Raimat Abadia

The Codorniu tasting was a long one. First the sparkling and then the still wines. I have to admit that after all those sparklings, I was beginning to get a bit tipsy, especially since this was an informal tasting session after work. 

But I soldiered on and sampled the wines of Raimat which is the still wine arm of Codorniu. A bit of background on Raimat. They are one of Spain's most progressive winemakers today. Two years ago they brought in a whole new winemaking team and are using the latest technological advances to produce top quality wines. They even go so far as to do satellite mapping of their vineyards to analyze the soil. Raimat Abadia has been repackaged for 2008 to reflect all the new advances being made at Raimat. The vineyards are based in NE Spain, DO Costers del Segre in Catalunya. Their tagline is "Spanish wines beyond Rioja" and I think that they've proved that Spain has a lot more to offer then tempranillo. 

First up was the Raimat Abadia Crianza 2005. A blend of Cab. Sauv., Merlot and Tempranillo, aged 10 months in American oak and then a further 6 months in French. On the nose, aromas of plum and stewed fruits, a bit of spice and toast. A lovely medium bodied wine with more of those plummy fruits and hints of sweet spice and chocolate once I'd swished it around my mouth. I liked this wine, easy on it's own or with a meal. 

The next two wines were whites. The Raimat Abadia Blanc de blanc 07, a blend of chardonnay and albarino. Albarino is unusual for this part of Spain as most of it is grown in the northwest, around Galicia. On pouring, aromas of tropical fruit and what I can only describe as pineapple pie hit me on my nose. This medium bodied wine had loads of pineapple flavours and hints of grapefruit on the finish. Very refreshing and I could imagine drinking it with a plateful of fresh seafood. 

The last wine was a revelation. A 100% Albarino, the first single varietal Albarino to be produced outside of Galicia, or so the promo material said. The first surprise was how full-bodied it was, usually I think of albarinos as being light and zippy. This one was still fresh and fruity but we all agreed that it had something more. There was a lot more then just citrusy aromas on the nose. Throw in dried flowers, spice and vanilla. It was almost like sniffing on a bowl of potpurri but not sickly sweet, maybe more like sniffing a bowl that had once held potpurri many years ago. Anyway, the same followed thru on the palate with hints of dried fruit and a nice citrus finish.  It was a quite full and round, not as crisp as I'd expected but still a new and interesting example of what can be done with Albarino. It won unanimous approval and not just because the rather sexy winemaker was sitting amongst us. 

These wines are all retailing for under £8 which I think is a fair price.

South Africa - not yet

Being from sunny California, I never really understood the Beatles' song, "Here comes the sun" until I moved to England. Now I get it. The sun came out today and it definitely put a spring in my step. Out on the golf course today, I thought, life's not so bad now, is it? 

I can't say the same for S. African wine. I really try hard to like them but they still have a long way to go as far as I'm concerned. I was reading a review in a magazine the other day and I couldn't agree more: rubbery, green, and with a certain "pong" (whatever that means). What it means to me is green, stalky and extremely aggressive. 

We featured 4 wines for a tasting in my shop on Saturday and here are my thoughts. Sticking your nose in a glass of S. African red is like being punched in the face with a plastic glove and not one of those thin surgical gloves but one of those big honking yellow ones you use to do the dishes. The merlot tasted like overcooked prunes and the pinotage, while marginally more palatable still tasted like overcooked berry jam. Too much oak, too much jammy fruit, not enough balance. I sampled the pinotage throughout the day and by closing time, I pronounced, "It's growing on me." My colleague replied, "Stop trying to make yourself like it, you don't." He was right. 

The whites didn't fare much better. The chardonnay- overoaked to the nth degree, desperately searching for fruit, again out of balance. Dry chenin blanc is one variety that seems to be finding a place in S.Africa but it still has a way to go. The chenin blanc started out with a lovely banana and guava nose which carried onto the palate but then it just evaporated. One customer observed that there wasn't much there and I'd have to agree with her. These wines were mid-priced but even on the high end, you'd be hard pressed to find a wine that you'd want to take home. 

The South African wine industy is still struggling to find it's feet. They have a great climate, warm and sunny, but they've planted willy-nilly with barely a thought for how the grapes will do in said location. No one has yet found the magic combination of grape and terroir. Until they do, I think that S. Africa will be stuck with those rubbery, aggressive wines for a long time.