Wine with Leslie: a mindful new year, rather than a Dry January
Pic: iStock
January is a time for reflection and abstemiousness they say, and I can do a decent job of the former but I probably have a glass of something alcoholic beside me while I reflect.
I will not be going dry this January and I don’t particularly recommend that you do either. A better plan is to resolve to be a little more mindful throughout the year and drink less but better.
If you are seeking out non-alcoholic wines I recommend Hollow Leg and Ein Zwei Zero from good independents.
To return to indulgence, did you open expensive wine this Christmas? If so, I suspect it wasn’t a bottle of Liber Pater, as according to w ine-searcher.com the 2015 costs €32,522 and the 2018 and 2019 are similar.
A new documentary on Liber Pater (LP) was released on January 1st by Winemasters.tv which profiles LP’s creator Loïc Pasquet. LP is the world’s most expensive wine, and an attempt to recreate the flavour of Bordeaux in 1855.
The documentary is engaging if rather hagiographic, but it was interesting to see LP’s 2-hectare vineyard in the Graves which is planted with 20,000 vines per hectare, double the amount permitted by Bordeaux’s AOC regulations.
The vineyard is 85% Cab. Sauvignon but also has around 5% of obscure 19th-century varieties.
Ungrafted vines are less productive and need more maintenance, but I can see no reason for the price of the wine other than marketing.
The wine qualifies as ‘natural’ with no added sulphur and recent vintages are aged amphora rather than oak.
Tasting notes talk of purity, blackberries and herbal notes, so just like other ‘natural’ Bordeaux then (see below).
The documentary can be streamed on iTunes or through a subscription to winemasters.tv.
Suggestions this week are two bargain reds and an excellent natural Bordeaux.
Fado is the traditional folk singing of Portugal that quite resembles Sean-Nós. This is a blend of Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), Alicante Bouschet and Syrah and is richly fruited with lots of ripe black fruits plus spice, texture, and character. Also watch in SuperValu for Nugan Estate Shiraz (€12) and the excellent Nugan King Valley Chardonnay (€12).
Reduced from €19. This is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Tempranillo grown at some altitude, and farmed sustainably with minimum intervention. This is fruity, rich and savoury with good freshness given the ageing, and a mix of blackberry and dark cherry fruits. Also in O’Briens watch for Rizzardi Bardolino (€13) and Luzon Finca la Solana (€10).
Forget €32,000 Liber Pater, this is probably just as close to the taste of a 19th century Bordeaux given viticulture and winemaking practices. This is as ‘natural’ as Bordeaux gets with ripe blackberry fruits, a soft plum palate, liquorice hints, freshness and drinkability and with gorgeous purity and finesse.
Distilled in Co. Tyrone this is an intriguing tasty gin I only discovered recently. Created by an organic chemist and cold distilled to bring out more of the flavours and essences of apple; a similar approach is used to extract essential oils for perfumes.
Botanicals include the usual juniper etc. plus Bramley apples from Co. Armagh.
Juniper and baked apple aromas but apple essence hits the palate first followed by pepper, spice and juniper notes. Dry and complex. They also make a raspberry gin and an apple rum.
