Péter Uj said that the wine ‘had been enough to make me cry: sour, blunt and over-oxidised stuff, bad-quality ingredients collected from all kinds of leftovers, grey mould plus a bit of sugar from Szerencs, musty barrel – but because we are still there ... hundreds of thousands of Hungarians drink [this] shit with pride.’, but the court ruled that the satirical article was not defamatory to the company.
To celebrate this victory for freedom of opinion, here are a few of the wines I have found to be less than average recently. Some of these wines are mass produced, some of them are small scale production. Some are from supermarkets and others from smaller importers in the UK, and some from well known wine producing nations, and others from the more obscure.
But, like the former Soviet state's Olympic Teams that will be descending on London next year, these wines have put aside their differences and have united to show the world how terrible they actually are.
2010 Tesco Finest Ken Forrester Chenin Blanc
If this is the finest thing Tesco can come up with, I hate to think what their 'value' range is... A little bit of pineapple, some sweeter citrus notes, but with some alcohol coming off. The palate is disgusting. It is full of confected fruit, too much alcohol, some lees coming from somewhere and then tons of acid. Fake pineapple on the back end. 60pts
2009 Jacob's Creek Chardonnay
The wine that spandex wearing thirty something girls from Bolton down a bottle of before they go out clubbing. The palate had Mango, papaya and lots of oak going on. There is cigar box with some butter coming off. A bit fat at first, with the oak dominating, and then you get some very bitter, yet sweet oak coming off. White pepper too comes off and there is a return on the palate of awful underripe pineapple and cream. 72pts
2010 Errazuriz Merlot
Imagine a sexual tryst between Bertie Basset and Morph in a bath of Cherry Coke. That is the unpleasant aroma that comes off this wine. Pretty unpleasant. The palate is just dull as hell. Cherry comes through, and then some woody liquorice. Then there is cream, too much tannin and too much acid. This is a poor wine that tastes filthy. 71pts
2010 Cielo Bardolino
From an Italian company that produces a decent cheap Prosecco, this was sweet and bubblegummy, with light hints of strawberry. The palate is simple, some Beaujolais like fruit - cherry and strawberry - but very watered down. A bit of banana skin too, but this is pretty poor. 75pts
2010 Cielo Soave
Boring! It is slightly grapefruity, slightly minerally, just dull as hell. There is nothing good or bad about it. 75pts
2010 Cielo Pinot Grigio
Another boring nose... a bit of alcohol comes off on the nose as does pork fat. The palate too is pretty dull, but a little bit worse than the first one. 74pts
2008 Mac Forbes Yarra Valley Pinot Noir
Very nice light dried fruit aromas - raspberry and cranberry - with just a touch of Tropicana. The palate is ok when it comes to the flavours, there is a little tart raspberry but there is far too much acid and it is an unbalanced mess. 79pts
2010 Paul Mas Vermentino
Bright peaches, a little lemonade coming through with a little floral element. Having said that, there is an alcoholic note coming off the nose that is mixed with a little bit of soap. The palate is quite alcoholic, with lots of pear and grapefruit seeds. There is some white pepper too that I don't like with a lot of salt. Pass. 78pts
2009 Jean Marc Burgaud Chateau de Thulon Beaujolais Villages
A bit poopy, but very closed on the nose. A touch of violet coming through, but pretty simple. The palate is sweet, with some dried fruit coming off. Unbalanced, some acid hits half way through and then there is a stripped out, yet still sweet and claggy feeling in your mouth. Awful. 68pts
2009 Frederic Mabileau St Nicolas de Bourgueil
Green peppers, lots of green peppers and some overly polished wood. There is also a burnt meat aroma to it that is a little off putting. The palate is too sweet, there is a bubblegummy flavour to it too that battles with the vegetal flavours that come through. This has to be supermarket Claret! Very tannic on the finish with a spritzy far too much acid note. 65pts
2008 Marof Zeleni Silvanec Silvaner
I should give this Slovenian wine a chance, but it is so bad, it doesn't deserve one. Some mineral and white pepper up front, The palate is a bit spritzy at first but then calms down, the fruit is ok, some simple lemon and steely pith. Too much acid and an unpleasant finish. 73pts
2010 Jean-Christophe Mandard Touraine Sauvingon
A grassy aroma, some veggie notes and a citrus coming through. This has a definite Sauvignon bent to it but there is some rounder fruit. The palate too has a green apple and grass element, but with a fuller mid palate that could hint towards some Semillon. It is again, too acidic, and a touch confected. 77pts
2010 Montana Brancott Estate Sauvignon Blanc
Big producer, trying to be posh with a fancy bottle, and failing to put any quality in the blasted thing. Grassy, lots of pepper and lime with some gooseberries covered in cream on the nose. The palate is green, some elderflower comes through, but it is cordial like rather than fresh. It is quite aggressive on the finish, and leaves you with a pithy flavour that isn't great. Having said that, it is passable as a cheap Sauvignon Blanc. 79pts
2009 Domaine Felines Jourdan Roussanne Chardonnay
How can a producer who makes such a brilliant Picpoul de Pinet, make such a bad wine? Soft fruit, grapefruit pith and some steely elements to it, that is it really. The palate is actually pretty bad. There isn't any redeeming features about this wine except that the flavour goes pretty quickly. Too much acid, imbalance and sweetness all bundled up into one. 71pts.
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