BBQ Wines

INVITATION

Summer is approaching and summer, even with our weather, means Barbeques. But what wines to serve with a BBQ? We will be getting some ideas from Hazel this coming Friday, 3rd June, at our next Tongham Tasters’ evening. Expect some rosés! To road test them properly there will be an accompanying BBQ and perhaps some of Steve's homemade bread. All we need now is your company and some good weather.

Format will be as usual, with 6 wines being blind tasted and some accompanying food. We will be sharing the cost (about £10 a head) between all the attendees and anyone is welcome to join us. Just send us an email to tonghamtaster@gmail.com or ring John on 07717 876743 if you fancy joining us. The fun starts at 8pm. If you have never met us before and want to know more about our group click on Wine Circle at the top of this page.

JOHN’S BBQ WINE ADVICE
Most rosés go well with BBQ food. What better to drink on a hot summer’s night?
With reds either go for big wines such as Shiraz, Malbec, Pinotage etc or go for some more acidity with a lighter Beaujolais. Probably a young Australian Shiraz would be a popular choice with many in the UK. In the USA they would recommend a Zinfandel – why not try the Ravenswood Zinfandel from Majestic?
If you fancy a white, try a Pinot Gris, Sauvignon Blanc or Riesling.
Which exact wine you choose will depend on what exactly you are barbequing and what sauce or marinade you are using and even on you and your guests own personal taste. Don’t worry too much as BBQ is not haute cuisine – just don’t waste an expensive wine. Have fun trying a selection of value wines. Join us next Friday for some ideas.

Rhone’s Unusual Whites - TonghamTaster’s French Wine Tasting Course – week 22

The 12 month on-line course to help you learn about French wines - Top tips on how to get value when buying them - Reasonably priced up-to-date recommendations of what to buy and try in the UK - Bringing you the best of Tongham Village Hall wine tastings.


INTRODUCTION
This week we cover the more unusual Rhone whites, mainly from the Northern Rhone valley. When we had the Tongham Village Hall Rhone wine tasting, a few years ago, we actually served three of these including an relatively rare St Peray still white, a distinctive sparkling Clairette de Die and a beautiful sweet Muscat de Beaumes de Venise.

LOCALITY
The Northern Rhone stretches along the Rhone valley south from Vienne to Valence. Condrieu is at the northern end near Vienne on the steep slopes of the right bank of the Rhone.. Saint-Peray is in the southernmost part of the Northern Rhone. The Rhone wine making area of Die is east of Valence in a very high area quite separate from the rest of this wine region.
In the Southern Rhone to east of Orange is Beaumes de Venise.

VARIETALS
The wines of Condrieu contain 100% Viognier and it is this appellation that made the grape variety famous. However, the production is small and if you drink French Viognier it is more likely nowadays to come from the Languedoc. Viognier is a very full bodied fragrant grape with low acidity.
The wines of Die are made with Muscat and Clairette mainly. The fortified wines of Muscat de Baumes de Venise are also made of the Muscat grape.
The wines of St Peray, like most whites of the Rhone valley are made with Marsanne and Roussanne. Other Northern Rhone white appellations with these grapes include Saint Joseph, Crozes-Hermitages and Hermitages, but these are rare and not particularly appealing outside of the region.

THE WINES

Condrieu is a small, famous and expensive AOC making still white wines exclusively from the Viognier grape. In the same area is the even smaller AOC of Chateau Grillet which makes rare and expensive sweet wines from the same grape. These wines have had a renaissance since the 1980s and inspired similar wines around the world.
Saint Peray is a small and not so famous AOC that produces both still and sparkling white wines. The sparkling wine is made using the same method as in Champagne. I have heard it said that the first wine Napoleon drank was a St Peray.
Clairette de Die is an unusual sparkling wine that can be anything from off-dry to sweet. The newer Cremant de Die is a more usual dry sparkling wine using the Champagne method.
Muscat de Beaume de Venise is a well known fortified sweet white wine that has been made for centuries.

