There 225 products in this category
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Foncalieu
Wonderful. The best value Pinot Noir we have found from the Languedoc. Fine, fruity and elegant. Simply delicious.
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Domaine des Soulanes
Very rare, very low production. Mineral, taught. Fine and long. One of the unsung whites of the Roussillon. A blend of Grenache Gris, Grenache Blanc, Carignan Gris and Carignan Blanc. Outstanding wine. Ages gracefully for 10++ years. Beautiful vineyards that are beautifully worked.
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Domaine Gayda
A very special wine. Winemaker Vincent comes from the Loire Valley so knows about Chenin from there and time making wine in South Africa. Chenin originated in the Languedoc so bringing it back is exciting. The wine is fermented in egg shaped concrete fermenting tanks, which allows better movement of liquid during and after fermentation than in stainless steel. Some barrel ageing too for texture. Well balanced with a purity of fruit enhanced by its roundness and length.. Highly recommended.
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La Reserve Saint Dominique
50% Grenache, 50% Mourvèdre. Vinified in stainless-steel tanks. Aged for 18 months in demi-muids (20%) and stainless-steel tanks (80%). "Tasted blind. The nose is shrouded in sweet oaky notes and raspberry compote. The palate is succulent, dense and concentrated, with firm and very fine tannins. Layered and fine, very well put together and beautifully judged oak on the palate. Very long and will age beautifully". Score 17.5/20 Alistair Cooper MW on jancisrobinson.com When to drink 2030 - 2042 Date tasted 5 Oct 2023 94-96+/100 Jeb Dunnuck
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Domaine des Soulanes
New cuvee from Soulanes. 100% younger vine Grenache Gris in 100% new oak barrel. Reductive, classy, Burgundian and wonderful, A measly 24 bottles available for the UK in this debut.
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Domaine des Trinités
Natural wine from Simon Coulshaw: no cultured yeast, enzymes, chemical tannins or fining product. 90% 130 yr old-vine Cinsault, 10% Syrah. I was instructed to chill this a bit before tasting. It was in the fridge for about 25 minutes and then left out for 10 minutes before tasting. Fresh red-berried nose. Hurrah! Here is another Languedoc producer who 'gets' Cinsault. Perky, bright, raspberries and with that lovely telltale Cinsault salty-sweet tang that always reminds me of the best prosciutto or jamon. A bit of white pepper and ground cumin tangled into feather-light sinews of tannin. This is absolutely YUM. Tapas/aperitivo wine, without a doubt. I could drink this all summer long. GV (TC) 17/20 Jancisrobinson.com
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La Bastide Saint Dominique
Pale gold coloured wine with light green reflections. Elegant and precise nose of white peach, pear and then honey and pine kernel. Pure and flavourful palate with a contrasted balance between Mediterranean roundness and fresh finale. 100% Clairette Rose whole-bunch pressed, from sandy, galet stone soils on Pignan (N-E, 0.8 hectare, 1979-80) & Bédines (N-E, 0.2 hectare, 1982, 1984), Saintes Georges (N-E, 0.2 hectare, 1960s), 50% steel vat, 50% 1-year 228-litre oak cask fermented at up to 17.5°C, raised 5-6 months, 1-2 lees stirrings a week, malo blocked, 1,000 bottles only.
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Terres Falmet
From Yves Falmet: My ‘L'ivresse des Cimes’ label is made from grapes grown on the steepest plots in my vineyard, located right at the top of the hillside. My best expression each year of 'Saint-Chinian'.
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Domaine Gayda
A testament to the ancestral terroir of Minervois La Livinière. This blend of Syrah, Mourvèdre and Grenache highlights the characteristics of the appellation and the biodiversity of the terroir. Whilst respecting tradition, it is also in tune with the times. ‘La Petite Villa’ starts us off on the road to ‘Villa Mon Rêve’. On the nose, a bouquet of black fruit and spices reveals notes of black cherry, blackberry and clove. This initial nose is supported by fresh aromas of peppermint and sweet cocoa bean notes. On the palate, a fine structure emerges with a supple, intense attack, offering a pleasant velvety texture and a spicy finish with young but promising tannins. Aromas of black fruit, garrigue, cocoa, pink pepper and fresh tobacco unfold fully, offering a rich, complex taste experience.
