Wine with Leslie: some last-minute stocking fillers - including a €14 Sauvignon Blanc
In need of a few last-minute stocking-fillers? Right this way...
Just a few hours left to pick up some stocking fillers and to make sure you have every possible flavour in the house to match your Christmas food. I’m joking, you likely have plenty of wine sorted, but just in case there are a few ideas below.
Sales of non-alcoholic wine have increased hugely in recent years and a new one has just launched called Hollow Leg - an initiative of Ronan Farrell of WineLab, Mister S owner Jamie O’Toole and winemaker Pablo Martinez. Wines are from organic grapes and once de-alcoholised they blend back in grape juice to add body and weight. I recommend the red below and there is a decent fizz at €15.
If things go awry today and you forget a present, consider a voucher or subscription for one of the Irish-run wine websites or your local off-licence. The latest online site to launch is Awineidea.ie created by Sevgi Tüzel-Conghaile who has an MSc in Oenology and Viticulture and has studied wine in Montpelier, Bordeaux and Geisenheim. Sevgi is originally from Turkey and as you can guess from her surname has an Irish husband. The site has big ambitions with fine wines on the way as well as their own imports - there is also a linkup BYO scheme with the site a selection of restaurants.
If you find yourself in the midlands over the break Shane Lowry’s new whiskey bar The Old Warehouse in Tullamore has just opened and it looks great - located in the old Tullamore Dew Heritage Centre on the Royal Canal. Meanwhile Éan in Galway are now doing walk-ins for their wine bar and have a selection of tasty snacks on hand - Éan was one of my most enjoyable meals 2022. An excuse to go to Galway.
My selections this Christmas Eve are the kind of wines that you will find useful to have in your house over the coming two weeks - crisp whites to wake up your palate; a soft red to match turkey sandwiches or the meal itself; some fortified wine to fortify you and match mince pies and Christmas Cake; and some delicious organic Champagne to treat yourself on Christmas morning. Finally let me wish you and yours a very Happy Christmas.
You know there is going to be somebody looking for Sauvignon Blanc in the coming days and this will even appeal to (most) Sauvignon haters. The house wine in Rick Stein and the Savoy - ripe aromas of apple and grapefruit, plus elegant cream-tinged green apple fruits. The crunchy, fruity Merlot dominated red is also recommended.
Ireland loves Rias Baixas Albariño but don’t forget that the grape is likely Portuguese. This is from Minho in northern Portugal (the River Minho is the border between Portugal and Galicia). Floral lemon peel aromas with pear and apples, soft pear fruits on the palate, lively and textured with crisp apple acidity on the finish.
Hollow Leg is a new range of alcoholic-free wines created by Pablo Martinez after 5 years of research. Low calorie and low sugar (rare in such wines), and as good as I’ve tasted. The Cabernet has ripe cherry and strawberry fruits with weight and texture while the Albariño has a slight spritz and pleasing white peach fruits.
This is new from the Irish lads behind Les Deux Cols and is intended as an early drinking crowd-pleaser. Organic Syrah and Grenache from a single vineyard this pours a rich dark purple with ripe aromas of concentrated blackberry and prunes. Supple and almost lush on the palate with rounded plum fruits and grippy blackcurrants.
Now that most Grand Marque Champagnes are pushing €70, this is a bargain. From 100% organic Pinot Noir with a low dosage of 5.5 grams this pours a light gold with white peach and brioche aromas, rounded savoury complexity on the palate - beautiful zing and freshness and a hint of ozone. Stunningly good.
Australia has a long tradition of fortified wine, this is a blend of Grenache, Shiraz and Verdelho and spends 10 years in oak - normally €23. Pouring a tawny, honey-gold with aromas of figs and dried fruits - nutty and spice-tinged on the palate and a perfect match for mince pies and most other Christmas treats.
This is the brand new release from West Cork Distillers, Ireland’s oldest Independent Distillery, based in Skibbereen in beautiful West Cork. There is also a 7-Year-Old Single Malt (46% ABV) release with a little more intensity and some honeyed marzipan notes for an extra €5.
From a mash of 66:33 malted versus unmalted barley this is finished in first-fill ex-Bourbon Casks. Aromas of baked pears, warm hay and a touch of caramel, pleasingly smooth on the palate with vanilla and butterscotch flavours with some savoury malt notes poking through. On the finish black pepper kicks in followed by pink peppercorns, and finally more vanilla and cream. Distinctive and delicious - treat yourself.
