Drinks writer Peter Ranscombe picks five wines to go with wild garlic, which was the star of June’s food feature in the printed Scottish Field magazine.
WILD garlic is a much more delicate flavour than its onion-like namesake, with chive notes and a delicious sweetness, and so I’ve opted for a range of lighter styles of wine that won’t over-power this ingredient yet will still complement the rest of this month’s dishes.
Domaine Paul Mas Estate Marsanne, 2016
Majestic Wine
£8.99
An unsung heroic Rhone grape variety takes centre stage with its rounded texture. It was fascinating to visit Paul Mas’s vineyards and wineries to see how much care goes into making this marsanne – with its lemon and dried apricot flavours – and the firm’s other wines.
Forrest Estate The Doctors’ Sauvignon Blanc, 2017
Waitrose
£8.99
Light and refreshing Kiwi sauvignon blanc, with only 9.5% alcohol. Instead of lowering the alcohol by spinning the finished wine around in a cone, Forrest Estate has changed the way it prunes its vines so that less sugar – which is later turned into alcohol during fermentation – accumulates in the grapes, without compromising on the build-up of the lemon and green apple flavours. It’s also just released a new own-label wine for Marks & Spencer.
Veuve Monsigny Champagne Brut
Aldi
£10.99
Still one of the best-value supermarket champers that delivers on flavour. Jam-packed full of red apple and pear, along with aromas of hot-buttered wholemeal toast. Great with seafood like mussels or meaty monkfish.
Fritz Haag Brauneberger Riesling Kabinett 2016
Justerini & Brooks
£14.09
There’s a clever balance here between the crisp acidity and the rounded fruit. Riseling’s acidity is a natural friend to seafood dishes in many guises. One of the stars at a recent behind-the-scenes sneaky peak at Justerini’s new tasting room in Edinburgh.
Cakebread Cellars Two Creeks Pinot Noir, 2014
Corney & Barrow
£48
A real rich and rounded treat to complement wild garlic’s chive-like sweetness. California’s Napa Valley may be famous for its cabernet sauvignons and chardonnays, but it has a strong suit when it comes to pinot noir too. I could easily get lost in the wine’s complex aromas of milk chocolate, biscuit and ripe red plums, leading into more red fruit on the palate and subtly-integrated vanilla and cinnamon. There were plenty of other interesting bottles at Corney & Barrow’s recent tasting too.
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