Painted Wolf 'The Den' Pinotage 2010

Grape:     Pinotage

Country:  South Africa

Region:   Coastal Region

Price:       £9

Store:      Portland Wine 

ABV:         13.5%

Pinotage belongs very much to South Africa, just as Carmenere belongs to Chile and Tempranillo to Spain.  Sure, other countries do grow these varietals, some with great success, but it is the home country of the individual grape that understands and is prepared to go to the lengths required to produce the desired effect.

Pinotage is a specifically engineered crossbreed between Pinot Noir and Hermitage, (also known as Cinsault).  Cross breeding took place in South Africa in the 1920's with the aim of producing a grape that had the quality of Pinot Noir but with a more reliable yield.  The first wines were produced around 1940 when the vines developed a maturity, generally recognised as suitable to produce high quality grapes.  Pinotage has grown to become synonymous with South Africa however, it does not appeal to all tastes and attracts criticism for its ability to develop an overly chemical-like taste and smell, similar to acetone or pear-drops.  This is not always an unpleasant taste but it does need managing carefully and effective control can be the difference between palate-bewildering, unbalanced flavours and a bloody good wine. 

Very strong on the nose, the aroma in this bottle comes to meet you, rather than the other way round.  Firstly and most powerfully is a vegetal and smoky smell which has a backwash of acetone.  At the same time, there is an undercurrent of overripe fruits; blackberry, cassis and damson.  The taste is full bodied and surprisingly smooth.  The vegetal influence dominates the start but allows fresh, red fruit tastes to come through, although they struggle to compete with the raw earthen feel.  The effect of the mild but grippy tannins are felt most in the aftertaste where they help to provide a long and sustained note.  This wine is far from unpleasant but may take you by surprise.

The full bodied structure makes this a great contender with food and red meats bind the tannin proteins well, allowing the fruits to open up more and give an almost caramel-like smoothness to the texture.  If you are the sort of person to reach for an Argentinian Malbec to go with your steak, give this puppy a try instead.

Portland Wines have several stores in the South Manchester/Cheshire area and can be found at www.portlandwine.co.uk

Fairhall Cliffs Sauvignon Blanc 2011

Grape:    Sauvignon Blanc

Price:      £7

Store:     Majestic Wine

Country: New Zealand

Region:  Marlborough

ABV:       13%

The mantlepiece in my front room is always the setting for the photographs on my reviews.  I am no expert but I like the light and the backdrop provides a warm and complimentary colour for the bottles.  The thing is, this will all change soon.  The wall behind is actually bare plaster from when Mrs Everyman and I decided we were going to redecorate the entire house and began stripping the walls.  The old wallpaper came off quite quickly but as the weekends fill with other chores and social events, the walls in the living room remain unchanged.  After a while, self-admonishment gets quieter and the state of the walls slowly becomes invisible.  A recent surge in joint effort means it won't be too much longer before changes will be made however, it really surprised me how something that obvious could go unnoticed for such a long time.

That made me think about wine.  Actually, the thought of decorating the entire house made me think about wine but more specifically, about the bottles we buy on a regular basis.  These are the wines that have passed the Everyman household test, great tasting and great value for money but like the front room walls, have been staring me in the face for weeks without me realising.  It didn't take long for this week's choice to move back into focus.

 

This wine delivers on the nose what I enjoy so much about NZ Sauvignon Blanc.  Very prominent and obvious is sweet and tangy passion fruit which carries well and can often greet you before you bring your nose to the glass.  There is a secondary smell, much less pronounced, which is reminiscent of warm straw and at the end is the tiniest hint of diesel.  I wouldn't go as far as cat's pee with this wine but it is close (yes, this is a desirable trait in a Sauvignon Blanc).  The opening taste is straight from the fruitbowl.  Fresh passion fruit, lime and grapefruit dominate the palate in a smooth and crisp fashion, and there is a mineral edge which plays through towards the end, re-enforcing the crisp acidity before a short and unremarkable aftertaste. 

This is a textbook example of a great Sauvignon Blanc from the new world with a very affable pricetag.  It's easy to see the reason why this stops being a wine and becomes part of the furniture.

Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi 2011 (Taste the Difference)

Grape:         Verdicchio(90%)
                     Trebbiano(10%)
Price:           £6.99
Store:          Sainsbury's
Country:      Italy
Region:       Marche
ABV:            13%

What draws you into deciding on a particular bottle of wine?  Do you think the shape of the bottle or aesthetic appearance of the label has anything to do with your decision?  I'm sure you have heard that the shape of Coca-Cola bottles are supposed to mimic the female form, designed to stir primeval senses and influence your choice.  Whether this is entirely accurate, I leave for you to tell me, but I do know that if I am stuck between two bottles, I will start to judge on what I can see.  If the bottle shape is pleasing and the label looks like it has been put together with care, this will score extra brownie points and will most likely tip the balance. This would be wine choosing at it's most superficial as these features contribute nothing to the taste or quality of the wine inside. While a book should not be judged by it's cover, neither should a wine. 

Another new grape for the Everyman, Verdicchio is grown widely in central Italy and is named in part for the green hue it can give some of the wine it produces.  Verdicchio is the principal grape behind two Denominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) wines in the provinces of Ancona and Macerata, Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi and Verdicchio di Matelica.   The other featured grape is Trebbiano which is widely grown throughout the world and is used primarily for blending with other wines as it has a high producing yield but is largely indistinguishable on it's own, making good quality varietals rare.  Interestingly, it is instrumental in the making of cognac.

One of the first things I noted when smelling this wine was the distinct lack of fruit.  Usually, there is a tell-tale sign of something but this wine simply did not have anything there to report.  Instead, a fresh and clear nose which leans more towards grass of the lush, green, dew soaked variety as opposed to dry and dusty, or hay.  The overall sensation is one of subtlety and there is a tinge of sweetness, although too faint for my nose to identify.  Nicely smooth on tasting, the palate isn't offered any significant or dominating taste but rather a notion of neutrality.  Dry but not overtly acidic, the wine keeps within herbal influences and perhaps a tip of the hat towards quince and orange although very difficult to draw on.  The taste remains balanced but sustained right through to the medium length aftertaste where it fades away rather than decaying.  Overall, a balanced and consistent wine that would feel out of place as the centre of attention but would quite easily be a flexible eating partner.  The neutral structure would make it especially good with delicate foods.

On some level, I am sure we have all made a judgement from what we have seen on the surface.  My choice this week was won by the uncommon shape of the bottle.  Now what does that say about the wine inside? Or me for that matter!