THE TASTE
The Viognier wines of Condrieu are dry but often taste sweet due to the fragrant flavours of peach and flowers. They are full bodied and often oaked. Texture is similar to Chardonnay but with flavours that are different. Acidity is usually low and for that reason is not a favourite of mine.
Clairette de Die will also taste peachy and can also be grapey or have honesuckle. With its sparkle I find it more acceptable and it is rather different to most other sparkling wines.
Muscat de Beaume de Venise has a sweet grapey taste and is very pleasant. I remember when it was very popular in the seventies and it deserves a revival.

TOP TIPS
• Muscat de Beaumes de Venise can be a good value sweet dessert wine.
• Look out for Clairette de Die as it is an unusual taste experience.

HOMEWORK
For your homework this week buy and try one of this week’s Rhone white wines, which may include one of the following:

Waitrose - Muscat de Beaumes-de-Venise Carte Or,  (sweet) 37.5cl - about £6 or a Thierry Sansot Muscat de Baumes De Venise from Tesco 37.5cl at about £5.50
or if you want to splash out - Waitrose - Guigal 2008 Condrieu - about £30 or same from Majestic at about £28

FOOD PAIRINGS
These wines are all very different but here are some quick suggestions:
Condrieu - if you are spending this much on the wine why not try lobster.
Muscat de Baumes de Venise - most blue cheese and most desserts incluing fruit salad
Clairette de Die - depends on the sweetness but try with those cheeses with apricots in them.
St Peray - try with some olives.

COMING SOON
Next week we start on the wines of Provence, starting with their Roses. If you missed the early weeks of this course, it is not too late to catch up. Just click on the French Wine Course link at the top of this page.

Northern Rhone Reds - TonghamTaster’s French Wine Tasting Course – week 21

The 12 month on-line course to help you learn about French wines - Top tips on how to get value when buying them - Reasonably priced up-to-date recommendations of what to buy and try in the UK - Bringing you the best of Tongham Village Hall wine tastings.

INTRODUCTION
This week we cover Northern Rhone reds which are much less well known than their Southern Rhone cousins. This is because they are not so common – the Northern Rhone only produces about one twentieth of the wine that the Southern Rhone produces.

LOCALITYThe Northern Rhone stretches along the Rhone valley south from Vienne to Valence. Most vineyards are on the steep slopes above the river although there are some flatter areas around St Joseph and Crozes-Hermitages, but these wines are often of inferior quality. The area has very hot sunny summers and this combined with the slopes gives the name of one of the wines – Cotes Rotie, or literally roasted hillsides.

VARIETALS
The red wines of the Northern Rhone are predominantly made with the Syrah grape, which is known as Shiraz throughout most of the rest of the World. In some appellations the winemakers are allowed to add some white grapes to lighten and add fragrance to the wines – depending on the AOC this might be Viognier, Marsanne or Roussanne.

THE WINES
Crozes-Hermitage is by far the largest of the North Rhone AOCs and the one you are most likely to be able to afford along with St Joseph. The AOC is centred around Tain-l’hermitage. Much of the wine can be drunk young as it is more approachable than some of the high-quality syrahs due to its soft fruitiness. Well worth a try.

St Joseph is centred around Tournon but stretches for much of the area between Vienne and Valence. The quality is frankly rather variable and are most are quite light and best drunk young.
Hermitage is going up the scale of quality and is probably the best known of the Northern Rhone AOCs despite its small size. It is grown near the town of Tain l’hermitage on south facing granite slopes. This is a star wine and demands some cellaring before drinking – one for the connoisseurs.
Cornas is on the opposite side of the river to Hermitage. The wines can be quite tannic and thus need time to age. Although, they can be on the rustic side they do at least have body.
Cote Rotie wines are rather expensive and I would have to admit to trying them only once. However, this is the best Northern Rhone red of all.

THE TASTE
These red syrah wines vary from the easy drinking fruity reds of St Joseph and Crozes Hermitages to the heavy weight wines of Hermitage and the Cote Rotie. These latter wines are some of the best Syrah/Shiraz wines in the World and show of the grape’s prime characteristics of full bodied berry laden spicy smokiness.

TOP TIPS
• Look out for Crozes-Hermitages as they can be great value for money.
• Try one of the top wines, at least once, but give it time to mature.

HOMEWORK
For your homework this week buy and try one of this week’s Northern Rhone red wines, which may include one of the following:
Waitrose - Cave de Tain 2007 Les Hauts de Pavières Crozes-Hermitage – about £10.
Majestic – Cave de Tain 2007 Crozes-Hermitages – about £10.
Waitrose - Cave de Saint-Désirat Cuvée Prestige 2007 Saint-Joseph – about £13.

