Dark red fruit, mocha and cigar box

We were in Surrey yesterday  just overnight and we had a meal in the restaurant attached to our accommodation. We dithered what to drink with dinner, and were going to have a couple of glasses of wine, but then realised it was actually more economical to have a bottle. I looked down the wine list, and one caught my eye for obvious reasons, Flagstone Poetry a Cabernet Sauvignon from South Africa, described as tasting of cassis, chocolate, berries and spices. I was having steak which I very rarely have (in fact I do eat it very rare as well!) so this wine seemed like a good match and we ordered a bottle.

It was an excellent choice, it suited our palates well, and had a wonderful flavour, rounded and interesting. As usual, if there is anything to read I will read it, so I had a look at the label. The nose was described as ‘a mixture of dark red fruit, mocha, cigar box and mint aroma,’  and the palate was ‘rewarded’ with ‘a hint of dark chocolate and a well-balanced oak.’ Luckily it was apparently ‘perfect with beef fillet in red wine reduction or a wild mushroom risotto.’  I didn’t have beef fillet in red wine, but I had a fine steak. So, ‘the nose’ well, yes it certainly had a dark red fruit aroma, blackberries maybe, and mocha – yes there was a coffee element to the smell, but cigar box?

Suddenly I was taken back to Christmases of my childhood, when gifts of cigarettes and cigars were a very special and generous treat for my dad. Smoking then was just a normal thing that people did, and even if some didn’t like the smell of it very much, well, it was just ubiquitous. I was fascinated by the cedar wood cigar boxes, and my sister and I were usually given them when they were empty for our pencils, beads, little items for the board games we played. There was always a colourful and exotic picture on the lid, the writing was in another language – no doubt Spanish, and the boxes seemed exotic and wonderful. But what I particularly liked was the smell of them, the cedar and the tobacco (a different smell from cigarettes) So when I smelled the wine we were drinking last night, yes there was a cigar box aroma!

The wine doesn’t seem to be on general sale here, but the restaurant is part of a chain, so maybe if we go out for another meal in a few months time, then perhaps Flagstone Poetry will be on the menu!