TN : Villa Maria Hawkes Bay Chardonnay Reserve 2010, Villa Maria Estate, Hawke's Bay, New Zealand

The vinyard from where the grapes for this wine were harvested are located on the warm easterly plateau of the Maraekakaho. The fruit from the Waikahu site is grown on the sandy loam over red stained gravels. This area consists of some of New Zealand’s oldest soils dating back thousands of years. The Matthews Family, who are the attentive vignerons of this prestigious vineyard ensure the fruit is of an exceptional quality. This vineyard is planted with a selection of Chardonnay clones, namely clone 95, 15 and Mendoza.This wine was sealed with a screwcap.

This wine was imported by Fondberg.

Colour : Pale lemon, green hues

Aroma : Butter, mango, oranges, pineapple

Taste : Oak, butter, mango, oranges, creamy texture

Alcohol : 13.5%

Price : 149 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 97046

Mark : B

Website : Villa Maria Estate

TN : Villa Maria Gimblett Gravels Syrah Reserve 2007, Villa Maria, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand

Villa Maria was founded in 1961 by its current owner and Managing Director Sir George Fistonich. This wine was sealed with a screwcap. This wine was imported by Fondberg.

Colour : Dark red, blue hues

Aroma : Spice, blueberry, herbs

Taste : Blueberry, plums, spice, herbs, white pepper

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 199 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 97041

Mark : B-

Website : Villa Maria

TN ; Trinity Hill The Gimblett 2009, Gimblett Gravels, Trinity Hill, Hawkes Bay, New Zealand

This wine is a blend of 38% merlot, 37% cabernet sauvignon, 15% cabernet franc, 8% petit verdot och 2% malbec. This wine won a gold medal at the New Zealand International Wine Show.

This wine was imported by Carovin AB.

Colour : Dark red/plum

Aroma : Blackcurrant, mint, herbs, milk chocolate

Taste : Blackcurrant, plum, mint, liqourice

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 199 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 98141

Mark : B

Website : Trinity Hill

TN : Blaufraenkisch Ried Hochberg 2008, Weingut Hans Igler, Mittelburgenland, Austria

This single-vineyard Blaufränkisch is sourced from the sunny southwest-facing slopes of the Hochberg vineyard. This wine was sealed with a screwcap.

This wine was imported by A Wendler Försäljnings AB.

Colour : Dark red

Aroma : Raspberry, strawberry, white pepper, liqourice, spice

Taste : Plums, strawberry, licource, spice, white pepper

Alcohol : 13%

Price : 159 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 96015

Mark : B

Website : Weingut Hans Igler

TN : Ruca Malen Cabernet Sauvignon 2009, Bodega Ruca Malen, Cuyo, Mendoza, Argentina

Ruca Malen means "the house of the young girl" in the ancient Araucan tradition of Arentina. Legend has it that one bold young girl dared to fix her gaze on the eyes of a powerful god in the sky above. She was subdued by lightning and fell deeply in love with the god who then offered her a home, Ruca Malen, and a nectar, which would receive all the happiness of the god's haze. Ruca Malen was founded in 1998 by Jean Pierre Thibaud, former chairman of Bodegas Chandon, and Jacques Louis de Montalembert.

This wine was imported by Sigva Partner AB.

Colour : Dark red, blue hues

Aroma : Blackcurrant, cherry, oak, herbs

Taste : Fruity blackcurrant, coffee, toasty oak, vanilla

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 119 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 99345

Mark : C

Website : Bodega Ruca Malen

TN : Penfolds Bin 28 Kalimina Shiraz 2009, Penfolds Wines, South Australia, Australia

The grapes for this wine were sources from Padthaway, Barossa Valley, Langhorne Creek, McLaren Vale and Robe. The wine was matured for 12 months in seasoned American oak hogsheads. The acidity is 6.3 grammes per litre and the pH is 3.70. This wine was sealed with a screwcap.

