Monday, April 03, 2006
Corsica's wine has a big export potential
I have a thing about Corsican wine, and in particular (until very recently) I found it very annoying that these excellent wines can't be bought in the UK.
The arguments go
- that Corsican wines don't travel well
- the vineyards are too small
- the wines are of lesser quality than other French wines.
Most of the above is nonsense. You can certainly buy Corsican wines in the USA. And we've brought back as much as we can each time we visit and I've always been impressed by its quality - even when we've stashed a couple of bottles of the most delicate rosé gris in our hold-bound suitcases.
It's true that many of the better wines are grown on 15 hectare mountainside plots, but under these circumstances I'd have expected to see a thriving export trade to the more discerning elements in the UK wine trade. No sign of this - until recently.
On the quality front, I'll just mention the gold medal won recently by Clos Colombu (AOC Calvi) for its stunning and fragrant Vermentinu. The Suzzoni family and their people are to be commended for a real achievement, one that will turn a few heads in the wine trade. (I'm just sad that when I turned up at their place a week or two ago to buy some more, they were closed.)
Imagine my surprise then, when my wife spotted a Corsican Nielucciu on the shelves in Marks & Spencer. If we can get one before they are bought up, I'll let you know what it tastes like.
The honourable exception to the apparent anti-Corsican bias within the wine trade is Yapp Brothers. They are now importing a good selection of Corsican wines into the UK and you can order a case through the wine page of www.corsicaholiday.com.
The arguments go
- that Corsican wines don't travel well
- the vineyards are too small
- the wines are of lesser quality than other French wines.
Most of the above is nonsense. You can certainly buy Corsican wines in the USA. And we've brought back as much as we can each time we visit and I've always been impressed by its quality - even when we've stashed a couple of bottles of the most delicate rosé gris in our hold-bound suitcases.
It's true that many of the better wines are grown on 15 hectare mountainside plots, but under these circumstances I'd have expected to see a thriving export trade to the more discerning elements in the UK wine trade. No sign of this - until recently.
On the quality front, I'll just mention the gold medal won recently by Clos Colombu (AOC Calvi) for its stunning and fragrant Vermentinu. The Suzzoni family and their people are to be commended for a real achievement, one that will turn a few heads in the wine trade. (I'm just sad that when I turned up at their place a week or two ago to buy some more, they were closed.)
Imagine my surprise then, when my wife spotted a Corsican Nielucciu on the shelves in Marks & Spencer. If we can get one before they are bought up, I'll let you know what it tastes like.
The honourable exception to the apparent anti-Corsican bias within the wine trade is Yapp Brothers. They are now importing a good selection of Corsican wines into the UK and you can order a case through the wine page of www.corsicaholiday.com.
# posted by Derekthered @ 10:33 AM 
