WINE REVIEWS
Mat h e w
Fine wine
es Juk
Three of the most delicious wines I can think of right now. DESKTOP www.matthewjukes.com ENVELOPE vineyard.ed@kelsey.co.uk
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Photo: Martin Apps, Countrywide Photographic
As this is a special edition Vineyard Magazine singing the praises of the upcoming Vineyard & Winery Show, I thought I would throw caution to the wind with my theme and my wines this month. The reason for this is that I know that I will be called upon to talk about the three wines opposite in my wine tasting at the Show. This means that I have pushed the boat out so that the assembled audience can get stuck into some seriously delicious bottles and all enjoy a rip-roaring time. But what of my theme? It is not simply an excuse to drink, sorry, taste, the three most delicious wines I can think of right now, but I also have a slightly broader sub-text running through this hedonistic trio of wines and that is the notion of the age-worthiness of elite English sparkling wine. My definition of the expression ‘fine wine’ is, quite simply, a delicious wine that improves, changes, and becomes more complex and intriguing with age. Top English sparkling wines are prime candidates for both drinking well on release and evolving and shape-shifting with age. This means that if they choose to do so, they can move from being considered wonderful effervescent creations on release and potential fine wines if they are granted time spent in the cellar. I have picked out three wines opposite, which are all, to my mind, benchmark candidates for ‘fine wine’ consideration. One is barely released, the second is already into its stride, and the third is nearing its peak. All are incredible from a taste point of view, and I hope you agree when you drink them with me on 24 November that they represent a trio of some of the most remarkable wines made on our shores to date. There is one final element to consider when awarding the term fine wine to a bottle of wine: the notion of balance. As hard to pin down as it is to explain, I have always believed that ‘balance is born’. Fine wines are always balanced from the off, and so I hope you will agree that there is as much pleasure in drinking the 2018 as there is in both the 2014 and the 2010 vintages, and while they are at different points on their journey, they all display perfect balance.
& WINERY SHOW
TAKE PART IN MATTHEW JUKES’ STRUCTURED WINE TASTING
World renowned wine writer and monthly Vineyard columnist Matthew Jukes will be conducting a structured wine tasting for 120 guests at this year’s Vineyard & Winery Show. This is your opportunity to have an exclusive insight into the very best of British wines with one of the world’s leading wine writers.
TICKETS ARE £20 EACH.
All proceeds raised go to The Drinks Trusts. To book go to: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-vineyard-and-winery-show-tickets-140979015029
