Gear up for the festive season with our selection on wines, fizz, fortifieds, special cases and spirits. Gift ideas, too! Whatever you need to celebrate (or survive) the holidays, we've got you covered.
The bold, plush ageworthy reds from Torbreck in the Barossa Valley are among Australia's most collectable wines. The secret is all down to the pedigree of its vineyards and a 'go hard or go home' approach to picking dates.
Full of freshness and bright youthful fruits, the 2020 vintage of Woodcutter’s Shiraz possesses no small amount of exuberance and personality. Aromatic plum and black cherry with dark chocolate and intensity, yet refined. The balanced palate has a round central core of black and blue fruit that gives way to a complex mid-palate. While offering immense pleasure in its youth, the 2020 Woodcutter’s Shiraz will certainly develop into an impressive wine with a few more years in the cellar. A fantastic introduction to the Torbreck range.
We all need a little 'Funkstille' (radio silence) in our life now and again.
Kick back and take a moment to enjoy the silence with a glass of Grüner Veltliner. With its subtle exotic hints, ripe pear and fresh citrus flavours, it's a dry wine with complex flavours. The palate is rich with flavours of melon and grapefruit with a refreshing, zippy finish.
At Monthe?lie, pronounced 'Monthlie', the first traces of vineyards date back to the 9th Century. Situated between Volnay, Meursault and Auxey-Duresses, this village often remains unnoticed by the visitor on a journey from Volnay to Meursault. Rich aromas of different berry fruits. Perfumed and willowy on the palate, the wine expresses a delicate softness. Good ageing potential.
The perfect Christmas accompaniment, with a classic bouquet of red & black fruit, liquorice & leather. Beautifully structured with superb freshness and ageing potential.
54% Pinot Noir, 46% Chardonnay 3g sugar Dosage
Expressive notes of white peach, honeysuckle and quince on the nose, followed by some brioche and exotic fruits. On the palate the champagne is full and quite open, beautifully balanced and with real richness, with touches of ginger and apricot jam.
Decanter Review: "Four Stars, 16.5 / 20. Ripe Pinot fruit, a hint of spice, incisive, Chardonnay-led freshness. More precise thanks to a lowered dosage of 8g/l. Exemplary." Michael Edwards July 2011.
Decanter Review: "Four Stars, 16.5 / 20. Ripe Pinot fruit, a hint of spice, incisive, Chardonnay-led freshness. More precise thanks to a lowered dosage of 8g/l. Exemplary." Michael Edwards July 2011.
This single vineyard Pinot Noir is bright, aromatic and fresh with subtle oak playing a supporting role. The emphasis on the delicious red fruit flavours, drinkability and enjoyment. A seriously cool Pinot.
Between the mountains and the sea, Espinos y Cardos looks to craft subtle, pure expressions of classic international varieties from their two ranges.
Focused on vineyards in Casablanca and Curico, Los Espinos combines cutting edge winemaking with regional typicity to provide a range that is at the beating heart of the country. Santa Macarena is a testament to the individuality and intrigue that so many Chilean wine drinkers are yet to discover. Amazing fruit, grown in the Leyda region 5km from the ocean, so close you can smell it, crafted into a unique expression of the enigmatic Pinot Noir that clearly demonstrates the real quality that lives in this land.
Viticulture
A single vineyard Pinot Noir from one of the most coastal vineyards in Chile in San Antonioi just 5 km from the ocean, within a small vineyard region 55 miles west of central Santiago and just south of Casablanca Valley. Morning mists and spring frosts, often associated with the Napa Valley and Bordeaux are brought from the west coast by the Humboldt current.
Winemaking
Grapes are carefully selected and picked manually early in the morning . Cold maceration prior to alcoholic fermentation at 10C during 3- 4 days in order increase skin components extraction. Alcoholic fermentation was carried out at low controlled temperature ( Maximum 25C), which avoids the loss of volatile compounds (aromatic compounds). Regular pumping over to facilitate colour extraction and skin components. Aging in tank with oak to add complexity and oaky character to final wines. Final wines have a deep red- purple colour with delicate sweet red fruit flavours and aromas.
