NWC – June 2024
(A late post and I missed most of July’s tastings due to travels and England’s Euro games! )
Our June themes started with Northern Italy and, as I tend to find, a selection of enjoyable if fairly simple white wines. By far the most interesting was Foscarino, Saoave Classico, 2021. Golden with a little smoke giving way to fresh & cooked orchard fruits. Palate is rich with a heaviness and a leesy character from battonage. Impressive stuff, £25 from Waitrose.
The main event of the reds started with Bruno Rocca, Barbara d’Alba, 2000. Quite brooding with a hint of menthol but mostly darkly fruited; elderberry, plum & blackcurrant. Seemed very young when we discovered its age!
—
—
Du Toitskloof, Nebbiolo, 2020 was the first of several of the most famous and revered grape of the region. I was immediately thinking South African, admittedly due to an unappealing rubbery note on the nose. The underlying material was a bit more palatable though a touch sweet and confected vs the proper Piedmont stuff.
As if to demonstrate this we had a really enjoyable run. Alter, Nebbiolo, Langhe, Pio Cesare, 2016. The lightest of these wines although with crunchy tannin still. More raspberry and cranberry here. Some finesse but not the power of perfume of those to come. £25.
Roncaglie, Barbaresco, Poderi Colla, 2016. Softly perfumed on nose, mostly baking spices. Sweet and sour cherry on the palate. Very approachable with lovely balance. £35
—
—
Barolo, Burlotto, 2015. A now legendary producer, this wine now had a market value of £75+ though is possible if you’re in the right circles to buy on release at around £45. Despite the enjoyment of the others this has classic tar and rose fragrances that one so desires in Nebbiolo. Some savoury and umami hits too, complex. The palate is powerful and long with much more to come.
La Morra Barolo, Renato Corino, 2015. Same year but a modest producer. Not quite as precise a nose but some herbs and perfume alongside the primary notes. Less impressive than the Burlotto but giving lots of enjoyment particularly with a juicy front palate of red fruits with a hit of black cherry. £35
—
Mid June saw a no-theme free for all which threw up plenty of interesting bottles. Not least Tattinger 2015. A solid example of vintage champagne bought at a very reasonable £45. Better than a lot of House NV at a similar price though it was a little rich and too much residual sugar for my tastes.
As if to specifically to demonstrate the incredible aging abilities of Riesling we had Trierer St Maximin Kreuzberg, Sanctus Jacobus Kabinett, 1990. Having tried to find out more I think this was a very modest wine from Majestic. In 2000 they appear to have sold a better vineyard at £4.99!
—
—
Moulin des Dames, Château Tour des Gendres, Bergerac, 2020. Being much further South than the typical Loire heartland this was not your typical Sauvignon Blanc. I had it pegged as a low end Chablis, most notably creamy but with nice ripe pear and apricot notes. Enjoyable but a little pricey for what it was at £20.
Meursault Les Clousots, Patrick Javailler, 2014. Fully integrated and fading a touch but lovely nutty notes alongside waxy lemons. Classic Meursault, not too rich.
Gewurtztraminer, Hugel, 2001. A touch oxidised but classic honey and lychee was there. Weighty sweet fruit, a bit too much for me as not a massive fan of this grape but you could see the quality, some good acidity beneath.
—
—
Aloxe Corton 1er Cru Les Petites Lolieres, Pierre Andrew, 2012. I was miles away blind here. The nose was all wild herbs and sundried tomato which had placed me in Italy somewhere. The palate was a little more as expected, touch grippy with a tart cranberry note. A touch of beefy stock pot emerging, perhaps a touch prematurely for this level. Enjoyable but you might be disappointed based on expectations.
Cuvee Joseph, Morgon, Domaine De La Chaponne, 2009 continued our theme of maturity and wines that were difficult to place. Dusty elderberries with a touch of menthol and medicinal notes. Surprisingly darkly fruited with little charm but some power. Not my experience or idea of good Gamay!
