Straight off the vine
It’S been a while – what with one thing and another – but I gave the pans a good old shake last weekend, having some pals over for din-dins. This particular evening was postponed from before Christmas, which is why we laid the table complete with customised crackers featuring Lego characters looking like Gaz, Sam, Mike and Kate – a particularly nice touch from Mrs C.
It was great to go out shopping for supplies for something other than our day-to-day lunch and suppers.
A trip to Morris’s of Usk for some tasty morsals from their resplendent butchers was in order, as their service matches the quality of their meat... most excellent, dude!
Needless to say, the fillet steak was the star of the show and even I didn’t manage to ruin it, aided and abetted by copious butter, a wild mushroom fricasse and some tasty trufflesauced tagliatelle.
We washed it down with the odd glass of red and the evening finally met its maker at around 2.30am.
Sunday was a quiet day!
The general populace continues to show a healthy appetite for slow-cooked beef or super-luxurious burgers, which should be matched with a hefty drop of red, before the weather gets all hot and steamy – yeah, right.
Here’s a few cheeky bottles that will stand up to this tastiest of cuts.
The PRADOREY RESERVA, FINCA LA MINA 2015 (£21.95, Ultracomida & Curado Bar, Cardiff ) has the deepest blood-red hue in the glass, promising all sorts of loveliness.
This 100% tempranillo has had 12 months in French oak barrels and then a further six months languishing in Nevers (the finest Burgundian oak, west of Dijon) vats. The thought behind it is to add layer upon layer of savoury oak influence.
That results in the glamorous vanillin notes to the dark red fruits on the nose, taut and concentrated, and carrying a little silky spice too.
In the mouth, inky blackcurrant and rich red fruits carry racy acidity that reveals more perfumed juicy wild strawberry compote notes through the mid-palate as the wine develops in the glass.
Elegant super-silky tannins provide a little tension to this brilliant drop of Ribera, which represents decent value for money considering the attention and detail that has gone into its production.
Grab the biggest glass you can and pour in a good splash of the wine, give it a good swirl to fill the room with its intoxicating aromas and sink into your favourite easy chair. You’re worth it!
They don’t come much more dark and dusky than a drop of Californian “zinny” and tHE SOCIEtY’S CALIFORNIA OLD-VINE ZINFANDEL 2019 (£8.25, The Wine Society) has the most meaty, savoury notes to the black fruits across the bouquet... almost demonic in its darkness.
On the palate the rich blackberry and cherry fruit manage to peek above the bold tannins and firm, almost bloody mouthfeel. Make no mistake, this a fleshy wine not for the fainthearted, but after a little breathe in the glass it opens up to reveal... no, it’s still deep and inky, but does show some cola cube charm.
However, with a piece of charred beef or, in our case, a rather pokey chilli con carne, the wine really comes alive and was the ideal partner, handling the chilli heat with aplomb. Just what you need on a nippy evening with the fire on, if you can still afford to put it on in these really tough times. Guacamole and sour cream, anyone?
If there’s beef to be had, a malbec normally enters the conversation, judging by the grape’s huge popularity.
The brand-new ABBOttS & DELAUNAY MALBEC ‘LES FLEURS SAUVAGES’ 2020 (£10.99, Majestic) is made from 30-year-old vines grown on the slopes of the Orb Valley in the Hérault and vineyards in the west of the Aude and in the dry salt marsh in Marseillette,
We washed it down with the odd glass of red and the evening finally met its maker at around 2.30am
each bringing different characteristics to the wine. Thanks to the work in the vineyards that respect the soils and the vines, healthy, concentrated grapes can be harvested while respecting the wildflowers (fleurs sauvages) and other wildlife that surrounds them.
It has deep, sweet fleshy notes to the whole raft of dark fruits. Sitting in the background is a smidge of coffee mocha.
A bitter sweetness from the off, with the blueberry and blackberry combining to give a voluminous mouthfeel. Soft tannins are introduced, as are a few crisp tones, in this super-enjoyable red that – guess what? – is great with a big juicy steak.
