December 2018 Wine Highlights

The number of sparkling wines 🍾 in our December highlights is suspiciously high 🤔 — guess that means that Christmas is coming! 🎄

Quickly approaching the end of December, we at UnscrewMe thought we should take the time to present our favourite wines from this month. It turns out, this really is a list worthy of the sparkling season.

There are plenty of opportunities coming up to choose as an excuse to open a sparkling wine: Christmas, the end of the year, the start of the new year. Please take inspiration from our recommendations 🍾!

Happy Hungarian

• Wine: 2017 Cserszegi Fűszeres
• Producer: Koch
• Region: Hajos-Bajai, Hungary 🇭🇺
• Story:
  During another visit at the lovely 28°-50° Marylebone Wine Workshop and Kitchen, I came across a Hungarian white wine made from a largely unknown indigenous grape called “Cserszegi Fűszeres” which gets its name from the word “spice” and the local village, Cserszegtomaj (see also Wikipedia: Cserszegi fűszeres).
  It had an interesting and somewhat familiar nose, its floral notes reminded me of Gewürztraminer or Muscat. Overall it stood out due to an attractive balance. I got strong lime flavours on the palate mixed with flowers, good acidity, a little spice and a hint of sweetness. I would say that it even showed a slightly sparkling sensation — what else could you wish for?

Beautiful Barbera

• Wine: 2015 Barbera D’Alba
• Producer: Cascina Ballarin
• Region: Piemonte, Italy 🇮🇹
• Story:
  When I went to try the Sunday roast at Cork & Bottle Hampstead, I also had this Barbera which I found had a pretty oaky nose, but actually tasted very elegant with cherry notes.

Clever Champagne

• Wine: Brut d’Autrefois NV
• Producer: Champagne Corbon
• Region: Avize, Champagne, France 🇫🇷
• Story:
  At my first tasting hosted by The Vino Beano, I had got to try this very special champagne, unique and refreshing. This is achieved by producing it with a 35 year old Solera system, a so called “cuvée perpétuelle”. And after bottling, it is being aged in the bottle for another seven years.
  I mainly picked this champagne for the final list of 2018, because it was the most unusual wine at the tasting, but I could also have picked a surprisingly great sparkling rosé Lambrusco from Italy, a warm, round Châteauneuf-du-Pape or even a Bordeaux from Pauillac (I ended up buying a mixed case of six wines from the tasting).

Rare Rosé

• Wine: Malbec Rose Brut Extra NV
• Producer: Bodega Tapiz
• Region: Uco Valley, Mendoza, Argentina 🇦🇷
• Story:
  At the newly opened Grays & Feather, I had this funny rosé sparkling wine made from Malbec grapes.
  Sporting a delicate nose, the taste was complex, combining typical bready and savoury notes of a traditional method sparkling wine with red fruits. And this racy rosé was a true pleasure together with a strong, soft, truffled cheese.

Special Sparkling

• Wine: 2006 Comte de Champagne Blanc de Blancs
• Producer: Taittinger Champagne
• Region: Reims, Champagne, France 🇫🇷
• Story:
  And again at Marylebone Wine Workshop and Kitchen, just a few days ago, I finally managed to try this outstanding vintage champagne they had on the list by the glass for a few months. By pure chance, I also had the 2000 vintage as well with friends recently.
  The Comte de Champagne Blanc de Blancs shows true quality, strong biscuit notes are balanced by acidity and just enough fruit. This champagne has much more texture and a bigger body than most sparkling wines, filling your mouth with beautiful layers of flavours and a warmth perfectly suited for the colder days of the year.

Sharing is Caring

We’re always happy to hear about new restaurants with great wine lists, newly opened wine bars in London or just a nice wine you discovered recently.

If you have any recommendations, please let us know! Either comment on here or get in touch via social media through Twitter @unscrewmeapp, Facebook UnscrewMe or Instagram @unscrewmeapp.

As 2018 slowly draws to a close, we are preparing for 2019 and in our next article will provide an overview covering all kinds of wine tastings coming up in January. Until then, check out some more wine tastings in December.

(For now, my time at TechHub Moorgate also comes to an end. For December, this really was a great place to work. And who knows, maybe I’m giving TechHub another go in 2019!)