I had been much looking forward to this tasting, having been to the region some months before (see my blog: ‘Bramaterra, Gattinara and Boca – the Côte Rotie of Piedmont?!’) There I had met a new generation coming through, mostly speaking a different language to that of their parents (Conti, Barbaglio, Antoniotti, Vallana); there were stirrings of new (foreign) investment (Le Piane, Nervi, Montalbano); I had heard how the regulations were changing rapidly to reflect a rising demand for Nebbiolo (Boca, Bramaterra); and how the (US) market was now taking a keen interest, though this time perhaps less in bulk, more in bottle. I fancied that in the face of global warming this formerly cool spot for Nebbiolo might just come into its own, and their slightly lower alcohols and extra freshness perhaps giving them an advantage over their Langhe cousins.

So what of the wines? Overall the feeling by those tasting was one of disorientation: wine styles were unclear and the quality slightly unpredictable; there was little sense of where the value lay when compared with what the Langhe was already offering (so said a customer also attending!). That said, these Alto Piemonte wines definitely had a crisper profile, being generally lighter too in alcohol, so presenting a refreshing contrast to those of the Langhe. There was no doubting the squarer, iron-fisted ‘Nebbiolarity’ (!?) of the Gattinara wines which constituted nearly half the range. Boca: pretty and whimsical on account of the Vespolina element perhaps. Bramaterra: taut, complex, porcelain given its elevation, varietal mix (Nebbiolo, Croatina, Vespolina, and Uva Rara) and calcareous veins. Lessona sandy soft while the ‘catch-all’ zones of Colline Novaresi Nebbiolo (to the east) and Coste delle Sesia Nebbiolo (the west) proved delicious early-drinkability (ala Langhe Nebbiolo and Nebbiolo d’Alba!)

Put it down to the delirium of flu but it looks as if two camps are already developing in the Alto Piemonte: the ‘modernists’ (Sperino, Antoniolo, Le Piane, Chiovini and Nervi in due course) and ‘traditionalist’ (Vallana, Conti, Antoniotti, Patriarca, Travaglini, Sella, Iaretti, Franchino)? Echoing the Langhe of the 1970/80s, the ‘moderniste’ may be creating the perception, through tweaks in cantina (barriques, extraction, concentration, ‘other’ grapes etc..) and by way of marketing, that their product/style of wine is superior (over the ‘tradizionaliste’) decorating their wines with extra short-term appeal and thus making the traditionalists’ world look distinctly dowdy. The traditionalists are by nature disinterested in ‘sexing up’ their wines for the market, for immediate gains, preferring to make incremental improvements over a longer period, beginning in the vineyard. Meanwhile the modernists look bent on promoting their name/brand, perhaps even over that of the region; the consultant’s (or importer’s!) hand carefully concealed.

At least there’s some traction among the volcanic hills of the Alto Piemonte, benefiting the region and Nebbiolo as a whole. Yet there appears to be much work to be done in the vineyard along with a tightening-up in cantina before the zone can truly claim to be the ‘Côte Rotie of Piedmont’!

Firstly, our South American buyer and the man responsible for sourcing the wine, Simon Field MW, elaborates on the origin of the wine, the beauty of its native Argentina, and just what makes our Malbec quite so exquisite:

“For a long time there has been a gap in our New World Own Selection Range, and for a long time we have been tasting and exploring in an effort to fill that gap. New Zealand Pinot Noir, Chilean Sauvignon Blanc, Australian Chardonnay… all totemic and all emblematic of what is best (and in many instances worst) of the countries in question. But no Argentinian Malbec!

Argentina’s signature grape, its calling card, call it what you will, the grape variety to match the most ambitiously chiselled slab of barbequed beef… Well, aspiration can only metamorphose into achievement if the product in question is fully worthy of both the romance of expectation and the commercial reality of market forces. The wine, in short, has to be the best in its class.

