There is an abundance of bland, flavourless wines available to buy. The reason is simple. In order to maintain a very low price, high volumes must be sold and therefore, the wine has to be palatable to as many consumers as possible. As taste is a very personal and individual sense, a wine created to appeal to the mass market cannot express strong, distinct characteristics – to do so would be to lower the number of potential buyers.
Full flavoured, carefully crafted wines cannot be created in high volumes – the yield from the vines needs to be controlled and each step of the production process is more labour intensive in order to react to the specific qualities of the harvest. Therefore, the price tag must be higher, not always a great deal higher, but the £4 -£6 price point is just not possible.
But as I stated in my previous blog entry, I don’t want to be a wine snob! Although I prefer full, complex flavours in the wines I choose for my wine tasting events and for personal consumption, there are occasions when I hanker for a simple, easy-drinking wine. And of course for a party, when catering for many guests each with a preference for a different style of wine, there is a need for something with a certain mass appeal.
So when I attended the Bibendum Pop Up Tasting in London at the end of January, one of the things I was searching for was a low priced, easy drinking wine that hit the lower price band. But I didn’t want bland! I accept WHY so many cheaper wines on offer lack character but was hoping this wasn’t an actual prerequisite!
I wasn’t disappointed! A solution was found in the Alto Bajo range of wines from Central Valley, Chile. The quality of the flavours was consistent across the whole range and the obvious advantage of choosing several single grape varietals is that each style will cater for certain tastes, meaning that it is not necessary to rely on a single wine to satisfy the tastes of everyone.
The Alto Bajo Sauvignon Blanc was very fresh and vibrant with a great deal of zestiness and for those who prefer a much softer, rounder white, the Chardonnay was perfect, smooth with a touch of creaminess on the finish. The Rosé had hints of sweetness and was bursting with Summer berry fruits. The Merlot had an abundance of cherry with ripe, round flavours while the Cabernet Sauvignon would appeal to the red wine drinkers with a preference for a dryer, firmer structure with bramble and blackcurrant flavours.
These are not wines that I would serve up as a tasting experience – but for easy-drinking enjoyment at £5.75 a bottle (available at Fisher’s, Gerrards Cross or online (in the very near future) at www.vinbiz.co.uk the range covers a variety of tastes in very good style!
The Bibendum tasting didn’t only provide a solution to the need for good flavours at a lower price point – my next entry will describe the exciting flavours expressed by wines grown in volcanic soil in the Basilicata region of Italy. Until then……..
