This red wine is made from the xinomavro grape which is sometimes compared to nebbiolo. This example does not look like anything from Piedmont, but it’s very interesting for sure.
Interesting Greek red: Naoussa Alta 2021
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Another outstanding monastrell from Bodega Cerrón: La Servil 2022
A mid-tier wine from my favourite Jumilla producer, Bodega Cerrón. If you are into monastrell or pure, new wave Spanish reds, I highly recommend you to try it.Aging supermarket wines: Auchan’s Blaye Cotes de Bordeaux 2018 and 2019
Arguably the whole point of a supermarket wine is that it’s ready to drink off the shelf. Many of these are just not capable of ageing, but there are exceptions – for example the reds of Bordeaux. Even the most simple bottlings (selling for around 3€) can keep well for a few years, and for just a bit more money you get something that ages really well. Continue reading
Supermarket wines: Tesco Finest “Ebeira” Ribera Del Duero 2022
You get what you expect. I’m sure there are more transparent wines made in Ribera Del Duero these days. Continue reading
Hungarian flagship reds IV.: Gere Kopar 2020
The last wine from the blindtasting covered by previous posts is probably Hungary’s most famous big red: the Kopar from Gere. It was first made in 1997 if not even earlier, so there’s history to it; it’s made to last and I can confirm that it’s able to age for 15 years or more. Personally I often found it a bit too sweet in the past, but the current release is just great.
Chateau Larrivet Haut-Brion 2020
I wanted to put a great Bordeaux into our Hungarian flagship line-up (see previous three posts), for reference and also for fun. Tasted blind I found it a bit Italianesque with its power and warm, Southern character – thought it was from Villány. It came out at second place for me. As a compliment to the Hungarian ones, they were in the same league, at least when it comes to concentration and complexity.
Hungarian flagship reds III.: Heimann Barbár 2019
Heimann Barbár combines Bordeaux varieties with a bit of kékfrankos, and perhaps even more interestingly with a splash of tannat. The 2019 vintage is highly acclaimed by the Hungarian wine media, but it was less successful in our blindtasting.Hungarian flagship reds II.: Sauska Cuvée 7 Siklós, 2019
Next in the big red lineup I mentioned last time was the Sauska 7 Siklós, a Bordeaux blend from Villány. Compared to the Merengő, it comes from a warmer region and there is no kékfrankos included in it, yet the wine is not that dissimilar.
High-end bull’s blood: St. Andrea Merengő 2021
With a bunch of friends I took a look at a few Hungarian flagship reds in December. These all have some history, in some cases stretching over two decades. They are very well-known (in Hungary) and widely distributed; they are partly or entirely blends of Bordeaux varieties (not surprisingly, as they were created in the late 90s or in the 2000s, inspired by international cult reds).
Standout kadarka: Bock BV 2020
I quite like what the Bock crew brings out from Hungary’s native kadarka grape. With just a touch of oak this fragile variety becomes a bit more serious, yet does not lose its charm – being light and so drinkable.