bibliography

wine trails

tasting notes

The trails:

Burgundy
Champagne
English Wine Festival
Germany
Hungary and Romania
Old and new: Paris, South Africa and Burgundy, November 2005
Rhone
South Africa, December 2004
South Africa, May 2004

Old and new: Paris, South Africa and Burgundy (Cont.) 28 March 2006

But then I ventured upstairs to discover that Bordeaux, Burgundy, Jura and the South West had been given about double the surface area, and I only had about 2 hours to cover it! By the end of the day, I had over a hundred tasting notes under my belt, but felt more like a casual visitor than a serious wine geek. Next time I will set aside 3 days, or perhaps confine myself to a single region.

What did I take away from the event? At least three things. Firstly, a richer appreciation of how important wine is to the Frenchperson: there were people of all ages, shapes and colours working their way around the tables, many buying by the caseload (to be transported by luggage trolley back home on the Metro!). Secondly, my knowledge of French is too easily shown up in new environments: if, like me, you did not pronounce the final "s" in Cornas, Vacqueryas, Gindondas, etc. thinking you were being sophisticated, you would be sadly wrong (it is pronounced!). And thirdly, I need to drink more Loire wines: I didn't realise how serious some of the reds can be (structured, full and tannic) or just how its sweeties can outgun those of the Bordelais (I made a point of trying quite a few of both).

Part 2: the Cape

I have waxed philosophical about the trip in my piece of 28 January (What makes a wine expensive?). But there is also something to say about the places visited. I spent a few hours in Durbanville and Constantia and the best part of a day in Stellenbosch.

I did a tour of the Durbanville Hills estate, which revealed an incredible amount of investment in stainless steel tanks and oak barrels. Apparently it was the most expensive winery in the Cape at the time of being kitted out. My favourite of the offerings was their basic Sauvignon Blanc (good value at under £4) and the Rhinofields Merlot: I tried the 2001 vintage, which was big and fruity without being Ribena-ish; an opulent, fragrant palate with good acidity and fine tannins; one to age. I preferred, however, the wines of Bloemendal, the other Durbanville estate visited. The Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon were excellent (the former from 27-year-old vines; lots of gooseberry and great length), and the Cabernet and Shiraz very tasty indeed; all very well priced, the most expensive being the Shiraz at only around £5.50.

I took in two of the Constantia estates: Steenberg and Buitenverwachting. The experience was was dulled by alternatively sullen and snooty staff (I thought this may be a Constantia ailment, but a more recent trip to Klein Constantia has proven me wrong!; and I suppose our visit was rather late in the day). The stand-out wines for me were the Steenberg Loire Clone Sauvignon Blanc, their Merlot and the Buitenverwachting "Christine". I tried the 2005 Sauvignon: a complex yet low-intensity nose, but a highly complex palate, with definite smokey character (also some white pepper), high acidity and good length. In fact, most of the Steenbergs stood out for their complex palates. The Merlot was a 2003: its palate very interesting, complex and liquid, and fine tannins that creep up and grab you at the end; good length, too. Buitenverwachting's "Christine" is a classic pine-and-black-pepper-laden Cab (around £13 a bottle).

In Stellenbosch I made a point of revisiting Tokara as only their Zondernaam wines had been available on my previous visit (which had been produced with bought-in grapes). Their flagship Bordeaux blend proved to be absolutely fantastic - the best wine of the entire trip (again, priced towards the top of the market at £13): a blend of Merlot, Cabernet and Petit Verdot, it had a very fresh nose and palate with a chocolate and black pepper character, great complexity and liquidity. I also called in across the road at Thelema, whose wines rightly justify its reputation as one of the Cape's best producers. The wines were all good but I was particularly intrigued by the (Rhine) Riesling, which had developed a definite paraffin character after only two years in bottle. I had read (and experienced) that Aussie Rieslings develop early in this way but hadn't realized the same might apply to wines from the Cape. This example was the finest SA Riesling I had tried.

