Now a touch of spritz on the tongue is quite delightful especially in a cold wine on a hot day, but only if you know it’s coming. If you don’t know it’s coming you can worry there’s something wrong. So it’s always been my practice to get such prickly wines closed up with a crown (beer) cap or a champagne cork. That clearly signals that bubbles are coming. An Italian white we did like this in the Nineties was our top-selling wine for years. Remember Alionza?

They didn’t cap the AURA. Mistake. Third mistake was to introduce this wine to customers by putting it into one of our pre-mixed cases without saying anything about it. So it will have surprised many, including the two sink-pourers.

But I would ask any of my keenest followers (those who have long trusted my judgement) who fancy a low-strength but flavourful crisp dry white, to give Aura a try. And let me know what you think.

I love it ... Barbara not so much ... but we are nonetheless on our second case. We’ve been through a warm spell and we eat a lot of grilled fish. So it’s been very welcome. I’m no chef but I can light a barbecue and we’ve a lovely lady who brings us our weekly delivery down from Grimsby! A Plaice it was last night and Plaice has a very delicate flavour indeed. You hit it - and your palate - with a fat, 14 degree white and I think that faint flavour can struggle to get through. A prickly, slightly lemony, chilled glass of light AURA actually lifts the flavour ... amplifies it, even. Barbara doesn’t agree. But that’s how it goes. If we only sold wines everyone liked we’d have a very short list. As long as enough people give it ***** stars it it’s probably worth a try. You won’t know which way you’ll go till you try it.

It’s made from a Gaillac grape you don’t see anywhere else, called Loin de l’Oeil. It means ‘far from the eye’ which I long believed was a rather quaint way of saying its berries were small. Apparently I was wrong. It’s actually because the grape bunches of this varietal grow unusually far down the branch or a long way from the ‘eye’ of the vine. Maybe this is why they don’t ripen too much and, of course, less sugar then means less alcohol. Not easy to pronounce L’Oeil ... so I use the ‘Old French’ version ‘Len de L’El'.

If you’re still with me after this ramble, I’m amazed. They’re always telling me to keep it short. But these days I’ve the luxury of time. If you have too then I hope we can meet up here again ... and do let me know what you think of my Aura! It might be what they call a ‘marmite’ (love or hate) wine but I’d like to persevere. After all, the five star reviews show some customers clearly do love it.

Tony

Laithwaites