Latest news with #Beaujolais
Spectator
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Spectator
Wine Club: six summer delights from Mr Wheeler
With a seemingly endless round of lunches, dinners and tastings, it has been a punishing few days of far too much vino. Even dear Mrs Ray expressed her concern, although I thought that a bit rich given the state of her after Book Club. We decided, though, to take it easy, and I even foreswore my long-planned trip to Lord's for England vs India where far too many temptations and too many wicked, practised leaders-astray lay in wait. Oh yes, you know who are. I missed one of the greatest ever matches, of course, and kicked myself for being such a sap. Happily, just as I was sinking into a deep, dark gloom, a dozen or so bottles of fine Beaujolais arrived from Mr Wheeler, ready to be tasted for this offer. I looked at Mrs R and she looked at me and we agreed in an instant that abstinence was no fun at all and she ran off to get the corkscrew. I rustled up my humble version of Liv Potts's wonderful chicken pie, lined up the bottles and we dived straight in. All the wines are from mighty Maison Jean Loron, founded in 1711 and boasting vineyards in eight of the ten Beaujolais crus. With production overseen by Frédéric Maignet, MJL is one of the leading producers of the region, making – we both agreed – wines as tasty and as exciting as anyone. The 2021 Village Originel Chardonnay de Chardonnay Villa Cardenaco (1) is not, of course, from Beaujolais but – yes, you read it right – is a Chardonnay from the village of, well, Chardonnay in the Mâconnais. How satisfying is that? They've grown vines here in the commune once known to the Romans as Villa Cardenaco for almost 2,000 years, and it remains the grape's spiritual home. With plenty of white stone fruit and a lively, lemony freshness it's classic fare and made a perfect pipe-opener. £17.25 down from £18.45. By contrast, the 2023 L'Or des Pierres Beaujolais Blanc (2), from the so-called Pierres Dorées area of southern Beaujolais – thus named thanks to the golden hue of the local limestone – is more rounded and opulent. With delectably rich peachy, citrusy fruit there's also a hint of vanilla thanks to a touch of French oak and some fine lees ageing. This, we discovered, made a fine second serve. £17.25 down from £18.45. As for the reds, the 2022 Domaine des Billards, Saint-Amour (3), from the south-eastern edge of the Saint-Amour vineyard, is the latest vintage of a wine I've long enjoyed. 'Ooh, violet creams!' exclaimed Mrs Ray after having a quick sniff and gulp. I saw what she meant but I got more bramble fruit, cherries and even a touch of chocolate. Either way, it's dense, concentrated and full, with the softest of finishes and is deeply enjoyable. Our evening was shaping up nicely. £17.50 down from £18.95. If the previous wine spoke of violets, the 2021 Ch. Bellevue, Morgon Les Charmes (4) was all about raspberries – fresh, juicy, moreish, come-hither raspberries. Produced by rising star winemaker Elodie Rousselot from grapes sorted first in vineyard and then in winery, destemmed and vatted sans sulphur dioxide, the resulting wine spent almost a year in both concrete and steel and is all about freshness, vibrancy of fruit and sheer drinkability. £17.50 down from £18.95. The 2023 Ch. de la Pierre Brouilly Bonnège (5), from a microplot of 50-year-old vines within Maison Jean Loron's 12 hectare Ch. de la Pierre domaine, is quite punchy at 14 per cent vol. It's deliciously tasty, though, with intense, concentrated, full throttle dark fruit lifted by a perfectly judged underlying freshness. £20 down from £21.45. A previous vintage of the 2022 Champ de Cour, Moulin-à-Vent (6) won gold at the 2023 Decanter World Wine Awards and this, too, must surely have caught the judges' eyes, so toothsome is it. From old vines grown in the mineral-rich granite soil at the very foot of the fabled windmill itself, it's luscious, rich and concentrated, full of ripe cherry fruit and a hint of brooding liquorice. Mrs Ray's and my favourite. £21 down from £22.45. The mixed case contains two bottles of each wine and delivery, as ever, is free. Order online today or download as order form.
