Majorca Holiday Homes

Guide to finding good wines abroad

It's a happy coincidence that most of our favourite European holiday destinations also produce wine. The only trouble is that the wine tends not to be among the best known. For most people visiting the south of Italy, the Languedoc or Provence, Greece or Turkey, the wine list in a typical restaurant will be littered with labels and grape varieties that they have never heard of. They know instinctively that they will get the best choice and the best value by buying a local wine. They probably also sense that it is likely to match the local cuisine. But, they have no idea – until they have tried them – which wines will be worth drinking and which best avoided.

They are not alone. There is no simple way to be sure of knowing whether an unfamiliar wine is going to be any good. Official terms such as Appellation Contrôlée in France, Gran Reserva in Spain or DOCG in Italy are supposed to provide some kind of assurance, as is OPE in Greece, but there are plenty of disappointments to be found bearing these terms.

Don't imagine, for example, that a "Cru Classé" rosé from Provence is necessarily going to provide one of the great wine experiences of your life – or justify its hefty price tag. Today a growing number of top winemakers happily sidestep traditional rules and designations in any case, so by following official plaudits you might be missing out on some of the best wine.

In Greece, if you are lucky, you will encounter a knowledgeable sommelier or waiter who will respond to your interest in the region's wines. Or, if you are really keen, seek out their domaine and buy direct.

Below, I have listed some of my favourite wines in France and the key Mediterranean holiday destinations – both from the best established growers and from some of the up-and-coming names.

In holiday wine terms, Italy is a game of two halves. There is the middle, consisting of Tuscany and Umbria – John Mortimer's Chiantishire – along with Lazio and Marche. And there's the south, in the shape of Calabria, Puglia and Sicily. The one thing all these have in common is the improvement in their wines over the past 20 years.

Tuscany has a bewildering range of delicious wines now (my favourite producers include Castello di Ama and Isole e Olena, and a newcomer called Monteverro).

In Umbria, Lungarotti is still good, but Arnaldo Caprai is making dazzling waves with the local sagrantino: big, tough, intense reds to drink with serious meat. Lazio has lots of new stars, too, but Castel de Paolis combines great frascati (usually a contradiction in terms) with juicy reds.

Majorca Holiday; Europe's Favorite Holiday ... - Home and Garden

It is quite natural for you to get tired and exhausted after living a continuous hectic life with your official formalities. However, it is very important for you take a break from your work and plan a holiday with your entire family. This little break from your work will certainly give you ultimate relaxation and free you from all the tensions around. In fact, there are many people, who simply look for reasons to plan a vacation as and when possible. Again, if you are thinking of a place for your holiday, you can simply leave it to us. It is because we have already selected Europe’s most favorite destination for you. The Majorca holiday will actually give you whatever you need, in order to make it a memorable experience.

If you are already residing somewhere in Europe, the Majorca holiday can be a perfect thing for you. This is because of the fact that this place is not very much far from the main Europe. It takes only around two hours from the flight to reach and very soon you can have a blast.

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