One Year On- A year of the Grape Press

 

Hey Everyone,

So I have now come to the first year anniversary (well a bit past it) since I first posted. A lot changes in a year; graduation, and amazing summer in St. Andrews and the United States, time spent working in New York City and helping set up a new company in the Auld Grey Toon. Visa problems for myself - and it seems most of my friends and now I am at new heights in my wine experience. It has certainly been an interesting year for the Grape Press and myself.

I have been in South Africa now for 8 days and my experiences have been tremendous. I have seen the most beautiful landscapes I've ever laid eyes on, I've tasted some amazing food and meat some amazing people. My objective; to explore the wines of this country has been well under way for some time, with some exciting results. I have meat young, ambitious and energetic wine makers, old hands with tremendous experience and plenty of other characters in and around this great town of Stellenbosch.

The enthusiasm that these people breathe is infectious, and if you come to a wine farm ambivalent to the product, you will leave an hour later as devoted to the wines as the winemaker himself. It is easy to get caught up in things here in Stellenbosch; because everything about the place is emotive. Every night there is a carnival atmosphere in the town and you can't help but have fun. Beyond the streets of town there is the countryside where the most striking landscapes imaginable can stun you without fail every single day.

I for one am finding myself increasingly devoted to South Africa's wines and the people behind the bottles. There are stories here that ring true with everything I want wine to be. There is romance and there is love for the land as well as artistry and awareness. I know that wine, unlike any other product has a penchant for getting passion from it's devotees but there is an intensity in South Africa that vindicates my devotion to the subject. There are themes that are beyond my ability to vocalise so I will not attempt to do them justice, but suffice to say that they are as great as the Helderberg Mountains and as complex as the country's past.

I hope over the past year you have enjoyed my writing and I look forward to continuing in 2013 and into the future. To see the huge changes over the course of the year, I am filled with great hope to know that just as much can happen in the coming year. Tonight find a glass of something nice, be it wine, beer, juice (whatever!) and enjoy it. I'll be doing the same!

(As always) Much Love,

G

 

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Pizza and Wine

Hey Folks,

I know we always hear about the ongoing search for foods and wines to match each other and produce winning teams of balanced flavour.  We hear of the surprising matches between Chinese food and Gewürztraminer, where the floral, spicy profile in the wine matches the intense, concentrated flavours of the Chinese sauces, as well as Riesling and pad thai. but I am tonight enjoying a wonderful paring on a bit of a budget.  Pizza for £3 and a bottle of wine for £7.99.

After a long day working in the shop, slowly recovering form a sinus cold and the aches and pains of a 14-hour day traveling to and from a trade-tasting in Manchester, I was feeling rather exhausted.  I just wanted to sit down, have something simple to eat, something relaxing and simple to drink and perhaps write a note to my readers.  In the divine scheme of things, my plans seem to have worked out and here I am, with a nice, hot cheese pizza and a glass of wine which I consider nearly perfect for the occasion.

Simple, inexpensive and satisfying.

It's a Biferno 2007 Rosso Riserva  from Camillo de Lellis, and it's making me lower the bottom end of my 'Sweet Spot' from £9 to £7.  Composed of Montepulciano, Trebbiano Toscano and Aglianico, essentially whatever grapes come to hand in the Tuscan countryside, it's a part of that class of inexpensive wines which I love so much.  The fact that the wine is cheap has nothing to do with low quality.  It is because the grapes grow so naturally and easily there and require so little labour, and the vines look after themselves pretty well.

It's simple, it's rustic and it has all those aromas and flavours of sour cherries and perfume which defines good, classic Italian wines.  As I consider this wine, I think about all those wines meant to imitate the long-lived high end Bordeaux, made with international grape varieties blended with native grapes, and part of me wonders why bother?

Of course, it is natural that a wine maker would want their art to achieve the highest level possible, and to produce something long-lived, with the ability to develop complexity and become a work of art that only time can create.  However, it should never be deemed to be a superior style of wine.  The blend of grapes here shows that the origins of this Biferno are in the soil and the native grapes grown since the Etruscan era.  It harkens back to the days when a wine maker could have cared less about what the names of the grapes were that went into his blend, so long as it came out right.  It was an organic process and one that developed over centuries and perfected itself, with the human element only complimenting, never dominating.

As I sip it, and munch happily and greedily on my pizza, I reflect on my appreciation for the humility of certain wines.  As kith and kin to a farmer's brew of cider, it is perfect to pair with the simple pleasures of the Italian larder.  It makes me think of the satisfying life-style of the Italian peasants of another era sitting down in the evening hours on the hillside overlooking their fields and drinking from the wine skin.  For that reason, needing something to sit back and relax, this sort of wine does just the trick.

