Top Co-ops Come Up With Little Beauties

Top Co-ops Come Up With Little Beauties

Once upon a time, the word cooperative was frowned on by wine importers. But, in recent decades, many coops have favoured quality over quantity. Importers, such as Kilkenny's Le Caveau, have long been among those who go off the beaten track in search out the good stuff. Below, we have two very good ones indeed.

Labastide “Terrane” Terres du Tarn (IGP) 2017, 12%,

€13.45 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny 

Located in the heart of the historic Gaillac vineyards, the Cave de Labastide was founded in 1949. Today it is the oldest cellar of the Gaillac appellation. It is made up of about a hundred cooperative winegrowers with an area of around 1,000 hectares of vines.

Colour is mid to dark ruby. Lovely red fruit on nose and on the palate. It is hard to fault this one. Much smoother than expected, slight spice, well made everyday easy-drinking wine. I’d say many a lunch in the area has been polished off with a carafe of this one, obviously an excellent house wine (yet another one!) on the Le Caveau list. Highly Recommended.

You may be wondering about the little known grape varieties that have been used here: it is a blend of indigenous varieties Braucoul (Fer Servadou) and Duras. The former contributes perfumed blackcurrant fruit while the Duras is peppery and structured.

So, enjoy it with your lunch or dinner or just a simple honest baguette with some fresh cheese on the side. Should go well too with charcuterie. Also as an aperitif though perhaps chill it a little if the summer is good!

Madregale Terre di Chetti Bianco (IGP) 2018, 12% abv, €11.95 at NeighbourFood Cork

Also at 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny 

Spritzer with Chambord

This white wine is obtained from a blend of Chardonnay (the dominant partner according to the label) and Trebbiano, the grapes cultivated within the municipality of Tollo in Chetti (a province of the Italian region of Abruzzo). I have long been a fan of this Le Caveau “house wine” and of its companion red. Watch out for it as restaurants reopen, along at the stockists above. Highly Recommended. And well-priced too!

Colour is a clear light gold. Moderately intense aromas with a citrus touch. Fresh and lively on the palate, with an unexpected smoothness. Good acidity too and that helps it match with the suggested light seafood or pasta dishes like spaghetti with clams. But it may also be appreciated as an aperitif.

It was hardly out of the NeighbourFood delivery box when I was pressing it into use as part of a spritzer where its minor companions in the glass were Chambord (the black raspberry liquor from the Loire Valley), ice (lots of it) and soda water.  Quite a pleasant opener to the evening and might well have been more appreciated had I presented it a few days earlier when the temperatures were about 50% higher than they are this breezy evening (June 6th, 2020).

Madregale is produced, using organic principles, by the award-winning Cantina Tollo, one of the biggest and best co-operative wineries in the Abruzzo region, covering 3,200 ha owned by 800 farmers.

Three Highly Recommended European Whites

Three Highly Recommended European Whites

Catarratto. Vintage 2019

Baglio Bianco Catarratto Terre Siciliane (IGP) 2018, 11%, €19.55 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

A few days of skin maceration gives this its amber colour. Colour is not the only result from the three or four days of skin contact, as you’ll note. The nose is rich too, apple and cinnamon in the mix. The palate also is rich and textured. It’s full of flavour and a bit spicy too and it’s dry all the way to the long finish. Highly Recommended.

Bianco is certainly a bit of a misnomer here as this is most definitely an orange wine, a cloudy deep amber in colour, unfined and unfiltered. And Le Caveau say it is a “fantastic introduction” to orange, “both from a flavour and price point of view”.

Orange wines also have a higher level of tannins, more like red wines, and indeed can match foods where previously red would have been the only choice. Some orange wines can be tough going if you’re not used to them but this one is quite easy-drinking. 

Pairings suggested by the importers are free range pork with apple sauce; a herby roast chicken; and cheeses such as Durrus. Catarratto, by the way, is Sicily’s, and Italy’s, most popular white wine grape. Baglio also produce a red from the Nero D’Avola grape. Their organic Rosso is fresh and fruity and also a delicious easy drinker.

