WHITBY'S MAY 2026 MATCH REPORT BY JAMES R CARSON
Our meeting was held once again in our usual venue, Sanders Yard Bistro on Church Street, Whitby. There were 33 attendees, which is probably not far from our average attendance.
We were fortunate to once again welcome, as our presenters, Adam Sheldon and Chris Hadley from our local Whitby wine merchants, Tipsea Wines, who are both also members of our Whitby section.
Our meeting was opened by our Chairman, Rob Smith, who again raised the issue of us lacking a new secretary following Bob Carson’s resignation. There has been considerable effort to simplify the role: Andrea and Nigel Green have taken on the job of finding and booking the presenters, and Dean Watt has kindly taken on the role of secretary on a temporary basis for three months to ensure everything keeps running smoothly. However, Rob stressed that the role of secretary is vital to the continuance of our section, and efforts are ongoing to find a permanent replacement.
Rob then welcomed our two presenters and was particularly pleased to inform us that Tipsea Wines will shortly be opening a retail outlet in Whitby, on the very appropriately named Grape Lane.
Adam and Chris’s wine choices for the evening followed no particular theme but were wines they are enthusiastic about and which they hoped would pair well with the food on offer.
As ever, it was a thoroughly enjoyable evening. We held a vote for the favourite wine of the evening, with the Ice Wine and the Prosecco jointly winning, narrowly beating the Negroamaro.
Rob finished the evening with a huge thanks to Adam and Chris, and a reminder that our next meeting will be held on Monday 15th June.
The wines sampled were as follows:
Welcome Wine: Mabis Biscardo Prosecco DOC Spumante Millesimato Rosé from Veneto, Italy (£14.40). This was definitely well liked as a refreshing fizz on a summer evening.
Intermediate Wine: Table Bay Chenin Blanc from Western Cape, South Africa (£9.00). Rich, fruity flavours (peach, fresh apple and even hints of guava and passion fruit were mentioned). Certainly the preferred white wine of the evening on my table.
Starter Wines: Quintas do Homem, Vale do Homem Branco Vinho Verde from Portugal (£11.70). Fruity and floral with a definite fresh flavour.
Verum Embrujo del Campo Verdejo from Castilla, Spain (£11.70). Grown at 700 metres altitude on limestone.
Main Course Wines: Indomitable Nostros Carmenère Reserva from Maipo, Chile (£11.70). This dark red, full‑bodied wine presented plenty of red‑fruit flavour, with some people even getting notes of green bell pepper and herbiness.
Acid Crab Negroamaro from Puglia, Italy (£14.40). This earthy and subtle wine had a distinctive aroma of toffee, with spicy black pepper and cloves on the palate. It was suggested that it works very well slightly chilled, at about 12°C.
Dessert Wine: Bodegas Altolandon Dulce Enero Ice Wine from Manchuela, Spain (£23.40). This very concentrated wine had plenty of prune, toffee and syrup flavours.
