Giffords Hall St Edmundsbury 2016

From - Suffolk, England (yes, it's true!)
Grape - Rondo
Alcohol - 10.5%
Available from - giffordshall.co.uk, Suffolk Food Hall.
Price - £13.95

Appearance - Clear, medium- intensity, purple.

Nose - Clean, medium intensity, black fruit (blackcurrant, blackberry, red fruit (plums, redcurrant, charry), floral (violets).  Youthful.

Palate - Dry, medium intensity, medium- alcohol, low tannin, medium body, medium+ length, medium acid.

Drink now, very good quality.

It is great to be able to give a positive review to a wine that has been grown and made right here in Suffolk.

This is a lovely, smooth and fruity red.  Lighter and with lower alcohol, it would be great on a warm day, and would even work well lightly chilled.  It would be a good match for Sunday lunch or Italian dishes.

Giffords Hall is a wonderful place to visit, and I would encourage East Anglian readers in particular to head down there as soon as you can, for a visit (but ring them first!).

Chapel Down Bacchus 2013

Wine - Chapel Down Bacchus 2013
From - Tenterden, England
Grape - Bacchus
Alc - 12%
Price - £12.99
From - Waitrose

Appearance - Clear, pale, lemon-green.  Rim more intense than core.

Nose - Clean, medium intensity, developing.  Lime, herbs, apple and nettle.

Taste - medium acid, medium alcohol, medium body.  Lime, apple, grass, gooseberry and possibly a touch of vegetal.  Medium + length.

Quality - Good, mid-price, ready to drink.

Balance - 7/10, Length - 7/10  Intensity - 6/10  Complexity - 7/10

For the first one on my blog, I have chosen an English wine from Tenterden in Kent.  Bacchus is quite similar to Sauvignon Blanc.  It is named after the God of getting drunk!  When grown in England, and therefore in a cooler climate, it is more acidic.

I found it refreshing and could identify the similarity to Sauvignon Blanc.  It tasted like SB but also reminded me of a simple Chardonnay.  I would say that you could probably get a bit better value from a Sauv Blanc from, say Chile for the same price or less.  However I think it is terrific that this wine was made so close to home.

The nose and length were both very good.  I would drink this again.