Irish Independent
18-07-2025
- Irish Independent
Bargain and blowout whites to pair with summer seafood
They also provide us with excellent cold-water seafood — so good that we export much of it to the likes of France and Spain, where we end up eating it on our holidays. Maybe it's time to channel those holiday flavours at home? Today's wine recommendations are all chosen as seafood-friendly pairings and include midweek into-the-basket bargains as well as special blowout options. As always with food and wine pairings, drink what you enjoy. If you're not a white wine fan, then a dry rosé is an obvious alternative, whether a simple bargain like Le Bijou de Sophie Valrose 2023 Coteaux de Beziers (€12, SuperValu) or a complex Provencal star like Clos de l'Ours 'l'Accent' Rosé 2024 (€30, Don't rule red wines out either. Opt for fresh, light-bodied, low-tannin styles that won't overpower the seafood: brighter styles of Pinot Noir (as opposed to heavy-hitter Burgundy), floral Gamay from Beaujolais crus like Fleurie, Spanish clarete or other 'vin de soif' red wines that suit a light chilling... the list goes on. However, white wine is classic with seafood for a reason — especially those produced with freshness in mind, and where the grapes' natural acidity has been preserved along with its aromatic characteristics. They say that 'what grows together, goes together', meaning that local foods and wines from particular regions often pair well together. Coastal wines often work with local seafood, as several of today's examples bear out. Margaret River in south-western Australia, Muscadet where the Loire meets the Atlantic, Rias Baixas in Galicia where the Albariño grape is queen: these are all wine-growing regions where cooling sea winds help to slow the ripening of the grapes and preserve their natural acidity. For fans of the classic pairing of flinty Sancerre with shellfish-like oysters, today's Greek island wine makes a fascinating alternative with lots of smoky volcanic minerality. Or for seafood dishes with sunnier, bolder flavours — say of a Thai-style curry — think riper wines such as new world Sauvignon Blanc or a Cotes de Gascogne blend like La Salette l'Essentiel (€15, O'Briens Wines) with its tropical fruit and flower notes. These punchier styles also work well with more robust fish like mackerel or — that ultimate taste of sea and sunshine — grilled sardines. Wines of the week Fillaboa Albariño 2023, Rias Baixas DO, Galicia, Spain, 12.5pc, €27 Saline Albariño from the coastal Val do Salnés subregion is a classic pairing for local lobster, octopus, mussels, clams and fresh fish, but don't rule out inland subregions like Condado de Tea, where this wine hails from a steep riverside plot. Fermented with indigenous yeasts and aged 13 months on the lees, the complex result has honeysuckle, white tea and savoury aromas, silky weight and great length but also taut acidity with grapefruit and green apple freshness balancing riper pineapple notes. Wines Direct (Mullingar and Athlone); Margaret River Sauvignon Blanc 2024, Western Australia, 13.5pc, €10.99 ADVERTISEMENT Learn more This generous but bone-dry Sauvignon (and a touch of Semillon) with exotic fruit aromas and hints of grassiness on the fresh palate is a robust match for Thai spiced seafood, as is Aldi's organic Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc (€9.99) with fragrant peach, papaya and nettle notes. Aldi Livia Sous le Végétal 2019, Samos, Greece, 13.5pc, €33 If you're looking to wow with an aperitif pairing for Irish oysters, this electric-fresh natural wine from the Aegean island of Samos just west of Turkey is made from old-vine Moschato Aspro (Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains) aged in old barrels to add layers to its smoky, mineral, flinty profile. MacCurtain Wine Cellar (Cork), Fallon&Byrne, Ely (Maynooth); Isolado Branco 2023, Douro, Portugal, 12.5pc, €10.99 Portugal delivers value in general, but Lidl's two Douro whites are real steals. Fresh, dry and crisp with attractive lemon peel and fresh pear character, this high-altitude blend of Verdelho and Rabigato is €8.99 until July 23 with Lidl Plus. Or try the simpler but crisp and clean Parcelas Douro Branco (€9.99). Lidl Domaine Haute Févrie Muscadet-Sèvre et Maine sur lie, France, 12.2pc, €22 Bright, lemony, crisp and bone dry, and a versatile pairing for any seafood — or raise the bar with Haute Févrie's lean, mineral Clos Joubert Muscadet (€24.50, Barossa Wines) or Jerome Bretaudeau's earthy, linear Granite 'Clos de Perrieres' Muscadet (€45, Green Man Wines). The Arch (Cobh), Pinto Wines, Blackrock Cellar,
Metro
05-07-2025
- General
- Metro
I'm a drinks writer — don't fall for this major red wine myth
