wine from the supermarket, this week Spar

In an effort to cover all supermarkets and in my quest to search out good wine,  I visited the local Spar. This supermarket is attached to the local petrol garage and I have to say, I have never used it for groceries. The wine section was fairly sizable,compared to the size of the shop. Sadly they seemed to cater for the unsophisticated pallet. There were crates of Blossom Hill and Echo Falls, which I guess were there in case they ran out of Petrol at the pumps. Just these two lines took up over half the stock.

Sancerre

In 2000, while on honeymoon, my wife and I spent a very enjoyable two weeks touring France in a vintage MG.
One of our stops, was in the Loire,in Sancerre. A wine supplier, that I used, organised for us to visit a vineyard and be treated as VIPs. Joseph Mellot was the vineyard and Alexander Mellot was our host.


We had a fantastic tour around and then were taken for lunch in their family run restaurant, in the town square. Since then, I have had great affection and loyalty to the vineyard. I have also bumped into Alexander Mellot at wine tastings around the country.

I felt a real loss, when I heard he had died prematurely, a few years ago.
My favourite wine from their range, is called Les Collinettes, this brings me back to the wine.

wines from the supermarket, this week the Co-op

Having had to eat my words about the Co-op, after finding out what a rich gold seam it is for wine, we are back. It has to be said that so far, out of all the supermarkets, the Co-op have provided good wine at good prices. I was very impressed last time, maybe I caught them on a good day, because the offers didn't seem as rampant in the wine aisle this time.
The two wines I have chosen this week are both from Portugal, both reduced from £8.99 to £4.49 and both blends.
The white is called "Storks Landing" and comes from the Vinho Regional Lisboa, which is the wine producing region North of Lisbon. The blend is made up of Fernao Pires and Chardonnay grapes.

wines from the Supermarket, this week Waitrose

This week, I had the pleasure of shopping at Waitrose. The products were laid out in a purposeful way.
Nothing looked out of place and everything looked in immaculate condition. When I paid for my goods, I noticed, that not only were they all intact, they could and would remain so on my shelves at home.
Waitrose has always been associated with lucrative months, in our house, so with this bias reporting, I headed down the wine aisle to see what was on offer.

Wines from the Supermarket, this week Lidl

Lidl is our shop of the week for wine. I have never understood Lidl's prices and I don't think they do either. Somethings are stupidly cheap and other things like staple grocery items,like milk and bread are priced as if shipped in from the moon.

The only place to buy Onions, car jacks and Bongo drums in the same aisle.

Last week I was complaining that Morrisons items can look a little damaged, Lidl items look like they have been glued back together and stuck on the shelf again. These places are an experience. Badges should be given to cubs and brownies, who go there, buy something and understand their bill.
Or who are able to pack, at the same speed as the checkout girl can scan and throw.

Made in Taiwan

A friend of mine asked me to choose some wine, from a wine list, this week. She organises scientific conferences around the world and her current project is taking place in Taiwan. The wine list that I was choosing from was from the restaurant, called "Shinyeh 101". It is in the 101 Building in Taipei, the tallest building in Asia and 3rd tallest in the world.

Unaware of where the list came from, I said that it was full of "Trophy wines" that were there to impress, more than sell.  The Bordeaux section came first and the first growths at the very front of this.

If they could put neon lights around it and play a fan fare, I suspect they would.  The East are very proud of their in-roads into the Bordeaux market, only buying Chateaux with "names".

The list went on, being very comprehensive and global.
There was nothing from China, which I would have expected.

The Butler's guide to wine tasting, taste.

The Butlers got taste
Part one

When drinking wine, some have a taste that disapears in seconds, others stay with you for a lifetime.
Pinot Grigios tend to be over too quickly and for me, tend to fall into the first category.
Chateau Musar is a delight and falls into the second, being both destinct and memorable.

To make things easy, we are going to break the taste into three stages: initial, middle and after.

The initial flavour, normally embodies some, if not all of the elements that came out in the smell.
With Chenin Blanc, the smell and taste both included pear.
Sauvignons have citrus notes, Cabernet has Casis and so it carries on.

Wines from the Supermarket, this week is Morrisons

It is a great remit, to visit different Supermarkets and see what wine is on offer.
When you get to the checkout, at some supermarkets, your goods look pristine and new.
At Morrison's, the goods look like they have been opened or thrown around a bit first.
It maybe that the shelf stacker's are required to be clumsy, but it always feels like they have been hosting "Its a knockout" in the aisles.

That all said, the selection and choice of wine is very good. There seems to be a good variety for all budgets and tastes. The offers seemed to be wide spread and useful, which counts for a lot.