Monkeyshed Wines

Our core selection continues to evolve. Last month we added a tidy little trio of Bordeaux (with a twist, of course).
This month no prisoners have been taken! We've been offered access to a classic selection just short of 2000 lines. Once fathomed we'll be cobbling together a few special recommendations, so watch this space, but mail or call (01243 383733) for fast tracking or just sharing in this glorious opportunity.....

Our introductory selection is all sold out but we’ve continued with two classics from that initial toe dabbling.
A new vintage but we've kept the Domaine Poujol ’07 @ £8.25 from the Coteaux de Languedoc and Provence’s own Domaine St Marc des Omedes ’06 @ £8.50.

*Offer - A dozen, mixed or straight £90*

Email Think Pink - Again or call 01243 383733

August's stars show just why Burgundy and Rioja have the reputations they have.
For the white we've chosen a truly classy St Veran. This is a tribute to a wine making team that know their vineyard and just how to get the absolute best out of their fruit. A wine that reaches heights well above most of its neighbours.
The Red is a teasing glimpse into the talents of one of this planets true talents, Alvaro Palacios. Even with this entry into his world of wine there is a focused complexity that truly impresses.
Both these wines drink deliciously and will happily improve the mood, they also stand up to a more cerebral examination for days when the anorak needs an airing. Stars!

Offers:
► St Veran, Les Chailloux, Domaine des Deux Roches '05 punches well above its weight and shows just how good southern Burgundy can get. *Offer £126 per dozen (£10.50 each) - usually £150 (£12.50 each)*
► La Vendimia, Palacios Remondo '06 is all about Alvaro Palacios. He trained at Petrus, established L'Ermita in the Priorat and has now turned his hand on the home front of the family property in Rioja. Fantastic. *Offer £100 per dozen (£8.33 each) - usually £111 (£9.25 each)*
► *Mixed Dozen of the Stars £115.* six of each make a delightful party pack.

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Made with a few special touches.... Grapes are picked later, in order to obtain riper flavours. Fermentation is cooler, in order to preserve the delicate aromatics of the grape, and ensure that the yeasts have sufficient nutrients so as not to produce deviant wafts that would mask the delicate aromatics!! Finally there’s a lower level of residual sugar than is usual with Prosecco, so the wine is drier and more drinkable as a result.

Summer threatens to take hold, school is out and its time for family hunting and gathering – jaunts to catch that slippery little sea bass or perhaps just a sunburn and then home for a refreshing glass (well that should be sorted) and something simple to go with the main showpiece. We have the solution!
Frankly, wine has preparation and service licked. Twist a screw top, pour, enjoy. Why should it be more complicated? Perhaps slip in a decanter and those ever so impressive crystal stems for a bit of flair but essentially its a straight forward affair. This is probably the thinking that has led to a surfeit of John West cans outside far too many wine trade doors or the odd gouty leg from too much issue shirking in the finest hostelries.
Let us help you find and embraced your inner Nigella! She's all in the decanting, seemingly a frivolous extravagance but actually a simple process that completes any glass.
Back to the Bass. This needs to be a savoured occasion and that requires nibbles. To the larder and pull out four jars of mixed antipasti and pop a helping of each on a plate. Now for the decanter moment - scatter each with a few rocket, dandelion nasturtium or other leaves to hand, drizzle with a bit of tasty olive oil and serve with fingers of lightly grilled ciabatta. A few extra minutes and John West is an ancient historical reminder of darker days!

*The Monkeyshed selection - for £30:*
► Wild Asparagus in Extra Virgin Olive Oil - £5.95 (280g jar)
► Artichike Hearts, alla Romana (and that does make all the difference!) - £5.95 (290g jar)
► Porcini Antipasti from Seggiano - £5.50 (180g jar)
► Peperoncino Piccante Ripieno - £2.95 (180g jar)
► Alpha Zeta Extra Virgin Olive Oil - £9.95 (750ml)

For a spot of gastronomic inspiration you can't beat a coffee and bite at Hornet Provisions, The Hornet, Chichester - 01243 790999. Pop in for something there, something for home or a brimming cold box for a picnic on the downs, by the beach or in your garden.
Meetings we look forward to with glee!

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Grapes: Chardonnay
Each: £12.45

Deux Roches has been there or there abouts for every wine list I have put together since starting my wine life in the UK in 1992. The key, as ever, is a commitment to quality and addressing each individual parcel and vintage as conditions and grapes demand. Across the board theirs is a cracking selection from the straight unoaked St Veran through a handful of individual parcels all with partial oak exposure where appropriate.
Les Chailloux is lieu-dit, literally said or named place. Lovely I hear you all chorus but what, pray tell, does that mean? Effectively it was a cunning way around the bureaucracy of the appellation system that has now been absorbed into the appellation system – glad you asked? It’s a way of singling out really good parcels that produce particular wines. Les Chailloux produces rich, luscious grapes that work particularly well with a good hit of oak. Fantastic integration of fruit and oak produce a wine that really punches well above its price.

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