We tried another of the wines we got from Sparkling English Wine. This was Court Garden 2009 Classic Cuvee, a traditional blend of chardonnay, pinot noir, and pinot meunier. While this was better than the last two bottles of English bubbles that we tried, it still wasn't great.
On the plus side...it had plenty of bubbles. It smelled like grape soda, which both appealed to and worried me as I like grape soda, but find it very sweet. The wine itself wasn't too sweet, though, tasting of lemons and mint, with a touch of buttered toast.
The down side was a big one, though, as the wine was again incredibly acidic and somewhat bitter on the finish. We're just finding no balance so far in this batch of English sparkling wines, which is really discouraging as we keep hearing the PR about what great quality wines the UK-based makers are producing, but it's not consistently been our experience.
Like the others, this bottle was around the £20 mark (surprisingly, it was a couple of quid less expensive on the Sparkling English Wines website than on Court Garden's website), which I again thought was overpriced for the wine.
Three down, nine more to go...
Monday, 18 June 2012
Monday, 11 June 2012
Waiting to be Wow'ed
I've been on the hunt for some new kinds of bubbles to try, and came across the Sparkling English Wine website, which does what it says on the tin. It has a very large range of sparkling English wines on offer, with delivery free if you order 12 bottles. I ordered a mixed dozen from makers that I didn't know. This was rather brave of me, as the wine isn't cheap, with most bottles in the £20 or more price range. I still think English producers are rather cheeky in their pricing - they know that most people think that expensive = good quality. I know better, but took the risk anyway.
Two bottles in and I'm disappointed, not seeing a payoff on my risk yet. The first bottle we tried was the Danebury Cossack 2004, which is a blend of auxerrois and rulander grapes. I can only hope that the bottle I bought was off, as it was entirely undrinkable. It smelled like the damp sponge that sits next to my sink combined with overly cooked green veg, with a distinct hit of asparagus. It didn't taste much better, with an acidity that made my stomach churn. £20 poured down the sink.
The next bottle was somewhat better, although not by much. This was Terlingham Rose 2010, a classic blend of chardonnay, pinot noir, and pinot meunier grapes. It smelled of tart red fruits, currants and cranberry, with just a touch of yeastiness. It had some of the sweetness of the red fruit on the tongue, although again this was overwhelmed by the acidity of the wine. It was drinkable, but completely overpriced at another £20 for the bottle. There are nicer sparkling wines out there at half the price.
Hopefully there's something in that case that will wow me...
Postscript...a couple of weeks later, I noticed I had a bottle of Terlingham Rose 2009 in the case. I was surprised I had ordered two different vintages from the same maker, it's not like me, but I was quite busy when I placed the order and received the case, so I didn't check either through as thoroughly as usual. The wine wasn't much different from the 2010, though, still a strong acidity, so I used most of it to make a pot of chili rather than drink it.
Two bottles in and I'm disappointed, not seeing a payoff on my risk yet. The first bottle we tried was the Danebury Cossack 2004, which is a blend of auxerrois and rulander grapes. I can only hope that the bottle I bought was off, as it was entirely undrinkable. It smelled like the damp sponge that sits next to my sink combined with overly cooked green veg, with a distinct hit of asparagus. It didn't taste much better, with an acidity that made my stomach churn. £20 poured down the sink.
The next bottle was somewhat better, although not by much. This was Terlingham Rose 2010, a classic blend of chardonnay, pinot noir, and pinot meunier grapes. It smelled of tart red fruits, currants and cranberry, with just a touch of yeastiness. It had some of the sweetness of the red fruit on the tongue, although again this was overwhelmed by the acidity of the wine. It was drinkable, but completely overpriced at another £20 for the bottle. There are nicer sparkling wines out there at half the price.
Hopefully there's something in that case that will wow me...
Postscript...a couple of weeks later, I noticed I had a bottle of Terlingham Rose 2009 in the case. I was surprised I had ordered two different vintages from the same maker, it's not like me, but I was quite busy when I placed the order and received the case, so I didn't check either through as thoroughly as usual. The wine wasn't much different from the 2010, though, still a strong acidity, so I used most of it to make a pot of chili rather than drink it.
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