{"id":1802,"date":"2024-03-08T14:36:39","date_gmt":"2024-03-08T13:36:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/?p=1802"},"modified":"2024-03-08T14:36:40","modified_gmt":"2024-03-08T13:36:40","slug":"we-do-this-so-that-you-dont-have-to-be-grateful","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/?p=1802","title":{"rendered":"We do this so that you don\u2019t have to, be grateful!"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p>Fellow Wine Lovers,<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Once again I need to start with a point of admin relating to the coming week:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Tuesday 12<sup>th<\/sup> March \u2013 we\u2019ll be opening later today as we have to go to Camden for a big old range tasting with one of our main suppliers \u2013 we should be back here by 4pm though, just in time to meet you off the tube after work!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But now back to now \u2013 how\u2019s your week been?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Monday found me nose to nose with the paperwork from February \u2013 29 days\u2019 worth of coffee chits and uber receipts that I had to gently return to my colleague, explaining for the 159<sup>th<\/sup> month that we have to pay for our own drinks and transport, even if we do drink the coffee\u2019s at work\u2026 as you can imagine, the hours just flew past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Tuesday was better.&nbsp; It found me in a club on Grosvenor Place, surrounded by uber-smart wines and men with waxed moustaches wearing suits with brooches of grapes on their lapels \u2013 yes, I was in sommelier land.&nbsp; Usually sommeliers don\u2019t leave their lairs during service but if I list the wines that were on show, you\u2019ll understand why all the smart restaurants in Mayfair were being run by trainees that lunchtime\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>So here\u2019s a snapshot of what these chaps were tasting, amongst others:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Louis Roederer<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Brut Vintage 2015 \u2013 <em>crisp, fresh, lean and taut, plenty of potential<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Cristal 2015 &#8211; <em>delicious<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Domaines Schlumberger Pinot Gris Grand Cru \u201cKitterle\u201d 2013 \u2013 <em>awesome, off-dry, loads of fruit and starting to develop beautifully<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ornellaia<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Le Volte 2022 <em>\u2013 oh yes, this has it all, fruit, balance and superb length<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Le Serre Nuove 2021 \u2013 <em>more structure here with drier tannins and good length<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Ornellaia 2021 \u2013 <em>soft and subtle and plenty of development potential<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Sesti<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Brunello di Montalcino 2019 \u2013 <em>5\/5 vintage.&nbsp; That\u2019ll do, absolutely spot on<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Brunello di Montalcino 2011 \u2013 <em>beautifully evolved and smooth, can I have a bottle please?<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Tenuta San Guido<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Le Difese 2022 \u2013 <em>still very youthful<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Guidalberto 2022 \u2013 <em>more body weight and actually more pleasurable<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sassicaia 2021 \u2013 <em>smooth as silk, gorgeously long \u2013 is it worth the RRP??<\/em><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Sassicaia 2007 \u2013 <em>from a double magnum, he really didn\u2019t want to share this, I think it was for people with ties on however, I got a glass and safe to say, it\u2019s proper kit!<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>La Rioja Alta 904 Selecci\u00f3n Especial Gran Reserva 2015 \u2013 <em>very good rich, ripe fruit and opulence<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we\u2019ve said to you over and over again, we do this so that you don\u2019t have to, be grateful.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Wednesday saw me back in the shop with my Egg &amp; Cress and a pile of tasting notes to write.&nbsp; The chancellor told us <em>\u201cWe value our hospitality industry and we are backing the great British pub\u201d<\/em> but only until February next year it would seem.&nbsp; To be honest, having, subjected alcohol duty to the largest increase in almost 50 years within the last six months, he couldn\u2019t really do anything else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thursday was long and cold, with more tasting notes and the realisation that it was still light at 5.30pm \u2013 we\u2019re getting there!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>And now it\u2019s Friday, with the happy prospect of a Six Nations weekend where we are fully expecting 3 home wins and tries galore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019ll drink to that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This weekend we\u2019ll be opening another of our new whites: <strong>Primordial Soup &#8211; \u00a38.99<\/strong> from the Western Cape, South Africa.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Primordial soup, also known as prebiotic soup, is the hypothetical set of conditions present on the Earth around 3.7 to 4.0 billion years ago.&nbsp; In wine terms, we\u2019re talking about this delicious blend of Chenin Blanc and Colombard.&nbsp; It tastes much fresher than a billion years or two of age suggests too, gentle citrus and orchard fruit characters being the main flavours.&nbsp; It also comes in at a midweek friendly 11% ABV.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Wayne is recommending poached haddock and mustard mash, halloumi and salad or just a cheese toasty for partnerships\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For the red, we\u2019ll stay in South Africa and have a go at the very fancy <strong>Idun Syrah 2019 &#8211; \u00a325.99<\/strong> which I don\u2019t think we have ever put on tasting before, even though we have had it for 4 or 5 years!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A complex wine from 3 different vineyard sites in the Elgin Valley.&nbsp; These parcels are situated 200 m above sea level caressed by the cooling sea breezes from the Atlantic a few kilometres away. Rainwater is retained in the iron-rich clay and cobble soils which results in low yield and flavour concentration.&nbsp; Due to COVID, the wine was matured for longer than usual (16 months) using 30% new French oak barrels.&nbsp; A lovely savoury bouquet of black olive, spicy fruit and white pepper on the nose. &nbsp;On the palate we have berry fruits joining in the fun finishing with fine ripe tannins giving us a very elegant drop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Finally, a public service announcement for anyone who was ever born, which I imagine includes quite a number of you:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>This Sunday is Mother\u2019s Day.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Champagne is in the left hand side fridge, by the wall, if that helps\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Fellow Wine Lovers, Once again I need to start with a point of admin relating to the coming week: Tuesday 12th March \u2013 we\u2019ll be opening later today as we have to go to Camden for a big old range tasting with one of our main suppliers \u2013 we should be back here by 4pm [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1802","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1802"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1802\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1803,"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1802\/revisions\/1803"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/parkvintners.co.uk\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}