Chile produces great red wines and this Carmenere is a great example. Its bold, dry withĺ great length and softness that gives a feeling of exceptional quality, but at £15 a bottle it’s amazing value. There is tons of flavour with black fruits, plums, cherry and hits of tobacco, oak, vanilla, pepper and hints of coffee and mint.
The late Jessica with a bottle of Chateau Saint Martin, De la Garrigue, Gres de Montpellier, 2010, Languedoc, France.
This chateau Saint Martin is another cracker from the Loire. Dry with a great deep purple colour and Aromas of stewed plums, spice and caramel and these follow through into the flavours. The flavours are full with well integrated tannins and excellent length.
At £20 a bottle it’s not cheap but you get what you pay for.
Château Saint Martin de la Garrigue, 2010, Grès de Montpellier, France
Dry, bold and really smooth is first impression s on this red from Château Saint Martin de la Garrigue.
There’s aromas of oak and earthy notes with hints of black fruit. The taste is plummy with black fruit and spice with firm tannins. Its 14% but seems like more. Its not “in your face” big and bold but its got flavour and its well integrated which is really appreciated.
Later vintages are selling for Eur18 a bottle which is well priced, sure not cheap but good value. I loved this on its own but it will go well with red meat and the first BBQ of the year. Treat yourself.
Denbies make a lot of wine, sparkling and still and do it well. This is made from Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay, your traditional grapes for Champagne. Dry and crisp with medium acidity and clean tasting with aromas and flavours of lemon, green apple and vanilla. Yes there’s yeasty notes but there’s more to it and its refreshing, bringing you back for glass after glass, unless your wife says stop!
Its at a similar price at Champagne its a better bet for me.
Denbies, Cubitt Reserve, 2010, UK
Denbies, Cubitt Reserve, 2010, UK
There’s a fair bit of wine that comes out of Brunello, some good and some great, like this offering from Il Poggione. This is a rich Sangiovese wine but the aromas are quite subtle, some red fruit and spice but the flavours is where you get mountains of red fruits, cherry and violets. You get spice, meaty flavours with an earthy tone all in balance.
At £45 a bottle its not cheap and although excellent I would find it hard to recommend someone buying this when there are cheaper wines that deliver 90% of this wine.
Brunello di Montalcino, Il Poggione, 2010, Italy
Made with Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot its a good blend. 10 years old you may feel that this red is ready for drinking, esp as its a “Grand” Bordeaux. Its just part of the name, its not a grand vin. That said there is much to commend this wine.
Its still got a dark purple colour but the aromas and flavours are quite light for a Bordeaux. You get blackberries and cherries on the nose and in the taste, some oaky notes and smooth tannins but its the lightness that I’m liking. In reality it should have been drunk 2 or 3 years ago to get a bolder hit of flavours and aromas.
At about £10 a bottle its reasonable value for a lighter red but if you want a full Bordeaux you will be disappointed.
Château Grand Billard, Bordeaux 2010, France