The Perfect Cellar

I received some samples from a new online wine merchant called The Perfect Cellar. The idea behind this venture is carefully selected wines from lesser known French regions, making them available to the public in limited quantities.

Their website includes mixed case offers, wine gift packs, wine guides and features on the Chateaux that supply them. One particular selling point is that the wines are frequently featured in Michelin starred restaurants. In particular, there are six properties featured: Domaine Seguela (Roussillon), Domaine Bernard Baudley (Chinon), Brisson Jonchere (Champagne), Mas Amiel (Roussillon, Maury), Henri Bourgeois (Loire) and Chateau Parsac (Bordeaux, right-bank).

The Chateau Parsac is actually made by Chateau Pitray of Cotes de Castillon, which I rate as a great value Bordeaux region.

Another selling point - price. To quote the website: 'You no longer need to spend £££ to enjoy the Luxurious French Wines'. I'm not totally convinced everything The Perfect Cellar sells is a bargain. For example, they offer a gift pack of 2 bottles of 2006 Chateau Parsac for £39.99, knocked down from the 'regular' price of £69.88. This is quite frankly misleading. The wines themselves are worth no more than £8 or £9 a bottle - since Pitray's Grand Vin 2005 was only £8.99 a couple of years ago at Majestic. So after the wine, you're basically paying £20 for a box and a bunch of useless wine accessories (perhaps with the exception of the waiter's friend corkscrew). To be fair, you can buy 6 bottles of the Parsac for £60, which sounds reasonable, but not a bargain.

However, the regions represented here are in fact good value ones. Castillon and Roussillon are ones that I'm familiar with, rarely experiencing a bad bottle and never paying over the odds. Loire and Champagne less so, but the samples I tried were pretty good.

So, onto the wines.

Henri Bourgeois, Petit Bourgeois Sauvignon Blanc 2008. VdP Loire Valley. £53.94 / 6 bottles: Expressive, competent wine. Not overbearing a la NZ, but lots of SB character nonetheless. Good acidity. Well made. 3/5

Brisson Jonchere '3 Cépages' Champagne NV. £18.99 / bottle: '3 Cépages' translates to 3 varieties, so I'm assuming that this contains all three Champagne grapes. I could be wrong however, as there is no blending information on the label, The Perfect Cellar's website, or Brisson Jonchere's website. No matter though - I think it resembled a more Chardonnay dominated blend, with crisp, appley character. Bright and refreshing, this is my kind of Champagne. 3.5/5

Mas Amiel Maury 2008. AOC Maury. £95.40 / 6 bottles: This is a port-like fortified wine from the South of France. I should have decanted this, as it was quite closed. Still it showed quality but I will withhold a rating.

All in all The Perfect Cellar offers higher quality, cheaper alternatives to the consumer. Vintage Maury instead of Vintage Port, VdP Loire Sauvignon Blanc instead of Sancerre, and Cotes de Castillon instead of Pomerol. I applaud their choice of regions as they offer similar quality to much more well known, more expensive appellations. Most serious wine lovers are aware of these 'lesser' regions, but it's good to see a merchant concentrating on them. Just stay away from the gift packs!

Du Clos Gavin Crisfield Coteaux du Languedoc 2007

Another good wine from Virgin tonight. This is a blend of Grenache, Syrah and Carignan from the Languedoc.

Intense fruit on the nose with detectable depth and trademark spiciness of this type of blend. Tastes more expensive that it is and is drinking well now. It's apparently an 'old-vines' version of the cheaper 'Les Salces' bottling also available from Virgin.

The label on my bottle is different than the one in the image, but no matter. I'm increasingly looking toward the Languedoc-Roussillon for good value French reds - I'm thinking about buying my Christmas reds from this region. They can be 'big', but they are great for winter. They offer ripe fruit but also lots of character and you can get some really enjoyable wines for under £10.

Du Clos

'Gavin Crisfield' 2007

Coteaux du Languedoc AOC, France

Virgin Wines

£9.99

3/5

Chateau Maris Organic Syrah 2007

Waitrose is running their French Wine Showcase at the moment, where a selection of French wines are being sold at 25% off. I went in to see what was available, and there are a few interesting ones - notably a few from the Languedoc.

This is actually a Syrah/Grenache blend, from the biodynamic estate Chateau Maris. It's claimed on the website that this is from the Minervois AOC, but it's labelled as Vin de Pays d'Oc. I guess this blend doesn't satisfy AOC regulations, which is absolutely fine.

