This month our presenters were Mike and Alison, originally they had hoped to be able to revisit some wines from our early meetings as this was our 10th anniversary, but they were no longer available. So instead they found some wines from Eastern Europe (Greece, Moldova, Slovenia, Turkey, Romania, Lebanon) ...
Semeli Mantinia Nassiakos 2017
Our first selection is a Greek wine from a small family-run vineyard outside Athens. that is bone dry and captures the lemon and rose-petal bouquet of the moschofilero grape at its best which has a fresh dry palate. It is refreshingly different, is not oaked and is good with meze or on its own as an aperitif.
Price: £9.95 Alcohol 12%
Feteasc Regal, Château Vartely 2017
Now moving to Moldova, a country not particularly known for its wine, again this is an independent winery in the south of the country. This is an excellent wine that is not oaked, has a fragrant, crisp dry white with a good depth of flavour without being overpowering.
Price: £6.15 Alcohol 13%
The Society's Slovenian White 2017
The Benedictine monks from Admont Abbey, across the border from Graz in Austria, have been producing wine in today's Slovenia since 1139 and since independence in 2001 they have rebuilt the vineyards. This is the Wine Society’s flagship Slovenian wine which is described as generous and is deliciously aromatic and admirably complex being made up of furmint, pinot gris, welschriesling, riesling and traminer.
Price: £8.95 Alcohol 12.5%
Öküzgözü Vinkara Winehouse 2015
Vinkara, based in the mountainous region north-east of Ankara, has been
revitalising the reputation of Turkish wines since 2003. In fact, the Anatolia region, which encompasses most of Turkey, has a wine growing tradition dating back to the Hittites in 3000BC.This a medium bodied, authentic, full-flavoured and ever-impressive Turkish red. The nose has notes of red fruits, cherry, nutmeg, tea and strawberry jam.
Price: £8.95 Alcohol 13.5%
Novac Sec, Prince Stirbey 2015
Prince Stirbey wines are actually produced by a Princess who began winemaking in 1999 after reclaiming and reviving the historical family property. The completely family-run winery is set in the foothills of the Transylvanian Alps near Dragasani.
Prince Stirbey is the only producer of this original Romanian red, a medium bodied wine which is a cross of local negru with saperavi. It’s ripe but fresh with juicy flavours which make it a very attractive red.
Price: £13.50 Alcohol 13.5%
Massaya Le Colombier 2015
Massaya has become one of the Lebanon’s most respected wineries. Again an area that has been ravished by war but is now beginning to build a strong reputation.
A full bodied, ripe-flavoured, smooth and rich red from Lebanon. A third each of cinsault and grenache with the rest syrah and tempranillo, blended to create a fragrantly spicy wine with attractive quince fruit notes.
Price: £12.95 Alcohol 14.5%
