The 2010 Bush Vines, Chenin Blanc from Zalze is still very youthful with fresh, floral aromas. Easy drinking with a touch of sweetness – it has 3.8 g/l residual sugar. 60% of the grapes were harvested in a slightly botrytised state to give richness, while 40% were harvested earlier to provide freshness and acidity. Pleasantly easy drinking at present – somewhat two dimensional but could gain additional complexity with a year or two in bottle. A sample – currently available in the UK through Waitrose@£6.49.

The Zalze is closed with a screwcap, which is a reminder that 10 years ago 16 Riesling producers in Australia's Clare Valley bottled their 2000 vintage in screwcap, provoking a revolution that continues to this day.

I would love to tell you what this 1983 from the Rhine tasted like but the cork had fallen in and over the years the wine had seeped out leaving only a tiny dribble in the bottom. An old example of Sainbury's Vintage Selection range from the time when Sainbury's did rule the UK High Street!

1976 Riesling Reserve, Cave Coop de Bennwihr-Redgarten

The second bottle was a 1976 Alsace Riesling. Fortunately the cork was intact and hadn't fallen into the bottle but the colour was quite developed as the photo above shows – a light mahogany with a considerably oxidised nose like a good dry fino from Jerez. However the taste was still fresh and clean but complex with a long mineral flavour. Was the cork right? Would other bottles of the same wine been less deep coloued and less oxidised on the nose? I'm not in a position to say, although my guess is that had it been closed with a screwcap both the colour and the aromas would have been less developed.

All in all probably a testament to the staying power of Riesling!

Lahore Kebab House,  2-4 Umberston Street London E1 1PY

Extending the East London Line down into Forest Hill and onwards to Crystal Palace and West Croydon has opened up parts of the East End of London to inhabitants of SE23. True it was always been possible to catch a train from Forest Hill to New Cross Gate and then change onto the East London Line for stations to Whitechapel but it was more of a effort and the service was less frequent than it is now.

Last Monday three of us went to the Lahore Kebab House, a short walk from Shadwell Station. A friend had recommended it as one of his favourite 'Indian' restaurants. The Lahore is obviously very popular and has room for 350 people on two floors. The service was very efficient and friendly, the food excellent and amazingly reasonably priced – just over £37 for three people and we couldn't eat anymore! 

We started with some vegetable and lamb samosas. For mains we choose the fish curry, butter chicken and the karahi gosht plus a daal tarka with rice and some nans.

2006 Steingarten Riesling, Barossa, Jacob's Creek

The Lahore doesn't have a licence but you can take your own wine, beer etc. On this occasion we didn't take any Loire wine instead I selected the 2006 Steingarten Riesling, Barossa (closed with a screwcap) from Jacob's Creek. Excellent citric and minerally Riesling that made a fine apéritif. Definitely a remind that top of the range Jacob's Creek should not be dismissed out of hand.

1997 The Signature, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz, Barossa, Yalumba

Fortunately I had opened The Signature at home before we left to check that it wasn't corked. Although it wasn't TCA affected, the cork broke off three quarters of the way in where it appeared to have glued itself to the bottle. It was extremely difficult to get the remaining fragment either out of the bottle or (not the preferred option) into the wine. I managed to make enough of a hole to be able to decant the wine into a spare screwcap bottle. It was well worth the trouble as the 1997 had lovely rich, soft black fruits and certainly flavoursome enough to stand up to the curries. Yet another disadvantage of cork! 

From Wednesday to Sunday the Lahore offers a number of specials, so we will have to go back for these. Furthermore the East London Line is now also extended northwards to Dalston Junction, where I gather there are some very good Turkish restaurants to explore. 

Lahore Kebab House,  2-4 Umberston Street London E1 1PY
Tel: 020-7481 9737
Email: contact@lahore-kebabhouse.com

RSJ Restaurant

Last night we had dinner with Jean-Pierre and Florence Chevallier (Château de Villeneuve) at the RSJ Restaurant in London's Waterloo. JP and Florence are over for their UK importer's Thorman Hunt tasting which is on today.

