House Wine: White
This year saw something very unusual: four of our five Gold Listed house whites came from one country: South Africa. Of course, the exchange rate might be helping keep the prices down, but this was still an impressive performance by the Cape’s wineries, with two Sauvignons and two Chenins under £5.60.
In fact, even beyond South Africa, our tasters were happy with what they tried here. You’d expect a lot of Commendeds (and a lot of wines not getting awards at all) but what was left was often astonishingly good for money.
From The Tasting Teams
‘I did not go in with high hopes, but I was pleasantly surprised. There was good winemaking here.’ Jan Konetzki, team leader
‘It’s important to have recognisable regions or names for your house wine, as people will recognise that and order it.’ Tanguy Martin, Blandford Comptoir
‘A house wine must have drinkability over anything else. It must be adaptable and customer friendly, with no quirkiness for the sake of it. It should make people feel they are getting something really good.’ Martin Lam, consultant
‘A house wine has to be a democratic wine. It’s got to be something that lots of people will enjoy, and it should have typicity.’ James Fryer, team leader
‘It represents your establishment, so when you are not pleasing your customers with the house wine, it’s a snowball effect. The first appearance has to be a “wow” experience.’ Rémi Cousin, Le Gavroche
‘In this category you’re looking for value for money. But even at this price you want something with a bit of length.’ Michael Fiducia, Royal Automobile Club
‘I was impressed by the average quality here. Most of them would be really good by the glass for a wide range of venues.’ Filippo Pastorini, consultant