Oak Treatment
Time: 6 Months
Type: French Oak
% wine oaked: 100
% new oak: None
More golden and nuttier than the manzanilla with a little sweetness which matches many soups very well - jerusalem artichoke with truffle oil for example.
Raisins, toffee and roast nuts on the nose. A complex, medium-weight wine with a superb tangy finish. A real tastebud teaser, this would make an excellent aperitif.? Wine, October 2003. Bronze Medal, IWC 2004
Pale, bright topaz colour with a golden tinge, fresh with dry fruit, wood and citrus flavours with a fresh and nutty persistent finish. Excellent as an aperitif but is also exceedingly good with flambees, dried fruits and spicy cheeses
Verdelho ripens more easily than Sercial and therefore lends itself to producing a medium dry wine. With age the wines develop an extraordinary smoky complexity.
Attractive cassis nose with powerful, concentrated fruit aromas. Fresh, rich, firm and full of fruit including, dark berries and chocolate. A wine with good body, structure and length. Single Quinta wines need decanting as they are usually a decade old, and will throw a sediment as they age. Walnuts are an excellent accompaniment to Vintage Port, along with rich flavoured cheeses such as Silton and dried fruits.
This famous Port house's best vineyard makes great wines with distinctive aromas of mint and violet with intense concentration and fine peppery tannins. Dow's is owned by the Symington family, Port producers for five generations since 1882,
Blended for consistency of character and quintessentially Fonseca in style, this reserve blend provides reliable and affordable value. Intense rich fruity nose, a smooth velvety texture, and juicy black fruit lingering into the rich luscious finish.
A fine and rare type of port much loved by CWM. The wine forms a crust adding both depth of flavour and character to the wine, and therefore will require decanting before serving. Definitely worth the wait.
In the early 1950’s, the rising demand for Vintage ports led Fonseca to create a second vintage port under the ‘Guimaraens’ label. Blended from slightly less powerful components, Guimaraens Vintage Ports are made in years when the wines are more supple and early maturing though they are drawn from the same three estates. They differ only in that they are more approachable, ready to drink earlier and for their quality and rarity offer exceptional value. “Caramelised black cherry, liquorice, tea leaves. Pruny. A bite of grippy tannins.” IWC 2019 Silver
Wonderfully exuberant, pungent, full, aromatic nose. Luscious, ripe, black cherry and plum fruit with notes of cedar and spice. The wine is wonderfully rich, rounded, concentrated, with layers juicy berry flavours and attractive notes of cedar. An elegant wine with good complexity. Lovely, intense finish full of flavour.
Located on the steep right bank of the Távora River, Panascal is one of the most highly reputed vineyards in the Douro Valley. In the words of a local saying, 'From Roncão and Panascal come the finest wines of Portugal'. The wines of Quinta do Panascal are rich, with voluptuous fruitiness, mouth filling density and a velvety texture. A fat, plump, luscious wine. Full of rounded, ripe jammy fruit aromas. Almost warm 'marmalada' like note to the nose. The ripeness and richness of fruit is reinforced in the mouth with flavours of plump, bursting plums and cherries. Great notes of tobacco, smoky tea (lapsang) and spice. A warm, velvety, satiny wine.
Simply wonderful aged tawny port from the masters of the style, Graham's. Aromas of coffee, caramel and mulberry dominate the nose and there is a lovely ruby colour in the centre of the tawny, showing that it is young and fruity. Great dessert wine.
A perfect tawny combining great complexity and harmony. This is the master blender’s quest for perfection, capturing the perfect balance between young and aged port wines being matured for over 20 years in seasoned oak casks that contain 543 litres of port, only being released once they have reached perfection.
