Ladies Night  on the 13th June 2023

Our Ladies Night started off with a Fratelli Berlucchi Franciacorta Freccianera Brut 2014 (Farsons Direct €32.65)  I found this Italian bubbly very fit for purpose, quite complex and traditional with the baked yeasty flavours typical of vintage champagne.  It is a blend of Chardonnay, Pinot Blanc and Noir and the 2014 was particularly successful having received a 93/100 review from Wine Enthusiast and a 91/100 from Wine Spectator.

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With our starter we had Amador Medrano Finca Valdegamarra Tempranillo Blanco 2021 (Spaniche wines €17.50).  This white Rioja was quite aromatic and oaky, not my favourite and a little heavy for the first course we had but would have gone great with a heavier dish.  It also had received good 90+ reviews including a 90/100 from Tim Atkin.

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For the main course we had a Luciano Sandrone Nebbiolo D’Alba Valmaggiore 2020 (Farsons Direct €36.88 ) This wine ranked fifth among the wines from this region with respect to number of awards won (multiple reviews with 91 and 92)  I felt that this wine had great structure and a good balance between tannins and acidity and I enjoyed the flavours and aromas of red fruits -mainly cranberry and cherry -, wild herbs and dried flowers.

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With our pudding we went for a Dürnberg Grüner Veltliner Eiswein 2018 (Spaniche wines €23)  this was very lush with rich tropical fruits yet adequately balanced by the acidity.

I think that the first ladies night went well and our better halves cannot complain that we did not get them the same quality we get for our tastings.  The venue was a bit disappointing, the food quality was good enough but the service and the wine glasses left much to be desired – lesson learned