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Recommended wines Reliable,
independent buying advice from the wine anorak
April/May 2000
Wines under £8 | Wines over
£8
Previous months' recommendations: January
2000 | February 2000|March 2000
Bargain picks: wines under £8
Materne Haeglin Pinot Blanc 1997, Alsace
An impressive, inexpensive Alsatian. Attractive spice and lemon nose. On the palate there
is good concentration, with sweet floral notes and spice contributing to what is a nicely
balanced and full flavoured wine. Touch of residual sugar? Very good and a steal at
£5.49. (Majestic)
Valdivieso Chardonnay 1999, Central Valley, Chile
A strong contender in the highly competitive sub-£5 Chardonnay class. This is a
lovely, full bodied yet restrained New World Chardonnay which combines appley/lemony fruit
with a touch of spicy complexity, all underpinned by bracing acidity. In fact, it is
almost like a souped up Macon villages. Great value for money here. (£4.99 Fullers, on
sale at £3.99, also stocked by Waitrose)
Luis Felipe Edwards Cabernet Sauvignon 1996, Colchagua, Chile
Released with more bottle age than is common for most Chilean cabernets, this
wine goes a little against the grain. Normally from Chile at this price level you'd expect
upfront, soft blackcurrant fruit. Instead, with its firm tannins and leafy, herbaceous
fruit, this wine is oddly reminiscent of a Loire red. I think it is authentic and
interesting: very good. Bottled unfiltered. (£4.99, Majestic)
Lindemans Coonawarra Botrytis Riesling 1997
Golden colour, with a lovely nose of limes, marmalade and apricots. These are joined on
the palate by spice and honey. Fat, luscious and complex, there is just enough acidity to
hold the wine together. Very sweet, and with botrytis character aplenty. I like this, but
purists may find it a bit 'full-on'. Very good. (£5.99/half Oddbins)
Mas Llaro Grande Reserve 1998, Cotes du
Roussillon
Beautiful stuff and great value. This is a deep, smoky wine with a youthful
purple colour. The nose is distinctly herby and smoky. Quite a clean wine (it's not
bretty), but plenty of secondary complexity. Good concentration, ripe fruit. I don't know
the cepage, but I'd suspect there is a strong Mourvedre component in here as well as some
Grenache. Real interest here. (£4.99, Oddbins)
Cono Sur Pinot Noir 1998, Chile
Fruity and attractive, this is quite wild stuff with an earthy/animal stink and
some vegetal notes, giving it really unusual character. You'll either love it of hate it:
I think it works quite well: it is certainly the most interesting Pinot Noir on the market
under a fiver. (£4.99 Fuller's)
Wines over £8
Hamilton Russell Chardonnay 1998, Walker Bay, South
Africa
Sensational! Rich, mineral-laden Chardonnay with smoky oak. A lovely, complex wine with
nicely handled oak. Although I've had this wine before on a couple of occasions, I've
never really understood why people have described it as 'Burgundian'. Now I do: this
concentrated yet nicely poised effort really impresses. (£11, Oddbins Fine Wine,
Bentalls, Berry Bros)
Brokenwood Rayner Vineyard Shiraz 1998, McLaren Vale
Brokenwood, in the Hunter Valley, make three single Vineyard Shirazes: the most
famous is the Graveyard, but newer releases, the Mistress (also Hunter) and this offering
from the McLaren Vale are both in the same league. This is dense and richly fruited, with
soft tannins and spicy oak. Rich and chocolatey, this has real McLaren Vale character, and
is approachable now. Superb stuff. (Stocked by Oddbins Fine Wine/ La Reserve, around
£18).
Lindemans Padthaway Chardonnay 1998,
Australia
From a cool-climate region in South Australia that is well known for producing
great Chardonnays, I was really impressed by this wine. Fully barrel-fermented, with a
deep yellow colour. Intense, complex fruit character combines beautifully with new oak.
Rich, intense and concentrated, with figgy, tropical fruit and spice notes. Superb stuff.
Very good to excellent. (£8.49, Bottoms Up/Thresher)
Lindemans Pyrus 1995, Coonawarra, Australia
The second Lindemans wine to make my selection this month, this is a blend of
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec. It is seductive stuff. A big,
minty, leafy nose gives way to soft, mint and berry flavours of great intensity and
concentration. Tasty and more-ish. I'd drink this now while it still has the lovely
intensity of fruit, rather than gambling on cellaring it. Very good + (Widely available at
about £13)
Rosemount Mountain Blue 1997, Mudgee
A stunning blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz from a less well known but extremely
promsing wine area of New South Wales. An opaque purple colour, this is a huge, dense
wine. It is richly oaked, with minty fruit and a slightly syrupy texture. Extraordinary
stuff. Excellent, provided that you like this supercharged style.
E-mail me with your recommendations or suggestions at wineanorak@i.am |