Millet Sauvignon Blanc Côtes de Gascogne (IGP) 2019, 11.5%, €12.95, Wines Direct

Colour is a very pale straw.  The fresh vibrancy of the aromas (floral notes, pear) make an immediate impression, a good one, and that follows through onto the lively palate where citrus fruits and an invigorating acidity go all the way through to the decent finish. 

Quite a lovely wine from Armagnac country where much of the grape harvest goes to the distilleries to make the local brandy (don’t ever ever call for a Cognac around here!). Millet themselves say they are devoted to “the production of Armagnac”. A very enjoyable wine and Highly Recommended. Must try and remember this for Sauvignon Blanc Day next year.

Millet recommend serving at 9 ° C, alone as an aperitif, or with a meal. “It harmoniously accompanies starters, goat cheese, Landes asparagus, fish and shellfish.” Importers Wines Direct point in the direction of Rich Fish, Light Fish and Shellfish, Hard Cheese, Fresh Greens

Esteban Martin “Viña Canal” blanco Cariñena (DOP) 2018, 12.5%, €* Wines Direct

This blend of Chardonnay and Macabeo has a light straw colour. Pleasant, if delicate, aromas with both floral and fruity notes. Lively and fruity (tropical hints), good acidity as well and a decent finish. Excellent aperitif and should go well with fish and shellfish. Versatile and Highly Recommended.

Cariñena is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) for wines produced in the area of the same name which is in the province of Zaragoza (Aragón, Spain). It was awarded DO status in 1932. 

€* Bought in mixed case.

Two French Pinot Noirs to Enjoy!

Two French Pinot Noirs to Enjoy!

Very Highly Recommended

Pinot Noir, the great red grape of Burgundy, has put down roots in many parts of the world. The World Atlas of Wine says “its perfect place on earth is Burgundy’s Côte D’Or”. Good examples too from New Zealand and Oregon and, closer to home in Germany (3rd largest grower of the grape in the world) and Alsace (now helped a bit by global warming). Our first example here is, surprisingly enough, from the Languedoc but from a high cool vineyard there.

While you mostly see Pinot Noir on its own in the bottle, it is a key part of Champagne where it blends so well with Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. And even here, it goes solo with Blancs de Noir, such as Krug's Clos d'Ambonnay and Bollinger's Vieilles Vignes Francaises.

No bubbles below through, just a couple of excellent still wines, much less expensive than the champagnes mentioned above. Enjoy!

La Boussole Pinot Noir Pays D’Oc (IGP) 2018, 12.5%, €14.45 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

La Boussole (compass)

Mid ruby is the colour of this Pinot from the south of France. Fresh aromas (wild strawberries). Light and lively, with a superb backbone of pure red fruit flavours, smooth and gentle, just the merest grip from the sleek tannins on the way to a fine finish. Highly Recommended and excellent value also.

Matches suggested by importers Le Caveau are mushroom risotto, lamb shank or even scallops in a mushroom and cream sauce. 

They also say the grapes for La Boussole Pinot Noir are grown on chalky marl soils in the Aude region near Limoux and are manually harvested. These cool vineyards in the Languedoc hills mean that you don’t get the highly ripened grapes and the subsequent high abv and big flavours you might expect. Enjoy. Not quite Burgundy but not a bad sub either, especially when you consider the price.

Like many of the light reds, it may be served slightly chilled, especially during the summer.

J-C Regnaudot Pinot Noir Bourgogne (AOC) '17 13%, 

€23.00, 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

Colour is a bright mid ruby. Pleasing red fruit aromas don’t really prepare you for the vibrant presence in the mouth, intense flavours of black cherries and red berries, juicy acidity also, deep, silky and elegant, well-balanced and a terrific example of why Didier Regnaudot was elected Hachette Guide Winemaker of the Year for 2018. This classic, made from old vines in the traditional way and using organic principles, is Very Highly Recommended.

Le Caveau: Ideal with white meats, chicken and charcuterie. I think it has enough character for steak and light game dishes.

Gamay on the double. But not from its usual home!

Gamay on the double. 

But neither from its usual home!

Henry Marionnet Touraine (AOC) 2015,   12%, €16.65

 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

This Loire red is produced from hand-picked Gamay grapes and the recommendation is to serve it between 8-9 degrees in summer, a few degrees higher in winter.

