TalkTV: Pinotage Wines for Pinotage Day

South Africa’s flagship red grape Pinotage is an interesting one. It’s actually a crossing of two French grapes, Pinot Noir and Cinsault, the latter of which used to be known as Hermitage in South Africa. This is where the name came from - Pinot-age! Geddit? Pinotage is famously rich, meaty and smoky like a good South African braai. In the past, it was a grape that made wines that could be a little rough around the edges but these days, you can find some very beautiful, silky ones with plenty of plush plum fruit flavours. Here are three wines showing Pinotage three ways to celebrate both Pinotage day this Saturday, October 8th and the recent South African heritage day.

Van Hunks Sparkling South African Rosé

Van Hunks is a sparkling wine that is hand crafted in South Africa using the traditional method, just like in Champagne. All the wines are bottle fermented in small batches and matured in contact with the lees for approximately 30 months, which gives them a creamy texture and weight. This rosé is made with Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, with a splash of Pinotage to add flavour, colour and richness.

Find it at Amazon for £20.25

Kanonkop Kadette Pinotage Rosé

Kanonkop spend a lot of time working with the Pinotage grape and this wine comes from the Perdeberg, which is the largest single block of Pinotage in the world. It’s quite unusual to make rosé from this robust, full-flavoured grape, but Kanonkop have pressed on and created somethign delicious. Aromatic and vibrant, it has notes of rose, summer berries and refreshing red apple.

Find it at Majestic for £9.99 mix six price

Tesco Finest* Stellenbosch Pinotage

Here we have a fantastic, accessible, modern version of a red Pinotage without the burnt rubber, bonfire stink. It’s light on its feet, velvety and fruity with lots of juicy, bramble fruit. Incredibly drinkable, this is a brilliant mid week red for your spag bol or lasagne. Hailing from South Africa’s most famous wine region, Stellenbosh and created for Tesco by renowned producer Stellenrust.

Find it at Tesco for £7.50

Want to know what else we’ve been tasting on talkTV? See here!

talkTV: Beautiful Boxed Wine!

Boxed wine has come of age. Long gone are the days when the only thing you could find in a box was rocket fuel, thanks largely to advancements in technology, keeping wine fresher for longer. You can read more about why we should all be drinking boxed wine here and in the meantime, here are three bag in box wines that look as good as they taste to celebrate International Box Wine Day!

Domaine Wachau Gruner Veltliner, BIB Wine Company

The BIB Wine Company were the first, in my eyes to make PROPER wine in boxes ‘a thing’. Through them, I first saw proof that producers were putting their faith in the technology and allowing better and better wines to be boxed. BIB Wine have also nailed the packaging with their sleek, matte grey boxes that fit beautifully in the fridge (and look great on the counter top), they have impressive sustainable credentials and most importantly, offer top class wine that would be much more expensive if it were in glass bottles.

This Gruner Veltliner, which is Austria’s flagship white wine grape, is crisp and fresh with a fine minerality and kick of spice on the finish. A great alternative to wines like Gavi, Chablis or Picpoul.

Find it here for £40.90 for 2.25L box (£13.63 per 75cl bottle)

Lot #9 Luberon Rosé, Laylo Wine

Laylo believe that you drink with your eyes and they are right. Their beautiful boxes would not be out of place as the centrepiece at your dinner party. Entrepreneurial duo Laura and Laura (love that) set up their company after being convinced of all the positive reasons to drink wine from boxes, but annoyed that all the ones they could find were ugly and unwieldy. They work with small, independent wineries to hand pick a small selection of delicious, easy drinking wines in various styles.

This Luberon rosé hails form the most Provençal or Provençal areas. think blue shutter, pétanque and chocolate box houses. This pink is vibrant, fruity and easy drinking with that quintessentially Provence mineral core. Delicious.

