Blog Archives

The Red Zone...

26/2/2013

We're called Purple Teeth for a reason. We love red wine. (We love white wine too, but that's beside the point, and we covered them yesterday). So here are some reds we've enjoyed lately.

The last few reds we've sampled here at Purple Teeth HQ have covered the spectrum of countries, grapes, flavours and prices ranges, and all have been great. I also opened a French Corbières, which seemed to have a fault, but that probably saved me from myself that night. Even if it wasn't faulty, no-one wants a drink that smells of burning rubber unless they've already reached the gutter, so that's not on the "buy again" list!

£6.99 from M&S 13% abv

GSM was the first "Wine of the Week" trial on Purple Teeth. Our Facebook fans and Twitter followers who chose to buy the wine and play along are much appreciated! Why did I choose this wine? At our recent Purple Teeth Tasting there were 2 Monastrells (Mourvèdre) and a Priorat (mainly Garnacha). Plus I love Syrah! Marks and Spencer are marketing this Spanish wine with a very French feel - the GSM blend label uses the French rather than Spanish grape names, as this blend is common in Southern Rhone. At some point we can do a compare and contrast with a French one. At £6.99 it's worth a try.
So what did we think?

Quotes from friends of Purple Teeth:
"Quite full bodied, fruity, very peppery and spicy with a good dose of tannins". "Went very well with the spicy pasta we had this evening."
"I had a couple of glasses and loved it. Would buy again"
"Thanks for suggesting this one."

We enjoyed it too and were surprised just how much. It's in danger of ousting the Tesco Finest Nero D'Avola as our regular "tomato/spicy pasta" wine at the same price point. Valencia wines are proving a hit based on recent tastings and this one has deep flavours of plum, some smokiness or a hint of liquorice along with some redcurrant to give it vibrancy. It proved very quaffable and we'll definitely buy it again.

Wine of the Week needs development and perhaps Google+ hangouts are the way forward. Meantime, we'd love your suggestions on what to feature in future weeks. Ideally, I want to keep the wines under £8 and ensure they are widely available. If you want join in next week's fun, we're featuring a 2010 Cahors that's £7.99 from Watirose called Malbec du Clos. Feel free to submit your photos, comments and ideas via comments here or on our Facebook fan page.

£20.99 Waitrose Wine 14% abv

Petaluma Shiraz: rich, dark, powerful yet elegant as Coco Chanel... It's £20.99 so definitely well out of the Tuesday night price range. It's up to you to decide if it's worth 3 bottles of GSM but for me it was love at first sip.

For once, we were having a Friday night at home and it felt right to open this bottle. It had patiently sat on the wine rack screaming "open me" for some months (since I bought it on a special offer price at Waitrose).

There's 4% aromatic Viognier in the blend (a northern Rhone technique, this time) and the Shiraz grapes from Australia's Adelaide Hills bring an inky black colour which is almost misleading. Although it's powerful, this is smooth. As it slips down your throat you know it loves you back and the layers of sophistication underneath the blackberry, plum, spice and smoky leather tell you this wine, if human, would never be without a date!

I will definitely buy this again next time it's on special offer, and not just the one bottle. It made a rather ordinary Friday into a wonderful occasion.

£10.99 Angel Price 13% abv

Small and Small Marlborough Pinot Noir from Naked Wines could not be more different. The colour as you'll see from the photo is pale and transparent, much as you'd expect from a Pinot Noir and it's from the much cooler Marlborough region of New Zealand, an area more famous for Sauvignon Blanc.
Pinot Noir is how I first came to red wine. Not an obvious route as it's sometimes quite austere, unaccessible and needs to be very high quality to be worth drinking. But it was Switzerland, and it's what would grow there.
Despite being a million miles away, this reminded me of that first taste of Pinot some 20 years ago. It's light in colour, reasonably light in body, full of acidity and full of strawberry but not jammy like some Californian Pinots I've had recently. I've been going for much heavier bodied wines of late, as Mr Purple Teeth isn't a massive fan of Pinot or anything that doesn't scream "I'm here". So I'll be saving this for when he's out and enjoy it all to myself.

If you're going to give it a go, I'd recommend decanting or aerating it. Not because it wasn't lovely as it was, but when I returned to the remains of the bottle on the second night, it was even nicer, with a lovely balance of fruit, acidity and alcohol. This wine could also be served slightly chilled, making it a pleasant summer drink with a light salad.

Thanks for reading and enjoy your wines while I'm off in the States. Cheers!

Naked White Bits...

