It's amazing the difference a couple of percent makes. When it comes to alcohol in wine, sometimes the 15% (or higher) bruisers from hot vintages in the warmer reaches of the wine-producing world can be a little much. They can certainly be concentrated and powerful, and there's no denying that many of the world's great wines have clocked in at around these levels. But when you dial alcohol down a couple of degrees, you feel the difference in freshness. I feel it at the end of the evening, and doubly so when I get up early the morning after. Nor does dialling down the alcohol level a little mean losing out on character - far from it. As we surveyed the Uncorked shelves, we realised how many great, individual, regionally authentic wines clock in at a moderate 13% or less.
We've put together a mixed case of great wines, none of which happen to exceed 13% alcohol. We haven't really done this because the wines are in the lower half of the alcohol scale (though that's a benefit). We've done it because it’s a selection of fabulous wines. They're all from producers we love, and they're all authentic expressions of place. We've even knocked money off and thrown in free delivery. /NT
Contains one bottle of each of the following wines:
5.5% - lightly sweet, gently fizzy and low in alcohol, Moscato d'Asti is a lesser-known Piemontese treat. Don’t make the mistake of assuming this is something simple and shallow - it ages very nicely. (Just ask my colleague Ed).
12.5% - lemon and gooseberry notes jostle with nettle and a slightly smoky gunflint character in this very classic Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc. There's more richness on the palate than the fresh aromatics suggest.
12% - notes of orange blossom, cucumber and a refined hint of smoke in this elegant and understated Portuguese white. Dirk Niepoort has used native Douro Valley white grape varieties planted in high altitude with some judicious barrel aging, to make a wine that evokes nothing quite as much as white Burgundy.
13% - From Spain’s Atlantic north-west, Godello was rescued from near extinction in the 1980s and has since staged a stunning comeback. This is structured and tense, with lovely notes of flower and greengage.
8.5% - slightly off-dry, Kabinett is an underappreciated wine style in which low alcohol levels balance finely out against a little residual sugar. This has lovely aromas of peach and stone, and a piquant mouthfeel. Helmut Dönnhoff says that Kabinett is a 'particular talent' of his Leistenberg vineyard, in Germany’s Nahe Valley.
12.5% - in southern Italy, Campania does tend to make bigger, richer wines. But in the hills inland from Naples, Terredora make cooler expressions of many of the very local varieties. Think stone-fruit and dried herbs in this lovely, mineral Italian white.
12.5% - A delightful pepper-and-peach expression of Austria’s signature Grüner Veltliner grape variety. Loimer are an excellent family producer based in cool but sunny Kamptal; 'Erste Lage' denotes a top site.
12.5% - Le Soula make exceptional wines from old vines up in the foothills of the French Pyrenees. Trigone is a multi-vintage blend of Syrah, Carignan and Grenache grapes which have struggled through the extremes of mountain sun, wind and rain. And did we mention the poor, granitic soils? Like great artists, vines need adversity to thrive.
12.5% - France's Rhône Valley has a reputation for riper and alcoholic wines, but that's far from always true. From the dramatic slopes of St-Joseph, this blackberry-and-tapenade Syrah clocks in at a refreshing, moderate 12.5%.
13% - in the south-west of France, Cahors is home to Malbec, here known as Cot. Cahors lay on the pilgrim route to Santiago de Compostela, and the reputation of the 'black wine of Cahors' was spread by travelling pilgrims. Juicy dark fruit notes come with the suggestion of mushroom and black tea.
13% - Jacqueson are one of the top producers in Burgundy’s Côte Chalonnaise, and this is a fine, defined expression of Pinot Noir that defies the reputation that Mercurey once had for rustic wines.
12% - Portugal's Douro Valley is home to port and it's not the sort of place you associate with low alcohol wines, but winemaker Dirk Niepoort is nothing if not a maverick. His Vertente is made from a blend of some of the classic port grape varieties in a beautifully elegant, restrained style.
Offered subject to remaining unsold. To place an order, click on the mixed case below or call 020 7638 5998
