THE ITALIAN JOB

Hurry up with the wine!

Our March Tongham Tasters’ evening was dedicated to Italian wines and pasta.  It was not our first Italian evening and I doubt if it will be our last.  This was our 18^th monthly tasting session and it proved to be our most popular as we had fourteen wine enthusiasts along for a fun Friday evening.    As we had such a big crowd we added a few bottles of wine and added some more food but still kept the evening’s cost at £10 per head.

Healthy food!

I had prepared some homemade butternut squash ravioli in sage butter sauce to go with the white wines and a homemade beef ragu to go with penne rigate and the red wines.  Jane had prepared a pair of lovely loaves – olive bread and sun dried tomato bread to keep with the Italian theme.  We also had some crudités and hummus and a selection of cheese.  At the end of the evening I prepared some homemade Italian pear sorbet to provide a dessert.

But enough about the food, what about the wines!   Obviously they were all Italian but two via Sainsbury and seven via FromVineyardsDirect.  Who would win out – the supermarket or specialist retailer?  Below are the wines in our descending order of preference.  All were blind tasted and scored out of 20 based on look, smell, body, taste, length and enjoyment.  Scores are in the order John E, Jane, Ian, John S, Jill, Clive, Steve S, Yvonne, Sheila, Andy, Chris and Lilly.  Steve W and Kathryn also attended but didn’t score the wines.

1. Pietracupa Bolgheri DOC 2007 Tenuta Moraia Tuscany Red 13.5% Sainsbury £11.99

Four of our team voted this their top wine and another five had it in their top three wines of the evening.  I bought it back in 2009 on the recommendation of Jancis Robinson in the FT who had said it was a particularly posh wine for Sainsbury.  She described it as French Claret style and our tasting confirmed this.  Unfortunately not available any more but a great treat for us tasters.  It was a bigger red than many we try with good structure and acidity a classic Medoc taste and a hint of chocolate.  The most expensive wine of the evening and this was a 2009 price but also the best red wine by some way.  Our scores were 17.5, 16, 17.5, 15, 13, 16, 15.25, 16, 14, 13, 13 and 14.  It is a shame that Sainsburys don’t have more of this!

2. Roero Arneis Anterisio DOCG 2009 Cascino Chicco Dry White 13% FromVineyardsDirect £9.95

I had put this in the tasting as I regard it as a stunning white wine and most of our tasting team agreed.  One of the team voted it the best of the evening and another six had it in their top three. From the Roero area of Piedmont near where they grow the grapes for Barolo this is made with the rare Arneis grape.  This wine will appeal to lovers of minerally wines such as Chablis, Sancerre or Albarino.   It is well rounded with a definite zing!   Our scores were 16, 15, 14.5, 13, 11, 15, 14.5, 12, 13, 12, 16.5 and 17.5.   A great value white wine.

3. Barbera D’Alba Granera Alta DOC 2009 Cascina Chicco Red 14% FromVineyardsDirect  £10.95

A wine from the same maker as the Roero, the performance of this wine surprise me.  It again comes from Piedmont and is a red made from the lighter Barbera grape rather than the more powerful Nebbiolo grape of the local Barolo and Barbaresco wines.  This was a very fruity wine, although Clive likened its smell to a gas meter!  It got two top votes and another five top three scores and thus did very well.  Individual scores were 12.75, 17, 13, 11, 12, 16, 12.5, 16, 12, 11, 17 and 18.  So, quite a variety of score for this wine but definitely one to consider if you like softer fruity red wines.

4. Collalbrigo Prosecco Spumante Brut DOC NV Sparkling Conegiliano 11% FromVineyardsDirect  £9.95

Sparkling wines almost always do well at our evenings and this one was a good little Prosecco with nice small bubbles and a good fruity minerality.  It actually got three top votes but a few had in their bottom half and hence it missed out on the podium.  Scores were 14, 12, 14, 10, 9, 14, 13, 13, 15, 14, 16 and 15.5.  If buying a dozen bottles from FromVineyardsDirect, it is well worth throwing in a few bottles of this very nice Prosecco.

