My life in wine, Geneva chapter!

Geneva may never be the same for me again after the death of PGT, my beloved relative who recently passed away at the amazing age of 101 years and ten months; for the best part of the last forty years I don't think I ever came to Geneva without visiting PGT and availing myself of his kindness, hospitality and wisdom. Now he's gone, will live only in my mind, and however natural his demise has been he leaves a gap far larger than his diminutive size could ever account for. Still, life does go on, perhaps uncaringly, with all that entails.

Ah, dear reader, you must realise where this is leading; after all, you've now known me for a while and should be used to my little foibles. Of course I'm going to talk to you about wine, that most healing, civilising and enriching of substances, that liquid that, with its aromas, tastes and textures can transform an ordinary meal into an enchanting experience. Wine is a living, evolving thing, showing different faces at different times, inviting us to play with it as it plays with our emotions before, at its best, it delivers its punch of flavours that enslave us for life.

Through the generosity and kindness of my friend NDI I was able to taste several interesting wines, starting with a fairly run-of-the-mill Sancerre, graduating to three 2014 Margaux beauties and finishing with a stunning Visanto (or Vinsanto) from the Argyros estate in Santorini. Before you start panicking about the state of my liver, these were not all consumed at the same time, though I dare say it may have been an interesting experience! My final vinous adventure came courtesy of my Swiss friends the As, when they took me to lunch. Naturally we had a Swiss wine more or less from the region - actually from across the lake at the neighbouring Canton Vaud.

The Sancerre 2017 from Domaine des Tayaux had been open for a day or two when it fell into my hands, so it was lacking the zingy freshness now such a feature of good Sancerre, really the feature that has made it exciting when compared to most other Sauvignon Blanc wines. Perfectly drinkable, perfectly clean but a bit dull, then, if good value for money. I polished it off so no-one else would have to suffer...

On different nights we went after the 2014 Margaux wines, as follows:

Chateau Dauzac was, for me, textbook claret with deep colour, an agreeable balance and good structure, a hint of tannin and ripe red fruits, oak backdrop and decent length, an impeccable if unspectacular wine from an early-drinking year. Probably better in a year or two.
The Chateau Kirwan was more luscious, softer, what in pre-political correctness days we would have described as more feminine, an explosion of ripe red fruit flavour with hardly any tannins showing, juicy and more obviously attractive than the Dauzac, charming for the next year or so.
Chateau Cantenac-Brown was, not that long ago, a chateau punching far below its weight - not anymore! In style between the two others, still quite rich bearing in mind the vintage, it was full of all the right things and a touch of spice, with a short (1-3 year?) future ahead of it but extremely satisfying today.
These three show clearly why today it can be great fun for those able to afford them to buy great wines in lighter, but not problem, vintages, provided they do their research a little bit and avoid obvious duds. True, they will never compare to truly great wines from the best vintages, where the balance is truly astonishing, the complexity far greater and the length astounding, but they provide extremely satisfying drinking far earlier and, importantly for most, at a far more reasonable (ha!) price.

A journey of discovery for me was a glorious Swiss white wine, an Epesses Grand Cru Clos du Boux 2017 (I think). Made from Chasselas grapes in picture-perfect vineyards on the slopes by Lake Geneva (Lac Leman for the locals), it surprised me with its richness, balance, subtlety and length. A subdued nose of mirabelle plums led to a more luscious mouthful of the same subtly combined with lychees and somehow dry, happily long. Good both on its own and with food, it is an example of how far Swiss wines have come in the last thirty or forty years, from austere acidic curiosities to excellent wines in their own right. Alas they can never be inexpensive but are now well worth seeking out.

The Argyros Vinsanto 2009, aged for four years in oak casks before release, is a little bomb of sweetness and lusciousness, ripe raisiny aromas and flavours dominating, rich, sweet, balanced, satisfying, dessert in a glass, complex and long - and this is their 'junior' Visanto! Pure delight from a top producer on the island of Santorini, not only preserving a winemaking tradition lost in the mists of time but providing layers and layers of pleasure today. Most Santorini wines are truly special but their best sweet wines are spectacularly good, and worth every penny that I didn't have to pay. Were I to have a choice in the matter I would always have a bottle of Argyros Vinsanto around; alas, I don't.