Mr D Irving has been our chairman for three years and will retire next month. He presented our January meeting as his "Swan Song". The evening was a light-hearted blind tasting quiz, played in teams with about six members. During the evening six wines were served. The teams were asked to identify the country or region of origin, age, and strength of each wine.
The winning team went by the name of "Gandalf". A bonus prize was given to the "Sedimentary my dear Watson" team. "New kids on the block" received the wooden spoon.
Thirty members attended our February meeting, which was a tasting of some of the best wines presented to the society in the last year. With wines ranging from dry English rosé through sparkling New Zealand white to rich Argentinean Malbec, there was something to please everyone, and a good deal to delight most.
During the meeting the AGM was held. The new chairman, Simon Lawson, thanked the retiring chairman Derek Irving, for his contribution to the society over the past three years. A new committee was elected, and the results of the membership survey were presented.
Just less than fifty members and guests were treated to a sparkling evening when four of our members presented "Tastes of Italy". While Mr and Mrs Brough introduced wines, Mr and Mrs Hardy dashed between tables delivering a selection of home cooked Italian delicacies to complement them.
The two points: that Italian wine is underrated, and it is made to accompany food, were convincingly demonstrated. Against a background of Italian flags our speakers recounted with enthusiasm the fruits of their research. Highlighting subtleties of tastes and explaining practical points of winemaking and cookery, we were led from a sparkling Prosecco through a series of white and red wines finishing with a rare red Samir. Our thanks are due to the Broughs and Hardys for an outstanding evening.
Our April meeting was called "First Impressions". Two of our members J Combes and C Norbury examined the devices used to entice us to select one wine from the range on the supermarket shelf.
The forty-five members and guests were able to sample wines from frosted bottles, and bottles varying in colour from deep blue to purple. Members were challenged to heat wine bottles to observe the changes in thermo-chromic (heat sensitive) labels. We drank wine with hologram labels, humorous names, and from elegant bottles with elegant labels. We also learned a good deal about adhesives and corks. Our presenters imparted a wealth of information with humour and an infectious enjoyment of their subject.
Our June meeting was a barbecue held jointly with the Carleton Club, in celebration of the Queen's Jubilee. The weather was fine, the evening was warm, the company was splendid and the food and drink were magnificent.
Ticket numbers were restricted to seventy, although there was a waiting list. The venue was resplendent with red, white and blue decorations throughout the hall, marquee and gazebos. On entry members and guests were welcomed with a glass of Australian sparkling wine, Our team of chefs provided a delicious meal. The Sad Pig Band provided entertainment and there was a bonfire and firework display. It was an enjoyable and memorable evening. Thanks are due to all those who helped.
There were around thirty members present at our September meeting. Colin Barrow and Sue Webb presented a number of wines that they had selected while in France this summer. Cheese and paté complemented the wines.
The evening was started in the French manner with a "Kir". The crème de cassis used came from Sarlet where they had stayed. We sampled three wines from Chateau Jaubertie in the Bergerac region. We were shown a short video of the chateau and vineyard. We sampled an additional Bergerac and a Cahor wine. A Monbazillac desert wine served with a Tarte au Citron, made by Mrs Hardy, rounded the evening off in splendid style.
If your experiences of Greek wines have been unlabeled jugs on evening excursions with a holiday rep, it's time to think again. This was the message delivered by Jim Duxford from Oddbins when he brought along a selection of wines from Greece.
The Greek producers have undertaken modernisation of equipment and technique. They are producing excellent wines, both from indigenous grapes like Xinomavro and Robola and from noble grapes like Syrah, Merlot and Chardonnay. Jim guided our tasting of six Greek wines, explaining the technicalities of soil, situation, fermentation and maturation. By the end of the evening we were persuaded that a Greek wine for little over £10 a bottle rivals that of other regions at three times the price.
Our November meeting was a wine quiz. Over thirty members braved wind and rain to pit their palettes against one another.
Janet Bridge from Wine Rack in Poynton hosted the evening. Wines were tasted blind with teams challenged to identify them. Janet and her colleagues Barry and Yvonne provided three possible descriptions for each wine. Discussions within teams were extremely animated, as we attempted to extract and identify all the flavours. Discriminating between St Émilion and Chilean Merlot proved too difficult for some - the coin tossing technique appeared just reliable as the conventional slurp and spit. It was an enjoyable and instructive evening. Our thanks go to Janet for the wine selection and quiz preparation.
Around forty-five members and guests attended our December meeting. The subject was sparkling wines. With a background of Christmas decorations, and a fire blazing in the hearth the mood was distinctly festive.
Our three presenters were Mr Peter Elinson, Dr Denise Brough and Mr James Simon. The various production methods for sparkling wines were outlined, and their advantages and costs were discussed. We learned what to look for in sparkling wines. We drank New-World wines made in the traditional manner. We drank two very different Champagnes, and discussed (and sampled) what should be eaten with them. We also sampled a splendid example of sparkling wine produced outside the traditional regions.
We finished our evening with an example of the sparkling red wines, which are now being produced. This presents a challenge in what to accompany it. We sampled both savouries, and sweet tastes. Opinions were split on how successful this was as a drink, and as a combination.