s face it, it’s fairly standard for UK drinkers of red wine. This is actually pretty good and get red fruits on the nose.

It’s dry, relatively intense in the flavours of plum, redcurrants, oak and vanilla coming through with little bit of herbaceous notes.

It’s normally about £9 which isn’t bad, but get it when it’s 25% off and it becomes pretty good value. It’s not a red wine that’s going to embarrass you and for the summer good drinking.

Charles Joguet, Silènes Chinon, 2012, Loire, France

Posted on July 16, 2021 by richardgore1200

Charles Joguet, Silènes Chinon, 2012, Loire, France

Charles Joguet makes some wonderful wines and I have been to the vineyard twice and tasted some of them. This 2012 Silènes Chinon, 2012 though should have been drunk a fee years ago.its not aged as I had hoped/ expected from a top producer making cabernet Franc wine. Theres little aroma of the red fruit, plum, tobacco and leather that should be there, the flavours are washed out with only hints of what should be. The tannins are there and the dryness too.

It’s a lesson to drink on an occasion rather than waiting for the perfect occasion.

Calmel & Joseph, Les Terroirs, 2019, Languedoc, France

Posted on July 12, 2021 by richardgore1200

Calmel & Joseph, Les Terroirs, 2019, Languedoc, France

Made with Syrah Grenache and Carignan this is a full on red which packs plenty of aromas flavours. It’s a bold dry my red with decent hit of acidity. There’s aromas of tobacco and chocolate and and sour cherry, you’re getting additional flavours of BlackBerry and redcurrent.

At £12 a bottle us a bit expensive but it’s well made with good length.

Copdock Hall, Rose, Suffolk, England

Posted on July 10, 2021 by richardgore1200

Copdock Hall, Rose, Suffolk, England

English Rose wine has come a long way in recent years and this one from Copdock Hall in Suffolk shows it it’s pretty good stuff. It’s not your light rosé in colour and this gives you a heads up on the flavour.

You get a real hit or strawberries and raspberries with this rose much more than you would a Provence. Its actually a nice change, I’m not sure I’d want a drink this all summer long but a few bottles in the storeroom sounds great.

Vagabond, Ortega, 2018, Oxfordshire, UK

Posted on July 3, 2021 by richardgore1200

Vagabond, Ortega, 2018, Oxfordshire, UK

There are some absolutely fantastic English wines but I’m not entirely sure this one made of Ortega grapes can be classed as one.

It’s clear and crisp but it’s very acidic and a little one-dimensional on flavour. There’s lots of lemon with bits of lime coming through but that’s it. This would be really good with seafood as the acidity is very high but we have tried better wines from the UK recently that are worth trying though.

Chateau Ste Michelle, Syrah, 2017, Columbia Valley, USA

Posted on June 28, 2021 by richardgore1200

Chateau Ste Michelle, Syrah, 2017, Columbia Valley, USA

The U.S. can produce up notch wine and this Syrah from Chateau Ste Michelle in the Columbia Valley is a good example. It’s a bold, dry red with aromas of black fruit, oak and chocolate with earthy notes. The flavours are well integrated with softness of plum, cherry and blackberry with licorice and herb hints.

Easy drinking yet perfect with a steak and under £20 it’s a compelling wine to try.

The accidental drinker

Wine talk and reviews by an accidental drinker

Author Archives: richardgore1200

Château de Bellevue, Fleurie, 2016, France

Saint Péray, Grain de Silex, 2015, Rhone, France

Saint Péray, Grain de Silex, 2015, Rhone, France

Anthony Joseph Vidal, Legacy, Syrah, 2014, New Zealand

Campo Viejo, Reserva, 2015, Spain

Charles Joguet, Silènes Chinon, 2012, Loire, France

Calmel & Joseph, Les Terroirs, 2019, Languedoc, France

Copdock Hall, Rose, Suffolk, England

Vagabond, Ortega, 2018, Oxfordshire, UK

Chateau Ste Michelle, Syrah, 2017, Columbia Valley, USA