Two lovely wines...

It's fair to say that my wine consumption habits are probably not the ideal pre-marathon training - however, in my pursuit of good-for-age running times, I am not prepared to don the hair shirt, which therefore tells you enough in the way of revealed preference for the amateur psychologist amongst you about the relative importance of the goal to me...ie important but not a 'be-all-and-end-all' kind of thing.

So, the weekend prior to the marathon, two lovely wines to titivate the palate. 

First up, Petaluma Riesling 2011 (Waitrose, about £11?). This was so perfect with a stir-fry, all lovely ripe citrus and lime fruits, juiciness personified in the mouth, and with a clean finish that just lingered on. These cool-climate Rieslings from Australia (Clare Valley this time) are just sensational. And, whilst they are not exactly unknown to the wine drinking community, still, I think that too many people are put off by a tall brown bottle - some kind of Pavlovian reaction kicks in and they think of the horrible sweet liebfraumilch drunk in their youth! Away with such thoughts, this is NONE of that! 

Then, in the red camp, back to the world of France and Bordeaux. I have a number of 2002 and 2003 Bordeaux wines in the cellar and I never quite get a handle on whether they are right to drink now or not. Anyway, in this case, I seem to have hit lucky. The year was a warm one for Bordeaux, and so you are expecting a bit more in the way of blackcurranty cabernet fruit, and less of the 'cigar-box and lead pencils' that is more usually associated with a mature claret. This was in fact a real treat - good body, soft, perfumed and delicate, with plummy richness and a great finish.

A very good drinking weekend!

Pip pip