Last night at Libby and Hoddy's he got carried away and tried to sort the above problem. He started with non-stop raving – and pouring – about Portugal where they were on hols. Our friends showed them their secrets – and we drank a couple or so.
Then Mark's latest bottling: the 2010 Clairet. That's for me, this Summer!
Then he went mad. And opened his first ever wine: called Le Nain Violet 'O3, a Grenache from Maury. Amazing. Funny how so often a winemaker's first-ever wine is one of the best he ever makes! Then a lovely Burgundy: Givry from Bernard Derain, who's sent me some Summer drinking, then a velvet melting cushion of a sweet red: the 2009 Maury by Daniel Laffite at Domaines des Soulanes. Daniel is the man Mark says inspired him to buy vines and make wine in Maury.
At least I think that was what he said, but by then things were confused. Right next door, 3000 people were roaring away at the Battle re-enactment and fireworks were going off. Libby was telling us behind-the-scenes stories as she goes and dresses up as an English soldier most nights. She poured me in a taxi when Mark fell asleep …
And today something similar happened at Anne-Marie and Vincent's, with bottles culminating in the 'O9 wine called 'Ad Francos.' He's made this gorgeous wine under Michel Roland's tutelage for his Belgian owners over at Francs – the almost-forgotten region next to Castillon.
Ye Gods! My old teachers here would never believe – were they able to come back on earth – that such a glorious wine could be made in little old Francs. The secret is – mostly – new-barrel-fermenting, apparently.
Our lot have been talking about doing this. They really, really should.
I need Barbara to get here and cut down these excesses
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