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Gian Luca Colombo
After Gian Luca completed his Masters in Viticulture and Oenology after 11 years of study and worked as a wine consultant across Italy in 2011 he started his own small winery in the heart of his native Langhe. Within 3 years he won the Gambelli award for Young Winemaker of the Year. His small Segni di Langa estate is located in Roddi in Barolo country and working sustainably he takes a very minimal interventionist approach allowing each vintage to showcase itself. Making his wines in the 'garage' beneath his house he typifies the small scale, high quality, personal style of winemaking. 60% Barolo village, 370m. 40% Dogliani Village, 350 to 550m. North / North-East facing. From north facing vineyards that are well-protected from the hot sun. After fermentation with only natural, wild yeasts the wine is then aged in amphora and large Stockinger barrels. Gian Luca is a bit a dab hand with Pinot Nero, having started producing it prior to turning his hand to Nebbiolo and the rest. Truffley, with the scents of sous bois and woodland earth. Leading to spicy cinnamon and clove and piercing fruit - cherries, redcurrants and pomegranate. Fine, long, pure and vibrant Pinot Nero.
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Lampyres
Francois Xavier AKA 'FX' worked with Tom Lubbe at Domaine Matassa for five years. He spent a further year with Domaine Danjou-Banessy. After such time this local lad set up in Espira to make his own wholly exciting wines which we are introducing the UK for the first time. Syrah 85% Muscat d'Alexandrie 15%
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Gian Luca Colombo
A beautiful and pure expression of young Nebbiolo from one of the most exciting winemakers in Italy. After Gian Luca completed his Masters in Viticulture and Oenology after 11 years of study and worked as a wine consultant across Italy in 2011 he started his own small winery in the heart of his native Langhe. Within 3 years he won the Gambelli award for Young Winemaker of the Year. His small Segni di Langa estate is located in Roddi in Barolo country and working sustainably he takes a very minimal interventionist approach allowing each vintage to showcase itself. Making his wines in the 'garage' beneath his house he typifies the small scale, high quality, personal style of winemaking. Roddi, 220 m. South./South East facing. Two small vineyards planted by Gian Luca to Pelaverga Piccolo. Fermented wild and raised in clay Amphora. Something really rare! Verduno Pelaverga is the smallest DOC in the Barolo region in the far north, where the indigenous variety Pelaverga Piccolo grows. Quite a light colour, pale but brilliant and bright and oh-so fragrant with floral aromas dominated by roses, violets and super pure raspberry - both the berry and the leaves. Vibrant, charming and simply a wonderful, curious drink.
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Rivetto
Enrico Rivetto is one of the pioneers of the Nascetta grape in these times, and a seeker of truth for the varietal expression in his clay-limestone soils on Sinio at 400 metres altitude with northern exposure. The soils have a sub-alkaline reaction, low in nitrogen. Nascetta is a semi-aromatic grape native to Lange with excellent aging potential. Historical texts liken this varietal to the great wines of Rhein. Manually harvested, sometimes at different stages depending on the vintage conditions. Nascetta sees wild, spontaneous fermentation. 80% of the wine is macerated on skins for three days then sees spontaneous fermentation and then breeds in concrete tank. The other 20% is vinified in Amphora with post ferment maceration lasting for several months. These two portions are then blended just before bottling. The 2021 shows gorgeous yellow plum, honeysuckle and herbs on the nose. The wine is citrus-juicy, yet with good minerality and a lean and waxy structure that shows good tension. Quite wonderful and delightfully curious. "Macerated on the skins for 72 hours, this golden Nascetta lifts from the glass with aromas of baked apples, roast lemon and dried yellow flowers. The sublime texture is highlighted by dried orange, dried wild herbs and crunchy acidity" Jeff Porter in Wine Enthusiast 92/100 "Deep, almost golden yellow. Enticing, distinctive nose of dried quince, orange blossom, lemon and the merest suggestion of curry powder, pressed orange and bruised apple. Very subtle and long and unfolding only slowly on the finish with the perfect dose of ripe acidity. Super-fine but noticeable texture. Still not at its peak". 17++/20 Walter Speller on jancisrobinson.com July 2025
