2024 past events

Meeting 471   Friday 16th  August

Summer in France

Presenter: Tony Hill, Bordeaux and Beyond

This was the most classic Berkshire Branch event, with our friend Tony Hill presenting in his inimitable style
(entertaining - and informative, as he knows all the wine makers he buys from), with excellent wines scoring
consistently highly and available at reasonable prices, and with Mark producing the most appropriate and
delicious food. Tony’s title was ‘Summer in France’, and he brought wines from Champagne, and then from the
Loire, Burgundy, Alsace, Rhone Valley, Bordeaux and Languedoc – a total of 7 wine regions of France. Not
surprisingly the event was well attended, with 33 members and one guest.
We started with Domi Moreau Cuvée d’Argent NV Champagne. This is very familiar to most of our members,
and most people loved it. A few of us thought that the taste had a slight bitter finish, which was not as we
remembered this consistently excellent wine. Then the Vaucluse Chardonnay/Vermentino was well received,
and the Entre-deux-Mers was much enjoyed; this was the favourite white of most members. The Alsace
Riesling got a mixed reception, with those Riesling aficionados loving it and some others not very excited. The
Ventoux Rosé was very dry but nicely fruity.
Then came our first red, Montagne St Emilion Chateau Piron 2019. We had one bottle of this per table, to
accompany Mark’s main course, of bavette steak and chips, served with a mushroom sauce and salad of
tomato, onion and watercress. The steak was tender and absolutely delicious, and everyone agreed that it was
the perfect complement to the beautiful wine. The next red was Luberon Domaine La Garelle; this was richly
fruity, universally liked and great value. Then an interesting wine, Lalande de Pomerol Amphora Malbec. This
combined two unusual characteristics, being matured in amphora and being 100% Malbec (Cot). It was a
serious alternative to a very good Argentinian version. Finally the Côtes du Vivarais Domaine Vigier
l’Intemporel 2019, from 80 year old vines, was excellent and a splendid accompaniment to our second course
of French cheeses. These were beautifully presented on a slate platter with fig. They were Époisse (very
runny), Pont l’Évêque, Roquefort, Morbier and Ossau Iraty (a ewe’s milk cheese from Pays Basque).

Meeting 470 Saturday 22^nd June

Visit to Fairmile Vineyard - Tour, Tasting and Picnic 

Last year our vineyard visit was rather poorly attended, reasons possibly including the price of £75 and the fact that All Angels is inconveniently distant for many of our members.  Nevertheless those who did attend had a splendid day, and very much enjoyed it.  So we decided to try another visit.  This time it was to Fairmile Vineyard at Henley, very much more conveniently located; and we kept the cost down to £60.  The response was excellent, and the event was attended by 26 Berkshire Branch members, 3 from London Branch and 3 guests.  We were quite lucky with the weather.  It was fine and fairly warm, with some sun in the afternoon, but the wind kept it feeling cooler than the actual temperature.

The vineyard site is extremely attractive, with many mature magnificent trees surrounding the south facing steeply sloping rows of vines.  There is one beautiful Cedar of Lebanon in the centre of the vineyard.  Fairmile is run by Jan and Anthea Mirkowski.  Anthea was away showing their wines at a wine fair.  Jan welcomed us and gave us a very informative history of the vineyard and details of the wines and their wine-making processes.   The vines are just the classic sparkling wine varieties, of Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier.  We were able to explore the site, and most of us made the very steep climb to the top, where we were treated to wonderful views over the valley.  We then moved to the shaded bottom of the site, where three tables were laid out for us.  With help from daughter Eli, Jan gave us his four wines to taste.  We started with the Rosé, a very fresh and pleasant drink, with strawberry fruit flavour lingering well.  Then we tasted the Classic Cuvée, very fresh again and with distinct apple and citrus hints.  Third was the Blanc de Blancs 2017.  Here the quality shone out, with good balance and complex flavours.  The final wine was the Founders Reserve 2015.  This has won many prizes, not least from Decanter when it was quite young.  Jan decided to leave the wine in bottle on the lees for seven years before disgorging.  This is a very fine wine, and was very much enjoyed by us all.

