Majestic Rugby

Delighted to say Majestic Wine have opened a store in Rugby which is easier to get to and nearer to us with cheaper train tickets too.

Hubby and I went along to their Showcase Event which was very well attended, great to see when a new store opens. The shop location is on a retail park and has plenty of parking; inside is very well organised with wine in sections all neatly displayed with plenty of room to wander around.

Our welcome wine was Chandon Garden Spritz, a blend of sparkling wine and orange liqueur from Mendoza, Argentina. Chardonnay is the dominant grape blended with Pinot Noir and Semillion giving a lovely mix of green apple, orange and citrus flavours. Served over ice with a sprig of rosemary this was a refreshing start to our evening.

I do enjoy bubbly, more so French but not always champagne as there are many superb sparkling wines made in other departments. One such department is Jura on the eastern edge of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté.

Cremant du Jura is one of my favourite French sparkling wines. Made using the traditional method of second fermentation in the bottle this wine is a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Trousseau and Poulsard. This Marcel Cabelier wine had an abundance of fine bubbles, a biscuity aroma and lively citrus flavours, a lovely glass of bubbly.

Moving around the store our next tastings were three white wines; all delicious starting with Beau Rivage Bordeaux Blanc. A balanced unoaked blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Semillion this wine had plenty of grapefruit and elderflower flavour with a crisp floral finish.

The second white was Casal Farneto's Gran Casale Verdicchio. This wine estate in Ancona covers 35 acres working sustainably and organically. A well bodied wine full of peach and citrus giving a long smooth length to its finish.

Finishing with something a little different our final white was from Moldova. A rich wine from an award winning vineyard that is full of red apple, stone and tropical fruit flavours that was quite a surprise; it was hard to choose a favourite of the three.

The red table was our final visit; three very different wines from Greece, Australia and Italy.

Agiorgitiko is not a grape I have knowingly tried before. One of Greece's most popular red grapes this wine was full of black cherries, dark fruits and spice. It was a lovely wine but for me it needed food, a little more than the lovely Torres crisps provided. 

My favourite red was Tenacity, a Shiraz from the Barissa Valley. So much flavour in this deep red wine; plums, blackberries, blackcurrants accompanied by chocolate and vanilla with high notes of spice and black pepper. This was a delicious wine with a lovely long lasting finish. 

Slightly different to the usual method of making Ripasso this wine, produced by Domini Veneti, re-ferments the Valpolicella wine with skins left from making Recioto, a sweet dessert wine. Many of our fellow tasters enjoyed this intense wine but it was not a wine for me. Although full of lovely fruit and chocolate flavours I found the tannins too heavy.

A lovely introduction to Majestic's new Rugby store, we'll certainly be calling by to purchase some of our favourite wines and a few new discoveries.