25/2/2013

At Purple Teeth, we can't get enough of wines that make our teeth purple, but we love white wines too - here are some we've tasted recently. These all come from Naked Wines and prices quoted include the Angel discount

£8.99

Californian Gewurztraminer? Yes, I was surprised too. I love Alsace and all it's aromatic wines, and I also love California's gigantic reds... How would they cross? This wine was understated by Californian standards. An amazing Grand Cru Alsace Gewurz has many layers of flavour and can punch you in the mouth almost as hard as a big Zinfandel. Not this wine. It's made by a chef and designed to be food friendly, it's medium bodied and with a medium lingering flavouring, but relatively simple. It's low acidity making it easier on the teeth, and it has that hint of the exotic that means it would pair well with Asian cuisine. The signature flavour of the Gewurztraminer grape is lychee, and that's what I found here. In Alsace, I may also find roses. I'm looking forward to trying Naked's Alsace wines soon, as several arrived in the same shipment.

£9.49

Next on the list was a Vouvray. For anyone who's less familiar with the French Appelations (and I know I was), Vouvray is part of the Loire Valley in France, and makes wines from the Chenin Blanc grape. It's unusual in that wines can be dry, off dry, sweet, dessert wines or even sparkling and all be called Vouvray. Some of the wines are also suitable for long bottle aging, something I wouldn't recommend for most whites.
So back to the Naked version. This one is off dry though I didn't really notice the sweetness after the initial sip. It's got grapefruit, medium to low acidity (rather unexpectedly) and is a nice simple, easy drinking wine. It's not wow like some Vouvrays I've tasted, but compared to some of the Chenin Blancs out there, it's pretty good. If you fancy a change from your South African wines, give it a go, but if you're a fan of Loire Valley Sancerres, this may not be aromatic enough for you.

£9.99

Alsace and Riesling. Words that together set my pulse racing. You may have gathered I'm a fan of big aromatic flavoured wines, and Alsace specialises in aromatic, noble varieties. I took the plunge and ordered this Riesling because I find Riesling a very food friendly grape, and recent Alsace varieties I've tried have reminded me just how good this grape can be.
I found very little Riesling character in this version. It's not billed as off-dry but it definitely doesn't taste fully dry. There's some minerality but little peach, floral or citrus aromas and the flavour was surprisingly simple for an Alsace Riesling. This sounds like a negative review, but the wine was very drinkable. It's just not what I was expecting from the grape and region combination. The acidity is reasonably high, but I expected screamingly high so felt a bit disappointed. Drinking it should flood the mouth with saliva, washing away fatty foods that accompany it so well like fried fish dishes. This was more subtle. I saved some to drink the next day, and it fared remarkably well. Many whites fade after the first opening. So, I am going out on a limb here to suggest that perhaps this wine will improve with age. Naked's recommendation is that it will last at least 5 years. I have 3 other Alsace wines by the same winemaker in the fridge. I hope they fare better against my expectations.
Perhaps it's because it's February but white wines aren't going down so well right now. I'm off to Washington DC shortly for a couple of weeks, and look forward to trying some Virginian wines. Perhaps when I get back, spring will have sprung and those whites in the fridge will be regaining their pull.

Some lunch with your wine?

21/2/2013

Reading is a pretty large city, even though it still technically only has "town" status. It has a football club with a rather amazing stadium which hosts a jazz cafe, and a population that's half the size of the country of Iceland. It has just about every UK chain retailer, and most of the chain food emporia of Britain. Nando's, Strada, Jamie's Italian, Giraffe, Wagamama, and many more jostle for position by the river. But to get something unique, something with a touch more class, it's always seemed a little more challenging. There is the beautiful Michelin starred L'Ortolan, but that's quite a long way out of the town centre. So what's for the discerning food and drink fan in the "city" itself...
Judging by "share of wallet", Forbury's must be pretty good. I only discovered it last year, even though it's been around for 9 years and have since been several times with different people. This most recent trip, accompanied by fellow hedonists, was a great opportunity to abandon all pretenses of adhering to the daily recommended alcohol limit and climb into one of the AA's Notable Wine Lists...

Turckheim Riesling Grand Cru 2007 13% abv £51

The wine list, though award winning, is not scary in the way that some of the encyclopaedic tomes I'm presented with these days can be. With 275 options, it does pay to have an idea of where to begin though the team will be pleased to help you with your selection. It's filled with food friendly delights.
Being the group's appointed "wine expert" it fell to me to match our very varied meals. The starters: Gruyere Gougere (a kind of choux bun like concoction with cheese and mushrooms), Scallops with curry and mango, and a Ham Hock and Foie Gras Terrine with brioche toast and salted caramel apples. And you want me to match one wine with all of that?! Oh, and make sure it also goes with the lady's lemon sole as the rest of us move onto red meat and red wine? Crikey that's a challenge!

Luckily, my good friend Alsace was well represented, and the Riesling grape was prepared to stand up to all of these challenges. I chose a Caves de Turckheim Grand Cru Riesling, unsure what my sauvignon blanc loving companion would make of it. Fortunately for my street cred as budding wine snob, the jury loved it!
There was a hint of sweetness in this dry wine which helped the foie gras and scallops, the zingy acidity refreshed the cheese palate, and the flavours of citrus, pear and minerality lingered after the last drop had been tasted. Alsace does it again!