One hesitates to take non-Loire wines to the RSJ Restaurant. Out of some 200-250 references on the wine list, there are just nine outside the Loire Valley – three Champagnes, three Beaujolais, a Bordeaux red and two from New Zealand – a Sauvignon Blanc and a Riesling.

However, I thought it would be interesting, even though it might shake the restaurant to its core, to share some different bottles with the Chevalliers, so I took along:

1979 Riesling Clos Ste Hune. Trimbach 

The Riesling was decanted soon after I arrived and briefly served blind. Jean-Pierre immediately thought it was either an old Chenin or a Riesling – remarking that as wines from these two varieties quite often show considerable similarities with some age. Although not kept in the best conditions since we bought it sometime in the early 1980s at Trimbach in Ribeauville,  the 1979 showed well with dry honey on the nose, a steely edged richness that developed in the glass and clean blade-like Riesling acidity.

2000 Syrah, Montes Alpha

The 2000 Montes Alpha Syrah was also decanted and like the Riesling showed well and developed in glass. Mid-weight and attractively spicy with a smokiness and although different from a northern Rhône had a restrained finesse – certainly not in your face New World Shiraz. JP remarked that it went particulalry well with his duck breast.

We finished with a glass or so of the 2007 Les Rouannières from Château Pierre-Bise – zippy citrus fruits with lovely freshness, balance and precision.

Jean-Pierre Chevallier will be back at the RSJ with Yannick Amirault when they will be starring in a double bill – a tasting and dinner on Tuesday 13th April. 

*

Decalaration: Jim is a consultant to the RSJ Restaurant.

Wehlener Sonnenuhr – early morning 10th June 2006

The world famous Mosel vineyards are threatened by the building of a new motorway bridge. Here is an opportunity to add your name to the petition protesting against the construction.

Message from Sarah Washington:
'A small practical task to help save the Mosel valley and Riesling vines from desecration.

The German gourmet magazine DER FEINSCHMECKER has begun an online petition to help save the valley and vines from the politician's bulldozers and concrete.

On the left hand side of the following web page you will find an English translation of the petition and instructions on how to fill it in. The petition is further down in the centre of the same page.

http://www.b50neu.de/feinschm_e.html

You have until the 1st of December to sign the petition and circulate this link wildly. (After so doing you will accrue undying appreciation from all corners of the planet.)

News in brief:

Building work is moving ahead in several places (digging holes and clearing land). To counter this the debate is finally hotting up here in Germany. On Tuesday 3rd November the story was covered on the highly respected investigative news show Frontal21: http://frontal21.zdf.de/ZDFde/inhalt/13/0,1872,7921069,00.html'

Related articles

Jancis Robinson MW: Please fight Mosel madness 11 May 2009
Jancis Robinson MW: Last chance to stop the bridge 17 August 2009
Mike Steinberger (Slate: 10th September 2009): I'm tasting tar, traffic cones, motor oil...

Echoes from the New York Times of an earlier fight to save the vineyards of Vouvray from the TGV. The plan to build a cutting through the vineyards was abandoned. Instead the line was moved a little further east and sent through a tunnel with the tracks laid on a rubber carpet so that bottles of Vouvray being stored above would not be shaken.

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• A tragedy unfolds in Germany's Mosel region (wineanorak.com)

Jamie Goode: wine anorak blog 19th October 2008

‘As I've said before on this blog, if you are in the wine trade you have no choice about which your favourite white grape is. It *just* has to be Riesling. Well, with wines like this, it's not difficult. It's beautifully balanced and delicious. The only problem? It should really be a pound or two cheaper, I think.

Reichsrat von Buhl Riesling QBA 2007 Pfalz, Germany’

Much as I admire Jamie on this occasion he is wrong. Riesling is certainly not my favourite grape variety – Chenin Blanc, the world’s most versatile grape, is., although Riesling is an honourable runner-up.