DMAE Iaith ar Daith yn ôl ar S4C wrth i chwe seleb newydd sbon fynd ar daith fythgofiadwy i ddysgu Cymraeg. Mae’r gyfres newydd yn dechrau nos yfory a’r selebs fydd yn cymryd rhan y tro hwn yw Y PARCHEDIG KATE BOTTLEY, offeiriad, cyflwynydd a seren teledu realiti; RICHARD PARKS, y cyn-chwaraewr rygbi rhyngwladol ac anturiaethwr sydd wedi torri sawl record byd; MIKE BUBBINS, y digrifwr ac actor; KATIE OWEN, y DJ a chyflwynydd; AMY DOWDEN, dawnswraig broffesiynol Strictly Come Dancing ac AMANDA HENDERSON, actores yn y ddrama Casualty.
Ond fydda’ nhw ddim yn dysgu Cymraeg ar eu pen eu hunan. Bydd gan bob seleb gwmni mentor sy’n siarad Cymraeg ac sydd hefyd yn wyneb cyfarwydd. Bydda’ nhw yn cynnig cymorth a gosod sawl her ar y ffordd.
Y mentoriaid yw JASON MOHAMMAD, y newyddiadurwr a chyflwynydd Match of the Day sy’n cadw cwmni i’r Parch. Kate Bottley; LOWRI
W i’n cymryd mai nid fi yw’r unig berson sy’n ymdroelli’n ddi-glem yng nghors rhyfeloedd diwylliannol yr unfed ganrif ar hugain.
A yw hi’n dderbyniol enwi bar ar faes yr Eisteddfod ar ôl bardd gwrywaidd, gwyn, heterorywiol o’r ugeinfed ganrif?
Does gen i ddim syniad.
Ydi To Kill a Mockingbird yn glasur y dylai pawb ei ddarllen, neu’n lyfr hiliol y dylid ei osgoi ar bob cyfri?
Eto, does gen i ddim ateb.
Hyd yn oed wrth sgwennu hwn dw i’n gorfod edrych dros fy ysgwydd ar Twitter rhag ofn ’mod i’n pechu rhyw garfan neu’i gilydd.
O ran llyfrau, mae erthygl o’r byd celfyddydol yn Barn wedi nodi nad yw To Kill a Mockingbird yn
MORGAN, y rhedwraig ultra-marathon sy’n fentor i Richard Parks; ELIS JAMES, y digrifwr a’r actor sy’n cadw Mike Bubbins ar y trywydd iawn; HUW STEPHENS, y DJ a’r cyflwynydd fydd yn cadw cwmni i Katie Owen; ALED JONES, y canwr a’r cyflwynydd sy’n fentor i Amy Dowden a MALI HARRIES, actores Pobol y Cwm ac
Y Gwyll sy’n ymuno â Amanda Henderson ar ei thaith.
Bydd pob seleb yn dechrau ar y daith o ddysgu drwy dderbyn gwersi ar-lein dan arweiniad y tiwtor Aran Jones. Wedyn bydd y seleb a’r mentor yn treulio pedwar diwrnod yn teithio i lefydd yng Nghymru sydd yn bwysig iddyn nhw.
Bydda’ nhw yn siarad cymaint o Gymraeg a phosib ar hyd y daith a bydd rhaid iddynt gwblhau sawl her ar y ffordd, yn gorffen gyda her gyfryngol.
Mae’r gyfres newydd yn dechrau gyda thaith y Parchedig Kate Bottley a’i mentor Jason Mohammad.
Cychwynnodd y Parchedig Kate Bottley ei gyrfa
dderbyniol i’w astudio bellach, wrth i’r holl fyd llenyddol gael ei ailwampio.
Rhaid rhoi popeth bellach yn y glorian gynhwysol, ac mae peryg fod llawer iawn o’n traddodiad llenyddol Cymraeg yn cael ei weld yn brin.
A oes ’na beryg i blant golli mas ar rai perlau o’r gorffennol? Yn barod dw i’n gweld fod T Llew Jones wedi mynd mas o ffasiwn (oes unrhyw un dal i ddathlu diwrnod T Llew Jones?), a llawer o’r pethau cyffrous oedd yn denu plant yn cael eu cyfnewid am lyfrau “derbyniol”, cytbwys.
Falle ddylen ni ddechre poeni am y Mabinogion. Lle mae dechrau gyda rhybuddio neu werthuso llyfrau i blant sy’n cynnwys llosgach, treisio a bwystfilaidd-dra?
Tybed a welwn ni rhywrai yn ailwerthuso ein