Adventures In Wine

In what can only be described as a technological breakthrough for our bibulous pair, Jason and David zoom their way through their first socially distanced wine tasting, pulling off the unprecedented feat of opening the same white at the same time for a spot of synchronous sipping. The pandemic aside, with two woke sons on his quaranteam and climate change an ever pressing issue, vegan wines have been very much on Jason's mind. The good news is that most Yapp wines are vegan, the bad news is that many wine growers just haven't got around to labelling them as such. Two that have are Reh Kendermann and Fred Filliatreau . The former makes a fresh orchard fruit, easy-drinking Pinot Gris vom Kalkstein and the latter, a mineral yet fruitful, Château Fouquet Cabernet Franc, much loved by both Jason and David. And in another first for unprecedented times, neither has to share the bottle with other.

In this big, bonging, New Year edition, Jason introduces David to the Rhône Septentrionale (or Northern Rhône)and the handful of rare and characterful white wines that are teased into existence alongside the ever abundant rows of generic Cotes Du Rhône AOC. While David's head is still spinning with percentages, hectares and Olympic-sized swimming pools (not to mention the vestiges of this year's flu virus), Jason has popped the cork on their first bottle; a fizzy, yet velvety smooth St. Peray from Jean Louis Thiers. It's fit for an emperor and probably was - at least when Napoleon was quaffing it as a cadet in nearby Valence. South East of Valence, Cotes Du Rhone Brézème began with just one hectare in 1962. Though it remains in a kind of classification limbo, this rare blend of Marsanne, Roussanne and Viognier from Julian Montagnon is in a class of its own. Further up North and up budget, Alain Graillot's Crozes Hermitage Blanc might appear under-dressed in its screwcap, but is a bright, beautifully texture

In this special, holly-decked edition, Jason begins by asking David the obvious question and despite receiving the rather obvious answer, presses ahead regardless with a bumper, eight-bottle sampling of his own Christmas wine choices that is guaranteed to get even the most diehard humbug ding-dong-merrily-on-high. Sure enough, David's soon getting teary-eyed over a pocket-sized, half-bottle of Leon Beyer, Cremant d'Alsace; a finely-bubbled, brioche-bouqueted vivifier that's perfect for incentivising the scullion on sprout-peeling duty. With an eye to the fact that your relatives may well hang around far longer than your wine does, Jason's next suggestion is a German, Pinot Gris vom Kalkstein. At around a tenner a bottle, your feckless offspring can neck this easy-going aperitif while you're still worrying over your cranberry reduction. Two wines in and our intrepid duo have only got as far as the smoked salmon, which Jason decides he'll pair with a 2018 Chablis, Domaine Christoph Camu. David may call it, 'Tra

After a long summer break, Jason, the man with 'the most embarrassing recycling box in the street,' is ready to pile on even more embarrassment for the furtherance of oenological knowledge and David is more than willing to help him. With their feet firmly under Jason's kitchen table and ISO wine glasses under their noses, Jason whisks the pair of them away to the Languedoc, on a virtual tour of the Hérault with no more than a few deft twists of his corkscrew. Here, they enthuse over Xavier Bruguière's stone-fruit, 2017 Coteaux Du Languedoc, as fragrant as the mulberry after which it's named and his herby, berry-scented 2017 Pic Saint-Loup. 'Untamed,' says Jason, mentioning Myrtle in almost the same breath. 'Very, very nice indeed,' avers David, his head swimming already. Eighteen kilometres South and West is the famous Terrasses Du Larzac, home of Frédéric Pourtalié's 22 hectare plot, whose white 2016 Domaine Montcalmès is as rare as it is elegant. Pourtalié's 2016 red is young, but happily for our two adve

2018. How was it for you? The vignerons of France may trumpet it as an historic vintage, but Jason being determined to find out for himself, marshals five newly-minted bottles of white, rosé and red and inveigles the ever-obliging David to figuratively hold his jacket while he gives them all a thorough going over. The Domaine De l'Idylle from the Savoie is declared fresh and zesty, the Chablis from Christophe Camu, rich and smooth and the rosé (a Reuilly from the Loire valley), is taut and crunchy and looks good, too. The reds, a L'Arpenty from Chinon, which smells like raspberry ripple according to David, is a hedonistically enjoyable, pure fruit delight. And as if that wasn't enough, Jean-Pierre Boisson's ever popular Petit Caboche from the Vaucluse is deemed as good as it ever was and as close as a Vin De Pays can possibly get to a Châteauneuf Du Pape without actually being a Châteauneuf du Pape, even though its made by a celebrated Châteauneuf Du Pape grower somewhere very near, well, Châteauneuf Du Pape

