Weekend wine with Blake Creedon

Saturday, July 28, 2012

IT’S almost a year since SuperValu introduced its exclusive ‘Specially Sourced’ wine collection and, significantly, had enough confidence in it to throw much of the range open to a media tasting.

Doctors differ and sommeliers sniff, but it’s fair to say the response in the media was wholly positive. You can check out my favourites from that first tranche online at url.ie/fmwp.

But there’s more. The retailer has just added a further 25 wines to the collection, bringing the total to 170 wines. Last week, I caught up with the new additions (this time via samples rather than a tasting session) and, even as a neutral, I gotta say it’s exciting to see a retailer raise its game to such a degree.

Apart from the big brands that all the big stores have, SuperValu wines used to mean two things to me — the always reliable and occasionally tremendous Nugan Estate from Australia, and the solid Niel Joubert from South Africa.

But in launching its Specially Sourced selection, and these further additions to it, SuperValu (a franchise of Musgrave) has really fleshed out its range. I wouldn’t have picked all of them.

Their new offerings from Alsace and Portugal, for instance, don’t hit the mark in my view. But there are a lot of class wines in there, and keenly priced at that. There are simply too many wines worth mentioning in one go, so next week I will return to look at some stunning rich reds.

This week’s selection features lively whites, some delightful medium-bodied reds, and the killer wine style you should find in every store — a very, very good Champagne-style bubbly from the new world. (It’s quite an addition to the SuperValu range which already has the Nugan Estate NV sparkler.)

The launch of the new range coincides with the World of Wine sale in SuperValu stores nationwide until Saturday, August 18. For more information, drop into your local store or see www.SuperValu.ie.

By the way, I notice on the site that they want to see if you’re interested in buying online for home delivery. If that suits you, do let them know.

Ricossa Gavi DOCG 2010, Down from €9.99 to €7.99 at SuperValu until Aug 18

Yes, of course, big, rich, flamboyant wines grab out attention. And it’s easy to overlook more taciturn bottles. But just like people, the quieter, more understated styles may well be the smartest in the room. And elegant lemony cortese, this modern/traditional white is lifted by the touch of body like the pith of a grapefruit. Order the fish why don’t you.

Primitivo di Manduria DOC 2009, €11.99

Yet another primitivo makes my recommended list. Really, the robust Italian style should be a staple in everyone’s wine rack — and indeed in every restaurant: This one’s pretty unchallenging but it is rich, ripe and stuffed with soft red fruit that beckons barbecue. I can smell the sizzle from here. Yum.

Ricossa Barbera D’Asti DOCG 2010, Reduced from €9.99 to €7.99 at SuperValu

This is a lovely aromatic red. Get out decent-sized glasses and enjoy its light garnet hue, sniff at its lightly spicy toasted and roasted red fruit; sip at its tart cherries… Yes, I’d very happily pay a tenner for this and would snap it up at less than eight.

Ricossa Barolo 2008, Down from €19.99 to €13.99 at SuperValu til Aug 18
Is this wine the best of its peers from legendary Barolo denominazione? Probably not. Is it an elegant, delicious, spicy and beautifully-scented wine that punches way above its current price point? Absolutely, yes. Fragrant, glossy and delightfully tart, it’d be delightful with grilled or pan-fried steak, not forgetting, of course, an extra glass as the cook’s prerogative. Joint bargain of the week.

Griffith Park sparkling white SE Australia, Down from €13.99 to €9.99 at SuperValu til Aug 18

Where has this been hiding? Yet another excellent but affordable champenoise fizz on the Irish market. White gold in colour, lemony fresh and with just a touch of that pleasant bready breadth that offer a lovely backbeat in such traditional sparklers. Bottle-fermented chardonnay and pinot noir, it’s every bit as good as many a €25 Cha**agne.

Deux Collines Pouilly-Fumé AOC 2011, Down from €18.99 to €9.99 at SuperValu til Aug 18

Yet again, a wine from the Loire stands out… Emulated (as fumé blanc) in California, the Pouilly-Fumé appellation in the Loire valley produces a wonderful wine style: a sauv blanc that’s blessedly softer round the edges, and distinctly smoky — hence the “fumé” — and this one is no exception. I wouldn't pay €19 for it — but at less than a tenner, it's joint bargain of the week. Home