September is the season for the French wine sales.
There are two great sales starting next week which focus on French Wine. The Dunnes Stores French Wine Sale features many of their core range of French wines as well as some serious gems that are worth taking a look at. Some of their key producers include the very popular Monastier range, as well as Pierre Ponelle (Chablis), Max Roger (Sancerre), Chateau Pennautier (Cabardes) and Laurent Miguel (Languedoc). Dunnes also offer a range of fine wines from Bordeaux, Burgundy, Rhone and South West France in their sale which starts on Tuesday 9th September.
“Fine wine” and “German discount chain, Lidl” are words that don’t often appear in the same sentence, but that’s about to change. Lidl will be selling 42 French wines from a range of regions including 13 White, Dessert and Rose Wine from Alsace, Loire, Burgundy, South West France, as well as a Bordeaux Dessert Wine and two Rosés. They will be offering 30 red wines from Beaujolais, Bordeaux, and the Rhone wine region.
Lidl have been utilising the tasting skills of number of MW’s (Master of Wines) in the UK lead by Richard Bampfield which certainly adds credibility to the range they are about to offer. The “Wine Cellar” range is on offer in both the UK and Ireland with prices ranging from €7.99 to €34.99. This is not just about value, it is about the customer understanding the difference between value and price, people who do understand wine will see that a Margaux on sale at €29.99 is a very good price for a wine at this level. Some of the wines ARE expensive but they do offer very good value for what they are. The Lidl French Wine Sale will start on Monday September 8th and run through the month of September while stocks last. A further 40-50 wines from the Wine Cellar range will also be on offer in the weeks leading up to Christmas.
2010 Chateau Maugresin de Clotte (Castillon - Cotes de Bordeaux) €11.99
Stockist: Lidl
This is what we call a Bordeaux “look alike”. The Côtes de Bordeaux is divided into four sub-regions Blaye, Cadillac, Castillon and Francs. Located on the right bank of two rivers the Garonne and the Dordogne on hillslide vineyards, the style is very similar to Bordeaux but significantly cheaper, here is where you will find great value.
Château de Clotte is a small-production estate located in the Côtes de Castillon AOC of Bordeaux. Bruno Laporte’s Château de Clotte has a total of 12 hectares under vine on clay and limestone soil. The average age of his vines is forty years.
The Maugresin de Clotte is his second lable and this wine is made from a blend of 30% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Malbec.
2010 was a good vintage in Castillion and the Côtes de Bordeaux the warm Autumn meant that the grapes achieved full ripeness. Alcohol tended to be high this wine comes in at 14.5% abv but there was good acidity which mean the wines were well balanced. Definately a year to keep. This wine has a wonderful spicy finish, the oak is noticeable and the tannins are lovely and firm. Lots of creamy vanilla notes on the nose. At this price this is a really good wine to buy and keep.
2009 Chateau Andron Blanquet AOP Saint-Estèphe €19.99
Stockist: Lidl
2009 was a good vintage the northern Médoc’s appellation of Saint-Estèphe where this wine comes from.
Saint-Estèphe is located in the most northern part of the Medoc. Five classification growths of the 1855 Grand Cru Classe are located here including Ch. Phélan Ségur and Ch Ormes de Pez only a stream separates it from Pauillac where you find the great first growth Ch. Lafite.
Chateau Andron Blanquet received a 90 point score from Wine Enthusiast a US magazine and website specializing in wines, spirits, food and travel. On a 100 point rating 90–93 is deemed to be Excellent.
I loved this wine when I tasted it in France in June. It has hints of liquorice and smoke on the nose, a lovely spicy structure and lovely ripe jammy fruit aromas.
The structure is outstanding in terms of what I found on the palate. This is drinking well now but I imagine it will develop and improve for at least another 3-5 years and maybe even more. Everything was well integrated in this wine, fruit, tannin, and acidity. It had lovely spicy flavours and the tannin was firm but with buckets of fruit underneath. I gave this a four out of five star rating. At this price the wine offers amazing value. One to buy and keep!
Wine Courses
The language described above comes from 25 years working in the wine trade, but like everyone else I had to start somewhere. I studied the WSET (Wine & Spirit Education) courses to Diploma level . For anyone working in the wine trade the WSET is the only qualification recognised globally.
Autumn sees the start of wine course seasons. There are many on offer for beginners and for those who are interested in getting involved in more serious studies.
For more information about a range of courses on offer countrywide go to the wine course section of my website where you will find all the information you need http://goo.gl/U4qjpC
For information about wine events go to www.jeansmullen.com