All this was probably not going through my head when riding across the foothills of the Andes with Eduardo Pulenta last March. The sun was high; the snow was crisp, the uplands dazzling. All seemed well with the world, and in such circumstances it seemed far more appropriate to discuss an Own Label Malbec, than, say, the re-emerging spirit of nationalism surrounding the foggy topic of Los Malvinas. Eduardo was excited by the idea, but was rather embarrassed to advise that demand for his best plots of Malbec was such that it may be tricky. However, as it was to be for BBR, he would see what he could do… What he could do, the very next day, was to present a fantastic line-up of potential blends, each teasingly different, each capturing the unique spirit of its privileged Alto Agrelo Mendoza terroir. When one is spoilt for choice, one does not resist the temptation to make the choice and I am delighted, ten months later, to see the results in bottle. We went for a wine that was ripe, fruity, unabashed and hedonistic… all of that is sui generis and its absence would have been an omission, but also, and perhaps more importantly, a wine with subtle tannins, very crisp acidity and an extraordinary elegance on the finish. The wine wears its 14.5 % alcohol with dignity and aplomb. The BOS Argentinian Malbec is, in short, a most worthy addition to our range.”

Later, we cracked open a bottle of the Malbec ourselves to see what we thought of the result of Simon’s extensive efforts; read our thoughts below… Comments from Laura Atkinson, Oli Barton, Lucy Christopher and Steffan Griffiths.

Laura – My initial thoughts are that this is a very serious-looking wine.

Steffan – It certainly looks the part, doesn’t it? A very deep dark red.

Laura – Dark as a dungeon. This really is true Malbec, just from the colour of it you can suspect that this is going to bear all the grape’s hallmarks, black fruit and underlying power.

Oli – (nosing) You’re right about that, there’s some really impressive intensity to this, that you get straight away off the nose.

Laura – It’s out to prove something, and I think it would reward some patience, to let it calm down somewhat.

Lucy – A little aeration would go a long way towards bringing out the Malbec’s full potential I reckon. I’m not sure you’d even need a decanter, just pouring it would help.

Steffan – Definitely, simply pouring it into a jug and back into the bottle would give it the air it needs!

Oli – Despite that, this is still terrific nonetheless. On the palate it’s got really ripe, plumy fruit, and the tannins are beautifully silky.

Laura – Very full bodied. And it’s incredibly aromatic. You really wouldn’t expect a wine this serious for the price point, and even as I speak it’s still developing in the mouth.

Oli – This really reminds me of a Southern French red we tried the other day, it’s got the same rich fruit characteristics and the same complexity, and while the end product is different it almost harks back to the days of Malbec being part of the Bordeaux blend.

Laura – I see what you mean, but there’s no doubting this is Malbec from the New World. The slightly leafy, herbaceous note and the real crisp acidity on the palate means that this is definitely something to go with food. Something heavy like a good steak, and, although it’s not exactly seasonal, chargrilled bbq meat!

Lucy – Oh it’s a foodie wine, while it’s lovely I think the acidity needs something to cut through, like, as you said, some filling food.

Oli – Personally I love the herbaceousness of it, yes some people might accuse it of being slightly on the green side but there are distinct notes of herbs such as thyme on the finish, and it’s terrific. This really is serious Malbec that’s not going to break the bank.

We tried it again later on that day, having left it for a while after some contact with air…

Oli – Instantly you can tell that that has more fruit. Way more. It’s still intense, but it’s does it far more subtly, a wave of fruit aromas washes over the whole affair and makes it a lot more elegant.

Steffan – Very true, it’s lost none of its power but it’s definitely more supple, smoother.

Oli – It’s brilliant, it’s lost nothing of the things that made it great: the delicious herby flavours are still there on the finish, but now the summer fruits have opened up and you get the whole potential that was hinted at earlier. Terrific.

Laura – Now we just need a rare steak to wrap things up!

Among the high spots were the ‘Long Lunch’, a sort of mini Paulée held at the Hong Kong Cricket Club, who supplied a match to watch to boot. However we spent more time concentrating on the wines than on the cricket, generous guests bringing bottles from Lafon, Blain-Gagnard, Vougeraie, Roumier, Grivot, de Montille, Rossignol-Trapet, Perrot-Minot, Cathiard, Rémy, Fourrier, Dugat-Py and more.

The key will be to encourage appreciation right across the range and this should be possible. Wines such as Sylvain Loichet’s Ladoix Bois de Gréchon have found favour already, and good quality Bourgogne Rouge is being snapped up. As we expected, the learning curve develops frighteningly quickly.

We did many more wine events this year with Cantonese food which is a stimulating development. I like the idea of having lots of bottles open on the table so you can grab a sip of whichever one might please you with whichever nibble of dim sum or peking duck catches your fancy. Dishes which I really enjoyed this week included braised pomelo skins and some baby roast pigeon. Apparently I was just too late for seasonal snake soup.