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Domaine des Trinités
It's here, the 'Coulsh-Rotie". Simon "The Coulsh'" Coulshaw's fabulous take on this iconic wine. "I put this glass of wine to my nose, and had I not been firmly anchored to a chair, would have taken five steps back. The aroma swept me off my feet. Indescribable. Wild. One Thousand and One Nights distilled into a glass. Heady and exotic and riddled with rose petals and spice and coiled with riddles and one sniff of this is poetry and myth and folklore and kitchen table and campfire and someone's cigarette stubbed out at 3 am in lonely finality. Garrigue-spiced aromatics spiral through rock, plant, seed, flower with dazzling complexity. One moment it's rose petals, so delicate you could brush a baby's lips with it; the next it's hot tar, underground angry, rocks shifting deep in the cracks of the earth. This is a velvety, cocoa-dusted, amped-up-then-restrained, dark-horse beauty. Vertical, dark, slub-silk fruit with overtones of tamari and dark chocolate, crushed coffee beans and sweet forest-floor earth. Long and the kind of wine that coils around you slowly, sinuously, sensuously. Worth every penny. You'd pay three times this for a Rhône of this stature". (TC) 18/20 jancisrobinson.com When to drink 2023 - 2035 Published on 29 Nov 2021 Date tasted 29 Nov 2021
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Tesselaarsdal
Berene Sauls has a very unique story. Growing up in a small village in the Overberg, Berene admits that she came from a beer-drinking community, and wine was never really on her radar. Her first exposure was at the age of 19, when she began working for the trailblazing Hamilton Russell family as an au pair. Lasting only a month, her talents at childcare aside, Anthony Hamilton Russell recognised her drive and thought a job working in the winery office would better suit her. Thrown in at the deep end knowing really nothing about wine, she was soon exposed to every side of the business - assisting with exports, bottling and labelling, driving forklifts and picking during harvest too, as well as on the side, "growing and developing a palate that wasn't there!" Her curiosity kept her rising through the ranks, and fifteen years after starting her career, Anthony offered her the opportunity to make her first wine, aided by proficient head winemaker Emul Ross. She leapt at the opportunity, and the rest is history. She named her business Tesselaarsdal for the small village that she grew up in, and if you look closely at the label, you can make out two people walking across the mountain. This is Berene and her grandmother. From unirrigated vineyards on the Hemel-en-Aarde Ridge, and this is just her third release! Crisp acidity and lean minerality underpin notes of melon and tangerine fruit and accents of lime blossom. A triumphant expression of terroir, this medium-bodied, cool climate wine is both silky and fresh and boasts a long, elegant finish.
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Domaine des Trinités
Simon Coulshaw makes natural wines: no cultured yeast, enzymes, chemical tannins or fining product and farming with respect to the environment, although the domaine isn't certified organic. jancisrobinson.com Review: Full bottle 1,126 g. 65% Grenache Noir, 20% Syrah, 15% Carignan, organically and biodynamically farmed. Out of the 22 ha that Simon Coulshaw has under vine, 16 are in Faugère and 6 in Pézenas. But, as Coulshaw points out, they are more than 30 km from Pézenas, so while vineyards for the appellation are typically on villafranchian and clay-limestone soils or on black, grey and blue schist, this vineyard is on golden schist. (Coulshaw at this point goes into a charming rhapsody about how beguilingly beautiful schist is...) Le Pech Mege is a single vineyard, the most isolated of all his Pézenas vineyards. Spontaneous fermentation, stainless steel, low sulphite additions, minimal interventions. Coulshaw recommends that this wine is drunk cooler than room temperature. I'd pop it in the fridge for 10–15 minutes to get it down to around 16 °C/61 °F. “It's rare that a Languedoc wine (or any wine, to be frank) can pull off the tightrope balance of pert, outright cheeky freshness and straightforward fruit whilst being pretty dense and concentrated at the same time. This wine defies the laws of gravity. At its heart, there is a deep tobacco-leaf wrapped, chocolate-streaked, umeboshi-plum and soy-umami savouriness, notes of reduced beef stock and game glimmering in the gloaming. But radiating out towards the edges of the wine is this confident, gregarious, sap-filled mulberry fruit and puppy-playful acidity that seems to roll around with gleeful abandon. Supple, lightly astringent but fully ripe tannins. A wine of the vineyard, of the vintage; a wine that shines with a sense of who and what it is”. GV (TC) Alcohol 14% Score 17/20 When to drink 2022 – 2026 Published on 29 Nov 2021 Date tasted 29 Nov 2021 Reviewer Tamlyn Currin
