Upton Wine Appreciation Club – December 2012 – Sparkling and Dessert Wines
Our annual favourites Fiona and Will were persuaded to do another talk on sparkling and dessert wines.
Fiona began with a theme of comparing Supermarket sparkling wines and described the process of tank and traditional method wine production with the aid of hand-outs for making sparkling wines and
First up was the Underraga Brut (12%) from Chile (£5.99 reduced from £9.99). A Club favourite and a blend of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. This wine went down well again with the members.
Sainsbury’s “Taste the Difference” Cava 2009 (11.5%) £10.49 was next up. Made by the “Methode Traditional” (the same process as Champagne). Made from Chardonnay, Macabeu, Parellada and Xarel-Lo grapes. You could really “Taste the Difference”! Citrusy and biscuity and I got cloves on the nose. I don’t think this one will be a Club favourite by some of the comments in the room.
Tesco’s Finest Premier Cru NV (12.5%) £14.99 reduced from £19.99. A blend of the classic and well known Champagne grapes Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. Fresh, dry and with a good mousse this wine went down well with the members.
Sainsbury’s Blanc De Noirs NV (12%) £18.00. Made from only the black “Champagne grapes” – Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier. A nice bright wine with a little yeast detected by my taste buds.
Bollinger Special Cuvee (12%) £32.00 Majestic Wines. Fiona explained the different Cru’s of Champagne and the hierarchy of the vineyards that grow the grapes for the production of Champagne. Fiona also explained that Bollinger along with other Champagne producers strive to produce the same wine year on year despite different yearly weather conditions and keep wine back year on year to blend for new vintages. Overall a nice wine.
With Fiona’s voice managing to get though the sparkling wines Will got up to show the sweet and stickies beginning with Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese, 2007, JJ Prüm (7%) £27.00 (The Wine Society). A good wine with a low ABV due to the fermentation being halted early to keep the sweetness of the wine. Went well with the mince pies made by Chris!
The sparkling Moscato D’Asti by Elio Perrone, 2011 (5%) £6.50 (The Wine Society) made by the “Asti Method” in the Piedmont region of Italy. Sweet chilled and fizzy an interesting wine.
Next was The Society’s Exhibition Sauternes, 2009 (14%) £ 18.00 The Wine Society. Made by the father and son team Pierre and Denis Dubourdieu in Barsac from 75% semillon, 20% sauvignon, 5% muscadelle this was the favourite of the evening. Will explained the intricate and time consuming process of selecting the rotting grapes bunches and even individual berries which goes in to making this wine and helps to explain why these style of wine cost as much as they do.
Finally Will finished the evening with Henriques & Henriques Malvasia, 10 years old Madeira (20%) £17.00 (The Wine Society). You could feel your teeth melt with this one! Nice sweet and sticky with a slightly dry touch which will go well with Christmas cake, mince pie and cheeses.
A big thank you to Fiona and Will for their research on the wines and preparation of the food to go with the wines and thanks to Emily for her help with the smoked salmon Blinis and Chris for her mince pies!
Hope to see you next month for an evening with Simon in the Piedmont Region of Italy!
Kevin Jacklin