There is a lot of wine here for the price. It's very fruity, lots of alcohol (15%), a bit grapey (their website includes ' stewed fruit' in their tasting notes - accurate I'd say), but backed up by some good tannins. It's obviously a warm-climate wine and it's really enjoyable. I'd say it's the first red I've enjoyed for a while (although I've hardly been drinking any reds recently). My budget is tight these days, but maybe I can squeeze in a couple more of these.

Chateau Maris

Organic Syrah 2007 Vin de Pays d'Oc

Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Waitrose

£6.74 (£8.99)

3.5/5

Marquis de Pennautier Cabardès Rosé 2009

Is it just me, or has the rosé wine bubble burst? Every year we hear that consumption increases by X%, and that it is more popular than ever. If that is the case, then why does my local Sainsbury's currently have the worst selection of rosé ever? It's 95% complete plonk. Waitrose has on offer a grand total of 4 wines, and those include Gallo and Blossom Hill (the other two aren't any better either). All this when we are well into what looks like to be a hot summer?

Defiantly, I marched to Majestic at Clapham South. They usually have a good selection of rosé - everything from Provence to Spain to New Zealand. Unfortunately, they had a poor selection as well - at least less than they usually have, and not all of them had the 'buy 2 save £X' promotion. However it was better than the supermarkets had to offer, so I took advantage of their new walk-in policy that allows you to buy only 6 bottles.

Cabardès is a tiny appellation in the Languedoc, only about 500 hectares. Interestingly, it is the only appellation that is allowed to blend Mediterranean varieties like Grenache and Syrah with Bordeaux varieties such as Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. What this means for the wine I'm not sure, but it certainly makes it more flexible for the winemaker.

So how is the wine? After 3o minutes in the freezer to chill it down from room temperature (these days about 25C), I thought it tasted a bit rough. After another 20 minutes or so in its freezer sleeve it went down a lot smoother. I wouldn't say it's going to be a favourite around here - the slightly bitter finish, like a lot of rosé, makes it pretty average.

Chateau de Pennautier

Marquis de Pennautier Rosé 2009

AOC Cabardès

Languedoc, France

Majestic

£6.99 (£4.99 when you buy 2)

2.5/5

The Society's Corbieres

The Wine Society's own-label Corbieres is apparently a favourite with both Wine Society customers and buyers alike. In two separate advertising supplements (member's favourites and buyer's favourites), this wine featured prominently. It's main attraction seems to be value, obviously something that will get my attention.

I messed up again and threw out the bottle before taking note of the vintage (annoyingly, both the Wine Society website and the order confirmation email they sent don't specify the current vintage).

So...in all honestly I didn't really like the wine. It's OK - fruity and whatnot, but for me it's the wrong kind of fruit - raspberry and currants, along with a bit of bramble or hedge or 'garrigue' character, not something I'm really fond of. It's not surprising, reds from the South of France aren't usually my thing. For £6.95 it's not a massive bargain- there a lot of other wines I'd rather drink at that price, but I think this one's down to personal preference.

The Society's Corbieres

Corbieres, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

The Wine Society

£6.95

2.5/5

Wine Society Sampler

I mentioned the other day that I bought a bunch of stuff from The Wine Society. Because it's been a rather hectic past few days (not too hectic for wine though), I have managed to try a few more of these wines, but haven't managed a neat and tidy post for each.

So I'm just going to mention them here, along with a few thoughts about each one. They were tasted in various states of sobriety, but I do remember which ones we got excited about and which ones were duds. Here goes:

The Society's Claret (NV). £5.95. It's tempting to turn your nose up to a non-vintage claret, but why? Blending different vintages hopefully irons out the rough spots, and produces a consistent, affordable and drinkable product. This is relatively decent, a good mix of fruit, tannin and drinkability. I wouldn't call it thrilling, but that's OK. 2.5/5

The Society's St. Emilion 2006. £9.95. This was OK, probably about what you'd expect for a tenner. More refined than the NV Claret, but not sure I'd buy it again simply because I think there is better value out there. 3/5

Chateau Bois Joly Cotes de Castillion 2005. £7.25. This is probably what I'd go for if I were to buy a load of Claret. This right-bank appellation punches above its weight for the prices it gets. Good vintage, lots of tasty sour-cherry fruit and grippy tannin. 3.5/5

The Society's French Full Red NV. £4.95. Tastes cheap, is cheap. Not terrible, but not my thing really. 2/5

Grant Burge Benchmark Shiraz 2008. £5.95. This was delicious. It was one of the ones consumed fairly uh, late at night, but I we all loved it. Not your typical woody, boring Aussie Shiraz. This was wildly fruity with a touch of oak. Should cost more than this, but I'm glad it doesn't (and I'm hoping it doesn't sell out). Bonus half-point for great value. 4/5

Hilltop Estates Cserszegi 2009. £4.95. This idea with this was to find a good cheap aromatic white. Advertised as 'between Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminer in style', this sounds like it would be right up my alley. It isn't. It's sour, dilute and just doesn't taste very good. 1/5

I've got a couple of others to try yet, and will hopefully be able to post 'normal' blog entries about them.

