Oeno-File, the Wine & Gastronomy Column

by Frank Ward

Archive for January, 2017

A Few Aussie Wines

Posted by Frank Ward on January 30, 2017

January 2017. The other day I dropped in on the Australia Day tasting in London. A thousand wines were being sniffed at, sipped, guzzled, gargled, and (mostly) spat out by a thousand avid tasters of all ages, shapes, sizes, and dispositions. The wines were likewise varied: light and ingratiating, vigorous and enticing, dark and complex, elegant and nuanced. It was as cheerfully noisy an event as a football stadium with the home side winning. And the most crowded tasting I’ve ever attended.[….]

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MAJOR TASTING OF 2012 CLARETS PART II : PESSAC-LÉOGNAN, SAINT ÉMILION, POMEROL, FIRST GROWTHS

Posted by Frank Ward on January 23, 2017

January 2017. PESSAC-LÉOGNAN. Both châteaux BOUSCAUT and DE FIEUZAL were light, elegant, and approachable, with good balance and will drink well in the coming years. HAUT–BAILLY was in a reticent mood, with an elegant aroma reminiscent of freshly sharpened pencil and autumn berries. It too will evolve smoothly if unlikely to generate great excitement. However, such top estates can be very closed up when young and all three may well surprise us. Made of sterner stuff was [….]

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BIG LONDON TASTING OF 2012 CLARETS PART I : Haut Médoc, Margaux, Saint Estèphe, Saint Julien, Pauillac

Posted by Frank Ward on January 10, 2017

January 2017. Over eighty clarets from the 2012 vintage were recently shown in London by the Institute of Masters of Wine. It was a challenging year, with fluctuating weather, a tardy summer, and some rain at harvest time. Needless to say, the best-run properties came out best. As Charles Taylor M.W. commented: “in a difficult year, producers with commitment and resources achieved much better results than those with limited opportunities or modest ambition”.[….]

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