Only opened this to taste what I had bought: a late release so fresh but eminently drinkable and what a wine! I’m not great on describing taste but it’s all there - fresh minerality at the start, berries galore with dark spices, cedar, chocolate,… wonderful
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Six of us managed to get through these with boeuf bourguignon supper last night…much teasing about the state of English Rugby !
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Last night’s post rugby wine was a particularly good Barbera D’Alba. I first had this wine with a mid naughtiest vintage and it was so good I bought the rest of Swig’s stock when they bin ended it. 14 was next one I bought and really like it’s warm comforting notes - almost got me out of mr grumpy mode.
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A first, cautious vintage check: Von Winning “Haardter Herzog” 2021, Riesling, Erste Lage.
Tastes great already. Once it’s been in the cellar for 4-5 years, there’s bound to be a lot going on … Delicious!
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If you would like to share a voyage of ageing Rieslings you should consider some nice fellows from the Mosel Region for half the price
VW is IMO only nice in the first years because of their handling with small and young barrels especially in the GG range. I had a Ungeheuer some years ago that was dead after 5 years
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Thanks! Yes, I guess Mosel and Rheingau are simply amazing, when aged. 
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If you would need some recommendations you should not hesitate to contact me 
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Lidl £12.99 bloody expensive by their standards.
Good take on Cote du Rhone Villages (which ever one) who would have been quite happy to have knocked this out.
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Giscours 2011
Having popped round to my best friend’s house to watch the 6 Nations decider last weekend, I had a glass of this while Kell kindly helped me out by drinking the rest of the bottle. She handed me the glass blind and from the nose it was unmistakably Margaux, lovely cassis and black fruit with tobacco and vanilla scents and that so distinctive floral scent. She then showed me the bottle, I was somewhat relieved I hadn’t got it totally wrong. The palate followed through, medium to full weight, cassis and blackberry, framed by classy tobacco and vanilla tannins, excellent acidity, and some lovely aromatic spices, finishing with a gorgeous floral perfume. It had been decanted for some hours, but I think it’s fully mature now and has a good drinking window ahead of it. It’s a really enjoyable drink, wonderful complex nose, great depth of flavour and pretty good power, excellent length.
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Perhaps a bottle of rose, instead?
Sancerre opened up beautifully to apples and lychees (looking forward to a second glass tomorrow!).
Brunello was just fab. Opened last night, but with a Corvin. Tonight was all vanilla and cherry with a long leather finish. Served with a Tuscan sausage and bean cassoulet. Life’s good!
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Just reading the NZ actor Sam Neil’s memoir book ( looks as though he’s currently cleared of blood cancer which is good news)
He says in the book, the wine industry frequently refers to some but not all NZ Sauvignon Blanc as “Bitch Diesel”
Thought that was pretty funny 
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Yep, and the local Pinot Gris is known as “Cougar juice”.
Ha ha - good one
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Sums up a lot of them imo.