The 2011 Loire vintage was shaped, as elsewhere in Europe, by the unusually warm and dry spring that signalled an early harvest. This was compounded in the Loire by the lack of a preceding winter; Sancerrois David Sautereau remarked that there were no frost days during this period, compared with twenty-five the previous year. Consequently Sancerre’s ‘ban de vendange’ (official start date) came on 1^st Sept, after a cool and damp July/August that threatened to upset the party with outbreaks of rot. The Caslots in Bourgueil commenced on the 15^th Sept, versus 1^st Oct in 2010. For Nöel Pinguet at Gaston Huet, harvesting on the 27^th Sept. was an unprecedented early start but proved fortuitous in his (US owners) quest for drier Vouvray – something that’s he’s finding harder to come by these days. A fine, warm September facilitated fermentations to dryness, especially for those departing from the norm in using wild yeast (i.e. already present in the winery) as opposed to cultured. Acidities are generally on the low side making the pretty wines delicious in the early to medium term, without the grip or zip of the 2010s, but still fresh thanks to the cool summer. Yields are normal, certainly above the small, sun-tanned crop of the 2009 vintage.

There was much excitement at Domaine de la Chevalerie where the fourteenth generation Caslot, Stéphanie proudly unveiled the family’s new ‘baby’: Bourgueil cru ‘Grand-Mont’. The 38 ha estate is located at Restigné, twelve kilometres from the river Loire on a gently rising bench of sand, clay and limestone; the vineyards facing south/south-east and are protected from the ‘vent du nord’ by an immense forest. They’re also blessed with 1.5 km of chalk cellars under the property; indeed the perfect place to raise a ‘newborn’. Grand-Mont is located in Benais, the next-door village, and judging by the taste of both the 2009 and 2010 vintages, wines showing an intricate weave and withering charm that leave you groping for words. Qualities enhanced no doubt by the family’s commitment to organic viticulture (Ecocert certified since 2006) and now towards biodynamics; a crowning wine for their stable of true, elegant Cabernet Francs. Rest assured: you won’t find a micro-ox machine, a packet of cultured yeast, nor a thermovinificator (read ‘microwave’) in their cellar! No, the secret seems to lie in father Pierre’s encouragement behind his two children, Stéphanie and Emmanuel; that they should take the estate to greater heights.

Another young blood making strides is fifth generation winegrower Nicolas Paget, former concert jazz trumpeter, now calling the shots at the family’s 16 ha estate close to Azay-le-Rideau. From ‘making wine’ in 2001 Nicolas is now learning to ‘create wine’; switching his attention from the winery to the vine, as he believes that if the fruit ripe and healthy then there less to do in the winery – he says it’s not something they taught him at wine-school! Like the conductor of an orchestra, Nicolas’s re-arranging his vines so they play in unison. Hence there’s more emphasis on Chenin Blanc; greater use of ‘selection masale’ plant material rather than clones; more common sense (such as tying the young vines over to force the roots down). He’s on the right track, judging by his apply pure Chenin Blanc ‘Melodie’, pretty Touraine Sparkling Rose ‘Syncopette’, and crunchy Chinon ‘Ferdinand’. More controversially he doesn’t believe in ‘minerality’, a comment he let fly just as I was leaving the winery!

‘Minerality’ is surely the holy grail of fine wine, signposting a wine’s superior (limestone) provenance, its terroir and quality, imparting linearity, ‘droiteur’, and grip! When it comes to tasting notes I admit to be one of its over-users; its inclusion implying a low pH wine made from a reasonable yield, giving a decent level of dry extract, along with a capacity to age. I revel in the thrilling expression of mineral wines, whether they be from Chablis, Barolo, the Mosel or the Wachau. Of course it’s a quality I associate with the Loire, notably Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé… yet Nicolas’s comment left me feeling I may have missed something. A word with his agent Charles Sydney, the voice of the Loire for many of the UK trade and resident of Chinon, revealed that many of Nicolas’s generation are confusing lean, green fruit (i.e higher acidity) with ‘minerality’. There is also the question over ‘flinty’ reductive aromas that can arise at the end of the (Sauvignon Blanc) ferment, when sulphur is added (sloppily) to block the malo.

