Wine and Popcorn

Want to add some irreverence to your wine tastings or dinner parties whilst still serving something interesting?  Why not try popcorn!   Not the sweet or salty mixes you get at the cinema but more interesting mixes that you can make yourself.  Here is just one suggestion to make a great aperitif snack.

As an aperitif before a Moroccan Tajine or as a food pairing for a German Riesling, why not try Moroccan popcorn.  All you need is some popcorn, olive oil, ras-al-hanout, lemon zest and salt.  Follow the instructions on the packet of popcorn about how to pop it; some are popped in the microwave and some in a pan with a lid.  Then add some melted butter or loive oil and toss.  Once completed add your flavourings to taste.  I added some good quality ras-al-hanout spice blend and grated some lemon zest and then some sea salt onto the popcorn.  Taste and balance the flavours by adding more of some if necessary.  Serve with a nice cold German Riesling such as the Markus Molitor pictured sold by Fromvineyardsdirect that I can highly recommend. It is really surprisingly good.

For other popcorn ideas search the web or, as I did, make up your own idea. Salt, pepper and Parmesan is just one of many other good combinations. 

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!

Tongham's Italian Wine and Food Evening

Last night we had another successful wine tasting evening in Tongham Village Hall. Again we raised over £400 for the upkeep of the hall and had a fun evening of Italian wine and food tasting. Judging by their comments our three dozen attendees had a great time. Whether you attended or not you might be interested in what we tried:

1. SPARKLING WINES
Prosecco is the well known sparkling wine grown produced in the area around Venice in North East Italy. About half the price of Champagne it offers great value and a different style – softer, more fragrant. It makes a great aperitif or can accompany fish or seafood. We are serving one at just under £10 a bottle with some Parmesan Sables (biscuits) – Prosecco Spumante Collalbrigo Brut. 11% (FromVineyeardsDirect.com). Prosecco indicates the grape variety and you can find still versions. Spumante indicates that it is sparkling. Asti, which used to be called Asti Spumant, is made with Muscatel grapes and comes from North West Italy. It tends to be sweeter and can be great with rich deserts or for those who prefer a sweeter aperitif. John’s notes on the Prosecco we tried: A really superb dry Prosecco which is much more champagne like than most. I highly recommended that you try this good value sparkler.

2. WHITE WINES
With Pinot Grigio, Italy has found another internationally popular wine and it is now one of the most popular white wines in the UK. It is a very different style to the Alsace Pinot Gris which is made with the same grape – the Italian version is dryer. Most Pinot Grigio, however, is rather bland and flabby and thus it is worth looking out for other Italian white wines. In the last few years, Gavi has become popular again having also gained a following in the 1980s and this is made around the town of Gavi in North Eastern Italy from the Cortese Grape. We are serving a lovely £8 one from Tesco’s Finest range – Gavi Fratelli Martini Socondo Luigi SpA DOCG 2010 12.5%. Other Italian white wines to look out for include Soave and Vermentino. You will be enjoying our white wine with a Baccala Mantecato – a creamy dish of cod served with Italian bread. John’s notes on the Gavi we tried: This was my favourite of the many Italian white wines we tried during our research but it had a mixed reaction on the evening.

3. PRIMITIVO RED WINE

Primitivo is a grape variety grown in Puglia in South Eastern Italy and is an identical grape to the popular Californian Zinfandel grape. It has a high alcohol content and tends to have a ripe fruitiness. Normally best drunk young, we are breaking the rules tonight and serving you a delicious one from 2004 - Casa Catelli Primitivo Puglia IGT 14%. John’s notes on the Primitivo we tried: Showing sign’s of age but lovely and smooth with some power but relatively little complexity. It went down well with most of our guests.

4. NEBBIOLO RED WINE
Nebbiolo is the grape variety used in making the great red wines of North West Italy – Barolo and Barbaresco. Although, these are great wines this varietal is used virtually nowhere else in the World. The wines tend to be tannic but a softer style that is easier to drink young has become popular in recent years. We are serving you a £10 Corsini Barbaresco DOCG 2007 14% from Waitrose, with a selection of meat antipasti. John’s notes on the Barbaresco we tried: For an under £10 Barbaresco this was very pleasant and accompanied the meat anti-pasti very well.

5. SANGIOVESE RED WINE
Sangiovese, a grape variety from Tuscany, produces much of the other high quality Italian reds – notably Brunello Chianti Classico and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Styles and quality vary tremendously. We are serving a rather unusual wine which is non-vintage wine produced from two years of over-production (2005 & 2008) by a good Brunello producer – Rosso del Palazzone vino de tavola Montalcino 13.5%. This should match well with our main dish of the evening, a Tuscan beef stew and give you a very good idea what an expensive Sangiovese wine would taste like but at under £12. John’s notes on the Sangiovese we tried: this was the star of the evening, the sort of wine that brightens up your whole day, a very nice example of what some might call a “Baby Brunello”. It accompanied Jane’s excellent Tuscan beef and bean stew superbly. Great value, buy some before it runs out.

6. SUPER TUSCAN RED WINE
The title “super” means that the wine is made with international grape varieties rather than just the traditional Italian grape varieties or at least breaks the blending rules. The wine we are serving comes from near Bolsgheri where the famous Super Tuscans of Sassicaia and Ornellaia come from. It is a Casa Catelli Toscana IGT 2008 13.5% FromVineyardsDirect.com. This lovely complex wine should match well with our lovely Italian cheese course. It contains Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese grapes, was aged for 14 months in French oak and costs about £10. John’s notes on the Super Tuscan we tried: Very nice £10 wine that gives you a big hit of blackcurrant, and went well with the cheese (Parmesan, Pecorino and Tallegio).

7. SWEET WINES
We must not ignore the sweet wines of Italy which include Vino Santo from Tuscany, Recioto della Valpolicella from North East Italy and Marsala from Sicily. Tonight our final wine will be a £7.50 Pellegrino Marsala Superiore DOC Garibaldi Dolce 18% from Tescos. Marsala has rather fallen out of fashion and now seems to be used more in cooking than for drinking. This is rather a shame as Marsala makes a great desert wine. Ours is made in the west part of Sicily from Catarrato, Grillo and Inzolia grapes and matured in wooded casks for at least two years. We are serving with the classic Italian dessert – Tiramisu. John’s notes on the Marsala we tried: Surprise hit of the evening, went well with the desert and many appreciated it as it wasn’t too sweet or cloying.

Thanks to everyone for their generosity with the raffle prizes and kind comments. Special thanks to Bob Monk for his help during the evening and loan of the fridges. Our lovely Parmesan and sundried tomato bread came from the excellent Tongham Bakery.

If you enjoyed trying these wines tonight, why not join Tongham’s wine tasting group “Tongham Tasters” that meets monthly (normally on the second Thursday or Friday of the month) to blind taste six wines. Next events are on Thursday 14th July and Friday 12th August. Contact John Etherton on 07717 876743 or email tonghamtaster@gmail.com if you want to join in the fun. Cost is shared by those attending and includes food and wine and is a maximum of £10 a head. Find out more at tonghamtaster.blogspot.com and click on wine circle.

Seven quick wine facts about Italian wines:
1. There are more grape varieties in Italy than anywhere else in the World (over 2,000)
2. Most Italian wines need food if you are going to appreciate them.
3. DOC is the Italian equivalent of the French AOC.
4. DOCG is meant to be slightly superior.
5. Classico often indicates the best area within a DOC or DOCG.
6. IGT is the equivalent of a French Vins de Pays and can be very good wine.
7. Vino de Tavola is ordinary table wine or a good wine breaking the normal rules.

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.