Clos Triguedina Cahors 2004 13% abv £43.95

The mains demanded red, and we'd decided to stick with France. This was quite unusual for me, and some of my companions cannot see past Bordeaux. Currently, I'm spending all my money traveling around the world for dance events, so I didn't really feel like spending >£100 a bottle. Given the confit duck leg, braised shin of beef, and beef fillets I was matching, I opted for a much more reasonably priced 2004 Cahors from Jean-Luc Baldès, Clos Triguedina. This was a smoky heaven. Malbec has made it's spiritual home in Argentina, and there, it's won fame and fortune as a favourite with steak. Back in it's original home of Cahors in France, it can be hit and miss whether you find it's velvety richness or something thin and unsatisfying. I'd tried this Triguedina before (which has 25% merlot in the blend) so felt safe recommending it. And I'm pleased to say, my credentials were maintained with this choice, perhaps even bolstered!

When one of the guests thinks we should order a second bottle of the red even though we've almost finished our mains, I know that a) I chose well, and b) cheese is going to be ordered. Sadly for us and for you, we had the last bottle of the 2004. We were offered a 2007 but decided not to risk it being a little less mature and thus less exciting so we switched to the New World for something completely different.
Happily for you, Slurp Wines have still got the 2004 in stock. It is a little pricier than our usual recommendations at £16.55 a bottle, but if you're making a hefty red meat dish, then you would delight your friends if you paired it with this.

2008 BMW Shiraz 14% abv £51

Botham Merrill Willis (BMW) Shiraz came next. It's a very different style to the Malbec, fruit forward yet still smooth and full bodied with that well integrated oak we love. But then it's no surprise to hear from me that I liked a Shiraz, is it? It paired reasonably well with the cheese plate. Sorry, there are no photos of the cheese or mains, but then, this is a wine blog, and I think you're sensing the effect alcohol may have had on my memory for getting the camera out!
The wine is a collaboration between renowned winemaker Geoff Merrill and two cricketers: Ian Botham and Bob Willis. For the full story, you can have a look at the youtube clip below.... It's a guest on the wine list at the moment, but you can buy it retail from www.christopherpiperwines.co.uk for under £16. Some other retailers are selling it at nearer £18. You don't have to be a cricket fan to love it.

Saint-Clair Noble Riesling, Doctors Creek, New Zealand 2009 12% abv (375ml) £33

And then it was time to choose dessert. From the moment we'd opened the menu our thoughts had been on the delicious-sounding Apple Tarte Tatin with salted caramel sauce. We are all salted caramel junkies after a rather indulgent week in La Rochelle, which my dentist is still having nightmares about.

There is such a lot of lovely choice available though, and my most usual dessert choice here is the mini dessert selection with any coffee. Five mini desserts satisfies any person who finds choosing just one pudding difficult!
In the end, we couldn't help ourselves and giant Tatins were ordered, served with vanilla ice cream and a rather large pot of the decadent sauce.

To pair with this, I stuck to the New World, and went full circle, coming back to a Riesling, but this time a Noble Late Harvest version from New Zealand. It was full of the citrus, honey, apricot that you'd expect in such a wine, still with good acidity to cut through all that sweetness, and matched perfectly, if I say so myself.

After lunch, we weren't quite ready to wave goodbye to our friends and go our separate ways. Luckily, right across from Forbury's is The Forbury (not confusing in any way to taxi drivers or reservation makers). Their cocktail bar, Cerise, proved just the right spot for us to spend the next few hours disregarding all advice on safe consumption of alcohol. While I'm ashamed to admit that the evening could have been termed "binge drinking" by the news makers, I'm very happy to report that the expertise and service of the cocktail staff was probably the best I've experienced outside of London, and possibly even including London.

Paying careful attention to our likes and dislikes, assorted cocktails were discussed, recommended and thoroughly enjoyed. I doubt any of my companions would have enjoyed the VV&A with it's violet and liquorice flavours coming from the absinthe, but I loved it. The Paradise Martini though was a real winner. Served with a prosecco on the side to mix or not, as you wish, it's red fruit and vanilla gave it the complexity and body of a deep red wine, but with all the fun and zing of a good cocktail. I had to have 2 more just to check.
The Balvenie serve was also a nice treat for the gents, emulating the tasting method the master blenders use in the distillery. And the flaming Baron Samdi (rum, ginger beer, honey, cinnamon and more burning rum in lime) was great for attracting attention to the drunks. I probably don't need to tell you that the day after was a rather subdued affair, but it was all worth it.
Have a lunch out in Reading some time. It's not just Nando's!
For the full list of Cerise cocktails see http://www.theforburyhotel.co.uk/brochures/cocktail%20of%20the%20month%20feburary%202013.pdf

Valentine's Delights

16/2/2013

12% abv £29.95

Perhaps it's just my life, but it's not often that it's okay to open a bottle of champagne on a Thursday night. While I'm not really an ardent fan of the genus "Hallmark Holiday", this was the first time Mr Purple Teeth and I had physically been together on 14th February since getting together nearly 10 years ago. So, we decided to celebrate. And when celebrating, Champagne seems only appropriate.
We were lucky enough to have been given Fortnum & Mason Brut Reserve for Christmas, but hadn't yet drunk it. So I chilled it nicely in preparation for the long-awaited romantic evening ahead.

