Some wine shows we didn't write up at the time # 2, London Wine Fair 2025

 

London Wine Fair 2025

There are always some left field wines at the LWF and 2025 was no exception.

 

 

At the Japanese Liquor Store stand, our first Japanese Red wine.

Bailey A Dry

 

Our first Japanese red wine.

The label says ' "Fox Village is the name of the winery in Japan which is located in Yamanashi prefecture, famous for its grape (sic) and winemaking."

It claims Muscat Bailey A is native to Japan.

 

Bailey A or more properly Muscat Bailey A is the main grape for Japanese red wines. It is a Japanese hybrid obtained in 1927 from Triumph and Extra where Triumph is not Triomph d'Alsace but a Seibel product and Extra is a Big Berry and Triumph hybrid. Big Berry is a Vitis Lincecumii grapevine found by one Thomas Volney Munson (1843 - 1903) in the US. Why on earth it was found necessary to choose this unbelievably involved and obscure grape to combat the difficult climate of Japan is hard to imagine. Suffice it to say this wine tasted like wine. 

 

There was also a Japanese Sparkling wine called Bloom made with Chardonnay, Pinot Noir...and...Sake (8%)! That was original, to be sure.
 

 

 On to China.

 Not so original Cabernet Franc.

 

 Interesting Franco-Chinese initiative: Marselan with bits of Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache.

 

 On to Kosovo or Kosova as they call it

 

 

here we though we had discovered a Kosovan variety hitherto unknown to anyone but Kallmet just turns out to be their synonym for Kadarka.

 

 

It was interesting to see they grow Fleurtai and Cabernet Volos in Kosova. 

 

 It always seems miraculous to see Ukraine at these shows but here they were in force.

 Serbia has some good producers. We looked in vain for our favourite Oszkar Maurer.

 

 

 Good to see Israel represented. Feldstein's Dabouki/Marawi/Jandali is a real rarity. 

Their Gilgamesh is a Carignan, Argaman, Syrah, Cab S, and Grenache blend.

Kedem is big in Kosher wine worldwide.

 

 All in all a good event in 2025.