Fine Wine for a special celebration

With life currently full of postponements and changes we have finally been able to be joined by a few friends to celebrate Hubby's birthday - he's 60 plus 40 but certainly not 100! 

To celebrate Hubby chose four super wines from Majestic, we paired them with our starters and had a great time enjoying and discovering wine from around the world. 

First our two whites, one from France the other from New Zealand. We paired the Bourgogne Blanc with salmon pate and the St. Clair Sauvignon Blanc with mini chicken kebabs and tomatoes. 

Our Bourgogne Chardonnay is made by Domaine Jomain from 40 year old vines. Their vineyard lies near to Puligny-Montrachet known for it's expensive chardonnay. A little cheaper in price but still full of Burgundy Chardonnay characteristics. A clean inviting very pale yellow in the glass with honey and lemon aromas. It was a buttery cream edged wine with honey notes without being sweet. We all loved it's great depth and it was superb with our salmon starter. 

I often find New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc too full flavoured and hard hitting for me, our friends are the same and as such we usually drink French wine. However we all agreed the Pioneer Block from Marlborough was stunning. It's grown in a selective patch, or block, and is only made if the vintage is good. Such a pale clear colour, with a slight hint of green it gave a superb nose full of gooseberries and passionfruit. It was so delicate in the mouth, yet full of flavour. Plenty of the said gooseberries, a green leafiness, apples and stone fruit led to a crisp lengthy finish. We all enjoyed this Sauvignon Blanc from the New World, it paired best with the vine tomatoes. 

Our two red wines were also from opposite wine regions; Australia and Italy. I'm a big fan of Yalumba wine so being a special occasion we chose The Cigar from Coonawarra. This Cabernet Sauvignon wine, paired with Ardennes pate, split the table, some people could smell the rich dark fruits and spice notes whilst others found is quite light in aroma. We also differed on taste findings, I loved it's plum, sour cherry and blackcurrant flavour and thought it's finish smooth and long lasting. I did also pick up tobacco and woody notes, Hubby thought cedarwood whereas others found it light in fruit and slightly tannic, it just shows how our tastebuds are so different: thank goodness there is such variety in wine! We did all agree it paired very well with the pate. 

Our final red was Ciabot Berton 2017 Barolo. Hubby likes Barolo wine and this was a must try as it's label predominantly displays 1961, the year Hubby was born. This wine is from a small winery and is aged for two years in oak. It was noticeably lighter in co.our than our first red and was the first of our wines to have floral notes in its aroma. Full flavoured this Barolo had plenty of earthy spicy notes, red fruits and hints of rose. For me although light and quite elegant it was a little too tannic for me. It was quite a surprise that the usual non red drinkers preferred the Yalumba although I guess it was the fruitier of the two wines. Hubby's favourite was the aptly labelled Barolo, especially when accompanied with duck slices on ciabatta.

 

It doesn't really matter what the date is celebrations can and should happen anytime, they are so important - we had a super night enjoying some very fine wines.

A while ago I bought a bottle of Juracon from Lidl but as this is a sweeter wine we've not had the opportunity to try it. It's made in one of most southern regions of France, close to the Spanish border and being such a yellow colour gives a feel of sunny days. We enjoyed this with our profiterole dessert and cheese board. Although a sweeter wine it wasn't as sweet as a dessert wine, there were plenty of peach and apricot flavours with a hint of herby mint. It was super with the profiteroles and equally good with the Cheshire cheese, according pained by walnuts and drizzled with honey, lovely. 

During the past week we've also enjoyed a lovely Blanquette de Limoux from Majestic, perfect with our fish and chip supper. Tuesday was Burns Night and although neither of us have any Scottish blood we did cook a haggis. It was a lovely meal finished very nicely by a wee dram of Benraich with shortbread fingers.

A final note to just bring two superb reds to your attention: Laithwaites' Boscwood Petit Verdot Shiraz and Lidl's Fitou. The first from Australia, not normally known for Petit Verdot was superb, full of dark fruit, spice and liquorice. The Fitou, a cheaper wine, was also full of fruit with spicy notes but not quite the same depth and finish. Both wines were however very enjoyable and on our 'buy again' list 

This week brings Chinese New Year, the year of the tiger. We'll be enjoying a homemade Chinese meal with a bottle of wine I've already earmarked, but it's not one that would usually be chosen for food from the Far East ... reviews next week! 

