I’ve gone very eclectic with my taste in wine

Looking back over my most recent tasting notes, and trying to decipher some of the hieroglyphics, I realise that my wine consumption, always pretty wide and varied, has been more eclectic than usual of late.

There was a glass of outstanding vin jaune from Jean-François Genevat, as an aperitif with an old friend whom I met for lunch in London. We were both struck with its similarity to fino sherry but, as this is the best wine from one of the best producers, there was much more to it than that. Mind you, vin jaune is austere stuff and not for everyone even if it’s great with both roast chicken and Comté cheese.

Much more conventional and very much a crowd pleaser was the Padthaway Chardonnay from South Australia by way of Aldi, a wine that’s all about the fruit, without any oak seasoning. Vibrantly pure, this is New World Chardonnay in its essence and somewhat dangerously gluggable. I had it with smoked haddock, poached egg and black pudding.

The Koonunga Hill is usually €20 but is down to €14.99 at present. It seemed like the right wine for some spiced lamb cutlets and so it proved. Even Penfolds cheaper wines, such as this, have a kind of seriousness to them.

Being a sherry enthusiast, I was thrilled to see SuperValu rather bravely offering a dry oloroso at a great price. The Dos Cortados turned a little cloudy when chilled but the flavour was outstanding. A kind of burnt raisin tang with toasted nuts and huge length. I drank it with some really good chorizo and olives.

The lovely 2015 vintage in Bordeaux is at its best just now for most wines but they are getting scarcer so it seemed a good idea to snap up a couple of bottles of Chateau La Raz Caman in O’Briens. And so it proved. This is from Blaye, so a Merlot-led wine, supple and well structured, a proper old-fashioned claret that went very well indeed with roast beef.

SuperValu is bravely offering a dry oloroso