Tolkein about New Zealand wines

“It's not my hobbit to be star struck but I was thrilled to meet Gandalf recently, (Ian Mckellan, the actor, that is) though sadly he was minus his flowing white locks. I am a huge Lord of the Rings fan, since being introduced to Tolkein's masterpiece in my youth and becoming totally bewitched by his allegorical legends.” enthused Heather A.  Like many afficionados she was sceptical about how these fantastical tales could be translated to celluloid, as nothing can ever hope to compete with our imagination, but she applauds director Peter Jackson for his masterly and magnificent effort.  The Lord of the Rings trilogy was famously filmed in New Zealand’s South Island, the stunning scenery providing the perfect backdrop for the trials and perilous journey of the Ring Bearer, Frodo Baggins.

In recent months there has been a public outcry in this far flung outpost of “British-ness”, as it has been mooted that another Tolkein tale, The Hobbit, is to be filmed  - but not in New Zealand.  This news has prompted a national outcry as a whole tourist industry has grown up in the wake of this land being designated Hobbit Holme.  We await the outcome.

In the meantime life goes on apace (or actually quite slowly in NZ it must be said), with the other relatively new “industry” that has captured the world’s imagination – New Zealand wine.  Cloudy Bay sauvignon blanc is cited by many as the first Kiwi wine to make its mark on the world's wine fashion stage.  It is still popular and has become the model for the multitude of follow-on-ers who have since appeared. 

Sauvignon blanc must be a contender for the world's most easily recognizable grape variety:  that pungent, nettley, gooseberry fruit that jumps up out of the glass to meet you could not be mistaken for anything else.  New Zealand made its mark with what you might call “fruit salad” style sauvignons, which packed a punch, but perhaps lacked subtlety.  More recently, though, a greater deal of diversity in taste and a far more sensitive touch from the winemaker has allowed more subtle nuances of flavour to emerge.  A sauvignon much-rated by those in the know is Dog Point Sauvignon Blanc, from Marlborough of course.  Here  lively, herbaceous and lightly floral fruit dances across the palate.  More of an elegant pas de deux than a Highland fling.  Dog Point Sauvignon Blanc 2009 is available from the Vineking (Reigate and Horley) for £15.99, or £14 as part of a case.  The Vineyard in Dorking has the 2008 for just £9.99 – a steal, but as this is generally not a wine style that suits ageing, try a bottle before you grab a case of it.

Success breeds confidence and where once apple orchards exported fruit to the northern hemisphere, the new crop is the grape.  Many a brave decision has been made by colonial farmers to turn their lands and their hands to viticulture, and the result has been an upsurge of individual and family owned vineyards enthusiastically producing uniquely styled wines.  However, success can also breed over-production, as New Zealanders have found as they now wrestle with a glut of sauvignon blanc and vineyard sell-offs.  

Rieslings are being talked up as the vine variety à la mode by those of us who write about wine and those who try to sell it.  A variety that originally found fame as a light, floral wine  from Germany, and something more muscular and mineral in Austria and Alsace is now being championed by the newcomers from “the land of the long white cloud.”  Try Wild Earth Riesling 2008, £13.50 at Godalming-based Imbibros.   It has lively acidity and a combination of flowers and peachy fruit on the palate.  The flavours are delicate but have enough presence and the hint of sweetness (don't panic!) makes it a great choice with Thai dishes and Malaysian lightly-spiced curries.

Many people equate New Zealand with white wines, but for some years now really exciting reds have been emerging as a new world force and we urge you to try these hot contenders whilst they are still relatively inexpensive for their quality.  The wines from Te Mata Estate are a superb example and mentioned in the esteemed Robert Parker’s Buyers Guide as one of the top five outstanding wine producers.  Te Mata is in the Hawke’s Bay area of North Island and is well established as New Zealand’s oldest winery going back to the 1890’s.  Their 2005 Awatea Cabernet/Merlot blend with 92 Parker points is stunning – if you can find it, as it's not commercially available here.  However, the 2007 can be yours for £19.15 from online merchant, New Zealand House of Wines. 

