O Autumn, laden with fruit, and stain’d with the blood of the grape, pass not, but sit beneath my shady roof; there thou may’st rest… William Blake
Autumn is a time to get reacquainted with flavour. Bold and brash barbecues become slow-cooked stews or roasts. In other words, Autumn is a wine lover’s dream.
Meat lovers rejoice
Syrah and Syrah blends from the old world, with their rich peppery fruit and superb complexity, are extremely versatile and the perfect accompaniment to game, strongly flavoured meats and earthy flavours. These wines are the perfect foil for partridge and pheasant.
If you like a bigger, darker, more powerful red wine, the new world Shiraz is for you.
Vegetarians delight
Many delicious root vegetables, wild mushrooms and delicacies such as chestnuts will also benefit from the rich and medium to full bodied autumnal favourites. If your palate favours more savoury, slightly restrained wines with leathery notes, you should stick to the Rhone.
If Rhone’s not your thing
If the Rhone doesn’t interest you, consider Spain’s favourite wine, Rioja, or a Grenache (Garnacha), for similar full-bodied, spicy notes. See, there really is something for everyone this season.
What will our experts be drinking?
Will Hargrove – “Old world: Cornas VV 2011, Tardieu-Laurent – deep fruit, black more than red with a cool graphite spiciness, uncompromising and proper. New World: Reunion Shiraz The Lane 201o, a dash of sweetness to add to this rich but not heavy black fruited wine, a little spice but more than anything this has a texture to die for. Pair with almost all beef and venison, especially casseroles and slow cooked meat dishes.”
Sara Guiducci – “Pair your Syrah’s with pigeon or grouse, although take care not to choose a wine with strong tannins for the latter.”
Oliver Hartley – “My perfect Syrah pairing would be St Joseph from Tardieu-Laurent served with roast shoulder of lamb laced with rosemary and garlic and simple roasted winter root vegetables. So much better than many Cote-Rotie. I’ll taste one tonight and get back to you!”
Thibaut Mathieu – “I’ll be pairing Syrah’s with Mediterranean cuisine, meat, steak, meat, steak and meat… and here Gonnet Cotes-du-Rhone is unbeatable for the price. It punches way above its AOC CRD rank, is very pleasant and easy to drink but not shallow. It has a good depth of fruit and nice black pepper notes. Tardieu-Laurent ‘Cornas’ is another very elegant, intense yet pleasant wine to drink now. The name Cornas refers to how hot this part of the Rhone is – in summer one would transform into a human torch within few seconds. Perhaps that’s why wines from Cornas (in the Rhone) are concentrated with a hint of wood fire aromas. Cornas wines also display a lovely juicy texture that you don’t get in Hermitage and Cote-Rotie. I like the ripe black and red fruit flavours, the meaty characters and the well-integrated spice.”
What will you be drinking this Autumn?