David's excitement at another bibulous session, Chez Yapp, is mitigated somewhat by Jason's announcement that the theme for the podcast is small appellations. After his first sip of the morning, however, he realises with great relief, that the next twenty minutes will be more hedonism than hectares. Jean Luis Thiers' St. Peray 'Tranquille' is nutty, fruity yet dry, with the enviable distinction of being both rare and good value for money. Next up, from Palette, is an exceptional Chateau Simone Blanc 2015. This limpid, straw-coloured blend from the chateau's ancient vines leaves David tonque-tied, but what can you say about one of France's great gastronomic wines apart from 'Santé'? Bellet, The Urban Appellation of Nice, is Jason's next diminutive wine region. The Dalmasso's Domaine De La Source, 2015 is a beautifully evolved red that the well-informed, well-heeled locals are more than happy to keep to themselves but you can trust Yapp Brothers to have charmed them out of a few cases. An aromatic red from Dom

In the very teeth of winter, Jason and David battle all the way to the wine cellar in search of bottled sunshine; to Châteauneuf Du Pape, in fact, historical home to the Avignon Popes in exile, a recent ruin, some very big pebbles and thirteen varieties of grape, all of which are permitted into a single bottle of France’s finest and first appellation contrôlée wine. First up is a lovely, limpid, 2017 Domaine Du Père Caboche. A relative rarity, only 7% of Châteauneuf production is given over to white wine and this particular offering has so much fruit, Jason can even taste the wax on the lemons. It wears its 13.5 ABV lightly, too. At last, our plucky pair find themselves warming to a 2016 red from the same estate. Herby and briary with almost fondant tannins, Jason has only to say the word ‘daube’ and David is transported back in time to Provence and a memorably close encounter with a dish of aubergines. After a brief attempt to out-daube one another, it’s time for J and D to test the effects of age on a matu

In this edition, Jason proposes his line-up for Christmas 2018, while David sits quietly and drinks it all in. First up, is a classy champagne Grande Réserve from Dumangin. This expertly crafted, extra-aged beauty is perfectly nuanced to offset the ennui of kitchen duty. With aromas of stewed bramley apples and brioche, there's no better way to tackle the sprouts. It's a bubbly second breakfast in a glass! Once the champagne is tucked away and Jason's sprouts are safely in the oven, he's onto the smoked salmon without missing a beat and a dry white Burgundy from Mâcon-Vergisson in the French deep south. With a generous bouquet of ripe orchard fruit, this chardonnay has enough nervy minerality to make your salmon leap. As he's not a big fan of turkey, David is more than happy to sit out the main course as long as it's with a glass of Jason's suggested accompaniment; a Fleurie from the inestimable Graillot family. Racy, light and floral, it'll nurse you all the way through the Queen's speech and mask any linge

When you're at a party and gingerly negotiating the free-for-all of bottles on the kitchen table, a rule of thumb might be to leave anything with a screwcap until about two in the morning, when you're past noticing and well beyond caring. Jason Yapp, however, would tell you, that the humble cap, perfunctory as it may seem, need be no indicator of quality. To that end, he regales David with a brief history of the Stelvin 'alternative wine closure' and caps it off with the thirst-quenching proof in the form of four suitably crowned offerings from Yapp Brothers. Cracking open what has effectively become a Yapp house wine, a lively, appley Chenin Blanc from Saumur, they crack on with a Reisling from Willems-Willems, which for all its fruitiness has no less 'vif.' Yapp's house red, with a label designed by David, is an easy access, drink-it-from-the-hip, Cabernet Franc, but it certainly wouldn't harm to pair it with cheese, a grill or even a stew. And last of all, a cracking good Crozes Hermitage from the esteemed

In David and Jason's latest vinously-centric podcast, Jason makes a case for the viola of the wine world, rosé wine... well, just under half a case, actually, with five sumptuous rosés across the full spectrum of pinks from 'ballet pump' to 'terracotta.' First off is Yapp's own label rosé from the Ardèche, a mid-weight, low-budget, easy access offering under even easier screw cap. Next, a barely rosé 2017 Reuilly, as delightful as it is hard to pronounce; nutty, rosehipped and traditionally drunk with oysters. Third up, is a big favourite of David's, a proper pink, limpid-robed Menetou Salon, that he recently had the audacity to pair with a lightly-spiced Thai curry. Fourth, is from one of Jason's favourite estates in Corsica. Made from a blend of vermentino, sciacarello and neilluccio grapes, this coral pink rosé from Domaine Saparale is loaded with wild herbs, which after just one sip, Jason claims is crying out for fleshy fish and crustacea. Last of all, a truly magisterial wine from France's only exclusi

Like a pair of latter day Joris-Karl Huysmans, Jason and David take a trip to the Côte d'Azur, without actually leaving Jason's kitchen table and with nothing but a row of wheelie bins to excite their febrile imaginations, ensconce themselves amongst the yachty folk of the Riviera. Basking in the balmy heat of ever-present virtual sunshine, they sip three fine offerings from Laurent Bunan et Famille at Mas de la Rouvière: a wonderful, herby white made from pure Clairette grapes, that has Jason searing tuna with his mind's eye alone; a trendily de riqueur, coral pink and crustacea-friendly rosé and a silky smooth, long-legged, berry-scented red. Made with the region's inimitable Mourvèdre grape, it's the smartest thing to quaff with garlic studded, slow-roasted lamb. Santé!