Find it here for £34.99 for 2.25L (£11.66 per 75cl bottle)

Rosso Puglia Organic Wine, Terre di Faiano

It’s a box in tube form! Looking as good as a well packaged Easter egg, this boxed red wine has been a Waitrose favourite for quite a while now. If you’re a fan of bold, chocolatey wine, this one is for you. Made with a blend of red grapes with the figgy and cherry scented Primitivo leading the way, this wine is organic and vegan to boot! A great red wine as the weather turns and a winner with meats, burgers, stews and grilled veg. Even better, it’s on offer right now for Organic September - 20% off!

Find it here for £20.79 for 2.25L (£6.93 per 75cl bottle)

Tune in at 12.45pm GMT every Thursday for The Thursday Club with Mke Graham

Thursday Club with Talk Radio: Accessible Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a word that is capable of striking fear into many people who want to get to know wine. We know it's good. We don’t necessarily know why. We know that it can be super expensive but we’ve also seen bottles for about six quid. It’s fair to say it’s all a bit confusing. 

In a nutshell, Bordeaux is a wine region in France down on the central west coast and it’s mostly famous for making expensive red wines using a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and a few others. While this is true, there are some world class white wines that come from this region, which are usually a blend of Sauvignon Blanc with Sémillon as well as more entry level whites, pinks, reds and sparkling ‘crémant’ wines. In recent years, the revolution really has been with the quality of these more price accessible bottles. 

Here are some to try:

Maison de la Rougerie Brut Crémant de Bordeaux

Bone dry with a whiff of floral aromatics, think crunchy green apple and white fruit. Made in the traditional method just like Champagne, this is an exceptional value fizz. A gret one for Bucks fizz or Kir Royales. 

Find it at Iceland for £8.75 

L’émigre Blanc 2020, Graves

Fine white Bordeaux will be a blend of zesty, citrusy sauvignon, with the more axy, weight Sémillom and the result is rich and intense yet elegant . This white Bordeaux is organic with great intensity offering well defined flavours of elderflower, lime and blackcurrant leaf. 

Find it at Virgin Wines for £14.99

Château Barreyres Haut-Médoc 

This is a typical ‘left-bank’ Claret, based on Cabernet Sauvignon with a whack of Merlot. Hailing from the posher part of the left bank, this is an old school style of red with cedar and blackcurrant notes with a lean, mineral core. Fab value for a lovely Cru Bourgeois.

Find it at Sainsbury’s for £13

Thursday Club with talk RADIO: The famous grapes from Piedmont, Italy

This week on the Thursday Club, we start to feel a little more Autumnal and head to Piedmont in Italy, which always comes into it’s own at this time of year. Think truffle hunting, wild boar stews, foggy mornings… it’s just beautiful. Piedmont is also home to some of the most famous wines in Italy. It’s the home of Barolo, Barbaresco, Gavi, Barbera and Dolcetto to name but a few and all are fantastic food wines. Today we are looking at three grapes that deserve your attention: Arneis, Barbera and Nebbiolo. Huge thanks to Corney & Barrow who supplied al l the wines for this tasting.

Roero Arneis, Cascina Ghercina, Italy, 2019

Keep your eye out for this white grape as it becomes more popular. If you’re looking for an alternative to Gavi, this elegant little white is for you. Arneis is the grape and here it comes from it’s spiritual home in the hills of the Roero, northwest of Alba in Piedmont. It’s a tricky grape to grow, which is why it’s often called the little rascal, but when treated properly, it flourishes to give a crisp, white wine with delicate floral aromas, notes of ripe pear, apricot and a touch of sweet spice. 

Find it here for £12.95 

Barbera d'Alba, Fratelli Antonio e Raimondo, Italy, 2019

The pretty, foggy hills of Piedmont’s Alba is the perfect place for classic Barbera (that’s the grape) like this one. Silky smooth and perfumed with notes of red cherry and fruits of the forest, this is a red for those who like less tannic reds like Pinot Noir without the bombastic fruit and oak of the New World. Quietly elegant and seductive, this is cracking with charcuterie too.