When you decide to pre-plan romance, there is always the likelihood that something will go wrong. In this case, a work crisis for Mr Purple Teeth arose leaving us wondering if he'd ever get off the phone. When the last call had been taken and the cork was finally popped, it was very lucky that the Champagne exceeded expectations. Our Mr Purple Teeth isn't generally a fan of sparkling wines, though he's quite partial to vintage Bolly. Who isn't?!

The Fortnum & Mason branded Champagnes are all made by Louis Roederer. Not heard of him? Perhaps you've heard of his iconic brand, Cristal, one of the prestige Champagnes made tacky by a succession of gossip magazine photo-shoots featuring gangster rappers... Indeed, Mr Jay-Z boycotted Cristal back in 2006 not long after referencing it in his lyrics. The brand was rumoured to be dismayed with it's hip hop associations so he showed them... But back to the story.

Louis R makes fine Champagne and this one is no exception. The mousse is delicate and doesn't impair your judgement of the fresh, crisp apple flavours. The wine is predominantly pinor noir and pinot meunier black grape varieties while there's chardonnay present too, giving elegance and the ability to pair with a wide variety of foods.

If you fancy a bit of Roederer caché for a fraction of the price tag, then Fortnum and Mason champagne will do nicely. And while you're in, pick up some of their exquisite smoked salmon - it would be a perfect food pairing. I'm sure that Mr Roederer would not approve of our Chinese take-away any more than of rappers' antics, but the wine worked surprisingly well in accompaniment. It also worked pretty well with some champagne truffles. Who said romance was dead?

£14.99 14% abv

There's something about Champagne that makes me thirsty. And so it was that we resorted to finishing off some red wine we'd opened the night before. We discovered the Finca Moncloa 2006 while on holiday in Jerez pursuing an interest in sherry, last year. When we got home we could not have been more delighted to find out that it is available from Waitrose online.

We first tasted this wine in an out of the way tapas bar on the outskirts of Jerez. After a few days of soaking ourselves in as much Fino, Amontillado and Oloroso as our bodies could take, we discovered Val De Pepe, a tapas bar owned by Gonzales Byass, those nice people who own Tio Pepe, Croft Original and, Finca Moncloa, as we were to discover. A dish of rich Oxtail Cottage Pie demanded that we accompany it with a full bodied red and the patron pointed us in the direction of this wine. From the first sip, we were photographing the bottle and begging for more. The bar on Calle Paraíso became a much frequented paradise.

Back at home, we were unsure if the wine would live up to the memory. How often it's the sun, the food and the moment that makes an ordinary wine taste sublime. Luckily, this was no false memory.

Finca Moncloa is predominantly a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah with small amounts of Merlot, Tempranillo, and Jerez's indigenous Tintilla de Rota. These grapes are expertly combined in small lots to create an opaque, full bodied, rich red wine, smooth and sumptuous, which slips down a treat. There's enough smooth tannin to allow the wine to age, but it never tastes harsh or drying. This 2006 still tastes fresh and fruity, reminiscent of blackcurrant fruit pastilles, yet it's 9 months in oak and subsequent bottle age show in defined vanilla and spice flavours with perhaps a touch of coffee.

You may be thinking that £14.99 seems expensive for an unknown bottle of Spanish red without the benefit of a "gran reserva" or an appelation like Rioja or Ribera del Duero, but here in Spain's southernmost region, they've got all the sunshine they need to ripen these grapes to perfection. If you fancy the warm glow of Andalusian sunshine while living through the misery of a British February, then a bottle of this could be just what you need.
Cheers!

Red Taste Sensation

13/2/2013

"Sharing amazing wines among friends... a real pleasure!"

All comments on the red wines tasted must be taken in context. We had already "tasted" 6 white wines! (Read the reviews on my earlier blog post)
Most of our guests tend to drink more reds than whites so they were very keen to get to this section of our tasting to sample what we'd brought from around the world...

