Quintessence

This should be a white week but given the difficulty of finding a wine that has an association with the letter Q pale pink will have to do.

Whilst shopping in M&S for an impulsive beef burger and brioche bun combo I spotted:

Week Q (2022) Quintessence Mediterranée Rosé IGP 2920. M&S £7 

This is a Provençal style rose made from Merlot and Grenache, in a 70:30 blend, and described on the bottle as being dry.  I'm not sure I can agree with the last point as it has a definite sweetness.

It is recommended for drinking with grilled fish and salads, but I went for a cheeseburger and salad (really just coleslaw on the burger) together with a sharing sized bag of maple smoked bacon crisps.

I had had a day of shovelling a cubic metre of topsoil from the front drive (we don't have a rear drive, I'm just trying to be descriptive) to the vegetable bed that I recently rebuilt. Thirsty work, I am sure you will understand. Thirsty enough in fact that I polished off the entire contents of the bottle whilst watching something forgettable on a streaming service I can't recall.

This is a £7 bottle of wine and so my expectations were not high.  However,  it was exactly what was required. A little sweet but very drinkable. Not a match for a good dry rosé from Provence, but I can imagine this going down very well, lightly chilled, on a balmy summer evening.

It tasted of fresh raspberry and strawberry, offered nothing else and was none the worse for that.

I recently spent a morning judging wines for the People's Choice Wine Awards and the category 'Festival and Picnic drinks' included some truly awful submissions. This wine would serve that purpose very well. Unpretentious, simple and fun.

Buy again? I can't be sure, but wouldn't rule it out.

Oatley

 As you won't recall, I tend to enjoy the wines of Western Australia and especially Margaret River, that cool climate region to the south of Perth that I really must visit. Until I do I shall continue to buy my wine in all the usual places and this week I did just that, choosing:

Week O (2022) Robert Oatley Signature Series Chardonnay 2021. Majestic £9.99

This bottle was opened on the Sunday before Easter alongside a rolled shoulder of pork that had spent around seven hours on a low heat and was, if I say so myself, delicious. That little piggy (or bits of him) were shared with the youngest of the progeny and her partner who both like that sort of thing and who had to be restrained from eating all of the crackling before the vegetables had even reached the table. They both enjoy Bread & Butter Chardonnay (see Week Q (2021)) and its prominent oak flavours and on tasting this week's wine asked if that was what I had provided.

I could see why the question was asked as this wine does have a fairly obvious oak-influenced flavour profile, although to my tastes it is rather more restrained than the B&B.

Definitely a Chardonnay, and certainly not a Chablis, this is a good example of a white Burgundy style (lower end, naturally) wine that should be a crowd pleaser.

There are citrus and stone fruit flavours, like lemon and peach, blended with some buttery and creamy feel and a touch of vanilla.

For the price I think this is a good value, easy to drink, better than many white wine.

I haven't tasted any other wines made by Oatley but hope to in the future. Buy it again? yes.

Nero Oro Riserva

We were away in Crete recently, so this entry is  a catch-up as try though I did none of the local wines on that island satisfied my selection criteria. So I took a trip back to Majestic in Berkhamsted and found it has been a time of much change since my short term there before Christmas. New jobs for several of the team is great news for them, but fewer old friends for me to visit. So striking whilst the iron remained warm and in preparation for Easter and any other excuse I could muster I bought:

Week N (2022) Nero Oro Riserva 2018. Majestic £14.99

As some friends invited us round for a game of Bridge, this bottle didn't get anywhere near Easter. It was consumed on a weekday evening alongside some cheese, none of which was rubbery, and the game which was.

All three elements were enjoyable, especially the narrow 2:1 victory for the away team, and much fun was had by all.

One unexpected opportunity arose in the second half of the evening, which was to compare this Riserva version of Nero Oro with its stable mate 'Nero Oro Appassimento' that had by chance been selected by the home team should a second bottle be called upon.

Both wines were very quaffable. The appassimento is 100% Nero d'Avola but the Riserva has some Syrah blended in. The Riserva doesn't state that it has been made using the appassimento method - drying the grapes prior to fermentation to concentrate the flavours - but I suspect it had been as it was notably smoother and richer than its sister. It was also a couple of pounds more expensive which I feel is justified.

The flavour profiles were broadly similar, with the appassimento being a little thinner and more prominently acidic, where blackcurrant is supported by cherry in the appassimento and by raisins, dark plums and figs in the Riserva. Both we pleasant although there seemed to be more oak influence in the Riserva, from its 18 months spent in barrel, and a touch more warmth both of which gave it the edge.

Produced in Sicily by Stefano Chioccioli and suitable for both vegetarians and vegans (like they need special treatment when it comes to wine) I would buy this again.