Emporia 2

As some of you may know, my peerless knowledge of wine has finally been recognised by my being invited to be a face of the Emporia 2 range of wines (if you don’t know what I’m talking about, see: http://www.emporiabrands.com/brochure/winepages/vigouroux.htm).

If only. The real story is that I happen to know the wine account manager there (an old blind tasting friend who ended up going into the trade once she realised that a geography degree was a pretty useless qualification to have, and that you can get loads of free samples if you go into the wine trade), who was desperate for any passing person to pose with a bottle on account of real celebrities not being arsed to pose for a wine catalogue photo. My appearance fee being as low as it is (a free glass of wine will get me to show up almost anywhere, often uninvited), I was there quicker than you can start complaining about mark-ups on 2006 Bordeaux.

But what wine to choose to be the face of? This is very important, you see, not least because I get to keep said bottle after the photo shoot. (Sadly I really am that cheap). So you can bet your sweet bippy that I’m not going to choose a Fino Sherry that tastes like licking the side of a boat, or a £5 Australian Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc blend (I don’t work at the Airport Hilton anymore!) Sarah suggested a 2003 Margaux (2003 Chateau Mongravey (£36), incidentally – an elegant wine, perfumed, with very pure damson fruit), but the Bordelais don’t need my help to sell wine, so in the end I chose a 2003 Chateau de Haut Serre Cahors (£13) (note the price difference – even I am not so mercenary as to choose the most expensive wine for the sake of it). It is, of course, a superb wine. I would endorse nothing less. The nose is intensely ripe – mashed raspberries, blackberries, liquorice, and the palate tremendously amplified, with layers of jammy fruit, white pepper, a slight minerality and ripe tannins on the finish.

But the strengths of the Emporia 2 range do not stop there (given that I have declared my interest in this range I have no qualms in going on to plug the other wines in it).

I recommend the 2002 Clos Liebenberg Riesling (£13) and 2004 Bollenberg Gewurtztraminer (£15), both from Domaine Zusslin in Alsace. The Riesling is beginning to develop some powerful petrolly notes on the nose, whilst retaining purity and elegance on the palate, with hints of apricot and caramel making the wine taste like more than just alcoholic lime juice. The Gewurtz shows delicious clean pears (I wrote ‘peas’ in my tasting note but I’m pretty sure I meant ‘pears’ – I’ve never taste a wine that smells like peas…) and lychee on the nose, with a hint of orange. The palate has great length and freshness for a Gewurtz, whilst retaining that lovely oiliness that gives Gewurtz its character.

Next, the wines of Maison Jean-Luc & Paul Aegerter, an exemplary portfolio of Burgundies from the stunning 2005 vintage that, while expensive, are worth every cent (or possibly every ‘scent’ – geddit?) The 2005 Meursault Premier Cru Poruzots (£26) has an oily, nutty nose, showing hazelnuts and almonds. The palate is elegant, with soft white fruits, apple and pear liqueur. The 2005 Beaune Premier Cru les Reversees Blanc (£28) is at the other end of the scale with spicy oak, grapefruit, stone fruit, butter, and a soft, persistent finish. But of the whites, the 2005 Chassagne-Montrachet les Embazees (£37) was by far my favourite. This wine has no corners. It is one of those great wines that doesn’t taste of peach or nuts or whatever, it just tastes of ‘wine’. A complete, highly integrated wine with serious persistence and finesse. The reds are also worth dwelling upon. First the 2005 Beaune Premier Cru Les Reversees (£23) shows pronounced raspberry and ripe cherry flavours with an earthy backbone and very open palate while the 2005 Gevrey Chambertin (£25) is more plummy and rosy-cheeked, with an herbaceous, vegetal streak to it. My favourite, though, was the 2005 Nuits St Georges Premier Cru les Damodees (£32) – highly perfumed violet, lavender and marzipan aromas leap from the glass, with an attractive yet structured cherry liqueur palate.

When the Beastie Boys said “Like a bottle of Chateauneuf-du-Pape/I’m like a fine wine when I start to rap” (Body Movin’, 1998) they were probably thinking of the famous red stuff rather than the much rarer white Chateauneuf. I don’t know. If anybody runs into Mike D or Ad-Rock maybe they could ask. But the statement could certainly apply to the 2006 Domaine de la Presidente Chateauneuf-du-Pape Blanc (£20), in so far as the lyric makes any sense at all, that is. This wine is part of a corpus of white Chateaneuf that reminds me that this appellation is highly underrated and should be added to the list of trends that should be happening but sadly aren’t. The nose begins soft and clean, with fresh mandarin, soft caramel, white peach and apricot stones, all courtesy of the dominant Grenache blanc grape. On the palate there is more serious marzipan and almond flavours giving the wine an agreeable bitterness and interest.

All the wines can be ordered from Arthur Rackham Emporia: http://www.ar-emporia.com/Public/index.php