Juan Gil 4 Monastrell (Jumilla) 15% abv £8.49 allaboutwine.co.uk

First up came Juan Gil 4 Monastrell. This Monastrell is from Jumilla on Spain's east coast, and had been hand carried by our guest. She discovered it in her second home of Murcia where it's a local favourite. She couldn't get enough of it at €8.50 a bottle. In the UK it's priced between £8.49 and £9.99 from online sources.
Monastrell, for those who aren't familiar with the grape, is native to Spain and in France is known as Mourvedre, while in California and Australia it's often known as Mataro. You'll find it in popular "GSM" (Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre) blends from the Rhone Valley and now Spain, Australia and beyond.
Here it's presented alone with just 4 months oak aging and made from grapes from 40 year old vines. While 12 and 18 month oak aged versions are also available from the winery, the 18 months has some Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend. The 4 and 12 months versions are available from allaboutwine.co.uk while the 4 is also available at £9.99 from Virgin Wines.
I was advised to serve it chilled as they do in Spain, but it's very unusual for a punchy 15% alcohol red wine as dry as a Mourvedre to be served chilled. In any case, it was February in Southport so there seemed little need for refrigeration. For once, the bringer of the bottle instantly recognised it - perhaps testament to why she'd spent January on an alcohol free detox? Or perhaps simply it's that this wine is so deliciously drinkable, that it couldn't be anything else?
It was an instant hit with all 11 of us and had none of the "dog strangling" harsh-drying tannins which give this grape it's French nickname "Etrangle-Chien"... We all tasted what seemed a very fruit forward wine full of blackberry, plum and dark rich fruits, with hints of the oak aging showing in it's vanilla and coffee overtones and all agreed it was a bit of a bargain.
No-one requested it chilled!

Red on Black Agiorgitiko (Nemea) 13.5% abv £8.99 Marks & Spencer

Next up was the wine I'd selected on behalf of one of my guests who'd recently enjoyed Greek wine in Greece and assumed I'd know what it was despite the entire label being in Greek! It's nice that people have confidence in my knowledge but that was going too far. I've not had a lot of experience with Greek wines, so when I saw this Red on Black Nemea Agiorgitiko in Marks and Spencer, I couldn't resist bringing it along for them.
The over-riding impression of this wine was cherry - bright red cherry with a hint of redcurrant.
Greece's Agioritiko grape is famed for its rich velvety red wines, the best of which are from Nemea where this wine was produced. In 800BC when the Greek poet Homer sung its praises so this is no new kid on the block, despite it's unfamiliarity to my crowd. Unlike most of the reds we tasted, there was no oak aging whatsoever leaving a simple and fruit driven wine, which would be light and easy to drink with a Greek salad or perhaps a lamb kebab. Following the Juan Gil was always going to be a challenge, and in this case, my guests were left wanting more - particularly those who'd tasted better Greek wine in Greece. Even if they have no idea what it was!

Tapa Roja Monastrell (Jumilla) 13.5% abv £8.99 Virgin Wines (out of stock)

One of the challenges of a "bring your own" wine tasting is that you have very limited control over what people actually bring. We were lucky to get a good balance of whites and reds. Despite this, I'd never have imagined receipt of two bottles of 100% Monastrell from the same obscure Spanish region, Jumilla. Rather than being a downside, this made for a really interesting comparison. Our first was a 2011 with 4 months in oak, while our second was a 2004 Gran Reserva with serious oak aging.
In Spain, "reserve" wine actually means something and is controlled by law, unlike in many other countries where it's simply a marketing term meant to imply prestige.
Gran Reserva wines are not sold until they are 5 years old and usually spend at least 2 years of that time in oak barrels.
The oak aging difference was intensely evident here with the Tapa Roja being full of meaty, game and leather flavours. It was an enjoyable example of the wine and though it would probably have been more at home with food, if you like aged Riojas. you'd like this. As Virgin Wines seem to have run out and I can't find another stockist in the UK, we'll leave the story there!

Terre da Vino Barolo 13.5% abv £16.99 Waitrose

How disappointing that the most expensive wine at the tasting also turned out to be the least liked. This may be because drinking the 2008 Terre da Vino Barolo was infanticide. Good Barolos will keep for 10 years in the bottle if stored correctly. We had a few Barolo drinkers in the crowd, and this should have been an elegant and full bodied example. Sadly, the signature Barolo flavours of tea and rose just didn't seem to win over the crowd at this point in the evening, and the tannins seemed a little harsh. Perhaps I should have opened and decanted or aerated it earlier, perhaps it was too young or too sophisticated to be the 10th wine of the evening. We'll never know! Sadly, this did nothing to convince me to fly out to the Barolo region any time soon.

