I brought home a bottle of Horton Vineyard's Norton 2004 from my brief visit to Virginia vineyards in 2008 and opened it two nights ago.

Just as well since when I removed the capsule I found the dreaded plastic artificial 'cork'. Those things cannot be relied on for keeping wine good for more than a couple of years. Luckily the wine seemed fine.

Great gulumphing plummy fruit flavours with an acidic tang that developed. Stuck the cork back in and put bottle in fridge.

Next evening took it out fridge and after an hour or so poured a glass. Acid had softened right down and the wine was drinking very pleasantly and proved a good accompaniment to a video of "Gold Diggers of 1933" with Ginger Rogers, Joan Blondel, Ruby Keeler and Dick Powell.

If you want to know about Norton � America�s own grape � see
here.


Peter F May, Wine Editor
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