Part 3: back to the Old World: Burgundy

It was one of the coldest Christmases we had experienced and we chose to spend it in what was the coldest part of France. It dropped to minus 16 on the one day, which made museum visiting a lot more attractive than cellar touring.

On another day, however, the temperature was a comfortable minus 8 (!), with bright blue sky and sunshine - just perfect for our meander along the Cote de Nuit from Marsannay (where our hotel was) to Beaune. I can recommend the drive wholeheartedly. It gave me a much better sense of the Burgundian appellation system and why the good wines are so expensive: the plots really are small.

We stopped at the Clos de Vougeot museum en route, which holds the most amazing old wooden wine presses: two of the largest pieces of wooden machinery I have ever seen; what a contrast with the shiny stainless-steel equipment that I saw in the Cape.

Our final destination, after lunch in Beaune, was the cellars of Bouchard Aine et Fils. They take you on a tour of part of their cellar and introduce you to the "Five senses of wine". Perhaps the tour seemed more interesting than it was because it was in French and I had to concentrate hard, but I think anyone would enjoy it, and you do get to try some good wine. In particular, their Corton Grand Cru (1998) is magnificent and their Beaune Premier Cru ("Les Bressandes"; 1998) deliciously savoury, fresh and tangy, yet surprisingly substantial and tannic.

So, I can thoroughly recommend a drive down the Cote d'Or, although try pick your weather more carefully than we did!

Hungary and Romania: spicy and sweet

24 September 2005

We recently returned from a fantastic 10-day trip to Hungary and Romania. We experienced a wealth of wines, from spicy and dry Hungarian whites, to sweet reds in Romania, all matched to hearty, yet refined cuisine.

Our trip started in Budapest, and fortuitously, on the national holiday of St Steven's day: 20 August. This meant there was traditional food on offer, as well as wine (the castle hill on the Buda side of the Danube had been taken over by a large craft market and folk festival). I tried a handful of vinous products, including an Irsai Oliver from Buda, a region just 25km west of Budapest. The producer: Nyakas. It was floral and spicy on the nose, fresh on the tongue, with medium acidity, fullish body and good length. Very spicy to taste, and grapey at the end. A sprightly wine; I'm sure it will go well with spicy food.

A couple of days later we headed up to Eger, famed for its Bull's Blood. You may know the story, but here goes anyway: after laying siege to the town for a long time without success, the Turks came to believe that its citizens had fortified themselves by drinking the blood of bulls; their beards had been stained red to prove it. In fact the fortifying liquid was the wine that the town produced, which now makes the legend its own by being nicknamed Bull's Blood. We went to what I can only describe as a wine-tasting village, about 20 minutes from the city centre: a string of cellars cut into the hillside, each with a dozen tables out front for visitors to sit at and taste their wines. You pay by the (small, but liberally filled) glass, and their is no obvious sign of spittoons (I had to ask for one). In other words, I think it is seen as much as a local linear pub as a place to taste. Much of the wine was of basic quality: sold in plastic demijohns, decanted from the barrel. But there were also fine wines, and the experience is definitely worthwhile, if nothing else than to expose yourself to a range of Hungarian wines.

I got to try several Bikovers (the Bull's Blood), Kekfrankos, Leanko (Feteasca), Olaszriesling, plus usual suspects Cabernet, Merlot, Pinot, and an arrestingly odd sweet Merlot. In general, the Bikovers were less fortifying than I had expected them to be, but they tended to be well balanced. The best I tried was a 2002 from producer Bella Istvan: a well-rounded spicy nose (cloves?), fullish on the tongue with a character of sour berries and green pepper, medium-to-high acidity and OK length. The same producer's Kekfrankos was decent, too: a cherry nose with a peppery note, cherry in colour, light-bodied and racy with good acidity; it reminded me of some Swiss reds I have tried.