FOOD PAIRINGS
These wines will normally match well with a pheasant casserole in red wine sauce or rare roast meats. The lighter reds are great on their own or I actually like them slightly chilled with a summer BBQ.

COMING SOON
Next week we cover the other Rhone wines including some incredible perfumed white wines and an unusual sparkling wine. If you missed the early weeks of this course, it is not too late to catch up. Just click on the French Wine Course link at the top of this page.

Southern Rhone Stars - TonghamTaster’s French Wine Tasting Course – week 20

The 12 month on-line course to help you learn about French wines - Top tips on how to get value when buying them - Reasonably priced up-to-date recommendations of what to buy and try in the UK - Bringing you the best of Tongham Village Hall wine tastings.

INTRODUCTION
This week we cover some of the most famous red wines in the World like Chateauneuf-du-Pape and also some less know red wines such as Lirac. On the way we will cover some rather nice rose wines from the Southern Rhone.

LOCALITY
The red and rose wines we will be covering in this blog are all from the Southern Rhone valley and are mainly centred near the towns of Avignon and Orange. This area is relatively close to the Mediterranean and thus is sunny but also windy. The soil is famous for the galets or large pebbles that soak up the heat in the day and then give off the heat during the night, thus speeding the ripening of the grapes. Avignon is famous partly due to its papal history, being the home of various popes and anti-popes during the 14th and 15th centuries. It still has the papal palace and the old bridge made famous by the song. References to both the popes and the galets appear on many of the bottles.
 
VARIETALS
The red and rose wines of the appellations we are covering this week allow many varietals – Chateauneuf-du-Pape famously allows 13 varietals. In practice most are Grenache dominated with strong percentages of Mouvedre, Syrah and Cinsault, although some estates such as the famous Chateau Beaucastel grow all 13 varietals. Grenache is a grape that does well on poor soils and in the baking sun and thus is ideal for the area; it also helps gives the wines their beautiful red colour. Although most wines are blends you will occasionally find single varietal wines – normally Grenache. I often appreciate the estates that use a strong percentage of Mouvedre which does well in good years and helps balance the fruitiness of Gremache.

THE WINES
Chateauneuf-du-Pape was the very first AOC wine in France, becoming an appellation in 1935. It is also one of the most famous wines in the World. Sadly, its quality is very variable and the bargains are rarely as good as you would hope. The best producers, however, are very good – Domaine du Vieux Telegraph for instance.
Perhaps, one of my favourite appellations in the area is Gigondas. Although, it has been an AOC only since 1971, it has become a favourite alternative to Chateauneuf-du-Pape for many including myself. It certainly tends to be better value.
Only an appellation since 1990, Vacqueyras was the second Cotes Du Rhone Village to be promoted to full AOC status after Gigondas. With both these wines you pronounce the “s” at the end of the word – this is southern France. Perhaps, slightly more rustic that the top two AOCs in the area, it nevertheless can represent good value.
Lirac is the appellation just across the River Rhone from Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Its wines tend to bit a little softer than the other three wines and can be very pleasant and good value in the good vintages. Lirac also produces a very pleasant Rose wine. However, the most famous rose wine in the area comes from Tavel which is unusual in that it is an AOC just for rose wine and they produce no reds.
Just south of this area and just north of Provence is the Cotes du Ventoux and the Cotes du Luberon. These wines tend to be lighter, fruitier and less spicy. However, they can be great everyday easy drinking good value wines, especially the Ventoux. Similar wines are produced to the north of the southern Rhone in the Coteaux du Tricastin. Again these can be good value easy drinking reds.
The southernmost appellation of the Rhone valley, and one that used to be considered part of the Languedoc, is the Costieres de Nimes. They tend to be more Carignan dominated but are reliable value wines.

THE TASTE
The red wines of Chateauneuf-du-Pape and its imitators vary from being full bodied spicy wines to more medium bodied fruity wines. Tannins vary from producer to producer but many can be drunk very young, particularly the cheaper ones.
The rose wines of Tavel and Lirac are wines which are dryer and have more body than most rose wines. They are definitely worth trying if you like some pink now and again.

