Wine with Leslie: Wine subscriptions are a great way to discover new wines you'll love
As lockdown continues, the days have begun to merge into each other. I’ve been fighting off boredom by revisiting old recipes and digging deep into the wine cellar and my samples looking for new flavours.
If you too are in a wine rut you might consider a wine subscription service. All the online retailers offer monthly selections or mystery boxes, take a look at whelehanswines.ie, curiouswines.ie, wineonline.ie or winesdirect.ie to give just a few examples. Many brick-and-mortar retailers will also be happy to curate a case if you give them a call.
Boxofwine.ie is a brand new ‘tailored to your taste’ subscription service set up by three former hospitality employees. Aimed in part at wine novices but also the indecisive: we have all stood in front of a wall of wine and been unable to choose - there can be a tyranny in all that choice.
For €49 you will be sent three bottles each month in line with your taste. The first step is a short quiz to determine your preferences and you can opt-out at any time. The wines will change every month and there is no set list, just whatever they tried recently that tasted great.
They kindly sent me a sample box which by coincidence included three wines I’ve recommended here in the past - Henry Fessy Beaujolais Villages, Resalso Ribera del Duero and a Haut Poitou Sauvignon Blanc.
I loved the presentation which included short tasting cards and notes on the wines. Boxofwine.ie will also prove useful for gifting (Mother’s Day, Birthdays etc.), and you can add in a bar of Skelligs Chocolate or a bar of handmade soap to bump up the gift.
Station to Station Wine is another excellent site for curated boxes. You can mix and match yourself, but I adored their ‘Wine Mix Tapes’ section which mashes up wine with pop culture - e.g. a “Game of Rhône” box, or if you like a bit of politics, the Alt White box might suit. This last has a pic of Trump and his acolytes and this tagline: “Sick of the same old Whites?”
Station to Stations’s site is well designed and fun to browse - watch for wines from rising star Berthau-Gerbet from Burgundy, Jean Foillard, Alvaro Palacios, Celler del Roure and Bibi Graetz among many others. Nationwide shipping costs €13.00.
My picks this week are all lesser known wines I love with five from Whelehan's Wines, one of the best online shops in the country.
Stockists: DrinkStore.ie, Nectar Wines, Vintry, The Corkscrew, boxofwine.ie (as part of a gift box).
This featured in a recent gift box from the online wine delivery service boxofwine.ie so they have good taste. Chiaretto comes from the hillsides around Lake Garda and uses Corvina, Corvinone and Rondinella as you would find in Valpolicella. Bright cherry and floral aromas, lively and fresh with good acidity and lingering citrus edges. Perfect springtime rosé.
Stockists: Whelehanwines.ie, JJ O’Driscolls.
On sale in Whelehans this month. I’ve featured the soft juicy red from this producer a few times but I don’t think I’ve mentioned their white. I love Alentejo whites which combine floral notes with fleshy citrus flavours from native grapes such as Antão Vaz, Encruzado and Arinto - the three grapes used here. Tropical fruits mixed with the scent of lilies and citrus, fleshy but pleasingly crisp and zingy.
Stockist: Whelehanwines.ie, JJ O’Driscolls
On offer in Whelehanwines this month. Toro is located up near Ribero del Duero and can offer similar weight and depth but often at a better price (for now, its reputation is rapidly on the rise). I love this label and the others in the range which feature the father and grandfather. This is young and fruity with big blackberry fruit aromas, fruity and full-flavoured with lingering spice and plum flavours.
Stockist: Whelehanswines.ie
Blauer Zweigelt (or sometimes just Zweigelt) is a crossing of Blaufränkisch and St. Laurent and found throughout Austria. I love Austrian reds for their bright freshness and they also tend to be a little lower in alcohol. This pours a bright cherry red and is packed with red fruit aromas and flavours with creamy berry fruits and just a hint of structure on the palate. Try with anything from pizza to lamb chops.
Stockist: Whelehanswines.ie
Riesling is hardly a new grape to you but the Austrian style is often more elegant and subtle than those found in Germany and Alsace. This has lively floral and citrus aromas and a pristine palate that somehow envelopes its flinty fruits in a fleshy floral shell giving the wine texture as well as vibrancy. Türk Grüner Veltliner is also recommended and featured here last year - there are four to choose from.
Stockist: Whelehanswines.ie
Rosso di Montalcino is the younger more affordable sister of long-lived and often extremely complex Brunello di Montalcino and I wish there were more available here. Technically this is Sangiovese as used in Chianti but wines from Montalicino are usually darker and fuller. Dark garnet in colour with soft blackberry and black cherry aromas, rich dark cherry fruits on the palate, velvety and complex and a proper treat.
Stockists: O’Briens, Fine Wines Limerick, Molloys, and thanks to new distribution widely available nationwide or via treatycitybrewery.ie
Treaty City Brewery hasn’t featured here for almost two years which is shameful neglect on my part as they keep innovating and I seem to like everything they produce. Now in 440ml cans and shiny new packaging the full range is worth a try.
Outcast Juicy IPA pours a hazy gold with a light creamy head and has a welcome low ABV of 3.8%. Fruity bright and juicy with grapefruit and mandarin freshness and lingering dry hop bitterness. I also recommend the Harris Pale Ale (5%)which ups the malt and the noble hop flavours but maintains its freshness despite the extra weight.
