#France

May 18, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Gayda Syrah 2015, Pays D'Oc, France

£9.99–£10.15, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Haynes, Hanson & Clark Wines made from Syrah aren’t always light on their feet and they’re not the sort of red you’d immediately think of if you were looking for a red to go with fish, but Domaine Gayda’s 2015 Syrah from Languedoc is made in a cool, contemporary style with racy, pure, black cherry fruit and the trademark peppery spice that Syrah has in the northern Rhône. What it doesn’t have, because it’s designed to be drunk young, ar

May 4, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Famille Negrel Bandol Rosé La Petite Reine 2016, France

£15.95, From Vineyards Direct Bandol is a small coastal appellation between Marseilles and Toulon within the large Provence region – but it’s not just in Provence, it’s the crème de la crème of vinous Provence, high up with breathtaking views and more hours of sunshine than any other French wine region. It’s the sun and warmth that ensure the ripening of the characterful but late-ripening Mourvèdre, the principal grape in all the rosés and reds. The Negrel family’s La Petite

Apr 27, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Saint Mont 2015, Saint Mont, France

£9, Marks & Spencer Perfectly timed for the asparagus season, but equally tuned into seafood, chicken, salads and vegetable dishes, comes a vibrant, aromatic dry white from deep down in the southwest corner of Gascony, itself deep into southwest France. The mouthwatering flavours of pink grapefruit, quince and fresh herbs come from personality-packed local grape varieties, Gros Manseng, Petit Courbu and Arrufiac, whose future until quite recently was threatened by the global

Apr 20, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Domaine Trilles Incantation 2015, Côtes du Roussillon, France

£14.95, Joie de Vin A bewitchingly generous, rich red from the southern reaches of France, not far from the border with Spain and close to a spot where witches were said to brew their potions: hence the name Incantation (and my inability to resist the opening pun). Apart from being dark enough to be a witches’ brew, there is no other comparison. Incantation, a Syrah-based blend with Grenache, Mourvèdre and a smidgen of Carignan, is brimful of violet, raspberry, black fruit an

Mar 30, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Val de Salis Saint-Chinian 2015, Languedoc, France

£7.99, Lidl This hits the shelves today with 39 other wines in Lidl's Easter Collection and is a red to zone in on if you like the Mediterranean French style of spicy, plummy black fruit with an aromatic whiff of herby garrigue. While the Saint-Chinian area can produce reds with a distinctive stony, mineral character and reds that are bigger and more rugged, the low-priced Val de Salis treads a middle line with spicy, fruity charm, some smoky, toasted notes and delicate miner

Mar 16, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Xavier & Nicolas Barbet Moulin-à-Vent 2014, Beaujolais, France

£14.99–£15.49, Hennings Wine, Vineyards of Sherborne Beaujolais is on a roll, as the fashion for big, ripe, oaky blockbusters is replaced by a demand for fresher, brighter reds that are more versatile with food. The ten Beaujolais crus, the wines from the ten best areas of the region – named according to their own individual appellations, such as Fleurie, Brouilly and Moulin-à-Vent – are doing especially well. The quality of the 2015 vintage, one of the best for decades, is a

Feb 23, 2017

WINE OF THE WEEK: Réserve des Tuguets Madiran 2014, France

£6, Tesco A bargain from Madiran in the foothills of the Pyrenees in south west France, one of my favourite parts of the world and one for which the description La France Profonde could have been coined. The wines hereabouts are rarely less than distinctive, whether red, white, dry or sweet. Madiran is red and is made from the muscular local Tannat grape which has given the wines a reputation for being big, robust, sometimes even a bit brutal. Réserve des Tuguets shows a gent

Jan 9, 2017

Beaujolais: The Comeback Kid

The famous windmill that gave its name to Moulin-à-Vent, one of the ten crus of Beaujolais I was slightly wary of showing a Beaujolais to the people who’d signed up for one of my Wine Walks at The Wine Gang London Festival at the end of November. I’d told them as we set off, Schott Zwiesel wine glasses in hand, that the aim was to taste some wines I thought they might not try otherwise and maybe one or two others that were simply personal favourites. A Beaujolais-Villages 201

Dec 21, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2014, Rhône, France

£10.99, Co-op If you’re looking for a heartwarming, generous red for the festive feast this Châteauneuf-du-Pape is just the wine, whether you’re eating turkey, beef or goose. It could also be brought into service with a glazed ham joint and/or leftovers on Boxing Day: try popping it in the fridge for 20–30 minutes first – the rich, dark fruit, nutty, sweet earth and smoked paprika spice are just as appetising when served a little cooler than usual. The people behind it are th

Dec 15, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Henry Fessy Beaujolais-Villages 2015, France

£9.75, Oddbins The 2015 vintage was brilliant for Beaujolais, from straight Beaujolais to the ten appellations in their own right at the top, the so-called crus such as Fleurie and Morgon. Henry Fessy is the only producer to make wine in nine out of the ten, but the 2015 cru wines won’t be ready for shipping until next year. In the meantime, the generous, strawberry-perfumed Beaujolais-Villages (a step up from straight Beaujolais) is here and ready to drink, although even thi

