Some Neck Wine

Another one of those wine & beer blogs

[someneckwine]

James Brown Brews (Yes,our very own) - Chocolate Orange Stout

@thobiasinkblot

Deliciously rich in malt, full bodied and smooth with a touch of orange on the finish. Great to see James getting this off the ground. Wasn't that long ago that I was tasting these beers in fountain format (a little bit too much carbonation)

[tobwaylan]

[someneckwine]

Ravenswood Old Vine Zinfandel - Lodi 2012

Sure look. Anyone reading Empty Glass long enough knows we love Zinfandel. A much maligned grape. We just love an underdog. So how was this one?

Deep purple hues with a whopper nose of ripe autumn fruits. Imagine autumn condensed into a glass? A sign of a good zin. Ripe blackberry, raspberry and cherry, cedary oak and chocolate on the nose follow through to the palate, which is full bodied, well balanced with fine tannin.

I tried this with a couple of home made burgers, but Zinfandel is quite versatile suiting red meats, medium cheese and spicy affairs.

[someneckwine]

Chateau Lanessan 1998 

@thobiasinkblot

Ruby red with tawny rim indicating some age. A lot of tertiary truffle and earth on the nose with some dried red berried fruits, plum with sweet spice and a kick herb. The palate is full of red-berried fruits, red currant dominating with some juicy plum. This is polished off with some cinnamon and mint.

A wine that is certainly in its’ mature phase, but still with very good structure. Fine tannin, balanced acidity make a very good example of why real wine should be aged, to unearth previously hidden layers. Most wines don’t get a chance to show their tertiary side these days.

Grab a few of the from Majestic to see for yourself.

[someneckwine]

Bristol Beer Factory - Southville Hop

@thobiasinkblot

Inviting deep amber from minimal filtration, to a nose that screams hops. Aromas of herbs, passion fruit and a mint kick lead to a full bodied palate of weighty malt balanced by floral and tropical acidity from exceptional hop integration.

I can’t fault this beer. One of the most balanced IPAs I’ve had the pleasure of tasting.

[someneckwine]

Words by @thobiasinkblot

Domaine Thibert per et fils - Macon Fuisse 2012 

Real Chardonnay is hard to come by, there is plenty of confected rubbish out there, but this Macon Fuisse ticks all the right boxes.

Straw gold in colour with medium intensity.Good creamy nose from what I suspect good lees ageing. Hint of vanilla with intense apple and apricot. The palate is like biting into a ripe red apple with wrapped in cream and cinnamon.

Full bodied with well balanced acidity and a long finish. Whopper stuff from Majestic.

[someneckwine]

Beavertown Tins

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Words by @Rob_Gilmour

Beavertown Gamma Ray APA

Straddles the fruit and sweet veg that APA embodies for me. Grapefruit, subtle hints of mango, kiwi. All this developing into a lingering flavour reminiscent of roasted sweet potatoes dressed with a leafy fresh herbaceous tone. The bitterness is interwoven brilliantly, leaving the fleshy palate wiped clean and good to start again.

Great texture on the mid palate and were it not for the 5.4% alcohol, that I completely failed to notice, it’d be a super session ale. Every inch given by that 5.4% is used wonderfully. The bottle shop I picked this up in was cleared out within a week. If nothing else, there's your reason to try it out. 

Beavertown Rye PA

A good healthy dose of toasty grain and orange peel on a slightly off-dry palate. A nicely balanced beer, slightly tannic and super bitterness keeps the palate all nice and tidy. The palate might be a little austere but it does bounce rather vibrantly easily keeping you engaged. 

For anyone one who likes a good Rye beer, have a whirl. 

[someneckwine]

Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Hell. More commonly known as the down side of nice glassware, it breaks.

[someneckwine]

Meantime IPA

Meantime IPA

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Words by @thobiasinkblot

This was recommended to me as an IPA to beat the Americans. Now this carry on gets to me, every reference point is not America or in wine terms, not Robert Parker. This is a long conversation to be having, but needless to say this beer is all on its own. 

So what do I mean by that? Well it is intriguing from the open. An initial hop wave of grapefruit, nettle and a hint of mint (I need to find out what hop that is) makes way for a delicious undertone of rich sweet malt. 

