O'Briens Wine Blog

It has been a very slow start to the campaign as the market has waited to see what the better known Châteaux would do with their release prices. Following the initial big boom from Château Lafite (reduced by 40% on 2010) and Cos D’Estournel (45 % less than 2010) there has been a deafening silence from the other big Châteaux.

In the meantime there has been a flurry of releases from lesser Château and from all the old reliable, good value names like Chasse-Spleen, Ormes de Pez, Sociando-Mallet.

The problem is most of these have only decreased by 5-10% on last year’s prices. Why? Simply because – they argue – they didn’t hugely inflate their prices in 2009 or 2010 so there is nothing to reduce them from.  Fair enough that is mostly true, however it may make them look a little pricey if the big names cut their prices deeply.

Well, that is exactly what happened yesterday the release of the highly sought after Pontet-Canet at 34% less than 2010 caused quite a stir and sold out in a matter of hours with the London Merchants. This in turn has led to other big names following suit today: Pape Clement 40% cheaper than 2010, Giscours both 40% and Gaffelière 37 % cheaper and more are sure follow.

What all this means is that the lesser known Château although some have made very good wine will likely suffer because famous names such as Lynch-Bages, Léoville-Barton, Palmer and the Pichons may become affordable for the first time since 2008. We all await their release with bated breath……

Already Pontet-Canet (we have a couple of cases left) looks like a comparative steal at €903 per dozen compared to last year’s €1309. Château Giscours too is a good buy at €357 when compared to the 2010 price of €527 and although Parker much preferred the 2010 but Decanter’s Stephen Spurrier had the two vintage’s almost equally pegged and both rated as 4**** wines.

Whatever happens it is going to be an interesting couple of weeks and if the famous names are sensible there may be some very good buys to be had, stay tuned…..

Current En Primeur offers.

For a limited time we have a mini sale on some really special wines. This sale is exclusive to the website and our Beacon store in Sandyford. Quantities are limited so if you spy a particular favourite or want to try out a 94 Parker Point wine then be quick!

The wines are:

Numanthia 2006 94+ Points  JM (Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate) – was €44.99 now €34.99

“The mid-level 2006 Numanthia is a deeper color than both vintages of Termes. It displays a brooding bouquet of wood smoke, Asian spices, violets, espresso, black cherry, and blackberry. Dense, rich, powerful, and incipiently complex, it merits 5-7 years of additional bottle age and will offer prime drinking from 2015 to 2026.”

Chateau Leoville Barton 2008 92 points Robert Parker – was €69 now €52

“Typically extracted and powerful (which is atypical in a vintage such as 2008), this offering may lack charm, but it is “locked and loaded” with plenty of background oak, huge black cherry and black currant fruit, medium to full body and a boatload of tannin. Forget it for 8-10 years and drink it over the following three decades.”

Pauillac de Latour 2004 91 points Tomás Clancy – Sunday Business post  - was €59 now €51.99

“”…while not cheap, it is very well made. It is classical in style with around 55 per cent Merlot and is quite glossy mid-palate, with cedar, vanilla and leather notes. Still quite grippy, it needs another couple of years, but is a smart, well made wine, offering a touch of greatness at discounted if not cheap prices.

El Puntido 2005 94+ Points  JM (Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate) – was €44.99 now €36.99

“Purple/black-colored with a brooding nose of great promise, it shows off notes of new oak, crushed stone, scorched earth, roasted herbs, incense, and blackberry. Voluminous yet elegant on the palate, it is mouth-filling and rich with gobs of fruit and plenty of ripe tannin”

Torbreck Steading 2007 91 Points  JM (Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate) – was €36.99 now €30.99

“The 2007 Steading is the same blend as the Juveniles bottling but aged for 2 years in old oak. Reminiscent of a quality Chateauneuf-du-Pape, this purple-colored wine emits aromas of Asian spices, lavender, garrigue, black cherry, and kirsch. Dense, sweet, and concentrated, it has excellent grip, succulent flavors, and a lengthy, fruit-filled finish.

Chateau Phelan Segur 2008 3*** Decanter - was €39.99 now €31.99

“Black-red, floral, fragrant nose of black-red fruits, an elegantly expressive palate, both fleshy, faintly spicy and leathery and already showing complexity, a polished wine. Drink 2014-20.”

There are less than 30 bottles left for some of these wines so grab what you can. In a couple of weeks I’ll announce the next line-up in Cult Classics …stay tuned!