Chateau de Pena Cotes de Roussillon Villages 2007

Over the next few weeks I'll be blogging about a bunch of Wine Society wines I just purchased. Most of them are the low end of the price scale, as always I'm bargain hunting.

This one at £6.50 falls into my usual price range, and it delivers. Actually, I had a bit of a blocked nose while drinking this but I could still taste the quality in it. A lovely, very fruity aroma and lush, dark fruit flavours on the palate make this a very drinkable red. Low in tannin, it kind of fits in with that soft, easy drinking style that I don't really like all that much, but the delicious quality of the fruit makes up for it. Good stuff.

Chateau de Pena
Cotes de Roussillon Villages 2007
Languedoc-Roussillon, France
The Wine Society
£6.50
3/5

Oddbins Own White 2008

It's been awhile since I made my risotto, which requires a cheap white in the recipe. One for the risotto, one for me, etc....

This time I dropped into my local Oddbins for a bottle of their own-label white wine. In truth, I wanted to look for some other stuff as well, but I thought this white would be a good one because after I used the glass or so needed for the recipe, the rest would be drinkable.

In fact, the wine is quite good. It's a blend of white grapes from the Languedoc region of France. Well-chilled, it's remarkably fresh, crisp and tart, a bit grassy, and refreshing.

I like the Oddbins own-label range. The rosé is fantastic. The red is so-so, not really my style but I think it would appeal to a lot of people. It's good to see quality wines offered for less than a fiver by this company.

Made for Oddbins by Paul Mas.

Oddbins

Oddbins Own White 2008

Languedoc, France

£3.99 (£4.49)

3/5

Antech Blanquette de Limoux Méthode Ancestrale NV

I first tasted this wine at a Wine Society tasting and it was one of those wines you just don't forget about. I included some in my next order, and I think it will probably be a regular for me.

This is an off-dry sparkling wine made from the Mauzac grape in the Limoux appellation in southwestern France. The wine is bottled in March, and fermentation occurs naturally in the bottle. The resulting wine is sweet and low in alcohol (6.5%). No disgorgement process occurs, which can apparently cause a cloudy appearance to the wine, although I haven't noticed this before (and haven't looked). The fermentation process seems to mirror that of the methods used by monks when sparkling wine was first discovered - bottling the must after the cold months of winter, fermentation taking place in the bottle in the spring and voila, sparkling wine.

This is a great match for fresh fruit-based desserts or pavlova. It really is a lovely wine, it has a nose and palate of fresh green apples, some sweetness balanced by tart acidity, and a dry finish. Not massively complex, but very unique and perfectly suited to the desserts mentioned above or an afternoon tipple.

This is produced by Antech, and there is a good profile of them here.

Antech

Blanquette de Limoux Méthod Ancestrale NV

Limoux AOC, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

The Wine Society

£8.50

4/5

Les Quatres Clochers Chardonnay Réserve 2007

I frequently find that I need a Chardonnay, and I don't have any. It's not something I usually stock up on, and I really have no excuse not to do so. Some food just requires it - anything with a cream sauce, risotto, chicken, pasta carbonara, etc. I usually have to run out and get some, instead of grabbing one from my "cellar".*

A little while ago Tesco had an offer where you could trade in your clubcard vouchers for Wine Club vouchers. You had to type in the voucher codes in their website, and you would receive Wine Club vouchers in the post, worth double the original value. Mine were due to expire in early September, so I had to use them up, and fast.

I had read about this Chardonnay previously when it was on offer, but they had run out of stock. It's now back in stock, so I decided to try it out.

My other choice (since I had to buy 12 bottles, and they only come in cases of 6), was Colomé Torrentes, a Decanter Trophy-winning Argentinean white. I have yet to try it.

Back to the Chardonnay. It's from Limoux, a region in the Languedoc probably more famous for its sparkling wine. It's pretty good stuff - medium bodied with a touch of spicy oak. It's elegant and nicely textured.