Surprising also is how they pick in Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume. Since the 1980s, when the region grew exponentially, it’s been largely done using machine-harvesters, that ‘caress’ the grapes into bins dosed with dry ice to preserve aromas (a trick from the new world). You would think, going back to Nicolas’s point about the quality of the fruit at harvest, that a fine wine zone such as Sancerre would take the trouble to hand-harvest, to capture those delicate aromatics and so limit the need for carbon and sulphur dioxide intervention in the winery. I suspect that the reason for such machines lie somewhere between cost, practicality and the demands of the market. Very few producers seem to deviate from the norm – where’s the next François Cotat I ask myself – even if the norm can be a bit dull. For example wild yeast fermentation is akin to the occult – a few doing it on the side only to blend the evidence away at bottling. ‘There’s no market in wild yeast fermented labels, unlike organic’ is how one put it. I’m proud to say that Berrys’ new 2010 wild yeast ferment Sancerre, as made by David Sautereau, clearly expresses its kimmeridgean clay provenance to its full, and not a cat peeing in sight!

From the Loire I dropped down to Lyon to attend the fair ‘Vin Passion’, at which circa 40 producers (largely French and Italian) showed and sold their wines to a thirsty public. The common theme was one of organic fruit, along with the ever present tribe of ‘natural wine’ producers. The ‘natural wine’ movement has become popular in France and Italy, built on the premise (fear) that added sulphur dioxide is an unnecessary additive; that wine effectively makes itself, producing sufficient sulphur dioxide as a by-product. While excesses should be avoided, the proof of the tasting was that too many producers allow ideology to get in the way of prudent winemaking, resulting in many wines that appeared spoiled. Hear what Alsace producer Lucas Rieffel, producer of a Pinot Noir ‘Nature’ has to say on the subject…

2011 was a fantastic year in our calendar as we played host to a wide range of wine ‘A-listers’ (far too many to list in full!). The top Cru Classé Châteaux of Bordeaux were well-represented by such names as Ch. Pontet-Canet, Ch. Ducru-Beaucaillou, Branaire-Ducru and Ch. Gruaud-Larose; we also had the good fortune to enjoy a stunning vertical tasting of Barsacs from Ch. Climens. Burgundy, Alsace, Champagne, the Loire and the Rhône were not neglected either, with guests like Patrice Rion, Etienne Hugel, Champagne Jacquesson, François Cotat, Bollinger, René Rostaing and Ch. La Nerthe to name but a few. From Spain we welcomed the great Juan Carlos Lopez de Lacaille and the legendary Alvaro Palacios, from the Port region the Symington Family, from Italy the lovely Stella di Campalto with her exquisite Brunello di Montalcino, and from the island of Madeira we hosted Ricardo de Freitas of the house of Barbeito. As Madeira is a wine very dear to my heart, I took the opportunity to ask Ricardo that evening what makes Madeira unique, and to tell us a little about his own winemaking philosophy:

2012 promises an equally exciting line-up of visitors. Fittingly the first visit of the year will be from the venerable Madeira house, Blandys, who will be showcasing on 30th January an enviable selection of fine Madeiras going all the way back to 1877 – a rare treat! Then in March we will welcome Alexandra Petit and Paul Pontallier as our guests from illustrious First Growth Ch. Margaux, whose silky, elegant clarets need no introduction; they are the epitome of class and a personal favourite of my own. Top Burgundian producer Domaine de la Vougeraie will visit to show us their stunning reds and whites, and there will also be the chance to go slightly off France’s beaten track with a visit from Domaine Pichard of Madiran in the South West, who are bringing a selection of mature vintages of this wonderfully savoury and complex red. Italy will be represented by Badia a Coltibuono from Chianti and Giovanni Rosso from Barolo, Spain by the magnificent traditional bodega Viña Tondonia, and Germany by Selbach Oster’s elegant Mosel Rieslings. The New World will not be overlooked, with the warm and charismatic David Ramey from California sharing his incredibly concentrated yet elegant Chardonnays.

There are many more I could mention, but why don’t you check out for yourselves the full line-up of our fabulous events? In the absence of that impending lottery win and round-the-world wine ticket, there is no substitute for coming to the Cellars at No. 3 St James’s Street to meet face-to-face the men and women responsible for bringing to our tables this amazing drink which, as we wine-lovers know, is so much more than just a beverage. Come and learn ‘from the winemaker’s mouth’.

