Monday 14 December 2015

Domaine Toulal Guerrouane rosé 2014

Last weekend we visited France  and tried some Domaine Toulal Guerrouane rosé 2014 for an aperitif before we ate. I was quite impressed; some good wine is made in Morocco and Domaine Toulal is no exception it tasted just as good as a rosé from the Rhône valley that we tried the next day.

This wine is perfect for drinking in the garden on a hot summer's day which despite global warming is a rarity in Britain. This is probably why rosé sales are low in Britain and a nice warming Barolo is more suited to a British summer - it is better to stick to the South of France or Tuscany for garden parties.

Moroccan wine is very good value for money and even though it cannot compete with French, Italian or Spanish wine for absolute quality it gives the lower end wines a run for their money. I have never had a bad bottle and all the wines go with Moroccan food.

You can't find these wines easily in the the UK but an outlet can be found on short a short trip across the channel to a French supermarket. Domaine Toulal costs about 3.99 Euro a bottle and for that price why not buy a case? Moroccan red is generally good as well. So the next time you drive to France search some out all the major supermarkets who all stock wines from the Maghreb.

The wines of the Maghreb are produced on the slopes of the Atlas mountains in the north of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia where the Mediterranean influences the climate and produces conditions perfect for viticulture: there is also plenty of hot sun. The quality of wines from the Maghreb is improving all the time now that bulk wine production is being phased out. Export earnings from wine are on the up and France is the main export market.

A substantial proportion of the people who live in the Maghreb consume wine despite the restrictions of religion. Some of my Muslim friends assure me that it is OK for an adherent of Islam to consume wine provided that your character is unaffected by that consumption, so a glass of wine with a meal is not forbidden - this is a moot point and others would claim that a true adherent of the faith should not consume wine or any other form of alcohol for that matter.


http://www.cdiscount.com/vin-champagne/vin-rose/domaine-toulal-rose-x1/f-1293605-toulalrose.html

http://www.wine-navigator.com/wild-and-rare-in-North-Africa

Tuesday 8 December 2015

Sonic Decanters and other methods of "improving" the taste of wine

I shall not be buying any of my wine lover friends a sonic decanter for Christmas. I would rather spend the money on a decent bottle for them. There may be many of you out there who are tempted to ask Santa to deliver me a sonic decanter  -  thanks a lot but I shall be putting them up for sale on E-bay and use the proceeds to buy a case of 2009 Latour.

There is lots of " hype" surrounding the ultrasonic treatment of wine and plenty of pseudo science to justify why you should give your wine a dose of sound waves.

Some people go for a cheaper solution and put their wine through a blending machine to add oxygen and ultrasonic sound to the treatment.

No one has come up with any good science why you should use ultrasonics or extreme oxygenation to improve any wine even a cheap one.

If you want to keep good or fine wine for any length of time to improve in the the bottle then it is best to avoid vibrating the wine. You should also prevent excessive oxygen from spoiling the wine by keeping it sealed with a cork which only allows extremely small amounts of oxygen to seep into the wine.

The best way to improve the taste of a cheap bottle of wine would be to allow it to breathe for an hour before serving or to decant it. This may well not improve the taste too much but it will not ruin the wine. This is a time honoured practice.

Most supermarkets and wine merchants do not stock poor wines. Occasionally you will buy a wine that is corked or has been oxidised because of a faulty seal. Ultrasonic treatment will not improve a faulty wine . It is best to take the wine back to the supplier for a refund.

There are good winemakers all over the world who make good wine to be sold at a fair price. Most of these winemakers are dedicated people who love their product. Does their wine really have to subjected to ultrasonic treatment for you to appreciate it? Just open their bottle with a good meal and play some Beethoven  - no ultrasonics are  needed to appreciate the  wine or the music.