Heather A was lucky enough to visit the Te Mata vineyard and to sample these wines recently and thought it would enhance your enjoyment of the wines to hear the love story legend of Te Mata:

Long, long ago when the world was young and warring tribes fought for land and sustenance, a plot was hatched by the Heretaunga tribes to conquer their main adversaries by using the womanly wiles and beauty of the chief’s daughter, Hinerakau.  She was sent to win the heart of the opposing giant chieftain Te Mata and, having accomplished this task, was to set him impossible feats to benefit her own tribe. In the meantime Hinerakau fell in love with this mountain of a man but that fact didn’t change the pact, and poor lovesick Te Mata died in his labours of love.  Today his prostrate form is known as Te Mata peak, and at sunset, when the mists form, a beautiful blue cloak (or purple-tinged mist) is seen to cover the body, put there by the grieving Hinerakua, who then leaps to her death.....  Sob.

On that sobering note (please excuse the pun), a Maori fare-thee-well, until we meet again.

Haere ra, Ka hoki mai ano

Do you come from a land downunder?

No, not that one, the other one. New Zealand, whose Maori name, Aotearoa, translates to “land of the long white cloud” is famous for a few things: having more sheep than people, having one of the most feared rubgy union sides in the world and being home to more flightless birds than any other country. OK, we may have made one of those up, but they do have quite a few flightless birds, including their national symbol, the kiwi, and the endangered kakapo, the world's largest parrot.

The All Blacks have long made a big impression on the rugby pitch with their haka, the ritual Maori dance that involves rhythmical chanting along with thigh slapping, eye-rolling and tongue-poking – and we only have God Save the Queen. No wonder they run our guys ragged.

Nowadays New Zealand is spreading its wings (excuse the pun) beyond the world of flightless birds and rugby and adding wine to its list of famous exports. Sauvignon blanc has been the Kiwi calling card of the past decade and it has truly struck a chord with the UK's wine gluggers.

However, no-one wants to be a one-trick pony and New Zealand's wine producers know that today's Top of the Pops white can rapidly go the way of Liebfraumilch and Lutomer Laski Riesling, which today you would only encounter in a strictly ironic way at a Seventies party, along with the prawn cocktail and steak Diane, washed down with a Demis Roussos LP. The Kiwis do not intend to be consigned to merely providing the alcoholic accompaniment to Noughties parties, along with a Jamie Oliver pukka pasta dish and Lady Gaga or JLS on the ipod.

So while we've been busy slugging back the sauvignon, they have been beavering away, planting new varieties, experimenting with growing techniques and exploring which of their variations of climate and soils best suits each one.

Pinot noir has triumphantly emerged as THE red grape best suited to this cool climate land – which is great news for any wine producing country, as pinot noir is notoriously picky about where it will grow. Too hot and it turns fat and blowsy, with nothing to recommend it. Too cool, though, and it will fail to ripen, succumb to rot and generally be economically non-viable. New Zealand, though, is clearly the Goldilocks country – it's just right.

And why all the fuss about a grape variety? Well, once you've been bitten by the pinot bug, you appreciate that no other grape is the same. It's light in colour, with soft tannins and fresh, crisp acidity. The fragrant cherry, raspberry and strawberry fruit, often combined with a subtle lick of spicy oak is charming, beguiling and the opposite to a blow-your-socks-off blockbuster red. It combines elegance with understated power – a ballerina rather than a prop forward.

Decades ago, there was no choice but to head to Burgundy to indulge your pinot habit – and at Burgundy prices it can be an expensive one. Now, you can look to places like Leyda Valley in Chile, Walker Bay in the Indian Ocean-cooled far south of South Africa, isolated cool pockets like the Mornington Peninsula in Australia – and to New Zealand.

Because New Zealand is two long islands, with climates ranging from warm enough to ripen syrah in the north of the North Island, to cold enough for penguins and icebergs in the far south of the South Island, there are many places in between that provide happy sites for the pinot grape, producing different styles of wine.

Some notable New Zealand pinots from north to south:

The Society's Exhibition Martinborough Pinot Noir 2008, £12.95, The Wine Society

Martinborough lies at the bottom end of the North Island, just across the narrow straits that separate it from the cooler South Island. Pinots here are typically more masculine, deeper in colour, with more tannin and spice than Marlborough – but it's all relative and you could never mistake this for a shiraz, with its red fruit and silky feeling in the mouth.

Ata Rangi Crimson Pinot Noir 2008, £15.99 The Vineyard, Dorking

Ata Rangi were pioneers of pinot and their years of experience show in this fragrant delight, which somehow has depth without weight.