Superb wine week

Well we've certainly enjoyed some great wine, and beer, this week partly because our friends joined us for dinner on Friday to celebrate Hubby's birthday. Although we celebrated on his birthday in Falmouth we have delayed meeting friends and are having a few small dinners rather than having lots of people at home ... how life has changed!

However some things are back, I loved planning and cooking our dinner especially our wines. But beforehand I just want to mention this super dark beer from Williams Bros Brewing Co.

Not one for the faint hearted, or a session beer, as this creamy chocolaty stout is 4.9%. It is full of deep flavours with notes orange left behind every sip. It was superb on a cold winter evening whilst watching the rugby.

On to the wine, knowing Hubby enjoys Rioja our friends arrived with a bottle of Marques del Norte Gran Reserve which the chaps enjoyed with dinner. I'm not a fan of Rioja wine, I like the rich fruit and heady spice aroma often with notes of tabacco but I just don't like the flavour. I've tried a few and I'm undecided on whether it is the Tempranillo grape I dislike or just red wine from this region ... more research is needed I think!

The other red we opened was Willy Willy 2020 Shiraz from Laithwaites. This deeply coloured red from Australia has plenty of fruit and a super kick of pepper accompanied by a hint of vanilla. I love how the label reflects the swirl of the wine, I can imagine the plums, blackcurrants and spices mingling together.

I took a bit of a gamble with our white wines. I usually drink whites within 3 or 4 years of their date and with me not drinking much the last few years I have a few whites that were getting old. We had a superb holiday in France in September 2019 visiting Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé where we purchase quite a few wines. This Old World style of Sauvignon Blanc is my absolute favourite so for me it was the perfect place to visit. 

One of the bottles I still have was a 2018 Gilles Langlois Pouilly-Fumé. I was a little nervous opening it but it was absolutely delicious. A dry, light wine with slight acidity it had a balanced amount of fruit and was very elegant in its finish. It's on the purchase list for when we re-visit this super village east of the Upper Loire.

Our other white was a purchase from Love Wine, again a few years ago. Chenonceaux is my favourite Loire chateau, it's quite famous as it is built across the River Cher and was used as a hospital during WWI. This part of the Loire is under the Touraine appellation which covers a large area and as such gives a variety of terroir including limestone with chalk beds. 

There is quite a variety of red grapes grown in this appellation and although Chardonnay and Chenin Blanc white grapes are grown it is Sauvignon Blanc, around 80%, that is dominant. Our bottle of Touraine Chenonceaux was a darker colour than the lighter wine from the Upper Loire. It was full of tropical fruits with a floral hint of honeysuckle. A lovely wine, refreshing with a lengthy finish that certainly brought back memories of our Loire Valley holidays. 

During the week we also enjoyed another couple of the Gloucester Brewery beers. DIPA at 7.5% was a weighty drink, Double India Pale Ale is a little strong for me in flavour as well as alcohol. However the American Pale Ale at 6.4% was much more to my liking with its mango and tropical fruit notes.

Have you noticed anything about my post? It's certainly good to be able to taste wine again and to enjoy time with our friends .... as you can see because all the bottles, including this lovely Cabalie Blanc, are empty! 

Two reds, a white and a new beer

The first red enjoyed this week was from Majestic and is a favourite of ours. The label is very striking, the passion flower artwork so intricate. 

Tarima is 100% Monasrell from the Alicante region of Spain. Grown on a lime soil which holds little water this grape grows in very dry conditions which helps force the rich flavours into the fruit. 

After fermentation in vats the wine is matured in French barrels for six months. This Monastrell wine is a deep red in colour with inky purple highlights, its aroma gives notes of liquorice and floral notes with its flavour being cherry fruit, chocolate and herbs edges. It's a smooth full wine with a lovely depth and good length to its finish. 

Yarrunga Field is a wine we have purchased before from Laithwaites but a white wine. This was the first time we had tasted Yarrunga Field Durif and it has certainly now been added to our wine list. 

Another deep red purple wine filled with blackberries and plums. There's a soft sweet spice with vanilla notes to the lengthy finish of this Special Reserve Australian wine, it's certainly a good wine.