Colour : Dark red, blue hues

Aroma : Blackberry, plums, milk chocolate, mint, oak, vanilla

Taste : Rasping toasty oak, blackberry, plums, milk chocolate, white pepper

Alcohol : 14.5%

Price : 169 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 16320

Mark : C

Website : Penfolds Wines

TN : Allegrini Appassimento Vino Rossa 2010, Allegrini, Italy

This wine was imported by The WineAgency Sweden AB.

Colour : Dark red, blue hues

Aroma : Cherries, plums, milk chocolate, oak

Taste : Cherries, plums, oak, spices

Alcohol : 13.5%

Price : 89 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 5367

Mark : C+

Website : Allegrini

TN : Dr Loosen Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Spätlese 2010, Dr Loosen, Mosel, Germany

The vineyard is located in Wehlen near the Sundial. There is virtually no topsoil in Wehlen, only broken and weathered shards of the purest blue slate. The winemaker was Bernard Schug. This wine was imported by Vinunic AB.

Colour : Pale lemon

Aroma : Peach, honey, lemon, lime

Taste : Concentrated, peach, honey, long lemon and lime and minerally finish, off dry

Alcohol : 7.5%

Price : 199 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 95117

Mark : A-

Website : Dr Loosen

TN : Reinhold Oster Ürziger Würzgarten Riesling Spätlese 1989, Reinhold Oster, Mosel, Germany

This wine was imported by Janake Wine Group AB.

Colour : Lemon

Aroma : Honey, lemon, orange marmelade

Taste : Lemon, honey sweets, petrol, mushroomy

Alcohol : 9.5%

Price : 109 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 99367

Mark : C

TN : Montes Cherub Rose of Syrah 2011, Montes, Rapel, Colhchagua Valley, Chile

The front label on this wine bottle displays a Cherub (young angel) called Alfredo in honour of Alfredo Vidaurre who is a founding partner of Montes Wines (1988): the other founders were Aurelio Montes, Douglas Murray, and Pedro Grand.

The label was illustrated by the British illustrator Ralph Steadman. This wine is 100% Syrah and is sealed with a screwcap. The wine was imported by Hjo Grosshandel AB.

Colour : Bright raspberry

Aroma : Rapsberry, cherry, strawberry, herbs

Taste : Raspberry, strawberry, herbs, citrus finish

Alcohol : 13.5%

Price : 99 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 91145

Mark : B

Website : Montes

TN : Main Street Chardonnay 2011, Main Street Winery, Santa Barbara County, California, U.S.A

87% of the Chardonnay grapes were sourced from Santa Barbara County and 13% from Monterey County. This wine is sealed with a screwcap. This wine was imported by Vinovum AB.

Colour : Pale yellow, green hues

Aroma :  Sweetcorn, butter, oranges, pears

Taste :  Sweetcorn, oaky, butter, pineapple, oranges

Alcohol : 13.5%

Price : 89 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 6321

Mark : C+

Website : Main Street Winery

TN : Black Print 2009, Markus Schneider, Pflaz, Germany

This wine is a blend of St. Laurent, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Mitos, and Cabernet Dorsa. This wine was imported by Bornicon and Salming.


Colour : Dark blackberry

Aroma : Smoky, burnt toast, blackberries, blackcurrant, cedar

Taste : Blackcurrant, blackberry, concentrated, sweet, burnt toast, cedar

Alcohol : 14.5%

Price : 159 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 72220

Mark :A-

Website : Markus Schneider

Carmenere Limited Edition 2010, Vina Perez Cruz, Maipo Valley, Chile

This wine is a blend of 90% carmenère, 8% petit verdot and 2% syrah. This grapes for this wine come from the Fundo Liguai de Nuelquen vineyard in the Maipo Valley. All of the grapes were hand harvested. The winemaker was German Lyon.

This wine was imported by Terrific Wines AB.