……………………..Luzon Crianza

 Oh really, why is that then?

I don’t think there is a better red wine, under €10, to be found in Ireland at the minute.

What’s so good about it?

Firstly it’s from Jumilla..

Where?

Exactly, no one’s ever heard of it, well not quite no one but this isn’t really a name which jumps to mind when you think about Spanish wines; it’s no Rioja or Ribera. This works to the wine drinkers advantage because the region is less well known and therefore less in demand so pricing still remains sensible.

Ok so it’s great value…what else?

Jumilla is hot; conditions here are not unlike Barossa in Australia so grapes ripen well,  you can ripen Mourvèdre, Syrah and Cabernet fully and by doing so make big chunky wines with buckets of black-berried fruit.

So this is a big chunky wine?

Almost; this manages beautifully to combine very ripe Mourvèdre and Cabernet with Spain’s most important native grape Tempranillo. The result is a medium to full-bodied red with succulent dark fruit, sweet spices and good supporting oak (it’s a Crianza and gets 12 months in barrel).

What about food?

I have eaten thanks.

No! What food does this wine go with!?

Sorry….perfect for a good steak, grilled lamb chops, lamb tagine. Very versatile really but it is also the kind of wine you can continue to drink after a meal i.e. it’s smooth enough to be enjoyed on its own.

So where can I get it?

All 31 of our stores have it at €9.99 until the 27th of May or get it here. Enjoy!

Waking up at 4am to catch the 6 o’clock flight to Stanstead, nearly an hour’s travel into London on the Stanstead “Express” and 45 minutes packed into a very hot tube - sardine style - and I begin to wonder is this going to be worth it.

But as soon as I arrive at Lord’s Cricket Ground and enter the tasting hall the sight of rows and rows of unmarked tasting bottles gives a buzz of excitement that says “its worth it alright”.

This is the International Wine Challenge 2012 and I am here to judge flights of wine neatly wrapped up in foil bottle-covers to hide their identity.

Good start; the Judge assigned as our panel leader is Robert Parker’s right hand man; Neal Martin, who turns out to be an affable and involving panel leader. The other Judges are a UK wine journalist, a wine lecturer, a fine wine specialist from Brazil and me.

The first flight, funnily enough, is a run of Brazilian Sparkling wines and our job is to rank them as “Medal Potential”, “Commended” or “Out”; Golds and Silvers etc. come next week. This was an interesting start with two of the wines certainly looking worthy of a medal, although the rest were not terrible, many simply lacked acidity and balance. Our Brazilian companion was admirably unbiased and judged the wines purely on their merits and faults.

Palates at the ready; next up a total change and it’s Australian Viognier, followed by; southern French whites, Chilean Carménère based blends and reds from Alentejo in Portugal. Then just as we thought we had hit the wall, lunch came to our rescue.

Tantalisingly the next flight after lunch was to be mid-level Gevry Chambertins, a real treat with some beauties in the mix. More Viognier followed, more Chilean reds, very good Marlborough Pinots and the last flight of the day was  a series of Germanic style Rieslings from New Zealand rangeing from off-dry to intensely sweet.

Some definite medal winners were picked out of this montage of contrasting styles and qualities, a great day’s tasting. Palate weary but elated I said goodbye to my fellow judges and headed back into London’s rush hour.

This is the second time I have judged at the IWC and in the 3 years since I was last here I could see vast improvements in (the already very good) organisation. A lot of work has been going on in the background to ensure that the IWC holds its place as the world’s premier wine contest. To give an example, the Australian Wine Research Institute (the gold standard of wine analysis) is there for the full two weeks to test for wine faults in returning samples.

I look forward to the results later in the year and hope some of our own imports go through to the big prizes. In the meantime if you want to get a taste of previous IWC award winners try any of the wines below:

Longview Red Bucket Shiraz/Cabernet 2009 – Gold

Man O’War Vineyards Dreadnought 2009 – Gold

Man O’War Vineyards Valhalla 2009 – Gold

Terredora Falanghina 2009 – Trophy

How quickly this time of year comes around again, doesn’t seem like a year since we were battling for spitoon space at the last En Primeur campaign! Having only just returned from the 2011 Bordeaux En Primeur* barrel tastings what follows here is a quick overall review of the wines of this “challenging” but potentially good value vintage.

The Ducru line-up

 The Positives

The quality of the wines is a lot better than initial reports had led the wine trade to believe, this was not as tough a tasting as we had feared.