Sauvignon Blanc is my favourite white wine, I do enjoy many other grape varieties but, even including reds, it is my top choice. Ara Pathway is from Marlborough, an area renowned for producing full flavoured Sauvignon Blanc wine. 

The Ara aroma is full of citrus, orange and herbs, its pale yellow colour leads to a palate of green apple and lime. It's a strong crisp wine with citrus high notes and a medium finish. Although I lean towards the softer French Sauvignon Blanc wines this was superb and will be added to our next Majestic purchases.

This week we also enjoyed a beer from Gloucester Brewery, a place we visited whilst on a mini-break in late November last year. 

We purchased a variety of beers to try at home and chose Neipa as our first tasting. A New England IPA it is quite a hoppy beer with tropical edges of flavour which was very refreshing. I'm looking forward to trying the others.

This next week brings a sense of normality as on Friday our friends are with us for dinner. I always enjoy planning our food and pairing drinks, I've a few ideas already!

Into 2022 we go ...

At the end of 2021 I was very lucky to be chosen as one of the winners in #ukwinehour Bordeaux wine competition. The case of six wines from Bordeaux Wine UK arrived just before Christmas, a busy time as we were just back from Cornwall celebrating Hubby's big birthday, so after a quick look we put the wines back in the box until after the festivities. 

Usually we celebrate New Year's Eve with our friends at their traditional house party but sadly this year's plans were altered. Thankfully more for precautions than illness but a shame as we would have all appreciated a get together. 

So plans at home were quickly made ... a bbq! 

It was so mild, almost lime a summer's evening. Our electric grill is perfect when it's just us and gives added warmth under the gazebo. To accompany our winter burgers and sausage we opted for one of our Bordeaux wines and Chateau Constant Lesquireau was duly selected. 

After a bit of research I discovered this wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. It's aroma certainly had dark fruits with a hint of earthiness. I loved it's rich fruity blackcurrant and plum flavour, with a touch of spice and soft tannins. It was perfect with our unusual end of year dinner, enjoyed outside in the unusual 15 degree temperature. Thank you Bordeaux Wine UK.

A New Year task that I absolutely love doing is writing up the year's calendar with birthdays and special events. This year we have a very special calendar full of family photos; a superb gift from our lovely daughter. 

I had a very enjoyable time filling in the events of 2022, accompanied by a glass of Les Dauphins Cotes Du Rhone Blanc. Produced by Cellier des Dauphins this, and their red, is my go to French wine. It's always good, matches to most food, and always makes me smile, which I think is the importance of any wine! 

All too soon Christmas and New Year come to an end, although the decorations do stay up until Twelfth Night which is a festival in some branches of Christianity marking the beginning of Epiphany. A count of exactly 12 days from December 25 arrives at 5th January: this is Twelfth Night. The day of Epiphany is January 6th, the day the three wise men came to see the new born King. 

It's always good to mark occasions, be for religious reasons, family traditions or just because you want to. We marked Twelfth Night with a wee dram of Chivas Regal from our visit to Strathisla Distillery when we in Scotland in September, accompanied by the last few chocolate liqueurs.

Chivas Regal is not a whisky I would normally choose but this was lovely. A rich amber colour with a nose of dried fruit, coffee and dark chocolate. It's a very smooth whisky with velvet chocolate flavours and a subtle smokiness, but not peaty. It's certainly one I now have on my 'have again' list. 

I'm not one for New Year resolutions or setting goals as most of the time I fail, but there are things I would like to change or do in 2022. One such thing is more walking, a simple exercise for others but for me with my MS, past injuries and medical issues it is something that gives me a boost. I feel very accomplished when I have managed a good walk: a year ago I was finding 1/4 mile a challenge.

Today Hubby and I completed a 5 mile walk in our local area. I think I was spurred on by our planned stop at Popular Farm on our way back towards home, a local Farm Shop. Today and tomorrow they have Urban Cheesecake street food vendors at the farm. Their cheesecakes are very rich with loads of topping. We chose two different ones and shared them with our son once we arrived home .... delicious and the perfect treat after our 2 hour stroll. 

Our first week of the new year has been fairly quiet but we've made the most of our time at home. Tonight we'll be settling in to watch the new series of one of our favourite tv programmes ... Death in Paradise. I'll be sipping a Southern Comfort, Amaretto and Orange Juice cocktail and thinking of warmer days 😉