I was in the area, as you do, and as I had a little cash left on my sampling card I decided to pop into The Sampler in South Kensington.
I found I had just over £5.50 left so had to choose carefully.
First up a delicious Vin Jaune (Benoit Badoz) that was amazingly intense, dry and nutty, and only £1.90. Must explore this area more with my friends Wink and Brett.
Next, a Rioja but a special one. The Sampler is a great place for aged Rioja lovers as they always have some old bottles from the 80s and before. Today I tried a 1983 Monte Real Crianza (!) which was beautiful, cedary, baked fruit and silky smooth. A sample from 1973 for £2.10? A total bargain!
£5 very well spent
(edited to fix correct vintage for the Rioja – it was 1973, not 1983)
April 16, 2012
oh, and I almost topped up the card to spend £9 on a taster sample of Calon Segur from 1959 … but decided to stick with what was already on the card 🙂
April 16, 2012
Great to be able to try Vin Jaune in London at just £1.90 a sample… Good for them! And glad you enjoyed it too.Thanks for the link. Much as I’d love to take you on a tour of the Jura (about 2.5 hours from our French home in Haute Savoie) closer to your home in London in May there are 5 organic Jura producers there at the same time (2 at RAW and 3 at REAL). Am planning a special tasting/supper for bloggers, writers and educators on Sat 19th with a couple of them, plus wines from all 5 – Saturday 19th early evening. So if you or anyone else ‘eligible’ reading this want to come, please get in touch with me and will send you an invite.