This wine got a few accolades in the press - but I'm wondering if that was for the 2006 vintage (as advertised on Tesco's website) rather than the 2007 (as I received in my delivery). 2006 was a better vintage in Burgundy apparently. However I don't mean to leave you guessing, for this price this is highly recommended.

*By "cellar" I mean wine rack in my bedroom, which is in the basement.

Sieur d'Arques

Les Quatres Clochers Chardonnay Réserve 2007

Limoux AOC, Languedoc, France

Tesco

£7.11 (online)

3/5

Alain Grignon Viognier 2008

Background context info here.

After trying Viognier only a handful of times of the last couple of years, I've decided that it's a "take it or leave it" type of wine for me. I can appreciate it, but it probably won't be my first choice on the wine list.

This one makes a good summer afternoon sipping wine though. It certainly doesn't lack character - strong aromas of peach and apricot and a palate to match, along with a smooth, creamy texture.

This bottle has been open for a couple of days now, and the wine is starting to take on a bitter flavour, which is not doing it any favours. However that is my own fault for not finishing it up sooner!

Alain Grignon

Viognier 2008

Languedoc, VdP d'Oc, France

Majestic

£6.99

3/5

Alain Grignon Cabernet Franc 2008

Oz Clarke has been tweeting about Alain Grignon recently. He likes him. I like Oz Clarke, so I usually try the wines he recommends.

Alain Grignon does a Viognier and a Cabernet Franc that are both available at Majestic. I bought both to try this weekend.

The Viognier is pretty good (post coming soon). The Cabernet Franc isn't. "Cheap wine taste" is pretty much all I can say about it. Actually no, it has a bit of tannin as well.

If anyone knows what I mean by "cheap wine taste", and can describe it in words for me, I'd be very grateful. I'm not trying to exaggerate here, but the last sip I just took made me do that shudder thing when you taste something you really don't like.

Alain Grignon

Cabernet Franc 2008

Languedoc, VdP d'Oc, France

Majestic

£6.49 (£6.99)

1.5/5

Preignes Cabernet Franc/Mourvedre 2007

This was purchased at the same time and for the same reason as this was, the only difference being this wine had a Decanter World Wine Awards sliver medal sticker on it instead of a gold.

Hints of dried chilli pepper on the nose and palate, along with some restrained black fruit (whatever that is). It has a bit of grip to it and a nice, gravelly finish. Definitely a wine of character. I like this producer, and I've only tried two of their wines so far!

For whatever reason these two wines don't show up on Majestic's web site - they must not be available all over the country. If you see them in your local branch, I suggest you try it.

Preignes

Cabernet Franc/Mourvedre 2007

Languedoc, VdP d'Oc, France

Majestic

£5.99

3.5/5

Preignes Petit Verdot 2005

We're down in Devon at the moment visiting my brother-in-law's family. We are all wine lovers, and it's turning into a ritual to visit the local Majestic whenever we get together. I had a few ideas in mind as to what to buy this time, but some others were spontaneous purchases.

This was one of that spontaneous purchases - mainly because of the Decanter World Wine Awards Gold Medal sticker on it. I'm glad I bought it. It has a highly perfumed nose, and lovely tannic grip, just like a good Bordeaux (it is a Bordeaux blending grape, after all). Really impressive, especially for this price range. It's a late-ripening grape, and perhaps is better suited to warmer weather regions than Bordeaux?

I probably shouldn't mention this, but we had this bottle open along with a bottle of Paul Mas Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, and I decided to mix them together in a glass. The result was pretty good - better than the sum of the parts. Why bother with single varietals when blending gives a much better, rounded experience? Is it just to appeal to drinkers of new world plonk?

Preignes

Petit Verdot 2005

Languedoc, VdP d'Oc, France

Majestic

£6.99

4/5

Paul Mas Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

I don't get Paul Mas. His wines have been the subject of praise from wine writers over the last couple of years. In fact, my very first blog post was a Paul Mas wine. I didn't like it, and I don't really like this one either.

My brother in law described this wine as "smooth". I guess that makes it good? Frankly, I don't want "smooth" in a Cabernet Sauvignon. I want jagged tannins and piercing fruit. If I wanted smooth I'd go for a Beaujoulais. That's just me - I guess there's nothing wrong with this. Maybe it's miles better than any other Cabernet produced in the Languedoc? Feel free to explain it to me...