Craggy Range Te Muna Road Pinot Noir 2008, £19.99, Taurus Wines, Bramley

Another Martinborough pinot! This wine is so silkily and spicily seductive that it was one of our favourites at last year's Taurus wine festival.

The Crossings Marlborough Pinot Noir 2009, £9.75, The Wine Society

Finally we cross to the South Island. This is so light in colour, you could mistake it for a deep rosé, but it has bags of bright cherry fruit and soft tannins which are typical of Marlborough pinots. It would be a treat chilled down once the weather warms up.

Wild Earth Central Otago Pinot Noir 2008, £22.99, down to £20 as part of a case, The Vineking (Church Street Reigate branch), £119.94 for a case of 6 from M&S, £234 for a case of 12 from Tesco Wine by the Case

Central Otago is the world's most southerly wine region – any further south and you swap vines for glaciers and fjords – and makes some of the most delicate, perfumed pinot around. There is plenty of charming cherry and raspberry fruit in Wild Earth, with a pleasing, meaty note on the finish.

Felton Road Central Otago Pinot Noir 2008, £24.99 from The Vineyard, Dorking, £32.49 from Les Caves de Pyrene, Guildford

Biodynamic winery Felton Road has something of a cult following – let its haunting, ethereal charms win you over.

Next time we'll unveil the white wines that New Zealand is counting on to score a hit with UK wine drinkers – until then pop-pickers, we suggest you seek out one of those pinot noirs to keep your spirits up.

In these dark and uncertain times...invest in wine

Picture courtesy of Agne27 via Flickr

Pétrus is recognized as the King of Claret. Or perhaps it should be the Queen, as it was served at the wedding of the then Princess Elizabeth and Philip in 1947. This is a wine coveted by millionaires as, starting at around £2,500 a bottle, it is unlikely to be served at most of our dinner parties. What, we wonder, will be the principal wine served at the nuptials of Prince William and bride Kate?

There is enormous cachet attached to Pétrus, partly due to its small production, around 30,000 bottles, from its 30-acre family-owned estate in Pomerol, near Bordeaux. The entire harvest can be completed in just half a day, allowing the owners to pick at optimum ripeness. The virtuous circle of high prices and small quantities mean that attention can be lavished on each drop of the precious wine, from vine to bottle.

Every vintage of this wine is acclaimed as a classic, but some are raised to a pinnacle of achievement, such as the 2000, rated a perfect 100 points by Robert Parker, and currently selling at auction for around £4,000 a bottle. Apparently the secret to its success is, of course, that peculiarly French notion: terroir. 
 

Terroir is a shorthand to describe the unique combination of climate, aspect and soil on which the vines are grown. Pétrus sits on a clay “boutonnière” (or buttonhole, a poetic image) above the Jurassic limestone-based gravels of surrounding vineyards. The combination of moisture-retentive clay and free-draining gravel makes for a perfect environment for the Merlot grapes which make up 95% of the blend of Pétrus.

Bordeaux wines are hot tips for investors, particularly with the increasing Far East, especially Chinese, market demand. Wine investment houses report that Châteaux Lafite and Mouton-Rothschild were the best-performing commodities in 2009. Fine wines generally produced a return of 10.9%, the same as crude oil, and certainly out-performed the UK property market with returns of 8.2% AGR.

Lafite especially seems to have a particular appeal for the Chinese, with the result that its wines are trading at up to twice the price of the other four Bordeaux first growths, a kind of fine wine premiership. Mouton-Rothschild is famous for commissioning a different artist to create a unique artwork to adorn the label of its “grand vin” each year – and it is surely no coincidence that, this year, it has chosen Chinese artist, Xu Lei, to complete the task.

The Bordeaux wine trade shamelessly talks up each vintage and is famous for announcing the “vintage of the decade” at least three times every decade and even talked of 2005 as the “vintage of the century”. Are they equipped with crystal balls, we wonder? 

 

In recent years the UK wine-buying public has reacted to Bordeaux hyperbole and high prices by buying less. The Bordelais, however, care not a jot as they can sell pretty much all they can produce, no matter what the price it seems, to the burgeoning East Asian market. 

