So yesterday was the Asda press wine tasting, held on the top floor of the Royal Festival Hall, with great views of London’s Southbank. The main range is good, but unlikely to be of too much interest to readers of this blog. But the highlight was a selection of wines from Asda’s new online wine shop, which provide plenty of geek interest at a range of prices. Here are some highlights.
Vincent Careme Spring Vouvray Sec 2012 Loire, France
Natural yeast ferment in stainless steel with no added sulfur dioxide, then aged for six months in old barrels. Mineral, fresh, appley and lemony. Complex, taut and tangy. A real wine. 91/100 (£11.48 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Jean-Yves Devevey Rully Blanc 1er Cru 2009 Burgundy, France
Complex, buttery, toasty, lemony nose. Powerful, lively, bright and mineral in the mouth with some toasty richness. Warm, nutty finish: a lovely wine. 93/100 (£16.96 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Sylvain Loichet Pernand-Verglesses Blanc 2011 Burgundy, France
Natural yeasts, aged for nine months on fine lees with no racking. Lively and focused with pear, apple and lemon fruitiness. Nice purity. It’s clean and fresh with some generosity. Needs time to put on complexity. 91/100 (£17.95 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Prinz von Hessen H Riesling 2012 Rheingau, Germany
Very attractive with open lemony fruit and a touch of sweetness, as well as some herbs and minerals. A bit of pithiness, too. Fresh and balanced. 90/100 (£10.47 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Fossil Branco 2012 Lisboa, Portugal
From Vale de Capucha, this is a brilliant blend of Arinto, Gouveio and Fernao Pires. It’s a full yellow colour. Pure, dense notes of peach, pear and citrus with a subtle toastiness. Lovely presence and density to this bargain full-flavoured white. 90/100 (£6.25 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Villa Maria Cellar Selection Riesling 2008 Marlborough, New Zealand
Overtly limey, with an intense nose. The palate is dry, lively and bright with keen acidity offset by a little sweetness. Subtle toasty notes and a long lemony finish. 90/100 (£12.47 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Domaine Lavigne Saumur Champigny 2013 Loire, France
Nose of tangy cherries and herbs, with some spiciness. Really distinctive, typical Loire red with raspberry and cherry fruit as well as some grip and some green notes. Supple and attractive. 89/100 (£7.48 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Chateau Boissezan-Guiraud St Chinian 2012 Languedoc, France
Grenache, Carignan and Syrah with a dash of Mourvedre. Floral, perfumed, fresh nose of cherries and plums leads to a bright palate with fresh, sweet cherry fruit and a savoury, mineral edge. So drinkable and supple, showing nice restraint and purity. 89/100 (£7.97 Asda Online Wine Store)
Conde de Vimioso 2012 Tejo, Portugal
This is a blend of three Portuguese and two international varieties, and it’s a real bargain. Meaty, spicy nose shows lovely pure black cherry and plum fruit. Supple, attractive palate shows precision, ripeness and drinkability. 89/100 (£8.50 Asda Online Wine Shop)
Starting a sentence with ‘so’ is so 2010.