Back in January we thought we’d be smart and put up a wine for the second Twitter Blind Wine Tasting that no one could possibly guess. That’s until Lar Veale came along and nailed the grape variety and the region on the head. It was sour grapes all round as we went from smug to mug.

The wine that night passing the lips of curious wine drinkers across the country was the Poggiobello Merlot. It received great praise from all involved and from our perspective it was a nice experiment to introduce something that isn’t necessarily at the top of everyone’s wine shopping list. But there’s more to Friuli than just good Merlot.

Friuli-Venezia Guila, as it’s also known, consists of 11 DOCs and 3 DOCGs. Between them there is over 30 different grape varieties grown, including those international classics, such as Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a region that has really upped its game recently as it now rubs shoulders with the likes of Tuscany in terms of quality and world prestige.

Poggiobello

We currently carry the Pinot Grigio as well as the Merlot, but the Sauvignon Blanc may well be an addition in the near future as it has really impressed at tastings. If Alsace were to produce a Sauvignon Blanc it would be exactly like the Poggiobello. Amazing concentration and fruit weight, yet it still showing incredible elegance. Quite a serious wine.

Poggiobello estate is located near the town of Oleis di Manzano (Province of Udine). The vineyards cover an area of 110 hectares (270) acres. They are terraced and cover two large amphitheatres. The soil made up of Eocene marl and sand are extremely meagre and provide excellent drainage. The weather is also very well suited for viticulture and grape ripening, especially for the white varietals that benefit from the warm breezes from the Adriatic Sea, which is only 30km away, and from the Julian Alps that protect the area from the cold winds of Northern Europe.

Borgo Magredo

All proseccos taste of apples and sometimes pears. The Borgo Magredo exudes very rich, ripe Cox’s apple and pear William. Although proseccos will never reach the heights of Champagne or their prices, this one brings the fun back into drinking bubbles, whilst possessing the finesse of a wine drinkers’ wine.

This is the heart of the Grave Friuli DOC, where the soil is referred to as “magredi” and the weather characteristics are extremely favourable. The hot summer days are followed by cool, breezy nights and the resulting temperature excursion contributes to create incredible aromas in the grapes.

Borgo Magredo is the largest estate in Friuli and is equipped with the most modern technology with an innovative vacuum-press that crushes the white grapes very gently. A few years back, Donato Lanati, one of Italy’s best oenologists, was appointed to oversee wine operations.

Is it fair to say Riesling is one of those wines you either love or hate? Remember, we’re talking about the noble variety that so many wine critics see as the best white grape with its ability to take on the character of the vineyard and deliver an astonishingly complex wine.

Everybody is entitled to an opinion, so we asked Cork wine drinker Grace Cunningham (@grayzie) why she simply doesn’t rate Riesling.

“Firstly, I must admit that I am almost exclusively a red wine drinker. My new years resolution is to push myself outside of my comfort zone and of late have endeavoured to try more white wine, including some Rieslings. Wine writers and critics regularly refer to Riesling as ‘the noble grape’ or the ‘world’s finest grape’. I fail to understand why this grape variety is deemed by some to be the epitome of white wine.

Riesling represents everything I dislike about wine. I find drinking it hard work, and obviously, this is not a quality I seek out in a wine. I find the acidity in the drier styles overpowering. In fact, the acid in some is so prevalent, it leaves a burning sensation in my throat, and I can taste little else. I don’t enjoy citrus fruits so it seems Riesling and I will never get along. The lemon characteristics are too prevalent for me. The minerality and flinty elements are also something that I just cannot enjoy. I understand that this is an expression of the terroir, but sometimes wish the grape would leave this after it in the soil.

I find the petrol aromas in older Rieslings nauseating and very off putting. If I want to experience petrol, I’ll go to my local garage! I also find the sweeter German Rieslings cloying and unpalatable. And seriously, who wants to drink a wine with an ABV of 8%. You may as well be drinking grape juice! And don’t get me started on the bottle shape…

Wine enthusiasts love Riesling and really want to share their passion. They want you to like Riesling and often offer;  ‘Well, I’m sure if you tried something sweeter/drier/New World/Old World, you’d like it. I don’t. Accept it people. I just do not like Riesling in any guise!”