 

There are a number of Bordeaux 2010 vintage tastings over the coming months at London venues which the two Heathers are pleased to be attending and we shall no doubt report back ecstatically, as we are probably due for another “vintage of the decade”. Unfortunately we are not invited to the upcoming auction sale of composer Andrew Lloyd-Webber's personal fine wine collection at Sotheby’s Hong Kong. The decision to sell in Hong Kong affirms this city’s newfound status as fine wine capital of the world. More fine wine was sold here than in the top auction houses in London and New York combined. (One has to question why he is selling off all his goodies – has he hit hard times? Perhaps Love Never Dies is indeed on its last legs!)

 

Just in case you are beginning to feel like you are reading the FT rather than The Surrey Advertiser we will come back down to the Surrey hills with a bump and let you in on the best Bordeaux buys available locally and at rather more modest prices than the exalted Pétrus.

You will be delighted to hear that one of our favourite locals stocks an excellent example of the 2005 vintage for you to try at the right opportunity. Château La Mission, Lalande de Pomerol 2005, £24.99 from Taurus Wines, Bramley is big, beefy and concentrated – sounds like Bovril, but be assured it tastes much better. Like Churchill, it has a distinct whiff of the cigar box about it. Don't discount this wine as too serious, as it's a good example of the right region in the right year and will be recognized as a bargain by all Surrey claret lovers.

Not to be sniffed at (metaphorically only) is L'Orangerie de Château Carignan 2008. The influencial critic, Robert Parker, included this wine is his “50 best value buys” in Bordeaux 2005 and gave this vintage 86 points. Mostly merlot and from just around the corner from St Emilion and Pomerol – at just £9.99 you can't go wrong . Taurus wines of Bramley stocks this one too and owner Rupert refers to it as their "house Claret".

We are fortunate to have some great independent wine stores in Surrey, and Ben Watkins of The Guildford Wine Company in Shalford certainly qualifies. Ben tells us that Bordeaux is selling at a rate of 3/1 against other French wines. His popular La Tuilerie du Puy 2006, £9.99 sells like hot cakes. It is an elegant, classy claret with a merlot suppleness which softens the rather stern tannins found in many wines of this genre. Ben’s bargain Bordeaux from a brilliant year is La Tour L’Aspic, Pauillac 2005 at £26.99. The name may suggest aspic jelly, but the wine itself is a firm, well-structured and masterful wine for drinking now, preferably with some time to let it breathe. If you have the patience, lay it down – it will continue to improve over the next five to ten years.

If you still think even these suggestions are expensive then consider the truism – only death is free, and that costs you your life!!!

Winter sun...in a glass

We did consider at the start of this New Year kow-towing to expectations and suggesting non-alcoholic beverages as ways in which you can flush your overloaded liver and whittle your expanded post Christmas waistline. But sorry, we won't be doing that.

But don't turn over - or whatever the online equivalent is. Yes, we know this time of year is one long round of detox, abstention and belt-tightening in fearful expectation of the Christmas credit card bill. So even more important is a sense of wellbeing in these dark times and, based on the premise that “a bit of what you fancy does you good “ we have come up with some ideas to brighten up your spirits in cold January.

Sunshine makes everyone smile, but if you can't spare the time or money to jet off to sunnier climes, then you can always pore over some holiday brochures (or more likely some internet pages), glass in hand, for a taste of the good life.

Recently we and intrepid tasters pitted ourselves against the snowy elements to sample some wines, which brought a smile and a transfusion of bonhomie to the throng. We've selected a few highlights to tempt you here. Whether in a party or tucked up warm at home, transport yourself to the sun and dream of the not-too-distant shores of sunny Spain and Portugal with our winter sun wine recommendations:

Soalheiro Alvarinho 2009 (£13.95 from The Wine Society)

Soalheiro means “sunny”, so where better to start? This is technically a Vinho Verde, from northern Portugal – but it's a million miles away from the bog standard stuff. This 100% alvarinho (aka albariño) is seriously delicious, with a hint of spring blossom, peach – and a whiff of the Atlantic. Picture the scene: surf’s up on Guincho beach – favorite Atlantic hangout for surfers and wind riders - chill out, drink in the tang of the ozone and imbibe with delicious piri piri prawns or scallops.

Quinta de Lagoalva 2009 (£6.50, The Wine Society)

This 50/50 blend of touriga nacional and castelão, with its violet-scented, soft, spicy fruit is a perfect mid-winter, mid-week treat. The floral bouquet insinuates itself into your imagination and suggests wild flower be-decked hillsides, views for miles, castles on the horizon and the romance of Moorish southern Portugal in its springtime glory.