Find it here for £12.75.

Langhe Nebbiolo, Pian delle Mole, Giulia Negri, Italy, 2019

Nebbiolo is the most famous grape of Piedmont and one of the most notable in Italy, being responsible for the wines of Barolo, Barbaresco and Gattinara. It’s a paradox, looking quite pale and elegant in the glass but packing real power on the palate. Think Dita Von Tease and what she can do with a pole... The elegance but oh, the power! Tar and roses is the classic tasting note for Nebbiolo as well as a touch of marzipan, violet and truffle when it has a bit of age. They can keep for years thanks to the tannin and often need time to age. When from the Langhe region however like this one, they can be much more fruit forward and ready to drink earlier. 

Find it here for £18.50

Thursday Club with talk RADIO: Classic Iberian Wines

This week on talkRADIO, we are continuing the Iberian theme for the summer as most of us can’t get out to Spain or Portugal. I’ve gone for three wines in very different styles that you may have heard of, but not be sure what they are. We have a white, a red and a dry sherry. Yes! It’s time to taste that again.

ILUSIONISTA, Verdejo, Rueda, Spain. 

Rueda is another Spanish wine region that favours white wine, and these whites are made with a grape called Verdejo. If you like a more tropical style of Sauvignon Blanc, you will love this. It’s aromatic, zesty and limey with notes of smoky passion fruit and guava. There’s a creaminess here too that makes it a great food pairing wine and as you’d expect, it loves Spanish cuisine. Try it with seafood, white meat, carpaccios, sushi and semi-cured cheeses.

Find it for £11.15 from Vinissimus here.

Tio Pepe Fino Sherry, Jerez, Spain.

Don’t run away! This is not the sweet stuff your nan drinks. Sherry is one of the most misunderstood wines in the whole world. I think it’s because the word itself sounds sweet! The truth is, classic, ‘proper’ sherry is dry. Bone dry. If you’re into salted almonds, twiglets and salty umami goodness, then you should give it a try, chilled in a small glass. It’s incredibly moreish and fantastic with salty snacks. Fino is made with a grape called Palomino fino, hence the name. It’s made as normal dry white wine, then fortified with grape spirit to around 15% and aged in barrels under a type of yeast bloom called ‘flor’. You could also switch thing up and try it in a ‘Tiojito’ instead of rum. So refreshing! Here’s more on Fino and the other style of Sherry here.

Find it for £10 from Sainsbury’s here and many other stores

Extra Special Douro Red, Portugal.

In the past when we thought about red wine from Portugal, it was all about Port: a fortified red. Nowadays however, Portugal is producing some fantastic DRY red wines that are totally unique to the country and provide fantastic value for money as they are less famous than others. The main red wine grape used to make quality red Port is Touriga Nacional and the Douro wine region is king for this. It often forms the backbone of the red wine blends (they’re usually always blended), with the rest being made up by several local red wine grapes. Always big and bold, think blackberry, prune, blackcurrant and cinnamon spice. Open it up early to give it some air and it would love some grilled meat or even dark chocolate.

Find it on offer for £4.88 (down from £6.50) at Asda here.

Thursday Club with Talk Radio: Unusual Pinot Noir

Thirsty Thursday means it’s time for the Thursday Club on talkRADIO! This week, it’s about Pinot Noir - ‘the heartbreak grape’, so named because due to its thin skin, it's very difficult to grow to its best potential and has caused many a winemaker nights of lost sleep. When conditions are right and it goes well however, it makes wonderful, elegant, aromatic wine. 

Today’s Pinot Noirs are a little different as they are not from places you might necessarily expect and certainly not from the most famous regions for them, namely Burgundy in France, Champagne and California. Welcome to a Pinot Noir fine Wine special. 

