Malvira from Waitrose

Last week, returning home from Peterborough, I called in as usual at the Newark Waitrose. Looking for something different to drink with our evening meal later that night, I found Malvira Roero Arneis 2008. I have not come across the Arneis grape before, so it gave the opportunity of experiencing a new taste. Arneis historical role has been as a softening for Nebbiolo, though today the grape is more commonly seen as a varietal wine. It is most commonly found in the hills of the Roero, northwest of Alba, in the Piedmont region. The Waitrose description as ‘persuasive tropical fruit with underlying minerality and fine, clean finish, elegant and rich’, I can confirm. There is a richness, rather like a good chardonnay, but without the oiliness that sometimes accompanies them. At £10.99 it is certainly worth a try!

Hello again

Well – its been some time since I seem to have had time to make any entries here, so perhaps I’ll now be able to start a resolution to be more regular!

Last night we had a very enjoyable AGM night at the Cumbria Wine Society, our ‘Best of the Best’ night. This is when we re-visit the wines that were voted the favorite wine on each of the tasting nights the previous year. We ended up voting a Sauternes as best of the best, which surprised me – and I’ll say more about that wine in the future. For now, it might be interesting to note that for the coming year we will be asking members to choose each night, not the ‘best’ wine, but the one they would buy – thus introducing an aspect of value for money. It should end up with some rather cheaper wines at next year’s AGM.