—
South Africa week started with a DaschBosch Methode Ancestrale. This Pet Nat made from Verdelho was very enjoyable. Not complex but fresh sherbert lemon and refreshers with a touch of sweet pear and maybe a lick of salinity. £20
Cuvee Royal, Blanc De Blancs, Simonsig, 2017 was at the other end of the spectrum. The brioche nose was there but underneath a funky oxidised smell. Lacking a little acidity, mostly cooked apple and lemon curd with a little mushroom. Survived pretty well for modest SA fizz from 2017 but I preferred the Pet Nat. £17.
—
—
You can’t have a SA tasting without Chenin and 21 Gables, Spier, 2018 was the first of two good ones. Surprisingly clean but with a weighty, glycerol palate it was stone fruited with a touch of sweet and sour on the palate. Lovely balance and acidity, as ever with Chenin lots of life ahead even at 6 years old. £25
Old Vines Chenin Blanc, Naude, 2018 was more of a posh oaky character on the nose, restrained with citrus notes alongside some struck match. Palate was elegant and creamy, perhaps just a touch of an oxidative note creeping in. £35+
Pinot Noir, Hamilton Russell, 2020. This was my pick and initially was quite smoky on the nose, reminiscent of German pinot. Underneath there was some sweet spice alongside ripe cherry and a lick of tart cranberry. It was starting to show signs of evolution with a touch of sous bois. Quite punchy at £40 but I can see the appeal and managed to get a couple of bottles at half that price.
—
—
Villa Esposto, 2021 is a Cab/Merlot blend from a winemaker that has become a favourite of the group through a merchant who has been and delivered tastings on occasion. At £10 to us this is very drinkable. Quite straightforward blackcurrant/sweet cassis, nicely juicy with a hint of capsicum from the cab and a touch of black pepper on the finish.
The Bandolier, The Liberator, 2009 by contrast had developed a little more interest and complexity given its age. 50/50 Syrah/Mourvedre was paying hommage to the wines of Bandol and its dark silky palate was reminiscent of its French inspiration. Quite a note of vanilla here from liberal use of oak and brambly black fruits were still impressively fresh 15 years down the line. Can’t find it now but maybe £12 on release 10 years ago
—
The final theme of the month was Antipodean, NZ & Australia.
MiruMiru, Hunters, NV sparkling kicked us off well and was fairly universally popular. Made in the traditional method with the Champagne grapes it did have a pleasant leesy note on the nose alongside some crisp green apple. Nicely dry and lean there was a touch of red fruit actually with a little blackcurrant leaf, presumably from the pinot, which added interest. A touch short perhaps but £17 wasn’t bad at all.
Dry Riesling, Prophets Rock, 2019 was instantly recognisable as the grape, despite a touch of reduction. Nice weight of fruit and good intensity, some orchard fruits were lifted by a touch of sherbet lemon. Compares fairly well to the German homeland, not quite so high acid. £20
—
—
Wild Irishman, Tuturi, 2022 was a product of a member’s search for good Central Otago pinot. The nose was lightly perfumed but mostly quite savoury and serious. Nice red sour fruited palate, cherry & a little raspberry. At £33 pretty reasonable for this type of thing and I’d probably buy this over my £40 Hamilton Russell from last week.
As a fully signed up Kumeu River fanboy their 2020, Hunting Hill, Pinot Noir was not in the league of their excellent Chardonnay. All a little disjointed, some smoky reduction on the nose with not much charm and a palate that managed to have both a sweet and bitter note. Under screw cap and may improve with time. £25
—
There were a few spicy/mentholy Australian things, the best of which was Bin 389, Penfolds, 2016. A Cab/Shiraz blend. These things age forever and are intensely blackcurranted at this age. Even if it was my cup of tea the £60 they now are is pretty punchy.
Father, Penfolds, 10 year Grand Tawny was my revelation as a tawny port enjoyer. At £27 it gave me all of what I like about the Sandeman’s I usually buy, nutty, dried fruits, honey. Lovely stuff
—