NWC – July/Aug 2024

Travel and England’s Euros campaign meant I only managed to attend one tasting in July but was pleased to be able get to one focusing on Iberian wines on 31st July.

Despite the theme we started with an English wine, Classic Cuvee, Roebuck Estates, 2017. It was quite austere on the rose, a sea shell alongside citrus notes. The palate was a bit more classic, sherbet lemon & granny smith with zippy acidity and pretty dry. Enjoyable but at £38 felt a little punchy vs the competition.

Few whites but the Chardonnay, Fermentado en Barrica, Enate, 2021 certainly made an impression. Sadly for all the wrong reasons. To my taste this was unpleasantly oaky/creamy. Significant battonage had given this a character of butterscotch and foam banana. Whilst there was some stone fruit lurking beneath it didn’t absolve itself of the aforementioned sins.

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Spanish wines at Nottingham Wine Circle

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Cutio Garnacha Carineña, Carineña 2020 was a light quaffer from The Wine Society at £10.95. Simple but nonetheless enjoyable it was all red cherries and sweet blackcurrant.

It’s always fun to taste decent ‘supermarket’ wines with some age and Campo Viejo often performs pretty well. This 2010 Gran Reserva did feel a little tired though, you got plenty of vanilla from its time in oak and a little blackcurrant jam but not as much as I’d hope for from a wine that’s recent release I was surprised to see retail at a not insignificant £17.

By comparison you can get Cubillo, Lopez de Heredia, 2014 still retails at around £20 a bottle and is vastly superior. Lots of warm earth and baking spice on the nose which a touch of balsamic. Cranberry, sweet and sour raspberry form a layered palate that I could have spent a lot longer with. It convinced me to buy more of this from the 2016 vintage.

Vina Ardanza, Seleccion Especial, 2010 still probably pipped it although it is now at least £25+ on release for the 2016 vintage. This was more stock pop, billtong with a hint of perfumed stewed fruits but a more silky palate marked by a deft lick of oak

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14th August saw one of the tastings you circle on your calendar that you don’t want to miss, Burgundy. However, as can be the way, it is a region where it is difficult to live up to expectations. And the cost…

A duo of Chablis were up early; Les Fourneux, Paul Nicolle, 2020 & Vaillons, Bichot (Long-Depaquit), 2021. Both had a similarly tropical note on the nose although the palate a bit more classic orchard fruit with good acidity. I felt the Nicolle had a hint of caramel on the back palate and the Vaillons a little more energy.

Auxey-Duresses, Vallet Freres, 2010 was my favourite of the whites. Just in a lovely place Still creamy, rich and citrus but now beneath a nutty veil of maturity. Now around £35 on release its a relative bargain and shows the ‘lesser’ appellations can age as gracefully as Puligny and Mersault.

People loveda Hungarian ringer Kovács Nimród, Battonage Chardonnay, 2021. At £22 it probably does compete well on price but it was too rich for me. The palate was thick and glycerol and whilst it was an impressive wine with intense citrus it lacked a little charm. I would be interested in how it ages and settles down, great length.

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Burgundy white wines at Nottingham Wine Circle

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Savigny-Les-Beaune, Jean-Jaques Girard, 2022 was Burgundy that I don’t see the point of. Served fairly chilled it was light with sweet cherry, but a bit green with grippy tannin and some dark elderberry notes. ‘Cheap’ (£22) Burgundy from decent appellations usually loses the real pinot character and makes me think get something from another region instead. This was closer to a North Italian red like Valpol that might set you back £15, if that

Mercurey Vieilles Vignes, Francois Raquillet, 2017 was my wine which, for me, was in a lovely spot showing the juicy fruit touch alongside the perfume and sweet spice that I love from the Cote Chalonnais. That said this is now £30 a bottle on release and I’ve seen single bottles at retailers for £35+ which would seem unthinkable for a village wine from this appellation not many years ago!

Mersault, Remoissenet, 2013 was in a lovely place. A touch of beef broth, wild herb with light red raspberry and cranberry alongside a sweet and sour finish. Probably the best red of the evening. As whilst a few older wines followed and were enjoyable none were in perfect condition.

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Burgundy reds at Nottingham Wine Circle

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21st August took us to Central & Southern Italy

The unforgettably named Zibbibo kicked us off with a light and aromatic number from Mandrarossa, 2021. It was a little bit pear droppy but have a nice grape juice character and a touch peppery on the finish. Not bad for around £12

A lot richer was Fiano, Colle di Tilio, 2023. This has quite a lot going on, almost a hit of pesto and pine nut alongside some tinned peaches and sweet stone fruits. £12.50 from The Wine Society

Another TWS purchase was La Colombera Timorasso, 2022. Though we were up in Northern Italy here it was a welcome addition, a much more complex and grown up wine of fennel notes, waxy lanolin and a touch of spice on the finish. Impressive now but would be interesting to try 5 years down the line where I think it could be great. A rare and sought-after grape, £30.

