Southwold has just been voted the finest seaside resort in Britain, and it’s easy to see why.
Southwold has just been voted the finest seaside resort in Britain, and it’s easy to see why. Even in the rain last month people looked cheerful, and in the bustling dining-room of the Crown you’d imagine that the drizzle outside was a splendid excuse for more hearty trenchering. I was on my annual visit to Adnams, best known as a brewer but also one of our most adventurous wine merchants. If you find yourself in Southwold, you should drop in to their wine cellar and kitchen store; the kitchen gadgets actually work, and the wine is beguilingly displayed. For instance, they have pick ’n’ mix shelves, where you can make an assortment of any dozen bottles for, say, £69, £79 and so forth.
Still, I know my stern duty and my first stop was at the tasting rooms, making the selection for this month’s offer. All of the wines have been discounted, some very generously. I greatly enjoyed the Le Jade Viognier from the Pays d’Oc 2006 (1) which is fresh, crisp, beautifully balanced and has a lovely floral nose. Viogniers just get better and better, and this is excellent value at £5.42.
Adnams’ own-label white Burgundy, Cuvée Paul Tamard (2) from Mâcon, sold extremely well to Spectator readers last year, so here it is again. The 2006 is light and refreshing, but also has those peach, vanilla and butterscotch undertones we associate with all good Burgundies. Unlike some, I won’t mention Nivea cream. Splendidly priced at £6.58.
A year or so ago I spoke at a wine lunch in Southwold, and we offered the Peak Riesling from Clare Valley, Australia (3) as the aperitif. It was a considerable hit, and I suspect something of a surprise to some guests who associate the grape with cheap, student-party wines such as Lutomer Riesling (like acne and tie-dyed shirts, best left behind in youth) and those ghastly thin, cheap, branded Germans. This could hardly be more of a contrast, being rich, perfumed, full-flavoured yet bone dry. A luscious wine at an excellent £7.17.
Now the reds. Côtes du Rhône wines continue to grow in popularity, and when you sample this one from La Truel, 2005 (4), you’ll see why. It’s made from Grenache and four other grapes, which together make it soft, beautifully spicy, with that smoky, ever so slightly burnt taste that seems to bring back scorching hot summers in southern France. A very satisfying wine at only £6.58.
I’m always surprised by the fact that although many British people go to Tuscany for their holidays, they don’t seem to get acquainted with the hugely improved wines made there. Chianti (not in those straw covered flasks, please, unless you are really short of candle holders) seems to be the limit of their ambitions. Yet they could be enjoying this Morellino di Scansano 2005 (5). Morellino is the local name for the Sangiovese grape, now spreading around the world, and this area of Tuscany has made great strides. The wine has a heady savour of sour cherries and herbs, and would go perfectly with many foods: red meats and chicken, for instance. Or used to wash down a powerfully flavoured pasta dish, it would help create a simple but luxurious meal. Believe me, £7.42 is a very good price.
Finally, a terrific bargain. The Casa Rivas Syrah/Cabernet from the Maria Pinto estate in Maipo, Chile (6) is an absolute blockbuster of a wine, the flavours almost bursting out of the bottle, a slight tang of eucalyptus, the whole enriched by 12 months in French oak. The Adnams team loved it so much that they bought in more than they could sell off the catalogue, so they’ve knocked 21 per cent off to bring it down to just £7.92. Great to go with casseroles, game and Sunday roasts, but it would also — this may surprise you — stand up against a takeaway curry. If Spectator readers ever eat such a thing.
Delivery as ever is free, and there is a further discount of 5 per cent if you buy five cases or more.
Adnams Wines, Sole Bay Brewery, East Green, Southwold, Suffolk IP18 6JW
Tel: 01502 727222; Fax: 01502 727223; Email: customerservices@adnams.co.uk
Comments