Tag: tasting

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What we tasted in September 2021

In September we were treated to a tasting of Unusual Grapes and Wines presented by John Freeland and John Malpass. Thank you for the informative and entertaining tasting.

The wines tasted were:

  1. Filos Estate, Aspri Petra Single Vineyard Assyrtiko, Macedonia, Greece 2020
    Decanter: 91 points – ‘an absolute bargain – snap it up while you can’
    Crisp and dry, great flavour with a mineral character. Great with food.
  2. Left Coast Estate white Pinot Noir 2019, Willamette Valley, Oregon
    Wine Enthusiast 92 pts; Wine.com 91 pts. ‘If you’ve not yet tried a white Pinot from Oregon, here’s a great opportunity.’
    Brilliant and good value.Needed time to reveal itself though.Fairly dry,rich mellow flavour. Good length and a nice drinker – food enhances it.
  3. Baron Amarillo Monastrell 2018, Edicion Limitada, Valencia, Spain
    Decanter 91 pts. ‘A great example of the grape for a snip of a price’
    Rich and fruity nose, becoming plummy/jammy with nice tannins and improving depth the longer you have it in the glass.
  4. Durif, The Voyage 2020, Victoria, Australia  (Boutinot)
    Decanter 91 pts. This Durif, from Boutinot, is a revelation. Delicious!
    Deep purple with a big rich nose from the off. Nice tannins and some great jamminess.

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What we tasted in August 2021

Many thanks for a fantastic turn out to our AGM and to Margaret and Ian Connor for arranging our member’s tasting.  Three varied and entertaining presentations over Zoom gave us a wonderful opportunity to try some interesting wines.

The wines tasted were:

  1. L’Extra Langlois Cremant De Loire
  2. Mt Difficulty Roaring Meg Pinot Gris
  3. Definition Rioja Reserva

Many thanks to Roland Moss, Chris Lewis and Andrew Wetherby for choosing and presenting the wines.

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What we tasted in July 2021

In July we welcomed back Condor Wines, and on this occasion we were joined by Regional Sales manager Aaron Irons, presenting wines from their South American portfolio. We thank Aaron for a very enjoyable tasting and the wines showed very well.

For more information:
Web: condorwines.co.uk
Facebook: Condor Wines

The wines tasted were:

  1. Bodegones del Sur Vineyard Select Albarino 2020 (Uruguay) 
  2. Los Haroldos Reserve  Malbec 2018 (Argentina) 
  3. Toro di Piedra Gran Reserve Carignan 2017 (Chile) 

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What we tasted in June 2021

In June we welcomed back Jane Sowter of Chateau Musar, with a tasting of four wines from their portfolio. The presentation was full of stories of what has been going on in the last two years in the Lebanon, and the difficulties they’ve had due to COVID-19, the massive explosion at the port of Beirut, and difficulties in shipping. Throughout all of this, business continues and a big thank you to Jane for her continuing support.

For more information:
Web: chateaumusar.com

The wines tasted were:

  1. Musar Jeune White 2019
  2. Musar Jeune Rosé 2019
  3. Hochar Père et Fils Red 2017
  4. Chateau Musar 2014
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Next tasting – Friday 11th June

Chateau Musar

In June we welcome back Jane Sowter of Chateau Musar, presenting a range of wines from the premium Lebanese producer.

For more information:
Web: chateaumusar.com

Note: This tasting will be presented via Zoom. Members are contacted prior to each tasting to order any wines they wish to try. 

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What we tasted in May 2021

In May we held a tasting hosted by members of our committee, with wines in half-bottle sourced from a fantastic range from The Wine Society. A big thank you to the presenters and thanks to our members for your continuing support.

For more information:
Web: thewinesociety.com

The wines tasted were:

  1. Casa Ferreirinha Planalto Reserva 2019 (Tim Hobbs)
    Straw coloured, lemon, mineral and stone fruit nose, fairly dry. A pleasant drinker with decent length and fair value for £4.50. Multiple Portuguese grape varieties lead by Malvasia. Food suggestions are Octopus, shellfish, pork or chicken.
  2. Soave Classico Pieropan 2019 (Julian Osborne)  
    Pale yellow, dry mineral nose. Crisp, dry, nicely acidic. Touch of grapefruit, with nice length and body. A well made quality wine which goes well with seafood, creamy risotto, and antipasti.
  3. Jurancon Sec, Chant des Vignes, Domaine Cauhape 2019 (John Freeland)
    Pale apricot, with a shy nose initially. Admirably fruity Pyrenean white. Exhilarating and fresh, with flashes of grapefruit and pineapple. Plenty body and length which finished dryer. A well made wine from a sometimes overlooked area noted for sweet wines.
  4. Chinon, Temps des Cerises, Dom de la Noblaie 2019 (Tim Edwards)
    Deep purple and quite dense, shy nose which initially comes over dry and fruity later. Fairly dry, nicely acidic with good tannins and a herby character which becomes dryer to the finish. Good body and length, hints of dark cherries. Would go well with sausage, beef and cheese. Well priced for an organic hand harvested quality wine.
  5. Corbieres Rouge Dom du Trillol 2016 (John Malpass)
    Purple red, an obvious nose of dark rich fruits, with spicy tannins. Goes well with meats, duck and cheese.
  6. Bleasdale Bremerview, Langhorne Creek Shiraz 2018 (Margaret Connor)
    Pure and vibrant Australian shiraz. Blackberry, vanilla and plums on the nose, with a twist of pepper and great concentration. Ripe tannins fall into place with the long, fruity finish.

