Do you go for a grand gesture on Valentine’s Day? Or do you think it’s a load of rubbish?
Either way there’s no escaping the 14th February, so we are here to help you with some wine recommendations to impress your loved one this year.
The first wine that comes to mind is Champagne, a big splashy celebration drink to be shared on special occasions. Often cited as an aphrodisiac because the bubbles absorb into your blood stream more quickly and make you giddy! However, not all Champagne is created equally. You may have seen the big brand names with their colourful labels jostling for space on the supermarket shelves, but if you look beyond the famous houses and seek out grower Champagnes, you can often find something quite special. A lot of the big houses source their grapes from various producers and make their wines on an industrial scale but grower Champagnes tend to do everything themselves, with traditions passed down through generations of the same family. They own and cultivate the vineyards and produce, bottle and market their own wines. Champagne Gaston Chiquet has been in the same family since 1746. The current owners, brothers Antoine and Nicolas have done great work in driving the label forward, making their vineyards certified sustainable, whilst still respecting their heritage in the winery.
What could be more romantic on a cold evening in February than a glass of rosé? A little like love itself, rosé can be the perfect compromise. One of you loves red, the other will only drink white. Rosé can give you the best of both styles. It’s sumptuous pink colour and soft berry flavours make it easy on the palate as well as the eyes. Forgot the cheap, sweet stuff of your youth and make sure it’s nice and dry in style and preferably from Provence.
If you are planning to serve the ultimate food of love – oysters – then you need the perfect wine to have with them. The traditional pairing is with is Muscadet from the Loire Valley. It is often true that a wine matches well with its local cuisine. Muscadet is predominantly grown around the Atlantic coastal city of Nantes. The style is dry with high acidity and a salty lick of minerality – just what you need with raw seafood. Serve the oysters with just a squeeze of lemon and voila! A match made in heaven.
Why give chocolates when you could give The Chocolate Block? One of my favourite wines from South Africa is a cult classic from maverick winemaker Marc Kent. The exact blend is kept a secret and changes from year to year but is a Rhône-style blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Syrah. It comes from the region of Swartland. Winemakers in the 90s who were priced out of buying vineyards in the traditional winemaking regions of Paarl and Stellenbosch travelled north to this arid, semi-desert region and made it their own, now known as the Swartland Revolution. Most winemakers use dry farming, which means they don’t irrigate the vines, which leads to rich, complex and concentrated wines. If you are looking to show off your culinary flair, this wine goes brilliantly with steaks.
Four wines for lovers
Gaston Chiquet Rosé 1er Cru Champagne NV, Champagne, France, £36.00 from The Champagne Company
Salmon pink in colour with notes of blackberry and cherry with a smooth finish. It is made from a blend of 40% Chardonnay, which adds freshness and lemon flavours, 30% Pinot Noir which gives the wine its structure and 30% Pinot Meunier provides the juicy red fruits.
Love by Leoube Cotes de Provence, Provence, France, £16.00 from Ocado.
This is a quintessential, dry Provence rosé made using organically grown grapes. Pale pink and with attractive fruit flavours of strawberry and white peach, it has fine overall balance. Packaged in a very beautiful bottle, it would make the perfect gift for a rosé lover this Valentine’s Day.
Domaine de la Tourmaline ‘Sur Lie’ Muscadet de Sèvre et Maine, Loire Valley, France, £9.99 from Majestic.
the ‘sur lie’ means that the wine has been rested on its lees (or dead yeast to be exact!) This gives the wine a richness and complexity whilst still maintaining its fresh flavours of green apples and lemons.
The Chocolate Block, Swartland, South Africa, £21.99 from Waitrose.
An opulent style of red made from a blend of grapes. It has very fine tannins and a smooth finish. The wine is named for its distinctly chocolatey notes.
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