Wine Appreciation

We will continue with a regular fixture of 3pm on the last Monday of the month. The location will be either in a members home or the Cafe of the Community centre. We plan to go to other locations for visits to tastings and vineyards, to be advised.

2026

February Meeting

 Back at the Community Centre with our host this month Francoise and Andrew Currie with a theme of Home and Away

1. Green Elderflower Wine

From Hampshire, our previous home! Adgestone Brewery, Isle of Wight. Oldest vineyard in the UK, similar to Cornwall apparently. Vegan and very low sulphite. Aromatic, light and refreshing. Suitable for warm weather but was originally developed for the festive season! Between £9.99 to £10.99.

2.      Camel Valley ‘Cornwall’ Brut Sparkling White Wine

From Cornwall, our new home! Run by the Lindo family. Fresh and fruity traditional method sparkling wine, perfect for all celebrations. Fresh yeasty aromas. English hedgerow scents, with good acidity and a touch of honey on the palate. Served in Michelin starred restaurants and British Airways first class, and described by the press as a national treasure. £32.95

3.      Camel Valley Still Rose

A beautifully balanced , luscious rose. Intense aromas of strawberries and raspberries. Perfect for sipping al fresco. Jilly Goolden said that this lovely rose has enough dryness and depth of flavour to compliment every style of food and that she can’t believe it’s English! £16.95. Camel Valley offer tastings and canapes and do vineyard tours.

Something we might wish to consider. Fire up that minibus!

4.      Fleurie Red Wine

Moving a bit further away to France now with this highly regarded, elegant red wine from the Beaujolais Cru region of France, made from 100% Gamay grapes. The ‘Queen of Beaujolais’ is known for its light to medium body, vibrant floral and red berry aromas, silky tannins and a fresh smooth finish. Versatile with most foods. Can serve slightly chilled. One of our real favourites and available from Sainsbury’s for around £14.

5.      DV Catena Argentinian Red Wine

We finish our wine journey with this superb red wine brought back all the way from Argentina, where we first sampled it over a family holiday in December 2025. It comes from one of the foremost wine estates in Mendoza , Argentina, founded in 1902 and family run. Made from a blend of grapes from high altitudes and described as a silky smooth wine with an intense flavour. An original Malbec icon, our piece de resistance is perfect with steak, preferably Argentinian. The best news of all is that you can buy it at Sainsbury’s for £14.25.

( My favourite! )

New Year started - January Meeting

The New Year started with my Christmas leftovers. A good Fizz from Aldi, two Giordano wines from South Italy and a classy Margaux declassified.

Aldi Fizz £13

Veuve Monsigny Brut, receives consistently high praise for its exceptional value, often beating pricier brands in blind tests and winning numerous awards like the 2025 World's Best Champagne. Reviewers highlight its complex aromas of ripe apples, citrus, red fruits, and brioche, with fine bubbles, citrus zest, minerality, and a clean finish, making it a top budget choice for everyday enjoyment or celebrations, despite being lighter and sometimes less intense than luxury options. .

• Surprising Quality: Many are initially sceptical but are won over by its sophisticated taste.
• Light & Zesty: Described as fresh, zesty, and bubbly, though some find it lighter or less pronounced in flavour than more expensive Champagnes.
• Blind Test Success: Often mistaken for more expensive brands in blind taste tests, surprising testers with its quality. 

Giordano Wines

Nebbiolo Langhe DOC 13% £16.49

2024

Important red wine, made from Nebbiolo grapes, that are harvested by hand and vinified in a traditional way. The aging process is in oak barrels in underground wine cellars at a constant humidity, temperature and light. 

Characteristics

Light ruby red colour with coppery shades from aging. The nose reveals an intense bouquet of vanilla and violet. Clean and frank taste with pleasant tannin. It is harmonious and equilibrated with pomegranate aftertaste. 

I didn't rate this wine - too thin for me!

Rosso Puglia IGT Appassimento  15% £13.29

2024

Characteristics of a land of passion and strength are evident in our Appassimento (rasinate): Apulia. The grapes, traditionally grown in Apulia are not harvested like the others but are left on the plant. In this manner, the ripening process continues, the grapes overripen and wither on the vine; the flavour of the grapes is strengthened, consolidating the traits that characterise it. Admirable blends of grapes selected by the skilled hands of our Winemakers, the Appassimento creates a unique and irresistible character.  

Characteristics

Ruby red colour with marked highlights; a rich bouquet with notes of matured and dry fruit, dried plums. Harmonious, balanced flavour with right acidity and a pleasant bitter aftertaste.

This was the favourite of the group

Aldi "Margaux Declassified" 2023 £20

"The 2023 Margaux, with fragrant notes of azaleas rung dry after the rain, is serious fare. Early hints of redcurrants give way to blackcurrants and blackberries, all soft, juicy and smooth. This is a class act and can only get classier as it matures."

The Aldi "Margaux Declassified" 2023 isn't from a single famous Château but rather a wine sourced from various top estates in the Margaux appellation, sold under a generic label by Maison Sichel, offering pedigree Bordeaux character at a budget price, a strategy to provide premium taste without the high cost of Grand Cru wines. It's a classic Aldi move to offer accessible luxury, giving a taste of the renowned Margaux region's style. 

