Christmas Wine II

Not when I get the cuveé Alexandre for £10.99.
And the convict woops Tasmanian Chardonnay for less.
Malbec can be a bit marmite.
Yapp
https://www.yapp.co.uk/#/dfclassic/...5b297762b0674a0fe0a8afa7&query_name=match_and
Not sure that link works but Graillot

 

^^ only a Scot terms 9 degrees as balmy

 

You knew that was a wee joke right: it was bl**dy freezin.

 

Yapp is one of the original proper independent importers of small Domaine wines from France, big focus on the Rhone. I'd rank Robin Yapp alongside Kermit Lynch in CA.

Graillot died a year or so ago. He transformed the fortunes of Crozes Hermitage, great wines.

 

Well one upside to the big day was free wine delivery courtesy of Charles2023.Was going to open a Bandol rosé but not quite so balmy today 9deg with 30mph gusts.
Opened this instead

I like pinot blanc but this is ok but not quite classy like Rolly or Sorg a tad unremarkable.
What ya gonna do?when you open something and
it doesn't quite hit the spot.

 

Wolfberger is a kind of mega co-op, and ‘a tad unremarkable’ is generally as good as it gets. It’s the sort of stuff that crops up in French supermarkets during wine fair seasons at 25€ for six bottles. Having said that, their Crémant is OK at similar times - I picked up two bottles for 10€ last month and it will certainly do, if (again) unremarkable.

Pinot Blanc never sets the world alight in Alsace - in fact it often isn’t only Pinot Blanc… (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pinot_blanc) …and many growers use it just for Crémant or Edelzwicker rather than to sell as a single varietal.

 

Thanks,don't know where I picked it up.
Pretty disappointing though,I've left half it,bummer.
I recall a nice Max.Grünhaus pinot blanc.
Anyway Napoli won serie A.

 

I suspect it was Waitrose.
https://www.decanter.com/wine-reviews/france/alsace/wolfberger-pinot-blanc-alsace-france-2020-59718
Further weight added to the Marchbanks 90-point theory.

(What’s going on here, anyway? Are Decanter paid by Waitrose to attend a tasting at ‘the Waitrose Cookery School’ and run what is essentially an advert called ‘20 best Waitrose Wine Buys’ under the guise of a piece of wine criticism? And then expect us to pay them as well for reading this stuff?)

 

Mm it seems a murky world that supermarket and wine press. Anyway expecting a Yapp delivery
so may get something to lift the lethargy.As long as
APC don't smash it,the last delivery was so galling two doors away then vanishes into the ether.Smashed.

 

A wee gem all the more so for being £9.50
shame I only bought two.
Smokey dark fruit silky smooth perfect.
APC no show.
Am I the only **** drinking?

 

Even the cheapest (Village) Kumeu River chardonnay seems pretty good to me. Particularly when you don't want a full-fat chardonnay.

 

Good suggestion.

Still a bargain.Oh a gorgeous Chardonnay.

Had this the other night while it was really good delicate pn like I'm not sure I'd choose it over a good
CdR.

 

I know to trust you when it comes to Chardonay.

 

Xinomavro was like Pinot Noir ? Always thought it more like Nebbiolo.
edit but I read unoaked versions can be like PN so I learn something new. And that Thymiopoulos is a good producer.

 

I've not had much nebbiolo to say.Its a classy wine
£12 at majestic .

 

Good price. Only 13% and ready to drink before most nebbiolo. Looks like a win/win/win.

 

Oh and if I needed another reason my fav football
manager Angelos is Greek.

 

The Xinomavro I have now is from remote, almost 100 year old, so ungrafted vines. 14% but feels like 15. Definitely wouldn't want to drink it at 3 years!

 

The holy grail?

 

A bumper bundle from the virtual walk. Follow the trail of discarded corks through Thornton-in-Craven, Oldfield, Charlestown, Rochdale, Chorlton and Norbury Moor. Map here if you want to drink along.