Wine is a natural partner to food and their affinity is renowned but a number of restaurants abroad and indeed in the UK are starting to consider the benefits of Cocktail and food matching. Aside from extended ageing or perhaps altering the service temperature, once a wine is in the bottle, the flavours largely cannot be manipulated. With Cocktails, flavours can be created, developed or tweaked to precisely match your dishes. The great news is that you don’t have to be a drinks professional or a trained mixologist to get creative with Cocktail making. The majority of us will have a bottle of Whisky or Gin somewhere perhaps amongst one or two suspect dusty bottles leftover from a Tombola. Aside from the additional elements of juices, herbs and Vermouth, it is surprising how creative you can be with a few basic bottles to start your Spirit store cupboard collection.

When considering cocktails, it is best not to just think of the main Spirit. As with food, only knowing the main ingredient will not lead you towards the best drinks match conclusion. Accompaniments and mixers are key. Drinks can often be considered a condiment to food as we would with salt, pepper or olive oil. Baked fish often suits an acidic vinegar, salty tang and a citrus character with full flavours and therefore think of those qualities before coming to a conclusion. I love Sangria made with red wine, a dash of King’s Ginger Liqueur and loads of fresh lemon in these instances.

Flavour – Cocktail and food matching shares many shadows with wine and food matching. Ideas such as trying to balance the flavour components of your drink to the flavours within the dish is perhaps the most immediate consideration. For example, you would avoid the likes of a spicy rich Syrah with light sushi, and you wouldn’t try a salty, citric Margarita with a heavy game casserole. The flavours are vastly different, the balance is wrong and it would baffle your taste buds.

Strength – To continue with the wine and food pairing comparisons, alcohol content is becoming an ever increasingly important consideration. Alcohol will of course be stronger in certain mixes depending on the ABV of the Spirit, the generous nature of who’s pouring, the added sweetness and the level of dilution from ice. Cocktails such as a No. 3 Gin Martini or an Old Fashioned need equal power from dishes with stronger profiles like salty or fried foods, smoked fish or even cheese. Likewise for matching delicate dishes with subtle cocktails.

Body – The mouth feel of a Cocktail is as important as it is in wines and so the texture should be as accurately paired as possible. For instance a sweet Sauvignon/Semillon blend in the guise of Sauternes offers dramatically different characteristics to the same grape blend served as a bone dry, crisp white from Graves. The sweet suits a Foie Gras and the simply latter would lack as a match.

My matches worth mentioning:

Bourbon Sour with BBQ lime chicken
Iced No. 3 Gin and cucumber with sushi
Cranberry Cosmo with a turkey sarnie
Glenrothes Manhattan with herb crusted rack of lamb
No. 3 Dry Martini with ‘picky’ nibbles; from crackers and olive tapenade, cheeses, artichoke hearts or even oysters, caviar & blinis if you want to indulge.

My colleague Anne McHale caught up with Mark Jenner before last night’s event for a sneak peak at his cocktail-making skills, and to ask him for his top tips about home cocktail creation and food matching. Watch Mark making the perfect No. 3 Dry Martini, and hear what he has to say: 

Connaught Cocktails

For those who were unable to attend the Champagne and Cocktail event, here are the recipes from celebrity mixologist Mark Jenner of The Connaught:

Classic Dry No. 3 Martini

Ingredients:
1 tsp Extra Dry Vermouth
85ml No. 3 Gin
1 Amalfi Lemon

Pour the Extra Dry Vermouth into a frozen martini glass (either 7oz or 5.5oz glass) and coat the glass in a circular motion. Top up to the rim with ice cold No.3 gin. Pare the rind of an un-waxed Amalfi lemon, and give it a twist to extract the oils into the glass. Then serve garnished with the lemon peel.

No. 3 Negroni

Ingredients:
35ml No. 3 Gin
35ml Red Vermouth
35ml Campari Bitters
1 Lemon
1 Orange

Mix all the liquid contents together in a heavy-bottomed tumbler with ice. Stir. Add a slice of orange and lemon zest to decorate.

Ginger Royale
Ingredients:
35ml The King’s Ginger
140ml Berrys’ United Kingdom Cuvée Champagne

Pour a generous measure of The King’s Ginger into a flute.
Add chilled UKC Champagne to taste.

