Mark's Blog

02 September 2006

This is always a strange time of year in the wine trade. As summer ends and autumn begins, it is both a time of anticipation and of reflection. This is a time to reflect on which wines I have enjoyed, what trends I have noticed in wine sales and how to develop the list for next summer.

For me personally, two wines that stick in the mind are the elegantly crafted Renner Gruner Veltliner from Schloss Gobelsburg and the wonderful Sancerre from Jean Max Roger. The Gruner is all flowers and charm, with elegant, well-balanced acidity and a finish that hangs around for an age. The Sancerre is a master class in Sauvignon Blanc - a wonderful bouquet of fresh cut pasture and then subtle gooseberry notes with a background of minerality. The extra lees ageing adds to the seductive mouth feel of the wine and a deft cut of acidity refreshes before culminating in a long, gentle finish. I must also give an honourable mention to the Monte Alina Verdejo from Rueda; this has been the stock wine in the Archer household over the summer months and is a firm favourite with Damina. The Monte Alina is fresh and vibrant with a bouquet of pink grapefruit; the citrus notes follow on to the palate with flavours of Sorrento Lemons and Florida Grapefruit. This is such a versatile and refreshing wine that I feel it should have a wider audience. It is worth noting that at only £6.29 it is fairly easy on the pocket.

The British public’s love affair with rose wine was still evident all summer with all our roses performing well at all prices. The Rioja rose from Luis Canas was a big hit, lots of strawberry and Raspberry fruit all with a little twist of spice. The Carte Noir rose proved to be very popular too, with its sleek curved bottle and delicate dry fruit. The winner for me though, was super stylish Marsannay rose from Bruno Clair. This great wine crafted from 100% Pinot Noir is soft and elegant and offers a level of complexity rarely seen in a rose. New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc once again sold beyond all expectations and one of the highlights of the summer for me was a tasting in London of every vintage of Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Noir ever produced by Isabel estate in Marlborough. The one thing that stood out in the tasting was how vibrant and fresh some of the older vintages of Sauvignon Blanc were. The classics also performed well with healthy sales of Loire valley whites and white Burgundy. There was also healthy interest in wines from Italy; this more than likely stems from an insatiable appetite for Pinot Grigio. The one wine that shone like a beacon both in repeat sales and tastings was Sicily’s own Inzolia from Villa Tonino. At just over a fiver, this ripe, tropical fruit-flavoured wine punches well over its weight.

As the cooler nights come along, my thoughts turn to bigger and bolder wines, which is lucky as we have an excellent collection of big reds from the new world and Europe as well. With this in mind I will be hosting a couple of workshops. One on Australia which gives me a great excuse to open up some top end Shiraz and Cabernets and also prepare me for my trip to Oz at the end of the year. The second one will be on Spanish wines, which I think we have a great selection of on our list. In fact this is going to be a seriously busy time for us at Vinology as we have a packed tasting programme for wine and for whisky all in the lead up to Christmas. There you go… It is only the first week in September and I have already managed to mention Christmas.

The one sad note to the end of summer is that I will no longer be entertained by the ever-present buskers on Henley Street. But oh boy, over the last week I have seen and heard some of the funniest things of the summer so far. Firstly there was the ear splitting bagpipes of a young girl whose proud mum was busy taking photos until, quite rightly in my opinion, was moved on by the birthplace security guard. I was also subjected to the strains of an authentically French accordion player who lost out on a head to head battle with the Polish guitarist with his off-key shouting of the Beatles’ Yellow Submarine. But I shall save the best until last. Picture this.. a young ginger-headed lad playing the fiddle and a little black lad accompanying him doing some totally rubbish Irish dancing. I had to go and get a picture of this great comedy moment. This is the surreal world of working on Henley Street.

And finally, one thing that I shall not miss; during the warmer weather the back door to the shop is propped open to create a delicate cooling breeze. One thing that we did not count on was that our very picturesque back yard with its lovely trees and plants backed on to the kitchen of a local Balti restaurant. Now I am a big fan of Asian cuisine but the smell can be a little off putting. For example, I was tasting some samples of Portuguese wines that we had requested only to lose the delicate aromatic nose of the Bical grape variety to a pungent cloud of garlic and curry powder. Cheers.