5. Prà Soave DOC 2010 13% Monteforte d’Alpone Dry White  FromVineyardsDirect £10.95

For a top quality white wine like this one to only come in the middle rankings just shows the overall quality of the wines in our Italian evening.  This was a Soave from a top independent producer and is dry but not too acidic and with a good flavor.  Well done to Jill who spotted this was a Soave.  Two of our team voted this their favourite wine of the evening and another two had it in their top three.  Scores were 14, 15, 13, 13, 14, 13, 14, 17, 10, 11, 15.5 and 14.  If you’ve never tasted a top Soave, treat yourself to a few bottles f this wine.

6. Valpolicella DOC Classico 2006 Fratta Pasini Red12.5% FromVineyardsDirect £10.45

This is a wine that tastes quite powerful but isn’t that alcoholic.  Some thought it was an Amarone as it had sweetness reminiscent of one.   I thought it had a zest of orange peel on the nose and some thought it had a raspberry taste.  One person had it as their top wine of the evening and three others had it in their top three.  Scores were 14, 15, 16.5, 13, 15, 18, 11.5, 12, 13.5, 9, 14.5 and 15.  These were very good score for our sixth favourite wine.   This is definitely a wine for those looking for good less alcoholic reds under 13% abv.

7. Casa Catelli Rosso Toscano IGT 2009 Red 14.5% FromVineyardsDirect £9.75

This is a very good value wine and it got one person’s top vote and half of us had in our top four wines.  However, four of our team had it in their bottom two and hence its seventh place showing.  I think it depends on whether you like acidic Old World food wines or something more modern.  This wine is very firmly in the former category.  It has good tannins, a hint of parma violets and according to some, probably led on by Clive, a hint of cycle inner tube.  Scores were 15.25, 19, 14.5, 10.5, 8, 17, 13.75, 14, 10.5, 11, 7.5 and 6.5.  If you into Old World reds this could be a Super Tuscan wine for you and good value at under £10.

8. Rosso del Palazzone Vino Rosso NV Il Palazzone Montalcino Red13.5% FromVineyardsDirect £11.45

I have really enjoyed this wine on a number of occasions and enjoyed it with the pasta so was disappointed that our team didn’t agree with my rating.  For me this deserved a lot better than its lowly place.  Nobody really hated it but only Clive and myself had it in our top three.  This is an unusual wine it that t comes from two different vintages, 2005 and 2008, and results from overproduction of a good producer’s Brunello and Montalcino.  Scores were 16.25, 14, 15.5, 10, 9.5, 17, 11.75, 13, 12.5, 10, 11.5 and 12.5.  If you like the Sangiovese grape you should consider trying this although it is obviously not everyone’s cup of tea!.

9. Verdicchio del Castelli di Jesi DOC Classico 2010 Dry White Taste the Difference 13% Sainsbury £5.29

This wine was by far the cheapest in our tasting and even though it has been recommended by quite a few of the press wine critics, such as David Williams, Anthony Rose, Victoria Moore and Fiona Beckett, it couldn’t compete with the quality wines on offer tonight.  However, it did help reduce the average price of the wines down to near our ten pounds standard.  Frankly it is drinkable but not very interesting.   Scores were 11, 12, 10, 8, 10.25, 12, 9.5, 11, 11, 9, 11 and 11.  This wine proved my theory that it is very difficult to find good white wines at under £7.50 and press recommendations in this price range don’t tend to indicate a real bargain.

After 9 wines it's difficult to stand straight!

So Sainsbury took top prize but the FromVineyardsDirect wines proved to be very consistently good wines.

So another good Tongham Tasting evening came to an end.  It was good to have some new tasters – Andy, Chris and Lilly – alongside our regulars. 

Next month Clive will be hosting us again and serving us six interesting wines of his choice.  The theme will be "Democracy and Discount - Buying Quality or Selling Quantity".   This evening will be on Thursday 12^th April in Poyle Road, Tongham and start at 8pm.   As usual everyone is welcome and if you are interested read Wine Circle at the top of this page.