The deep golden colour and rich malt gives way to passionfruit, peach, herb and spice. All of this is in perfect harmony with delicious body with sweetness of malt complimented by integrated hops.

An excellent IPA that shows this style does not have to be all hop and no grain. This, rich and laden with tropical fruits on the nose and palate, with some delicious earthiness thrown into the mix. Best IPA I have tried over here so far? … Eh, not sure I can choose between this and Bristol Brewery Southville Hop. 

I’ll get back to you on that one. 

As for the interminable referencing and cultural Hegemony of beer and wine by the Americas, this is a long and complicated one to tackle, but this IPA bucks the trend. It is big and vivacious, but has malty depth and a good bitter finish that identifies it as something not generic and/or not an American simulacrum. 

I do not mean this as an affront to America, but to uniformity, brewing and wine making by numbers, homogeneity, jam (Robert Parker et al). 

So, when sitting down to enjoy your next beer or wine, ask yourself is this drink really talking to me? If not then you best have a stern word with it. 

[someneckwine]

Hannes Sabathi, Sauvignon Blanc <<Klassik>> 2010

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Words by @Rob_Gilmour

As with all things wine, the French will have you believe this is not the case with every bottle; Pouilly Fumé and Sancerre, you’ll hear, takes to old age with enduring grace and edge. 

What about everyone else? I’ve heard that Cloudy Bay in it’s Kevin Judd vintages develops charmingly. And… Well, It’s a short list, more of an honourable mention than a list really. 

So, ageing, it’s really not Sauvignon Blanc’s gig, agreed. However, I just discovered a timely reminder that it does have the potential to ‘develop’ when handled correctly. 

Enter, Hannes Sabathi, another young gun of the Austrian wine industry.

"Today, it is important for me to bring the authentic character of origin of our wines into the bottle. I want to make wines." Hannes Sabathi

Emphasis on terroir and juice, Sabathi, this wine is just an entry level from Sabathi and at 4 years has done the unthinkable for Sauvignon Blanc. Developed, and positively so, a honeyed tone, mellowed, and yet remained (or found, depending on your perspective) in total harmony four years on. 

No oak fermentation or maturation, all steel. Yet it still manages a beautiful mouth feel. The flavours are subdued, integrated and meshed. Gooseberry and herbal notes predominate, but melt away into the honeyed background.

It’s a really charming wine and a welcome change from youthful, aggressive Sauvignon, or mass produced sugared up plonk that fills up so much shelf space these days. Pretty good for a bin end, eh? I’d advise picking up a few for instant drinking. 

[someneckwine]

Meantime London IPA

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Words by Shane Mc Nally

On a one man mission to find my new local beer (to replace the amazing Galway Bay Full Sail IPA) and have come across some whopper beers. My local brewery is Ramsbury Brewery and they produce some excellent old school bitter, but I am after that hop monster that is in complete harmony with good rich malt. 

Meantime IPA has a very good nose of fresh pine, herb and a good backbone of malt with a hint of caramel. The palate is full bodied, but is well integrated with a delicious smooth caramel and biscuit with a hint of savoury herb on the finish. This would be great with some good Cheddar or even a bit of Brie

[someneckwine]

Bonterra Chardonnay 2012

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Words by Shane Mc Nally

Bonterra have been producing for a long time under an organic philosophy and have not compromised on this. In my experience the quality of their wines has always been consistent with good fruit that is clearly well taken care of and this shows here. 

On the nose this is an intense an intense array of apple and peach with a floral undertone. This is enveloped in good, but well integrated oak adding  layer of vanilla. The palate is full full bodied and teeming with lively apple and honey, with a lingering finish of vanilla and cinnamon.

This is what Chardonnay is all about, good clean fruit and what organic methods can produce, excellent weight of fruit and balance. I tried this with mushroom risotto and it paired beautifully with the savoury qualities of the food.

This is elegant Chardonnay with no bells or frills attached. Nothing complicated, but a statement of what this grape should be about.

