Wine tastings in London

I go to a lot of wine tastings in London, mostly to try new wines, but its also fun to find out what different venues offer. Here's my pick:

The free one
Majestic. What a fabulous idea - free wine tastings to encourage you to buy their wine. It certainly got me in store. They run these maybe once a month, if you sign up to your local shop's emails, they'll let you know when. Or, if you want to simply pop in, they always have some bottles open for you to try.
http://www.majestic.co.uk/

The fun one
DVine Cellars in Clapham. £15-25, weekly. In the basement of the shop, there is a tasting table where Greg and Ollie hold tastings. They both know their stuff, and will tailor the tasting to the level of the audience. Interesting facts, informal, so you can ask questions freely, and friendly punters to share your stories with. Opportunity to buy a bottle to drink at the end of the tasting, chill out with your new friends.
http://www.dvinecellars.com/content/9-tastings

The quick one
Sampler Islington or South Kensington £20, Sundays. At the back of the shop, Ben gives a whistlestop tour of a specific region or grape varietal. Chance to try something new that has already been picked out for you. and good for finding out what it is you like about a certain grape or region. You get 10% off any bottles that you have tasted if you want to buy after.
http://www.thesampler.co.uk/store/content/44/Tasting-Events/

The formal one
Dorchester hotel £39, monthly. You are welcomed with an aperitif and canapes. Ronan gives a lesson on history, geography and geology. Then we get taken through a journey of around 10 wines with Masters of Wine. Good for learning as well as tasting, and they're not stingy on portions. And they really know what they're talking about and give good sommelier tips.
http://www.thedorchester.com/wine-events

The luxury one
28-50 either in Marylebone or Fetter Lane, £40, monthly. Hosted by Xavier who has a CV that will make you cry (Head Sommelier at Le Manoir and founder of Texture). He set up this restaurant with Agnar Sverrisson to focus on wine. The tasting is very in-depth, and you get to taste some very expensive wines. I was in awe at this tasting and felt privileged to be there!
http://www.2850.co.uk/fetter/events

The indulgent one
Dvine Cellars wine tasting dinner. Price varies depending on menu - the one I went to was £75. Oh my. The menu was designed to match the wine rather than the other way around. Four courses of food (ceviche, ox cheek... fancy!), each with two wines. Then, as the producers were there (what an honour), they brought out the big guns at the end, expensive wines that hadn't even been bottled yet. These don't happen very often and are a jolly good night out. If you're keen, let Greg know and he'll get in touch for the next one.
http://www.dvinecellars.com/

The classic one
Antique Wine Company £95, or £65 through Stylist magazine/ Emerald Street. Nine wines, an hour and a half, served with a mouthful of matching food. You're greeted with a glass of champagne. Richard Hemming hosted the rose evening, and was a good teacher. It was a shame that Richard left early, and we weren't left to finish the open bottles. Even though I emailed my seafood allergy when I booked, but all dishes contained seafood and they hadn't thought to provide an alternative.
http://antique-wine.com/blog/

Others:

• Planet of the Grapes http://www.planetofthegrapes.co.uk/shop.php?cPath=34_43
• Vinopolis http://vinopolis.co.uk/
• Four 0 Nine http://www.fouronine.co.uk/foodies-wine-night
• Bacchanalia http://www.bacchanaliatws.co.uk/club-bacchanalia.aspx

Badger challenge #10

So we finally got around to tasting the tenth bottle of our challenge we set last year.

Villa Maria Gewurtztraminer
Lime, mango and honeysuckle on the nose.
Sharp, bitter coriander and lemon flavours.
Barry said it was "not as interesting as a normal G."
Probably because he chose a New Zealand one and had forgotten.
It's not an unpleasant wine, but not fabulous.
We scored it 3/5 for quality and 3/5 for likeability.

So how does this compare to our other challenger wines?

I chose:

• Fleurie Georges deBoeuf £10.99 = 9
• Barista Pinotage £8.74 = 7
• Gestos Malbec £8.99 = 6
• Black Cottage rose £12.49 = 6
• Arca Nova Vinho Verde £7.99 = 6

Badger chose:

• Shortlist Cabernet £14.99 = 8
• Brown Bros Muscat £7.99 = 7
• Dom de Mercey beaune £9.99 = 7
• Villa Maria Gewurtztraminer £9.99 = 6
• Nero d'Avola £6.99 = 5

So I won the challenge, thankfully, but the more important lesson to learn here is that even within a restricted price range, price paid isn't the best indicator of quality or likeability. For us the Fleurie was the best value, and we've bought more since, and found it works as a great present or to bring to parties.

If you want more tips on how to choose the wine YOU like, let me know what you like and I'll post some things to look out for on the label when you're buying wine.

Please drink responsibly!

If you want to see how we created the challenge, how we scored our wines and/or want to create it for yourself, please follow this link: http://princessandthepinot.blogspot.co.uk/2012/09/badgers-challenge.html

Which Fleurie?

Fleurie 2009 Jean Poillard Villie-Morgon £29

Challenger wine #1 was a Georges de Boeuf Fleurie. Last night I had a different Fleurie, one that was three times the price. Although the GdB scored highly in our wine challenge (9/10), this one was outstanding, and makes me want to knock a point or two off the GdB. However, this Villie-Morgon is way out of the price range for the wine challenge so is simply non-comparable.

This wine has a much darker colour than I'm used to for a light Fleurie, but the flavour is exactly as is should be. Cherries, cooked plums, hint of pepper, and raspberry. This wine has extraordinary length, best enjoyed slowly. There is also some sediment in the bottle, which is unusual for such a light wine.