There are some beautifully – made, classic wines with very pure fruit, good acidity and powerful but ripe tannin – these should age well. Other wines are juicy and ripe with softer tannin and should fare well for the midterm but won’t be early drinkers.

The prices will assuredly be considerably lower than the sky rocket vintages of 2010 and 2009 with Decanter magazine claiming a solid source has predicted the 1^st growths to release at half the price of last year.

 The campaign will begin a lot earlier than last year with prices expected to be released in a fortnight’s time and this should not drag out over months like last year’s extended campaign.

The Negatives

 Much harder to find good wines at the lower price points as those Châteaux that had the  resources were able throw everything at selective harvesting and berry selection. In general the richer estates made the best wines!

Look away if you want to drink these early, the best wines have high acidity and are big on tannin, and they will need time.

€3.5 million investment pays-off at Fourcas-Hosten

My top picks:      

Left Bank: Château Kirwan, Château Rauzan-Ségla, Château Pontet-Canet, Château Leoville-Poyferré Pichon Longueville, Pichon Longueville Comtesse, Château Lynch-Bages      

Right Bank: Château Troplong-Mondot, Château Canon La Gaffelière, Château Figeac, Château Pavie, Château Pavie Maquin, Château Clinet    

Whites: Domaine de Chevalier Blanc (dry),Château Coutet(sweet),Château Suduiraut (sweet)                                                                

Top picks for (predicted) value:

Château Belgrave, Château Clement Pichon, Château Lalande-Borie, Château du Glana, Château Ormes de Pez, Château Fourcas-Hosten, Château Sociando-Mallet

In the Meantime:

If however you are keen to pick up a vintage that is currently offering superb value then have a look at our two special offers on the 2008s. From tomorrow both Château Léoville-Barton and Château Phélan Ségur will be promotion as a Web and Beacon Store only offer, and both represent a seriously good bottle of Bordeaux at a decent price.

*En Primeur is the system used to sell wines form Bordeaux as “futures” which means that you pay for the wine when it is still in barrel at the lowest price possible. The wine is delivered two years later and you have to pay duty, shipping and vat. The total should still be considerably lower than the price you would pay for the wine on general release. If you would like to sign up for our EnPrimeur offers please call 01 2176210.

Easter Sunday is one of those occasions when families get together and sit down to a special meal and in many cases the wine on the table will be a little bit better than the regular Sunday lunch wine. So what follows are some recommendations for traditional Easter food; chosen to be something special and to suit various budgets.

 The Big One – Roast Leg of Lamb:

One of the most classic accompaniments to this is Rioja. There is something about the strawberry/bramble fruit of good old Rioja and the sweet note lent to it by ageing in American oak that makes it a sublime match for roast lamb.

 On a tight Budget? Sierra Cantabria Seleccion Rioja (€9.99) -with 6 months in oak and terrific fruit this is a beauty from the hands of Marcus Eguren one of Spain’s most acclaimed winemakers. This outclasses most Crianza level wines on the market.

Wanting value and class? Monte Real Rioja Reserva (€12.99) – this has lots of the savoury, rich soft fruit of a classic Rioja but both vintages available (2004 & 2006) have an extra layer of dark fruit underpinning everything. It is quite simply a brilliant match for lamb especially if studded with garlic and rosemary

Splashing out for the big day? Muga Reserva (€16.99) – an iconic Rioja from one of the region’s finest producers, big rich full flavoured style with great depth of fruit character more akin to blackberry than strawberry. Nevertheless this is ideal for lamb or even roast beef if that’s on the menu. Or if Rioja is not to your liking then the big, soft red fruit and fine savoury quality of Domaine la Crau Châteauneuf–Du-Pape (€19.99) will serve as a perfect replacement

 The Alternative-Roast Chicken:

It’s not always lamb that hits the table on Easter Sunday, roast chicken is popular and is one of the most “friendly” foods when it comes to finding suitable wines, it can work with whites, reds and even some rosés.

On a tight Budget? Cave De Lugny Macon-Lugny (€8.99) Classic match, with good weight and delicious ripe, golden apple and pear fruit and classic Burgundian balance. For a red to do the trick at lower price our tip would be Gérard Bertrand Pic Saint Loup (€9.99); although Syrah based this is not a heavy wine has a beautiful freshness to its fruit that will work with the chicken.

