Category: Waitrose

A very happy new year to you all and welcome to my first post of 2020. With the madness of the Christmas festivities and overindulgence that goes with it out of the way, at last things can settle back to some kind of normality. Perhaps the most significant thing that has happened to me over the Christmas period is that I have now officially retired, so no going back to work for me, although it…

Organic wines seem to be springing up everywhere and there seems to be more and more winemakers around the world using the principles of organic farming to produce their wines. They work with nature without the help of artificial or synthetic chemicals such as herbicides and pesticides to grow their grapes, with perhaps the odd sheep or two grazing amongst the vines to keep the weeds at bay creating a natural ecosystem. Some say that…

I have to bring to your attention two white wines which I have enjoyed during our recent spell of hot weather. To start with I revisited a Vinho Verde from Waitrose/Majestic that I first tasted a few years ago and then a real gem of a find from the Co op, a quite superb Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (Sovee Bee). The Vinho Verde was a real surprise I will explain why in a moment and the…

Always a bit sceptical about celebrity endorsed wines but in this case the man himself cricket legend Sir Ian Botham is renowned as a passionate wine lover especially the Aussie stuff and was deeply involved with the creation and actual making of these wines working closely with award wining wine makers Nick Badrice, (Chief winemaker Dorrien Estate, Barossa valley) Marty Edwards (The Lane vineyard, Adelaide Hills) and Geoff Merrill (McLaren Vale). There are 3 in…

Fancy a nice white or Rosé ? it may be perfect for those summer evenings sitting in the garden with the sun shining but have you considered a light red wine slightly chilled, maybe a Beaujolais, Pinot noir or how about a Bardolino? Bardolino is an Italian red wine produced around lake Garda in the province of Verona and named after, surprisingly, the town of Bardolino Probably a wine to enjoy young and fresh and…

Regular readers will know I rate wine with a simple Cork rating and back in September 2018 after a long while searching for my first 9/10 corks I tried a Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand called the Elara by Waimea which I was blown away by and now it just happens that another Sauvignon Blanc this time from South Africa the De Grendel has equally impressed me enough to award the elusive 9/10 Corks again….

A Super Tuscan, a wine made in Tuscany that uses the IGT label, doesn’t follow the traditional DOCG rules but still uses grapes grown in the Tuscan region. Well, this Villa Antinori 2015 is from Tuscany, yes it is made with predominately Sangiovese and yes it includes non-indigenous grapes including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah from the area but is it truly a Super Tuscan, when I say super I mean is it really a…

If you ever find yourself struggling to decide which wine to open for guests, whether it be a dinner party or just a get together with friends then reach for a bottle of Les Dauphins and I promise you won’t be disappointed.  This French brand from the Rhone valley is the creation of the Co-operative ‘Les Cellier des Dauphins’ which is one of the largest producers in the area and made its debut in the…

Most people think of Andalucia as mainly a holiday area full of hotels, tourists, sunloungers and fiesta, so when you see this bottle on the shelf although there’s no doubting it’s a Spanish wine with its colourful abstract Flamenco label, where it’s from may come as a surprise. This is a blend of Tempranillo 50% and Syrah 50% made in the cool ‘Laujar valley’ vineyards high up in the Almeria Province of Andalucia, located between…

Times, they are a changing in the world of rosé wine. The image of it being a young persons pre-drink of choice before going out on a Saturday night bender where it’s easy to down and just as easy to find it coming back up again, may well be a thing of the past, maybe it’s wishful thinking but what I do know is there is much more quality rosé wine around now to combat…

This ‘Les Nivières’ French beauty which comes from the banks of the Loire in the castle town of Saumur is a fresh, vibrant Cabernet Franc and I must say it’s one of the better examples of this grape variety that I’ve tasted in a while. Waitrose & Partners currently have it on offer at £7.49 (normal price £9.49) which is fantastic value for a wine of this quality. Cabernet Franc most commonly found as part…