From the only affordable producer of Hermitage comes this little cheeky delight.

Crozes Hermitage "Cuvee Gaby" 2004, Domaine du Colombier
A really refined nose of complex fruit and charming earthiness. There is a hint of cheap cologne, but the character of the fruit and earthiness move it on from such stereotypes of Crozes. The palate is svelte and elegant with a soft tannic structure and an explosion of peppery, dark fruit. It tastes really soft and charming, quite delicious. This may of have not have the vigour, and also be down a bit of style, compared to the great Alain Graillot, but is has reasonable complexity and is quite fun. I suppose this could age for another 5-8 years, but I really wouldn't bother; this is most pleasing as it is.

Good as Tim Adams' Aberfeldy Shiraz is, I think this is my favourite wine from him. I've aged earlier vintages for 10+ years and been impressed by the result. It is also a bundle of laughs to drink when young. It is a Grenache, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot blend.

The Fergus 2005, Tim Adams
Lovely, plummy fruit on the nose, with some spicy, peppery aromas. It is powerful and heady, but with a reasonably degree of harmony for a wine of this scale. When you smell this wine you cannot help but smile; lovely stuff, I tell you. The palate has ripe, with smooth tannins and lots of christmas cake fruit. It does have an impressive degress of complexity for a wine of this alcohol-level, it is not baked-free of character. At this stage in the evening this has the correct degree of power to keep me inetersted. Yummy, yummy.

I like Tim Adams' wines very much. They are good and he doesn't charge the earth for them; this cost less than a tenner.

Clare Valley Shiraz 2005, Tim Adams
A very overt, fruity nose. It is loud, but not over-blown. There is a relatively sophisticated wood treatment showing on the nose, it is really quite pleasing. The palate is big and powerful, but taut like a weight-lifter. The tannins are very ripe and give this wine a great structure, which shows off its fruit very well. For a tenner this has a very pleasing degree of complexity. OK, it is a tad on the booze-tastic side, but it doesn't lack balance and it is great fun.

I was fortunate enough to have another bottle of Verset Cornas 1999 last night; it was quite delicious. It made me think about the discussions I've had with my wine obsessed friends about who makes the best Cornas. So, I have set up a poll and the best Cornas can be established by popular acclaim.

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This wine is not only a delight when young, but I've had ten-year old bottles that have provided a lot of pleasure. If I like this bottle, I'll do the experiment again.

Pouilly-Fuisse "Vieilles Vignes" 2005, Chateau Fuisse
A nose of proper Burgundy: play-dough and baby vomit. Plenty of creamy minerality and lovely lemon fruit. There is proper complexity on the nose and a real concentration of aromas. The palate has a deeply pleasing texture, with great fruit, perfectly integrated acidity and layers of concentrated flavour. There is a lot of charm about this wine, I am enjoying it greatly. It clearly has a very rewarding future ahead of it; I'll get another bottle and do the experiment.

The basic By Farr Pinot was most impressive, this prestige cuvee is a step ahead.

Pinot Noir "Sangreal" 2006 By Farr
Lovely, sophisticated fruit on the nose. It has a degree of stemminess, but this just adds to its complexity. And it really is quite complex. Good concentration of aromas on the nose, it smells a lot. Of good things, I hasten to add. The palate is very smooth and silky, with nice, ripe tannins, fresh acidity and truly delicious fruit. This is very attractive and complex, in its first, fun, fleshy stage of development so is tits-out for the boys to drink now. However, if you really can be bothered I feel you could come back to it in, say, seven years and be pleasantly surprised. I don't think Australian Pinot Noir gets any better than this.

My mother and step-father had this in their wine cupboard, I insisted we try it. Perhaps that was my first mistake.

Coteaux du Layon Beaulieu 1974, Les Caves de la Loire
Hell's bells, this smells like a mixture of glue and paint-stripper. Not entirely attractive, if we are honest. That being said, for a 34 year old wine it has a degree of freshness which is quite amazing; not nice admittedly, but amazing that it is not completely oxidised. Oh dear, the palate is really quite repulsive, not oxidised or shagged out, but just deeply nasty with far too many weird and chemical flavours. I have to say, it is amazing a wine this bad has aged so well. It is horrible, for sure, but it could be so very much worse. I will not be finishing off the glass, but I find myself being strangely impressed that it was not immediately emetic.

This is even better than the 1999 I popped recently, and that was a screamingly good bottle of wine. Papa Verset is greatly missed.

Cornas 1998, Noel Verset
A heady, rich nose of dark fruit and leather. There is a hint of stemminess to this, but it fits perfectly with the ripe fruit and earthy complexity. This is hilariously classy, oozing with style from every pore. Serious complexity on the nose which is utterly delightful. The palate is as pleasing as a Paul Smith suit: highly refined. The Cornas tannins are present but ripe and attractive. The ripe fruit is lovely, as is the earthiness. It is very long and the complexity of the finish charms the tits off me. This is a truly top banana bottle of Cornas, which was an incredible bargain from Byrne's. Fine wine does not come any cheaper.

We've gone on a trip to Oxford to see the Inspires gallery's exhibition of Sarah-Jane Selwood ceramics. Not much of an exhibition, as it turns out, a sum total of five pieces on display. We are told she is not making as much these days because she is busy dropping sprogs. We scored the most distinctive and beautiful piece. It is a polished stoneware bowl called 'triple inversion'. It looks like this:

The polished stoneware feels amazing; it has the texture of a pebble on a beach which has been worn to smoothness by the sea.

Lafarge makes wonderful Volnay, and Volnay can be terribly beautiful. Some journalists have commented that Lafarge makes inconsistent wines, but I feel they make these comments because they don't understand the ageing profile of Burgundy. It is not always time to drink Burgundy, sometimes you need to wait. This was another remarkable bargain from Bryne's in Clitheroe.

