Autumn and Winter Wines

Hi Everybody,

As the days grow shorter and the air grows cooler, we find ourselves leaving behind the pale roses and fresh whites which saw us through the 35 degree days of summer and reaching for the reds in the wine rack. While many are sad to see the warm days go for another year, we can take heart as we enter autumn and eventually winter because these are the seasons when wine truly shines.

We can of course look forward to the old favourites, aged Bordeaux and mature Burgundy to see us through the festive season. The avante garde Northern Rhone wines of Les Vins de Vienne are elegant, rich and composed, and above all food friendly – and that is what one really needs from their winter wines as we sit down to dinner parties and rich meals. These wines lift the spirt during the colder months and go wonderfully alongside seasonal dishes; roasts of lamb and game, the winter stews and roast vegetables that stick to your bones and warm from the inside out.

Beyond the French classics, there are plenty of other regions producing perfect late autumn and winter friendly wines. Increasingly stylish is the Catalan wine region, Priorat. The reds of this tiny hill-top region are spicy yet elegant and among the few reds to show terroir as beautifully as the whites of Pouilly Fume and Chablis. The unique, rich flavours of the best Priorats, such as the wines of Terroir al Limit, ineffably convey the warmth of the Catalan sun; a welcome thing in the colder months.

But it is not all about the rich spicy reds. Moving on from the Sancerre and Marlborough Sauvignon’s of the warmer months, hedonistic white Burgundies can serve as an excellent way to start a meal or to go alongside the classic Christmas or Thanksgiving (if you’re of the American persuasion like myself!) turkey roasts. One wine which deserves to come out this time of year is dry white Bordeaux. It ages beautifully and the best wines from Graves and Pessac-Leognan stand up remarkably well to seasonal foods.

Jean-Marc Boillot is one of the best producers for both value and seasonal style. His whites from the Cote de Beaune, from his basic Bourgogne Blanc up through the ranks of Montagny 1er Cru, and the Puligny-Montrachets are rich and well-layered. Despite their relatively low prices, they are remarkably serious wines and among my personal favourites.

Another favourite around this time of year is a nice rich, spicy Oloroso sherry. Kept in the fridge for when it’s needed, a nice glass of this dry amber delight at the end of a meal or even in front of the fire can warm the soul like few others. Sherry is one of those wines which deserves far greater attention than it currently receives. Despite a devoted and loyal following in London and the founding of many a sherry bar in the more fashionable areas of town, there is an enduring perception that it is that dark sticky matter best served either over ice-cream or not at all.

The colder months are also a time when seasonal desserts are at their prime. Pies and puddings, warm spiced apple tarts and the like, more and more start to grace the table. This is a fine opportunity to indulge in sweet wines; a pleasure often denied to oneself as too opulent, too hedonistic. We wrote recently extolling the virtues of these wines so I will not delve too deep into the matter, but the simple truth is that some of the world’ finest wines are of the sweet, golden variety and at this time of year they are immensely satisfying. Both Sauternes and Tokaji are a true celebration of the festive spirit, with their pure golden hues, their richness and their elegance. Even if sweet wines are not your usual cup of tea, I implore you, give them a chance and you will not regret it.

After all those rich wines, with your palate overloaded by glorious opulence, it may strike you that something a bit more cleansing would be welcome. This is where the New Year’s favourite comes in particularly handy. Don’t fret about the traditions; that perhaps it is known as an aperitif or only for celebrations. Sometimes a nice chilled Champagne (I am a big fan of Voirin-Jumel) at the end of it all is the perfect way to finish off an evening.  So enjoy the opportunity for variety and remember that the season is long, and there is much of celebrating to be done…

Much Love,

G

London Wine Scene (No.1)

Be sure to try the sherry straight from the barrel at Gordon's I'm partial to the Oloroso this time of year...

Hi All,

Since the days of Samuel Pepys enjoying bottles of Haut-Brion at the Royal Oak Tavern, and before, wine has been a part of London’s venerable drinking culture. However modern London became a beer city through and through and for a long time wine was relegated to the world of luxury and genteel social circles.

London is an increasingly interesting place for both food and wine; the latter being a more recent development which was for a time hampered by the city’s love affair with craft beer. Now far from hurting the wine scene, craft beer has proven to be a valuable role model for the capital’s oenocentric establishments. Just as the last decade saw a

sustained trend toward craft beer bars there is a revamped interest in wine making inroads into London’s well-established drinking culture.

Bars dedicated to grape over grain are increasingly common and popular among the city’s drinkers and as a result the variety and quality on offer are on the rise. For too long the legendary Gordon’s Wine Bar on Villiers Street stood alone, and while no new venture is yet to take this iconic cellar’s place at the top, there are some very exciting, niche wine bars taking the stage.

Sager+Wilde's industrial-rustic bar.

The city’s ‘E’ postcodes have long been a heartland for the latest and greatest in London’s various trends. It is here that the wine scene in our fair city is moving forward the quickest. Sager+Wilde is an excellent place to enjoy a well-curated wine list which combines value with exceptional quality. The wine list is among the city’s best and unlike many places claiming as much, it’s not a leather bound book the length of a Tolstoy novel.

Spread across 12 concise pages, this list has plenty to cater to the classicist's needs as well as plenty for the eclecticist’s imaginations. The bubbly list is wall-to-wall with top growers including Jacques Selosse and Cedric Bouchard and includes a funky vintage 1992 number from Copeland Vineyards (Russian River Valley). The rest of the list is packed with gems, from little known Loire reds and Jura whites to blue-blooded burgundies such as Ramonet, Leroy and Hudelot-Noellat. The Rhone selection is immense and includes Cornas from Clape, top Cote-Rotie from Jamet as well as Pignan for very good prices. The ambience is perfect as well, with it's contradictory industrial-rustic style, making for a perfect venue to enjoy a rural product like wine in the heart of East London.

Moving back into the centre of the city, Terroirs on William IV Street, is a traditional wine bar that opened in 2008 and got everything perfect. The food is the right size and on-message with the majority of the wine list, focusing on Old World specialties from Italy, Spain and France. Though the list is a bit more expensive than Sager+Wilde, the prices are still reasonable and considering the central West End location, they’re pretty good indeed.

Terroirs is definitely worth visiting if you want to try out some more adventurous bottles as well, with one of the largest selections of ‘orange’ wines (essentially white wines made with skin contact like reds) in London. In addition, the wine list is actually a pleasure to read, with good introductions to each section, it’s refreshingly un-stuffy and engaging.

I will keep exploring the wine bars of the capital and be sure to report back regularly on my findings. Until then,

Much Love,

G