Mid ruby colour. Raspberry and strawberry figure in the reasonably intense aromas. Juicy and fruity, a touch of spice, excellent acidity and a decent enough finish. The producers say it is imperative to drink it fresh and young, that is to say between 1 and 18 months. I’m afraid I’m a bit late as regards the recommended age, but this 2015 still tasted lively and fresh. Still, Highly Recommended. Might even be Very Highly if I can get a more recent vintage!

The large Touraine area is not usually associated with the Gamay grape but Henry Marionnet, passionate about traditional and natural methods, is generally considered to be the ace producer of the varietal in the Loire.

Some unusual notes (maybe something’s lost in translation) on the website.

1 The harvest is entirely picked by hand with great care and that almost exclusively by women.

2 It is the wine of a whole meal….You will feel good tasting it because the dishes served will appear more light.

3 because of its lightness, it is able “to be drunk with large swipes”.

.

Radford Dale “Thirst” Gamay WO Stellenbosch South Africa 2018, 10.0%, €20.95

64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

This one kind of grows on you. Unless you shed it first.

A strikingly light red colour and a funky aroma are the initial greetings from this Gamay, officially classified as a light red. It is indeed light on the palate, expressive red fruits and no shortage of tannin before a lengthy finish with a lingering bitter bite (a little reminiscent of Campari). As well as this Gamay, they also produce a Cinsault and a Clairette Blanche. 

In the Thirst series, the South African vineyard’s aim is to make refreshing, lower alcohol, lower sulphur, wines, with minimal intervention. “We have not stripped them of any natural components and they are neither fined nor filtered and can show an amazing haze." 

"Thirst wines are like a live rock concert rather than a manufactured, boyband studio album. Our aim is to express their environment, their varieties  and vintage, in the most natural way. Our simple logic is the less you manipulate a wine, the better it is - and we therefore capture its integrity, energy and individuality.”

If you like funky rock, try this. If you fancy Boyzone, you're outta time. The initial aromas may not be that inviting, but this light fruity wine gets friendlier as you get to know it.

Chateau Turcaud Keeps Coming Up Trumps in Bordeaux. Check out this convincing double, one red, one white

Château Turcaud Keeps Coming Up Trumps in Bordeaux

Check out this convincing double, one red, one white

Château Turcaud Entre-Deux-Mers sec 2018, 13.5%, €15.55 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

This Grand Vin de Bordeaux is a blend of Sauvignon Blanc (65%) and Semillon (35). Best served well-chilled. You’ll also notice a Terra Vitis stamp on the label, meaning that the vineyard is run on “sustainable viticulture” principles.

You'll note a good depth of yellow in the colour with aromas of pineapples and citrus, some blossoms too. On the palate, it is more intense, more assertive than the nose alone, with a lovely wave of mainly citrus fruit flavours, an excellent mouthfeel, well balanced and with a good finish. Very Highly Recommended.

This delightful wine is at its best as an aperitif or with marinated salmon, foie gras, fish terrine, scampi, scallops, lobster, fish in a sauce, white meat, and most cheeses. It can benefit from decanting a half hour to a full hour before the meal, and is ideal served chilled but not too cold. Generally at its peak after 2 to 5 years.

Maurice Robert bought Château Turcaud in 1973. Nowadays it is run by Stéphane and Isabelle Le May (Maurice Robert’s daughter). I climbed to the top of the famous local Abbey Le Sauve Majeure and, from the 159th and final step, had a great view over the surrounding countryside. I didn’t know then the view included the immaculate vineyards of Caveau Turcaud.

View from the 159th step!

Château Turcaud Merlot Cabernet Bordeaux (AOC) 2015, 13.5%, €15.80 64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

“.. an unhappy vintner will make a closed wine, a wine difficult on the palate; and a vintner in love will make an open wine, one that changes as it rolls around your mouth and then gets better as it slides down your throat.” 

Looks like the winemaker at Turcaud, under the shadow of the splendid ruins of Abbaye de La Sauve-Majeure, must have been in love during this vintage. Must check with Stéphane next time he’s in Ireland!

This lovely Bordeaux blend has a beautiful garnet robe. The nose is fresh, blackberry and red fruit, smoky notes and some spice too. Fresh and fruity too on the palate, all in harmony though, rounded tannins. And that harmony continues in the long finish. Quite a finalé for an entry level wine. An excellent wine at an excellent price and Very Highly Recommended.