Laura Atkinson & Anne McHale

The dry spell had imbued the wines with impressive concentration, the warm weather in September had brought the grapes to perfect ripeness, and the relatively cool August nights had helped to preserve their vital acidity. All was in place, therefore, to create a glorious vintage for both white and red wines.

The Rhône growers with whom we work are not people prone to hyperbole, preferring to keep their feet on the ground, recognising full well the ups and downs which are part and parcel of the life of anyone who works in viticulture. Nevertheless, it was hard not to delight in their quiet confidence as they showed us their wines, and each successive visit unearthed the opinion that this was, just maybe, the finest vintage in the region for decades.

The comparison with 2009, another outstanding vintage, was fascinating because of the stylistic differences; 2009 was a year of wonderful opulence, the sheer ripeness producing richly-textured wines with immediate appeal; 2010 seems more cerebral, appealing because of its sublime balance, concentration and, crucially, its freshness. Time after time my tasting notes mentioned these attributes, along with intensity. Never did I find myself using words such as ‘heavy’ ‘ponderous’ ‘over-oaked’ or ‘unbalanced’. The wines are also highly representative of their terroir, and in that context it’s a joy to pick out the nuances which define a Cornas from a Côte Rôtie, a St Joseph from a Crozes-Hermitage.

Yields are in most cases slightly down on 2009, partly because of the drought, but fear not, there will be plenty of good wine to go round, and don’t overlook the whites, too. The huge progress in recent years in the quality of the region’s white wines continues apace. The aromatic varietals display wonderful floral, stone-fruit characteristics, while the wines made predominantly or totally from the Marsanne grape boast the textural richness of White Burgundy allied to a honeyed, beeswax bouquet.

It is unusual to find the North and South both declaring a truly great vintage at the same time, and although we don’t have prices yet all the early indications are that the growers, recognising the realities of the global market, will broadly favour stability, which is reassuring.

Alun Griffiths MW

No matter how much theory you read about a certain wine region or grape variety, the best way to learn about wine is to taste it. This might seem like an obvious thing to say, but knowing that Chablis lies on Kimmeridgian clay won’t necessarily help you choose a wine to accompany your grilled salmon, whereas remembering the crisp minerality on the last Chablis you tasted will.

Here are my two top tips for getting the most out of tasting and comparing wines at home…

1) Compare and contrast. This is a great way to learn as it allows you to benchmark one style against another and help your palate ‘remember’. If you’re new to the game, start with wines that are quite different in style; the more you practise, the better you will get at picking out subtle nuances and can then progress to comparing wines from the same region (e.g. different villages from Burgundy or Bordeaux). I would suggest that you start by comparing an oaked Chardonnay with an unoaked one, a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc with a French one like a Sancerre, or a Californian Pinot Noir with a Pinot from Burgundy.

2) Remember that climate is key to wine style. The cooler the climate, the higher the acidity (the component in wine which gives it a refreshing, mouthwatering effect). The warmer the climate, the riper the flavours in the wine. Comparing wines from different climates (e.g. a warm climate like California versus a cooler climate like Burgundy) will allow you to get better at recognising the different styles and where they are found.

The above tips are a great way to start as they will help you with the most important aspect of wine tasting – finding out what you personally like to drink. Our palates are all different and each one of you will have unique impressions of every wine that you taste. I caught up with a few of our customers who attended our ‘Introduction to Burgundy Tutored Tasting’ and the ‘Sweet Dreams, Sweet Wines Tutored Tasting’ in the run up to Christmas to find out their personal thoughts on the events…

Wine tasting is a hobby that not only will teach you an enormous amount about the fascinatingly diverse regions of the world where wine is made, but will also give you immense pleasure! So if you’ve resolved that 2012 will be a year to learn new skills, why not make wine tasting one of them?

For more information about our tutored tastings and wine school events please visit our website.

Cirò is the prime three thousand hectare viticultural zone lying on the east coast of Calabria, overlooking the Ionian sea to Puglia on the horizon. Compared to the fresh, damp, granitic terroir of the western, Tyrrhenian sea coastline, Cirò’s location is sheltered by mountains, dried by African sirocco winds while enjoying sedimentary calcareous clay soils. Its eucalypt-dominated landscape conjures up visions of Australia (the trees were introduced to combat malaria, absorbing excess water), while the undulating coastal range up to 250 metres above sea level reminded me of Santa Barbara (minus the fog).

