SIMON HOGGART
Iwas chatting to a colleague the other day about wine writers, and how their tastes can differ quite considerably from that of the drinking public.
I don't think that is because, like some critics, they are only writing for each other. (Rock critics are an extreme example; they are terrified that if they actually liked something that the people who buy records enjoy, they would have their CD players solemnly broken over their knees at ceremonies in converted Brixton cinemas.)
No, wine writers taste so many bottles, sometimes hundreds in a single day, that their tongues can be endlessly in search of nuance, subtle variations, tiny hints of some elusive flavour or texture. And I don't blame them. By the time you've tried two dozen New Zealand Sauvignons, ten Chilean Merlots. and a score of red Bordeaux, mostly tasting of bracken, you're desperate for something even a tiny hit different. But that can leave you adrift of even a sophisticated wine lover's tastebuds. We used to have huge sampling sessions at the Observer. to which all the staff were invited. No matter how unanimous we were about a wine, our wine critic would choose something else — usually something we thought tasted of pebbles.
Sc) I am not remotely ashamed this month of having picked half a dozen wines all of which are bursting, positively sodden, with flavour. They are packed with juice and perfumes and aromas, they're quite delicious, very accessible, and they're priced very reasonably too. They've been provided by Simon Wrightson, a merchant in Yorkshire who has a remarkable knack of sourcing excellent wines from all round the world.
Take the Chardonnay 2002(1) from the Santa Ana winery in Mendoza, Argentina. My tasting notes simply read: 'brilliant, dazzling', which isn't much help, but it does convey what I meant quite effectively. It is zingy and grapy and lovely. Ifs also not too woody; only half the production is stored in American oak casks, so you get the freshness and mellowness of a first-rate Chardonnay in one bottle. A snip at a mere £5.50.
The fabulous Muscadet Clos de Beauregard 2001(2) made by the three freres Leroux was a very big hit last year, and I had to offer it again. So much Muscadet tastes thin and sour, yet this is rich and ripe and plump with a lovely heady flavour of peaches and melons. Gorgeous, and only £5.25.
And for those who like a French Chardonnay, the Domaine Daniel Junot has come up with this white Burgundy 2002(3). It is probably more influenced by the New World than most French wines, being much more forward and lively than you expect at this price (£6,95). And where else would you find a genuine white Burgundy for less than
£7? All right, it's not Le Montrachet, but then it doesn't say 'price on application' in the catalogue, the equivalent of a discreet cough that means 'If you have to ask, you can't afford it.'
Back to Santa Ana for their 2001 Malbec(4), a deep, delicious, dark and smoky wine, with hints of damson and tobacco. Malbec used to be widely grown in France, but it's now largely limited to the Cahors region, where I find it rather tannic and stony. In Argentina,
where it has made its new home, it makes a fabulously rich and velvety wine. This has quite enough flavour to stand up to robust, really meaty meats — roasts and casseroles. Terrific value for £6.50.
As is the Broken Stone Shiraz 2001(5), a quite exceptional South African wine. So many Shirazes are a bit samey — flavoursome, to be sure, but in the end a little dull. Not this. To quote the tasting notes (admittedly the vineyard's own): 'smoke, coffee, leather, toast and vanilla on the nose . . . hints of cherry and rich dried plums on the palate'. Sounds like Christmas in a bottle. This is terrific, and it's only £6.85.
The Vacqueyras Domaine La Bastide St Vincent 2001(6) is from one of the largest and best of the Cotes-du-Rhone Villages, and for 13 years now it's had its own appellation. It's 70 per cent Grenache, and it is big, powerful and concentrated. Cotes-duRhone is fantastically fashionable now, and this is a superb example, at only £8.
Delivery is free, and there is a 5 per cent discount if you order five cases or more.
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