When I chill a bottle of red wine, people look at me like I'm dunking a golden retriever puppy into an ice bucket. Honestly, the looks they give me are a mix of 'I can't tear my eyes away' horror, and wide-eyed curiosity (which they're clearly wrestling with). It's not that deep, guys, and neither is the ice bucket. It's a grossly overplayed myth that red wine can't be put on ice, which I am definitively debunking in this very column. Done correctly, chilling red wine can actually make it even more refreshing than a white. You'll have heard the phrase, 'room temperature' bandied around a lot. It's supposedly the best temperature to serve red wine. Here's the thing though, it originated in drafty 19th century French chateaux, not your toasty, double-glazed, central-heated living rooms. Only this week, our 'room temperature' has gone from sauna to vaguely sensible temperature after a sweltering, mini heatwave. See what I mean? According to research, the average room temperature in the UK is between 18 and 21C. The result of serving certain reds at that temperature is that they become 'flabby', meaning they lose their structure and freshness. When a red wine is too warm, the fruit flavours jump ship and all you can taste is the alcohol and the drying tannins. Not ideal. Chilling light to medium-bodied red wine works like a spark plug, waking them up with with a jolt of freshness. The fruit becomes juicy again, the aromatic compounds are enhanced, the alcohol becomes less perceptible and the acidity tingles over your tongue like it's supposed to. We have around 4,000 taste buds on the top and sides of our tongue, allowing us to distinguish between around 100,000 different flavours. Temperature is a major factor affecting the way we perceive taste and flavour and also how wine evolves. Wine is after all a solution of organic compounds that are constantly reacting to each other. Hotter temperatures makes these reactions happen faster, impacting the internal chemistry of the wine. Most of us are guilty of drinking our red wines too warm and our white and rosés too cold in this country. And look, I've banged on about the 20/20 rule in past columns, because it's such a game changer. It works for wines of all colour; whacking red wines in the fridge 20 minutes before you drink them, taking whites and rosés out of the fridge 20 minutes before sipping them. Thank me later. So, which red wines should we be shoving in the fridge then? Basically, anything that naturally leans towards the lighter, fruitier, crunchier direction with softer tannins. Beaujolais is practically born to be fridge-chilled, then there's Pinot Noir, Austrian Zweigelt, Italian Frappato, Loire reds, Nerello Mascalese from Sicily. In fact, I'm almost tempted to give medium bodied wines like Spanish Garnacha or Aussie Shiraz a little ice bath before sipping. The key is, we're talking cool, not Baltic, so aim for around 12 – 16°C with the heavier wines at the warmer end of that spectrum. Here are 5 reds that would benefit from an mild Arctic blast… Pinotphiles will delight in this one's pillowy, generous fruit and soft flavour profile. Chile is a good shout for budget wine, known as a viticultural paradise and its ability to grow just about any grape. The cooling influence of the Andes is ideal for Pinot Noir, a notoriously picky and high maintenance grape variety. If you're curious about chilling fuller-bodied wines, this is the one to do it with. It's full of fruit concentration, we're talking cranberries, wild strawberries and plums. But it's also fresh and juicy with a peppery finish, which makes it ripe for a bit of fridge-time in my book. This has barbecue wine written all over it, well, it should have. Super plush, juicy, generous fruit with a cheeky, savoury edge. It's on the rustic side, in a good way, so maybe not for fans of the silkier stuff. You'll find it masterful with grilled pork sausages, or your money back. Actually, forget that last bit. Beaujolais is the spiritual home of chillable red wine. Technically part of the wider region of Burgundy, Beaujolais Villages is a step up in quality from the regular stuff. All reds in this celebrated region are made from the Gamay grape, and like this one, they're soft, velvety and laden with damson, plum and cherry flavours. View More » Austria's most planted grape is pronounced 'zuh-why-gelt', also known as Rotburger. The latter is rarely used as it's the name of a convicted Nazi, and no one wants that. For all intents and purposes, the Zweigelt grape tastes like Pinot Noir, smooth, cherry fruit-driven with a touch of baking spice on the finish. Chill it before you swill it. If you count yourself a purveyor of the finer things in life, Metro's Drink Up column is where you need to be. Immerse yourself in the world of good drink, fronted by industry expert Rob Buckhaven – a place for readers to whet their whistle with the latest and greatest in the world of drinks. From unpacking the best supermarket wines from Aldi, Tesco and Lidl, to introducing audiences to the wallet-friendly Cremant out-bubbling the fanciest of French Champagnes (or the best wines to drink after sex), and finding out what it's like to go on a bar crawl with Jason Momoa, this is a haven for those who love to celebrate. Stay ahead of the curve as Rob plucks from the vines the wines of the season and the spirits you need to know about; speaking with experts and mixologists while unpacking the latest concoctions, finding the best non-alcoholic options for those looking to moderate, discovering the best food pairings for your drops, and going up against the latest TikTok chatter to demystify the liquid landscape. What are the best drinks to take to a summer picnic? Wine that you should never serve at a wedding And, truly, how should we be storing our wine? Read More. Do you have a story to share? Get in touch by emailing MetroLifestyleTeam@ MORE: The origin story of Baby Guinness reveals you've been doing the shots all wrong MORE: We tried London's 'incredibly chic' fried chicken – this is how it compares to KFC MORE: Teacher drank alcohol in class and got pupils to do the Macarena, tribunal told Your free newsletter guide to the best London has on offer, from drinks deals to restaurant reviews.