What "Declassified" Means:

• Quality, Not Name: The wine comes from reputable estates, but some of its production (perhaps younger vines or barrels not meeting Grand Vin standards) is "declassified" to a lesser label.
• Region, Not Estate: It represents the style of Margaux (elegant, complex) rather than a specific famous Château's top bottling, which can cost hundreds of pounds.
• Maison Sichel: Maison Sichel is the négociant (wine merchant) behind this bottling for Aldi Grapes

2025

November was the last meeting of the year. 

Sue and Carl started with a review of Aldi wines from Tom Gilbey https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5B1i_Qa_nF4

Tom Gilbey is very watchable when he tastes 21 wines and comes up with 4 champions – we got to try 3 of the four and one substitute.

Everyone enjoyed the selection my favourite being the Rhone valley red Cairanne. I think all wines went down well with the Rosorange being much appreciated.

October Meeting

We enjoyed two Chardonnays and a Viognier at Christine’s house. The first Australian “Little Giant” seemed to be preferred from the French Bijou. Both were from Waitrose at £13, and £11. The bargain priced Viognier at £9 was disappointing. The star of the show was the Chateau Sirene St Julien. A solid Bordeaux red that every one enjoyed. A little more expensive at around £15 but worth it.

September Meeting

The September meeting was again in the Social Club hosted by Jenny. She chose two Austrian and two Italian wines to share. She bought all from Lidl at a reasonable price.

My favourite white was the first wine to try the Austrian Gruner Veltliner from Muller. A fine light wine the last wine of the day was the Italian red, a Chianti Rufino. That was a good note to finish on. The Other wines pleased other members so as ever there were mixed opinions.

August Meeting

Al fresco again with an interesting selection chosen by Jill. She selected from online suppliers Naked Wines. Two wines stood out for me the rather bland and expensive NZ Sauvignon  at £16 Lay of the Land and the best by far was the French Syrah "Simpsons of Servian " at £10. As to the other two least said...

June Meeting

On a very warm and sunny day our June meeting was held outside in Nicola's delightful garden.

For the tasting Nicola selected a range of good value wines available from Aldi.

The first wine tasted was a Veuve Monsigny Champagne Brut available for only £14.95. According to Aldi's website the wine is "    An elegant Champagne, aged for longer to enhance its complexity. On the nose, aromas of ripe apples and soft red fruits meet delicate floral hints. In the mouth, citrus, strawberry and baked apple notes lead to a clean, lingering finish. 12.5% vol."  This champagne has recently been named World’s Best Champagne at the prestigious World Champagne Awards 2025. Who are we to argue?      Find out more about this award  via this link

For our white wine we tasted Costières de Nimes Blanc also from  Aldi at  £7.99  Described on the bottle as  "A rich and aromatic white wine from Costières de Nîmes, full of candied citrus and ripe orchard fruits."

"A perfect example of a wine-buying team unearthing a little treasure. Pessac-Leognan is a sub-region in the area of Graves, in Bordeaux. This is where some of the most expensive red wines in the world come from. Château La Garde is regarded as a rising star in this region, and this plush, ample and completely-ready-to-drink-now wine shows why. Think blackcurrant, dark cherries, tobacco smoke and autumnal forest floor all layered together with silky tannins and a loooong finish. Truly fine wine under £20? Yes, please."


Thanks to Nicola for searching out an interesting selection of good value wines from the Bodmin branch of Aldi.

May Meeting

This month we had a professional wine tasting led by Mark Harrison of Majestic Wines in Truro. The selection we tried were:

Whites 

Chosen by Greek White

Definition English Bacchus

Rose 

Mythral Provence Rose

Orange

Tbilvino Qvevris Rkatsiteli (Georgian)

Reds

Winemaker South African Red

Domaine Tourelle Lebanese Red

It was an interesting event – my preference for the red was the Lebanese Domaine Tourelle and for the whites the Greek wine proved the most popular. 

April Meeting

March Meeting

We are back at the Community Centre this month tasting a choice range of Italian wines.

We started with Pat’s favourite white. A Verdicchio dei Castellidi Jesi, very nice light wine. That set us off on the Chianti trail. We tried three different Chiantis – the Piccini was my favourite followed by the bargain Courte alle Mura. The Morrisons offer pleased most, found it too bland.

Great fun and good wine, what could be better?

February Meeting

We had Two whites and two reds. Two wines from New Zealand, an excellent Sauvignon Blanc from Audi and a so so Pinot Noir. The French Pouilly Fume was expensive but dull. The best red was from South Africa, an excellent Roodeberg blend (Morrisons)

January Meeting

As the lady says "Its all from Lidl" The Bolgrad Ukranian wine was the surprise. 

Very pleasant wine with a Chardonnay and native Ukrainian Sukholimansky grapes for a well-balanced dry white.

The south of France pink was a little disappointing (but liked by some) however the two French reds stood out. The Bourgogne Gamay was excellent soft red with cotes du Rhone village was a solid example of Rhone reds.

The prices were all very fair - nothing over £10.

Wine and a chat.