Barring the sweet Merlot, all the wines we tried in Hungary were easily recognizable to our palates. Things were not so clear in Romania, where it seems there is still a strong leaning to making wines sweet, even without necessarily calling them so. It was tricky ordering wines in restaurants because the menu did not always indicate a wine's sweetness and the waiter wouldn't necessarily know. On one occassion we mistakenly ordered a bottle of semi-sweet Pinot Noir (producer and region Murfatlar) to accompany a spicy carp dish - the first sip was quite a shock to the palate. And some wines that were called dry had a fair whack of residual sugar. It was interesting to read a label on a "dry" (and very good) Riesling that said "This Riesling is drier than our other dry Riesling"!

We tried a lot of different wines. My favourite was the basic sweet botrytized Grasa de Cotnari, which accompanied a delicious pancake stuffed with raisins and sweet cheese. My wine books had deceived me into thinking that Cotnari was the name of a blended botrytized wine. In fact, at least on the ground in Romania, Cotnari is simply seen as a region that produces several wines, including many botrytized ones. There also seemed to be a producer (co-operative?) called Cotnari, which does confuse things (the bottle we tried appeared to be from Cotnari and produced by Cotnari). It had a wonderful marmaladey character, with lots of freshness; delightful stuff - you could drink it all day (especially as it sells at under £2 pounds a bottle, or about £4 in restaurants; what a pity it doesn't reach UK shelves).

Other success stories were the Feteasca Albas (try the one sold under the Beciul Domnesc brand by Vincon Vrance SA, for instance) and Feteasca Regalas (the latter having a fuller, more refined mouth-feel but lacking the prettiness of the Alba), as well as a Riesling from Tarnave: a 2003 "Monsieur Henri Selection", produced by Jidvei.

It was difficult to find a dry Feteasca Neagra (the red cousin of Feteasca Alba and Regala) in restaurants. We did try a semi-sweet one (2000, Beciul Domesc brand, 4 years in barrel), which seemed to work a lot better as a wine than the semi-sweet Pinot. I also bought a bottle of dry 2003 Neagara to bring back: Trei Hectares, by producer Murfatlar (which is also the region); I was assured by the staff of the very posh Vinalia wine shop in Brasov that it was a very good dry example of the variety. I will have to open it and find out!

Alas, hand-luggage allowances being what they are I could only return from the trip with a handful of bottles. Apart from the Feteasca Neagara, there is a sweet Romanian red (not sure what possessed me), an ageworthy Kadarka from Hungary, and a 1993 Ch. Dereszla 4 puttonyos Tokay Aszu ...mmm.

Great wines in the Little Karoo

December 2004

Our yearly South African sojourn took us to a part of the Western Cape that I had never been to before: the Little Karoo (or Klein Karoo, if you prefer). I had always thought this part of the country to be flat and drab, but I was wrong. The road from Oudshoorn to Cape Town (Route 62) has views of mountains to the left and right, which provide a boundary to the scrubby plain and make the blue sky above you seem even more expansive. And as you head further west, the mountains draw in and the terrain becomes more hilly, until you are squeezed out through the Hex River mountains into the flat land around Robertson.

The drama of the scenery is offset by the outback calm of the villages. Calitzdorp and Ladismith sport Victorian cottages with cast-iron decoration and corrugated-iron roofs, many latterly transformed into tea rooms. We stopped at one of these before heading to our chosen vinous destination: De Krans of Calitzdorp.

Unlike many of the vineyards of Stellenbosch and Paarl that we visited this time, De Krans has avoided becoming what I call a 'destination winery' (you know what I mean: the one-stop curio-shop-restaurant-we-have-our-own-T-shirt establishment). Its facilities included a counter, clean glasses, friendly service and a large selection of wines - what more do you need!

