My three children are scattered across Europe, the elder daughter in Normandy, the younger in Rome and my son in Helsinki together with grandchildren in the first and last locations. Of these only Italy is a wine destination and I don’t think that we will make it this year. However, as in most years, we got to Normandy and I also made Helsinki briefly for the first time. (May I call you on my next visit, Otto?)
Unfortunately when travelling I am not always able to note the full identities of what I am drinking but I will do my best.
Normandy is not entirely bereft of winegrowing (there is a good but quite expensive range of Norman whites called Les Arpents du Soleil) and, of course, all the standard French wines are available. However, the authentically Norman drinks are derived from the ubiquitous apple. At the Diable Vert restaurant/wine bar in the pretty village of Cormeilles, I had a delicious house cidre brut which was crisp, fresh and fruity with a wet leather backbone, a far cry from the usually cloying cider from my native country. Higher up in my hierarchy of drinks comes Calvados Pays d'Auge AOC(apple brandy). The range from Roger Groult is absolutely outstanding (and is exported, I think)- http://www.calvados-roger-groult.com/en/domaine.htm . They are beautifully focussed and avoid the caramelised flavours which disfigure the Calvados of many other producers and much Cognac as well. I already know the fine mature Vénérable and the ethereal Doyen d’Age, which is the equal of many XO and vintage Cognacs and Armagnacs costing many times more. This year, I bought the 8 Ans d’Age and it is remarkable for its fruitiness backed by a leather hints similar to that of the cider at Cormeilles.
Norman soft ripe cheeses like Camembert, Pont l’Evêque and Livarot are notoriously wine unfriendly but both the owner of the excellent Caves de Deauville and Pont l’Evêque producer, M. Spruyt, claim that good brut cider makes an excellent pairing for them; I have yet to test this myself but find it credible.
I am not sure what national drink is Finland’s pride. Vodka is not really my thing and I prefer white wine or champagne with Finnish lavaret and trout eggs. I did, however, drink an absolutely outstanding beer where it was brewed on the island of Suomenlinna. It had body, crisply refreshing bitterness woven with delicious hints of honey and an absolutely clean finish unlike so many cloying industrial beers. The wasps liked it too as they swarmed around as my son and I were drinking.
Of course, there were wines as well. Purchased from Les Caves de Deauville, there were white (Chardonnay) and red (Pinot Noir) Bourgogne Côte d’Auxerre Corps de Garde 2006 Domaine Goisot, both delicious with the latter too light for some but full of refreshingly pure Pinot fruit, and Côte du Marmandais Chante-Coucou 2002 Elian da Ros, full of round but vibrant fruit with juicy acidity and good structure. At L’Absinthe in Honfleur, we accompanied an abundant “plateau de fruits de mer” with a deliciously crisp Muscadet 2007 (alas I had no pen to note the producer). At Le Moulin Fouret near Bernay, we had a crisp and fruity Sancerre 2007 Domaine Henri Bourgeois and a rather bland Mercurey 2005, I think, Joseph Drouhin.
We sampled some of the Alko monopoly’s offerings in Helsinki at prices on average some 20% higher than I would expect to pay in Belgium. Rosso di Montalcino 2006 Talenti was really excellent with full crisp fruit and Sangiovese tang. On the other hand Barbera d’Alba 2005 Pio Cesare was disappointing with smooth fruit being spoiled by a strong taste of marzipan and a dry caramel finish. I greatly enjoyed both the crisp and long Bründelmayer Ried Loiser Berg Grüner Veltliner 2007 and the more ingratiating Anselmi San Vicenzo 2006 but did not like the Kim Crawford Marlborough Riesling 2006 which was strangely confected and almost ointment-like in flavour. My son complains about Alko but I found its selection geographically much wider than we find in Belgian stores. However my first impression is that the French and Italian selections lack depth; mainly sound well known larger producers but few of the more exciting artisan growers.
At Helsinki’s Kosmos restaurant, we ordered Saint-Véran 2005 Joseph Drouhin by the glass; the first glass was flabby but the following, undoubtedly from a fresh bottle, were excellent with “gras” and minerality. There followed a delicious Morgon 2005, full with juicy acidity and minerality, but alas I did not record the producer’s name.
Finally I brought with me from the Brussels airport shop Laurent-Perrier Brut 1999, deliciously crisp and yeasty, and from my cellar Eitelsbacher Karthäuserhofberg Spätlese 1990, delicately complex with its slight sweetness perfectly offset by crisply mineral acidity – but was there a touch of an off flavour, perhaps a TCA hint, in mid palate? Nobody else complained! Two other offerings from my cellar and a Petalos Bierzo from Alko were untouched during my stay.