Chateau Turcaud recommend pairing it with full-flavoured meats such as rib of beef, game, duck breast, and strong cheeses. and say it is best decanted one hour before the meal. This blend of Merlot (mostly) and Cabernet may be enjoyed even when quite young thanks to its intrinsic fruitiness, and can benefit from being served slightly chilled.

* The opening quote is from Death in the Vines by M. L. Longworth.

Domaine Bertrand Ambroise. The Lovely Lettre d’Eloïse Duo

Maison Bertrand Ambroise

The Lovely Lettre d’Eloïse Duo

Organic farming is a way of life for the Ambroise family since 2013. Once upon a time, Bertrand was front and rear at his Premeaux-Prissey vineyard. He was the boss. Now his children, Francois and Ludivine, have taken on the business and Bertrand says he, no longer the boss, now works for them. He is glad to have them share the load, allowing him the freedom to concentrate on making good wines, such as this pair, made and named for his granddaughter.

Daughter Ludivine has said the move to organic viticulture is one of “true belief” as she lost her grand-father due to illness caused by chemicals used in the fields.Take a taste of their Nuits St Georges ‘Les Haut Pruliers’ to see where they are heading. This is a faultless wine with an astounding finalé and is also available from le Caveau.

Bertrand Ambroise Lettre d’Eloïse “Coteaux Bourguignons” (AOC) 2017, 13%, €18.45 
64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

This Pinot Noir is fermented in mixed-age 400 litre oak barrels, they don't want oak influence here, so no new barrels are used.

Mid to light ruby. Cherry and strawberries plus herbal and savoury notes too in the inviting aromas. Quite a bit of character on the palate, juicy, fresh and fruity and more body than you’d expect from a Pinot Noir. Tannins not quite rounded - you’ll feel them on your lips. Very engaging all the way to an excellent finish. 

Much has been squeezed from the parcels of poor soil and, lovingly guarded every step of the way, much remains in the bottle. A gorgeous well-priced wine, one of the domaine’s many Pinot Noirs. Very Highly Recommended. And well priced also.

Saw a few matching suggestions and the one that made most sense was Roasted duck breast with plum sauce. One from BBC Food here.

Bertrand

Bertrand Ambroise Lettre d’Eloïse Chardonnay “Coteaux Bourguignons” (AOC) 2017, 13%, €18.25
64 Wine Dublin, Bradley’s of Cork, Greenman Dublin, Le Caveau Kilkenny

The fruit for this excellent Chardonnay, one of nine produced by Domaine Ambroise, comes from young vines. It is fermented for ten months or so in barrels of different ages (one, two and three years old oak), not fined and only lightly filtered.

Colour is a light straw. Citrus and floral notes in the aromas. A citrusy tingle as it hits the palate, good acidity also.  This fresh and lively wine, a wonderful drop indeed, is very well made and Very Highly Recommended.

Le Caveau tell us the grapes for Lettre d’Eloise white come from young vines planted on clay and silex soils in Prémeaux-Prisse. “This is a wine of wonderful quality, showing citrus and acacia in abundance, framed with a delicate vein of acidity. A real roundness captures the freshness of barrel-fermented fruit.”

Le Caveau Portfolio Surprises include a Straw Winery and an Off the Grid Riesling. Not Surprised though by the Quality.

Le Caveau Portfolio Surprises include a Straw Winery & an Off the Grid Riesling.

Not Surprised though by the Quality.

Always something interesting at the Le Caveau Portfolio tastings. After all, Pascal Rossignol’s company has some 600 wines in stock so there’s bound to be something unusual. But I wasn’t quite prepared for the winery made from straw!

Domaine de L’Achillée is the Alsace winery, situated less than an hour south-west of Strasbourg. The Dietrich family have farmed in the Alsace since 1600. These days they concentrate on grapes and other fruits and have been organic since 1999. 

For the gap between white and red, via The Rocketman!

In 2016, the two sons of Yves Dietrich, Jean and Pierre, joined the adventure to give it a big boost, to become independent. Quickly accompanied by an equally passionate team, they built together a bioclimatic winery where they now vinify the nuggets of the family estate. Apparently, the heavily compacted straw bales are more fire-proof than the iron frame that supports them. Their website says this is the largest straw building in Europe.

