SPOTLIGHT – FORTIFIEDS (Part 1)

Over the next couple of weeks in the run up to Christmas I wanted to talk about Fortified wines (by which I mean Sherry, Madeira and Port) as well as Dessert wines. It seems Christmas is often the only time of year when many of these wines get a run out, which I think is a bit of a shame. Hopefully these blogs will encourage a bit of experimentation and adventure. Sherry Anyone that only knows sherry as being…

Continue ReadingSPOTLIGHT – FORTIFIEDS (Part 1)

Sparkling Wine Tasting

Following on from my recent blog posts on Sparkling wine and by popular demand, the inaugural Wine Demystifier wine tasting evening was held. With Christmas fast approaching it seemed an ideal time to explore various Sparkling wines and see if we could find any hitherto hidden gems, and some gems we did! The 8 wines selected were carefully chosen to reflect different production styles, grape varieties, dosage levels and even time spent on lees to see how all these…

Continue ReadingSparkling Wine Tasting

Spotlight – You say Shiraz, I say Syrah!

The chances are if you ask the everyday wine drinker what their favourite red wine is, you will get one of two responses:  Rioja or Shiraz.  Very few would volunteer that Syrah is their favourite wine, yet Shiraz and Syrah are in fact one and the same. Many grapes have different names depending on where they are grown and originally Shiraz was the name coined by New World winemakers with Syrah (the grapes’ original name) used by the French…

Continue ReadingSpotlight – You say Shiraz, I say Syrah!