jamie's wine blog

It's a test as I'm experimenting with new blogging software.

For the next two weeks updates to the main wineanorak site are likely to be less frequent because of travels. And because I can't guarantee that I'll be able to connect from my laptop where I'm going, I've moved my main website blog here, to blogger, so that I can post to wineanorak from any computer that will connect to the internet. Do keep checking in for the riveting updates from the road! Right now I've a flight to catch: I ought to pack, really. I decided about the camera situation (see below). I've just got a 32 mb memory card for my digital camera, so I'm going to be trying this out alongside my trusty old SLR.

Had a remarkable wine last night. It was a Montlouis Sec, from Domaine de la Taille Aux Loups, 1998 vintage. Montlouis is an appellation in the Loire, near Vouvray, and the grape here is the widely misunderstood Chenin Blanc. 'Chenin Blanc is like a difficult child', says Nicolas Joly, who uses it to make impressive (and expensive) Savennières. 'They will go on to be either a genius or a terrorist.' Well, this Montlouis isn't going to be everyone's cup of tea, but I find it thrillingly individual. It begins quite tamely with a nose showing waxy, straw-like notes. After a while it picks up momentum and comes across with lifted mineral notes and some strong, soft cheesy aromas. Sounds weird, and it is a bit. The palate is bone dry, with more cheesy, waxy notes and high acidity. Great concentration and quite a bit of complexity, but very challenging. I'd say it was more an intellectual than a sensual experience, and a world away from accessible, slightly sweetly fruited new world Chardonnay, which is what most people expect from white wine these days. The continued existence of wines like this Montlouis is a cause for celebration. Let's celebrate the triumph of the appellation system in preserving this diversity.

OK, first proper entry to the blog, in anticipation of my impending trip to South Africa. I'm often a bit last minute in my preparations -- it's the way I tend to work -- so this inevitably means that the last couple of days preceding a trip tend to get a bit frantic. I'm currently working at setting up an internet account with roaming access, for example, and I haven't yet decided whether to take my digital camera or do everything on good old 35 mm film. Oh the dilemma! One thing I did do well in advance is plan where we're going to stay. With a family of four to worry about, and the cricket world cup adding extra pressure to Cape Town's somewhat limited hotel space, advance booking has proved to be compulsory this time. As an aside, the exchange rate when I started booking was 17 rand to the pound; now it's hovering around 14. Let's hope it doesn't fall any further. More later. Not a great entry, admittedly, but it's a start.

This is Jamie Goode's new alternative wine blog. Using a web-based interface will allow me to update the site more easily from the road, where it's often difficult to get access to FTP facilities. My regular blog is found here.