Category — Tastings and Events

The annual Edinburgh Festival and the “Fringe” offers a wealth of cultural opportunities - from stand-up comics, theatre, music,opera - and now wine tastings.

Every evening throughout the Festival (2- 24 August 2008) the Edinburgh Wine School offers a range of wine tasting sessions for beginners upwards - France, Champagne, Italy etc - an ideal combination of education and entertainment!

WINE IN THE CITY is offering daily wine tasting classes from beginners upwards. Fantastic wines with a daily changing programmes From £15.00
Cocktail making evening, malt whisky and chocolate tastings, champagne and chocolate tasting. Great fun for all. Central just off the Royal Mile

For more info see www.edinburghwineschool.co.uk

CAMRA’s (Campaign for Real Ale) Kent Beer Festival takes places from 17-19 July 2008 on a farm near Canterbury. With over 130 real ales and ciders, including foreign beers, music, food and a family area this looks to be a fun, and well-organised event for beer lovers.

“Beer on the farm” is the unofficial motto of the Kent Beer Festival, which is held in a large barn on a working farm just outside the city of Canterbury.

Kent has a rich brewing heritage and you’ll find beers from all ten Kent breweries grouped together on the left-hand side of the barn. Other British beers are on offer at the other two bars. As well as real ale, the Kent Beer Festival also sells real cider and a wide range of mainly bottled foreign beers.

For more info see www.kentbeerfestival.co.uk

Zelas wines are offering a free open-door tasting of low-sulphur wines from France and Spain on Saturday 19 July 2008 at Wine of Course in London N6.

What do we mean by natural wine? A natural wine is a wine made without adjustments of acidity and micro-oxygenation in small quantities from had-picked organically grown. If sulphur dioxide is added, it will be only in very small quantities. Most natural wines are made without the addition of sulphur dioxide at any point. Natural wines are more suitable for people who suffer from allergic and intolerant reactions to wine - asthma, migraine, respiratory or skin disorders. etc.

A red natural wine contains no more than 10 mg/l total sulphur and 25 mg/l total sulphur, if white. Low sulphite wine, low sulfite, low sulphur dioxide.

There is an evident trend towards organic wines throughout Europe, especially with increasing EU legislation, and in response to consumer demand. My approach has always been to be a little wary of buying wines just because they are “organic” - I still search out good wines, and if they happen to be “organic” then that is a bonus.

Interestingly sulphur dioxide is generally regarded as “natural” products, and even organic production allows its use as a preservative and disinfectant. Because of its affinity for oxygen it is good at preventing oxidation, and it kills off wild yeasts and ensures that fermentation stops when the winemaker determines. Virtually all winemakers will use sulphur dioxide, but increasingly winemakers are trying to ensure that all such interventions are kept to a minimum, especially as some consumers can be quite sensitive to traces of SO₂ in wine. Whilst Suphur dioxide is probably one cause of headaches after drinking wine, I suspect that tannins and other constituents (especially in red wine) are also guilty - so I suspect that just because a wine is low-sulphur you should not assume that you can drink it with impunity. Reactions to wine can be very individual - I know of people who react badly to Pinot Noir or Gewurztraminer, but can happily imbibe a heavy Chateauneuf-du-Pape or Rioja!

It should prove an interesting tasting and it would be great if it demonstrates that good. big, substantial wines can be made with low sulhur dioxide.

For more info see www.zelas.co.uk

Terry Kirby in the Independent (14 July 2008) selects his top 10 rosés and includes an interesting sparkling rosé from Ridgeview Vineyards in Sussex - the rather splendidly named Ridgeview Merret Fitzrovia (£19.00): “Made on the Sussex downs, using traditional Champagne grapes and methods, this stunning, sophisticated wine demonstrates how English producers canmatch anything the French can do. Perfect for summer celebrations.”

Ridgeview names its ranges after central London districts, hence Bloomsbury, Belgravia, Pimlico etc. They are rightly proud of their production, and Champagne-style wines are potentially ideal for UK vineyards - they are confident enough to arrange a blind tasting and comparison of Ridgeview vs major Champagne brands - contact them for details of the event on Tuesday 9 September 2008. For more info see www.ridgeview.co.uk

The other rosés in the selection included France, Australia, South Africa, Italy and Portugal.

