Last week I mentioned the Call My Wine Bluff wine quiz I took part in the week before that. The one where I had to guess what the wine in my glass was - out loud - in front of 200 people and five celebrities. Here's the photo taken at the end with me, my friend Clive Anderson in the middle (ok, made the friend bit up) and my friend (not made up) Jerry who is an ambassador for ActionAid. Jerry's wine, a brand called Millione, donates £1 from every bottle sold to a primary school building project in Sierra Leone. So far, £100,000 has been raised and two schools built. Funds for a third are in place and the Call My Wine Bluff evening raised over half the funds needed for a fourth. Jerry wants to reach £1m and 20 schools. We'd best get drinking.*
And by the way, the camera adds 10lbs. Minimum.
Current white in the fridge: Cefiro Chardonnay 2010, £8ish, The Solent Cellar
Tonight's witching hour was carnage, I tell you. Tea finished at 7pm. 7pm! And I normally run such a tight ship. Anyway, point is, the house is now quiet, there's a chicken roasting in the oven, the Bearded Husband is home and my glass is (half) full. All is well. Chile makes some really, really lovely wines. If anything, they have been criticised for making too many good wines and not enough exceptional wines. Here, good is good enough for me. This one is made from grapes grown in the Casablanca Valley, north of Santiago. It is bright and cheery with pineapple and melon fruit; full of curves. Divine now, will be even better with food in about 20 minutes.
Current red on the side: Domaine of the Bee 2009, £20, Domaine of the Bee
Oh my lord, this is the winiest wine I've enjoyed for a while. It is ENORMOUS with great lugs of bramble fruit wrapped in spice and just when you think you can relax along comes the alcohol (15% people!), forcing you to sit down and eat more. I loved it. Bearded Husband loved it. It is made from old vine Grenache and Carignan grapes in the village of Maury in the South of France by a man I've known for years (since we were both wine buyers for different supermarkets). He and his wife started making their own wine to sell to friends and now they make a bit more, they can sell to people they've never met. Treat this as your virtual introduction. This would make a really good Christmas present for the wine lover who has everything, mainly because it looks beautiful, full of promise, more than delivers on that promise and you have to be in the know to get it. And now you know.
*In moderation, obviously. Millione is a sparkling Italian rose. Great party wine. Stockists include Laithwaites, Sainsbury's & Waitrose and it is £7.99.
Chin chin xLabels: 2009, 2010, carignan, Chardonnay, Chile, France, grenache, red wine, white wine