Legaris Crianza 2007 (£12.99, Taurus Wines, Bramley)

A 100% tempranillo from Spain's highly-regarded (and highly-priced) Ribera del Duero region, this relative bargain is a smooth, supple and sophisticated wine that would infinitely improve any winter warmer casserole. Imagine the exhilaration of swishing through the snow of the sunlit Spanish Sierra Nevada ski resorts and enjoying melting in the afterglow with this crimson stunner.

Quinta do Côa 2007 (£14.99, The Guildford Wine Company, Shalford)

Back across the border to Portugal's Douro valley – famous for Port, but increasingly making waves with its table wines. The Douro's beguiling cocktail of native varieties, including touriga nacional, touriga franca and tinta roriz (in fact tempranillo again) make for a satisfyingly complete wine with many nuances of aroma and flavour to enjoy. A big wine, but with grace and elegance too. The Côa Valley is a UNESCO World Heritage site, a wild and remote area known for its Paleolithic rock art. A ride up the river on a slow boat from Porto sampling wines from the vineyards en route is a trip worth contemplating as you soporifically sip and savour. Fine but simple dining is called for to complement this vintage. Red meat, either beef, venison or wild boar would be good – not scorched on the barbeque but lightly seared by a talented chef and served with élan, white tablecloth and silver cutlery please.

...Are you drooling yet?

Thinking of food, nearer to home and back in time to a pre-Christmas carol concert party: Heather A was delighted to meet some of the students from the facing page to us, from Tante Marie Cookery School. They were a charming and talented bunch of young men and women and made some amazing canapés, a few of which disappeared down the throat of yours truly before being hoovered by the ravening hordes. In the spirit of neighborliness and an excuse for a good party we think it would be a great tasting experience to combine in a wine and food matching evening with you Surrey Advertiser aficionados and the Guildford glitterati. Anyone up for this we would love to hear from you at www.redwhiteandrose.co.uk

Now we are in 2011 we can all look ahead optimistically to a good vintage year in all senses, wonderful wines and prices to make the producers weep. In the spirit of Auld Lang Syne share a cheering glass or two with good old friends and new acquaintances. It is a truism that – Water divides the peoples of the world, but wine brings them together.

We wish you a wonderful year with the Heathers being the only reason for an “H” in your wine!

HAPPY NEW YEAR

Dreaming of a white (and red) Christmas

Have you ticked off all the items on your Christmas gift list? At least thought about a Christmas tree? Ordered the turkey, goose, or veggie nutroast? Have you been to far too many Christmas Bazaars and felt obliged to buy something that you will later feel too embarrassed to give? Have you fed the Christmas cake with just a few more drops of brandy and stocked up with all sorts of weird and not so wonderful alcoholic concoctions – which will probably still be in the store cupboard next year? If you said yes to more than one of these - join the club. It is Christmas madness time.

Surrey's towns are agleam with twinkling lights and gorgeous festive displays vying to attract the money from our purses. The streets are thronged with manic shoppers – at least those of us who haven't embraced the joys of internet shopping. In the seasonal spirit of goodwill we would like to save you time and a bewildering choice by listing some of the better wine buys that will make your festive season go with a ding dong, merrily....

Get the party started with a sparkler. Don't splash out on anything expensive, there are plenty of fizzy options including the ubiquitous Prosecco and keenly priced Cavas. They are great for mixing: with orange juice for Bucks Fizz, cassis for Kir Royale, peach juice for Bellini or brandy-soaked sugar lumps and a dash of Cointreau for a great party cocktail. If you'd like to serve something that will stand up to being sipped on its own, then give Cuvée Royale Crémant de Limoux, £8.99 at Waitrose a go. In Limoux, in the foothills of the French Pyrenees, they have been making sparkling wines for centuries – long before Dom Perignon and the widow Clicquot they reckon. This toasty blend of chardonnay, chenin blanc and pinot noir would make a great Christmas Day aperitif.

“I get no kick from Champagne” - it definitely wasn’t us who said that! Champagne prices have been taking a hammering this season – but the deals come and go so quickly that you need to follow us on Twitter (@wineandwords) to keep up. But here's a Champagne top tip – buy now and squirrel away a few bottles for NEXT Christmas and New Year. It will only improve with a few months under the stairs. If for some reason you do not wish to finish off the bottle in one go, then buy a Champagne stopper from http://www.waitersfriend.com/, based near Guildford. They have lots of great wine related gifts and innovative ideas.

