For winelovers, Christmas is a time when we look forward to drinking – and even sharing – a special bottle or two. This might be a classic wine with traditional fare or just something different we’ve wanted to try for a while. I asked some wine loving friends what they were looking forward to and they have kindly agreed to write a blog post for me.
Richie Magnier blogs under the alias of The Motley Cru and is the longest serving wine writer for thetaste.ie.
Fear is the reason I’ll be drinking this wine this Christmas.
I received this unusual-looking Hungarian red as a birthday present four years ago, and even at that time this 2002 vintage was mature. It was stashed away to be enjoyed on a special occasion and – as is often the case with special wines – soon forgotten.
I only remembered it again last month, and in a blind panic I Coravined a glass of it in full expectation that it was by now dead and gone. Thankfully, my fears were misjudged. What I experienced in the small glass I poured myself was a wine only now entering the tertiary stage, and still brimming with blowsy, big fruit.
It just screams ‘winter wine’: it’s big, full and round, with lush black and red fruit; lots of smoke, clove and tobacco, with some leather creeping in; concentrated and long with baking spice, pepper and much more going on. I can see it opening up over the course of a night, ideally in front of a fire, turning tricks and metamorphosing in the glass.
The Gere Attila winery endearingly calls Kopar its “emblematic top wine” that is “made only in the best years”. Grapes are sourced from vineyard around the town of Villány in southern Hungary, near the Croatian border.
It’s a blend of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon – what many will call a “Bordeaux Blend” – and is aged for 16-18 months in barriques. So this is essentially a “Hungarian Super Tuscan”. However you want to label it, it’s damn good stuff. It will be enjoyed slowly over the course of an evening, ideally on Christmas Day, where its Christmas cake flavours will feel right at home.
Gere Kopar 2002 (14.5%): RSP €50 from The Corkscrew
The full series of Wines at Xmas:
- Wines at Xmas #1 – Moscato d’Asti – Sam Logan of WinesDirect
- Wines at Xmas #2 – Champagne Pierre Moncuit – Jérémy Delannoy of SIYPS
- Wines at Xmas #3 – Au Bon Climat Pinot Noir – Carol Smaul of Gin & Griddle
- Wines at Xmas #4 – Ch Phelan Segur 2010 – Phil Green of Phil My Glass
- Wines at Xmas #5 – Charles Heidsieck & Casa Ferreirinha Vinha Grande Douro Tinto – Joe Coyle of Liberty Wines
- Wines at Xmas #6 – Bellavista Franciacorta – Jean Smullen of Movies + Booze
- Wines at Xmas #7 – Antoniolo Gattarina & Pfalz Riesling – Jim Dunlop
- Wines at Xmas #8 – Maison Róisín Curley & Le Grappin – Mick O’Connell MW
- Wines at Xmas #9 – Finca Allende Rioja & Weingut Winter Rheinhessen ‘Kloppberg’ Riesling – Colly Murray of RetroVino
- Wines at Xmas #10 – Conde Valdemar Gran Reserva Rioja & Warre’s Otima 10 Tawny Port – Kerri Judge of Febvre Wines
- Wines at Xmas #11 – Elio Perrone Moscato d’Asti – James Hubbard
- Wines at Xmas #12 – Furlan Rose & Ca’Salina Giorgia -Julia Phillips of Just Perfect Wines
- Wines at Xmas #13 – Mas Coutelou – Alan March of A March in the Vines
- Wines at Xmas #14 – Gere Kopar 2002 – Richie Magnier of A Motley Cru
- Wines at Xmas #15 – Moment of Silence 2015 Blank Bottle & Emilien Château le Puy 2014 – Barbara Boyle MW of WineMason
- Wines at Xmas #16 – Domaines Schlumberger Riesling Grand Cru Saering 2014 & Castello di Fonterutoli Gran Selezione Chianti Classico 2013 – Effi Tsournava of Maisons Marques et Domaines & effidrinkswine.com
- Wines at Xmas #17 – Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona Pianrosso Brunello di Montalcino – Sorcha Holloway of Away With Wine
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