Confessions of a Wino

I’m a massive fan of Frog’s Leap Merlot. Although a Stateside virgin by comparison to most oenophiles, my early experiences of Californian wine massively dispel the myth that they are over-alcoholic, overpowered and over here. And I consider Chardonnay to be a sadly and mistakenly forgotten, and under-rated grape. The chances are better than a plebiscite’s at the Whitehall Main Gate that this will be great.

Sadly, I am left disappointed. There are bags of fruit, and the finish is longer than a John Holmes video. But the acidity is stark. Long finishes are fine on the casting couch, but nobody really wants the climax to taste of a poorly constructed French dressing.

Maybe I got a bad bottle. I have a couple more to try (£17 from The Wine Society). But, barring a U-turn of Mark Thatcher proportions, I’m going to stick to the Merlot (at £22 much better value IMO)….and the Pedestrian Gate.

I’ve had many warm intimate moments with 2007 white Burgundy. This is another sexy beast. Rich and buttery, it brings to mind one of those glazed fruit tarts that are rarely found outside high end French Patisseries. Almost certainly involving blackberries – I found myself picking imaginary seeds from my gums.

Wine Society £18.50. Not cheap, but one for that L’Oréal moment.

Listening to old Genesis albums on Spotify is a good way of reminding oneself that simple things, done well, rarely disappoint. There wasn’t an enormous amount of complexity in Genesis’ soft 1970’s rock, but every musician (yes, even Phil Collins, doyen of French Europop radio) was packed with talent and, if the quality of the anthemic melodies are anything to go by, spent many hours learning their craft. And yet, whilst Trick of the Tail, for example, sounds like it is mixed on old chipped plates and rusty frying pans, and the electronic keyboards were played inside an old Heinz Beans can, it has stood the test of time simply because the ingredients are first class, and orchestrated with skill and care. You sometimes feel concern for the band’s collective mental health, but only in an English eccentric perfectionist sort of way.

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It’s difficult to make a case against buying wine from Majestic, especially when you can source wines like this 2004 Reserva from only £12.99.

Cune (a.k.a. CVNE) Rioja is a pretty good marque to look out for, should you decide to scour this historic wine region of northern Spain. But the food match I’m going to recommend might surprise you.

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