Once, a few years ago, I cooked a shoulder of pork and me and my boyfriend ate all the crackling between us and then looked at each other, broken, feeling like greasy little piggies ourselves. This week the pig situation was not quite so greedy: I cooked a shoulder of pork (in at 8am, then all day, with an insane amount of fennel seeds – 100g – and garlic – 10 cloves) and all four members of Run Club polished off the crackling between us. I am pretty sure the freely flowing wine + garlicky crackling explains why I got such a jolly – “You are the BEST HOSTESS in the WORLD, everyone else serves salads” – thank you from Museum Mike. I cooked the pig Italian-style to go with a couple of Italian wines I wanted to open, a Massolino ’07 Barolo picked up in the big Tesco Clearance I flagged on facebook last week, and a really great rosso di Montalcino from a producer called Valdicava given to me by a friend. We were larging it on the wine because I’m doing 5 days off, 2 days on drinking at the moment so when I do have a glass I want it to be specially nice. (I suppose it could work the other way, the *just give me anything as long as it’s alcoholic* desperation but thankfully it doesn’t).
The wines I am recommending this week are two of the ones I’ve written up in tomorrow’s Telegraph. Both are from Tesco who have one of those brilliant 25% off when you buy any combination of 6+ bottles in store until Monday 15 Sept offers going.
Tesco Côtes de Gascogne Blanc 2013 France (10.5%, £4.49/£3.37*)
This new white is an Indian summer winner. Rarely have I seen colombard look so appetizing – a tinge of tutti frutti, white flowers and lively red grapefruit, with low alcohol, it tastes half way to being a spritzer already. Super stuff and at a very good price anyway but insane on this offer. Gemma the Tesco PR told me she was planning to, “Buy out Lucy’s Côtes de Gascogne at that price – it’s amazing!” And, I know, you’re thinking, “Well should would…etc” but I check wine prices with Gemma often and I think I’d have got wise to that strategy by now if she tried it every week. Put it with peach and mozzarella salad. If you manage to get hold of any once Gemma’s gone marauding through the stores.
finest* Bolgheri 2010 Italy (13.5%, Tesco, £10.29/£7.72*)
As an Italophile it took me a while to come round to SuperTuscans, wines made with grapes that defy the rules of the traditional appellation, but this is a great find. Red. Made with Bordeaux varieties – cabernet sauvignon, merlot and cabernet franc – yet still pulling off a sour cherries-and-furniture-polish Italian scent. Love it. Maybe roast half a pig to have with it. Or come round here and get some of mine because I still have a fridge-full. Though no crackling. Sorry. As I might have mentioned, we finished that.
*25% off price
