Simon Woolf is a WSET trained wine and food enthusiast living in London. His blog themorningclaret.com focuses on smaller producers who use organic, biodynamic or natural wine-making methods, and on those parts of the wine world less well travelled. Simon also writes for timatkin.com
This mini-carafe style bottle is very cute in the 187ml (split) size. When the cap is twisted off, a clean, floral aroma appears first. Then dried fruit and florals on the palate. This feels more “off dry” than sweet. Medium bubbles, fairly low apparent acidity, with an unremarkable finish. Try
The nose shows red fruits, strawberry and cherry, and pencil lead. Tarter red fruits show on the palate, cranberry and redcurrant, along with sage and pencil lead. Flavors don't change, but deepen on the mid-palate, while the pencil lead lingers on the finish. Tannins sneak up on the mid-palate and
The wine is very dark, almost black. Even with a light behind it it is opaque in the center, royal purple around the edges. The nose shows fresh blackberry with coconut and vanilla lingering in the background. On the palate, blackberries and elderberries lead, with smoke and cayenne pepper in
On the way back to the city, in the deepening dusk we pass a typical new police station: a cube of glass, brightly lit inside. I see one policeman writing at his desk as we flash by in our green BMW, expertly handled by our professional driver. We are in
Clear, bright, medium intensity golden color. Clean on the nose, medium-light aromas of slate, fresh grapes, bunches of sweet smelling white flowers, honeycomb, fresh apple cider, lime zest, and spring water. Medium-dry on the palate, medium-full body, medium-high acidity, medium alcohol, and medium-long finish. Flavors of pressed cider, peaches, nectarine,
The nose is sweet, with baked pears and apricots. The same flavors come through on the palate, along with honey, with sweet-sour lemon making an appearance on the mid-palate, leading to a tart lime-driven finish. Mouth-feel is full, acids a bit low, failing to balance the residual sugars. There is
Loads of tiny bubbles float up through the pale, barely yellow, wine. Aromas of baking pie crust and pears show on a very pretty nose. Apples and strawberries join the pears on the palate, while yeasty flavors add ginger and more to the background. There is a shift toward tart