Paula's Wines of the Week
02/10/2008
_0.JPG)
The ideal storage conditions for wine is a dark, damp, cool wine cellar. But as few of us have one of these, where’s the best place to store wine?
Bottles of wine prefer to be kept in a place that’s constantly cool. Between 10 to 15ºC is ideal: a spare room with the radiator turned off is a good place.
When I lived in a house with no spare bedroom but an unheated north-facing room that contained the loo, I put my wine rack there. Even in the height of summer the temperature never got above 15ºC and in winter it could get pretty chilly, but it never froze.
Where ever your ‘cellar’ area is located use a wine rack or cardboard box to keep your bottles on their sides. Wine will then be in constant contact with the corks and this will stop them drying out and shrinking. A dried-out cork will let in air and bacteria which will contaminate the wine.
If you’ve bought wines sealed with screwcaps or plastic corks (the back label will tell you), store the bottles upright. These man-made bottle stops don’t need to be kept moist and so can be kept in areas not wide enough to take horizontally-stored bottles on a wine rack.
£3.99 and under
There are still some good bottles to be found that cost the same as a couple of National Lottery tickets.
Tesco South African Chenin Blanc, £2.98 Tesco www.tesco.com
Topped with a metal screwcap means you won't have to store this wine on its side, but you may want to keep it in the fridge so it's cool enough to drink when you want it. Well-balanced and crisp with a hint of sweetness, there is nothing to dislike. If you're looking for a wine to please a large family gathering with varying taste likes and dislikes then you won't go far wrong if you get several bottles of this in. Excellent value.
£5.99 and under
There are a few fruity, slurpable wines among the forgettable masses.
Fish Hoek Shiraz 2006, £4.19 Tesco www.tesco.com (down from £6.19 until October 7)
Another screwcapped wine that can be stored standing upright. There's bags of aromas and flavours in this under-a -fiver South African Shiraz – expect a salty seaweedy tang on the aroma (some expensive red Bordeaux wines have this too) with dark chocolate, spinach and Marmite nuances in the flavour. This is more like gravy than a wine. Great with sausages.
Gabbiano Chianti 2007, £4.86 Sainsbury's www.sainsburys.com/groceries (down from £6.49 until October 14)
A traditional Chianti nearly always means a traditional cork. And this one is no different. Store the bottle on its side until you're ready to open it and drink the cherry-tasting contents. A light Chianti for any occasion.
Costs a bit more, but tastes great
Sometimes a bottle of wine tastes so fab it's still a bargain whatever it costs.
Palo Alto Reserva 2006, £7.99 Somerfield www.somerfield.co.uk
This blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah and Carmenère would feel at home in an expensive French red, but this Chilean counterpart does it better – smooth blackcurrant flavours with added black pepper bite. A wine that needs to be drunk with a rich steak and mushroom pudding. If you can past the cork stopper that is.
Vergelegen South African Merlot 2004, £11.19 Majestic www.majestic.co.uk (if buying at least two bottles of South African wine, normal price £13.99)
Expect all wines over £10 a bottle to be stoppered with a traditional cork, as this one is. Apparently we, the wine buying public, feel reassured when we see this on an expensive wine. And it did its job keeping the rich black cherry and tobacco-flavoured wine in peak condition. A lot of dosh but worth it.
If you want to tell Paula about a bargain bottle spotted at the supermarket or off-licence then contact her via jayne.warren@maturetimes.co.uk or directly through her website link below.
© Paula Goddard 2008 www.paulagoddard.com