With more Michelin stars than any other region, it's perhaps unsurprising that Alsace winemakers know how to make a wine that will stand up to the local food. Raclette anyone? Choucroute? Tartiflette? No problem! Leon Beyer have the answer in slender-shouldered bottles of the most carefully-balanced, zesty, floral, spicy wines that will impress even the most Riesling averse, chardonnay-loving Brit. First off is a classy Crémant with just the right amount of apple to bubble. Next, a simple 2015 Pinot Blanc that needs no accompaniment, except perhaps a second glass. The 2016 Riesling is more of a mouthful with subtle kerosene and herb aromas and an authoritative, citrus edge that makes it long on flavour. The only red is a supple and fruity, 2015 Pinor Noir, that sends Jason off into a reveries about chilli-infused Vietnamese beef salads, while David tries to work out why such a pale red can have such a robust flavour. Jason has one last wine up his sleeve; quite literally, a half bottle of Beyer's 2011, late-h

Jason and David travel on a bibulous route to the deep south, to Jason's 'happy hunting ground': the Languedoc. Here, though they may be pushed to graze even a goat, vines will pop up through the gravel like daisies and the locals lawlessly blend their bounty with barely a nod to the oenological authorities in distant Paris. With so much variety on offer, our two adventurers are soon concocting a fantasy feast to accompany it: Their first course may be in every hipster hangout from here to Hackney, but Domaine Gaujal's lip-stinging Picpoul De Pinet is the reason why oysters were invented. And it'll cleanse your palate without rinsing your wallet, too. Second up, Domaine Roquemale's, Meli-Melo is a mellifluous mish-mash of bright berries and soft fruits and the surest way to sensualise your saucisson sec when you allez au pique-nique. But if one single wine can exemplify the Languedoc reputation for terrific wines at modest prices, it's Jason 's favourite, lip-smacking Saint Chinian from Château Milhau-Lacu

Ding dong merrily, we're high... on Jason Yapp's wine selection for a traditional turkey dinner this Christmas! Jason and David get off to an unexpectedly fizzy start with Wraxall Vineyard's coral pink bubbly from Somerset (of all places), the best way to perk up any kitchen scullion on spud-peeling duty. They follow this with Eric Savaret's Domaine de Roncevaux, a minerally, tongue-curling Chardonnay, ideal for smoked salmon, crab or even oysters. And whether you love turkey, like Jason or despise it like David, the Graillot family's on-trend, briary-red Equinoxe, is both perfect accompaniment and ideal consolation, because it's almost a meal in itself! Last but not least, any end of level, boss pudding will more than meet its match with Domaine La Tour Vielle's delectable Banyuls. If it's closure your after, this heavenly concoction will wrap you up in pungent pluminess and sing you gently to sleep. Lully, lullay!

Late last century, when podcasting was something you might do after shelling peas and hipsters were something you wore on your legs, the English fell in love with Beaujolais and the infamous Beaujolais Run; not because it tasted any good, but because it gave them the opportunity to turn drinking wine into a national sport. Several decades later, it's high summer in the garden and Jason and David discover that the next generation of Beaujolais wines aren't simply a case of 'plus ça change, mais plus aussi le même chose.'

Jason Yapp and David Chandler shed an olfactory and gustatory light on the oenologically obscure island of Corsica and sample an evanescent Vermentino from Domaine Torraccia, a briary Corse Sartene rouge from Domaine Saparale and a reverential muscat from Domaine Pieretti. More adventures in wine at www.yapp.co.uk

Jason and David take their palates on an adventure to a land lost in time: the Jura. It's just like Norfolk, only with grapes! They sample the region's idiosyncratic Vin Jaune, a light but rewarding Poulsard, its gutsier neighbour, made from pure Trousseau and a delectable sweet, Vin de Paille, which is over-wintered on beds of straw - all from Jean-Louis Tissot. More Adventures In Wine at www.yapp.co.uk

Jason and David taste a world-renowned red Crozes Hermitage and an equally characterful white from one of the most respected wine-makers in the Rhône valley, Alain Graillot. More adventures in wine at https://www.yapp.co.uk/