The winery has built its reputation on its Port-style wines. It is a part of the country where you find large plantings of Portuguese grapes (Touriga National and Tinta Barocca). De Krans use these to produce Port-style wines as well as unfortified varietals and blends. The range of wines was impressive: around 10 light wines, three Port-style wines and a deliciously sticky Muscat. I found the whites on the flabby side, but the reds had real purity of flavour and represented excellent value for money.

There were three stand-out wines for me: the Cabernet Sauvignon, their signature blend and the Cape Tawny.

The Cabernet Sauvignon (2003) had a pine nose, was full and forward on the tongue yet liquid, maintaining a good balance of acidity and tannin. A good finish, too. And at under £3 a bottle, phenomenal value for money. The signature 'Redstone' blend (the 2003 had a blend of 70% Cabernet and 30% Touriga National) is named after the rugged red-stone hills that lie just west of the town. It had an immediate cassis character, with pure fruit and some oak. Its palate was very good indeed, again maintaining the the right balance of rich fruit and liquidity. High-ish powdery tannins and enough acidity to match. An impressive wine, and one that should keep well. The Port-style Cape Tawny had been blended from the wine of three vintages, each aged for not less than 8 years. Fresh and nutty on the nose, and on the tongue, a gorgeous cane-sugary fullness with surprising acidity. Very nice indeed.

So, if you are travelling to the Western Cape, I would give the Route 62 wine route a whirl. It doesn't have the trappings of the tourist-thronged winelands of Stellenbosch, the scenery is impressive, and if the wines of De Krans are anything to go buy, it will do your taste buds a world of good.

40 Hours in the Rhone Valley

October 2004

From Vienne, just south of Lyon and north of the proud vineyards of Cote-Roti and Condrieu, through Tain l'Hermitage, home of Northern Rhone wine-making, on to Valence, Montelimar and Orange, stopping in two of the designated villages of the Dentelles mountain range (Sablet and Gigondas), then on to Avignon, St Remy, cliff-top tourist village Les Baux-de-Provence, Beaucaire, Arles, the Roman Pont du Gard and Nimes; from steep green hills and terraced vineyards to white-stone-capped bluffs and lazy fields of vines and olive trees, all in 40 hours!

The wines of the Rhone that we tried were as varied as the geography we encountered. I started by gatecrashing a tasting at Domaine Georges Vernay, Condrieu, at which I tried two forms of Viognier: one an AC Condrieu and another a Vin de Pays from the same hillsides but at the the limit of the designated area, and from old vines. The former was more elegant but I found the second the more interesting, with a striking combination of perfumed fruit and a nutty, almost smoky finish. I also tried their 2002 Cote Roti: a powerful, spicy, liquoricey wine with a backing of toasty oak; good length, too.

The next tasting stop was at the Cave de Tain l'Hermitage, and a most instructive tasting it was, too. I was treated to the whole gamut of their wines (save their red and white vin-de-pays varietal bottlings) and whether or not I liked each sample, each was distinct and instantly brought to mind other wines I had tasted from the same area. That was a satisfying experience and, to my mind, an endorsement of the French philosophy of marketing wines according to their geographic origin rather than grape variety. The 2001 Cornas was open, firey and rubbery on the palate ( a "hunter's wine" I was told). The St Joseph was taut and balanced with fine tannins, while the red Hermitage (which I have seen at my local Sainsbury's for around £19) more concentrated, with an intense blackcurrant jam nose and palate (but without being jammy or flabby). As for the whites, I was particularly drawn to the Crozes-Hermitage (2003) with its apricot and slightly grapey nose; a full-bodied yet fresh wine.

We reached the southern Rhone villages rather late in the day. Fortunately the tourist office in Sablet, which was open until six, was also a fully fledged cave and tasting depot for the appellation. I was treated to some very tasty reds and whites. The Sablet Blanc (2003) from Domaine du Parandou struck me as an ideal aperitif wine: fresh with an appetisingly bitter finish. The same producer's unoaked Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault blend (Sablet Rouge 2003) was also wonderful: a smoky, flinty nose, full on the tongue and grippy like a Pinot Noir; big and bouncy tannins, and very long.

