Wines in the Press January 3-4, 2009

Published: 05 January, 2009

Tim's looking for less alcohol, Jancis discovers some pleasant surprises in the southern Rhone, while Anthony and Jane find it difficult to believe that expensive wines will move very quickly in 2009

Tim Atkin MW, The Observer, Sunday 4 January 2009
Tim Atkin rejects the idea of a booze-free January as advocated by some of his contemporaries, citing Robert Mondavi as an example of how longevity and a regular wine intake do not have to be mutually exclusive.

"I'm not a doctor," Atkin reveals, "but I reckon six bottles a week is fine if you live a healthy life and consume wine with food."

This month, however, Atkin has resolved to seek out lower-alcohol wines. Recommendations include the 12.5% abv 2007 Tagus Creek Chardonnay/Fernão Pires, Ribatejo (Tesco, £3.99) and the "lightly oaked, Italianate, cherry fruity" 2005 Orovela Saperavi from Georgia (£16.99, Waitrose.com).

Atkin reports that he could "easily survive for a month" on this 12.5% delight.

Jancis Robinson MW, Financial Times, Saturday 3 January 2009
Jancis Robinson admits to some trepidation before tackling the 2007 Châteauneuf, describing it as a tannic assault on teeth and liver in previous years. But she finds that "the overall quality level was just so high that my scores and tasting notes seemed almost superfluous".

The southern Rhone generally was blessed by ripe tannins, an absence of "hot" alcoholic finishes and healthy, well-balanced grapes. Although the top-scoring wines are fetching £1,000 a case, Robinson says she "scattered 17.5s and 17s like confetti for wines that can be found for around £200 a case in bond".

Her concluding advice: "Word is that 2008 is highly unlikely to be better and cheaper than 2007 so stock up on the vintage currently being offered."

Anthony Rose, The Independent, Saturday 3 January 2009
Anthony Rose indulges in a spot of crystal-ball gazing and sees a general trend towards trading down and a quest for good value.

Prosecco could be "the new thrifty drinking class's Champagne"; and sparklers from Tasmania and New Zealand, and crémant de Limoux from the Languedoc, don't disappoint for around £10, Rose adds.

He will not be surprised to see consumers forsaking Europe's most prestigious regions for their less acclaimed rivals - switching "from cru classé to good cru bourgeois in Bordeaux" and from "premier cru Burgundy and top Rhônes to cheaper village Burgundy and Rhône". He also believes Australia is likely to "lose its competitive edge to South Africa, Chile and Argentina", with Argentine Malbec in particular taking "a starring role" in 2009.

Jane MacQuitty, The Times, Saturday 3 January 2009
Jane MacQuitty reflects on "the worst Christmas trading in years", with take-home wine sales falling by 10% despite the deals available to cash-strapped shoppers.

The under-£6 market has suffered at the hands of Chancellor Alistair Darling and the duty increases of 2008 and MacQuitty scoffs at suggestions that the price increase will have any effect on binge drinking.

She adds: "A £3.99 wine now has more than £2.09 in VAT and duty slapped on it, and if you take into account the cost of bottling, corking and shipping, there is very little left spent on the actual cost of the wine."

MacQuitty believes that "the wine trade will have to work a lot harder to sell to British drinkers, and most of us will be trading down in order to continue to drink wine every day."

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