Thanks to Clive for the pictures of our evening and Jane for most of the preperation whilst I was enjoying myself in Sancerre!

SLOW WINE



The Ricco stand at Farnham Wine Festival

One of the reasons that many of us enjoy a glass or two of wine is that it helps slow things down.  It seems to reduce the pace of life.   A glass of wine at the end of a hectic day helps us relax!

However, there are some rules to remember if you want to drink and savor wine slowly and allow it to relax you:

•  Slow wine and television don’t mix.  For some reason watching the television makes us drink faster and more.  However, a good book or some good music or good company is ideal.
•   Always have a glass of water on hand so that you drink the wine for pleasure rather than thirst.
•    Don’t just pour the wine down your throat; enjoy the look, nose, texture, taste, complexity and length of the wine.  This unfortunately means that you need a slightly more expensive wine. It also means you should try different wines and not just old favourites.
•   Enjoy the wine with food and make your meal last and let the conversation flow.  However, be careful with the food you serve as some food, such as some curries for instance, will just encourage you to drink too much and will stop you savouring the wine.
•  Have a break from wine now and again so that it doesn’t become just routine and a habit. 

Here are five suggestions for some “slow wines” to try which I tasted at yesterday’s Farnham Wine Festival where a number of local independent wines sellers were showing their wares:

The Imbibros stand

Sparkling Wine – Jenkyn Place Rosé 2008 Bentley Hampshire England made from the Champagne grape varieties – about £25 from Imbibros in Farnham.  This is an absolutely delightful local sparkler and much better than most Champagne rosés.  Their white brut sparkling wine at the same price is equally stunning for a vineyard only planted a few years ago.  Definitely my pick of the day.

Dry White Wine –   Pazo Marinan Monerrei 2010 Spanish blended white – about £10  from The Inn @ West End.  I liked this and many others of their interesting selection of Portuguese and Spanish wines in a similar price range.

Rosé – Castel del Monte Rosato Petrigama DOC 2010 Az.Agr.Tarantini made from 100% Italian Bombino Nero Grapes – about  £10 from Ricco Wines in Liss.   Perhaps the best product Ricco were showing was their incredible Pecorino cheese but they have an interesting selection of Italian white and red wines.

Red Wine - Pulenta Estate Gran Corte Mendoza Argentina 2008 made from the Bordeaux grape varieties with a Malbec dominance – about £22 from Berry Bros & Rudd.  This is a powerful but beautiful wine that would be great with a fine steak or roast lamb.

Dessert Wine – Albana di Romagna Passito DOCG 2009 Fattoria Monticino Rosso made from 100% Italian Albana grapes – about £15 for 50cl from Ricco Wines in Liss.   Another wine I liked from Ricco wines and the patron suggested it would go well with a fruit and meringue desert.  

FLAVOURS OF THE MEDITERRANEAN

Our Chef, Jane, enjoyed the evening as well!

Yesterday we held another one of our big wine tasting dinners in Tongham Village Hall and again it was a success both in terms of fundraising  and improving the quality of our village social life.   This time the theme was flavours of the Mediterranean and both wine and food reflected the sunnier climes of southern Spain, southern France, Italy and Greece.

For our first course we had guests dreaming they were sitting outside a café in the fortified town of Carcassonne and we served them an absolutely top-notch Blanquette de Limoux, the lovely local sparkling wine of the Languedoc.  It was a Chateau Rives-Blanques Brut 2009 which cost us £10.16 from Great Western Wines.  This beautiful sparkler, which I scored 16 out of 20, has a high proportion of the local Mauzac grape along with Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc.  We served it with some Ras-al-Hanout spiced almonds.   Almonds make a much better accompaniment than peanuts to wine and reflected our Mediterranean theme.

Houmous and pitta bread

For the second course we transported our guests to a beachside bar on the Greek island of Santorini and served them a glass of a beautiful dry white wine made with the local Assyrtiko grape.  The wine was a Hatzidakis 2010 which cost us £10.44 from Waitrose.  The grape has a lovely balanced acidity but reflects the tastes of Greece well and  matched the homemade Houmous and pitta bread that we served with it.  I scored this wine a 14.5 out of 20.



