Superb Tokay from one of the best, modern-style producers in this most traditional of sweet wine regions. This is still a very young wine, even at six years old, with the acidity you expect from Furmint. It’s bitingly fresh, but the appley tartness is balanced by pear and honeyed sweetness, with hints of white flowers and remarkable concentration and length. One to buy now and hold on to for a decade.
Price Range: £20-£30
2010 Greywacke Chardonnay, Marlborough
( £25.99, 14.5%, Swig )When he was at Cloudy Bay (and that was for over 20 years) Kevin Judd was better known for his Sauvignon Blancs thatn his Chardonnays, but the latter were sometimes even more exciting. This superb effort from the top notch 2010 vintages deserves a place among the country’s best interpretations of the grape. It’s smoky and toasty, with flavours of citrus and hazelnuts and a long, minerally finish that wouldn’t look out of place in Puligny-Montrachet.
2009 Yalumba The Virgilius Viognier, Eden Valley, South Australia
( £26.99, 14.5%, Harrods, Selfridges, Slurp )A candidate for the title of Australia’s best Viognier (and that’s not meant to sound like faint praise), this is true to its varietal, but in a subtler way than many New World examples. White flowers, some cream, a hint of spice, nuanced oak and enough acidity to keep the wine tingling nicely on the palate.
2010 Alaverdi Monastery Kisi, Kakheti
( POA, 13%, Les Caves de Pyrene )Alaverdi’s Kisi spends 6 months in the Qvevri, the skins and stalks lending it its deep amber colour, with fine-grained but persistent tannins. The aromas are intensely herbal, almost medicinal with hints of caramel and musk. Quite full bodied, with peachy, cooked stone fruit dominating the palate. Hugely complex, but needs food to show at its best.
2011 Alaverdi Monastery Saperavi, Kakheti
( POA, 13%, Les Caves de Pyrene )Alaverdi only produce around 20,000 bottles a year, and they had already run out of the 2010 vintage when we visited in November 2012. This 2011 Qvevri sample needs another year for the rather brutal tannins to resolve, but the purity and focus of the dark, berry fruit is evident. There’s some attractive ginger spiciness, terrific freshness and what Charles Metcalfe describes very aptly as a “balsamic hint”.
2010 Alaverdi Monastery Rkatsiteli, Kakheti
( POA, 13%, Les Caves de Pyrene )This is the wine that first won me over to the charms of the qvevri – the most astoundingly complex nose of tea leaves, baked apples, jasmine, herbs and plum compote (and bear in mind my description does not remotely do it justice). Very much an amber/orange style, with chewy but perfectly ripe tannins – and yet the fruit shines through effortlessly. Outstanding.
2008 Vinoterra Cabernet Sauvignon, Kakheti
( N/A, 13%, Available from the winery )A fascinating example of what happens if you take an international variety (Cabernet Sauvignon in this case) and ferment/mature it in a qvevri – in this case the wine was also matured in oak. Cabernet’s minty blackcurrant footprint is clearly present, together with herbaceous, spicy and balsamic hints. This is a big wine, with very ripe fruit, but super fresh and really rather elegant. Perhaps not entirely authentic, but original and stays true to the qvevri style. I drank this with Christmas roast goose and all the trimmings – a tough gig, but it held up.
1996 Warre's Quinta da Cavadinha, Douro Valley
( £25, 20%, Majestic )This may “only” be a single quinta wine, supposedly from a non-vintage year for Port, but it’s still delicious. It’s great to drink right now, with lots of spice and heat, succulent red and black fruits, some fig and dark plums and a thrust of spirit. Just the thing to drink with blue cheese.
2007 Mas d'en Gil Coma Vella, Priorat
( £23.49, 15%, Waitrose )A wine that certainly isn’t for the faint of heart (or palate, given its 15% alcohol), but this Catalan blend has style and compexity in abundance. Smoky and slightly sweet, with a hint of volatile acidity, plenty of tannin, subtle vanilla oak and aromas of wild herbs, all underpinned by palate-cleansing minerality from slate soils.
2009 Seresin Estate Raupo Creek Pinot Noir, Marlborough
( £25.99, 14%, Armit Wines )The wines from this biodynamic estate in Marlborough are now among the best in the South Island. This is the pick of the current Pinot Noir releases, sourced from clay loam soils and showing an extra dimension of concentration, tannin and sap. It’s savoury and sweet, with taut acidity, subtle oak and impressive vivacity, line and length. A wine that wouldn’t look out of place in Burgundy.
2010 Verget, Terroir de Pouilly, Les Combes Vieilles Vignes, Pouilly-Fuissé, Burgundy
( £20, 13%, Oddbins )Comparatively developed for a 2010, but this still has attractive aromas of white flowers and acacia honey, with fresh acidity and good concentration. I’d just like to see a little more zip in its step.
2007 Ogier, Clos de l'Oratoire des Papes, Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Rhône
( £25, 15%, Majestic )Too many UK retailers are already on the 2009 and even 2010 vintage of CNDP, so it’s good to taste a wine that, while still young, is showing some bottle maturity. This is rich and deeply coloured with dark berry fruits, a hint of clove and a spicy, meaty finish.