Autumn leaves on the porch, stewed plums on the stove and a candle burning in the window.

So how is it different to the GdB, I mean, after all, a Fleurie is a Fleurie? Well to start with the GdB had a kick of alcohol, the producer didn't take enough care to balance the wine. The V-M is very soft and smooth in comparison. Also, the V-M has a much longer length,  a sign of superior quality.

I'm not sure I'd say the V-M was worth three times more than the GdB, but I can tell the producer took a lot more care with this wine, and spending more will give him/her the funds to continue making great wines. If you have £30 to spend, go for the V-M rather than three GdB. If you have £10 to spend, the GdB is a good investment.

Fleurie is an appelation of Beaujolais and has quite strict rules, using the Gamay grape, so you'll know what you're getting. A Fleurie is a Fleurie, which is why often the label doesn't tell you much. The variation in quality is reflected in the price.

Challenger wine #8

Marlborough 2011 Black Cottage Rose

What a delicious and refreshing rose!I normally avoid roses because I find they remind me of pot pourri. I tend to look for much drier roses to avoid that sticky sickly taste. This one, however, is dry, but everso fruity so you could mistakenly think it was off-dry.

Strawberry, vanilla, cherry and almond flavours. Almost like a bakewell tart,  but lighter. visions of candy stripes and old-fashioned sweet stalls.Fresh, vibrant, tasty.

I think that by being made in New Zealand this rose has managed to shed the frumpy moth-ball coat.

We jointly scored it a 3 for quality and 3 for likeability (I gave it a 4 really). In terms of quality, its very hard to find a very good quality rose, especially at the £10 price point. = 6/10

Challenger wine #6

Barista Pinotage Western Cape South Africa 2010

I chose this one because I am not that fond of South African wines but Pinotage is a varietal that I enjoy exploring, it has so many variations on flavour yet always packs a punch.

I know the name gies it away, but I still wasn't expecting the overpowering aroma of coffee. Very odd! It has a lovely taste of coffee, chocolate and cherry. It is a little bitter though, although the tannins mellow and then the red fruit pushes through.

It reminds me of sitting in a diner in the USA drinking "cawfee", with sweet and savoury smells coming from the kicthen, watching the world go by.

Badger and I agreed the wine was well made, with a clever manipulation of the flavours to produce such a coffee intensity, so we give it 4 for quality. Only scores 3 on likeability, because although we would buy it again, it would probably be as a gimmick or for a friend.

Challenger Wine #2

Nero D'Avola Sicilia Oriano 2011

There's nothing I could tell you about this wine before we tried it, it wouldn't have been one I would pick up, as I don't know anything about it. Needless to say this is one of Badger's choices.

Badger says: "Petroly on the nose, high alcohol, you can taste the fruit to start with, but it gives way to something harsh. It's not balanced well".

My notes: Average dirty red.

Not much more to say about it. In regards to quality is OK, we give it a 3. Do we like it? Nah, it gets a 2.

5/10 for Badger's first wine... it must have been a cheap one, so curious to see what else he has up his sleeve. I can't rest on my laurels yet.

Pouilly Fume for a tenner?

Majestic Wine are selling a Pouilly Fume Les Cascadelles 2011 for £10.99 - I've not tasted it but it looks like a very good deal.

Pouilly Fume is made from the Sauvignon Blanc grape. It's a small area east of the Loire Valley, a prestigious appellation. It should taste of green apples, gooseberry and have a flint or stone flavour that comes with the dryness of this wine.

Great wine to try if you like something fresh and crisp. As its a Pouilly Fume it should have long length which means you can make it linger, only drink half a bottle and avoid a hangover. Good as a mid-week wine.

http://www.majestic.co.uk/find/keyword-is-Explore+Sauvignon+Blanc/product-is-05361?cmp=Email20120918&utm_source=Autumn2012&utm_medium=email&utm_content=bottle&utm_campaign=20120918

Badger's Challenge

My fiance has challenged me to a wine competition.

The rules:

• We each buy five bottles of wine for less than £50 (from Majestic Wine)
• We can't choose anything we've tried before
• We can't take recommendations from staff
• We have to choose at least three different types of wine (red/ white/ rose/ sparkling/ dessert)

Then we try the wines together and agree a score out of ten,which is in two parts:

The first score comes from the quality of the wine:

1. Poor
2. Acceptable
3. Good
4. Very good
5. Outstanding

The second score comes from how much we like the wine:

1. So bad (won't even finish the glass)
2. Don't like it (won't buy again but will finish the bottle)
3. Like it (will buy again so long as it's less than £10)
4. Love it (will buy again even if its over £10)
5. This is delicious!

Then at the end of the competition we can assess which are the best value wines and report back to you.

Bring it on!

Luis Felipe Edwards Chardonnay Casablanca 2011 (Price: 0)

What a fantastic find! This creamy chardonnay with low acidity comes from a warm climate and it has a warming in the throat from the high alcohol level (14%), but is completely different from what you might know from a French or an Australian chardonnay. Currently available from Majestic Wine for £6.99. Proper bargain. And a great buy for ABCs. Seriously, try it.

Its a delight on the nose and on the tongue, it has a fragrant sweetness with flavours of banana, butterscotch and caramel. It's fun, something you don't come across very often. It takes me to the funfair, when you try new things and there are sweet smells in the air. It's playful, like long blonde curly hair with ribbons.