After the tasting we were treated to a magnificent picnic provided by Charlotte.  There was salmon dressed with samphire and served with a homemade lemon mayonnaise, warm buttered new potatoes, chives & mint dressing, tomato, mozzarella & basil salad, Waldorf salad, celeriac remoulade, Caesar salad and bread.  Then there was a pudding of strawberry, raspberry, blueberry & passion fruit pavlova.  Our budget ran to the purchase of six wines for us to enjoy with the picnic.  These were two each of the Rosé, Blanc de Blancs and Founders Reserve.  A few of us bought wines to take away.  The wines are clearly very well made and of excellent quality.  Unfortunately they are rather expensive, at between £35 and £58.50.  But we were all able to enjoy the wines and Charlotte’s splendid picnic, and everyone had a thoroughly enjoyable day.

Meeting 469 Friday 17^th May

Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, Burgundy v Rest-of-World 

Presenter: Duncan Ross, Berkmann Wine Cellars

It was a great pleasure to welcome back our old friend Duncan Ross, of Berkmann Wine Cellars.  Duncan brought four Chardonnays and four Pinot Noirs.  There were four pairs of wines, in each case with one from Burgundy and one from another country.  Several of our regular members were away on holiday, and so we had 30 members at the tasting, giving comfortable tasting measures with two bottles of each wine.  Our regular chef Mark was also away, but Julie Graham provided a “Posh Ploughmans”.  We had grissini and nuts to nibble throughout, but took two breaks to enjoy splendid cold dishes; at these points we were served with four bottles of the wine to taste.  Our first break was with the Californian Buena Vista Chardonnay; this wine was very pleasant, with an initial slight sweetness and attractive fruit, and it accompanied the food very well.  We had a selection of breads and three different dips.  Our second break was with the Dog Point PN: this was a very deep colour, with warm rich fruit.  Our food was smoked salmon, a mixed meat selection including cured ham, mortadella and salamis, and roast Mediterranean vegetable salad.

The wines were very well liked, and achieved high scores.  Sadly it was inevitable that the Burgundy wines were rather expensive, even though Duncan had chosen mostly entry-level wines.  He gave an interesting and comprehensive presentation, with good knowledge of the producers; he had chosen what he regarded as good value wines from these well-respected wineries, in most cases not their flagship top wines, but neither their cheapest.  But also he chose wines from other countries that were of comparable quality to good Burgundy, and in particular the Pinot Noirs from Australia and New Zealand were more expensive than we had hoped.

Our aperitif wine was a Crémant de Bourgogne, a delightful fresh bottle-fermented bubbly, which we regarded as quite comparable with Champagnes, and at a very reasonable price.  The Argentinian Pulenta Estate Chardonnay was a beautiful start to our tasting, and the best value wine of the evening.  It had clean fruit, good balance and length, with some complexity.  Then the Santenay was richer, with a bit more oak, but not quite as refined as the Pulenta.  The Pouilly-Fuissé was lovely, with soft fruit and good balance – a sophisticated wine.

The Bourgogne from Girardin showed how Burgundy is pricing itself out of the market; this was a pleasant and quite simple wine, well made, but nothing exceptional. There are equally good Pinot Noirs at less than half its price.  The Lethbridge was wonderful.  It was universally liked, with rich fruit flavour, great balance and long lasting.  The Dog Point was also very good, and much enjoyed with our delicious food.  Finally we were treated to a very fine Nuits-St-Georges.  This was a very deep colour and deeply fruity, rather like the best examples from Central Otago.  It had great length and complexity.  But then, at nearly £50 a bottle, we expected it to be very good indeed.