Jane prepares the Polenta stacks

We moved on to a Tapas bar in Catalonia not far from Barcelona for our third course to taste our best value wine of the evening and the first of our reds.   It was a Altos D’Olivia Gran Reserva 2004 which cost us £7.95 from FromVineyardsDirect.  This red tastes beautifully mellow and mature and was a real hit with our guests.  I thought it was a good 14+ out of 20 wine, which for an £8 bottle is very good.   This wine was served with a dish that Jane used to prepare for her restaurant – a roasted pepper and sundried tomato polenta stack – a dish that really gave us the colours and flavours of the mediterranean.



Caponata and Salami

Half way through our wines, we moved on to Inspector Montalbano country and the Island of Sicily.  For this course we served wines from one of Sicily’s best producers – a Shezerade Donnafugata Nero D’Avola 2010, which cost us £11.96 from Noel Young Wines.  This is a wine with some well-balanced complexity although some of our guests found it a bit alcoholic.  I scored this red 16 out of 20.  This was served with a Sicilian classic, Caponata, which is an olive tomato and aubergine dish, and some salami.  Jane’s preparation of this dish was perfection.

Serving the Moussaka

Our main course was beautifully cooked moussaka and for this we had to imagine we were in a little Greek taverna.  With this main course we served a modern organic Greek wine.  The Organiki Tsantali Private Collection 2006 made with Cabernet Sauvignon grapes cost us £8.54 from Waitrose.  Unfortunately, one of the bottles was corked but I quickly retrieved another one to keep our customers satisfied.  A pleasant wine and value at this price.

For the cheese course we had to imagine we were on a luxury yacht sailing around the Mediterranean.  The wine was a Mas Belles Eaux Les Coteaux 2008, which was a Languedoc Syrah, Grenache, Mouvedre blend.  This wine costs £11.95 from FromVineyardsDirect.  I really like this wine as it is not so sweet as most wines from this region.  Robert Parker scores this 91/100 but I was enjoying myself too much to score it myself!    The cheeses were all from Italy via Waitrose – a Tallegio that almost everyone appreciated, a Sardinian Pecorino and a Dolcelatte.   It made for a well-balanced cheeseboard.

Orange Cake

Our final destination, before returning in our minds to a cold and wet Tongham, was the Greek Island of Patras.   Jane made some of my favourite Mediterranean Orange cake for which I gave you the recipe in an earlier blog.  It was served with some homemade Seville orange marmalade and as usual was a stunning end to the meal.  We served it with an unusual sweet red dessert wine that went well with the sweet citrus flavours of the cake – a Kourtaki Mavrodaphne of Patras which costs £4.86 at Waitrose.



The evening ended with some coffee and the raffle.   Another great Tongham Village Hall evening!    Special thanks to Jane for her culinary efforts and Bob Monk for the loan of the fridges and his hard work as waiter and kitchen hand throughout the evening   Tongham wouldn’t be the same without these two characters. Thanks also to others such as Ruby and Patricia who also helped us during the evening.

Our long taverna type table

I'd better sign-off now and get busy selecting some good value and interesting South American wines and creating the menu for our next TVH wine tasting but in the meantime I must thank all of our guests whose donations to the raffle and meal helped raise much needed funds for maintenance of our Victorian Village Hall building.  Many of the photos featured in this blog as usual come from Clive Greenfield who also proved a dab had at washing-up.

If you want some of Jane's recipes for the food served at our Flavours of the Mediterranean wine tasting dinner then follow the links below to her very successful Thermomix blog.
Marmalade. 
Caponata.
Moussaka.
Hummus and Pitta Bread.

Our seven Mediterranean wines

If you live in or near Tongham, don't forget that our local wine tasting group, Tongham tasters, meets every month to blind taste six wines.  Our next evening is on Friday march 16th when we'll be tasting six Italian wines with some homecooked pasta dishes.  Details of how to join us are here on the Wine Circle page.