The first time ever, the Nicolas Wine Fair at The Royal Horticultural Halls in London last weekend was a huge success.
The elegant premisses were packed with wine lovers eager to taste as much as their bodies could take in. There were many happy faces. The right to meet new friends as everyone wants to share their impressions about various wines.
Diversity of visitors
You could see couples trying to find wine they both enjoy to relish it later together while having a romantic dinner. But also loners, who bravely cruised from one stand to the other, were not rare. 
I was one of them and as a women I stood out. Nevertheless, I was warmly welcomed by each producer I approached and my peculiar questions were answered promptly.
What you could taste
There were over 200 wines & spirits from all over the world. Majority of them from France, therefore I decided to focus my tasting on the French producers.
I started with the Famille Bougrier from Loire Valley. Loire is famous for its crisp Savignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, exotic Muscadet and red Cabernet Franc in Touraine area.
I tried their Savignon Blanc, Grand Reserve from Touraine which couldn’t disappoint anyone. It was crisp and fruity. I liked it a lot. I moved to a semi-sweet Vouvray made from Chenin blanc. Its complex and light sweetness was mouth-watering. I got a detailed explanation of all of the wines as well as information about the family’s wineries.
At just the next stand, there was an Alsace producer the Domaine Schluberger. I admit, I am a big fan of wines from Alsace as they are something in the middle road between the rich German wines and more elegant French wines. A keen producer recommended me a Riesling from a Grand Cru vineyard Kitterle 2004. “It is my favourite, he said.” More minerals than usual and its lighter body were quite interesting, though I preferred the Riesling from the late harvest in 2005 called Vendages Tardives. I was said that Riesling is not usually picked late. In the Vendages Tardives the late harvest resulted in a more sweet taste and an elderberry flower aroma. More typical for late harvest is Gewurtztraminer and Pinot Gris. The former from a Grand Cru resembled more exotic flavours such as pineapple and li-chi.
Organic village
Organic wines are a big hit so they could not be left out at the Nicolas wine fair.
Correns is a village in the heart of Provence Verte, in the South of France, and it is almost all organic! This tradition is nothing new for locals as 95% of the wines from there are Organic. According to their leaflet it was the first village to be designated “bio” .
I have tried a rosé, which the young women next to me considered as the best rosé she has ever had. She said: “I have never liked rosé, but this is the very first time I come to love it!” I thought that it is wonderful to see people liking something they would never have thought they might like.
There was much more to taste, you could spend an afternoon here. Hopefully, next year Nicolas will repeat the success of the Wine Fair and attracts as many producers as this year.
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