Rounding off an impressive showing of whites we had Verdeca, Li Veli, 2022. A wine I have had before it belies its Puglian roots to provide something fresher than most other whites from there. Really weighty at the front of the palate it’s got Amalfi lemons and fragrant fresh peaches with a hint of something more tropical and sweet like pineapple chunks. Good length and another which will benefit from some bottle age. £20.

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Southern and Central Italy at Nottingham Wine Circle

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Etna Rosso, Tascante Ghiaia Nera, 2021 was a beautiful pale ruby in the glass. Sweet and smoky nose, some dry, crunchy tannin and a sour cranberry. Good for this price in Etna, £18 TWS.

I threw out a pair, both 2018 from Central Italy at £20. A more traditional sangiovese (Caprili, Rosso di Montalcino) vs a Super Tuscan (Campo Al Mare, Bolgheri). The Montalcino was more appealing to me with some vibrant cherry fruit although a touch of sundried tomato on the nose with its oak and age. The Bolgheri was darker and softer. More black cherry compote. Enjoyable but didn’t have the length and acidity of the other.

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As a self confessed Riesling lover the 28th August was an exciting week with German wines on the agenda.
An enjoyable sparkler kicked us off, Riesling, Von Buhl, 2019. Quite a rich nose, leesy cream soda and not as aromatic as expected given the grape variety. The palate was more typical with high acidity and grapefruit & bitter lemon flavours. Not bad for £22 for a traditional method sparkling.

Several reds kicked off with Blauer Spatbugunder, Knipser, 2019. Quite a savoury character as I find in many German pinot noir’s, definite smokiness and even some burnt coffee. I found it a touch green and stalky, others enjoyed this more than I but £16.50 from TWS isn’t bad!

Pinot Noir, Kloster Eberbach, 2018 seemed like it should have been better but fell short. There were some good materials underneath but masked by a reductive rubbery note. Looking hard there was some nice red fruit with a touch of sweetness, more akin to NZ pinot in my experience. £22.50

Lemberger, Jurgen Ellwanger, 2022 was something quite new to me. This grape is more well known over the border in Austria where it goes by Blaufrankish. This was an impressive and polished wine. The nose was a little muted vs the pinot’s but the palate was much more concentrated. Almost with a creaminess alongside its inky cherry mid palate. The finish suggested it needed more time to integrate as it was quitw grippy and tannic.

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German reds at Nottingham Wine Circle

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Whites kicked off impressively with an impressive GG from Franken. Pfulben, Schmitt’s Kinder, 2010. Intense weight of fruit as I have come to expect with GG wines though thought it might have softened more with 14 years of age! Oily texture, grapefruit, pineapple and a sweet and sour note. Rich and 14% but enough acidity to be balanced.

Enough of that overrated dry stuff. The proper Riesling kicked off with a ringer. I had an immediate inkling this was not German and I was right; Waitaki Riesling, Valli, 2022. It was a bit more aromatically profiled than German Riesling but at the same time a little reductive and slightly confected. The screw cap closure may be a factor but I still enjoyed it, gently off-dry and quite elegant if finishing a little short.

im Pfarrgarten Riesling Feinherb, AJ Adam, 2022 was hard work. Super reductive diesel fumes on the nose. It had a simple pleasant apple character underneath but it needed opening early and a decant/shake up to show more. Producer well regarded so I won’t discount them just yet

Another interloper was Vinas Del Vero, Pago Los Olivos, 2021. Very fragrant and floral here with some honey and white flowers. Seemed to lack acidity vs the competition and was a little too perfumed for my palate. One for Gewurz lovers!

Graacher Himmelreich, Kabinett, Willi Schaefer, 2022 showed its class despite its youth. It will improve greatly but a classic poised elegance that only Mosel riesling can have. High acid, blackcurrant leaf, 7.5%. Lovely stuff, £25.

My offering was Brauneberger Juffer, Spatlese, Schloss Lieser, 2006. I recently bought this from a one-off old bottle sale at £20. In a lovely place of maturity, a little honey and peach iced tea. Some sweet pear with a glimmer of tropical guava too.

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German whites at Nottingham Wine Circle

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Amazingly we had 2 unplanned pairs. Firstly Edener Herzlei, Spatlese, Dr Hermann, 2014. I am a big fan of this amazing value producer but certainly one of the bottles seemed a little muted and not particularly expressive with fruit and more of a generic icing sugar sweetness. We’ll come back to the producer later

We also had two Piesporter Goldtropfchen, Spatlese, Hain, 2009. Both seemed quite advanced, one was a little more oxidised though a second bottle was a little more fresh with a pleasant tarte tatin note.

A very revered bottle next with Wiltinger-Braune Kupp Riesling Spätlese, Egon Müller, 1999. Not their top site of Scharzhofberger but still retailing at over £100 a bottle. I think the delicate, precise style suffered late in this lineup as the nuance was difficult to appreciate. It did give a more focused, mineral style but against the more opulent other wines it was tough to pick out. I don’t think the bottle was peak condition but not far off, picked up for £15 at auction so pretty good going

Finally a Erdener Treppchen, Spatlese, Dr Hermann, 2005 showed the richness and quality of its vintage with fantastic balance. Both acidity and structure were great, not too tropical and freshness from a lime note that I really enjoyed.

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