And the wine? Well that was unusual also. The 2016 Alsace Blanc is a kind of Gentil with up to nine grapes in the blend. Sylvaner accounts for fifty per cent and the others are Gewürztraminer, Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir, with Auxerrois, Muscat and Chasselas. The wine is aromatic, floral with white and yellow fleshed fruit, with more of the same in the mouth, lively, elegant, persistent. Le Caveau also carry their 2016 Riesling.

Dario (right) fills me in on excellent Italian Il Pionere.

The first surprise of the tasting was not a wine at all! It was a perry, the Poiré Authentique produced by Éric Bordelet of Normandy. A superb low alcohol drink, full of flavour and refreshment. At the same table, I next enjoyed the Rosso Colfóndo, by Casa Belfi in the Veneto. The Colfóndo is the method, not quite the same as Prosecco, and the grape variety is not the usual Glera but a local variety called Raboso. Lively and lovely with tart red fruits before a sweetish finish. Something for the coming summer!

In the beautiful German town of Deidesheim, Von Winning produce some gorgeous wine including the 2106 Weissburgunder (Pinot Blanc). “This is newish," said Le Caveau’s Colm McCan as we tasted. “They are a long established winery and this is a beautiful wine.” Sure is. I'll be putting that on my shopping list.

A wine and a half, in a magnum.

Colm was meeting and greeting but was back with me by the time I got to Oregon, to the Ovum winery in particular. Ovum, as you may know, means egg and the egg shape features prominently in the operations here, they use egg-shaped fermentors. Whatever they’re doing, they're getting it right if this Off the Grid Riesling is anything to go by. Ovum are well known from their Big Salt wine which gained them something of a cult following. 

Made a sparkling start with
this Colfòndo

Another American to engage the palate was Feints Red by Ruth Lewandowski from Utah. Apparently the grapes are grown in California and the fermentors are later moved to Utah. It is a very engaging blend of Arneis, Dolcetto, Barbera and Nebbiolo, an Italian quartet.

And, speaking of Italy, I found another gem in the Il Pionere, IGP Salento, Natalino Del Prete, new to Le Caveau. But not new to Dario who was with the Kilkenny company on the day and who also worked in this winery. He told me they were pioneers in the organic field. The fruit comes from low-growing bush vines of low density; “Great acidity, textured, no heaviness, between fruit and floral.” The main grape is Negromara and there is a little Malvasia Nera which enhances the aromas. Superb.

The trend towards lighter, drier and lower alcohol wines was evident in the tasting but room for the odd big hitter too including a quite excellent Saperavi by Georgia’s Ketevan Berishvili, that weighed in with 15.5% abv! Calcarius of Puglia had a series of low alcohol wines. I got to taste three: Hellen Rosso, the Roz and a lovely summery Orange. All good

Also impressed with the Roussette de Savoie (and its unusual Altesse grape); and three from Burgundy, Les Buées by Larue, the Givry “Clos de la Roche” from Parize and the Beaune “clos des Renardes” by Fanny Sabre. Loved too the gentle aromas and palate of the Mauzac Rose by Cazottes in Gaillac, the Bordeaux wines of Té Diem, the Burgundy red by Lacour, and the El Abasto Malbec from Argentina.

I had been thinking of skipping the Txakoli but I was persuaded to try the Ameztoi 2018. And glad that I did. It is lovely wine, just 10.5%, and the acidity doesn’t show as much as it does normally in this Basque wine. So I’m putting it on my list!

Towards the end, I came across a magnificent Pinot Noir, the Ahurani by Kelley Fox (US). This whole-bunch wine is up there with the best of them. But, if I had worn my overcoat, the one I would have been tempted to smuggle out would have been the Morgon “Le Clos de Lys” by Domaine Chamonard. Don’t think I’d have made it through though as it came in a magnum! And in any event, I noticed that it is very well priced by the bottle. So I’ll be honest and buy!

Well done to all at Le Caveau who managed to get over 100 of their 600 wines up on the shelves in the ancient Apple Market shed in the heart of old Cork. And a big pat on the back too to the Rocketman who supplied some excellent real food for lunch, very enjoyable indeed.