June 2016

The wine guide
time. Only a handful of wines with very specific
characteristics such as provenance, tannin and
refined oak maturation will actually improve with
bottle ageing. If in doubt, ask.
Screw cap or cork? What's the difference?
Cork allows some air to enter the bottle, slowly
maturing the wine inside. Screw caps don’t. Corks
very occasionally spoil a wine with a substance
called TCA. While completely safe, it can make
your favourite vino smell like wet cardboard –
hence the term “corked wine”.
What is a natural wine?
Though the latest buzzword, there is no clear
definition of a “natural wine”. Commonly, it’s a wine
produced from biodynamic or organic grapes
using very limited intervention during vinification.
No filtration, no fining and no added sulphites.
Philippe, Eugenio and Jack: wine advisers at Vinarius
The wine experts at Vinarius,
the enoteca
*
on the Roman,
help to demystify Britain's
favourite tipple
Polyphenols, cold maceration, Botrytis cinerea,
Ehrenbreitsteiner (wait, there’s really a grape
variety called that?)... wine babble can sour even
the most diehard aficionado’s relationship with
fermented grape juice.
That’s why the role of a wine adviser shouldn't
just be to suggest the best wine for a particular
occasion, but also to put the customer at ease,
explaining and demystifying what can at times
seem a rather intimidating subject.
Here are some of the most common questions
we get asked at our wine shop and bar on the
Roman, with answers in plain English:
Is it true that wines improve with age?
The vast majority of red wines and nearly all white
wines are not made to be kept for a very long
What is tannin?
Tannin or tannins are substances found mainly
in grape skins and seeds. In a wine, they are what
cause that drying or astringent sensation in the
mouth. If you’re feeling ambitious, try a strong
black tea to see what very high levels of tannin
taste like.
Why do wine prices vary so much?
Quality wines are generally more expensive
to produce. Like any other product, it also
depends on the economy of scale (big or small
producer) as well as supply and demand. All in all,
appellation or typology (what wine it is), producer
(who makes it) and vintage (year of production)
are the three single most important factors.
Do I need to decant the wine before serving?
Wine and oxygen are best friends, yet
worst enemies. The two have a complicated
relationship, but generally the only wines that
need to breathe prior to serving are those with
very high levels of tannin from older vintages.
In these cases, decanting a bottle of wine one
hour before serving can help accelerate the
oxygenation process and separate any sediment.
* Enoteca: not only a versatile, rustic wine shop and
wine bar, but also an important centre of wine and
food culture.
Vinarius, 536 Roman Rd, London E3.
vinarius.london
32 LOVEEAST