The fact I’m posting for the first time this year on 19th January means I very much fall into the bracket of people who like ‘ease their way in’. No resolutions. No smugly scheduled 1st (or even 2nd or 3rd) January post or, worse, the Twixtmas catch up. I have finally accepted that level of scheduling is just not how I roll.
In any case, the second half of December nearly did me in, such was the pace and sheer quantity of lunch work. I swear one week I had 17 lunches middle of the day meetings, that all overran. And as I rarely dine out with non-wine people everything is invariably drenched in 12.5%, or more.
When the lunching intensive work schedule finally came to a close, attempts to have a low key Christmas failed from the get-go. I did far too many things on Christmas Day, including jumping on here at 7am to work out the payment options, the settings of which, unbeknownst to me until I spoke to the helpline, were suffering a technical glitch. That was fun. I then spent the rest of the day with three different family units (none of my own) followed by Twixtmas/New Year driving all over the UK in terrible weather with zero childcare.
I’m only just ready to come out.
So Happy New Year etc. And thank you to anyone who is reading, or even better, has subscribed. One immediate aim is to find some sort of pace and uniformity with this thing. Stand by. But don’t hold your breath.
First things first, I am not Dry Janning. For a second, I considered writing about ‘amusing’ alternatives - Buy January (buy all your wine for 2025 during the first week of Janaury and see if it really does last you all year), Thai January (eat only Thai food, washed down with gallons of Riesling and Gewurtz, propping up the beleaguered German/Alsatian wine industries whilst you’re at it), Pie January (self explanatory), Die January (roll a die every morning to see how many glasses of wine you have to drink that day) and my personal favourite, Lie January (wax lyrical about doing Dry January to anyone who will or won’t listen, double down on social media signalling, whilst drinking every single day in the secrecy of your own home).
But then I thought, no. It’s not a laughing matter and if people want a break from booze that’s absolutely fair enough. I genuinely mean that. It’s not the giving up booze that’s annoying, it’s the infantilising nature of the whole initiative that irks me. And the peer pressure to do one or t’other to the extreme. Whatever happened to self management? Admittedly it’s harder than joining the crowd, but still.
In the past, my preferred version of Dry January has kicked off on the 7th after a final hurrah for Epiphany à la français, then you slip back off the wagon on the 25th for Burn’s. Much more manageable.
Anyway. It’s had more than enough air-time from every other wine writer on the planet and I’m bored of it. Not drinking isn’t boring. People writing about Dry January is.
(The irony of having done just that is not lost on me.)
Onward. In no particular order, here’s some excellent bottles from the last week or three. Excellent in the sense that I am ordering more of each, ‘cos that is surely the best way of working out what you should and shouldn’t recommend. Proof is in the pudding, or rather, the repeat purchase. Various price points and styles ‘cos it’s been chaos (see above) and my wine choices have quite simply reflected that.
The Society’s Verdicchio Classico 2023 - The Wine Society - £8.95
Cheap, fresh, organic. Wish I could be bothered to make spaghetti vongole as that’s what you want to eat buckets of with this; but it’s a brilliant all rounder regardless.
Hilariously, it only gets 2.5 out of 5 stars on the Wine Society (WS) customer reviews (from 6 reviews…). This is a part of their website I cannot stand, despite the WS being an otherwise brilliant place to shop. I don’t care what Dave from Hull thinks about a wine, quite frankly. Someone even commented they ‘expected more for the price’ which is mental because anything drinkable under a tenner these days is a miracle, and this is way more than that plus it’s organic which can command a few pence premium.
I’ve just re-ordered a case. And if I discover self control I might have some left for the first signs of Spring when it will really come into its own.
EH Booth & Co Chablis 2023 - Booths - £14.75
One for the Northerners. Online this is only available by 6-pack and you have to collect it, but you can buy single bottles in store. Booths own label wines are a cut above most others.
For someone who’s spent 12 years running a wine event with the strap-line ‘ taste your way out of the supermarket’ I probably shouldn’t be recommending this, but Booths can do no wrong in my eyes, so sod it. Along with the fact all my relatives live there, the existence of Booths is genuinely a part of why I frequently daydream about relocating in a northerly direction.
Richer and riper than I expected but no less delicious. And exceedingly welcome and wonderfully reviving after a 7 hour drive to the Lakes for New Year.
