An Occasional Tipple: A fancy-dan English wine for Paddy's Day

Anyway, that’s speculation. Let’s deal with reality which insists that tomorrow, despite last Saturday's heartrending defeat to England in the rugby, is still St Patrick’s Day. In Ireland, we don’t make wine but if we did it’d probably be the best wine in the world. At least, it would be until at the very last minute those nice English arrived with their Fancy-Dan, superior, looking-down-their-noses-at-us stupid Paddies, wine. I’m not bitter. Honest. Best team won.

So, Paddy’s Day, tomorrow? There’s only so much stout a man can drink. As an aside, my Madame erroneously argues there’s likewise only so much diddley-dee music a person can be subjected to before going insane. I think she’s at least as wrong as she is French which is kind of the same thing, isn’t it? We’ll find out for definite tomorrow. Anyway, after all that stout, this fine upstanding Irishman will need some dacent ye olde worlde Euro-vino before he moves on to his uisce beatha.

I always make a delicious Irish Stew on the 17th March. This year it’s being served with today’s WINE OF THE WEEK, the robust, rustic and opulent 2020 Chianti Reserva (£6.49, Lidl)- a wonderfully expressive bouquet comes packed with damsons, cherries and spices which mingle most pleasingly on its complex palate before hints of black pepper and dark bitter chocolate enrich its magnificently lengthy finish.

Not drinking? Not Guilty wines, distributed throughout N.I. by Craigavon-based United Wine Merchants, have a wide range of full-flavoured, reasonably priced wines which won’t leave you feeling groggy in the morning and will allow you to drive your friends home tomorrow night and to remember and, better still, remind them of all the ridiculous things they said and did the night before. What could possibly be more satisfying than that?

Well, obviously, getting our revenge on the English next year... Until then, lovers of white may wish to satisfy themselves with today’s final recommendation, the vibrantly aromatic, unctuously heady and superbly rounded Bramble Hill English White Wine (£12, M&S). A glorious riot of fresh green apple and mineral flavours is neatly undercut by a sharp swathe of citrus in its refreshing finish. One for a goat’s cheese and broad bean salad with some warm sunshine please.

And the sun will indeed be shining today if Ireland beat Scotland to retain the Six Nations and even more if Fastorslow proved more fast than slow in yesterday's Cheltenham Gold Cup to line my own threadbare pockets with galleons of silver. Till next week, tipplers, sante!