Words With Wine

May Edition

Nothing goes better in our opinion than a good book and a large glass of wine. It is the main reason our founder set up Words With Wine!

Each month we take the time to pair our book with a wine that will compliment that theme and help enhance your whole experience.

This pairing is a good classic. A Thriller and a Red Wine (it may or may not represent the blood in the book! 😉 )

The dark aspects of a crime novel make it a perfect match for dark interesting flavours. Wines with hints of black pepper or tobacco work exceptionally well with a crime novel. When you are reading about a smell and then you taste it in your wine, it transports you to another place. You can imagine being in that novel and living the story. An experience truly unique to your imagination and one like no other.

The May box (and our FIRST EVER box) did just that. Transported you to 1970’s Glasgow with a large wine in hand.

Our pairing for this box was Bloody January by Alan Parks with a bottle of Bouchon Foye Carménère. 

Book – Bloody January by Alan Parks

Genre: Thriller 

“The Boy's eyes suddenly focused, like he'd just seen McCoy for the first time. He spun his arm round towards him and lined up a shot, pistol aimed square at his head. McCoy froze as the boy adjusted his aim and squeezed the trigger.”

Set in 1970's Glasgow, Bloody January is the first of an intriguing new crime series written by Scottish noir spectacle, Alan Parks. Following Detective Harry McCoy as he tries to solve a double shooting in the middle of a busy Glasgow street.

Harry McCoy is a hard drinking, tough detective, who brought up in brutal Catholic boys homes, and shares a past with one of Glasgow's toughest crime lords. The story starts when McCoy and his new partner (a young lad on his first day) arrive at a murder, just in time to see the killer, a young boy, shoot himself.

With no idea why the young boy killed the girl or himself, McCoy enlists the help of his criminal underworld connections to find out the truth. Throughout the story we learn a little more about McCoy’s history and his many questionable acts as a police officers. He seems more at home on the streets than in the police station. The plot is dark and intriguing, it covers prostitution, homelessness, drug abuse and mental health all while exploring the deep rooted poverty that turned so many young life down a dangerous path.

Cleverly written, it is a dark but realistic thriller that leaves you wanting more.

Although it does contain a lot of swearing (especially in the first chapter) don’t let that put you off, if anything it gives a more realistic view of 1970 Glasgow.

If you are anything like me, you won’t be able to put this book down, and you will picture Martin Compston as McCoy making it more realistic.

Wine – Bouchon Foye Carménère

Type – Red

Vintage – 2017

Location – South Chile

Grape – Carménère

Alcohol – 13.5%

Vegan

👀         Deep red and violet in colour

👃🏻         Dark Berries laced with black pepper

👄        Full bodied and beautifully balanced.

            Dark berries, low tannins and delightfully refreshing

🍷        Serves in a rounder balloon shaped glass with a wide opening for a   smoother wine

            Best served between 16 – 18 degrees

🍴        Pairs extremely well with lean meats and savoury sauces or a creamy pasta dishes.

Rarely found in Frances these days, it is widely found in Chile, specifically in the Central Valley region, where more than 8,800 hectares of Carménère can be found.

Carménère can also be found in smaller doses in Eastern Italy, Argentina and some of the USA.

A really easy drinking Red Wine. Perfectly balanced, it is smooth, refreshing with hints of red berries and black pepper. Great for people who adore Red Wine but also for those who are just dipping their toe into the Red pool.

It pairs well with savoury sauces and creamy pasta dishes so it is a great mid-week dinner wine.