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What we tasted in March 2021

In March we hosted a wonderful tasting by Lance Foyster MW of Clark Foyster. They are a specialist wine importer founded by husband and wife team Lance Foyster MW and Isabelle Clark.

Lance’s introduction to the company reads “As part of our university degrees, both Isabelle and I studied the history, culture and literature of Ancient Greece. This required visits of course, usually during summer months, and involved beaches, tavernas, souvlaki, ouzo, retsina etc. and we loved it. So much that we spent our honeymoon in Crete and The Mani”.

For more information:
Web: clarkfoysterwines.co.uk

The wines tasted were:

  1. Oenops Apla Red 2019 Nikos Karatzas (Drama)
    Nikos Karatzas is the face behind ‘Oenops’ (= ‘wine face’). He studied in Bordeaux then became chief winemaker at a very young age at the high-profile Pavlidis winery, in Drama, Eastern Macedonia, before setting up his own project  in 2015. Apla red is a Xinomavro, Limniona, Cabernet Sauvignon blend.
  2. Zafeirakis Malagouzia 2020 (Tirnavos)
    Christos Zafeirakis’ family have lived in Tirnavos, by the foothills of Mount Olympus in Central Greece for numerous generations. His Malagouzia whites come from a grape variety which in 25 years has reached a high level of popularity in Greece having previously been almost forgotten. It’s a dry but moderately aromatic white, a delicious, charming and versatile wine with or without food.
  3. Argyros Estate Assyrtiko 2019 (Santorini)
    Assyrtiko is the indigenous grape of the volcanic island of Santorini with a marvellous ability to produce strong but vibrant, crisp, energetic and minerally wines. Argyros Estate, founded in 1903, owns 65 hectares of vineyards. Some of these are recently planted, but many are of an age rarely found anywhere else, and the grapes from these vineyards are used for the Estate wines. Santorini Assyrtikos are, according to Hugh Johnson’s Pocket Wine Book (2021), “still cheapest 4* whites around” and Argyros is a “Top Santorini producer”. This should be a spectacular bottle.
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What we tasted in February 2021

In February we hosted a fantastic zoom presentation and tasting with Katie Jones of Katie Jones Wines and Julia Jenkins of Flagship Wines.

Members will remember Katie’s visit to us in 2017 when she presented a range
of her excellent wines based on traditional, often rare, Languedoc grapes. Katie presented three of her wines to us from her home in the Languedoc via Zoom. You may remember that Katie hails from Ashby de le Zouch and she was accompanied by Julia Jenkins, a wine merchant friend of hers who is a UK Wine Merchant and who also hails from Leicester. Julia sells Katie’s wines.

For more information:
Web: domainejones.com
Web: nakedwines.com
Web: flagshipwines.co.uk

The wines tasted were:

  1. Katie Jones white 2018
  2. Katie Jones Along Came Jones Hairy Grenache 2018
  3. Domaine Jones Fitou 2018 
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What we tasted in January 2021

In January we were treated to a wonderful Zoom presentation and wines by Laure Columbo of Jean-Luc Colombo and Michelle Barrie of Mentzendorff. We are grateful to Mentzendorff for making this tasting possible.

Jean-Luc Colombo is one of France’s most talented and creative winemakers based in Cornas, crafting first-class wines from the Northern Rhone Valley and Southern France. Laure is Vineyard Manager and Winemaker working alongside her father.

For more information and to order wines, please contact:
For more information:
For more information:
Web: vinscolombo.fr/en/
Web: mentzendorff.co.uk/producers/jean-luc-colombo

The wines tasted were:

  1. Picpoul de Pinet Les Girelles 2018 75cl (100% Picpoul Blanc)
  2. St Péray La Belle de Mai 2016 – Organic 75cl (60% Roussanne 40% Marsanne) 
  3. Colombo Cotes du Rhone Les Abeilles Rouge 2016 37.5cl (1/3 Grenache 1/3 Syrah 1/3 Mourvèdre)
  4. Cairanne Le Pavillon Des Courtisanes 2018 75cl (80% Grenache 20% Syrah) 
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What we tasted in December 2020

Merry Christmas and thanks for a great turnout for our festive Zoom tasting. We were treated to an effervescent presentation by Duncan Murray or Duncan Murray Wines of Market Harborough. This is certainly a time to support your local wine merchant and Duncan would love to hear from you before the big day.

For more information and to order wines, please contact:
For more information:
Web: duncanmurraywines.co.uk
Email: info@duncanmurraywines.co.uk
Tel: 01858 464935
Facebook: Duncan Murray Wines
Twitter: @DMURRAYWINES

The wines tasted were:

  1. Mustillant Sparkling Muscadet, NV, Loire, France
  2. Villa Wolf Silvaner, Pfalz (Palatinate) 2009
  3. El Abuelo Monastrell-Tempranillo, 2019, Almansa, S. Spain
  4. D’Oliveiras 5 yo medium sweet Madeira ½ bottle, Portugal