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Ten Green Bottles 2010 Tasting

One of the delights of the growth of the internet has been the arrival of numerous small and independent wine merchants online, often run by individuals or small teams with a passion for wine, and often catering for niche markets overlooked by the bigger 'bricks-and-mortar' (or 'clicks-and-mortar' as those with an online presence came to be known) merchants.

One such specialist merchant is Ten Green Bottles, a business born out of the experiences of founding partner Sam Devaney when living in Tuscany. Having discovered a fabulous range of unsung wines he joined forces with ex-Hotel du Vin manager Simon Broad to establish Ten Green Bottles with the sole aim of importing these wonderful and yet undiscovered expressions of regionality into the UK. Although it was only natural that they kicked off with Italy the range has since expanded a little, and there are now also wines from Muscadet and Saumur in the Loire Valley, another source of unsung and great-value wines. The business is expanding too - on the back of intense interest from the on-trade Ten Green Bottles are now reaching out directly to consumers, with the acquisition of retail premises in Brighton. This is clearly a merchant going places.

I was recently fortunate enough to taste four wines from the range, bottled provided by Ten Green Bottles, two white and two red, naturally dominated by Italian styles. The two whites were both little stunners, the fascinating Falanghina from Cantina del Taburno a recent wine of the week, although in terms of pure pleasure I thought the Saumur Blanc Scherzo from Domaine de la Paleine edged it. The reds were less extroverted affairs, both however very pure expressions of their origins which is of course a central feature of the Devaney-Broad philosophy.

I have indicated the prices of the wines as provided by Ten Green Bottles and, as usual, I have also included wine-searcher links to facilitate open comparison with other retailers. I have no commercial dealings with Ten Green Bottles at the time of writing this. (29/4/10)

Ten Green Bottles - Tasting Notes

Tasted in March 2010. Click to locate stockists.

Cantina del Taburno Falanghina 2008: Hand-harvested and fermented in stainless steel, before bottling two months later. Under DOC regulations the wine must be at least 85% Falanghina, so there may be up to 15% other varieties, such as Greco (as in Greco di Tufo, another well-known locally produced wine), Coda di Volpe and so on. It has an attractive green-tinged hue in the glass, and an open nose of honeydew melon and pear, cut through with a nice suggestion of minerals. Clean and well defined on entry, then showing a very flattering weight juxtaposed against a fine and zippy acidity, then broadening out in terms of flavour to reveal notes of pineapple, all the while maintaining a bright, fresh acid core. Fresh and lightly bitter in a delicious, savoury way. Overall, not only is this a fascinating wine, but it is also a very good one to drink! 16.5/20 (£8.49)

Domaine de la Paleine Saumur Blanc Scherzo 2008: This is 100% Chenin Blanc from a tuffeau terroir, biodynamic and hand-harvested. The nose is delightfully fresh and open, full of aromatic citrus fruits with a tinge of minerals, orange peel swirled with pear. The palate has a lovely gras to it, a weighty but bright and vigorous entry broadening out in the midpalate to melange of pithy citrus fruits, stones and minerals. Fresh, vivacious, carrying its 14% alcohol remarkably gracefully, with superb acidity cutting through a wealth of fruit and a well-judged texture, this is a pleasure to drink now. But on the substance there is a bitter grip and a tangible solid texture, both of which suggest to me that this wine would do very well in the cellar for a few years too. Delicious stuff. 17+/20 (£10.99)

Mauro Molino Langhe Nebbiolo 2008: Alcohol 13.5%. A very deep and dusty hue in the glass; it has the hue of a very mature wine already, despite its considerable youth. The nose starts off with a mix of cherry and charcoal, with warm roasted elements, before settling down to a hot stone and liquorice-tinged style of fruit, with touches of high-toned angelica. Although very warm on the nose the texture on the palate is restrained, framed by very firm acidity, with roasted fruit flavours in the middle. Some distant midpalate tannins flourish in the finish, around some chalky-earthy flavours. Certainly a distinctive style very true to the region. 14.5+/20 (£10.99)

San Giusto A Rentennano Chianti Classico 2007: From the hand of Martini di Cigala comes this wine, a blend of 95% Sangiovese and 5% Canaiolo fermented in steel and cement and which then spends 12 months in large oak casks, most in 700-litre tonneaux and the rest in even larger vessels. A dark cherry hue in the glass, quite a clear wine, and a nose of dusty plum skins, cherries and old wooden drawers rubbed with liquorice; I also sense a little alcohol, betraying this wine's 14%. Rather a supple, middleweight start on the palate, unfolding to reveal a layer of dried plums backed up by ripe and soft tannins at the edges, but most of all a firm core of acidity. Some heat in the finish. A spicy style, upright and bordering on austere in structure, characteristics that really place this wine in the 'needs-food' category. 14.5+/20 (£16.99)