Hello again!
This month I must tell you about our Easter trip to Ludlow in Shropshire, in my view the culinary capital of England! We stayed at a hotel just the other side of the river from the ruined castle which gave us a pleasant ten minute stroll to get to the town square. The small historic centre of Ludlow is jammed full of medieval buildings that lean at all sorts of angles and it’s a wonder that they don’t fall down! Around the square are small lanes and around them are some hidden gems of restaurants and most importantly, right on the square is the local wine merchants!
We found a fabulous little restaurant called The Olive Branch, they were serving good home cooked food, both during the day and in the evening. We had a fabulous meal there and brought two of their own cookery books, so we can replicate the food at home.
The wine shop at Ludlow had a New Zealand promotion on while we were there, which set me thinking about the wine to talk to you about this month, so I will take you back to my favourite location for white wine – New Zealand and the wonderful Sauvignon Blanc’s that they produce. After our trip there two years ago, I’ve been ‘researching’ wines from many of the different producers that import to the UK, I am always on the lookout for one I haven’t tried before.
This month’s wine was actually a half price special down from £9.99 to £4.99. There can be a number of reasons for discounting wine and as we found a few years ago with another wine, this can be because they’re promoting a new wine and this one is just that. And what a surprise, it’s a pleasant, well balanced wine with good acidity. In fact it was so nice we got a box of 6, summer is coming after all and the weather IS going to be sunny this year, so they won’t be wasted!
Winery: Shelter Bay
Year: 2008
Region: Marlborough
Grape: Sauvignon Blanc
Alcohol Strength: 13%
Colour: Light ruby
Bouquet: Blackcurrant, gooseberry and passion fruit
Flavour: Intensely flavoured, rich and silky with a hint of nettle.
Food Match: Almonds and olives or lighter deserts and fruit
Price: £4.99 (reduced from £9.99)
Available: Sainsburys
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