Fellow Wine Lovers,
This week we started off, as usual, with a Monday. There was no Tour de France as it was a rest day and the third match of The Ashes had ended with an England win, bringing the series to 2-1 in favour of the Aussies. The paperwork got done as usual and some orders were placed. We discussed the fact that Boris Johnson had failed to hand over his ‘old’ phone by the deadline and now was technically in contempt of court. We wondered if anything would happen. We looked at the tasting list for the tasting we’d attend in the morning and formulated a plan of action.
Tuesday, and we’re arriving in Camden at the appointed time, well Alex anyway, Wayne suffered overconfidence in the reliability of the Northern Line. We arrived at the tasting to discover that low attendee numbers meant the pressure was on for full feedback on all of the new prospects. Plan of action out of the window, we set about a mammoth tasting for the greater good. Some hours later we emerged with black teeth and sore gums to discover that Mrs Johnson, with impeccable timing, had announced the birth of their third child, Frank Alfred Odysseus Johnson. We treated ourselves to a Pret sandwich and headed back to the shop.
Wednesday arrived on time, Wayne shirking any responsibility for anything by having a day off, Alex shifting a van full of wine around the shop- no gym for him that evening! Meanwhile in the wider world, Mad Nads has been reported for WhatsApping a top civil servant trying to get on Lettuce Liz’s Honours List. That’s the same Mad Nads who hasn’t appeared in Parliament for over a year, though she has been able to write her newspaper column and host her TV show. Clearly MP’s don’t have the same attendance rules they set for jobless claimants.
Thursday popped up in the correct position and it was Alex’s turn to swing the lead. Except that the lead was swapped for a golf stick and he had a lovely walk following a Penfold’s No 9 around a very manicured lawn with sand pits. It also turned out that Boris Johnson can’t remember the pin number for his old phone which is why it’s not been handed over. I would have thought that you could ask almost any tabloid journalist for that, or maybe I would have tried 0000 or 1234 myself! The Tour de France went a bit berserk and I would be telling porkies if I said I actually understood what anybody’s tactics for the day were. To be honest, I’m exhausted, and I was just listening! The top three on Grand Classification remain the same at the end of it though, so we go again today up to Grand Colombier at 1501m – a mountain top finish following a 17.4km climb at an average of 7.1%.
You’ll recall our chum Tim was in exactly that position last week. Fortunately for him they are nearly at the end of their tour which will finish in Paris this weekend. Today is a flat day for them, but does follow back to back mountain days on Mont Blanc. The group together has raised nearly £1m now for Cure Leukaemia. If you’d like to help donate to Cure Leukaemia here is the link: Tim Goodman is fundraising for Cure Leukaemia (justgiving.com)
That brings us pretty much up to date, what with it being Friday. If we were to suggest tasting some wine, how would that appeal?
It’s Bastille Day today, so we’ve chosen a couple of wines from France. Waving the flag in the white corner will be Christian Bellang Bourgogne Sous Velle 2020 (£25.75). If you’re a fan of smart white Burgundy then this is for you. Made from grapes sourced in Meursault and aged for 10 months in barrels of 1 to 5 years old, it’s a lovely rich and complex wine which we found to be rather decent value for money.
Charging up the boulevard in the red jacket will be Domaine d’Escausses Cuvée Des Drilles 2020 (£14.99). This cheeky little number from Gaillac is a blend of two grape varieties, Duras (75%) with the rest comprised by Fer. A proper wine of the south west with bright peppery notes, hints of Seville orange, bitter cherry and a really appealing suppleness in the mouth. A real second glasser!