RAISE A GLASS

Every month I pull up a chair and talk to my sister’s wine club via the interweb. Last night we looped together on Zoom and I chatted away, the members of the club chatted away, and I led them through their chosen topic (which happened to be Italian white wines).

I’m there to answer, to encourage, to cajole, to share snippets of info.

The world of wine can be daunting – don’t even get me on to German wine labels – and anything that helps share the love is brilliant.

Which is why this week I’m telling you about a new wine club launched by Majestic. Because the case I tried was very good indeed.

The MW Discovery Case

had the theme Discover the Hidden Gems of France.

I’ll pause – why the term MW? Majestic has teamed up with Masters of Wine to curate the cases. There’s a thoroughly informative booklet with the case and Elizabeth Kelly MW explains how to taste wine to get the maximum enjoyment.

There’s a page on each wine, with QR codes to click through to special links which include videos from the wine producers – and there are even recipes.

My wines included a zinger in La Maison du Blanche Picpoul de Pinet. It has a vibrant zest of lemon and an edge of minerality – a touch of salinity too. Which isn’t surprising as the growing grapes overlook oyster beds in the Languedoc. Ah, how I’d love to sip it there! A wine from renowned producer Gérard Bertrand has a place in the case with Gérard Bertrand Réserve Spéciale Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s another from the Languedoc and is lush and ripe with black fruits with a soft comfort from vanilla.

Domaine les Yeuses Colombard Viognier is enthusiastically explained online by the wine producers with upbeat music as the wine is bottled and packaged for Majestic. The wine has a floral lift, with notes of green fruit. The viognier in the blend delivers a prettiness of peach and apricot.

My case also included wines from the Loire, Beaujolais, the Rhône; plus a malbec from the Languedoc. Malbec may be linked to Argentina, but France is its homeland. The black-fruited, spicy Terroir d’Altitude Malbec is all the more interesting because of that.

Find details about Majestic’s new club online at majestic.co.uk/wineclub

Jane is a member of the Circle of Wine Writers. Find her on social media and online as One Foot in the Grapes.