The second wine tasting

The second wine tasting has come and gone as fast as the first one did. For the second one the theme was Europe. The group was only allowed to buy wines from one of the 27 countries that form part of the European Union, which includes all of the following: , Åland Islands, Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Faroe Islands, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Gibraltar, Greece, Guernsey, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, the Isle of Man, Italy, Jersey, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Norway, Mayen Islands, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Vatican City.

The strange thing was that everyone arrived with only wine from France and Italy. Perhaps it says something about the other countries on the list? Perhaps it was just an easier decision? One positive from the night though was that three out of the eight wines were ecological.

Claps Sauvignon Blanc Sequals (2007)

Wine tasting 2

I'm not sure the three and a half stars really give enough credit for this wine. It was really fantastic, and should be if you're looking at spending 80kr for a bottle of white. I do however believe there's better wines on the market for much less. I would however buy this wine again, for a picnic in the park and on warm summers day. I was surprised to learn that this wine comes from Italy, and not somewhere like Australia or South Africa.

Panel's rating: 3,6 out of 5

Price: 80SEK

Country: Italy

Grapes: 100% Sauvignon Blanc

Colour: A light yellow tone to clear, Very light, A cold greyish yellow, A clear yellow with a hint of gold, Bright and soft yellow with a little hint of turqouise, Light yellow with a little green, Light yellow.

Nose: A lot of citrus and floral mixed, Pears and peaches with some elder flowers, Fresh and fruity with a hint of citrus, Peaches and passion fruits, Tropical fruits with hints of lemons, Sweet citrus mixed with pear marmalade and gooseberries with some tropical fruits.

Taste: Thick on the tongue and hard to destinguish, Crisp, Dry and crisp, Dry and light, Crisp and peachy.

Dolce Vita Monica di Sardegna (2006)

Wine tasting 2

This was actually one of my favourite wines for the night, yet many said it was so-so. The Monica grape was totally unheard, and is one of only a handful grapes which are equally good as a table grape. It's relatively new on the market, yet I would recommend it for being a relatively good ecological wine.

Panel's rating: 3,1 out of 5

Price: 67SEK

Country: Italy

Grapes: 100% Monica

Colour: Ruby, Dark scarlett, Thick ruby, Purple

Nose: Cinnamon mixed with leather and raisins, Very earthy, Raisin bagels, Sharp and very rustic, A little resin and ripe fruit, Lots of cellar and barrel

Taste: A strong beginning of cherries with a very short after taste, Rustic and very strong in the beginning but settles too quickly, Peppery, Sharp with a sort of burning peppery taste mixed with figs, Strong cinnamon flavours with high acidity, Smooth finish.

Chateau Pech-Latt Corbieres (2007)

Wine tasting 2

I'm not sure why, but there's a lot of really terrible ecological wines on the market. This one is one of them. There's a lot of hoops you have to jump through to be able to call your wine ecological. I don't know why anyone would jump through all of them just to put a wine like this on the market.

There's a lot of good ecological wines on the market, and cheaper than 70kr.

Panel's rating: 2,1 out of 5

Price: 70SEK

Country: France

Grapes: Carignan, Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre

Colour: Purplish tones, Scarlett with purple tones, Blue red, Purple red, Ruby, Purple.

Nose: Warm and simple, Very strong with warmish tones and a bit mettal, Warm iron with alcohol and raisins, Soft, A little metallic.

Taste: Sweet berries, Very strong alchohol, Bitter, Strawberries, Rasberries with light acidicy and liquirice, Smooth and resberries, Sweet and smooth with a light taste of rasberries.

Vinea Corvina Veronese (2006)

Wine tasting 2

My favourite wine for the night and definitely on my shopping list again. Especially when we're planning to cook something really special with friends. I've never heard of the Corvina grape before this night and was very impressed with the wine. Well structured. I also really like the bottle design. Simple and elegant. A superb wine and highly recommended.

Panel's rating: 3,6 out of 5

Price: 80SEK

Country: Italy

Grapes: 100% Corvina

Colour: Brown red and rusty, Dirt red, Brown rusty red, Deep rusty red, Brwon red.

Nose: Raisins, plums and spices, Very spicy, Nutty, Earthy, Almonds with hints of barrel, Figs.

Taste: Sour and hints of cherries, Long after taste and full in the mouth, Cherries and a bit bitter, A tad bitter with berries and vanilla, Sour cherries, Fig marmelade and sour cherries, Barrel characteristics and hints of orange peel.

Farnese Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (2005)

Wine tasting 2

This wine was also tasted at the first wine tasting, and although it scored a little lower this time, it was still the winner for the night. 85kr for a fantastic wine that's soft, smooth and basically and excellent wine. If you haven't tried this wine before, then buy it. You won't be disappointed. We tasted this wine during the first wine tasting as well, and also received 4 stars with a score of 4,2 out of 5.

Panel's rating: 3,8 out of 5

Price: 109SEK

Country: Italy

Grapes: 100% Montepulciano

Colour: Deep red scarlet, Very dark red, Scarlet to blue red, Very deep red with pink undertones, Scarlet,

Nose: Floral and earthy, Cherries and vanilla, Dark cherry chocolate, Smells of a garden, Jasmine, fruity and a bit yeasty, Liquorice and flowers, Oak barrel with a smell of flowers and vanilla, Full-bodied with a smell of oak and vanilla.

