A red that does what most whites fail to do

There comes a moment in an adventurous red wine drinker’s life when they feel obliged to tackle the little-known mondeuse variety, says Matthew Jukes.

Matthew Jukes
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815-wine-634

2015 Domaine de l'Idylle, Mondeuse, Philippe & Franois Tiollier, Savoie, France (£12.50, Yapp.co.uk, 01747-860423).

There comes a moment in an adventurous red wine drinker's life when they feel obliged to tackle the little-known mondeuse variety. This is likely to be a one-off moment, unless you follow my advice. Mondeuse is an oddly underwhelming fellow, specialising in wines with hollow, weedy fruit and a distinctly skinny middle (I am a little envious of this trait).

The polite way of describing most wines made from this unfortunate red grape is to say that they are "refreshing", "crunchy" and "bright". All nice words, but not in the context of a red wine. Domaine de l'Idylle takes this grape and gives it some character.

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Juiciness, fruitiness, charm and attitude were my descriptors for this incarnation and while this is still a Beaujolais-shaped wine, it shows intellect, cheek and also a rare magnetism which draws you back to the glass. It's not expensive, is a fast mover in the glass and I venture that it will appeal immensely as a Saturday brunch hero, acting as a discreet pick-me-up without queering the pitch for evening manoeuvres.

In one fell swoop, I reckon I have found a vital wine in our armoury a red that does what most whites fail to do. Well done Idylle where have you been when we've needed you?

Matthew Jukes is a winner of the International Wine & Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year (MatthewJukes.com).

Matthew Jukes
Matthew Jukes

Matthew Jukes has worked in the UK wine business for well over three decades and during this time has written 14 wine books.  

Matthew regularly lectures, judges, speaks at wine conferences and runs masterclass tastings for both corporate and private clients all over the world. Matthew is also the creator of his ground-breaking initiative, the One Day Wine School, an indulgent day of tasting and learning first performed in 2006.

He has been the MoneyWeek wine correspondent since 2006 and has written a weekly column for the Daily Mail’s Weekend Magazine since 1999. His four highly-acclaimed, annual wine reports – the Burgundy En Primeur Report, the Bordeaux En Primeur Report, the Piemonte Report and the 100 Best Australian Wines – are published on his website, www.matthewjukes.com.

Matthew is one of the world’s leading experts on Australian wine and, with Brisbane-based wine writer Tyson Stelzer, runs an annual competition in Australia to find ‘The Great Australian Red’.  He was made Honorary Australian of the Year in the UK at the 2012 Australia Day Foundation Gala dinner. 

Matthew is a winner of the International Wine and Spirit Competition's Communicator of the Year Trophy.  His thoughts, recommendations and tastings notes are followed very closely by the wine world at large.

 

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