Come on Tomas, come out and see us!

I had a run in with the Bridgestone Guide a number of years ago, when they had included us in their guide, but descibed us as "an offshoot of the Cabot empire". Now I am happy and proud that Liam and myself continue to work well together, importing wines, sharing expertise and information and generally working very closely with each other, but I had to let the Bridgestone people know that Cabot and Co and On the Grapevine are very much separate entities and both operations very much stand on their own two feet. The bottom line was that Bridgestone had never set foot in the shop, so how they were in any way placed to include us remains a mystery. I was amazed at the lack of research in a guide that deems itself to be an expert on all things gastronomic. If they were recommending us, but had no idea what we were like, on what basis do their other recommendations stand? The upshot of it was that I politely asked them just to leave us out of the guide altogether.

Now, Tomas Clancy, I have met you on numerous occasions over our 12 years in business and you keep saying you must come out to visit us, but we still haven't seen you. Dalkey is not that far away, so hop on a dart and we will be glad to see you. We might even open something interesting for you. Then, feel free to exclude us from your various top ten listing as per today's paper!

By the way, the only gripe I would have with the lists is Tesco as the number 1 in multiples. Not sure about that - I know they have a big market share as a result of their bogus half-price promos, but surely Superquinn have a better range? Just sayin'.....

Now back to packing shelves.

Irish Times Wines of the Year

At some stage, I will get my thoughts together on the year gone by, but for now I just want to record the wines of ours that are featured in today's Irish Times. I have known John Wilson for many years now and I have said before I really think he has a great palate and is very fair in his spread of recommendations. His picks from our range this year are a couple of old favourites and a couple of new wines to the list.

Clos Petite Bellane Cotes du Rhone Rouge 2007 - should be €15
"A 50/50 blend of Syrah and Grenache, this is a beautifully made wine with plenty of warm, ripe dark fruits. Unlike many southern Rhones, it also has a lovely clean elegance and soft purity of fruit. Great value and worth seeking out. Try it with grilled or roast pork."

Chinon Les Granges, Bernard Baudry 2008 - €15
"Baudry is one of my favourite producers of Cabernet Franc in the Loire, making wonderfully elegant wines. This has some very intense, pure summer fruits and leafy notes, bound lightly by some dry tannins. It may improve further, but you will find it irresistable now. This would go perfectly with some slightly fatty pork dished, either hot or cold."

Felton Road Pinot Noir, Central Otago 2008 €45

"The current 2008 vintage is drinking beautifully and would go very nicely with a roast goose. Lovely vibrant piquant  dark cherry fruits, smooth on the palate with a light spiciness."

Clos Petite Bellane Cotes du Rhone Villages Valreas "les Echalas" Blanc 2007 €24

"This was one of my star wines of teh summer, a superb rich white wine packed with peaches and apricots, subtle, perfectly judged oak, and a streak of mineral acidity. It fills the mouth with flavour and lingers beautifully. Not cheap, but well worth a splurge. Try it  with full-flavoured fish dishes or grilled chicken."

Other wines in the supplement that you can find chez nous include:

Bisol Prosecco

Grange Dapot Corbieres

Simone Joseph Syrah

Muga Rioja

Chateau du Cedre Cahors

Pellehaut Cotes de Gascogne

Birgit Eichinger Gruner Veltliner

Pieropan Calvarino

Innocent Bystander Moscato

Niepoort LBV

Alamos Malbec

A reasonable sprinkling....now we just need it to stop snowing so that we can sell some wine!



Bring out Your dead report

Thanks to Liam for being more together than me, you can read the list of wines with Liam's notes here .

From what I can remember, I was broadly in agreement with Liam's assessment of the wines.

Another great night, thanks again to John and Hugo, Sue etc...

New Wines from Spain - Castellroig

Spanish wines are on a good run at the moment. Really interesting wines are coming out of new, emerging wine regions such as Bierzo, Cigales, Yecla as well as the establishment of Rioja and Ribera del Duero. Wines that are ripe, well-made yet have the character that people who like wine are looking for AND offer great value for money.
Carol went on holidays in northeastern Spain this year and went on a bit of a tasting binge. As well as tasting with the great and the good of Priorat, she also came across what we think might be a gem in a winery from Penedes called Castellroig.
Best known and widely acclaimed as a Cava producer, they also make a range of reds and whites, with really no weak wines in their whole range.
We have brought in their entry level white - a Xarello (a grape variety usually used for Cava). It is a delicious, bright, aromatic fruity wine which has a lovely clean mineral finish.
The red is Ull de Llebre, also known as Tempranillo. It gets 10 months in oak, is quite full bodied, really smooth, well-balanced and very tasty indeed.
We also brought in their Cava Brut - a world apart from "normal" Cava, this has concentration and complexity and finesse and is a really delicious sparkler.
The Cava is €20, the red and the white are both €15.
On tasting this weekend...

Bring out Your Dead - the third rising

One week late for Halloween, we had our annual Bring out your Dead dinner last weekend, kindly hosted again by Hugo Arnold. It was the usual gathering of the great, the alright, the old and decrepit and the downright weird. But I want to talk about the wines ha ha!

Unfortunately, I left my notebook behind me, which reflects well on the amount of craic on the night but reflects rather badly on my professionalism as a wine commentator. When I get my notes back, I'll do a full report...

Beaufield Mews French Classics Dinner

I have been very slack on the blogging front for the last week or so, mainly because I have actually been busy, I am happy to report.
Quick roundup: Wine Fair went really well. It is always a good night and we haven't had a single one that I haven't enjoyed, but this was our best one ever. A big crowd, fantastic atmosphere and great support from our suppliers on the night - Searsons, Liberty, Comans and Wicklow Wine. Thanks again. The orders were really strong as well, so thanks to all who came, drank and ordered!

Next Friday night we have a French Classics Dinner in the Beaufield Mews. John Wilson (Irish Times) will be introducing the wines, Beaufield Mews will be putting together a French menu and the rest of us will be having a nice time.

I think this is nearly sold out, but if you want to try and come along, contact John at 01 2880375.

Wine Fair final reminder

Final call for our 12 Annual Wine Fair on this Thursday, November 4th from 6pm to 9pm in Fitzpatrick’s Killiney Castle Hotel. Come along and bring your friends for a great night out, with 6 tables laden down with delicious wines for you to sample. Tickets cost €10, you can pay on the door if you can’t make it in to the shop in time to collect tickets.


On tasting we will have many old favourites as well as classic wines – Meursault, Amarone, Barolo, Champagne, Chateauneuf du Pape etc etc.

Not only do we have great wines open for tasting, we have great deals on those great wines! Highlights include :

Zenato Ripassa reduced by 20% to only €16 per bottle
Twiggy reduced by 19% to €13 per btl
San Giorgio Pinot Grigio down 20% to €8 per btl
Ste Michelle Sparkling down by 25% to €15 per btl
Trapiche Medalla Cabernet down by 23% to €17 per btl
Quiot Chateauneuf du Pape down by 18% to €23 per btl

And many more….hope to see you there!