Little ole wine drinker me (us?)

[MontyVeda]

I'm in a quandry... I'm having salmon for tea tonight, but only have a bottle of red wine in.

Do I dash out and buy a white wine... or wash the fish down with a pint of Staropraman?

 

[Shadow]

Supermarket Chianti

2023 Taste the Difference Chianti Classico 13.5%, £11.75
2021 Finest Chianti Classico Riserva 13.5%, £11.75

I used to think the Tesco one is better, now it depends! Both made from mostly Sangiovese (no further info on either) and both medium bodied. The Tesco is visibly lighter in colour when poured. This continues when drunk, certainly light enough to drink on its own. Conclusion: am happy to drink both, Tesco's with lighter dishes (charcuterie, pizza or in summer), Sainsburys with more robust dishes (lasagne, pappardelle alla lepre or in winter).
Very good value with 25% off!

 

[Shadow]

Sainsbury's v Tesco (cont'd)

2022 Tesco Finest De Bortoli Dessert Semillon (10%) and 2020 De Bortoli Family Reserve Botrytis Semillon (9%) from Sainsbury's.
Apart from the year and the negligible difference in abv, what is the difference between these two Sauternes look alikes? Very, very little! I have mentioned the Tesco wine before but was very surprised to find the Sainsbury's wine recently. Drunk both side by side They are almost indistinguishable, the Sainsbury's one maybe marginally sweeter. Other than that, is the price - £7.00 or £7.50.
Both are intensely sweet, rich, full of citrus and peach/apricot, supremely well balanced. I am very, very happy to drink either. Both are huge bargains for amazing quality. Does Tesco win for a 50p differential?

 

[Shadow]

And some more canadian pinot noirs:

2020 Rosehall Run St Cindy Pinot Noir, PEC, ON., 13% - delicious, european style, clean red summer fruit, light bodied, very long; one of the best ON pinots I have had the pleasure to drink, a wonderful surprise
2022 Hidden Bench Pinot Noir, Niagara, ON., 13% - very similar, light to medium bodied, smooth tannin, very tasty
2022 Stags Hollow Shuttleworth Creek Pinot Noir, Okanagan, BC., 12.7% - similar to Hidden Bench, darker fruit (cherry?), medium bodied, very long, very good.

They would all retail around C$40 (£21), but would cost at least twice as much if they were from burgundy. These were the last bottles of a case picked up at auction, for much less than retail. It is not easy being a pinot noir fan with a limited budget !
Next post will be back at the supermarket.

 

[Shadow]

Sometimes, just sometimes, a true hot summer arrives and your brain calls out for only one drink, a refreshing white wine that is sadly unloved in much of the world, because they drink pinot grigio or poor savvy be, preferably with a low abv, the imperious riesling. Last night was one of those evenings, so the chilled Cedar Creek was opened (far left):

2022 Cedar Creek Riesling, Okanagan, BC, CA. 12.5% - oh joy! Superb! An excellent apero, well-chilled, very fresh, lemon and lime, rapier-like acidity, very refreshing. Finished the bottle with a simple supper of pan-fried sea bass, jersey royals coated in butter and green (aka french) beans. Excellent value at £14.50 (C$25).
And others drunk recently:
2022 50th Parallel Riesling, Okanagan, BC, CA. 12.1% - 'lime, lemon zest, mandarin and white peach aromas' according to the second label; certainly lemon/limey and zesty, as for the rest, too overly descriptive. Nice wine though, very happy to drink it.
2019 Hidden Bench Felseck Vineyard Riesling, Beamsville, ON, CA. 10.5% - lower abv, just what I needed in this heatwave, too much abv slows me down! Nothing much wrong with this.
2024 'Unearthed' Gemischter Satz, AT. 12.5% - from Aldi, 'Unearthed' being their unusual range and always worth trying, usually very good value. Described on the second label as a "unique field blend". Field blends are unusual in that the growers do not know which varieties are planted precisely in the vineyard. Historically, this is how many blends, e.g. bordeaux or rioja, started. In this case, likely to be Muller-Thurgau, Muskateler, Scheurebe, Silvaner and quite possibly a dash of Gruner. Lively, vibrant fruit and refreshing. Another good summer apero.