TOP TIPS
• Look out for Gigondas as this is a good value wine from the area.
• Ventoux, Nimes and Tricastin all produce good value easy drinking reds.
• 2007 and 2009 were great vintages in the southern Rhone Valley so you are almost guaranteed a pleasant wine if you buy Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas, Lirac or Vacqueyras from these vintages.

HOMEWORK

For your homework this week buy and try one of this week’s Southern Rhone appellation wines which may include one of the following:
Waitrose - Domaine du Joncier Le Classique 2007 Lirac – about £11
Waitrose - Gabriel Meffre, Les Grands Cyprès 2007 Vacqueyras – about £13.
Waitrose - Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Perrin et Fils, Le Chemin des Mulets – about £19.
or if on a budget – La Vieille Ferme 2009 Côtes du Ventoux – about £7
or Waitrose - Celliers des Dauphins 2009 Coteaux du Tricastin – about £6

FOOD PAIRINGS
These wines will normally match well with roast lamb or lamb stews – why not Lancashire Hotpot. Try some of lighter wines with Sausage, mash and onions.

COMING SOON
Next week we cover the Syrah based northern Rhone red wine appellations such as Crozes Hermitages. If you missed the early weeks of this course, it is not too late to catch up. Just click on the French Wine Course link at the top of this page.

A Tale of Terroir

For our May Tongham Tasters’ evening we had a more specialised theme than normal – we were to taste five French Sauvignon Blanc white wines. Our reward was to be a mature red at the end of the evening. After eight months, I was at last going to be allowed to choose the wines – the pressure was on. Surely after all my practice of drinking wines from Sancerre and Pouilly Fume, this would be a veritable doddle! Alas, the budget was just fifty pounds for six bottles; I was going to have to very thrifty and search a wider area of France for value. After much diligent research I got together what I thought were 5 pretty good value Sauvignon Blanc white wines and a cracking red as well. But how would our eight man tasting team perceive them?.... and would they be able to spot the Sauvignon Blanc that was blended with something else as well?

The evening started well enough, as I explained how New Zealand wines shouted at me whereas French wines talked to me and occasionally sung to me, and then someone mentioned that dreaded word…….”terroir”!

In order of preference after voting, here are my wines and our collective views on them. Scores are in the order: John E, Steve S, Sheila, Jane, Clive, John S and Ian.

1. Domaine de Salvard Cheverny Le Vieux Clos “Delaille” 2009, Majestic Wines, £7.99
Three of our intrepid team of eight tasters voted this their top wine and another four had it as their runner up. However, nobody realised that this was a blended wine as it tasted like pure Sauvignon Blanc. It in fact had 15% Chardonnay as well. Many thought it tasted quite New World compared to the other French wines that we were tasting. It certainly had a nice bouquet and taste that perhaps came from maturing the wine on its lees. The scores out of 20 were 15, 14.5, 11, 18, 17, 15, and 13. This was another winner from Majestic Wine Warehouse.

A really nice red!

2. Altos D’Oliva Gran Reserva Catalunya 2000 Spain, FromVineyardsDirect, £7.95
With four of our judges putting this at No.1 and another as runner up, our red wine of the evening did rather well. Everybody’s first guess was that this was an Australian Rhone blend – but no it was from near the Priorat region of Spain. It was the oldest wine we had yet had at a Tongham Tasters evening and everyone thought this would go well with a BBQ. Many including Kathyrn got the liquorice taste of this Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranilla, Garnacha, Shiraz blend and John S thought it chunky with a hint of sweetness. Sheila thought that it not only sung to her but did the whole Karaioke repertoire! Scores were 15.5, 14, 14, 14, 12, 15, and 14.5. This is a wine that represents great value for money.

3. Domaine Octavie Touraine Sauvignon 2009, FromVineyardsDirect, £8.75
One top vote, three seconds and two thirds gave this wine our bronze medal of the evening. A few like Steve S thought this was a blend as it wasn’t particularly Sauvignon Blanc like and had more sweetness and less acidity than normal. Clive thought he detected a little spritz. Scores were 13, 13, 10.5, 16, 16, 13, and 9.5. Worth adding to your list if you are trying to make up a mixed case of twelve wines, I enjoyed it more when I tasted it on its own with a meal rather than part of a tasting flight.

