Wines in the Press: From old wines to sweet wines

Tuesday, 21 October 2008

Jancis Robinson gets stuck into some circa 1955 vintage Penfolds, Jonathan Ray cosies up to some big, beefy reds and Jane MacQuitty makes a bid to get dessert wines back onto British tables. Meanwhile, it's the turn of Tim Atkin to cast his eye over the new look Oddbins range.

Jancis Robinson MW, The Financial Times, Saturday 20 October 2008

Jancis Robinson flies the flag for Australia's Penfolds Grange this week, for the reason that it's "the first New World wine to have shown that it can last over half a century". As a guest at a recent tasting of the Grange range, Robinson had the chance to compare vintages spanning from 1955 to 2002. "None of the wines younger than 1991 was anything like ready for drinking, while the wines made since the 1996 vintage seemed to belong to a new and different era, with even greater care taken with the selection of fruit," Robinson notes.

Jonathan Ray, The Telegraph, Saturday 20 October 2008

Jonathan Ray gets cosy with a full flavoured Rhône this week. Or rather ten of them, as he picks his current favourites from a region often "overlooked" by the "more chic" Bordeaux and Burgundy regions. The region is the home of "big, beefy reds" and is home to more 90+ Robert Parker wines than anywhere else in the world (1,490 from 1998 to 2005). In price order, his current top ten consists of:

• 2007 Caves St-Pierre Préférence Côtes du Rhône Vielles Vignes (£5.99, Sainsbury's)
• 2007 La Châsse du Pape Côtes du Rhône Réserve (£5.00, Sainsbury's)
• 2005 Réserve des Hospitaliers Cairanne Côtes du Rhône Villages (£7.30, Waitrose)
• 2007 Paul Jaboulet Ainé Parallèle 45 Côtes du Rhône Rosé (£7.49, Booths)
• 2007 Domaine Maby La Fermade Lirac Blanc (£7.50, Wine Society)
• 2006 La Chapelle Notre Dame d'Aubune Beanmumes-de-Venise (£8.99, Nicholas)
• 2005 M Chapoutier Les Meysonniers Crozes-Hermitage (£11.99, Oddbins, Harrods, Booths)
• 2006 Domaine de Durban Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venice (£13.95, Yapp Bros)
• 2006 Domaine de la Solitude Châteauneuf-du-Pape (£17.99 as part of a mixed case, Majestic)
• 2006 Condrieu, Les Etelles (£32.00, Marks & Spencer)

Jane MacQuitty, The Times, Saturday 18 October 2008

Jane MacQuitty uses national Chocolate Week as the perfect excuse to indulge in some sweet dessert wines this week. It's a shame, she says, that such wines have lost their place on British tables in recent years. Even Tesco, which accounts for an "alarming" one in four sales of wine, has let sweet wines slip off its radar; they continue to account for less than 1% of its overall wine sales despite the supermarket's attempt to flag them up instore. Even a tiny glass of the "unctuous, creamy, spicy black muscatel raisin-stashed" Taste the Difference 12 Year Old Pedro Ximénez (£7.19, Sainsbury's) can deliver some warming winter cheer. MacQuitty's other top picks this week are:

• 2007 Gran Tempranillo, Cariñena, Spain (£3.49, Sainsbury's)
• 2007 Old Vines Tempranillo, Spain (£3.79, Sainsbury's)
• 2006 Cune Monopole Barrel Fermented Rioja Bianco, Spain (£5.75, Waitrose)
• 2003 Gran Feudo Reserva,Navarra, Spain (£5.75, Waitrose)
• 2007 Mar d'Avail Garnatxa Bianca, Emporda, Jean-Marc Lefage, Spain (£8.99, Bibendum)
• 2006 Mar d'Amunt Carinyena, Emporda, Jean-Marc Lefage, Spain (£8.55, Bibendum)

Tim Atkin MW, The Observer, Sunday 19 October 2008

Will the new look Oddbins stand the test of time? We won't have a clear picture until next spring, when its has had time to sell the last of its old stock and complete its range review, but Tim Atkin is glad to see the revival of the high street chain. The Oddbins story has always been something of a "soap opera" he says, but the latest twist would "stretch the boundaries of probability if it were fictional" - we know that Simon Baile has bought the business, but the identity of his backers is still a mystery. For now though, Atkin is just happy to see its revival, and the introduction of some quality brands including:

• 2007 Concha y Toro Winemaker's Lot Carmenère, Cachapoal (£8.49, Oddbins)
• 2007 Dashwood Pinot Noir, Malrborough (£11.49, Oddbins)
• 2007 Domaine de Villargeau Coteaux du Giennois (£8.99, Oddbins)
• 2007 Château Lions Lamartine, Gaillac (£6.00, Oddbins)
• 1988 Veuve Clicquot (64.49, Oddbins Fine Wine stores)

Joanna Simon, The Sunday Times, Sunday 19 October 2008

There's nothing like a bit of celebrity endorsement, and this week it's the turn of Merlot to get some. A good glass of Merlot is better than a man, according to the singer Duffy. We're not clear on whether Joanna Simon agrees, but she does credit the Merlots listed below for their inexpensiveness, softness and easy-going nature:

• 2006 Domaine Montlobre La Chapelle (£7.95, Berry Bros)
• 2006 Bidoli Merlot, Friuli Grove (£8.99, Marks & Spencer)
• 2006 Schroeder Estate Merlot (£9.99, The Sunday Times Wine Club)

James Goode, The Sunday Express, Sunday 19 October 2008

With the colder weather comes the Great British desire to enjoy Sundays with a good old traditional roast dinner. Jamie Goode has the perfect accompaniment for any type of meat; claret or Malbec for beef, Burgundy with lamb, New Zealand Pinot Noir or Alsace Pinot Gris with pork and oaked Chardonnay or Viognier with chicken. His picks this week are:

• 2006 Luis Felipe Edwards Shiraz, Colchagua, Chile (£6.19, Tesco)
• 2007 McGuigan Chardonnay, South East Australia (£6.99, Tesco)
• Cosme Palacio Rioja 2005, Spain (£8.49, Waitrose, Tesco, Oddbins)
• 2006 Tinto da Anfora, Portugal (£6.49, Sainsbury's)
• 2007 Côtes du Rhône Villages St Maurice, France (£4.49, Marks & Spencer)
• 2006 Maven Pinot Noir, Marlborough, New Zealand (£8.99, Tesco)
• 2007 Esk Valley Chenin Blanc, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand (£8.69, New Zealand)

Matthew Jukes, The Mail on Sunday, Sunday 19 October 2008

A tightening of the purse strings doesn't have to mean a drop in your standards of wine; not if Matthew Jukes has anything to do with it anyway. Here's his list of replica classics that come at a fraction of the price:

• 2007 Enclos des Pins Chardonnay, Vin de Pays d'Oc, France (£5.99, Marks & Spencer)
• 2007 Les Fumées Blanches, Lurton, Vin de Pays d'Oc, France (£6.99, Majestic)
• 2007 Palacio del Marqués, La Mancha, Spain (£4.99, Marks & Spencer)
• 2006 Côtes du Rhône Villages, Domaine de la Grande Bellane, Southern Rhône, France (£6.99, Tesco)
• 2007 First Cape, Limited Release, Merlot, South Africa (£5.99, Asda, Sainsbury's, Tesco, Morrisons)