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I’ve split my Christmas columns up into Old and New World wines this year because I get so many samples that the tastings become quite complicated and it’s very difficult to compare one with the other to any sensible effect. We felt that most of the Old World white wines would be suitable for starters, but that they’d have trouble standing up to all the trimmings that we’ll be slaving over. If you were going to eat plain turkey, ordinary boiled vegetables and the simplest of gravy then I guess they’d be fine, but what a miserable way to go.
I left the choice of wine up to the shops and, not surprisingly, they all sent French, mainly Chardonnay, with a couple of Sauvignon based wines thrown in. Our favourite wine was Domaine Armand Salmon Sancerre 2006, which is £10.99 from the Co-op, but reduced to £6.99 while stocks last. However, I’m ashamed to say that we all thought it was Chardonnay. It smelt lightly lemony with a hint of wax. It had a much riper, sweeter, fuller flavour than the Chardonnays, which is ridiculous for Sancerre, since it’s further north and made from Sauvignon, which is naturally more acidic than Chardonnay. However, despite the fact that it was atypical, we really loved the taste of it. Our second favourite was Asda’s Extra Special Oak Aged Burgundy NV, which is £6.98. The only hint at the oak was creaminess on the nose. The taste was freshly, cleanly like elder, and we assumed it was the Sancerre. Oh dear! How wrong can you be. It was a strange evening.
Unoaked Chardonnay is pretty neutral in flavour, but if made well it can be vibrant and rather beautiful. Sainsbury’s Taste the Difference Chablis 2006 is £7.99 and smelt lightly, freshly, of pineapple. It was freshly acidic in the mouth, exactly as it should be and we had no trouble identifying it as Chablis. Lorraine noticed that it tasted quite salty, but we liked that.
I have to admit that we didn’t taste the Mouton Cadet absolutely blind, because it was the only wine in a Bordeaux bottle (with high shoulders) so we spotted it easily in the line up. There was no need for the clue though because it was very obvious. It smelt catty and attractively floral and had some oak in the mouth which gave it structure. We felt it had enough flavour to match the turkey and its trimmings. It was pretty good, and is £5.99 at Morrisons. Majestic’s Montagny 1er Cru 2004 is £9.99 and has a fresh lemon and pineapple smell. The taste is fresh, tangy and nicely alive and would suit a fishy starter very nicely.
Marks & Spencer’s Domaine Pierre de Prehy Chablis 2005 smelt strongly of matchboxes. The taste was slightly oaky and rather watery, with a bitter finish. Our least favourite was Asda’s Chablis which had almost no aroma. Dianne said the smell was “subtle” which was putting it mildly. If you’re looking for something for the turkey, next week’s New World Whites may be just the thing.