Wine with Leslie: Spanish bargains to seek out - including a pair of €10 whites
Spanish vineyard (Spain.info) and port
Minimum alcohol prices are in place a few weeks now and I’m curious to know if readers have noticed any difference in their shopping habits — I confess I have not. However, I notice that chicken and pork farmers are in crisis over supermarket pricing and I suspect the two may not be unconnected. If you can’t sell Heineken for 50c a can to entice shoppers, you shouldn't be allowed to sell chickens for €3.
Speaking of supermarkets, however, I do have to hand it to SuperValu for their upcoming Spanish Wine Sale which begins on February 10 next with some amazing value wines, some of which must be below cost. As well as reduced prices across their regular Spanish range for brands like Torres, there are some excellent guest wines brought in for the event — some of which may sell out early.
The star red wine is probably La Única from Pagos del Rey at €25. This is the 4th edition of this unusual wine which is a blend from three regions — it is big, bold and age-worthy but can also be drunk now (decanting is advisable). For me, the star buy of the sale is Apostles Palo Cortado Sherry which is on offer for the ridiculously low price of €15 — a wine that should cost €30, or in fact double this if the world had any clue of the quality to be found in Jerez.
Supervalu is to be praised for this offer as it introduces an example of the very best that Sherry can offer and they won’t make any money, just lots of goodwill from the likes of me. Watch also for a Cockburn's LBV Port and I heard that they hope to stock more Sherry and Port in the future — surely good news given the underrated quality in these two regions.
I feature some wines from the sale here, but watch also for Mosaic Priorat and Condado de Oriza Gran Reserva Ribera del Duero for €13.39 each; and Marques de Cáceres Gran Reserva Rioja for €15 instead of its usual €30.
I can’t be giving SuperValu all my picks so here also are two gorgeous crunchy red wines suited to slightly warmer Spring weather. The Vougeraie Bourgogne is imported by Solera Wines and is a producer worth watching for should you have the money to spend on some of the more exalted villages of Burgundy — a dangerous habit so watch that credit card.
From Somontano in the cool climate Pyrenees foothills and one of the best Gewürztraminer outside Alsace. Floral and fragrant with sweet pear and lychee aromas and a touch of rose petal — soft and fruity on the palate with a touch of residual sugar and a pleasing prickle of spritz. Serve well chilled. Perfect for korma, stir-fry or perhaps with Hadji Bey Rose Turkish Delight
NZ and Chilean Sauvignon is in short supply so give this a go instead. Stainless steel fermentation and with 2 months on lees this is from Toledo in the Sierra de Gredos mountains in Central Spain. Big ripe classical grassy, gooseberry and tropical Sauvignon aromas not unlike Sauvignon from a certain Southern Hemisphere country - ripe apple and gooseberry fruits, lingering apple peel and a wallop of acidity on the finish.
A blend of 12-year-old Palo Cortado and a touch of 12-year-old sweet PX wine aged a further 18 years — 30 in total. Intense caramelised fig and roasted orange peel aromas and flavours. This is off-dry rather than sweet and is beautifully balanced — a proper Spring treat at a very low price. I’ll be at my local SuperValu early next Thursday and so should you!
Spring and longer evenings sends me to light bright reds such as this fine example of Zweigelt, the most commonly grown red grape in Austria. This is on sale (from €20) and pours a bright purple with black cherry and bramble aromas - fruity, lively and fresh with pleasing berry fruits, a touch of blackberry jam on the mid-palate and good length and character. Türk Grüner-Vetliner is also recommended.
I’ve tasted some excellent wines from Vougeraie in the past including Clos de Vougeot and Vougeot Les Cras — all unaffordable these days. This may be Bourgogne AOP but is a fine example of why I love the region. Floral red fruit aromas with a touch of forest floor earthiness, elegant but generous, silky cherry and red currant fruits, supple and lingering.
A limited guest wine worth seeking out that will sell quickly. The 4th edition of La Única, a blend of Tempranillos from Toro, Ribera, and Rioja with a collectable hand-painted label — usually costs €50 (previous editions cost €90+). Rich dense fruits, supple and concentrated, layers of crunchy black fruits, a pleasing finish of ripe blackberries and some unformed flavours that will knit in nicely with time. Worth cellaring/decanting.
Like most people my age my first beer was lager (Harp), I then moved to Guinness for several years and then to IPAs. These days I drink a wide variety of beer styles from independent breweries but find myself drinking more and more pilsners and lagers so I was delighted to find this Dublin brewed Helles from the folk at JW Sweetman microbrewery on Burgh Quay.
Slow cool fermentation and minimum six weeks lagering, pouring a lovely light gold with floral and honey aromas, balanced and clean on the palate with good use of noble hops, fruity and refreshing and a lingering lemon pith finish.