Opinions, anyone?

Special thanks to Grace Cunningham.

How high is too high? A lively debate during last week had a number of our twitter followers tweeting about the strength of certain wines. “I’d suspect I’d only see one glass of that wine before passing out!” exclaimed @beckyclark in relation to a 16% ABV (Alcohol By Volume) red wine.

Now, if you’re unfamiliar with the term “balance” in wine speak, put simply, it is how well the components of the wine come together as a whole when tasted. To use an example, a wine that is sweet and fruity with very little acidity might be described as unbalanced, as the sweetness of the fruit without the acidity to back it up may taste sickly sweet. Likewise, a wine that is very high in alcohol without the fruit structure may be described as unbalanced, or hot. That “hot” element is the alcohol, and believe me, it’s unmistakeable on the palate.

A couple of weekends ago Mike and I tried a Shiraz from McLaren Vale. It was picked from a selection of South Australian reds, one of which carried a whopping 16% ABV. Perhaps the Irishman in both of us had made up our minds, or maybe we were just being curious. Either way, the wine with the highest alcohol would be getting a hammering.

I have to say, for a Shiraz at 16% ABV it managed to hide the alcohol very well, which I think is a sign of a good wine. It was more balanced than we expected, but we knew straight away this was a BIG wine. I had work the next day, so I limited my intake and took a mouthful of water for every sip of wine. Mike didn’t have to go to work the next day. His Saturday was fruitless to say the least.

So, again, how high is too high? For me, I don’t shy away from high alcohol wines. I’ve tried so many between the 14% and 15.5% mark that carry all the components, including the alcohol, incredibly well and I like big, “in your face” wines that naturally come with a high percentage. But without a doubt, caution is needed, especially if you have to work the next day. I say enjoy with a glass of water at hand and watch how much you drink as these should almost be treated as spirits in terms of strength.

From our Twitter debate, it would seem not to faze too many people, myself included. For others, they’re happy to stay well clear, but with global warming resulting in more alcoholic wines, they may soon prove difficult to avoid.

@forkncork: “Some 16 wines don’t show it. Depends on fruit , grape variety and how it’s made. Dilute or drink less?”

@oisin: “that’s too boozy – even 15% is kinda going over the top IMHO”

@grapesofsloth: “We’d lectures w / Martin Moran MW yes, he was saying the low-alcohol demand thing isn’t so strong in this country.”

@manicmammy: “Not from me, would prefer lower, that % would hit too hard. same reason I seldom if ever drink spirits. not pretty ;-(“

As of Friday 29th January at 5pm, we have 13 people taking part in our Twitter Blind Wine Tasting, but it’s not too late for you to join in this Sunday (January 31st at 8pm) if you live in Cork, as our Bandon store is open until 6pm on Saturday evening. Feel free to pop in and collect your secret bottle from there.

All you have to do on Sunday is follow Brian (@brianclayton), Kevin (@kevatfennsquay), and/or ourselves (@curiouswines), and use the tag #twebt in all your tweets.

Have fun!

Following on from the success – oh, well ok, the sheer good craic – of the Twitter Event Blind Tasting (twebt) experiment by Brian Clayton and Kevin Crowley back in November, we were honoured and delighted to be asked to pick and supply the second bottle to go into cyber-tasting!

The event is open to anyone and everyone who enjoys a glass of the old elixir, and having a bit of interaction and fun over the web while they’re at it. All you need is a Twitter account and a glass, and we’ve put together a special price to ensure you can participate from anywhere in country for less than €20.

The time for the synchronised tasting is Sunday 31st January at 8.00pm. All you have to do is follow Brian (@brianclayton), Kevin (@kevatfennsquay), and/or ourselves (@curiouswines), and use the tag #twebt in all your tweets. We’ll also post a revised listing of everyone registered by next Friday (29th) so you can follow everyone on the night.