Dec 9, 2016

The Festive Champagne Guide 2016

December 29, 2016: prices and stockists updated. I’m writing this a few days after The Wine Gang’s 2016 Ultimate Champagne Evening, so to say that I'm full of the joys of Champagne is to understate it. We got our taste buds into shape with an aperitif of Charles Heidsieck Brut Réserve (always a favourite) then showed Salon 2004, Delamotte Blanc de Blancs 2007, Dom Ruinart Blanc de Blancs 2004, Dom Ruinart Rosé 2002, Bollinger La Grande Année 2005, Bollinger RD 2002, Dom Péri

Dec 8, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Hommage du Rhône Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc 2015, France

£13.99, Waitrose White Châteauneuf-du-Pape comes into the same category as the white Rioja I recommended a couple of weeks ago: everyone knows the red version, but the white, a relative rarity, is pretty well below the radar. Hommage du Rhône is cheaper than many, even more so at the current offer price, but it's full of charm and very much a winter white (although don’t let that stop you buying some for the summer). It’s full-bodied and rounded with a spicy, leafy freshness

Dec 1, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Domaine Jones Fitou 2014, Fitou, France

£14.50, The Wine Society; £95 for 6, domainejones.com The key to the quality and character of this richly fruity Fitou is the age of the vines: most are more than a century old. They produce miserly quantities, but the compensation is the flavour of the grapes and, in turn, the complex, concentrated wine with its spicy black fruit, herb, nutmeg and dark chocolate flavours, its smoothness and freshness. The vines are Carignan, Grenache and Syrah – typical of Fitou and the wide

Nov 17, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Tanners Super Claret 2012, Haut-Médoc, France

£14.95, Tanners, tanners-wines.co.uk The name may sound a tad old school, but the wine, I’m happy to say, is not. It’s claret for sure, aka red Bordeaux, but it’s not the old-fashioned, weedy, thin sort that use to fuel gentleman’s clubs at lunchtime (and may still do, for all I know). It’s a supple, rounded blend of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon aged in barrels for a year to give a spicy oak softness to the mulberry and blueberry fruit, graphite and green pepper flavours. It

Nov 2, 2016

Give Muscadet Some Love: five wines to try

Post updated with more recommendations and more about the crus communaux on 11 November 2016 Muscadet has been having a tough time of it for years – it's lost out to wines with more flavour and bigger personality – but this year it's also been savaged by nature in the form of four devastating frosts in the second half of April. The 2016 crop is expected to be down by 20 or more per cent in volume, but the good news is that, despite the frost, mildew hovering menacingly in Jun

Oct 27, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Domaine Cordier Bourgogne Blanc Jean de la Vigne, Burgundy, France

£14.99, or £12.99 in a 6-bottle mix, Majestic Seems odd that this is the first white Burgundy I’ve recommended here. I’ve homed in on Chardonnays from other regions but neglected it in its homeland. Time to put that right with the zingy candied-citrus fruit, rich buttery texture, walnut and vanilla flavours of Domaine Cordier’s Jean de la Vigne. Christophe Cordier could label this Mâcon-Villages instead of Bourgogne if he wished, but chooses not to because his wine has so muc

Sep 29, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Bruno Paillard Première Cuvée Brut Champagne, France

£35.95, The Whisky Exchange; £38.99, Handford Wines; £44.99, Selfridges The first week of October is National Champagne Week. I don’t know why – something to cheer us up as we view the prospect of months of cooler, darker days perhaps? Whatever the reason this is my contribution to the festivities/commiserations. It goes without saying that I’ve chosen it because it’s so good: fine bubbles, beautiful citrusy fruit opening out into richer brioche flavours, then a sustained, fr

Sep 22, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Calmel & Joseph Terrasses du Larzac 2014, Languedoc, France

£13.75, Grape & Grind; £13.99, New Forest Wines £14.79, Martinez Wines A southern French red that exudes contemporary polish but not at the expense of any of its distinctive regional character – terroir, as they call it in France. Terrasses du Larzac is an appellation high up in the eastern Languedoc, within the large Coteaux du Languedoc appellation, and the wines always seem to have an exciting suggestion of wildness on the nose – wild but not rustic. The 2014 Calmel & Jose

Sep 15, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Domaine Lombard Brézème Blanc 2015, Côtes du Rhône, France

£18.95, Yapp Brothers Brézème. Excuse me? If you haven’t heard of this tiny French wine region you won’t be alone. If you have heard of it, well done. If you know that it yields a tiny, tiny quantity of white wine in addition to its red Syrahs, go to the top of the class. I’ll fill the rest of you in in a moment, but let me tell you about the wine. The 2015 white is a gloriously succulent, smooth blend of Marsanne (80%) with Roussanne and Viognier. It has a floral, appley sc

Sep 1, 2016

WINE OF THE WEEK: Léon Beyer Sylvaner 2014, Alsace, France

£8.50, The Wine Society There are much showier Alsace wines, not least Gewurztraminer, but for an aperitif or a match for salad, shellfish or charcuterie, where you want the wine to accompany you or the food but not to shout, Sylvaner is perfect. This one is typical of the Maison Léon Beyer style: bone-dry, crisp, leafy and citrusy with just a murmur of riper peach and pear. It takes a few moments for the aromas and flavours to unfold, so it’s worth giving your glass a swirl.