Irish Times
28-06-2025
- Lifestyle
- Irish Times
Four Fleurie wines to make you feel like you are summering in France
The village of Fleurie in France is appropriately named. Noted for producing wines with aromas of violet, rose and lilac and smooth easy fruit, it all sings of flowers and summer . Fleurie, familiar to a generation of Irish wine drinkers , is one of the 10 crus, or top villages, of the Beaujolais region. Basic Beaujolais is a joyous, gluggable drink – light, refreshing and fruity, a true vin de soif. It is perfect served lightly chilled at summer parties. The next level up in quality is Beaujolais Villages, which can offer great value for money. Each of the 10 crus has a different soil (always a variation of granite) and therefore different flavours. Morgon and Moulin-à-Vent are typically more powerful, Chenas and Chiroubles lighter and fruitier. Fleurie is the most aromatic, elegant and silky of all. More than 90 per cent of wine produced is red or rosé, although Beaujolais also produces some excellent white wines. The reds and rosés are made from the gamay grape. The wines tend to be fresh and fruity, perfect to drink young, although the best will keep and mature for a decade or more. You can drink them with a wide variety of foods. Fleurie village itself, set among rolling green hills, is well worth a visit and makes perfect picnic territory. Even if you are staying at home, a lunch of charcuterie, cheeses, salads and fresh crusty bread with a glass of Fleurie might make you think you are there. READ MORE Fleurie 2023, Goichot 13%, €17.99 (€10 when on promotion) Fresh ripe red summer fruits with a rounded finish. Drink by itself, or with firm cheeses and charcuterie. From SuperValu Fleurie 2023 Didier Desvignes 13%, €23.95 A delightful Fleurie with floral aromas, fresh juicy strawberry fruits and a savoury note on the finish. Drink lightly chilled with white meats, tuna, or mixed summer salads. The Drink Store, Dublin 7; Fíon Eile, Dublin 7; Lennox St Grocers, Dublin 8; Green Man, Dublin 6; MacGuiness Wines, Dundalk; ; Blackrock Cellars; Clontarf Wines, Dublin 3; Fleurie Poncié 2023, Pierre-Marie Chermette 13.5%, €24.50 Medium-bodied with voluptuous, smooth dark fruits and a lingering finish. Enjoy with chicken and pork dishes. The Corkscrew, Dublin 2; Jus de Vine, Portmarnock; Ely, Maynooth; Fallon & Byrne, Dublin 2; Fleurie 'Indigène' 2023 Domaine Grégoire Hoppenot 12.5%, €37.95 An exquisite fragrant Fleurie with elegant red fruits, good matching acidity opening out with a very fine finish. Green Man, Dublin 6; Martin's, Dublin 3;
Irish Times
06-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Two wines from Dunnes that work well with salads
Marlborough sauvignon is one of our favourite wines and with good reason. Coming from grapes grown in the cool maritime climate of New Zealand, the wines are an irresistible combination of clean ripe fruit and zesty lime acidity. Nautilus is one of the top estates in the region. Brouilly is one of the top 'crus' or villages in Beaujolais and produces some of the finest wines. As with most Beaujolais it supple and fruity, the perfect summer wine that pairs very nicely with a wide range of foods. The wine below is from a single vineyard. Nautilus Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Nautilus Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2023 13% abv €15 Benchmark Marlborough sauvignon with lifted herbal aromas, lightly textured mango, lemon curd and lime zest. Very keenly priced. This would make a great al fresco summer sipping wine or enjoy it with seasonal salads. Dunnes Stores READ MORE Brouilly 2023, Château des Tours Brouilly 2023, Château des Tours 13.5 % abv €15 Medium to full-bodied with very moreish concentrated blackcurrant and dark cherry fruits. Fantastic value for money at €15 a bottle. This would go with a wide variety of foods, including most cheese, charcuterie, roast ham or pork. Try it with a salade Lyonnaise. Dunnes Stores
