I’m on an Italian bent (Oi! Stop it…) at the mo. Last October’s EWBC in Brescia and trips out to Fruili and Alto Adige followed by a trip to Perugia (and trips out and about) for the IWineTC. Who would not want to continue the exploration and keep the longing to return alive?

So I made biscotti. Cinnamon flavoured, Biscotti Di Vini Cannella, and paired them with a dessert wine, only the wine wasn’t Italian but English. Now while I do have a half-bottle of something gorgeous and sweet I lugged back from Italy I opened this bottle of Chapel Down Nectar Late Harvest [Adegga / Snooth].

Chapel Down Nectar Late Harvest has been lovingly created by winemaker Andrew Parley using the aromatic grape varieties of Schönburger, Bacchus, Reichensteiner and Siegerrebe harvested during 2010 and 2011. The fruit was allowed to hang on the vine longer than usual to accumulate high sugar levels and, in the case of the 2010 Bacchus (which makes up 20% of this blend), clean ‘Noble Rot’ was achieved.

The fermentation was halted by chilling to leave a wine with a high amount of sweetness from the unfermented sugar and a wine low in alcohol. It comes in at just 8%

It’s a rather delicate little number but with a glorious aroma of elderflower and a palate sweetly perfumed with apricots, oranges and a hint of hawthorn, it is wonderfully ‘English springtime’ in a glass.

The producers recommend it with a fruit based dessert or a light blue cheese; but seeing its delicateness I opted for a couple of cinnamon flavoured biscotti; just to keep a pulse in the Italian vibe…

Nectar Late Harvest is available, exclusively from www.chapeldown.com, at £12.99 per 50cl bottle.