Jane expounds on Teroir!

4. Vallee Blanche Sauvignon Blanc Cotes de Gascogne 2009, Majestic, £5.99
The cheapest wine of the evening, it did rather well in the scoring with two third places and four fourth places.. Variously described as quite minerally and quite fruity, some thought it very dry and, some like Jane, quite sweet! It was certainly fruity, perhaps apple-like with some citrus and lychee, and was another with a touch of the New World rather than the Loire about it – in fact it comes from the South West of France. Scores were 14.5, 11.5, 10, 13, 15, 12, and 10.5. This is a very good value nice wine from Majestic. Don’t be put off by the cheap looking label as Steve has been in the past.

5. Clothilde Davenne Saint-Bris Sauvignon 2009, FromVineyardsDirect. £9.75.
The most expensive wine of the evening did rather disappointingly with just two top three votes and not much else. A nice wine it is perhaps not very Sauvignon Blanc like. It was interesting that it had a much darker colour than the other wines. Clive was not sure of the aftertaste but It went well the spicy aubergine dip that Jane made. Scores were 12.5, 12, 6.5, 13, 10, 11, and 12. An interesting wine that frankly is better based on previous tastings than these scores would indicate but on this tasting perhaps not worth the price. Whenever, I have bought wines from this small Burgundy appellation before, they have been cheaper and better value.

6. Domaine Henri Beurdin et Fils, Reuily 2009, Majestic £7.99.
This wine should have been OK based on previous tastings but when served too cold has a bitterness and grittiness that is unpleasant. However, once it warms up and you have some food with it, then these bad characteristics disappear. It was an interesting lesson in serving wine at the right temperature and how food can improve wine. For the wine nearest to the traditional Loire Sauvignon Blanc area it was not so good. Scores were 11.5, 9, 4, 8, 13, 9, and 6.5. A real spread of scores for this one, depending on whether it was scored based on first or last impressions. This was a tricky wine to serve correctly; interestingly, enough it says on the bottle to serve it fresh and not too iced – should have read the label!

It was an interesting mix of wines and showed how the different terroir from the different areas of France allied with the different wine makers’ skills and techniques can turn out quite different tasting wines. The 2 different goats cheeses, aubergine dip, brandade and crudités all went down well with the home made rolls and pitta bread. We had a great crowd along and the conversation flowed on many topics as well as wine.  Did we really talk about the Eurovision Song Contest?  It was great to have Kathryn along for the first time and hope we see her again at future evenings. Cost of the evening per person was just £7.30 – good value I think. It was good to try wines from yet another interesting inline retailer – FromVineyardsDirect.

The table is set for a great evening

Next month we will be having another Friday evening event and the theme is BBQ wines and if the weather is good we will be having a BBQ as well. The date for your diary is Friday June 3rd. Click on Wine Circle at the top of the page for more details – all are welcome. Location will be somewhere in Grange Road, Tongham.

For our July evening we are celebrating French National day on Thursday July 14th - this evening will be a bit special as we are doubling the budget for the evening and having some rather nice French wines and food.  As usual contact John via email at tonghamtaster@gmail.com or ring him on 07717 876743.

Our August evening will be another Friday evening event and the theme will be Old World versus New World wines.  Venue will be in Tongham.    For our Farnborough fans good news as the Setmber event will be in Farnborough on Thursday September 15th.

The Thyme Has Come!

Riverford Veg Box and Thyme

This week in our seasonal and organic vegetable box we received our first Thyme of the season. We also grow it in our herb bed and thus we have an abundance of Thyme on our hands at the moment. However, you can never have too much herbs and so I am happy. So we needed to think of some ideas on how to use this wonderful herb as Thyme goes by.
• Thyme is of course a major ingredient in Herbs de Provence and Bouquet Garni.
• Thyme is great for flavouring stocks, soups, stews and casseroles.
• Thyme is wonderful just sprinkled over salads.
• Thyme is brilliant mixed in with the dough when making bread or bread rolls.
• Both lamb and tomatoes have their flavours enhanced by Thyme.
• Make stuffing with chunks of bread and some lemon juice, zest and thyme for chicken.
• Add Thyme to your mayonnaise. This works really well with a BLT sandwich.
• If making your own cheese crackers or biscuits, add Thyme as it is also good with many cheeses.
• Hang in your kitchen as it gives off a wonderful smell and also can help repel insects.