Cal Pla Crianza 2006 (Priorat) 14.5% abv £15.19 Spirited Wines

Given any 6 bottles of red at a bring your own tasting, it was pretty unexpected to find 3 were Spanish. What happened to the UK's faith in France and our new found passion for the new world? In this case, I'll forgive the country overload. I love Spanish wine and was delighted to see a Priorat - Spain's trendiest region - after my recent disappointing example.
Cal Pla Crianza 2006 was warmly greeted by smiles and nods of approval. Crianza means it's spent at least 12 months in oak and in this case 14 months. Somehow we sampled a whole range of Spanish oaking strategies with no forward planning. Amazing!
This Priorat was a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cariñena, and Garnacha (known in France as Carignan and Grenache). You can imagine that the 11th wine of the night is always going to go down well and fortunately this righted all of the Barolo's wrongs.
Crowd-pleasing blackcurrant, dark plummy damson, sweet spices and that hint of leather from the oak aging combined to provide a real treat.
Fortunately for us, this was the second wine generously provided by our most educated wine guest. Even more fortunately, it redeemed his kudos points significantly after the less appreciated Chignin Bergeron he brought to represent the whites.
I'll certainly be visiting my local Spirited Wines branch to pick up a bottle or two of this. Being fashionable, Priorat can sometimes be overpriced. This seems good value to me.

Currently out of stock at Tesco

How well do my friends know me? Do they even read my blog? Are my descriptions any good? Would my guests recognise a wine I'd recently reviewed based on taste alone? These were the questions I had in mind when I brought the Peter Lehman Moppa Shiraz 2008. Being 12th on the list didn't do it any favours, sadly, and I have to admit that at that stage in the evening I'd probably have struggled to recognise it myself.
Yes, we really did have to go dancing after all of this wine, and indeed one of our guests had to go on to DJ two sets during the evening. Now that's commitment. I didn't enjoy this bottle quite as much as I had the previous time, although it's still a fabulous example of Barossa Shiraz, the lesson here is watch out for tannin build up, drink plenty of water during a tasting and remember to spit frequently!

Thanks again to everyone who brought such interesting wines. I won't go into details about the ginger liqueur which served as dessert, nor will I describe the reputation I now have among dancers for ruining their prowess on the dance floor. We had a great evening and we're already planning the next one in June. Will I be brave enough to let people bring their own wines this time? Wait and see!

If you want to hold a Purple Teeth Wine Tasting event for your friends or work colleagues, get in touch.

What's in a name?

13/2/2013

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"Purple Teeth - for the love of wine" is now "Purple Teeth - for your love of wine"

It's nice to be noticed, I guess. One of my tweets into cyberspace has been spied by a company which specialises in Italian and Swiss wines as a wholesaler called "fortheloveofwine.co.uk". There was no intent to imply any connection to their business and our work in this wonderful world of wine is very different. But for the avoidance of confusion, I've made the change.
As always, my focus will be helping you find out more about the wines which are easily available in large UK retailers, as well as introducing those new and different wines to encourage you to broaden your personal wine horizons.
I love wine. You love wine. Let's love wine together!
Get in touch if you want to hold a Purple Teeth event or want to learn more about a specific wine.

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White Taste Sensation

5/2/2013

"There's nothing quite like sharing the wines you love with friends and finding some new favourites..."

Last weekend I hosted the second Purple Teeth tasting event in a Pontin's chalet in Southport. The rather unsophisticated location is because the event was for a group of dance friends coming together from across the country at a large 3 day and night dance party. At the previous event I'd selected 12 wines from 12 countries. This time around we arranged to each bring our own wine, priced at around £10 (no more than £15) for sharing. The idea was for guests to bring a wine they loved, or wanted to try. I was hoping for some unusual treats, even if I did end up being sub-contracted to buy 4 of the wines myself. Across everyone's contribution we experienced such a wide variety that everyone learned and enjoyed something new even though our group included a wide range of wine drinking expertise levels from novice to qualified. In this post, I'll cover the 6 whites and you'll get to hear about the reds next time.

13.5% abv £10.99 from Ocado

Our first wine was a Santorini Assyrtiko 2011 sourced from Ocado. My friend hadn't tried this wine before but had heard good things about the growing fashion in Greek wines and was keen to try it. I presented all the wines blind and had pre-poured the tasting samples of this one before the guests arrived. The guesses centred around Sauvignon Blanc and France, although the serious Sauvignon Blanc drinkers didn't think it was green enough. Somewhat obviously, nobody guessed the wine correctly! This would make a nice aperitif with some olives, and I was glad I chose to present it first. No-one chose it as their favourite white but it wasn't poured away either. Citrus flavours are dominant and I can imagine this being crisp and refreshing on a hot summer's day, as you dream of actually being in Santorini.

Jurançon Sec 13.5% £10.49 sourced from aitkenwines.com

The next wine came from Aitken Wines of Dundee. They have an online shop and deliver anywhere in the UK for £7.99 (for a case and upwards). With almost 140 years in business they must be doing something right, and it seems they also sell the Punto Final Malbec mentioned in my last post (for £8.49). I wished I had kept this 2010 Domaine Cauhapé till nearer the end of the group of whites as it was highly aromatic being a dry white Jurançon AOC made of 60% Gros Manseng and 40% Camarelet. I can't find this wine on the Aitken site, so they may no longer be stocking it. Fortunately, the 2011 is available from The Wine Society at £4.75 for a half bottle or £8.75 for a full bottle, because this was a real winner among the whites. It has honey on the nose, and although bone dry, the flavours made some of our guests think this was a sweet wine, mainly due to the floral and aromatic notes which made this stand out from the crowd. This is a really unusual find, as the Camarelet grape is so rare it's nearing extinction. Try some before it's too late!

