Drinks of the Month
Chianti in magnum from Lidl
The more, er ... mature ... among you may remember when you went to an Italian restaurant and found a round straw-covered bottle of Chianti on the table, often with a guttering candle stuck in the neck and wax (always red) dripping down the side. It’s rather weirdly called a fiasco - which is Italian for flask as well as referring to a disaster. Like Brexit. Or Boris.
Well Lidl is selling one in magnum which I think would be fantastic fun for an impromptu spaghetti and meatball - or lasagne - party. OK, I cannot lie, it’s not the BEST Italian red I’ve ever tasted but it’s clean, fresh and perfectly drinkable and TBH your friends will be having such fun they won’t notice. And at just £9.99 (a magnum is the equivalent of two bottles, remember) it’s hard to resist.
If you prefer a slightly fuller-bodied red (or they’ve sold out of the Chianti) you could buy a bottle or two of the Corte Aurelio Nero d’Avola which at a ridiculous £7.99 a magnum or £3.99 a bottle is even cheaper. I can’t help feeling it must be a bit dodgy for that price but if you’re a student or otherwise strapped for cash, you might consider it worth a whirl. It would also go with spag bol.
Somewhat improbably nero d’avola is Britain's favourite wine - a conclusion extrapolated from a large blind tasting last year organised by Majestic. I have to say I'm not convinced. My own litmus test of popularity - whether taxi drivers are talking about it - suggests it would be a poor runner up to Malbec. But who knows? Maybe it's the Next Big Thing - though possibly not on the evidence of this particular wine.
Wine of the week: The Society’s Exhibition Chianti Classico 2012
Sometimes when I go to a Wine Society tasting I find myself wondering why on earth anyone would buy their wine anywhere else.
Their buyers, most of whom have been with them for years, are hugely experienced, their prices - thanks to their status as a co-operative - hugely competitive and their range (of 1500 wines) impressively eclectic. The only downside is that unless you live within spitting distance of their headquarters in Stevenage (and why would you if you can possibly help it?*) you can’t try before you buy, though they hold a number of regional tastings.
One of the things they do particularly well is their own-label Exhibition range which is a selection of top-end wines chosen by and often blended with the help of their buyers.
This Chianti Classico which is made by Poggiopiano is a perfect example - selected by their Italian wine buyer Sebastian Payne who joined the society in 1973 (which means, for the mathematically challenged, he’s worked for them for 42 years.) It’s beautifully balanced - full, rich and smooth but with a nice touch of freshness that offsets its 14% abv.
You could drink it - as many would - with typically Tuscan dishes such as roast lamb with garlic and rosemary but it would also elevate a homely lasagne into a midweek treat
I honestly don’t think you’ll find a chianti of this quality - in the UK at least - at a better price (£11.95 a bottle). Poggipiano’s own Chianti Classico, for example, also stocked by the Society, is £16 and their top end wine £24,
If I’m looking for something to criticise - which I desperately am so that this post doesn’t sound too gushing - the Wine Soc's labels are a bit dull. But I suspect that their members like them like that.
* in case you think I’m being Stevenage-ist I used to live fairly nearby in St Albans. Let’s just say Hertfordshire isn’t the most exciting county in the UK . . .
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