Volnay "Vendanges Selectionees" 2002, Domaine Michel Lafarge
A charming, scented nose of strawberry and cherry fruit; this smells highly attractive. The fruit is very pure and there is a subtle earthiness to it which adds to its complexity. The palate is soft and fruity, with a reasonable amount of acidity to it which makes the fruit bright and the wine lively. For a village wine this has a lot of class, style and beauty. It is drinking very well now, but has a good future ahead of it is you can be arsed to cellar it for 5-or-so years. Lovely Volnay.

When I was last chatting to my chums Jeremy and Gernot about my trip to Alsace they suggested that they could not see the point of Pinot Gris. I couldn't agree less. OK, if you get a flabby, sugar-laced offering from someone like Zind-Humbrecht it can be difficult to match with food; indeed I'd go as far as saying Pinot Gris like that are bloody hard to drink. However, drier, more balanced offerings with good acidity can match food very well. This bottle will slip down a treat with the chicken in cider I am cooking. It has weight, but lively acidity and minerality; a good match for the rich flavours in the food. I do agree that Alsace Riesling is often the way forward, but to dismiss Pinot Gris is a mistake; pleasure takes many forms.

Pinot Gris Grand Cru Brand 2006, Domaine Albert Boxler
A lovely, charming nose of ripe, peachy fruit with a backbone of good minerality. This smells fleshy and very attractive, which a good measure of complexity. The palate is basically dry, with plenty of pleasing fruit, very good acidity for a wine of this scale and damned-good vineyard character. The Brand Grand Cru is a top site for Pinot Gris, and Jean Boxler has extracted the very best quality from it for this wine. Of course, it needs drinking within the next 18 months or so; Pinot Gris doesn't age. I suppose if that was the point the Jeremy and Gernot were trying to make I'd have to agree, but I don't think the point of a wine rests with its longevity.

Starting on 27 September there is a Sarah-Jane Selwood exhibition at the Inspires gallery in Oxford. This gallery opened after I moved out of Oxford, so I cannot guarantee the quality of it. However, I'll be visiting after lunch on the day it opens, just to look at her latest work rather than necessarily buy anything. I hope there is plenty of good stuff to fondle.

When I tried this chez Pibarnon the winemaker was highly amused that I said it was sexy. It is sexy, I tell you!

Bandol 2001, Chateau de Pibarnon
A rich, heady nose of ripe, complex fruit. This is packed with style, and is really voluptuous on the nose; deeply, deeply lovely. I am really charmed by this; it may be a bit on the big side but it does not lack finesse or class. The palate has a truly lovely tannic structure, which frames the beautiful fruit in a really pleasing way. This is really too young to be drinking, but by arse does it put a smile on my face. Tits Bandol, man, with not even the merest hint of arseholes. Yeah, power up!

I thought I may as well write up one of tonight's wines as I decant it so I don't have to disappear in front of the computer for quite so long when my guests arrive. It is always a treat to drink Noel 'Papa' Verset's Cornas.

Cornas 1999, Noel Verset
A rich, ripe nose of dark fruit with a hint of stemminess. There is some real earthy complexity to the nose, which is highly attractive. The overall impression of the nose is that it is multi-dimensional and deeply compelling. This is serious kit. The palate has some slightly rustic Cornas tannins, but generally is as smooth as silk socks and as refined as super-unleaded. Really ripe fruit, yet not in the slightest bit over-blown. This has quite a lot of class and wonderful harmony; I am finding it highly enjoyable. This is up for drinking now (with great pleasure), and I am sure it will continue to provide smiles for another five or more years if you have the cellaring capability. To think that a wine this desirable was sitting on Byrne's shelf for a mere fifteen notes; a super bargain.

I was in Lancashire last weekend for a wedding to two lovely friends of mine. We paid a visit to the amusingly named town of Clitheroe to go to the excellent wine merchant D. Byrne. It was filled with an embarrassment of riches which were generally very reasonably priced. My chum Jeremy Seysses saw this wine on the shelf and told me I should buy it as it had rave reviews from some American journalists. It was only £13 so I thought why not? When I had paid I noticed it was 16.5% alcohol and so I challenged Jeremy, who I know to be a lover of beautiful wines, on why he had recommended lighter-fuel for me try. He came clean and said he knew I would hate it, but he likes to read my torrents of invective about horrible wines. He had knowingly got me to buy despicable wine. Thanks, Jeremy, thanks a bunch. So do I hate it? Read on...

Shiraz "The Boxer" 2006, Mollydooker
By arse, I've smelled less confected jam than this. This smells of alcohol, wood and jammy fruit; it is depressingly simple and horrifically overblown. Smelling this for more than a couple of seconds burns my nose. There is nothing even remotely attractive about its aromas. No. Oh no. Really, no. For fuck's sake, the palate is truly horrible. Sweet, flabby, painfully alcoholic; how can people like shit like this? It is vile filth. OK, if you want monster-get-pissed-fast, soupy, unbalanced, sweet mouthwash, this will do. If you think wine should have redeeming qualities like elegance, style and, let us be honest, drinkability, you'll find this as offensive as I am as I try to choke back enough to write this tasting note.

Which leaves us wondering what sort of wine journalism recommends this kind of crap. I am reminded of how I used to chose girlfriends whilst at university. Tall or short, beautiful or ugly, clever or stupid, it didn't matter to me as long as they had big tits. That was all that mattered - huge bouncers. Of course, this is a terrible way of viewing women, just as viewing over-ripe monstrosities like this as the pinnacle of wine-making is a shameful view of wine. Complexity, style and balance are to be applauded, and simple, booze-tastic, beasts are to be pilloried. I am disgusted to think that someone could recommend something as shamefully crap as this.