14% abv Brancott Estate Sauvignon Gris £12.99 from Sainsbury's

Next up was one of the wines I'd brought on behalf of a guest. I knew that most were bringing European wines so I thought I'd add in some southern hemisphere fun with this Brancott Estate Marlborough (NZ) Sauvignon Gris 2011 sourced from Sainsbury's. This gave me the opportunity to trick my guests, several of whom were close with guesses of Sancerre or Sauvignon Blanc. If you've not had Sauvignon Gris before it's worth a try although a little harder to track down. While the wine still exudes the herbaceous, green and citrus character you might be used to from Sauvignon Blanc, the Gris version tends to be softer with some elderflower and stone fruit character. As someone who has become jaded with Sauvignon Blanc, I now prefer the Gris when I can get it, and my guests on the whole were fairly positive about this one. Let's just say there was none left at the end of the evening...

11.5% abv £4.99 at Morrison's

Giving the guests a break from guessing, I opened the Montcadi Cava. A late invitee to the tasting party was forced to bring whatever he could find in his stash of provisions for the weekend. This had a lot of green apple flavour and although our assembled bunch probably would prefer champagne, I don't think anyone could argue with this at £4.99. If you like uncomplicated sparkle as an aperitif, with fish or chicken, or simply to celebrate getting to the end of the working day, then this presents really good value.
Cava is made using the same "traditional method" as champagne but uses different grape varieties. In this case, we're drinking a traditional Cava mixture of Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel-lo.

12.5% abv Price/Source TBC

Bringing back the guessing game, we certainly hit our friends with a challenge. Vin de Savoie isn't that well known in the UK, and Rousanne single varietals (or Bergeron as the grapes are known in the locally) are also fairly uncommon - particularly among those drinking supermarket fare. This Chignin Bergeron "Les Damoiselles" 2007 was quite unusual with hints of white peach and apricot. Being a 2007 it was probably reaching maturity and certainly wouldn't benefit from being kept for much longer, but it's full body and hints of minerality suggest it would probably pair well with creamy fish dishes, scallops or even smoked salmon quiche. In our view, this delivered less than it promised on the nose, but this could have been down to where it was placed in the tasting. By now, it's fair to say, we probably hadn't used the spittoon enough and were becoming somewhat tipsy.

13.5% abv Quercus Pinot Bianco £8.99 M&S

I was stunned to find this Slovenian Quercus Pinot Bianco 2011 in Marks & Spencer. I recently reviewed a glass of this from a pub wine list and was surprised enough to find it here so soon after reviewing 2 of their wines discovered during my January dance trip to Hungary, so I couldn't resist bringing it along to test my guests.
We had some interesting guesses. Was it a chardonnay? Surely someone brought chardonnay? And "setting lotion" was perhaps the evening's most bizarre aroma description. The 12 of us split down the middle as to whether it was a hit, but fortunately all agreed that it didn't taste like a trip to the hairdressers! Pear, elderflower, and lemon are found under a smooth textured dry white along with that hint of oaky flavours for which Quercus is named.
Similar to Alsace wines, the food match suggests serving with light oriental dishes.

What struck us at the end of tasting the whites was the amazing diversity of flavours out there. Many of us predominantly drink red wine so it was great to try so many new and different things that we'd otherwise never have sampled. We also felt quite evangelical about people who "don't like white" or "only like sauvignon blanc". There really is a lot to choose from out there and it's a shame to write off so many options without trying more. For the fans of getting Purple Teeth, I'll be back in a week with 6 equally interesting reds for you, thanks to my guests who brought such amazing wines!
Dance fans will also be pleased to hear that we all made it out for a full night of dancing after the tasting, quite unlike what happened at the first event like this we held back in June.

If you're interested in holding a Purple Teeth Wine Tasting party for friends, a corporate function or family gathering, please contact me using the form on my Q&A page to discuss options.

Ice, Lava & Vikings

1/2/2013

It's been a little quiet on the wine front at Purple Teeth HQ, mainly because I've been spending time in Iceland, a country that's as far from the wine producing regions as any. I enjoyed a few South American imports at the wonderful Hotel Ranga where I stayed for a couple of nights. Those of note were Morandé Late Harvest Sauvignon Blanc, from Chile's Rapel Valley which served as a delicious dessert in a glass, two nights in a row, and a Punto Final Malbec from Mendoza which happily accompanied a very rare fillet of beef. Both can be found from online UK suppliers by following the links above. It's a shame they had to go all the way to South America for wine when Iceland is 64 degrees north of the equator, but I guess wine miles know no bounds when it comes to the restaurant trade. Luckily the hotel's cuisine is a lot more locally sourced. The service was excellent, and it's just a shame that the Northern Lights didn't show up to make the trip complete. I'd heartily recommend this hotel if you decide to head north, despite the snowdrifting blizzards on the main ring road from Keflavik airport.
The Malbec was rich, dark, almost as black as it's label and with an almost melted chocolate texture and richness. The sticky wine retained the freshness and acidity of sauvignon blanc, but was sweetly flavoured with marmalade, quince and honey. Both are worth seeking out if you like South American wines and the retail prices seem very reasonable for the quality of the wine, and certainly when compared to Icelandic restaurant prices. It's not just the Arctic winds that made my eyes water over there!