Interestingly, I came away from the trip with more white wine in my luggage than red. Maybe that was because the white was better priced (and we were on a budget!), but it was also because the tastes of white Rhones are comparatively new to me, and I found them altogether compelling.

If I had had the space, I would also have brought back some rose. Usually I am sceptical of the pink drink, but what we tried in the Rhone was really appetizing and flavoursome. I would go so far as to say it was the best rose I had tried - especially the complex, toasty, savoury wine that I sampled in a cafe in the hill-top village of Les Bauxs-de-Provence at sunset. It was so impressive that I decided to embarrass myself with my French, asking the waiter what wine she had served. The response was satisfying: "Ah yes, that is the wine that grows down in the valley, at the foot of this hill." How wonderful that must be - to live in a place where the cheapest, readiest wine is the best that can be had.

A brief jaunt in Burgundy

August 2004

Julie and I took a long-weekend trip to see family in Paris and managed to squeeze in a trip to northern Burgundy. It was our first visit there and hopefully not the last. I don't know what I expected to find, but certainly not the beautiful green wooded hills, sleepy villages and royal cities that I did. I can highly recommend it as a destination.

We stayed just a single night, outside of picturesque Auxerre, and managed but one tasting, at the Auxerrois Regional Wine Centre in the village of St.-Bris-La-Vineux (00 33 03 86 53 66 76). The centre is in recently constructed premises, 100 metres odd from the main road passing down through the village from the Auxerre side. We were mapless, but fortunately it was signposted. The walls of the tasting room are decorated with maps and display cabinets of notable local wines, and the person on duty was both friendly and informative. She happily opened several bottles of wine as we tasted our way around the Auxerrois producers. I must say that I was impressed, particularly with the unoaked whites and reds from 2002. At the top of my list was a 2002 Pinot Noir from nearby Irancy: Cave Tabit et fils, 'Haut-Champreux'. I don't think I've tasted better unoaked Pinot. It had an open, powerful nose, with strawberries and some darker boiled-vegetable-water elements; great acidity, balance and length; tangy on the tongue, having an effect similar to chewing on a piece of Parmesan. A classy wine (and, I was informed, one that will taste better in four years time). For the whites, my pick was the mineralic 2002 Cotes d'Auxerre from Felix et Fils (Vignerons a Saint-Bris-le-Vineux). A chalky number with a pretty, fruity nose.

I was even impressed by the table wines served up in the restaurants we went to. I think I would be hard pressed to find such tasty, substantial Burgundy in the UK at whatever price (certainly in the high street shops and supermarkets). I guess the moral is to shop for Burgundy abroad.

A whistle stop tour of the Cape, South Africa

May 2004

We have just returned from a short, yet fantastic trip to the fairest Cape. I have family near Cape Town, so it is a trip I often do, and I always make sure that I get to see a few vineyards (or 'wine farms' as they are more commonly called there). I can definitely recommend it as a vinous location. Unlike many other places, the premium-quality growing areas are fairly close together and you can see a lot in a short space of time. Also, the majority of wineries are geared up to visitors and will welcome you gladly (some do charge a nominal fee). The roads are good, there is plenty of signage to help you find your way, as well as brochures and maps.

This time I managed to check out a couple of wineries that do require prior warning: Groenland and Remhoogte. They perhaps showed two extremes in the local wine industry. The former is an old family estate with functional wine-making equipment but a long history in the industry. The latter is filled with bright and shiny gear, being set up fairly recently by a family of Johannesburg property developers.

We were shown around Groenland by the amiable Piet Steenkamp (the son of the owner) who explained that they used to sell their all their crop to KWV but have now started to produce their own range of wines, vinified on site. My pick of the ones on show was the Antoinette Marie, 2001, a 60/40 Cabernet/Shiraz blend, with a ripe red berry and chocolate nose, good acidity and juicy tannins. An immediately appealing wine.

