Wines in the Press, January 24-25

THE OBSERVER

Most white wines are served too cold, and reds too warm, says Tim Atkin MW.

While the received wisdom is to serve up reds at room temperature, sometimes it can benefit from a spell in the ice bucket. The problem is particularly acute in restaurants, he says, where all too often he's had to send back red wine which is "virtually steaming".

All reds taste better being chilled, but some need more cooling than others. A simple rule of thumb is that the more tannic the wine, the warmer the temperature it should best be served.

So don't pour your vintage claret or Barolo at 12C, but try it at anything between 15C to 17C where it will taste much better balanced.

Meanwhile, fruit driven wines, those that are softer and less tannic such as Gamay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc, unoaked Tempranillo and Dolcetto are best served between 12 - 15C.

This week Atkin recommends the 2007 Old Vine Reserve Camacha, Campo de Borja (£5.19, Tesco), the "perfumed, summer pudding-like 2007 Cono Sur Pinto Noir, Rapel Valley (£5.99, Sainsburys) and the "smooth, raspberry and brown-sugar style" 2007 Beaumes de Venise, Cave de Saint Desirat (£7.99, or £6.99 each for two, Majestic).

THE GUARDIAN
The recession is forcing Brits to change their drinking habits, either trading down, or ditching wine altogether, reports Victoria Moore in an interview with Tesco's Dan Jago.

Up to 200,000 Tesco shoppers who were buying wine this time last year have now given it up. "It's a discretionary purchase, so some people are cutting it out," said Jago.

"Others are being less aspirational - not so long ago people were adventurously switching from merlot to ribera del duero; now they're hunkering back down to the basics. I think any shop trying to trade on aspiration alone is going to walk very hard into a large wall."

And if the pound's position against the Euro doesn't improve things could get even worse. "It makes me go all cold and shivery just thinking about it," shudders Jago.

In the circumstances, South African wines suddenly seem to represent very good value, he adds. Moore recommends a handful of wines for hard times, including merlot Vin de Pays de la cite de Carcassone 2007, (£3.99, Sainsburys); and Terra Vecchia merlot-Nielluccio 2007 (£5.19, Somerfield) which she describes as ; "soft and easy, but with a tinge of earthiness courtesy of the native nielluccio."

THE SUNDAY TIMES
Vodka has overtaken Scotch whisky as Britain's favourite spirit, reports Joanna Simon, with sales up by a third in the five years to 2007.

Which is not great news for the Government, and not only because Scotch is a native product. Vodka is a favourite drink of the young, largely due to its neutral taste, perfect for unsophisticated palates intent on getting wasted.

Producers who want to distance themselves from the binge-drinking culture bang on about purity, but after that, the hike up the price ladder is largely about presentation. "Vodka is everything about alcohol that the Government is trying to deal with," says Simon.

"Cleary it can't look on the vodka boom with eqanimity. Then again, how far can it afford not to, with duty and VAT revenue from sales of 8m cases?" she asks.

Simon likes the Zubrowka Bison Grass Vodka, £15.99-£16.04; Snow Leopard Vodka, (£27, Waitrose) and Wyborowa, £14.99-£15.99

THE TIMES
With the 250th anniversary of Robert Burns' birth this year be sure to celebrate with a wee dram, urges Jane MacQuitty in her new look page within the Saturday Review section of the redesigned Saturday Times.

And bolstered by overseas sales and a slight increase at home, Scottish disilleries are enjoying a bit of a whisky renaissance, with British drinkers having discovered a new-found respect for the spirit.

The concept of drinking less but drinking better, with attention paid to provenance and history, is beginning to filter through.

Newcomers to whisky should break themselves in gradually, advises MacQuitty, by starting at the easy, inexpensive end of whisky apprciation with a decent grain or blended whisky.

Her vote goes to Majestic's Finest Oak Cask matured Scotch Whisky, "a soft, ginger-spiced delight" at £13.69, or buy two for £10.95 each. Johnnie Walker's 12 Years Old Black Label is a "rich smoky treasure" (Waitrose, £21.99; Booths, £22.19; Oddbins and Wine Rack, £22.99).

MacQuitty's Burns night bargain buy is Glen Grant's Single Malt (Majestic Wine, £14.99 or two for £11.99 each; Morrisons, £15.99; Booths, £16.99), whose "gentle, fiery, vanilla spice is enticingly approachable."

THE INDEPENDENT
Anthony Rose backs Argentina's Malbec grape to take a starring role in 2009. Huge improvements in wine making since 2002 have helped to make "succulent, vibrant reds", but the warm dry summers and perfectly controlled ripening conditions have also played their part.

And after more than a century in Argentina, Malbec has developed a "unique quality" says Rose. Mendoza's high altitude means the grapes benefit from the effects of solar radiation; sunshine at altitude burns off bitter tannis, and replaces them with the "red and darker berry-fruit opulence that gives malbec its special appeal."

The Argentine wine quality revolution that started twenty years ago has since gathered pace with a real commitment in the last few years to finding the best locations for growing Malbec.

Wineries are starting to discover the benefits of cooler areas such as Mendoza's Uco Valley, Patagonia and Cafayate in the north for "aromatic character, vivid freshness and elegance."

Rose particularly likes the 2006 Dominio del Plata Ben Marco Malbec, (£11.99, buy 2 = £9.99, Majestic); the 2007 Malbec Phebus Gran Reserva, (£12.99, Waitrose Wine Direct,) which he describes as "a vibrant, richly concentrated old-vine malbec whose luscious blackberry-fruit quality and light touch of spicy vanilla oak are nicely framed by a cleansing blade of acidity; and the "seductively silky" 2006 Mendel Malbec, (£10.95, The Wine Society, £13.99, or £11.19/case, Oddbins.)

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