Colour : Dark blackberry

Aroma : Blackberry, oak, lavender, green pepper

Taste : Lavender, blackberry, oak, liquorice, spice, green pepper

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 119 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 98046

Mark : B

Website : Vina Perez Cruz

TN : Montes Alpha Syrah 2009, Vina Montes, Colchagua Valley, Chile

This wine is a blend of 90% syrah, 7% cabernet sauvignon and 3% viognier.

This wine was imported by Hjo Grosshandel AB.

Colour : Dark blackberry

Aroma : Mint, blackberry, blackcurrant, oak

Taste : Toasty oak, blackcurrant, blackberry, mint, pepper

Alcohol : 14.5%

Price : 149 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 99227

Mark : B-

Website : Vina Montes

TN : Grilli del Testamatta 2009, IGT, Bibi Graetz, Tuscany, Italy

This wine is a blend of 80% Sangiovese, 10% Colorino, and 10% Canaiolo. This wine was imported by Vinunic AB.

Colour : Dark red

Aroma : Cherries, oak, herbs, milk chocolate, blackberry

Taste : Slightly over-oaked, cherries, blackcurrent, herbs, milk chocolate

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 159 SEK

Mark : B-

Systembolaget Number :  99490

Website : Bibi Graetz

TN : Ianos Cabernet Sauvignon 2004, Rouvalis Wines, Peleponnesos , Greece

The grapes for this wine were harvsted from selected vineyards of the mountainous Aigion region, more specifically Arachova, at an altitude of 750 metres.

This wine was imported by Vinunic AB.

Colour : Red

Aroma : Blackcurrant, cherries, spice

Taste : Cherries, cinamon, drying tannns on finish, past its best, thin, fruit is fading

Alcohol : 13.5%

Price : 119 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 75883

Mark : C-

Website : Oenoforos S.A.

TN : Waterford Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2008, Waterford Estate, Stellenbosch, South Africa

This label was launched in 1998. The must was fermented in stainless steel. The wine was aged for twenty months in 225 litre French oak barrels. The was guven a simple egg white finish, bulk filtration, and then was bottled in January 2011. The analysis performed by Waterford Estate gives an alcohol is 14.3%, residual sugar is 1.8 grammes per litre, Total Acidity is 5.2 grammes per litre, Total SO2 of 110 ppm, Free SO2 of 40 ppm, and pH of 3.68.

This wine was imported by WineWorld AB.

Colour : Dark blackcurrant

Aroma : Smoky, toast, oak, blackcurrant, herbs

Taste : Blackcurrant, burnt toast, oak, herbs

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 169 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 98045

Mark : B

Website : Waterford Estate

Wine Mine Number 25, 1973

This magazine was published by Peter Dominic and priced at 15p in 1973. The magazine was published twice yearly from the summer of 1973 until this issue from whence it became an annual. This was the first issue to include colour (16 pages of photos from Italy). Peter Dominic was a chain of wine and spirit retailers in the UK (now defunct). It was started in  1939 by Paul Dauthieu (there was never a Peter Dominic) in Horsham. He sold his empire to International Distillers and Vintners in 1963 who preserved the trading name.

This magazine contains a number of small wine-related articles together with Peter Dominic's current price list. There are articles on Provencal drinks, being a wine buyer,the harvest at Chateau Monbousquet, wine-related columns about James Bond, the Les Gastronomes de la Mer Confrerie of the Loire, fun with wine glasses, touring around Italy, a vintage at Villa Gruenberg-Tiffany ora Newby, and the ever increasing prices rises of Bordeaux wines (nothing new there then !).

The price list makes for interesting reading. Mouton Cadet 1969 at 2.79 pounds, Chateau du Tetre 1970 at 5-7 pounds, Chateau Pavie-Macquin 1970 at 2.94 pounds, Chateau Leoville-Lascases 1967 at 8-10 pounds, and Chateau Pichon-Longueville-Lalande 1966 at 9-11 pounds (all price are per bottle). To contrast a bottle of Liebfraumilch Blue Nun  retailed at 1.55 pounds a bottle. A bargain was the Gran Sercial Solera 1835 Madeira from Blandy at only 3.43 pounds a bottle.