Remhoogte's wines were a little more restrained, but intellectually appealing. My favourite of the ones tasted was their 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon with good length and brooding tannins. Unfortunately they would only open two of their wines for the tasting. I gathered that some of the others were produced in too limited quantities to uncork for visitors. Remhoogte has recently set up a venture with Michel Rolland to produce a range of wines under his guidance. Should be an interesting one to watch.

I only had time to visit one other estate, that of Tokara. But what a magnificent one it is. A super-modern construction of stone, stainless steel and glass. Definitely worth a visit, if only for the architecture and the views. The Tokara wines themselves have not come on stream yet, but they should be something special as cellarmaster Gyles Webb from the much-praised Thelema estate is in charge. For the time being they are vinifying grapes sourced elsewhere under the label 'Zondernaam' (see my tasting notes).

Perhaps the highlight of the trip, however, was an unexpected wine festival at the Cape Town Waterfront sponsored by the Cape Times. A great number of wines were on show, many from producers that have a name for themselves locally (but are less well known overseas). Due to time constraints I confined myself mainly to Stellenbosch producers. Several of the wines stood out for me. Of the whites, my clear favourites were the 2003 Sauvignon Blanc from Delaire - an incredibly long, vinous Sauvignon with a fresh grassy nose - and the flinty, peachy wooded 2003 Chardonnay produced by Lanzerac. As for the reds, Blaauwklippen's 2001 Cabriolet Bordeaux blend (with a relatively high percentage of Cabernet Franc) was the business, with a wonderfully perfumed, cedary, violety nose and great balance. And if you like a powerful Pinot Noir, then Muratie's 2001 version is definitely worth a try - a raspberry nose with a silky, sensual, almost Port-like quality.

The 29th English Wine and Regional Food Festival

September 2003, near Lewes

I must say I was skeptical of the idea of an English wine festival. I thought it would be filled with right-of-centre cranks selling bad wines sporting Union Jacks. Fortunately I was wrong. There was a bit of 'selling the flag', but on the whole the wine producers that had set up stalls seemed to be very forthright about what they were doing and what they had and hadn't accomplished. Definitely an event to visit again next year - especially since the 2003 harvest is supposed to be so good.

The one problem I had with a lot of what I tasted was my inability to align the smells and flavours with grapes and wines that I am familiar with. At least to an ordinary palate like my own, many of the wines seemed a little off-beat. But others did resonate, and I found I quite liked them. So, for instance, many of the wines made from the Bacchus grape (a crossing of Sylvaner and Riesling and the Muller-Thurgau) resembled Sauvignon Blanc.

The show-stopper was a collection of sparkling wines unashamedly in the Champagne mold: Cuvee Merret from Ridgeview Estate. They really were quite special - certainly up there with the better Champagnes I have tasted. In particular, I liked the 1999 Bloomsbury (60% Chardonnay plus Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier) - yeasty and full (it's also their cheapest at £15.95 a bottle; their most expensive being the Knightsbridge at £21.95). Their Cavendish blend (£18.95) also stood out for its exquisite nose (yet strangely the character of the nose different carry through into the taste).

Another wine I should mention was the Curious Grape Pinot Noir (from New Wave Wines). Not cheap at £12.99 a bottle, but with a lot of character and minerality. Light yet well balanced. It definitely stood out amongst the reds.

Germany

August 2003

Julie and I recently visited the Middle Rhine and a stretch of the Mosel. It was only a two-and-a-half day trip and so we were unable to visit any vineyards. However, we were fortunate enough to be in the right place at the right time and attend a large tasting in the town of Boppard (on the Rhine) - the Bopparder Weinkost. And we noticed that almost every town we went through was advertising a wine festival that had just happened or was about to. So if you are thinking of a similar trip, late August to early September is definitely the time. There is an excellent German national tourism site which will help you with the specifics. And if you are looking for a good, no-frills airline from the UK to that part of Germany, look no further than Germanwings.

