If you have come across Gewürztraminer, you probably know the Alsace version. Other places do make the stuff: the Italian South Tyrol claims to have invented it, and there are interesting variants from Spain, California and New Zealand. But these wines could never be mistaken for the Alsatian model. Their aromas may be as rich, but they are usually leaner and crisper; no less delicious, but in a different way.

So it is interesting to come across a Gewürz whose makers consciously strive for the Alsace effect. This one is from the Finger Lakes area of New York, the US’s third most important wine-growing state. Read the rest of this entry »

Greek wine used to be the stuff of jokes. Whenever the subject cropped up - not often, admittedly - people would screw their eyes shut and make nose-blowing sounds. According to the general consensus, the best you could say for Greek wine was that it was a fitting accompaniment to Greek food.

The chief cause of this derision was Retsina. If you haven’t come across it, this is white wine flavoured with pine resin. It smells and tastes like turps, and while it does have its enthusiasts, so do flagellation, coprophagy and rap music.

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Suppose you are a sucker for white Burgundy. Suppose also that the subprime loan crisis has left you bust. The days when you could afford Montrachet are over. Meursault is beyond your reach. The New World alternatives are pleasant enough, but they lack the finesse you are accustomed to. What are you to do?

First, expect no sympathy. The world is full of envious Calibans enraged by the mere idea of expensive wine. Advertise your plight to them and they will only sneer.

Second, consider the Côte Chalonnaise. This is still Burgundy, but it is less well known, and it offers bargains.

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The nice thing about Chianti is that there is one for every pocket and every palate. If you are rich and discerning, you will buy La Massa’s spectacular Giorgio Primo. If you are a penniless moron, you will buy one of those Cecchi flasks encased in raffia. And if like most of us you are something in between, you can still be confident that there is a Chianti just for you.

My favourite “everyday” Chianti is Marchese Antinori. In good years this is ripe and lush, in bad ones musty and meagre. The good years outnumber the bad. But this Chianti is no longer cheap, and even its best vintages are not outstanding value for money. Seekers of bargain Chianti must hunt elsewhere. Read the rest of this entry »