Seraph Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2006
Do you eat ready meals? The UK is one of the world’s leading producers (and consumers) of ready meals, and I mean by volume, not necessarily quality. Is that good or bad? What does it say about our work addicted society that we no longer have time to enjoy a home cooked meal with friends/family at our own tables?
Taking another view, our Danish friends, Lone and Martin, who lived in the UK for a while, thought the concept was so good, and the quality of UK ready meals so high, that they packed a van load to take back to Copenhagen when they repatriated.
But surely this is bad food? Bad diet? High cost? What about bird flu? What if the meals contain salmonella, e-coli, MRSA, H5N1, or polonium 210?
Don’t worry, I don’t intend to take these thoughts any further. I am already boring myself.
Virgin Wines is the ready meal of the online wine market in the UK. I tried a case with some disdain, at first expecting lowest common denominator wines. I have so far experienced a mix bunch but nowhere near so bad as I expected with one or two really quite decent wines.
And so to the Seraph Reserve 2006 from Touraine by Pierre Chainier. At first taste it was a bit confusing. Some botrytis? A little added sugar? I expected it to be a bone dry Sauvignon. The sort that would go with my “luxury” fish pie from the Sainsbury’s Taste the difference range. Oops onto ready meals again!
The wine developed (in my mind at least) and got more interesting. Sherbet became the major flavour which stopped me thinking of it as a serious wine. Not great with seafood but probably worth a quaff as an aperitif, albeit over-priced in my opinion at £9.99. An unusual Sauvignon Blanc – not quite what I expected, but in many ways quite drinkable.
I need to reflect on whether this has enhanced or detracted from my view of Virgin Wines. A couple more to try before I make my mind up.
The ready meal? Oh yes – it was much better than I expected. I definitely recommend the Sainsbury luxury fish pie. But I would serve it with garden peas and a bottle of Dog Point.