The Raise a Glass feature is published in several UK regional newspapers … I was very excited when lots of Naked Wines winemakers arrived in Liverpool
One of my favourite things is to talk to a winemaker.
You don’t see that many of them in Liverpool but hey … almost 30 of them arrived at once for a fantastic Naked Wines tasting at St George’s Hall.
I was in my element.
It looked like hundreds of Naked Wines customers were too.
Naked Wines’ customers are “Angels” who help to fund the winemaking, and then in turn get a discount on their wine buys.
I had a long list of ticks in my tasting booklet and here’s a high five to some of them.
Teona Omarashvili and her uncle Levan Chichinadze run a small winery in their back garden in Tblinski, Georgia.
They have crafted a lush red PI Saperavi 2020 (£20.99, or £17.99 Angels’ price).
Saperavi is a native Georgia red grape variety, and this wine won Best Georgian Red and Grand Gold at the Mundus Vini wine awards.
I was won over by the achingly gorgeous ice wine Stepp Sylvaner Eiswein 2020 (£29.99, or £16.99, Angels’ price). It is lush with peach, pineapple and lychee.
In the room that night many fingers of recommendation and feet were pointed in the direction of Australian winemaker Josh Pfeiffer, and his elegant Breaking Grounds Langhorne Creek Shiraz 2021 (£10.99, or £9.99 for Angels).
The wine is crunchy with blackberries, cherries and flecks of spice.
New Zealand winemaker Bill Small poured his Small and Small Sylvia Reserve Sauvignon Blanc 2021 (£20.99, or £11.99 for Angels) and the classic notes of gooseberries and grapefruit zinged and refreshed.
There was double joy from Bill, with Small and Small Noble Dessert Riesling 2021 (£15.99, or £9.99, Angel price). Those aromas of marmalade, honey and lemont, limey zest, are still callling my name.
Can you tell I like Riesling ?? 🤣🤣
Special thanks to Ray O’Connor MW, one of the curators behind the entire Naked Wines range who teased my tastebuds with one of my first wines of the evening.
It was this: A riesling from the Rheingau, Weingut Kaufmann Wisselbrunnen Riesling GG 2019 (£34.99, or £28.99, Angels).
It’s a stunning, complex wine with notes of dried honey, lemon, lime, peach, a cutting edge of wet knife and a hint of salinity.
What a smashing night ❤️ but so much wine, so little time (as in life).
Published in UK regional newspapers: See “About ” me