Paul Mas

Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2007

Languedoc, VdP d'Oc, France

Majestic

£6.49 (when you buy 2 or more, regular £7.99)

2.5/5

Mont Tauch Reserve de la Condamine Fitou 2007

I don't drink a lot of red wine these days, it being summer and all. But I made an exception tonight because we were having steak (and not just any steak, but Marks and Spencer's 21 day aged peppered rump steak). My views on steak are similar to my views on Chardonnay - I only like it when it's of high quality, and then I'll really like it.

So anyways a couple of weeks ago I saw this Fitou at Sainsbury's for the silly price of £4.49 (down from £9.99). It's from Mont Tauch, and I've tried a couple of their wines before which ranged from bleh to (probably) very good. So here was another one, so why not try it?

It's actually pretty good. It has good fruit flavours and a decent tannic grip, and none of that thin, jammy character that sometimes plagues these supermarket Languedoc wines. Actually, this is a steal, and if there's any left at my local Sainsbury's I'm buying more. At this price, it should be long gone.

Mont Tauch

Reserve de la Condamine Fitou 2007

Fitou AOC, Languedoc-Roussillon, France

Sainsbury's

£4.49 (£9.99)

3/5

Mont Tauch "Les Quatres" Fitou 2005

We actually drank this wine a few weeks ago, so I probably shouldn't be blogging about it now, but it's a decent wine and you'll have to forgive me for the time lapse.

I had only tried the entry level Mont Tauch Fitou previously, and wasn't all that impressed with it. Despite that I felt there was a bit of potential there, and as mentioned in that blog post I was keen on trying a more upmarket bottling.

It was kind of a weird experience - it was a hot day, and nobody seemed in the mood for red wine, especially a beefy one like this. I think we had it with beef Goulash. It was a good match with the food but not the weather. I do remember it being hefty but with good fruit, most likely enjoyable in the right circumstances. It made a good enough impression for me to try it again.

Mont Tauch

"Les Quatres" Fitou 2005

AOC Fitou, France

Waitrose

£7.99 (£9.99)

Domaine de Félines Picpoul de Pinet 2008

Here's something a little different. This wine is made in the Languedoc from the Picpoul Blanc grape, apparently one of the oldest grape varieties in the region.

It kind of reminds me of a Muscadet. It needs to be very chilled, or else it starts to reveal a bit of a nasty, rough edge. The nose is pineapple fruit, and at the low drinkable temperature not much else is evident. It's cold and flinty, dry and crisp on the palate.

This wine is apparently best enjoyed with seafood or shellfish, or even cheese. I reckon if you were to try it then try it with this kind of food. I don't have seafood or shellfish at home very often (maybe the odd prawn), so I can't really verify this. We had it with salmon, and it was OK, but not a brilliant match.

You can read more about this grape variety and region here.

Domaine Félines Jourdan

Picpoul de Pinet 2008

Languedoc, France

Waitrose

£6.99 (£7.49)

3/5

Gerard Bertrand "Grand Terrior" Tautavel Cotes des Roussillon Villages 2006

This is a village level wine from Tautavel in the Roussillon. A blend of Syrah, Grenache and Carignan, it's a typical decent, affordable French wine in the under £10 range. Most of the supermarkets are coming up with wines like these, and they offer a very good alternative to the dull New World plonk that gets shoved in your face for the same price.

I actually found this a bit tannic, but we had it following a spicy meal, so perhaps that didn't do wonders for the taste. I wouldn't say that's a bad thing anyways. Usually wines like this are quite soft and easy drinking, but this had a bit more character to it. Besides that, it was pleasant, with good fruit and depth, and like I mentioned earlier a bit of a rustic edge to it.

Gerard Bertrand

"Grand Terroir" Tautavel Cotes des Roussillon Villages

Tautavel, Roussillon, France

Waitrose

£5.99

3/5

Oddbins Own Red 2008

This isn't terribly different than the Cuveé de Richard in my last post.  An easy drinking glugger from the Languedoc-Roussillon region in France, and similarly priced.  I'd say the Cuveé de Richard just shades it though.  The Oddbins version is slighter rougher around the edges, and with perhaps a bit more length, but overall it didn't seem as enjoyable.

Not bad if you want a cheap bottle of red that won't make you gag, but I would rather pay an extra £1.50 and get something genuinely decent.

Oh, and this is produced by Paul Mas, who seems to have quite a few fans among wine writers. I've tried his VdP d'Oc Cabernet, and wasn't a fan of that either.  Perhaps it's just a style I don't appreciate.  If anyone can recommend something by him that they think I should try, please do so.

Paul Mas

Oddbins Own Red 2008

Languedoc, France

Oddbins

£4.49

2.5/5