Lava smoked imperial stout 9.4% abv. Is this Iceland's best beer?

Trying to soak up local flavour, I enjoyed a few beers from Iceland while there. I imagine that there's a lot more to offer for the serious beer drinker at that northern latitude. In Reykjavik, we visited MicroBar (which is attached to www.citycenterhotel.is) to enjoy some fine ales. It's location is just off the main square and though small, it's perfectly formed, featuring beers from the growing number of small microbreweries in Iceland with around 8 draught beers from small Icelandic breweries and a wide selection of local and international bottled beers. For the beer fan, you couldn't want for more. Guided by the helpful bartender, Steinn Stefánsson, I selected Lava, on the basis that he called it "undoubtedly Iceland's finest beer". As the bar is always branching out for rarer beers, and at least 25 of the beers it sells cannot be found elsewhere in Iceland, I felt happy to take his advice. It was then mentioned that the beer was 9.4% abv! That's nearly as strong as some wines, so fortunately it's sold in reasonably small glasses. It's a smoked imperial stout with 6 kinds of barley malt and one kind of wheat malt, made in the shadow of the active Hekla Volcano by Olvisholt Brugghus. The label supposedly resembles the sight of the relatively frequent eruptions as seen from the brewery. It's a full bodied beer with hints of chocolate but essentially a smoked malt flavour. If you're a stout fan, you'll love it. If not, I'd recommend something a little lighter.

When it comes to beer, I definitely am a stout fan and I also enjoyed the Viking Stout, which was a lot easier to drink in volume, at 5.8% abv. Viking Íslenskur Úrvals Stout, to give it it's full name, was the first stout produced in Iceland, and is made in the northern town of Arkureyri. It's got a lot less chocolate flavour than the Lava stout, but just as much malty goodness, with hints of espresso.

My friend's beer of choice for the trip was also made by the same brewery as Lava. Skjálfti premium lager (pronounced a bit like Skelty) was more of a golden/amber beer than a lager as we know the term in the UK. Named after an earthquake, this beer had a good balance of flavour between malt and hops with a hint of sweetness. At 5% abv it was a lot more food friendly and with a hint of citrus on the palate, it matched well with the fish dishes we consumed plenty of on the trip.
In Microbar, she enjoyed a Kaldi which Steinn indicated was the closest in style. Kaldi is an Icelandic beer from another microbrewery, brewed to a Czech recipe, under the supervision of a Czech brewmaster. The beer has no added sugar or any preservatives, and is not pasteurized.
Iceland's beer scene is definitely on the up.

I'll be back with plenty of wine stories next week, after a social tasting evening I'm running this weekend. Meanwhile, here are some shots of Icelandic scenery to put you in the mood for a visit to try these beers.

Blue Lagoon, Reykjavik & sunrise at Hotel Ranga (above) Geysir, Gullfoss, SkogaFoss (below) - all photos are mine taken via iphone

Purple Teeth

My name's Heather and I've been enjoying wine for over 20 years. I'm the 2013 winner of the Wine and Spirit Education Trust Rhone prize for oustanding students at the advanced level.
My mission is to share my passion for the myriad varieties of fermented grape juice, hopefully inspiring you to try something new, or to host a Purple Teeth wine party in your own home or business.

My blog mainly features wines you should be able to find on your local high street or online, and occasionally, I will review restaurants, travel and other forms of alcohol, since my qualification covers spirits too. I believe it's important to enjoy the calories and the cash we spend on alcohol, and I hope my guidance can help you reduce the risk of making a bad buy.

When I'm not drinking wine, you'll find me on the dance floor where West Coast Swing is my dance of choice. Socialising with the friends I've made there from all over the world has also brought me new adventures in alcohol! And just in case you're interested, I also write a blog called Confidence Within. You'll find it at heatherharrison.weebly.com

Remember to enjoy wine sensibly...
For a woman, 2-3 units per day is the recommended maximum allowance. This equates to around one standard "pub measure" glass of wine:
175ml of 13% alcohol wine is 2.3 units (and a scary 140 calories).
You'll find all the facts you need about safe, moderate drinking at the www.Drinkaware.co.uk site.
Purple Teeth supports safe drinking. Never drive or operate machinery after drinking alcohol.

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