Sancerre Rouge ‘Les Champs Clos’ Pinot Noir, 2019 FRANCE

Sancerre is always white, right? Wrong! While the majority of Sancerre wine is white, 20% of wine production there is actually red and it will be made with the Pinot Noir grape. Mind blown? I thought so. Sancerre is a region in France’s cool climate Loire Valley and it is the spiritual home of the white grape Sauvignon Blanc (White Sancerre = Sauvignon), but it suits a cool and elegant style of Pinot too. Think floral notes of violet with crunchy, red cherry and berry fruit and a moreish, tart acidity. 

Find it at Sainsbury’s here for £11.50

Bolney Estate Pinot Noir, 2020, Sussex, ENGLAND

English still wine used to be a bit of a joke, with germanic varieties producing wines that were at once screeching high in acidity yet also too sweet. Nowadays, we’re finding that many serious producers are looking to the key champagne grapes like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay for their still wines and having much better results - globally award-winning results in fact. The founders of Bolney Estate had the foresight to plant back in 1972 in Haywards Heath, West Sussex as only the 6th commercial vineyard in the country. Now, the winemaking team is lead by the daughter of the founders, Sam Linter. Her Pinot Noir has won multiple awards internationally and the 2020 is just released, with its soft, velvety red fruit, hints of earth and coffee beans with a touch of chocolate dipped cherry on the finish. 

You can also visit Bolney for a wonderful day out. They have tours, tastings, a bar, a lovely restaurant and an event space available to book. When we can do that again!

Find it at Waitrose Cellar here for £17.99 and Bolneywineestate.com

Akitu, Central Otago, New Zealand

Pinot Noir is one of the very few red grapes that is frequently used to make white wine. The most common version of this is of course in Champagne and sparkling wine; it's much less common to see still, white Pinot Noir like this one. Hailing from just beside Lake Wanaka on 250 million year old schist soils in New Zealand’s Central Otago, lots of sunshine and dry autumns give amazing fruit purity and complexity. The delicate pink gives away the grape’s red skin and subtle notes of raspberry, white chocolate, honeysuckle, citrus and mandarin. There’s also a proper, creamy texture that makes this a silky, serious white wine.

Find it here at The Champagne Company for £32

Thursday Club with Talk RADIO: Chardonnay

Join Helena every Thursday with Mike Graham on talkRADIO for the Thursday Club! This week, Helena took us all on a tasting tour of the Chardonnay grape. Here’s what she tasted with Mike and where to find them:

Crisp & Chalky: Chablis

Chablis is a region in cool climate France, famous for a style of Chardonnay that is crisp and chalky - perfect with seafood. Chablis is not normally associated with oak (though at the loftier premier cru and grand cru levels, there is sometimes a little). We tried Irresistible Chablis, J.M. Brocard from the Co-op.

ABV: 12.5%
Size: 750ml
Find here: £12.50.

Creamy & Fruity: Chile

If you like your Chardonnay with a whack of fruit and creamy, vanilla characteristics, then head to the New World: Chile, New Zealand or Australia in particular. These can be oaked or un-oaked. We tried Chardonnay, Montes Reserva, Curico Valley, Chile, 2020 from the Co-op.

ABV: 13.5%
Size: 750ml
Find here: £8

Blanc de Blancs Champagne

If your Champagne has ‘blanc de blancs’ written on it, it has to be 100% Chardonnay. Meaning ‘white from white’, it refers to white wine from white grapes, which in the Champagne region of France means it can only be Chardonnay. The other two grapes that can be used in Champagne are both black (red): Pinot Noir & Meunier. Champagne Delamotte is one of the most respected houses in the Champagne region. We tried Blanc de Blancs, Champagne Delamotte, Le Mesnil-sur-Oger.

ABV: 12.5%
Size: 750ml
Find here: £27.25 for a half bottle.

Have you tried Crémant? Made in the same way as Champagne but at a fraction of the price you can’t beat it! Check out our suggestions here.