You don't have to spend a fortune on top-end Bordeaux and Burgundy to start collecting and ageing wine. There are quite a few sure bets out there that cost £25 or under, and also some good everyday options that do last a suprisingly long time and make interesting "project bottles" for the aspiring wine afficionado. You may raise an eyebrow at my suggestion that £25 for a bottle of wine is not a fortune, but by Claret standards it isn't.

The sure bets would include Chablis Premier Cru from decent producers like Domaine Christian Moreau and (soon to arrive on our shelves) Domaine des Malandes. The former's Chablis Premier Cru Vaillons 2010 (£23) is going to get more honeyed as it ages, but is likely to retain a balancing freshness for 5 or 6 years at least before it begins to seem "mature" and will last a few years after that. German Rieslings can also be very long-lived and something like the (deep breath) Mosel Riesling Spaetlese Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr  2007 from Max Ferd. Richter (£20), whilst already evolving, has a long future ahead of it; buy 2010 German Riesling at this sort of quality level, be it dry or off-dry, and it should last into the next decade. For reds, there are some perhaps surprising choices from the New World. It's rare to find aged South American reds in the UK but I have had some brilliant examples from both Chile and Argentina. You could try sticking away the Arboleda Cabernet Sauvignon 2008 from the Maule Valley (£15.50) for five years. From South Africa, Meerlust's famed Stellenbosch Rubicon 2007 Bordeaux Blend (£1 more than my £25 limit!) actually needs a few years to knit together, and will hit its peak around 2017, I reckon.

For a bargain white that can be very interesting with a few year's age, you can try hiding away a Muscadet Sevre et Maine Sur Lie, like our Christophe Drouard 2010 (£10). In reds, consider Cotes du Rhone: good examples now push above £10 per bottle but they do tend to hold their own for anything up to a decade, maybe a bit more in the right vintage. The Domaine de l'Espigouette 2010 Cotes du Rhone (£11.50) is a new vintage of a wine we have enjoyed in the past, and will gain more a savoury edge to its ripe berry fruit if you can be patient.

Tom

My dream house would probably have a pukka cellar, or temperature-and-humidity- controlled room, a spiral cellar, or at very least a big tall wine cabinet. But many of us can't necessarily afford these options, or are living in rented accomodation, or have yet to build up a collection to make them seem worthwhile. I paln to discuss these options, however, in a subsequent post.

When starting out as a wine collector, the standard wine-rack-under the stairs may have to suffice. You might want to check that there isn't too much vibration in the area as this can harm the ageing process. Also make sure that there are no heat sources nearby. The key with keeping wine is temperature consistency, so you need to avoid the sort of temperature spikes that might be caused by nearby heating on a timer, or by white goods. Avoiding direct sunlight is also important. The ideal temperature for keeping wine is probably around 14-16 degrees. You can keep wine in a warmer environment - it will age quicker, but as long as the temperature is not too variable it should be okay.

It always annoys me when I see adverts for fitted kitchens and they have built in wine racks right next to the oven. Doh! And the other classic cock-up is to have a wine rack on top of the fridge-freezer. Because of the vent on the back of the unit, you might just as well stick your Puligny-Montrachet next to the oven. 

One way of trying to keep wine insulated from extremes in temperature is to use the foam packing that you get in some wine transit boxes. Perhaps easier is to get a basic cool box. As these are not permeable you would want to put a damp cloth in every so often so that the corks do not dry out. A certain degree of humidity is vital to keep corks elastic, though too much and your labels will suffer! Similarly we keep wine bottles on their side to preserve the corks and therefore the seal.

I'm lucky that my cupboard under the stairs wass in fact a pantry, and so is now storing my compact and bijou stash of around 100 bottles. It is on an outside wall which is mostly in shadow, so the average temperature is both very steady and low enough at about 15 degrees.

Tom

When I started out in the wine industry in the late 90s, the Beajolais scene from Abigail's Party was very much in people's minds when we reacted in horror to the suggestion of chilling reds. Partly this inflexibility was down to the fact that, in the wine trade, the only person more up his own ar**e about wine than a wineshop assistant with 6 months experience, is a sommelier with 6 months experience. But 15 years later my view has been modified;  now I have a more phlegmatic approach to what people do with wine once they've bought it from me, but more importantly I've been to enough wineries now to know just how many reds are drunk straight from the 15 degree cellar by the winemakers themselves.