Your Vines and Wines, A Guide to Vine Growing Outside in Britain, Michael Jefferson-Brown

This book was first published in 1977 and my copy was the third impression printed in 1980. It is a small short book of  85 pages but it covers the basics of growing wine and table grapes in a climate like the UK quite well. It gives an overview of how to achieve site selection, what varieties to grow, pruning techniques (recommending Double Guyot where one has two fruting canes and two canes for fruiting next year, what to do during the year, how to propogate vines which sounds extremely simple, some pests and diseases but this section is not very detailed, winemaking, and some specific for growing in greenhouse conditions. All in all, this is a very good introduction to growing grapes in a cooler climate. The ISBN number is 0950580007. The author grows grapes (or did do in the late seventies and early eightees) in Whitbourne near Worcester, England.

TN : Arrogant Frog Ribet White Sauvignon Blanc 2011, Domaines Paul Mas, Pezenas, Sud de France, France

This wine was imported by Bornicon and Salming.

This wine is sealed with a screwcap.

Colour : Pale straw, green hues

Aroma : Lemon, gooseberry, pear drops

Taste : Lemon, pear, gooseberry, zingy

Alcohol : 12%

Price : 72 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 5563

Mark : C+

Website : Arrogant Frog

Vienna Heurigen Express July 2012

In July this year I made my up to Nussdorf on the outskirts of Vienna to catch the Vienna Huerigen Express. The small train departs from Nussdorf and goes up to Kahlenberg, back through Grinzing, and ends up back at Nussdorf. The train meanders through the Viennese woods passing vineyards as it goes. The price is 8,30 Euro for adults and 4,50 Euro for children. The tour lasts approximately 50 minutes. You can buy tickets on the train. The train runs from the beginnning of April until the end of October. When we went it was raining and the train is enclosed so it was not the best environment for taking pictures but here are my efforts :

Website : Vienna Heurigen Express

Weingut Wieninger, Stammersdorf, Vienna, Austria, July 12th 2012

This July I visited Weingut Wieninger at their, old and new, winery in Stammersdorf.

We were given a tasting of a number of wines by Bettina Koller who is in charge of export, marketing and sales. All of the wines were good to excellent. There wasn't a single wine that I wouldn't want to drink. Now, from the 2011 vintage, all of their wines are biodymanic Bettina stated that they export around 30% of their wines and aim for the quality end of the market with placings in high-end restaurants.

• Wieninger Prickelnd Cuvee Katharina Rose Sekt 2008, 16,00 Euro, Mark : C+
• Wiener Gemischter Satz 2011, 8,00 Euro, Mark : B-
• Nussberg Alte Reben 2011, 17,20 Euro, Mark : B+
• Rosengartl Alte Reben 2011, 21,50 Euro, Mark : A
• Riesling Nussberg 2011, 14,50 Euro, Mark : A
• Chardonnay Grand Select 2009, 34,00 Euro, Mark : A
• Wiener Trilogie 2009, 11,50 Euro, Mark : B-

After the tasting we were met by Fritz Wieninger; the man behind the quality wine revival in Vienna. We had a tour of the current winery and the new winery, just up the road, which wasn't finished at the time of my visit but Fritz said that they are on schedule and should move in on the last week end at the end of August/beginning of September this year. Fritz, himself from Vienna, has been running the winery since 1987 when he took over from his parents.

Here are some pictures of the old winery :

This is the new winery :

Website : Weingut Wieninger

TN : Rawson's Retreat Shiraz Cabernet 2011, Penfolds, South Eastern Australia, Australia

Launched in 1995, Rawson's Retreat is the introductory level for Penfolds wines. The name Rawson's Retreat is an informal reference to the stone cottage built in 1845 by Dr Christopher Rawson Penfold at the Magill vineyard in Adelaide, where with wife Mary and daughter Georgina he had settled the year before and was to soon establish the Penfolds winery, which is still operating today.