As for a wine pairing for these savoury dishes, why not go for red Italian Sangiovese. I also think it goes well with Black Sheep bitter.

One must not forget that Thyme works well in sweet recipes as well. Replace lavender in any recipe with Thyme and most people will probably prefer the result.

• Infuse your cream with Thyme when making a Crème Brulee and you will have created something special. Why not call it Thyme is of the essence!
• Thyme goes really well with apples and pears and so why not add it to you apple or pear pies and tarts?
• Add Thyme when making your ice cream and again you will get something really beautiful tasting. I’ll try and post my recipe for Apple and Thyme Ice Cream later in the week.
• Add Thyme to biscuits and cakes as well. There is no end of ideas for this versatile herb, you can use it Thyme after Thyme.

If you want to infus thyme into milk or cream then heat for tem minutes with plenty of thyme at a temperature just below a simmer and then strain.

Bread rolls with thyme

Thyme is really easy to grow but prefers full sun and a well drained soil. Not only does it taste good it is also a very decorative addition to your herb bed. If you don’t have any get some from your local garden centre today as Thyme will wait for no man and there is no Thyme like the present.

Remember that herbs keep much better in the fridge if you put them in sacking bags rather than plastic bags.  You can buy these is a number of places including Raymond Blanc's restaurants and website.

Cotes du Rhone - TonghamTaster’s French Wine Tasting Course – week 19

The 12 month on-line course to help you learn about French wines - Top tips on how to get value when buying them - Reasonably priced up-to-date recommendations of what to buy and try in the UK - Bringing you the best of Tongham Village Hall wine tastings.

INTRODUCTION
This week we start our discovery of the Rhone valley wines with the very well known Cotes du Rhone and Cotes du Rhone Villages wines. But how much do you really know about these wines?

LOCALITY
The Rhone valley wine region runs from Vienne just south of Lyon to Avignon and slightly beyond. The generic appellations we are looking at this week cover this whole rather large area but these wines mainly come from the southern part of the area between Montelimar and Avignon. The vineyards given over to the Cotes du Rhone AOC are often the flatter sites. Being relatively close to the Mediterranean this is a quite dry and windswept region.

VARIETALS
The red and rose wines of Cotes du Rhone may contain, in theory, many different grape varietals. In practice the main varietals are Grenache Noir, which normally dominates, plus Syrah and Mourvedre. The Village wines must contain at least 80% of these varietals. Another 10 different black grape varietals (Cinsault, Carignan etc) are permitted and even some white grapes used in the region are permitted.
The white wines of Cotes du Rhone are mainly made with Grenache Blanc, Clairette, Marsanne, Roussanne, Viognier and Bourboulenc.

THE WINES

There must be few people who have drunk cheaper French wines who have not drunk red Cotes du Rhone. It is a wine you will find in almost every wine shop, supermarket, bar, brasserie and restaurant in France and beyond. It ranges from cheap plonk, through good value easy drinking red and rose wine, to some interesting serious reds.
Cotes du Rhone Villages represents higher quality than Cotes du Rhones as it has stricter regulations and requires lower yields. In addition about 20 of the top villages are allowed to append their names to the Cotes du Rhone Villages appellation – these represent the cream of these generic wines – look out for names such as Cairanne and Seguret on the labels.
The white wines are less well known and frankly I don’t favour them very much, although occasionally I find one to my liking. The roses are often good value quaffable wines.

THE TASTE
These wines can be light and fruity towards the bottom end but can also be quite big powerful wines at the top end. Very often there will be a spiciness to the wines. Don’t expect too much from the cheaper wines which are produced in huge quantities using carbonic maceration by the cooperatives. However, the top end Cotes du Rhone Villages can be fantastic value and quite special. These vary from Syrah dominated wines that will resemble a Crozes Hermitages to wines containing a blend of the main varietals aping a Chateauneuf du Pape.
Most Cotes du Rhone are good drunk young so no need to cellar these wines.