[alleybrewing]

Baby Hops

[someneckwine]

Samuel Smiths Chocolate Stout

________________ Words by Rob Gilmour

The first brewer I met informed me if I was to ever tempt fate and homebrew, Stout was the way to go. His premise? “You can’t really f*€k it up.”. Given this, I am really rather baffled how few really good stouts are available despite the vast number of good breweries operating.

So when one is found it's generally worth having a shout about. Obviously this is one of them for me.

The first thing you notice is the purity of the chocolate aromas. They’re really fixating. The senses jump to start imagining rich chocolate bars cracking right under your nose. The palate too offers an excellent experience with the beer feeling lighter than it really is. By the time you’ve it polished off you realise you are actually rather full. A really nice end of week treat.

[someneckwine]

Ridgeview Grosvenor 2010

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Words by Shane Mc Nally

Champagne at its’ best is one of those wines that evokes something ethereal. It is both complex and immediately pleasing, taunting you to some more.

Crisp apple and biscuit on the nose with a hint of brioche. Super fresh with lip smacking acidity and a long, lingering finish the Grovesnor is a stunning example of the competition Champagne faces. 

If I were to pick a wine right now to make a statement for English wine On the very noisy platform of what’s new and hip, or ‘the next big thing’ this would be it. Let’s hope it is not lost in the fray. Blanc de Blanc of this quality from Champagne would command a ridiculous price. Get on it! 

[someneckwine]

Philip Shaw no17 Merlot Cabernet Franc Cabernet, 2011

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Words by Rob Gilmour

If you have ever taken the time out to punish yourself with a 2011 from South Eastern Australia you'll probably have gathered it wasn't quiet what you call a great year. Indeed, it was far from it. Yet, there is something of a silver lining at least for all us wine geek types.

2008. Drought and a heat wave. Great for Martao and Grenache. Not so great for everything else, which ended up with a consistency to make even Jam quiver.

2009. Again, pretty damn hot. With GSMs tasting pretty neat (again), and everything else paying the price.

2010. Good year bar the fact that, somehow, finding acidity, even with the additions is akin to finding Wally in a copy Waitng for Godot.  

But all these jitters, well, they just pale in comparison to 2011. Which was a wash out, both figuratively and literally. Rain, rain, followed by more rain then which helped along by some disease to ensure ample profanity in the vineyard, I have been assured. 

So why did I pick it off the shelf? I will admit this. I asked myself this the whole way home. More, I threatened the Frenchman who had convinced me it was good. I even asked myself why I trusted a Borderlais on poor vintage. It is in his soul, if it can be called that, to push wet vintages. 

Yes. I felt a bit the fool, wine in one hand, fumbling to open the door to my flat with the other. Half hoping to drop the wine and spare myself the embarrassment of admitting an impulse buy.

That was (sort of) until I opened the wine. It wasn't utterly dreadful. It even went all the way to ticking every box needed to be a balanced and enjoyable wine.

There was plenty of fruit, it wasn't overwhelming and the nose was really attractive. It was fresh, refreshing even. 

Now, if I had told my partner that it was a £20+, she may not have been so enamoured. I am sure that ample direction would have been given on where to shove Philip Shaw and my £20. Yet, there is the difference. I am a minor wine geek and She is the functional human being that stops me forgetting to eat or from walking out in front of buses.  

What I would pull away from this is that there are some 'good' wines from 2011 and they will be very 'delicate'. Very delicate in that uniquely Bordeaux style which so often coincides with trying to clear the cellar.

However, if there is a true mark for these wines. It is that it can be a real marker for who to try when Australia's 2012 Vintage is fully released in the UK. Philip Shaw is most definitely on my own bucket list to try again. 

[someneckwine]

Mikeller 1000 IBU's

Like an unwelcome kick in the face … most are. The first time this was attempted it was fresh, some might say too fresh. This was so hoppy and bitter it made me cry. On the one hand delicious aromas of pine, citrus, apricot and spice. 

The palate is an initial bombardment of malt and immediate a rush of hops, then some more and more again. Afterwards there is more hop bitterness, then it is like someone inserts a trowel into your mouth and scrapes your tongue. 

Thankfully the second one tasted was a few months later and seemed to have settled somewhat. This beer does not disappoint. The man is behind bars for a reason.

@thobiasinkblot