WEDDINGS
Wedding Wines With everything else that has to be organised and bought for a wedding, wine is probably not at the top of the list. But a little forethought, early planning and purchasing can make life easier at the point when the bride and groom will be at their busiest. There are three main considerations when choosing your wines – quality, quantity and budget. Not necessarily in that order. Starting with the aperitif, sparkling wine is considered the norm and these days most likely to be Prosecco – a safe choice because of its extra dry style (which, confusingly, means it is sweeter than Brut Champagne) and because Prosecco is generally low in alcohol, around 11%, it makes it suitable for daytime drinking. The problem with Prosecco is that finding a decent one can be a minefield. There is an awful lot of sherberty nonsense on the market masquerading as wine. Make sure you use a wine supplier you trust or taste the venue’s offering before making your choice. Or go for Champagne. Supermarket own brands are, on the whole, reliably good and, if you prefer something a little fruitier, you could make it slightly sweeter and colourful by adding cassis. Warning: it also increases the alcohol so
n 18 | Worcestershire Now | Issue 210 | September 2021
Reds are more varied but actually probably easier to choose. Riojas are generally a popular choice for good reason. They fit within a budget, they tend to be smooth with character and without being too heavy. Go for a least a crianza, which means it has When choosing the white and red wines, and had a little ageing and extra complxity. I think you do need to offer both, decide first Argentinian Malbecs are also a good bet but on your budget, then on matching it with the these can be quite powerful so taste a few food you have chosen and finally, think about first – in the daytime without food with your how powerful the taste is. You don’t want a palate at its freshest. white with searing acidity or a red with mouthpuckering tannins even if these are precisely If your venue is supplying the wines, ask to what you love. Select instead an all-round taste a few. Or if you have something in mind crowd-pleaser which still delivers on flavour which they don’t list ask if they can get it in and marries nicely with the food. A Bordeaux for you. Wine merchants will be more than Blanc can tick those boxes and doesn’t have helpful and may offer a discount and a sale to be heavy on the pocket either – aromatic, or return service – ask. Supermarkets may fruity and fresh, I actually often refer to these do, too. A booze cruise might be good for as wedding wines for the very fact that they suit budget buying but you may not be able to most palates. Personally, I would avoid Pinot taste beforehand and if your guests are more Grigio because too often they taste of very little, abstemious than you bargained for you could be drinking the same wines all year. n and can sometimes taste horribly chemically. there’s the prospect of loosening the tongues of potential hecklers during the speeches or John Travolta imitators dominating the dancefloor. Orange juice or peach juice sweetens and refreshes more safely.
