Most of the wines I drink are either made to be drunk young, as the majority of wines are, or they are made to wait a while, but I get to them too quickly.
This week there is something of a compromise. At five and a half years old it is not anywhere near as old as the claret-that-is-too-expensive-to-drink wines favoured by collectors and the 1% of the global population who hold 48% of the global wealth, but it is not straight out of the barrel and straight down the throat, either.
Week P (2015) Chateau Moulin de Curat, Puisseguin Saint-Emilion, 2009. Majestic £9.99
Is five and a half years enough? Well, yes, I think so. It has quite a lot of blackcurrant and plum fruit flavour, but herbal and spicy notes also peep through, supported by some cedar and vanilla all of which suggests that the wine has developed beyond its infancy. There is tannin and enough of it to allow the wine to keep longer without becoming tired and uninteresting and has well-balanced acidity. It is quite alcoholic, being labelled as having 14.5% abv, and that is about as much as anyone needs (having said I recently tasted a Cannonau from Sardinia that had 15.5% on its label and although was certainly a powerful wine it was also delicious).
The village of Puisseguin is a near neighbour of Saint-Emilion, one of the more famous names from Bordeaux that can be found on the right bank of the Garonne, and is one of four that are permitted to benefit from association with its neighbour by appending the more famous name after their own by way of claiming increased kudos.
There is a general truth about Bordeaux that the wines made on the left bank have Cabernet Sauvignon as the majority grape in the blend, where those from the right bank include more Merlot. This follows that rule having 60% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc and only a 5% splash of Cabernet Sauvignon.
I like this wine. I think £10 for a bottle of a well made, medium bodied, classic style right bank claret is a fair deal.Yes, you can pay more for greater complexity and a greater emphasis on the leather and liquorice flavours of an older and more developed wine, but as I said at the start, this is a compromise choice and one I am very happy to have made.
This week there is something of a compromise. At five and a half years old it is not anywhere near as old as the claret-that-is-too-expensive-to-drink wines favoured by collectors and the 1% of the global population who hold 48% of the global wealth, but it is not straight out of the barrel and straight down the throat, either.
Week P (2015) Chateau Moulin de Curat, Puisseguin Saint-Emilion, 2009. Majestic £9.99Is five and a half years enough? Well, yes, I think so. It has quite a lot of blackcurrant and plum fruit flavour, but herbal and spicy notes also peep through, supported by some cedar and vanilla all of which suggests that the wine has developed beyond its infancy. There is tannin and enough of it to allow the wine to keep longer without becoming tired and uninteresting and has well-balanced acidity. It is quite alcoholic, being labelled as having 14.5% abv, and that is about as much as anyone needs (having said I recently tasted a Cannonau from Sardinia that had 15.5% on its label and although was certainly a powerful wine it was also delicious).
The village of Puisseguin is a near neighbour of Saint-Emilion, one of the more famous names from Bordeaux that can be found on the right bank of the Garonne, and is one of four that are permitted to benefit from association with its neighbour by appending the more famous name after their own by way of claiming increased kudos.
There is a general truth about Bordeaux that the wines made on the left bank have Cabernet Sauvignon as the majority grape in the blend, where those from the right bank include more Merlot. This follows that rule having 60% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc and only a 5% splash of Cabernet Sauvignon.
I like this wine. I think £10 for a bottle of a well made, medium bodied, classic style right bank claret is a fair deal.Yes, you can pay more for greater complexity and a greater emphasis on the leather and liquorice flavours of an older and more developed wine, but as I said at the start, this is a compromise choice and one I am very happy to have made.
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