Officially back and drinking my favourite tipples, wine, and beer, with a few more reviews of what I’ve been sampling recently.
Let’s start with wine and a Spanish white from the Wine Society, hailing from the Ribeiro region in North-West Spain.
Pazo Do Mar, Ribeiro Denominación 2023
This blend features quite a few grapes, all showcasing the region (Galicia) and its charm. The grapes in question are Treixadura, Torrontés, Albariño, Loureira, and Godello. I know that’s some blend, and and sometimes it doesn’t always work, but this time it did and it made for a very enjoyable drink.
The bulk of the wine is made with the Treixadura grape, (pronounced tray-sha-DOO-ra) a grape usually associated with blends but this time the staring role, with the others playing minor support.
It’s very dry, fresh, full of fruit, with a kind of fullness about it. A little floral on the nose and taste,, slightly waxy, bags of acidity, lots going on, banana, mango, pineapple, apple, stewed pears, honeyed (but not overly sweet).
A bottle under £10 (£9.50) what’s not to like. My wife and I both enjoyed this with our first barbecue of the summer, and the bottle didn’t last long
Beer Time…..
Visited my son and his family last weekend and picked up a few local beers to try, one from the Wye Valley and the others from The Hop Shed in Worcestershire.
Here is what I thought of the first two I’ve opened so far……
Brakel Pilsner Lager 4.6% abv
Mmmm!, maybe it’s because I’m such a fan of German and Czech lagers that this left me wanting a little.
It’s not a bad lager, but it just didn’t have the depth, softness and character of those German beers I love so much.
It’s bright and refreshing, the carbonation and head did tail off pretty quickly, leaving it slightly flat-tasting.
Not much else to say, It was an average British lager.
Hoptical Illusion Black IPA, 4.8% abv
Now this was much better and very drinkable, rich and malty, but still tasting like a traditional IPA.
It was very dark, almost stout-like in the glass, with an off white creamy head. Hint of sweetness, with that typical bitterness on the finish, you could really taste those roasted malts and that was the star.
Chilled, it was extremely drinkable, and lighter than it looks, I’d have no hesitation drink/buying this again.
Thanks for reading, until the next post !