Bottles will be wrapped discretely to hide the labels. The only rule is one of honour – you don’t look at the label until everyone’s tasted and compared notes. Other than that, it’s a free-for-all. Have a swirl, get your nose in, have a glug, tell the world.

I’ve selected the bottle myself and have put together a special price including delivery anywhere in the country, for just €19. You can also call into the warehouse here in Bandon and collect it over the counter for €14.

Click here to buy now

Last orders online Thursday 28th January, 1.00pm, or collect from the warehouse up to Saturday 30th, 6.00pm. Thanks a million to Brian and Kevin for organising and the kind invitation.

Following on from our making the shortlist for Best Ecommerce Site and Most Beautiful Website at the Irish Web Awards this coming weekend, our Twitter feed was peppered with lovely little love notes:

• @Grayzie: Well deserved nominations. If you don’t win, those peeps need their heads checked!
• @davidmcavinue: You must be running out of space on the mantlepiece. Well done!
• @brianclayton: Congratulations on the well deserved nominations there gents!

So we’ll be keeping our fingers crossed for a gong and a reason to pop open a bottle of bubbly on Saturday night- thanks for the good wishes! Speaking of wishes, there’s nothing to warm a wine seller’s heart like the sound of happy customers who’s only regret is that they didn’t buy more:

Had a lovely evening in with The Last Stand. Only sorry I got 2 bottles and not the full box.

And other nice things to read from more lovely customers:

• @Omaniblog: Curious Wines are great to deal with. I can swap the one bottle I didn’t enjoy for another – and they have so many good ones at greatprices.
• @grapes_of_sloth: I started off with your Spatlese Pinot Blanc 2005 – beautiful.

Beautiful indeed. Thanks for the love, guys

We’re proud collectors of every tweet from every fan we ever get on Twitter, but quite honestly we’d be completely happy if all of those tweets consisted of Maurice O’Mahony’s “Yummmmmmmmmmr” praise. (He’s waxing eloquent about our rich Betton, but we’d like to think it applies to all our wines.)

To add to our ego-puffing press clippings, Curious got a mention in the Drinks News column in July issue of Easy Food, Ireland’s leading food magazine. We also got a nice mention in Silicon Republic, in an article about the impact Microsoft’s Bing search engine is having on Irish business. (In our case, none.)

Right in line with our recent wedding series, Brian Clayton is pitting us (or at least our wine) against our local friendly competitors at Bubble Brothers. He’s got stacks of booze from both of us and is calling in friends, family, neighbours and strangers off the street to help him pick the best wedding wine for his sister’s wedding. Luckily there is no vintner’s equivalent to throwing down the gauntlet!

And sticking with the wedding theme (we swear we did not plan this), two of our favourite Dievolino bottles fell victim to the tempting charms of luscious, hand-made gnocchi over at The Daily Spud:

The white, Dievole Dievolino Bianco Malvasia, was a very pleasant little number, smooth and with a little citrusy tang, which went down a treat with the gnocchi and made for a very happy first date. The red, Dievole Dievolino Rosso Sangiovese, with its healthy tannin hit, was a cracker which warmed up beautifully and for which all present declared immediate and undying love.

That’s the sort of love story we like to read about!

Yes we are slackers, but we do genuinely love our ardent Curious fans and so Monthly Love is back with a bang. (Our apologies for being tardy the last few months – we were waylaid by a warehouse full of wine.)

The New Zealand wine tasting event went down a treat with the punters; Robert Francis Wine has a full set of tasting notes and ManicMammy offered up (not turned up!) her nose as well. Brian Clayton shared his thoughts as a first-time eventer, although the title Wine Tastings are Fun! is pretty much all we needed to hear to make our hearts overfloweth:

All in all, it was a smashing night. I met a number of Irish wine names, everyone was very friendly and in great form. I was stunned by some of the revelations, mainly to do with how different in character a different ‘breed’ of a familiar grape can be. If you get any chance at all to attend a wine tasting, grasp it with both hands.