Deep breath: here's our wine-based sprint through the Big Day...listen very carefully, we shall say this only once.

White wines for turkey – drink up the Chablis with your aperitif, the big bird and all the trimmings needs something with more weight and fruit. Head to the Mâcon, in Burgundy, and get a bottle of Christophe Cordier's Mâcon-Peronne 2008, £11.25 at The Wine Society. Floral-tinged fruit and subtle oak make this a classy option.

But the colour of Christmas is red. The Heathers are in agreement that one wine is tantalizing with turkey, gorgeous with goose, and holds no truck with duck – pinot noir. Kiwi Daniel Schuster's Twin Vineyards Pinot Noir 2008, £14.49 from local heroes Caves de Pyrène at Pew Corner is a perfumed, delicate yet heady delight from downunder. Claret may be classic at Christmas, but pinot is, er, prettier.

Save your claret for a roast rib of beef and you'll appreciate the natural harmony between the tannin in the wine and rare meat. Rupert Pritchett of Taurus Wines in Bramley has a good selection of reasonably-priced clarets and knows his stuff – he can of course provide some more luxuriously-priced clarets too. In the same vein, style-wise, is Le Faîte Red, £16.99 at Adnams Cellar and Kitchen (Richmond). Le Faîte means “the peak” in the local Occitan dialect, and this is the top banana of the Plaimont Co-operative – a juicy, inky, full-bodied blend of indigenous and international varieties – one for those who don't like to be a slave to tradition.

Cheese and wine are regarded as a classic pairing but take care: some matches are made in heaven, and others in hell. Try tawny port with the Christmas cheeseboard. Look for something that says 10 year old or 20 year old, to ensure you get the real nutty, mellow tawny experience. Taylor's 10 year old Tawny Port is widely available from around £18 a bottle – great with hard cheeses and stilton. The more adventurous amongst you might be tempted to try Sauternes with stilton – readers, trust us, it's delicious. The Co-operative have Chateau Roumieu 2007 at the tempting price of £7.99 for a half bottle.

Don't forget to set fire to the Christmas pudding – having first soaked it in brandy, or you'll find it rather a disappointment. THE wine for the pud (and any stray mince pies you might encounter) is an Australian Liqueur Muscat, which is like dried fruit in (just about) liquid form, so a natural match. Caves de Pyrène has the classic Stanton & Killeen Rutherglen Liqueur Muscat at £12.10 for a half bottle.

For many of us, there is a certain amount of slumping in front of the TV over the festive period. While you're there, try a glass of Langmeil Cabernet Sauvignon, from the Barossa Valley in Australia (£13.99 at The Vineyard in Dorking). This full bodied, lively as a gazelle red is what we'd call a DVD wine (as opposed to a food wine) – but a DVD wine de luxe, as befits the season.

If you have really over-done it, the kill or cure is port and brandy mixed. Some people swear by it...or perhaps because of it!

We are off to join the masses and, no doubt, over-indulge in some seasonal retail therapy. Next time we will provide a last minute panic buy list - and New Year fizz. Happy shopping!

Wine writing doesn't get tougher than this...

Your two fearless wine correspondents set off to London Olympia last week in search of The Wine Show, which does what it says on the tin – it's a show, and it's all about wine.

However, on arrival we discovered that the Wine Show's Jonah had been swallowed whole by the Masterchef Live whale. The clamouring crowds were flocking in, drawn not so much by the prospect of tasting wines in the company of Tim Atkin MW and the like, but in the hope of rubbing shoulders with Gregg “the pudding” Wallace, Michel Roux Jr and John Torode – or even “mad eye” Monica Galetti.

We entered the gaping maw of the beast and were immediately surrounded by flashing knives, busy julienning vegetables like it was going out of fashion. Professional chefs were cooking up all manner of delicious-looking and smelling dishes which did an excellent job of sharpening the appetite. However, we and our fellow hungry cheapskates soon discovered that there were few opportunities to score free food as we found ourselves crowding round stand after stand where people seemed to be munching away, only to find yet another small pile of cheese parings.

There is no such thing as a free lunch at Masterchef Live. Their plan is to tempt you into parting with your hard-earned cash on some of those freshly and chef-ly prepared dishes. Still hungry, we battled our way through the kitchen gadgets and gizmos and finally found ourselves at the back of the hall and The Wine Show itself.