Meeting 468 Friday 19th April

Piedmontese Wines

Presenter: Tim Syrad

Twenty of our members enjoyed a wonderful trip to Piedmont last October with Tim Syrad. It was a pleasure
to welcome Tim back for this tasting, in which he presented a range of wines from Piedmont. Tim’s schedule
was tight, and we were not able to discuss the choice of wines with him. So Tim stuck to our original budget,
which was quite tight, being based on a limited projected attendance. In the event we had the maximum
possible attendance for a two-bottle tasting, of 40 people. So it was a little frustrating for some of us who had
experienced the best wines, in particular Barbaresco and Barolo, in Piedmont, to find that they were minimally
represented for this evening, and that some others were wines from cooperatives rather than individual
wineries. However the standard of the cooperative wines was good; the only Barolo was from the Araldica
cooperative, and was from the Taste the Difference range from Sainsburys; it was well received.
Tim is a first-rate presenter, and the evening was much enjoyed by all. We started with a Cortese from
Araldica, very reasonably priced and with nice fresh fruit. We retained this wine for later in the event, to
accompany our first course from Mark. Mark had researched the area, and produced a dish which we had
enjoyed in Piedmont, of veal tonnato (served with an anchovy and tuna sauce). Some said it did not have
enough sauce, but most of us found it just right, and loved it. Veal is not widely available, and we were
delighted to find that it was absolutely delicious. Our first white wine was a wild card, a blend of 42%
Sauvignon Blanc, 38% Chardonnay, 15% Nascetta and 5% Riesling, Dragon GD Vajra 2023. Next a Piedmont
classic, Gavi di Gavi, from the La Giustiniana estate that we had visited. This is a lovely wine, and was much
appreciated. The first course was served at this point, and we were able to compare the two wines from the
Cortese grape, this Gavi and the Araldica. The Gavi showed its sophistication, being softer, longer and more
complex. We had one more white wine, another Piedmont classic, from the Arneis grape, which is becoming
more widely known, as its quality of production has developed strongly over the last 20 or so years. This was
Bricco Ciliegie from Giovanni Almondo in Roero. It was very well liked, with complex flavour; it should have
good ageing potential. Tim now introduced a second wild card, a Rosato Langhe from Bruno Rocca, a very
well-respected producer, made from 100% Nebbiolo. I enjoyed this very fruity wine, but it did not score too
well overall. The third most planted red grape of Piedmont, behind Nebbiolo and Barbera, is Dolcetto. Our
next wine was 100% Dolcetto, Monterustico GD Vajra. This is a lighter style, with good fruit and soft, young
tannin. Mark now served a porcini risotto, and with this Tim brought another Araldica wine, a Barbera. Our
next red was Tim’s third wild card, a 100% Merlot from a Barbaresco producer, but grown in Barolo. In spite of
its not being a typical representative of wines from Piedmont, it proved to be the best red, and one of the best
enjoyed wines of the evening. We ended with two wines from Sainsburys. First the Araldica 2019 Barolo. This
is a very fine vintage, and the wine is already drinking well. Finally Asti Martini. This was for many of us a
flashback to the sweet cheap bubbly of our misspent youth. But standards have improved out of all
recognition, and it was fresh, fruity and quite delicious, especially when accompanying such a tasty dessert as
Mark’s chocolate tart with hazelnuts.

Meeting  467 Friday 15th March

Wines of the Loire

Presenter: David Wright(David Alexander Wines)

We invited another presenter new to us, David Wright, to give a presentation of wines from the Loire Valley. David had clearly done considerable research and preparation , and his presentation was outstanding – informative, interesting and very enjoyable. He used the projector to good effect, to put over information clearly and to enhance our interest with attractive photos. He covered the full length of the river, from Muscadet to Puy de Dôme. The wines showed very well, and this was reflected in higher-than-average scores. The aperitif Touraine Brut was clean and fresh, and the Chenin Blanc gave rich character and an interesting differential from Champagne. The Muscadet showed how good this wine can be, and maybe it will come back into fashion as an accessible dry white, this slot in France having been taken recently by Picpoul. We then had three wines from 100% Sauvignon Blanc, and all three were excellent, while differing in character. The Sancerre was very fresh, with lovely fruit but strong acid, a bit harsh for some when on its own, but widely appealing with the food. Mark gave us a ratatouille-like sumptuous vegetable dish, with boiled potatoes and chicken breast pieces dressed with basil oil. The Menetou-Salon was softer and drank very well on its own; opinion was divided between those favouring this or the Sancerre. After our main course we tasted a Pinot Noir from near the source of the river. This was a very drinkable and well-made wine, but compared with all the other wines of the evening it did not have the same depth and complexity of character. The Chinon was a great example of how good Cabernet Franc can be. We then moved to wines that showed the versatility of the Chenin Blanc grape, with a demi-sec with 25 g/l of sugar and the Côteaux du Layon with over 100g/l. The demi-sec was lovely, with some sweetness but also fresh fruit. The Côteaux du Layon was glorious, again with really rich fruit but with sweetness that did not cloy. This was the outstanding wine of the evening. It accompanied perfectly the peach and almond tart glazed with apricot. Altogether this was one of the best events of our Branch for some time