St Chinian in the Languedoc is not best known for its rosés, but Majestic Wine’s Chateau Cazal Viel Vieux Vignes - “big bold flavours” £6.49 (or £5.49 if you buy two or more); Tasmania offers another sparkler with the Pinot Noir based Clover Hill Brut Rosé from Oddbins - “a lovely salmon-pink and is packed with delicate fruit flavours” (£16.99 or £14.15 if you buy 6);

The wines of the Italian island of Sardinia are less well-known in the UK, so for a top opportunity to taste some of these wines you should book in for a Newcastle-Upon-Tyne tasting hosted by specialist merchants Italy Abroad:-

Italyabroad.com brings you the best wine and food Sardinia can offer in one of the best Italian restaurants in Newcastle.
Menu
On arrival: Vermentino di Sardegna
Starter: Filieri Rosato Cannonau Rosato with Antipasto sardo or Fregala cozze e gamberi
Main: Cannonau Vigna di Isalle with Gnocchi alla sarda or Spezzatino agnello piu’ contorno
To finish; Glass of Grappa di Cannoanu aged
The tasting will be held at Sabatini restaurant on the quayside on the 22nd of July starting at 7.00 pm. Places are limited to 25.

Italy Abroad is based in the North East, and looks to be both informative, knowledgeable and entertaining - everything you might want from an Italian specialist in both food and wine - olive oil, antipasti and the rest. Certainly they meet my criteria for a good merchant - offering something a little different with passion and enthusiasm!! There is tons of good information e.g. who has heard of the Lagrein grape - “The Lagrein, a grape widely planted in Trentino and Alto Adige in the north east of Italy, produces tannic, soft wines with real character and they age well. The grape is also used to produce elegant and fresh rose wines.” With a blog, newsletter and tastings this has to be a must visit site for Italianophobes!

For more info see www.italyabroad.com

Unit 6, Stanfield Business Park, Addison Street, Sunderland SR2 8SZ
Tel/fax 0191 565 4884
E-Mail: info@italyabroad.com

Just right for stocking up in the run-up to Christmas, the Wokingham Wine Fair takes place on 6-7 December 2008 - a few miles east of Reading and the M4 in Berkshire.:

The Wokingham Wine Fair brings together members of the ASDW, the Association of Small Direct Wine-Merchants which was formed by a group of British independent small wine merchants directly selling to the general public via mail order and the internet. There are currently around 20 members each of whom is passionate and knowledgeable about wine. We offer customers a specifically selected, interesting and often exclusive range of wines at very reasonable prices. The British public are well served by supermarkets at the lower end (sub £5) of the price range but it is becoming increasingly more difficult to find quality wines as big brand names dominate high street shops and supermarkets.

For more info see www.nickdobsonwines.co.uk

Birmingham hosts Channel 4’s roadshow to showcase the best of food and drink available in the UK from 10-13 July 2008.

Imagine a picnic in a park. Now multiply it by thousands of people. Invite all the best restaurants in the area to contribute the food, and discerning vintners to bring the bottles. Make sure some of the guests are famous chefs happy to help out with cooking hints, and organise live music to eat and drink by. This is a Taste Festival.

Amongst the wine-related exhibitors will be
Bordeaux Wines

Desire du Vin
Domaine Debray

For more info and tickets etc see www.channel4.com

Respected Edinburgh wine merchants Valvona and Crolla are supplying the wines for a 5-course wine tasting and dinner at the VinCaffe bistro:-

Producers of our cult Pinot Grigio(the pink one!) are coming to VinCaffè on the 20 June to host a dinner and wine tasting from their fabulous range of wines. We will be preparing a 5 course meal influenced by the region of Fruili where their wines come from.

Tickets cost £45 per person for tasting and dinner Contact Vincaffe, 11 Multrees Walk, Edinburgh, EH1 3DQ Tel: 0131 557 0088

Bath is the location from Channel 4’s roadshow to showcase the best of food and drink available in the UK from 3-6 July 2008.

Imagine a picnic in a park. Now multiply it by thousands of people. Invite all the best restaurants in the area to contribute the food, and discerning vintners to bring the bottles. Make sure some of the guests are famous chefs happy to help out with cooking hints, and organise live music to eat and drink by. This is a Taste Festival.

Amongst the wine-related exhibitors will be
Badminton Wines
Great Western Wines
Wines of South Africa
Bordeaux Wines
Wines of Chile

The Bristol Wine and Food Fair runs from 11th-13th July 2008 on Bristol Harbourside

an exciting new three day event celebrating wine, fine dining and good food….Taste over 100’s of wines from all over the world, for free. Buy by the glass, bottle or case.
Learn from the experts at wine and cheese tutored tastings, pick up handy tips from inspirational chefs, sample signature dishes from top local restaurants and buy produce from the region’s acclaimed food, drink and cheese producers.

More than 35 wine producers, importers and merchants will welcome you to explore the world of wine and unravel some of its mysteries. It’s a golden opportunity to meet experts face to face, ask questions and sample some great wines in a relaxed environment. You will be able to choose from a massive range of different wine types and styles, to suit all tastes and budgets, allowing you to sample before you buy.

Within the wine fair we will have over 15 winegrowers and wine makers representing themselves from the UK, France and Spain.