TOP TIPS
• Look out for Cotes du Rhone Villages as these are amongst the best value red wines in France. Do try some of the more expensive ones if recommended.
• 2007 and 2009 were great vintages in the Rhone Valley so you are almost guaranteed a pleasant wine if you buy Cotes du Rhone or Cotes du Rhone Villages from these years.

HOMEWORK
After struggling to find the wines of the South West you will have no trouble completing your homework this week. Buy and try one of the generic Rhone appellation wines which may include the following:

Waitrose - Guigal 2007 Côtes du Rhône Red– about £10 (highly recommended) - also available at Majestic and many other stores.
or if on a budget - Asda - Cellier des Dauphins Cru Cotes du Rhone Villages Vinsobres 2009 - about £6,
or Sainsbury - Taste the Difference Cotes du Rhone Villages 2009 - also about £6.

FOOD PAIRINGS
These wines will normally match well with any simple or spicy beef and lamb dishes, such as cottage pie or shepherds pie.  I tend to think of these as weekday wines rather than weekend wines. I find the whites go well with mild fish and vegetable curries. They are also party wines to be drunk on their own.

COMING SOON
Next week we cover the Southern Rhone red wine appellations such as Chateauneuf du Pape and Gigondas.  If you missed the early weeks of this course, it is not too late to catch up. Just click on the French Wine Course link at the top of this page.

French Sauvignon Blanc Evening

France is the spiritual home of Sauvignon Blanc with Sancerre and Pouilly Fume having created the worldwide reputation of this white distinctive grape varietal. Nowadays, perhaps some consumers believe that Sauvignon Blanc comes mainly from New Zealand as this is the favourite tipple of many. For years Sauvignon Blanc was my favourite wine and of course, being me, I prefer the French Sauvignon Blancs. There are many French Sauvignon Blancs other than Sancerre and Pouilly Fume. Perhaps surprisingly, Quincy was the second ever Appellation Controlee after Chateauneuf du Pape, and Quincy only grows Sauvignon Blanc. Also in the Loire, Reuilly and Touraine grow lovely Sauvignon Blanc wines as does St Bris in Burgundy. In the Loire, Bordeaux and South West Regions Sauvignon Blanc is often blended with other grapes to produce other distinctive and delicious wines.

For our next Tongham Tasters’ wine evening we will be blind tasting some of these French Sauvignon Blancs – 4 single varietals and one blend. Our sixth and last wine of the evening will be a red – I’ll bring along something special. The date for your diaries is Thursday 12th May at 8.00pm and the venue is in Tongham Surrey – full address when you book.

Everyone is invited and welcome but places are limited to just 14. Cost is the usual maximum of £10 and is payable on the night. If you want to join us please ring John Etherton on 07717 876743 or email tonghamtaster@gmail.com. It should be a good convivial evening with nice wine and some simple food to match. Hope to see you there! If you need more information click on Wine Circle at the top of this page for our FAQs. We welcome new faces to our events so please feel free to join us.

Piccalilli Recipe and Royal Wedding Street party

On the day of the recent Royal Wedding we had a street party from 2pm until 10pm. In all, we visited seven back gardens in our road and had a course and a drink in each. It was great fun and we met some neighbours we hadn’t really known before. In between courses we marched down the street to get to the next house.

We were the second course and served Jane’s gorgeous potted ham with some of my homemade piccalilli. Piccalilli is a mustard pickle and I prefer mine to be tangy rather than sweet and have a chilli hot flavour as well. It goes well with cold meats, cheese, sausages and burgers. It was very popular when I was young and seems to be undergoing a bit of a revival. For those who enjoyed my Piccalilli, here is the recipe (it took three seasons to perfect this).

Walking down the road between courses

Johnny’s Homemade Hot Tongham Piccalilli Recipe
Ingredients
Between 3.5 and 4 lb of mixed fresh vegetables including:
1 Cauliflower
A good handful of French beans
1 Cucumber
A good handful of Spring Onions
1 decent sized Courgette
1 Red pepper
Plus:
2 large medium hot Red Chillies (chopped)
2 fat cloves of Garlic (crushed)

Potted ham, bread and piccalilli

1.5 oz of Mustard Powder
2 tablespoons of Turmeric
Over 1.5 pints of White Wine Vinegar
Plus Store Cupboard ingredients such as:
Salt
Sugar
Plain Flour
Dijon or English Mustard
Malt Vinegar
Corn Flour

