Some festive Christmas time wines
There are a lot of nice meals and parties coming up, so I thought it would be useful to taste and then recommend some wines of excellent value for the Christmas season. Before writing about the wines, however, a little background on my approach to wines and wine tasting will be useful.
I will try to make the descriptions of the wines relatively simple. A lot of the jargon and obscure terminology only turns people off wine rather than making them more interested in it. There are of course some terms that are useful, like the "nose" (the smell/bouquet) of a wine, the "palate" or taste of the wine in the mouth and the "finish" of the wine - how long the flavor of the wine lingers in your mouth after a taste. While at a wine tasting many years ago, someone once described the bouquet of a wine as being "like the damp underwear of a lumberjack." Well, first of all, I gladly don't know what a lumberjack's underwear smells like - especially not sweaty underwear, and secondly, this is just being pompous and obscure for no useful reason. Amazingly, I believe the comment was intended to be positive.
From time to time the wines will be rated from 1 to 10, with 10 being the score for an excellent wine. And more importantly, I will always try to estimate the value-for-money of a wine. Anyone can spend zł.200 and buy a good wine, but for me, the mission is always to find good wines (or great wines) at modest prices.
Because wines are very different, and tasting them should be fun, I also like to describe or associate a wine with a celebrity (actor, musician). This is a French tradition and may be helpful in understanding a wine; it is also hopefully a more entertaining way to describe a wine than having a long discussion about the type of oak used in the barrels. I will try not to be biased - and will often give both male and female associations.
For this Christmas article, a number of wines fitting to the season were tasted. Below I review the best of this lot and make my Christmas-time recommendations.
It is great to start an evening party with a sparkling wine. There is, of course, no substitute for "real" champagne...and "real" champagne only comes from the Champagne region of France. However, many producers make wines using exactly the same techniques and often the same grapes as in Champagne. One excellent alternative to pricey Champagne is Corodniu Brut, Cuvee Raventos. This is the top of the line for Corodniu and is a lovely, fresh wine which is very dry (no sweetness). This wine is made from Chardonnay grapes and has a good, richer/deeper flavor. If you are looking for a modestly priced substitute for Champagne - for day to day use or parties - this is the perfect wine, and it is a huge cut above all of the low end sparkling wines. At a retail price of about zł.70, this is a good value wine, costing about one-half the price of low-end Champagne.
A very good white wine for the holidays goes by the name of "Gentil", and is from one of the top producers in Alsace, the Hugel family. This is a mixture of traditional Alsace grapes: Pinot blanc, gewertztraminier and reisling. The wine is very fruity, spicy, flavorful and relatively light. It smells and tastes somewhat like melon and citrus fruit and will go extremely well with a Christmas turkey. With a retail price of around zł.50, the value is also quite good. This is the Cameron Diaz/Tom Hanks of wines. Fun, fresh and not too complicated.
With a duck or goose, there are three excellent red wine choices from the wines we tasted. One is the Louis Latour, Pinot Noir 2001. Latour is a top burgundy producer and this wine is very light for a red, so it won't knock you out (especially important, considering that there is so much heavy food over the holidays). The bouquet is lovely and smells a lot like cooked strawberry jam, alcohol and wood. The flavor of the wine has strong hints of both cherry and strawberry. This is a light, very elegant wine - the Audrey Hepburn of wines and you rarely get in Audrey's neighborhood for the modest price of zł.55.
Another good choice of red with goose, duck or lamb is a Spanish wine. We tasted two wines that made the final list. My favorite is the Rene Barbier 1998 Reserve. This wine is from the Penedes region and made with Tempranillo 85 percent (the classic grape of Rioja) and 15 percent cabernet sauvignon to add a bit of strength. The wine is medium bodied with a complex aroma. It has good fruit (grape flavor) and a long, rich finish. A similar wine is the Finca Antigua, Crianza, 2000. This is from an up and coming region of La Mancha, and the wine is made with 100 percent Tempranillo grapes. The nose is closed, but the taste of the wine is excellent, with flavors of bitter cherry and vanilla. Both wines are good value at about zł.52 and zł.56 respectively. Think of Penelope Cruz and George Clooney - not overly "big" or serious, but very, very nice.
The blockbuster of the tasting was undoubtedly Mouton Cadet Reserve 2000, from Medoc in the Bordeaux region. This wine is made by Baron Philippe de Rothschild, and is a new reserve blend. It is nearly perfect (and I don't say that very often). It has a deep rich flavor with dark fruits (raspberry, plums) oak and great complexity. The finish of the wine is extremely long. It is a very well made wine and not overly heavy. This wine will be perfect with beef or lamb and is super value for money at a retail price of zł.60. This is the Catherine Deneuve/Sofia Loren/Sean Connery of wines - big, strong, and sophisticated.
A last recommendation is a dessert wine perfectly suited to the holidays, but largely unknown. Vin Santo, from Frescobaldi is a traditional Italian after dinner wine. It is also not overly heavy or too sweet. It has a rich, round honey-like taste, it is nutty and complex, with a bit of lemon rind flavor thrown in. A small glass (served chilled) with biscotti or any cake is a great pairing and makes a truly delightful way to finish a holiday meal. It is also very good value for money at a retail price of about zł.55.
These wines should be available at the large hypermarkets and also at some of the growing number of specialist wines stores around town, including Fine Wine and Spirits, which now has three locations.