What a difference a few steps can make. On the Masterchef side of the hall, visitors were practically trampling the old and infirm underfoot as they craned their necks for a distant look at Greg and Michel as they judged a round of The Invention Test. Meanwhile, across the hall, Susy Atkins (wine columnist for the Sunday Telegraph and a well-known wine face on TV) was delivering a wine masterclass to no more than five people.

If there is a battle between food and wine, then wine is clearly not on the winning side. Part of the problem must be that tasting wines is not as engaging as tasting food that you have just seen prepared in front of you. You've watched as literally raw ingredients are transformed and combined to make something that Greg Wallace likes to call a “nice plate of food”. Until someone invents a way to transform freshly-picked grapes into drinkable wine in a matter of minutes, wine just cannot compete.

Those who did most to engage visitors to the Wine Show managed to combine food and wine to great effect. It's heartening to discover a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc that stands out from the crowd – in this case it was the memorably-named O:TU, available at £9.99 from Hennings Wine in Petworth. But discovering for yourself the joys of new ways to serve foods and wine together takes things to a new level.

Campo Viejo scored a hit with their tapas demonstrations and sampling, accompanied by their range of Spanish wines, of course. The Discover the Origin stand had simple but delicious pairings of quality ingredients – we were bowled over by the 22-month old Parmesan served with tawny port. An easy and delicious twist on the traditional cheeseboard.

In the battle for consumers' hearts and minds (not to mention wallets), it seems wine cannot fight alone and needs to forge an alliance with food.

Wines of the week

This is the time of year when price wars break out amongst the big retailers, in an effort to encourage us to buy in quantity in advance of the festive season. The supermarkets have been taking turns to run 25% off 6 bottles of wine and Morrison's were recently offering Taittinger Champagne for under £17 a bottle. The nature of these deals is that they come and go too quickly for us to keep you up to date with them via a newspaper column. If you want to stay in the loop with the latest offers, then follow us on Twitter – you can find us as “wineandwords”.

Meanwhile, here's an offer that is not here today, gone tomorrow:

Chablis Premier Cru Vaillons, 2009, Bertrand Capdevigne – usually £14.99, down to £9.99 from 29^th November at Morrison's.

Chablis is a go-to wine for Christmas and many of us will be tucking into a bottle or two in the coming weeks. However, the stuff available at under a tenner is generally underwhelming and does little to communicate the cool-climate charms that epitomize Chablis. Premier Cru Chablis is a step up from straight Chablis and comes from specific sites that are judged to have superior soil, favourable sun exposure – all those elements that are summed up in the French word “terroir”. That makes this special offer very welcome, as it gives you an idea of what Chablis is all about, at an affordable price. It manages the trick of being delicate and elegant without being remotely weedy or insipid – and it has the hallmark fine, piercing acidity that is only right and proper from the region.

Claudeval 2009 – White and Red, £5.99 or 2 for £10 from Vicki's Wine Merchants in Chobham

Here is a pair of smart-looking bottles from the Languedoc that make great house wines for a fiver. The white is my favourite, a winter-weight blend of six different varieties, no oak and bags of tropical fruit. The red, made from grenache, carignan, syrah and merlot is less refined, but has plenty of slightly musky black fruit – again with no oak, to let the fruit shine. The rustic edges were noticeably softened after 24 hours in an opened bottle, which is a good sign.  It would make a friendly companion for an autumnal stew or bangers and mash.

Back to the future - it's the Seventies

Many of you reading this (have you got your specs on?) and indeed we writers, remember the colourful and hedonistic hippy happy days of the 70’s.

Listening to Johnny Walker’s (yes he is still alive) Sounds of the Seventies on the radio (wireless if you will) we were reminded of not just the fabulous music that emerged in that decade, but all the parties and indulgences of the era, not least the growing popularity of wine as the fashionable beverage.

Today Seventies parties feature such delectable items from the past such as cheddar and silverskin onions on sticks, melon with Port, curried eggs, Black Forest gateau and prawn cocktail. ... Ahh, you still eat these? OK, then we'll talk about the wines which, thankfully for all our palates, have moved on a bit.