1. Clean and prepare the vegetables and then chop into small pieces. Put the vegetables into a large bowl and sprinkle with about 1 ounce of salt to dehydrate. Shake and then cover with cling film and leave overnight.
2. Drain off any liquid and then rinse thoroughly in cold water. Allow to dry.
3. Mix the flour and mustard powder with a little of the wine vinegar and make into a paste. Put into a large saucepan and add the rest of the white wine vinegar, chillies, garlic, turmeric and a generous 2 ounces of sugar. Bring to the boil, stirring a little to ensure the paste mixes in well. Add the chopped vegetables, bring back to the boil and simmer for a maximum of 15 minutes.
4. Allow to cool a little and then taste. It is important to have a nice bright yellow colour and a hot and sour taste. It must also have a thick consistency. Thus at this stage you need to achieve the right balance by adding some mustard, corn flour, sugar and malt vinegar.  If you add corn flour to thicken you will need to bring to a boil again in a little vinegar and stir but do not cook the vegetables any longer. Once done to your taste, allow to cool a little again so that you don’t burn yourself when trying to put in the jars.
5. Sterilise some old jam or honey jars, add the piccalilli and put the lids on.
6. You should store for at least 3 months in a cool and dark place before opening and tasting your delicious homemade Piccalilli.

The tannic wines of Madiran and Irouleguy - TonghamTaster’s French Wine Tasting Course – week 18

The 12 month on-line course to help you learn about French wines - Top tips on how to get value when buying them - Reasonably priced up-to-date recommendations of what to buy and  try in the UK - Bringing you the best of Tongham Village Hall wine tastings.

INTRODUCTION
This week we complete our discovery of the lovely wines of South West France with the tannic reds of Madiran, Irolueguy and other local appellations containing the Tannat grape varietal.

LOCALITY
From the same area as the white wines of Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh come the red wines of Madiran. They have been known for centuries because it was on the old pilgrims route to Santiago de Compostela in Gascony. Next to Madiran are the two VDQS appellations of St Mont and Tursan that produce relatively similar wines.
Right on the Spanish border, in the heart of Basque country not far from Biarritz, come the red wines of Irouleguy. A similar VDQS appellation slightly further into France is that of Bearn. .

VARIETALS
The grape that makes these wines distinctive is the Tannat varietal. As might be expected from the name, this grape produces quite a tannic wine. Due to these characteristics the wines are often softened by the use of other varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Fer.

THE WINES
If you are interested in the wines of France and like the distinctive food of South West France, the appellations of Madiran and Irouleguy are essential tasting.
The wines of Madiran are often very Tannat dominated and can age for many years. The older style of Madiran needs at least 5 to 10 years before drinking. However, there is now a softer modern style that can be drunk younger.
The wines of Irouleguy are instantly recognisable on the wine shelves due to the distinctive basque script and amazing amount of “X”s that you find in their names. Irouleguy is a small appellation in the Pyrenees and produces lighter reds than Madiran.

THE TASTE
These wines can be quite rustic but can often be mistaken for the left bank wines of Bordeaux. The tannins give these wines high levels of astringency. They are often big wines that require to be drunk with strong flavoured food.   Tastes may be of dark berries or plum.

TOP TIPS

• Look out for the wines of Madiran and Irouleguy. To me they represent good value, particularly when bought in France, and are also suitable for drinking with the local dishes.

HOMEWORK
For your homework this week you need to buy and try a Madiran or Irouleguy. You will find buying these wines quite difficult but not impossible in the UK It may include the following wine but I also highly recommend a trip to Les Caves de Pyrene near Guildford:
Waitrose – Château d'Aydie 2007, Madiran – about £13.

FOOD PAIRINGS
These distinctive tannic wines go well with the local cuisine such as Confit of duck, cassoulet and the local Pyrenean brebis cheeses. Try it also with lamb and game as these wines need powerful flavours.

COMING SOON
Next week we move on, eastwards, to the Rhone Valley and discover the great value wines of the Cotes du Rhone which has had great vintages recently in both 2007 and 2009. If you missed the early weeks of this course, it is not too late to catch up. Just click on the French Wine Course link at the top of this page.