Wanting value and class? Sauvignon Blanc can work really well but it needs to be rich style and none come much richer and flavourful than Insight Vineyard Sauvignon Blanc (€12.99) from Marlborough. If it’s a red you are after then the silky smooth, wild strawberry/cherry profile of Château de Fleurie (€13.99) is the ticket and it’s pretty delicious on its own.

Splashing out for the big day? Again we are going to opt for a Sauvignon here but one with a more classic accent but with plenty of intensity and no shortage of vibrant fruit; Henri Bourgeois Porte de L’Abbaye Pouilly-Fumé (€17.99). With the red go for the dark cherry fruit , vanilla and warm spices of Musella Ripasso (14.99)– just darken up the gravy for this one as it’s fairly rich.

Lastly – if you really must- Hot Cross Buns and a glass of fruity Prosecco are a happy couple and our favourite is the peachy/pear flavoured Rizzardi Prosecco (€14.99).

Leading Chilean wine producer and a big favourite of ours, Emiliana, almost  swept the board at the Wine Industry’s “Green Oscars” this week; The Drinks Business Green Awards 2012.

 Not only did they pick up “Best Picture” or Green Company of the Year but they also scooped this year’s Sustainability Award. 

For the last 14 years Emiliana have been busy converting a huge amount of land to organic and *biodynamic vineyards as well as gaining fair-trade certification and pursuing carbon neutrality. No other producer in South America and few in the world are even approaching Emiliana’s shade of green. Certainly there are few with over 900 hectares certified organic of which 580 are also fully certified as *biodynamic.

 “today we realize that being 100% organic and sustainable from the social, environmental, andeconomic perspectives is possible. We are tremendously proud to obtain this award and it motivates us to continue working in the same direction”  José Guilisasti – General Manager of Viña Emiliana

In terms of wines the results of all this hard work are some of Chile’s most exciting and highly praised wines the most obvious of which is Coyam, a wine that has achieved almost cult-like status as well as huge success internationally. The Ge is another step up; it is their icon wine and unarguably one of South America’s finest wines with a price to match.

For a more affordable taste of the Emiliana’s organic excellence the Chicken Run Sauvignon Blanc and Syrah are well worth seeking out both express perfectly the purity of fruit and overall balance which I believe defines Emiliana’s wines. Incidentally the wines are called Chicken Run because chickens are used as little dual function  pest controllers and fertilizers! However there is one more wine which captures everything that is exciting about Emiliana and that is Etnico a rich, juicy blend which Emiliana have nicknamed  “Baby Coyam”. Utterly delicious.

 Things can only get better as this dynamic producer strives to better itself year on year and continues to demonstrate an insatiable appetite for improvement and innovation.

Fair Trade.  Social Responsibility. Certified Biodynamic .  Certified Organic. Sustainable . Carbon Neutral

 *Biodynamic is the cutting edge of organic viticulture. The vineyard is treated and considered in its entirety. The vineyard is worked in accordance with nature’s cycles to raise a healthy crop without the use of chemicals. Biodynamics uses animals and beneficial plants to take the place of herbicides and pesticides.

The results are in for one the world’s biggest and best run wine competitions and the touchstone for excellence in New World Wines: The 2012 Sydney International Wine Competition. Good news for us is that two of the top prizes went to our direct imports; Whitehaven and Man O ‘War.

 BLUE-GOLD Award Winner and one of the TOP 1OO Wines of the Competition:

 Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (2nd year in a row!)

 “Absolutely fabulous. Stereotypically Sauvignon Blanc with gentle green herbs and complex fennel and watercress characters. Glossy palate smooth and even. A very sophisticated person put that wine together.” – Judge’s Comments

 BLUE-GOLD Award Winner:

 Man O’ War Valhalla 2010

 “Dark complex flint and liquorice nose. A very fine pure elegant wine with subtle power and good persistence”….. “A rich nose of ripe tropical fruit complex lees and oak aromas. The palate is rich and complex with lovely length” – Judge’s Comments

 The 2010 Whitehaven Sauvignon Blanc (which won the same award last year) is available instore and online and similarly there is a little 2009 Valhalla still available until the 2010 lands in Ireland.

Just in case you thought that buying trips were all jolly old tastings and fancy wine dinners, here is a quick re-cap of Day 1 at the busiest Wine Fair in Europe – Prowein.

4.30 am leave for Dublin Airport, check in and wait for 7 am flight – must try to sleep on the plane!

