Wine_Serving_Tips_

 

Wines of the month

 June:

 Oyster Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2006. 

Powerful, exotic &fruity, summer in a glass, very refreshing

Booths.

Cono Sur Pinot Noir 2006

Fantastic, velvety, summer fruit pudding. A hit with everyone

Booths.

 

July

 Hellfire Bay – Shiraz Grenache 2004 -

Juicy, refreshing, cherry, strawberry, vanilla and spice. Great length, good legs, very tasty and 14.5% alcohol.

Wright Wines, Skipton & The Traddock.

 

Cahors Clos La Coutale 2004  

 Big changes in Cahors since the 80’s. This un-oaked example was found to be full of dark berry fruits and violets

The Wine Society

 

August

 'Les Deux' - Grenache/Syrah 2006, Vin de Pays de Vaucluse -

Bursting with fruit, strawberries and plums, some coffee and spice, subtle tannins, good easy

Booths

Kumala Pinotage Cinsault 2005 

Bags of juicy dark fruit. Soft and full flavoured with hints of vanilla and well integrated tannins Austwick Post Office.

 

September

 Veramonte Cabernet Sauvignon Reserva Maipo Valley Chile  2005 

Fantastic blackcurrant and vanilla nose, very smooth and warm, mouth-watering and pleasant tannins Dukes Wine Shop, Settle.

Ravenswood Vintners Bland Zinfandel 2004 

Sweet, jammy, fruit, silky smooth, beautiful finish

Booths

 October 

'An Exploration of Spanish and Portuguese Wines'.

 

Niepoort Dry white port

Fantastic, wonderful layers of butterscotch and honey glazed nuts, .

Majestic - versions available in Booths & Dukes

 

Quinta de Bons-Ventos 2005

Rich, aromatic red bursting with red cherries and fine tannins, exquisite

Oddbins

Taylors First Reserve Port

 Rich caramel and sultanas, smooth and warming, excellent

Booths

 November  

White, Villa Wolf Pinot Gris 2006, Germany

Dry, peach and melons, fully bodied and slightly creamy; fantastic

Booths

Red, Peter Lehman The Futures Shiraz 2004, Australian 

Booths

Bleasdale Shiraz Cabernet 2004, Australian

Big and rich dark fruits, ample body and well integrated tannins, nicely chewy, outstanding

Booths

Sweet, Brown Bros Liqueur Muscat, Australian, 

Rich and intense Christmas pudding flavours

Booths

 

December Meeting

The Wine Club meeting  will be held at the Duckworths on Wednesday the 12th December; please bring a bottle of your favourite wine costing below £8, the best bottle wins a prize,

Xmas wine quiz and,

special tasting of Cloudy Bay.

 

Future Events 2008

January 9^th Monthly Wine Club meeting – Location to be arranged

April 17 -20 2008 - Weekend trip to Torres Vineyards, Barcelona.

Autumn Trip to Three Choirs Vineyard, Gloucestershire.

 

Wine Serving Tips

 

In what sort of glass should I be serving wine?
Tulip-shaped or inward-curving glasses allow you to swirl, tilt and get at the bouquet effectively, improving your ability to appreciate the wine. In order to do this, fill your glass to no more than one-third full. The extent to which a wine releases its aromas depends on the shape of the glass. Thinner glass also allows more oxygen to enter the mouth opening up the wines flavour.

 

What serving temperature should I serve wine?
Serving wine at the right temperature makes all the difference. It does depend on personal preference but, as a general rule, always serve wines on the cool side as they will warm up in your hands, whatever the weather.

Serving White Wines: Chilled wines are refreshing. Chilling does mask flavour, so the finer the wine, the less it will need chilling. Remember, ice with water in an ice bucket chills more efficiently than just ice alone.

	Refrigeration	Serving Temperature oC
Champagne & Sparkling Wines	4 hours	5-10
Light Sweet Whites	4 hours	5-10
Dry Light Aromatic Whites	2 hours	10-12
Medium-bodied Dry Whites	1.5 hours	10-12
Full-bodied Sweet Whites	1.5 hours	10-12
Full-bodied Dry Whites	1 hours	12-16

 

Serving Red Wines.

The tannin level in a wine dictates the temperature at which it should be served. The greater the  tannic in a wine, the warmer you it should be drunk.  Red wines that are low in tannin may be chilled like a full-bodied white wine. If a red wine is served too warm, it will become soupy and all you will be able to taste and smell will be the alcohol.

As with all wine, serve cooler rather than warmer.

 

	Refrigeration	Serving Temperature oC
Light Reds	1 hour	12-16
Medium-bodied Reds	-	14-17
Full-bodied Reds	-	15-18

The expression room temperature  came from the days before the introduction of central heating when dining rooms were usually 5 to 6 degrees cooler than they are today always err towards coolness.

In what order should I serve wines?
Dry before sweet, white before red, light before heavy, lesser before finer, young before old. This gives your taste buds a chance to get used to the increasing strength or complexity.

 

When should I decant a wine?
Decanting is usually used as a means of removing sediment from a mature wine. It can also be very effective in softening a firm, young red wine. The younger and tougher the wine, the earlier you should decant. It is the pouring action, bringing the wine into contact with the air, that softens the wines. For mature wines, decant later rather than sooner. Exposure to air accelerates the wine's development. You can always swirl it around in your glass to bring it out.

 

Should I leave the wine to breathe?
Simply drawing the cork and leaving the bottle to stand for an hour or two before drinking it  'does virtually nothing towards aerating the wine. Wine once poured in the glass will start to aerate. A good tip is to decant young and rustic wines into a plain jug.

 

How long can you keep a wine once it is opened?
Wine evolves once the bottle is opened and has a finite lifespan. It is the gradual exposure to oxygen that ages a wine. Once you open the wine, you are accelerating this procedure. The higher the alcohol, the more robust the wine. Most half-full bottles of wines and champagnes will oxidise overnight. Use a vacuvin to remove the air from the bottle. Fortified wines have been stabilised with the addition of spirit, so there is room for a little more leeway.

 

Vintage  Port	as this is still maturing in the bottle, it will keep for 5 to 7 days;
Tawny Port/Madeira	As this has finished its maturation in the barrel, keeps for up to 1 month.
Fino/Manzanilla Sherry	These fine, delicate sherries should only be kept for 5-7 days.
Amontillado Sherry	Can be kept for not more than a week.
Cream Sherry	Can be kept for up to 1 month.