Taste: Smooth, chocolate with hints of cherries and plums, Soft taste that lingers forever, Pepper and vanilla, Alcohol taste with cherries and vanilla, Liquorice, Dark cherries, Spicy and velvety smooth.

Chateau de Seguin Grand Vin Bordeaux (2007)

Wine tasting 2

I've written about this wine before (Read here), when I had it at a new years party with some excellent cheese. I was very impressed then and vowed to buy it again. However the second time around it was not the same story. It only scored 2,6 out of 5, which shows that not everyone loved this wine. It lacked character and tasted weak. Perhaps I'll buy it again and judge it a third time with a good meal, just to be fair.

Panel's rating: 2,6 out of 5

Price: 89SEK

Country: France

Grapes: 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc

Colour: Brownish purple, Brown red, Brownish tones,

Nose: Raisins, warm plums, cedar and blackberries, Minty, Warmish and strong, Citrus, Warm smell, Sharp and fruity, Plums, Warm cider,

Taste: A very round taste, Coffee and cherries, Short taste of green peppers and pencil shavings, Short after taste, Cider and grass, Butterscotch and grass with hints of barrel.

Letizia Sicilia Syrah (2006)

Wine tasting 2

After Pinotage, Syrah or Shiraz is my next favourite wine variety. I think it's because the wine has such interesting characteristics. So many winemakers can get the best out of this grape variety, and the same with this wine. Well balanced, well structure with a long after taste that's spicy and warm. Worth a try if you're a Syrah fan.

Panel's rating: 3,5 out of 5

Price: 85SEK

Country: Italy

Grapes: 100% Syrah

Colour: Scarlet, Brownish red, Deep dark red.

Nose: Sharp, Figs and very mellow, Young spirited.

Taste: Spicy, juicy and warm, Alcohol with hints of spice and liquorice, Sharp, Figs with spices and some vanilla, Lots of character, Hot and juicy.

Millésime Parallèle "45" (2006)

Wine tasting 2

I nearly bought this wine for the tasting, but in the end settled for wine number 4, the Corvina. I really expected more from this wine though. So did Alex, who bought the wine. 3 out of 5 still rates as a wine that's better than most. I would not buy this wine in the future, but would love to try it again one day.

Panel's rating: 3,1 out of 5

Price: 89SEK

Country: France

Grapes: 55% Grenache and 45% Syrah

Colour: Dark red, Dark purple-brown.

Nose: Liquorice and cherries but very smoky and earthy, Strawberries, Cigarette paper and very earthy, Smooth, Citrus.

Taste: Smooth with hints of cherries, Strawberries, Cherries with hints of tar.

Boira Sangiovese (2007)

As I've spoken about before, I tend to buy South African wines because I know more about them, than say Italian or French wines. So my point of reference is usually South Africa. My little sister however, has a totally different point of reference, which has nothing to do with the country, the grape or anything like that. Her point of reference is from an ecological point of view, or wines that are made in an environmentally friendly way. That is what she searches for when she's out buying wine.

She always has a new wine at home that falls into this category, that she's willing to share, and her drive to only buy ecological wines, has made me think about it more and more. I believe it's where we all should move towards. So far I've tried 6 different ecological wines from various countries, and have to be honest, they all still have a long way to go before they can be called great wines.

This weekend we had this one, called Boira. It's from Italy and made from the Sangiovese grape. It has so far been the best ecological wine I have had to date. We had it after a meal of Roasted pepper soup as a starter and then a tomato pesto pasta as the main meal. I really thought it was fantastic after the meal, as some wines tend to be and would recommend this wine if you, like my little sister, would like a good wine that's also an ecological wine.

Here's some tasting notes from the guys over at The Week, Wine Club. Bright red wine, almost Pinot Noir in colour, with rich burnt fruit flavours. Luscious well-balanced pure red wine with good minerality. A class example of what really good organic red wine should taste like—it feels very good—and is. Perfect for lunch or those rare outdoor dinners.

Chateau de Seguin

Coming from South Africa, I tend to drink mostly South African wine. It's most likely the same when you're from another wine producing country like France, Italy or say Agentina, that you tend to drink the wines from your own country. I don't think it's always necessarily that we think our countries make the best wines. Perhaps it is that we don't know enough about the other country's wines to make an informed decision when we buy, and hence just go with what we know. There is the language barrier to consider as well, with labels in Italien, French or Spanish, then the thousands of different grapes and the list goes on.

In Sweden we're lucky, in that Systembolaget, the government owned liquor outlet has wines from every wine producing region in the world, so they pretty much do a lot of the decision making on your behalf. I tend to still choose from what I know, but lately I've been introduced to other wines from other countries and I've started to look for some that I know now, when I'm out shopping. Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, a grape variety from Italy or Bordeaux, a blend from France are my current favourites.

This new year I tried another wine from France, from a farm called Chateau de Seguin. The wine is called Chateau de Seguin Grand Vin De Bordeaux 2006. We had it with some really strong French cheese and the wine came across very smooth, with a taste that lingers in your mouth. Exactly what I want from a wine, with the South African Pinotage being my usual favourite.

Here's what the wine maker has to say: "This is our regular prizewinning wine, which is made acording to the best winemaking methods by our professional staff. It was the first wine made by the Carl family after they bought the Château de Seguin. The wine has aged for 6 months in oak barrels. and is bottle 18 month after the harvest."

My rating: 4/5, just perhaps because we've had lots of wine the whole night, and it stood out from the crowd. I'm going to put it into my basket next time I'm wine shopping to see what it's like the second time around.