It’s getting hard to buy a bad bottle of wine from Croatia and this Traminac from Bolfan Primus iz a very example. Theres ripe citrus on the nose and deep rich ripeness on the palette with pineapple coming to the fore. It’s a wine for a roast or on its own. At £20 a bottle it’s not cheap but it’s excellent.
Bolfan Primus, Traminac, Croatia
Colchester Cellar Club October 2022 spainish wine tasting
The Colchester Cellar Club is known for laying on a great tasting and this one was no exception. Below are my tasting notes on the main tasting wines listed on the sheet above.
1-2018-fresh, light but firm acidity, mineral under tone, lemon flavour but little aroma. Drink on its own
Pinot Gris, Hengst, 2011, Alsace, France
Ooohhh was the general comment when this was brought out to drink followed shortly afterwards by aaahhh. A Grand Cru is not to be rushed and one by Albert Mann should have extra care. Aromas and flavours of ripe citrus, pineapple, a solid body and a creamy undernote makes this a wine to sip and take pleasure in. Prices for earlier vintages start at £35 and are recommended, getting 2011 vintage is harder, buy later ones and age yourself is my recommendation.
At £28 a bottle it’s not cheap but this white wine made from the Xarel lo grape by Pares Balta I’d pretty good. Clean and clear it has aromas and flavours of almonds and citrus and grapefruit with soft creamy undertone. To be sipped and savoured.
Pares Balta, Amphora, 2021, Spain
St. Michael-Eppan, Montiggl, 2017, Riesling, Italy
Riesling is not a wine that I would expect to come out of Italy but this one from St Michael Eppan is pretty good. It’s a dry wine, fairly bold with good length on flavours. On the flavours and aromas side rheres peach, green Apple, lemon, hints of grapefruit and undernotes of minerals with a little honey in a background, a very pleasant surprise.
At £25 a bottle it’s to much at recommend, good but not that good.
Albert Lucas, Chablis Premier Cru, 2018, Chablis, France
Here are a lot of cheap Chablis out there and sometimes you just need to spend a little more and drink and little less like is this one from Albert Lucas. It’s rich, luxurious with plenty of freshness. There are aromas of citrus and stone fruit with additional flavours of honey and apple with grass under notes and mineral hints.
Great with fish or zesty salad anc at £20 a bottle it’s about right for this quality.
Asda, Extra Special Fiano, 2020, Sicily
Supermarkets like Asda in the UK sell some really good wines and this Extra Special Fiano from Sicily is a good example. It’s made with the Fiano grape as per the name and this may be new to people and throw them off side. Theres a definite freshness with flavours of lemon and hints of peach but it’s pretty aromatic and this not always what people expect.
At £6 a bottle it’s hard to fault it and went well with mixed bean salad sitting in the garden.
Marco Scolaris, Ribolla Gialla, 2018, Collio, Italy
With aromas and flavours of citrus, lemon and grapefruit, apple and melon with a richness in the mouth this is quite a white wine from Marco Scolaris. It’s a wine to sip or have with food rather than to be guzzled. Pair it with fish, soft cheeses or cured meats.
I’m not sure it’s worth the £15 or more per bottle, but then again it’s an interesting wine.
Play the extra and get good German wine is what’s needed in the UK and this Riesling from Von Winning shows why. A medium dry wine that has a surprising amount of acidity. There are flavours of citrus, lemon, grapefruit with apple and peach. Mineral and stone highlights with a honey background coming through.
About £15 to £20 a bottle it more than you may want to pay, but that’s what you going to pay for decent wine in Germany.
Von Winning, Ruppertsberger Reiterpfad Riesling, 2016, Pfalz, Germany
Chateau Fuisse, Pouilly Fuisse, Le Clos Monopole, 2014, FranceYou know if you have good wine friends when they bring you a bottle of this Chateau Fuisse, Pouilly Fuisse, Le Clos Monopole, 2014 to dinner.
Some of the other people at the dinner table were very excited when they saw this wine, I was very excited when I drink this wine.
Coming from burgundy you do expect good wine but this was exceptional it was medium bodied reasonably dry with excellent balance of acidity and flavours. You had lime, peach, apple and honey flavours with mineral notes with an underlying creamy butter that had just the right level of oak underlying it all.
The worst thing is that at £60 a bottle most people will never get to try such an amazing mine.