You need to purchase tickets @£5 for either an afternoon or evening session. You can buy wine by the bottle or case, with a collection area or cheap home delivery.

Amongst the exhibitors will be an organic wine specialist,  local organic vineyards. some of the best local wine merchants, French vineyards (Bordeaux and Languedoc), a Chilean producer and many more.

For more info see www.bristolwineandfoodfair.co.uk

Channel 4’s roadshow to showcase the best of food and drink available in the UK moves to London’s Regents Park for 19-22 June 2008:

Imagine a picnic in a park. Now multiply it by thousands of people. Invite all the best restaurants in the area to contribute the food, and discerning vintners to bring the bottles. Make sure some of the guests are famous chefs happy to help out with cooking hints, and organise live music to eat and drink by. This is a Taste Festival.

Amongst the wine-related exhibitors will be

Wine & Spirit Education Trust

Wines of Argentina

Wines of South Africa

Lovely Bubbly

NZ Wine Distribution Co

Freixenet

Fitou Mont Tauch

Champagne Devaux

Chateau Select

Bordeaux Wines

Jospeh Barnes Wines‘ latest wine tasting is to be held on Friday 13th June with Liz Bowen, English winemaker at the renowned Domaine Sainte Croix in the Corbieres (Languedoc, Southern France), who will be conducting a tasting of the full range of the estate’s wines.
The event will be held at The King’s Arms Pub on Friday 13th June 2008 from 8.00pm - 11.00pm. The price is £16.00 per person to include light snacks at the end of the evening.
Numbers are limited to 30 persons so early booking is recommended.
There will also be the opportunity to purchase Liz’s wines at a 10% discount.
So don’t let the date put you off! For further details Email info@josephbarneswines.com or call the shop on 01799 528019.

Joseph Barnes Wines, 13 Market Row, Saffron Walden, Essex CB10 1HB

The Sussex Wine Company will be holding a tasting of Classic Italian wines followed with great antipasti from Lazzati’s restaurant of Lewes. 7pm - 9pm on Thursday 12 June 2008 at Farncombe House, 16 Market Street, Lewes, BN7 2NB Tel/Fax: 01273 477 205 Email: info@thesussexwinecompany.co.uk(£25 per ticket).

The Sussex Wine Company is an independent online wine merchant, based in East Sussex, founded on a few basic but fundamental principals:

1. Value for money at all price points,
2. A personalised service tailored to the need of the individual.
3. Promoting smaller, boutique wineries from around the world.
4. Absolute passion and belief in our products!

With English Wine Week coming to a close on Sunday 1 June 2008, there is still time to visit a local vineyard, one of which is likely to be within striking distance as they are peppered across the map from the Isles of Scilly in the Southwest up to Yorkshire and Lancashire in the North and everywhere in-between including the South East and East Anglia.
On Saturday 31 May 2008 Quoins Organic Vineyard(at Bradford-on-Avon near Bath in Wiltshire) will be offering a guided tour of the vineyard which will include a tour of nearby Avonleigh Vineyard) - for more info email to alan@quoins.demon.co.uk

Quoins Organic Vineyard has been developed under Soil Association organic certification. No inorganic fertilisers, herbicides nor pesticides are used.
The vineyard was planted in 2002 and the first crop of grapes was harvested in October 2005 with the first bottles of wine available being sold from August 2006.
We also sell wine from the neighbouring Little Ashley Vineyard - Madeleine Angevine and Schonburger.
Our own wine is sold as single varieties of Madeleine Angevine, Orion, and Rondo.
We take great care to produce wine in a traditional way, working with nature and the seasons to impart exceptional character.

See www.englishwineweek.co.uk for more info on English Wine Week

Quoins Organic Vineyard
Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire BA15 1NF T:01225 862334
E: alan@quoins.demon.co.uk

Another event to celebrate English Wine Week takes place on Saturday 31 May 2008 at Duncan Murray Wines in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, with free in-store tasting of English wines (noon-2pm) - from Three Choirs (Gloucestershire)and local vineyard Welland Valley, with proprietor David Bates.

We’re a rapidly expanding independent wine merchants in Market Harborough, Leicestershire. Our mission? Well, we want to offer our customers a superb range of wines, beers and spirits that they’ll be hard-pressed to find elsewhere.

We’re especially enthusiastic about Southern French wines: Duncan Murray dedicated (?!) 2 years to tasting the best this region has to offer and getting to know the winemakers. The result is an extensive (often exclusive) selection of fantastically-flavoursome yet affordable wines from an area that still has oodles of potential.

The selection of wines looks very interesting with a number of little-known wines, but all with good information and tasting notes.

Duncan Murray Wines
10 Adam & Eve Street, Market Harborough, Leicestershire LE16 7LT - Tel: 01858 464935