Wine with Leslie: Chablis recommendations for the summer
Pic: iStock
Sad news from Chablis which was hit by a ‘supercell’ hail storm earlier this month which has done serious damage to the 2024 vintage.
Hail storms have become a yearly occurrence it seems and is the reason prices keep climbing - Chablis has more than doubled in price in the last 8 years.
Up to 80% of some vineyards were destroyed but other producers such as Moreau are now putting the figure at 20% which is considerably better than initially feared.
Hail stones the size of ping-pong balls in places were found in some Grand Cru sites so top end Chablis is likely to go up in price. The Jura and Cahors meanwhile had severe frost damage.
Better news from Argentina who also had some extreme weather events this season but overall the 2024 harvest is thought to be very good quality although yields are lower.
Argentina got another boost this week as Brittany Spears was pictured celebrating the end of another court case with her father over her conservatorship with a bottle of Norton Reserve Malbec - it sold out across the US as a result.
I can’t find the Reserve version anywhere but O’Briens have the regular Norton Coleccion Malbec at €12.95 - I recommend a richer Malbec below.
Bloom in the Phoenix Park is on next weekend and if you are visiting make sure to drop into the drinks tent.
Ahascragh Distillery from Balinasloe will be there with their full product range (including ‘Uais’ which featured here two weeks ago), and there will be a Poitin showcase with four producers including Micil and Mad March Hare.
The excellent Kinsale Mead will have a stand, and there will be a number of craft beer and cider producers.
Besides a Chablis and a Malbec I also recommend a new season-appropriate pet-nat from Mary Pawle.
Summer is definitely the season for pet-nat as it works on its own in the garden as well as with barbecue and seafood.
From biodynamic white garnacha grapes this pours a pale straw colour with aromas of soft pears and grapefruit, fruity and crisp on the palate with more pear flavours and a leesy tangy finish.
Brittany Spears celebrated the definitive end of her conservatorship with an Argentine Malbec last week so here is your annual reminder that Malbec loves grilled meat from the barbecue.
This has rich black fruit aromas with a touch of chocolate and pepper, concentrated bright and fruit-focused. Serve cool if you wish.
I last featured this in 2017 when it was €25, it will probably go up again next year thanks to recent hail storms.
This is pristine Chablis, stony, textured and elegant with honeysuckle and soft apple flesh flavours and beautifully taut on the finish.
Also watch for Chablis from La Chablisienne, Moreau and Long-Depaquit.
I’m not usually a fan of pre-mixed cocktails but this recently launched collection from Diageo does a fairly solid job.
There is a Tanqueray Negroni (17.5%) mix with properly bitter notes if perhaps a slightly sticky texture and there is also a Johnny Walker Old Fashioned (20.5%) which has distinct smoky notes mixed with orange peel.
My favourite of the three is the CÎROC Cosmopolitan which pours a classic pale pink with noticeable cranberry aromas - fruity and refreshing with a tang of bitter cherry on the finish.
