[Wine] Three wines from Curious Wines

Curious Wines is a Cork-based, online wine retailer, with physical stores in both Cork and Naas. Brothers Michael and Matt Kane are the duo behind the name, and I have been a customer for several years now. Last year, I purchased the wine for my sister's wedding from them, mainly due to their straightforward manner, bulk discount and promise to take back any unopened wine. 

I love calling into either of their stores. The wide open space, with stacks and stacks of wine bottles is the adult version of being a kid in a sweet shop. I was home recently and I called into the shop on the Tramore Road to pick up a mixed case of wine. I always end up with a box that's about 50% tried and trusted favourites with the remainder being some new bottles. I had seen via Twitter that a whole heap of new Rhone wines had just arrived in shop, so several bottles of those went into my cart.

Three recent favourites from Curious Wines

So after some tasting and testing, here my three picks from the recent shop. All of these three wines were new to me and this was my first tasting. At some stage, I'll also do a quick post on my perennial favourites from Curious Wines. 

Johnny Q Chardonnay Viognier 2013

South Australia. Normally €14.99, reduced to €11.99 (at time of writing)

Winemaker Johnny Quarisa has done something very nice here with this Chardonnay Viognier blend. the warm climate Chardonnay (86%) has melon and peach flavours, while the addition of Viognier (14%) adds some floral notes such as honeysuckle and apricot. A portion of the wine spends some time in oak after blending which adds a little backbone. I utterly enjoyed this and think it's great value for this slightly bonkers wine.

Sommos Gewurztraminer 2015

Somontano, Spain. €17.49

There were two things I didn't know before drinking this wine. Firstly, that Gewurztraminer was even grown in Spain, and secondly, that Somontano, a small area in Aragon, is the top Gewurztraminer region. (I've also learned that typing Gewurztraminer repeatedly is a challenge to brain-finger coordination). I'll tell you one thing, my geographic knowledge of wine-producing countries has increased by leaps and bounds in recent years. 

Anyway, I had this wine to accompany an Indian takeaway (from the excellent Rasoi in case you want to know), and it was such an excellent choice. Beautifully aromatic, as you'd expect from Gewurz, it's also bright and lively with a long finish. 

Lavau Vacqueryas 2013

Rhone, France. €23.00

This was one of the new Rhone wines which found its way into my basket, along with several of its siblings. I've come to develop a strong liking for Rhone reds, and this didn't disappoint. First off, it's a GSM blend (50% Grenache, 40% Syrah and 10% Mourvedre) with a touch of aging in oak. This wine is vibrant and beautifully dark in the glass with all the usual Rhone notes of dark berries, a touch of violet and a slight minty freshness to round it all out. Tannins are fine and very approachable.

Vie de Chateaux, Naas

I'm currently working on a client site on the outskirts of Naas. Most days I bring in my lunch with me, or else I stop at the Tesco or M&S and buy a variety of salads or snacks. However, yesterday was a spring Friday, complete with sunshine and blustery freshness and I wanted to get out and about for my lunch.

I'm not overly familiar with Naas, so I went to TripAdvisor and searched for restaurants in Naas. Vie de Chateaux came back ranked as #2 and a quick glance at their website revealed that they were indeed open for lunch.

Vie de Chateaux is centrally located, but down a quiet cul de sac, near the Harbour in Naas. There's a lovely seating area outisde, covered by an awning, which would make for relaxed outside dining on a sunnier, warmer day. On a windy spring day however, it was a little more prudent to head inside.

Once inside, I could see from the table arrangements that they were expecting a lot of Friday lunch groups, but there was no problem in finding a small table for me (dining alone). My coat was taken (a nice touch!) and I was given the short and simple lunch menu. The restaurant is beautifully decorated in very Gallic style and makes for a very elegant and relaxed dining space. There are chalkboards on the walls which still carried descriptions of the previous night's specials (which, by the way, sounded delicious).

The menu carries a selection of tartines, both cold and warm, along with a short selection of starters, mains and desserts. In addition, there are several "Grand Assiette" on offer - a large plate which holds both a starter and main. I chose La Parisienne where the starter was a salad of Mortadelle sausage, walnut, diced Emmental and sweet corn, with a main of grilled sirloin steak, fries and garlic butter.

While I was waiting, a basket of fresh sliced bread was delivered to the table along with butter. As I was dining solo, I entertained myself by catching up on Twitter and reading the newspaper online. My plate arrived quickly, an important factor when dining out for lunch on a weekday. The salad came served in a little bowl and featured crumbed, crispy pieces of sausage on lightly dressed lamb's lettuce. A very nice little starter. My steak was decent in size (for those that like their meat). I had ordered it rare, and rare it was served, along with a slice of very garlicky garlic butter. A large handful of fries completed the Friday feeling.


I debated dessert, but after such a decent lunch, nothing on the menu stood out enough to tempt my sated appetite. FYI, there was a Poire Belle Hellene, as well as star anise creme brulee on offer. I opted for a coffee instead and relaxed for several more minutes before gathering myself back to work. As I paid the bill, I chatted with the very charming French owner (quelle surprise!). I left Vie de Chateaux with a "Bon Weekend" ringing in my ears and a feeling of happiness.

Total damage came to €23.50 for a grand assiette, coffee and large bottle of sparkling water.

Vie de Chateaux, The Harbour, Naas, Co. Kildare. +353 (0)45 888 478