9.50am arrive at Dusseldorf Airport and take a bus to the Messe Centre – home of Prowein.

10.30am check in our bags and begin tasting; first up Fleur McCree with Insight Vineyards – 3 wines to taste including their spectacular 2011 Sauvignon Blanc.

Next up is our Uruguay meeting and a tasting of a dozen wines from our direct import Bodegas Juanico. Impressive Merlots and Tannats with the Bordeaux style Preludio (back soon) taking top honours and indeed turning out to be one of the star wines of the whole show.

Just across the hall and we meet and taste with three South African estates starting with the cool, ‘fresh as a mountain stream’ whites and reds of Delheim Estate. No surprises here apart from the arrival of new winemaker the highly acclaimed Reg Holder of Neil Ellis! A bit of a coup d’état for Delheim that one –  although just started his influence can already be seen in the 2011 Chardonnay – completely unoaked for the first time and tasting particularly pure and elegant

Keeping in a cooler climate theme we taste through Cloof’s impressive range of windswept reds from the Darling region. New vintages of our current wines: Inkspot, The Very Sexy Shiraz and the Cellar Blend all looking good and there may now be a chance to take on new additions the Cult Cabernet and The Very Posh Pinotage. Then it’s over to another potential South African import for a 9 wine tasting of some pretty impressive cuvées.

Including a few impromptu stops we are about 45 wines in at this stage so it’s time to stop for a quick lunch before the big sit down tasting with our chief Chilean import Emiliana.

Everything  tasted with Emiliana was from their organic vineyard range and I can honestly say there wasn’t a dud amongst the 20+ wines.  So good in fact we immediately booked 500 cases of Novas Cab/Merlot and 200 cases of Novas Viognier . We finished at Emiliana with our current vintage of the iconic Coyam and the new vintage of top cuvée Gê 2008 –  very little from Chile is at this level of brilliance.

A hop over to the Portuguese arena and two of our direct imports laid out a dozen wines to taste, once again we were left speechless by the white Tons de Duorum. It amazes me that a wine of this aromatic freshness and liveliness of fruit can come from the baked slopes of the Douro Valley. It amazes me further that we have any stock left it’s so ridiculously good for the money.

Big Chilean reds followed by Portuguese whites and reds, so what better for the palate than to delve straight into Bodegas Luzon’s powerful Crianza’s and Reservas from Jumilla! As with the climate here consistency seems guaranteed and followers of Castillo de Luzon and Altos de Luzon needn’t worry as the follow on vintages for both wines are excellent.

One last table to visit and it was manned by none other than Lucio Mastroberardino, Lucio presented five wines from the Terredora estate. Despite palate fatigue and general weariness these terroir driven whites and reds almost stole the show. I for one will be stocking up on the Greco di Tufo and Fiano and keeping an eye out for the tiny quantities of Taurasi that might just make it over to Ireland.

 At this stage (7 pm) all anyone wants to do is have a quick bite and crash but there are post-fair meetings to attend and phone calls to make, if I am asleep by midnight I’ll be lucky!

Domaine des Sénéchaux 2007

Old Vine Grenache at Sénéchaux

Ingredients: Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre

Equipment:You will need very old vines for your Grenache (see picture) and preferably good age on your Syrah vines too, if you want to reach the required level of concentration. For  seasoning you will need large old oak barrels and at least a dozen barriques (small 225 litre barrels)*

 * for best results this oak should come from Château Lynch-Bages but if you can’t access these another leading Grand Cru Classé will suffice.

 Method:

Ripen your grapes on some of the best soils in the region, try to make sure there is a high density of Châteauneuf’s large flat pebbles or “pudding stones” – these will be able to store up heat during the day and release this latent heat at night to aid ripening. (See Picture)

"pudding stones" at Sénéchaux

Pick each vineyard parcel at optimum ripeness and pick by hand to ensure the grapes are in  the best possible condition when entering the winery. Ferment and age your Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre separately. Use the large old oak barrels for your Grenache and Mourvèdre and the smaller oak* (at least one year old) for your Syrah.

Finally mix all the ingredients together and fine lightly before bottling. Leave for 4-5 years  before tasting.

For best results decant an hour before tasting and match with your best fillet steak.

NB: This is a  recipe that needs great care in its execution and should only be undertaken by highly qualified/experienced winemakers.

(Source: Visit to Domaine des Sénéchaux – Wednesday 22nd February)