We will be tasting and reporting on "New World" wines in the New Year. There are now many of these on the market, they are invariably interesting wines and, in many cases, offer extraordinary value for money.
By Jim Joyce
I will try to make the descriptions of the wines relatively simple. A lot of the jargon and obscure terminology only turns people off wine rather than making them more interested in it. There are of course some terms that are useful, like the "nose" (the smell/bouquet) of a wine, the "palate" or taste of the wine in the mouth and the "finish" of the wine - how long the flavor of the wine lingers in your mouth after a taste. While at a wine tasting many years ago, someone once described the bouquet of a wine as being "like the damp underwear of a lumberjack." Well, first of all, I gladly don't know what a lumberjack's underwear smells like - especially not sweaty underwear, and secondly, this is just being pompous and obscure for no useful reason. Amazingly, I believe the comment was intended to be positive.
From time to time the wines will be rated from 1 to 10, with 10 being the score for an excellent wine. And more importantly, I will always try to estimate the value-for-money of a wine. Anyone can spend zł.200 and buy a good wine, but for me, the mission is always to find good wines (or great wines) at modest prices.
Because wines are very different, and tasting them should be fun, I also like to describe or associate a wine with a celebrity (actor, musician). This is a French tradition and may be helpful in understanding a wine; it is also hopefully a more entertaining way to describe a wine than having a long discussion about the type of oak used in the barrels. I will try not to be biased - and will often give both male and female associations.
For this Christmas article, a number of wines fitting to the season were tasted. Below I review the best of this lot and make my Christmas-time recommendations.
It is great to start an evening party with a sparkling wine. There is, of course, no substitute for "real" champagne...and "real" champagne only comes from the Champagne region of France. However, many producers make wines using exactly the same techniques and often the same grapes as in Champagne. One excellent alternative to pricey Champagne is Corodniu Brut, Cuvee Raventos. This is the top of the line for Corodniu and is a lovely, fresh wine which is very dry (no sweetness). This wine is made from Chardonnay grapes and has a good, richer/deeper flavor. If you are looking for a modestly priced substitute for Champagne - for day to day use or parties - this is the perfect wine, and it is a huge cut above all of the low end sparkling wines. At a retail price of about zł.70, this is a good value wine, costing about one-half the price of low-end Champagne.
A very good white wine for the holidays goes by the name of "Gentil", and is from one of the top producers in Alsace, the Hugel family. This is a mixture of traditional Alsace grapes: Pinot blanc, gewertztraminier and reisling. The wine is very fruity, spicy, flavorful and relatively light. It smells and tastes somewhat like melon and citrus fruit and will go extremely well with a Christmas turkey. With a retail price of around zł.50, the value is also quite good. This is the Cameron Diaz/Tom Hanks of wines. Fun, fresh and not too complicated.
With a duck or goose, there are three excellent red wine choices from the wines we tasted. One is the Louis Latour, Pinot Noir 2001. Latour is a top burgundy producer and this wine is very light for a red, so it won't knock you out (especially important, considering that there is so much heavy food over the holidays). The bouquet is lovely and smells a lot like cooked strawberry jam, alcohol and wood. The flavor of the wine has strong hints of both cherry and strawberry. This is a light, very elegant wine - the Audrey Hepburn of wines and you rarely get in Audrey's neighborhood for the modest price of zł.55.
Another good choice of red with goose, duck or lamb is a Spanish wine. We tasted two wines that made the final list. My favorite is the Rene Barbier 1998 Reserve. This wine is from the Penedes region and made with Tempranillo 85 percent (the classic grape of Rioja) and 15 percent cabernet sauvignon to add a bit of strength. The wine is medium bodied with a complex aroma. It has good fruit (grape flavor) and a long, rich finish. A similar wine is the Finca Antigua, Crianza, 2000. This is from an up and coming region of La Mancha, and the wine is made with 100 percent Tempranillo grapes. The nose is closed, but the taste of the wine is excellent, with flavors of bitter cherry and vanilla. Both wines are good value at about zł.52 and zł.56 respectively. Think of Penelope Cruz and George Clooney - not overly "big" or serious, but very, very nice.
The blockbuster of the tasting was undoubtedly Mouton Cadet Reserve 2000, from Medoc in the Bordeaux region. This wine is made by Baron Philippe de Rothschild, and is a new reserve blend. It is nearly perfect (and I don't say that very often). It has a deep rich flavor with dark fruits (raspberry, plums) oak and great complexity. The finish of the wine is extremely long. It is a very well made wine and not overly heavy. This wine will be perfect with beef or lamb and is super value for money at a retail price of zł.60. This is the Catherine Deneuve/Sofia Loren/Sean Connery of wines - big, strong, and sophisticated.
A last recommendation is a dessert wine perfectly suited to the holidays, but largely unknown. Vin Santo, from Frescobaldi is a traditional Italian after dinner wine. It is also not overly heavy or too sweet. It has a rich, round honey-like taste, it is nutty and complex, with a bit of lemon rind flavor thrown in. A small glass (served chilled) with biscotti or any cake is a great pairing and makes a truly delightful way to finish a holiday meal. It is also very good value for money at a retail price of about zł.55.
These wines should be available at the large hypermarkets and also at some of the growing number of specialist wines stores around town, including Fine Wine and Spirits, which now has three locations.
We will be tasting and reporting on "New World" wines in the New Year. There are now many of these on the market, they are invariably interesting wines and, in many cases, offer extraordinary value for money.
By Jim Joyce
