{"id":108,"date":"2016-12-20T09:58:17","date_gmt":"2016-12-20T09:58:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/?page_id=108"},"modified":"2017-12-05T16:59:30","modified_gmt":"2017-12-05T16:59:30","slug":"christmas-social-wines-14-december-2016","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/?page_id=108","title":{"rendered":"Tasting Notes: Christmas Social wines, 14 December 2016"},"content":{"rendered":"

Notes made by John Harris after the event. Many thanks to everyone who brought these wines and introduced them so ably!<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Prima Perla Sparkling Chardonnay NV<\/strong> \u2013 traditional bottle-fermented French non-champagne from Jean-Claude Mas (Majestic \u00a39.99) \u2013 pleasant quaffing fizz but no more!<\/span><\/p>\n

Jenkyn Place Brut Cuv\u00e9e 2010<\/strong> – 60% Chardonnay, 32% Pinot Noir, 8% Pinot Meunier. <\/span>A very elegant favourite on the night, showing how good English fizz can be – now in its 5th year after vintage, the 2010 Jenkyn Place Cuvee has reached a delicious level of maturity. The nose is characterised by pure, bright citrus with yeast-complexed fruit, followed by a silky palate of tropical fruits, quince and baked bread. Freshness and precision of flavour is enhanced by beautiful balancing acidity, giving this wine a harmonious mouthfeel with great persistence.\u00a0Price \u00a328.50<\/span><\/p>\n

Leon Beyer Sylvaner 2014<\/strong> (Alsace) \u2013 pleasant very light easy-drinking white, some nice Alsace character for this normally-blended grape \u2013 Wine Society say \u201cDry, food-friendly Alsace white with a hint of peppery spice, a twist of honey and delicious appley flavour. Satisfying and refreshing.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Louis Jadot Pernand – Vergelesses 2011<\/span><\/strong> \u2013 a very classy white Burgundy, lovely subtle oak ageing and what a treat for those wedding guests we heard about! Not an inexpensive wine though, nothing is in Beaune.<\/span><\/p>\n

13\/2015 Parcel Series Pinot Noir<\/strong> 2015 (Majestic \u00a39.99) \u2013 made from declassified Pinot Noir grapes from the Otago region of New Zealand. A delightful very pure expression of Pinot Noir, ripe strawberries and red cherries on the nose and following though on the palate. Not a complex wine but who cares \u2013 eminently drinkable while they still have some, excellent value for money.<\/span><\/p>\n

Passagem Douro 2009<\/strong> (Bandeiras Family in the Douro Superiore, Portugal) \u2013 blend of Touriga Nacionale and Touriga Franca (normally used to make port) \u2013 very luscious and slightly spicy red, maybe a little on the young side, shows what Portugal can do with dry reds. A favourite on the night.<\/span><\/p>\n

Yalumba \u201cThe Scribbler\u201d 2012<\/strong> (Barossa Valley, Australia) \u2013 classic Aussie Cabernet Sauvignon\/Shiraz blend which they do so well. Full, spicy and aromatic but not \u201cin your face\u201d with the fruit as some of these can be \u2013 my favourite red of the night.<\/span><\/p>\n

Beronia Reserva Rioja 2012<\/strong> (widely available) \u2013 a tempranillo\/graciano\/mazuela blend and a light modern style of Rioja with fruit as well as the traditional subtle oak. A very enjoyable and inexpensive Rioja with real character.<\/span><\/p>\n

Vergelegen Merlot 2006<\/strong> , Stellenbosch, South Africa.\u00a0 One of the best-known SA wineries and owned by Simon Downing\u2019s company, hence the availability of an older vintage. To my palate, it had the characteristic Stellenbosch \u201csmokiness\u201d and a very full plummy character with soft tannins. \u2013be interesting to compare with a younger vintage.<\/span><\/p>\n

Stanton & Killeen Rutherglen Muscat NV<\/strong> \u2013 a unique style of Aussie sticky, from an area which has the climate to specialise in these sweet slightly-fortified nectars. Figs, sultanas, quinces, even Christmas Pud on the palate and what a complex nose; worth every penny of \u00a320.<\/span><\/p>\n

Chocolate Ruby NV<\/strong> (\u00a37.99, Marks & Spencer) \u2013 well, definitely an unusual wine \u2013 maybe too sweet to drink much of it, but over a nice ice-cream, better! This is what the press said\u2026\u2026 \u201cUnlike many reds that boast notes of chocolate, this 15 per cent ABV tipple is actually infused with real chocolate. Perhaps it’s a follow-up to their chocolate-flavoured port that flew off the shelves at \u00a36.99 a bottle in 2008. Or maybe it’s inspired by Blumenthal’s own choc-wine that was also released in 2008 at \u00a348 a bottle. Either way, with Britons spending \u00a33.6billion on chocolate last year\u00a0 –\u00a0 and \u00a338.4 billion on alcoholic drinks\u00a0 –\u00a0 M&S must think they’ve stumbled on a recipe for success\u201d. <\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

Dow\u2019s Finest Reserve Port NV<\/strong> \u2013 a traditional wine to finish, Symington\u2019s Dow Reserves are always good and very easy to drink \u2013 a great way to say \u201cHappy Christmas\u201d to everyone and special thanks to Jill and Hugh for hosting such a super evening.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Notes made by John Harris after the event. Many thanks to everyone who brought these wines and introduced them so ably! \u00a0 Prima Perla Sparkling Chardonnay NV \u2013 traditional bottle-fermented French non-champagne from Jean-Claude Mas (Majestic \u00a39.99) \u2013 pleasant quaffing fizz but no more! Jenkyn Place Brut Cuv\u00e9e 2010 – 60% Chardonnay, 32% Pinot Noir, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-108","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/108","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=108"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/108\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":198,"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/108\/revisions\/198"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/brockenhurstwineclub.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=108"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}