Meeting  466 Friday 16th February

Battle of the Pyrenees:  Roussillon and Catalunya

Presenter: Pippa Hayward, of the Association of Wine Educators

Pippa knows the regions of Roussillon and Catalunya well, either side of the Pyrenees. She is clearly very
enthusiastic about the younger winemakers, many of whom she knows, who are concentrating on the old
traditional vines that remain, after a great number have been dug up and replaced by internationally known
varieties. Their accent is on autochthonous wines grown in the most appropriate and specific terroirs. She
gave a very informative and interesting presentation, illustrated with slides showing the countryside, vines,
buildings and winemakers. The wines showed very well, and were mostly liked. The scores were consistently
high. A few of us were critical of the Chateau Ollieux Romanis Atal Sia Corbières 2021. Its overall score of 8
showed that most loved it, but I and some others thought it lacked a coherent structure. It had big fruit and
good acid, but it ended with very distinct tannin, which seemed not to be properly integrated. Overall this was
a great tasting, with outstanding wines presented very well. The Fitou was quite the best example that many
of us had tasted, and was a perfect accompaniment to the duck leg confit cassoulet main course. Sadly Mark
had confused menus, and gave us the dessert intended for next month’s tasting, a blue cheese pannacotta with
pear. This was perhaps not ideal with the beautiful Rivesaltes Ambré that ended the tasting, but it was very
good.

Meeting 465   Sunday 21st January 1pm

We had thought of visiting a restaurant in January, for a Sunday lunch, but then Mark suggested that he could cater for us at Neville Hall, and we relished the idea.  Restaurant lunches have not usually been our most popular events, but this lunch attracted a booking of 38 people, though sadly three were on the day indisposed.

The occasion turned out to be very successful , with many attendees saying that it is an event that we must repeat.  Your committee has agreed that it will be a regular January event.  There were several reasons for its success.  The venue is familiar and accessible, Mark’s food was as ever outstanding, the wines were mostly from the Branch Cellar and so had been chosen because we had found them exceptional at previous tastings, and the relaxed atmosphere was conducive to delightful conviviality. For the aperitif we used wines purchased in 2018, left over from the EAZ Festival.  They were English sparkling wines, Furleigh Estate Blanc de Noirs 2016, Hattingley Valley Classic Reserve and Ridgeview Blanc de Blancs Brut 2013.  The favourite was the Hattingley. Mark’s starter  was mackerel paté, pickled beetroot and toast.  With this we had two white wines, Deakin Estate Viognier 2015, Murray Darling Victoria, bought in 2016 from Berkmann Wine Cellar, and Mount Holdsworth Pinot Gris 2016, Wairarapa, bought in 2018, also from Berkmann.  Both wines were much enjoyed; many commented that they had more depth of character than any of similar grape varieties tasted previously. 

Our main course was cider-braised pheasant with chestnuts, apple & cream, mash, cabbage & bacon.

To accompany this we had two wines from Henry Laithwaite, bought in 2013, Chateau Verniotte 2010 and Chateau la Clarière 2009.  The pheasant was quite delicious, and the wines showed very well, with rich and complex fruit and good balance. 

We then had a dessert of vanilla poached pear with chocolate sauce.  We did not have a suitable wine in the cellar, so we purchased, from Waitrose, Domaine de Leyrissat Monbazillac 2021, 100% Semillon.  This was a light pudding, with very nice wine.

We had not planned to provide coffee or tea, and so the event ended with chat, including much praise for the lunch just enjoyed.  It would have been good to round off the lunch with coffee or tea, and we will plan for this at future similar events.