Our July and August sale on French wines was inspired by long-time fan Roseanne Smith [t], who let us know she was “Trying to recreate last year’s French jaunt in Ireland!” with a case of our fabulous French wines. Katherine O’Neil [t] chimed in to add “with Curious Wines, you can almost imagine yourself in the south of France. Happy days!” and so the 10% off sale was born. Thanks, ladies!

The ladies at Dine and Wine also plunged their thirsty little mits into a box of our goodies and came up smiling:

I had 3 wines from the delivery and I am pleasantly surprised. None of the wines in the box are over €10 which makes it a giggle to buy even when not on offer.

So there you go – spreading France, happiness and even giggles makes a good month for Curious!

Since starting Curious Wines, we’ve had so much fun being a part of the ‘blogosphere’. The Wine Blog has received tremendous feedback from all corners of the blogging community, even from those who would admit that wine wasn’t their gig! Twitter has also been a blast, giving us plenty of laughs and allowing us to make loads of friends along the way.

It’s only right that Facebook should now be graced with the presence of Ireland’s mixed case wine specialist. It’s where all the Twitters (and just about everyone else on the planet) go on their lunch break, so join us and become a fan, scribble on our wall and have yet another excuse to surf the web during working hours.

In keeping with the theme for the month, February was a virtual love-in for Curious Wines! We’ll be playing Stairway to Heaven on endless repeat and passing out the joss sticks any minute now.

Wine reviewer Blake Creedon made our month (and possibly our year) when Curious Wines got full fun of his weekly column, Grapevine, in the Irish Examiner. His glowing write up started out:

Ireland’s latest online retailer, Curious Wines, has certainly gotten off to a flying start. Launched late last year, from day one their online presence has been an easy-to-use, friendly and comprehensive site… It would surprise you how many big, rich, high-profile sites get it all wrong…

…and just got better from there. We’ve got a PDF of the article and we’re showing it around like baby pictures, we’re so proud.

To our great delight, we also took home a great big gong at the Digital Media Awards, winning our category for Best Commercial Website in Ireland. (You better believe the champagne corks popped that night!) We were also chuffed to bits to find this very blog shortlisted for Best Business Blog at the Irish Blog Awards – an enormous compliment considering we’ve only been blogging since the end of November. We lost out to the very worthy Blacknight blog, and had a fabulous evening at the Awards anyway.

Lar Veale at the esteemed SourGrapes.ie kindly popped over the day after the Blog Awards to do a video wine tasting of our exclusive Santa Alicia Reserve Sauvignon Blanc:

Cracking value at only €9.99 and beats the pants off anything from your local supermarket.

Thanks, Lar! (Also, we dig your funky theme music.)

We also had our very first in-store review; wine lover Brian Clayton came to the warehouse, took photos, shopped his socks off and wrote a rave review. He travelled down with his dad and his uncle looking for an alternative to their regular buying jaunts to the continent, and declared the Curious Wines Experience to be:

…just like shopping in France – bar the temperature!

Our Twitter cup overfloweth’d with kind customer comments last month, too:

• ManicMammy: Lovin’ the Babe. Popped into y’all @curiouswines earlier so all stocked up again. Happy days!
• keithnolan: Have you tried @curiouswines yet? Highly recommended – I’m saving for my third case from them.
• davidrconway: Just got off the phone from home. Those nice chaps @curiouswines delivered the goods in jig time again. Gonna be a good weekend chez moi.
• elfinamsterdam: @CuriousWines my mum was extolling your company’s virtues to my wine snob uncle who shops with your competitors. Expect a visit soon!

To be perfectly honest, while we’ll never turn down an award and we’re thrilled to bits with February’s successes, it’s this kind of world of mouth and compliments from customers that mean the most. And lets face it – you can have all the awards in the world, but without fabulous customers, there’s no Curious Wines!