“Who loves ya, baby?” Lt. Kojak - Or, wines that have made it through...and some that haven't

Mateus Rosé is one of the wine world's most enduring brands. Born in the depths of the Second World War, its heyday was the 1970s. The wine itself is inoffensive enough: pink, off-dry, slightly sparkling. Its fame was largely down to the winemakers' inspired decision to put it in a distinctive flask-shaped bottle – perfect for turning into a table lamp base or candle holder. In fact it has been said, rather uncharitably, that Mateus is the only wine that is worth more when the bottle is empty.

Aside from the contents, Mateus Rosé is the cause of one of the most infamously bad business decisions in wine trade history: the Mateus Palace story.

The Guedes family started making Mateus Rose in 1942. To complement the unique bottle shape they wanted to include a picture of Palacio de Mateus, a picturesque property near the winery, on the label. The property didn't belong to the family, so they offered the owners either a one-off payment for the use of the picture - or 15 cents per bottle sold. They owners took the one-off payment option.... Nowadays Mateus sells around 20 million bottles around the world, but in the Seventies it was double that – amounting to a tidy $3 million dollars annual income, up in smoke...or down the drain.

Mateus also has the dubious honour of being a favourite of Saddam Hussein and quantities of it were, reputedly, found in his presidential palaces following the US-led invasion of Iraq.

Today you can – and many still do – drink Mateus rosé. The bottle design but not the iconic shape has been changed to suit the times and we are not averse to its charms on a sun-drenched beach whilst savouring freshly-caught seafood. It is, after all, from Portugal, boasting 364 days of sunshine, and still the best place to drink it.

Don Cortez – hazy memories of something in litre-sized bottles labelled Full-bodied Spanish Red linger in the mind from parents' dinner parties, served alongside the cheese and onion nibbles, cheese straws and smears of paté on Ritz crackers. This wine seems to have sunk without trace...and probably rightly so.

Poor old Lutomer Laski Riesling, or rather, poor us for having to drink the stuff. White, sickly sweet and sulphurous, it was a mainstay of seventies bring a bottle parties: a few bottles of this, together with your Watney's Party Seven, was instant karma. It also played a role in sullying the image of true Riesling – Laski Riesling is not the same variety, but they weren't in any hurry to point this out. Every cloud has a silver lining though, and at least the break up of the former Yugoslavia resulted in the demise of this bilious beverage.

Other “great whites” of the decade were Blue Nun and Black Tower. These sickly, lolly-water wines probably put the German wine industry back decades, making us associate anything in a tall green bottle with cheap and nasty. Oscar Wilde's adage, “The only thing worse than being talked about, is not being talked about.” seems to hold true – both these brands survive and even prosper in the present day..

“I want it all and I want it now” Freddie Mercury.

“The French adore Le Piat d'or” - great catchphrase, but what of the wine? Launched in 1979, this Johnny come lately to the seventies wine scene carried a bit of cachet at the time, but from memory the wines were rather sugary and bland. It is, however, still going, and going strong in the UK, and is, to coin a phrase, big in Japan.

The epitome of cool was the Italian vermouth, Martini, “any time, any place, anywhere”, which promised a taste of the glamour of newly accessible cheap foreign travel. Still hugely popular and great as a long summer drink, preferably with tonic water rather than lemonade as was the fashion at the time.

We are coming up to the annual release of Beaujolais Nouveau, Thursday 18^th November this year. In the Seventies this was a highly celebrated media event with races to get this alcoholic fruit cordial of a wine to Blighty via all means possible - from canoe to Harrier jump jets. Today it retains a mere soupçon of its former glory but is still a feature of not only major wine distributors but also for those participants who build a luxury holiday around the event. Try your Beaujolais Nouveau with a ripe camembert and crusty bread – but please do not include the pickled onions!

We could continue our reminiscence but think it about time we embraced the present and focus on two distinctly modern wines from Spain.

El Molino Loco Macabeo, £6.25 from slurp.co.uk. Banish all thoughts of deep-coloured, oxidised Spanish whites from your mind – this is bright, fresh, crisp and unoaked.

Carchelo, £10.99 from Oddbins – a blend of Monastrell, Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon with a whisper of new oak. This full-on mouthful of deep, dark blueberry fruit is a world away from the Old Spain of the Seventies.

Our tastes in wine may have changed and become more sophisticated over the years, but hey, the old music still “does the biz!”!

“It’s only rock ‘n roll, but I like it”. Rolling Stones