Colour : Red, blue hues

Aroma : Blackcurrant, liqource, vanilla, mint, oak, cherry

Taste : Vanilla, blackcurrant, mint, oak, herbs

Alcohol : 13.5%

Price : 45 SEK (375 ml bottle)

Systembolaget Number : 6942

Mark : C

Website : Penfolds

TN : Rucahue Reserva Syrah Malbec 2011, Viña Rucahue SA, Maule Valley, Chile

This wine is a blend of 70% Syrah and 30% Malbec. This wine spent 8 months in 225 litre French oak barrels. Viña Rucahue was founded in 1984 by José Esturillo and Fransisco Gillmore. This wine was imported by Giertz Vinimport AB.

Colour : Dark red, blue hues

Aroma : Milk chocolate, blueberry, blackberry, herbs

Taste :  Fruity, mint, blueberry, blackberry, spice, herbs, milk chocolate, liqourice

Alcohol : 13%

Price : 79 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 99348

Mark : B-

Book : Wine Snobbery, An Insiders Guide to the Booze Business

I picked up a copy of Wine Snobbery, An Insider's Guide to the Booze Business by Andrew Barr, Faber and Faber from Amazon UK secondhand for 0.01 pounds. This is a fascinating book full of anicdotes such as high yields and how this was viewed in Bordeaux, Burgundy, and Gemany over the centuries, the methanol scandal in Italy, value for money bland champagne, time wasting wine judging, and the rise and fall and rise again of Lafite. There is some repetition in thi sbook but overall I found every chapter to be packed with new and interesting information. It would be interesting to do a follow up and see just how much of what is said is still valid today. I can thoroughly recommend ot this book to anybody interested in wine and its history in modern times.

TN : Cotes de Provence Rose Pierre & Paul 2011, Domaines Pierres Chavin, Provence, France

This wine is a blend of Grenache, Cinsault, and Syrah.

This wine was imported by Fure Wines Sweden AB.

Colour : Bright strawberry pink

Aroma : Strawberry, redcurrants, herbs

Taste : Strawberry, redcurrants, fruity, herby finish

Alcohol : 12.5%


Price : 169 SEK (2 litre Bag-In-Box)

Systembolaget Number : 2816

Mark : C

Website : Domaines Pierres Chavin

TN : Clare Hills Rielsing 2009, Pikes Vintners Pty, Clare Valley, South Australia, Australia

This wine was sealed with a screwcap.

This wine was imported by Meadow Valley Wines.

Colour : Pale straw/lemon

Aroma : Petrol, mineral, apples, lemon

Taste : Sharp, lemon, minerals, petrol

Alcohol : 12%

Price : 90 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 6404


Mark : C


Website : Pikes Vintners Pty

TN : La Massa 2009, IGT, Fattoria La Massa, Tuscany, Italy

This wine is a blend of70%  Sangiovese, 20% Merlot, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine also received 90 points from The Wine Advocate (August 2011).

This wine was imported by Swedish Brand AB.

Colour : Plummy red

Aroma : Plums, blackcurrant, herbs, raisins, milk chocolate

Taste : Cherries, blackcurrant, plums, raisiny,herbs,  warm finish, milk chococlate, spice, drying tannins which may calm down with a yera or two in bottle

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 199 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 90234

Mark : B-

TN : Rabl Pinot Noir Vinum Optimum 2009,Weingut Rabl, Langenlois, Kamptal, Austria

This wine was sealed with a screwcap.

This wine was imported by Johan Lidby Vinhandel.

Colour : Raspberry red

Aroma : Blueberry, spice, oak, raspberry

Taste : Strawberry, spice, oak, blueberry

Alcohol : 14%

Price : 159 SEK

Systembolaget Number : 97034

Mark : B


Website : Weingut Rabl