Topographically the province is dominated by a range of two thousand metre mountains; Calabria’s ‘carbuncles’ have shaped communities and proved an impenetrable barrier to would be invaders. Take the Normans for example, a Puglian descendant of whom recounted how his forebears, wilting in shining armour no doubt, chose the direct route to Sicily via Calabria, only to be repulsed by mountain dwelling folk (and no, not by magicians called ‘Tim’). They completed their mission in boats instead.  While Puglia’s blessed with a lattice of roads across its flat plains, encouraging trade and mobility, Calabria’s settlements are isolated on the mountain fringes.

Ill-served by government, Calabria remains oppressed by organized crime – the ‘Ndrangheta – that stymies everyday life, restricting entreprise, liberties and rights. Agriculture remains key to the region; their oranges and peppers are some of Italy’s best, yet viticulturally it has become overly dependent on EU handouts, promoting quantity over quality in the face of vanishing bulk market; a situation that in the last thirty years resulted in many old vineyards being replanted with more productive new ones. With 50 million hectolitres of unsold wine in 2005 something had to give, much of coming from the DOC of Cirò.

Gaglioppo is Calabria’s ancient and revered red grape variety; a fickle, thin skinned variety to ripen, the seeds (tannins) lagging behind that of the sugar and acidity, hence requiring dry ventilated weather and a perfectly timed harvest (alla Nebbiolo). Traditionally the Cirò DOC was a blend of 95% Gaglioppo and 5% Greco Bianco, but this has changed in 2011 with the disciplinari (regulations) now a minimum 80% Gaglioppo and 20% other red varieties; either the more colourful Malioco or Greco Nero, or more likely Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. In its prime DOC Cirò possesses a pale brick colour; a nose of pretty red fruit, tobacco, leather, dried roses; the palate suave, haunting, fine and complex, with bright acidity and firm tannins – indeed Nebbiolo-esque! How droll to discover that one of the largest bottlers, Librandi (2 million bottles/anno), remains true to Gaglioppo, in producing a pale red, soft and elegant wine while a new artisan producer had opted for the international route, their Cirò being dark, lumpy and faceless!

So there’s a new wave of artisan Cirò producers coming through who are aiming for quality by bottling their fruit rather than sell it off in quantity (if they can); something they’ve only just starting doing in the last ten years at most. Producers such as A.Vita, Sergio Arcuri, Tenuta del Conte and DuCropio are worth seeking out. And should you be passing, make sure you lunch at Aquila d’Oro in Cirò (tel 3335893021); an exquisite trattoria.

Now to meet Luigi Tecce, another producer who’s bucked the trend during the past decade in shifting from grape supplier to wine maker. Luigi’s family own 6 hectares of Aglianico in the prized Campanian villages of Paternopoli and Castelfranci, increasingly famous for producing the statuesque, quivering reds: Taurasi DOCG. Over to you Luigi…!

The Wine Club Walkaround tasting is the first event on the Wine Club calendar every year, and I always look forward to seeing our regular attendees and meeting new members for the first time. Last year’s Walkaround theme was a preview of the May cases, which gave members a chance to try the wines from every Wine Club case. It also gave them the opportunity to meet the buying team who love getting direct feedback from the people who drink the wines they choose.

At the annual Wine Club Dinner in July we enjoyed a delicious five-course menu designed by Head Chef Stewart Turner, featuring seasonal summer dishes including a tasting of veal with asparagus and strawberry Pavlova with a wild strawberry sorbet, black pepper and basil. Each course was accompanied by wines chosen by our host, Alun Griffiths MW, who introduced each wine with some background information. It was a great chance to meet some new faces and catch up with members I’d met before at previous dinners and tastings.

As the Wine Club’s main focus is to teach members more about the wines they’re drinking, these events are invaluable in increasing wine knowledge through comparing wines and also food and wine matching. Tasting the wines for each Wine Club case every other month means my wine knowledge is always improving, and with the help of our talented buyers I’ve discovered some fantastic and unusual wines that I might not have chosen off the shelf.

The buying team and I are putting a lot of work into making 2012 the best year yet for Wine Club. As well as our annual events, we are going to treat members to new wines in the Berrys’ range ahead of other customers, as well as use feedback from members to improve Club benefits like the discount scheme and the tasting notes that accompany each and every case.

Make learning about wine new your New Year’s resolution and join Wine Club.