I highly recommend, for a truly satisfying, rehabilitating night in, find a friend, get a pizza, split a bottle of wine and just chill out.

Much Love,
G

The Sweet Spot

In the grand scheme of things, wine is a luxury product.  Yes, there are plenty of wines at good value, some cheapies even selling for less than certain coffees at Starbucks, depending on where in the world you find yourself.  But in it's heart, the idea of modern wine is that it is a luxury and anything decent has to be too expensive.  The response; to torture ourselves with £5 bottles even though not much more money can get us something much more special.  Wine itself is produced quite cheaply, and for the bottom end of the price range, that is to say the bottles under £6, that price tag is built up with layer upon layer of tax, shipping costs, packaging and admin work. 

If you reduce it down, in fact, there is only about 30p worth of wine in that bottle of Anakena or Parrotfish.  So, even though you're paying a lot less for the bottle of wine, you're really taking the hit in a big way, paying more for all that extra cost.  For under £6 you're better off getting a couple of good beers and pay what they're actually worth.  I thought I'd do a bit of research into the various conceptions of what it means to be 'good value' and I've come up with a theory I think holds up pretty well.  It's called the Sweet Spot and it ranges from £9 up to £17, with of course a bit of flexibility.

In this day and age of pinching pennies, and denying ourselves the leisure-time activities we once enjoyed on a regular basis, like going to the movies, going out for dinner and the like, one thing that is still within reach is a decent bottle of wine.  Instead of paying for two people to go see a movie and footing the bill of popcorn, drinks etc. which can add up to nearly £30 all told, why not split a £15 bottle of a nice wine, cook dinner and make an evening of it? 

Lets look at what that £15 can get you... From the shop where I work (we have fairly standard prices across our range) that is more than enough for a nice white Burgundy, a bunch of damn good Rhone reds, great French country wines, a huge array of classic Italian bottles, and even some pretty yummy ports and pudding wines.  Split between two people, you can experience some truly delightful wines for not a whole lot of money, and use them to make a home-cooked meal all the more fun and interesting.

Lower down on the price range of the 'Sweet Spot,' you'll find some great South African Chenin Blanc like the Secateurs, and it's brother wine, the Secateurs red blend for about £9, some really saisfying Argentine Malbec or Chardonnay or even a surpisingly tasty Bulgarian Pinot Noir.  Even at this price, you're getting a vastly better value for your money.  The same amount of alcohol tax comes off an expensive bottle as it does for a cheap one, so a higher proportion of the price is actually for the liquid in the bottle.

Say you're planning a dinner party or may be going out for dinner and want to take a bottle along and want it to be something a bit special.  Lets say upwards of £17 for something great.  Easy!  You can get some beautiful Rioja like Vina Cubillo, really classic french wines like Bergerac and a few tasty, fun California Zinfandels.  Split that cost between a couple of peoplewho are already splitting the cost of the food and you have an essential ingredient for your meal, and one that can enhance the food like nothing else.

What I'm trying to get at is, you can splash out beyond the standard five pound bottles and realise that, in truth, the quality and pleasure gained from the wine goes up exponentially.  There is nothing quite so lovely as a great bottle of wine that was worth every penny you paid for it.  In this day and age, we can't afford to pay for something cheap and not get our money's worth.  The same goes for lousy wine.  Sure there are nice wines below the 'Sweet Spot,' but in terms of consistency, there's something to be said for this narrow price-band.

So go halfs with a friend and treat yourselves to something nice!

Much Love,
G

Here are a few recommendations for some really great value wines, though this is just a short list...
Around £9- Secateurs Red and White, Paul Jaboulet-Aine Parallel 45 Cotes du Rhone, Punto Final Malbec, Masi Corbec, Fatoria Lavacchio Chianti Rufina, and Cousino-Macul Antiguas Reservas Cabernet Sauvignon, Tramontane Macabeu

Up to £15 (mind this price band contains a huge array of great wines so this is just a small selection)- Paul Jaboulet-Aine Crozes-Hermitage, Thelema Shiraz, O. Leflaive Les Setilles Chardonnay,Velvet Devil Merlot, Kung-Fu Girl Riesling, Dry Creek Zinfandel, Filles de Mai Macabeu and the Wild Boar Syrah. 

Also check out the Niepoort Tawny Dee.  A tawny port for about £14.  Great stuff.

Up to £17- Thelema Merlot, Pascual Toso Malbec Reserva, Chateau Thenac Bergerac Blanc, Ecole No. 41 Semillon, Vajra Dolcetto d'Alba, Badenhorst 'Wine', Lustau PX Sherry and the lovely Camins del Priorat.