I mention all of this because we seem to have a really strong demand for the sort of reds that lend themselves towards a quick spell (say 10 minutes) in the fridge. That's to say light bodied, lowish tannnins, crisp acidity but a decent amount of zippy fruit. Beaujolais such as the '09 Colonge (£10) is an obvious starting point. Our Barbera d'Asti Casareggio from Pavia (£10) is another one. There is also the Frappato grape from Sicily; our  Baccaria (£8) and the higher end 2010 from Cos (£17.50) both manage to combine lighter weighted refreshment with an appealing smooth texture. Two excellent Italian Cabernet Francs, the brightly fruity Blason (£11.75) from Friuli Isonzo, and the more spicy Tenuta di Caldella (£11) from Veneto are superb with a goats cheese salad. The other grape which comes immediately to mind is Pinot Noir - the problem is that the prices which can be attached to this grape, plus its aromatic complexity, push our willingness to serve reds cool to the limit. Which leads to the caveat of this piece: be aware when chilling reds, or expensive whites for that matter, that added refreshment comes at the expense of aroma.

Tom

Following on from our successful run of dinners with Ben Greeno we have just completed a trio of events with James Lowe, formerly head chef at St John Bread & Wine, Spitalfields. We got very positive feedback on the wines served and how they matched the food, and so thought it would be useful to communicate those pairings to the world at large.

Radishes, Trevise, Fennel & Anchovy
Champagne Gallimard Brut Réserve (£24.50)
Very primary bold, raw nibbles, and so we went for what is effectively our house bubbly. It’s 100% Pinot Noir but not labelled as a Blanc de Noirs, presumably as the style is much more restrained than that designation might imply. Still it has enough rounded fruit for these ingredients; a better bet than a zippy, minerally Chardonnay-based wine.

Razor Clam & Sorrel
Ribeiro 2009 Coto de Gomariz (£15.00)
This Galician wine is a brilliant seafood allrounder and gained several comments of “perfect match”. The sorrel element in this dish was served as a liquefied sauce, and added a strong green leafy element to the flavours. Accordingly I would not serve an Albarino because the emphasis there is on apricot; the Ribeiro being a blend of several grapes has a green element to it (I often use colours to describe aromas) and so pairs more successfully.

Raw Rib, Oyster & Chickweed
Maranges 1er Cru La Fussière 2007 Bruno Colin (£23.00)
James served this dish on all three menus as it got such a strongly positive reaction. The dish consists of shreds of raw beef served with greenleaves; with a wow factor added by an emulsion of oyster, piped onto the meat in small dots. I chose a tangy red Burgundy (Pinot Noir) partly to balance the white/red ratio in the meal. But the acidity and tangy cherry fruit contrasted very well with the fat in the beef, whilst not overpowering the subtle flavours.

Duck Egg, Alliums & Mustard
Türk Erlesenes vom Grünen Veltliner 2008 Niederösterreich (£19.00)
With the Marange being relatively light it meant we could go back to a white for the next course. Alliums are the family containing onions, leeks and garlic. Austria’s Grüner Veltliner is a great match for these; this example is a richer version which helped compliment the egg (low temperature egg yolk).

Old Spot Belly, Cauliflower & Broccoli
Ribera del Duero 2006 Dominio Romano (£29.50)
This Tempranillo is just a rung or two below full bodied with good acidity to cut through the fatty meat. You would not want a totally full bodied wine with this.

Cheesecake, Rhubarb & Ginger Crumb
Moscatel Emelín Dulce, Lustau (£11 half)
Many books suggest heavy with heavy, light with light when it comes to dessert wines. But often a contrast is better. Spanish Moscatel sherry will usually match any dessert that you could imagine pouring caramel sauce over – eg. a vanilla pudding, or fresh fruit. This worked very well, complementing the cheesecake and contrasting the rhubarb.

by Tom at Bottle Apostle