I was most impressed by what I sampled in Boppard. There were only 6 producers, but they had some 100 different wines on show, from dry Rieslings all the way to Eiswein.

My pick of those I tried:

a) From Weinggut Engels-Weiler, two Gewurztraminers. Both were sweet - called 'Bopparder Hamm Mandelstein - Lieblich'. The one was a 2001, an Auslese, which although sweet, had a mineral backbone (10.5% alcohol, 6.50 euros, 500ml). The other was a 1993 with cedary, or according to my wife, smokey, tones. It bore a resemblance to a good old sweet Sherry (15% alcohol, 9.50 euros, 375ml). I notice now, reading from the catalogue that both wines had won medals ('Brozene Kammerpreismunze').

b) From Weingut Felnsenkeller Gregor Schneider, a 2000 Riesling Spatlese 'Feuerlay' (10% alcohol, 4,60 euros). It had a typical paraffin-like whiff to it. Nice. And also, a1995 Riesling Auslese 'Edition Michael Thonet' (9% alcohol, 11 euros). It is certainly worth the price with a rich, honeyed taste and yeasty petroly nose. I often associate these type of wines with orange juice, and I have concluded that that taste comes from botrytized grapes (I get the same sense with Sauternes).

c) From Weingut August Perll, a 2001 Riesling Auslese, trocken i.e. dry (12.5% alcohol, 7 euros). A goody: pears in taste and nose, modulating into bubble-gum. Very full, but with a slight spritz to it. I also tasted their 1998 Eiswein (8.5% alcohol, 23 euros), which was a first for me. Perhaps I mistook the flavours, but it had an almost mouldy, marine taste. But maybe that was because we got the dregs of a bottle! Very sweet, of course. I will have to taste more before passing judgement on this example of the breed.

d) And then possibly my favourites, from Weingut Walter Perll. Firstly, a dry 2001 Spatburgunder (i.e. pinot noir). Why don't we get this kind of wine in England? It would give a lot of Burgundies a run for their money - certainly the lower priced ones available in supermarkets (this wine was 8 euros; 13.5% alcohol). Matured in wood, it had great grip, an open nose and minty overtones. And secondly, a dry, high-acidity 2001 Riesling Auslese (12,5% alcohol, 6.70 euros). A lemony taste. Reminded me of a still Champagne.

Champagne

July 2003

We were able to visit the Champagne region for a day last time we were in Paris. Just enough time to know that we must return to explore it more. The first half of the day was spent walking round Reims, and taking in the magnificent cathedral. The second half was spent in Epernay, where, according to a French friend of ours, we would find the best wine that Champagne has to offer. We did a tour of the Mercier cellars and paid a visit to one of the newer arrivals in the avenue of Champagne houses - Esterlin.

Apparently Mr Mercier had a talent for marketing. He seized the opportunity at the World Fair in Paris to do tastings in a tethered balloon above the city (at the turn of the last century). The company seems to have continued in this tradition and lays on a fairly showy tour of their cellars in a laser-guided, machine-piloted vehicle. Insufficiently rustic for most wine lovers, I would guess. But to get to the important part, the wine was sound, although I felt it lacked finesse. Fairly fruity and punchy, but insufficiently toasty and complex for my liking.

The other Champagne house that time permitted us to visit was Esterlin. They only recently set up shop in the centre of Epernay, but the quality of their wines definitely befits the address. We tasted three wines, two of which were Blanc de Blanc vintage wines: from 1992 and 1995. Excellent years and excellent wines. Toasty and elegant. And because Esterlin are not (at least yet) a grande marque, the wines definitely represent value for money. We bought two bottles of the '95 - about 15 euros a piece. Quel bargain. Esterlin's wines are available in the UK through The Champagne Shop.