Domaine Alain Mathias Chablis 2022 - £30 ish
Was reluctant to mention this as it’s hard to find but this Domaine is so good, it’s useful to have on your radar. North & South Wines have a case online, but no vintage mentioned so you’ll have to put a bit of effort in.
Price wise, it’s getting into top drawer Chablis zone, but well worth it. If you’re happy to spend 30 quid on two shit cocktails in the capital then you should upgrade your aspirations and buy this instead. I’m equally as delighted to drink their cheaper ‘Petit Chablis’ too.
Rosé de Xinomavro, Thymiopoulos 2022 - The Wine Society and other independents - £13.50
Looks like Irn Bru, tastes like Grand Cru. A somewhat alarming (or appealing?) shade of neon orange in the glass but get it in your gob and you’ll soon realise why this is the current wine trade go-to rosé. Coming in at in incredible £13.50 a bottle, there’s arguably no other ‘off-piste-but-still-totally-moreish-with-or-without-food-or-wine-wankers’ wine out there. Pray the Yacht Lot don’t get a whiff.
Xinomavro Jeunes Vignes 2022 - The Wine Society and other indpendents - £13.50
The basic red from the same people as above. Equally as good, possessing the holy trinity of quality/authenticity, value and drinkability.
Vin de Savoie Mondeuse Terres Rouge, Jean-Francois Quenard 2022 - The Wine Society — £20
Mondeuse is an old, rare Alpine variety, which automatically means wine bores love it. Fair enough though ‘cos it does make some incredible wines that are great young and old and have hints of other grapes (pinot, nebbiolo, syrah…) whilst maintaining a seductive and intriguing character of its own.
I was genuinely astonished at how quickly this bottle disappeared. Despite my number one party trick being making wine disappear. Integrity and interest but ultimately just sooooo easy to drink. Organic, plus they list the names of ‘l’equipe’ on the back which is both cute and (more importantly) respectful, along with simple to understand transparent details on how it’s made.
Chianti Classico, Filetta di Lamole 2019 - Falcon Vintners - £19
I bought a single bottle of this as part of a recent WS haul (yes there’s a lot from The WS in this list) for £24 a bottle but it’s cheaper to buy by the six pack from Falcon - linked above. Single vineyard (Filetta, organic and one of the highest and oldest in Chianti) and 100% Sangiovese. Made by the famous Fontodi (in collaboration with the organic grower) whose wines I have drunk a fair bit of, but never this one - until now. Meaty, herby, plummy and perfumed: slice that salami and bring on the boar.
EDIT - £19/ bottle is actually the price before tax and duty - my mistake, sorry - so it then works out to be £26 all in. So not cheaper after all, but I’ll leave the link in as Falcon are great all the same. Just goes to show even wine pros struggle to get the pesky details aligned, so don’t ever feel bad about finding wine a minefield (or a winefield…) - you just have to accept the whole thing is littered with annoying layers of complication and get on with it.
The Society's Exhibition Langhe Nebbiolo 2021 - The Wine Society - £14.50
I am bored of typing The Wine Society as I am sure you are reading it, but here we are. If you want to know what classic, lovely Nebbiolo tastes like without having to remortgage/wait for 30 years for your tight ass tannin af Barolo (which is made from Nebbiolo) to come round, buy this. A hint of heft, but mostly heady, perfumed elegance. I’d happily pay over £20 for it, but £14.50? Mouthwatering madness.
There you go. Sorry for the basic photos. They’re a feature of this publication that’s unlikely to change, I’m afraid. Does anyone even want photos on a Substack?
If you’re still reading (thank you) you probably need a stiff drink, and funnily enough that’s this week’s bonus. Gin. I have very little interest in gin outside of the few I choose regularly (because they don’t need improving - Hepple, Harris, No.3, Beefeater) or whichever half decent brand is on sale (needs must). So I was pleasantly surprised by the bottle of Masons of Yorkshire (Tea Edition) gin I got for Christmas and doubly so because I think special editions of anything are gimmicks for the gullible. No idea if the tea bit makes any tangible difference but it’s really rather good. Without spending more time on their (quite glitzy) website I can’t impart any other information, but drinks should be judged on the taste first and foremost anyway, I reckon.
As ever, please get involved in the comments. I like a chat.
More soon.
R.
"Dave from Hull" sounds like a new title on Netflix that we'll watch because it's still cold outside. Stupid Dave and stupid Hull.
'Looks like Irn Bru, tastes like Grand Cru' ...sold!