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Il Palazzone
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Felton Road
Under Bond Orders When you buy wines Under Bond they can either be transferred, Under Bond, to an account in a Bonded Warehouse or delivered Duty Paid. We will enquire by email whether you wish the wine to remain under bond or be delivered duty paid. For Under Bond deliveries. We will ask you to provide the details of the bonded warehouse address and the account you would like it held under. Excise and VAT taxes are not payable for wines transferred under bond. A charge for the transfer will be made at the time of delivery, and varies from Bond to Bond. We will let you know what that charge is in advance, when you confirm the address, and issue an invoice for the transfer charge. For Duty Paid Deliveries. We will ask for the delivery address by email. All Under Bond prices exclude HM Excise, Customs and VAT. Current Excise rates are £29.54 per ltr of pure alcohol, Customs are Zero and VAT is currently charged at 20%. These taxes are liable to change, and will be charged at the prevailing rate when the goods are removed from Bond. At that time, a new VAT invoice will be issued, including a charge for onward delivery. The balance between what has already been charge Under Bond and the new VAT invoice will be payable. N.B. Our website currently does not automatically charge for these additional costs and may even suggest that the wines qualify for Free National Delivery. We apologise that is not the case with Under Bond and En Primeur purchases. Please contact orders@cambridgewine.com if you have any further questions about buying under bond.
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La Vigna Di San Martino Ad Argiano
Outstanding Chianti Classico Riserva from the cooler north west of Chianti. Grown on soils very similar to Felsina's vineyards in Berardenga, this cooler terroir in Argiano helps produce a wine of great energy, elegance and inherent harmony. La Vigna di San Martino ad Argiano is the personal project of Giampaolo Chiettini. Giampaolo spent a good number of years working alongside Paolo di Marchi at Isole e Olena where he fell deeply in love with Sangiovese and honed his skills and became a very highly regarded winemaker of the region. Antinori and Ca' del Bosco have also used Giampaolo's services over the years. He still consults and makes wine for the outstanding Castagnoli and brilliant newcomers Ejamu amongst others. This personal project comes from a beautiful, tiny (1ha!) vineyard in Argiano in the San Casciano Val di Pesa commune. Organic Sangiovese grapes are destemmed and gently crushed then undergo wild fermentation with natural yeasts. The wine is bred in used tonneaux. Giampaolo's trained, light hand in the cellar has helped produce a really rather wonderful Chianti Classico Riserva. This 2022 knocked us out. Immense energy and focus to the wonderful fruit and character. Only 2,000 bottles produced. This wine proves utterly marvellous drinking now, but shall age gracefully and beautifully for many years. We can't wait to follow the evolution!
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Domaine D'ourea
Wow. A literal "Wow". We were completely knocked out with this cuvee upon discovery back in January 2023, at an organic wine fair in Southern France. Across from d'Ourea's stand was the stand of one of our longest and most successful producers who too makes a similar style of lifted, elegant Grenache. I passed him a glass of d'Ourea's Vacqueyras to which the winemaker put under his nose, "Wow". He continued "This is beautiful, the perfect balance in the aromatics of Grenache, a lovely use of whole-bunch". "The stems (of the grape bunches) are the most beautiful part of the grape - they bring freshness and aromas of garrigue, herbs, and complexity to the wine". Adrien Roustan, Vigneron at d'Ourea The selection in 2023 is 85% Grenache, 15% Cinsault, Carignan and Mourvèdre. An outstanding Vacqueyras from a selection of Adrien's finest terroir. Being a blend of "Hautes Garrigues" (a red clay gravel) and "Pendants" (a blue and yellow marl). Each terroir brings its original personality. The "Garrigues" finesse and minerality. The "Pendants" the power and depth. Vineyards planted in 1950. "The Grenache here is at the northern end of its ripening range, and that means its wines have finesse and elegance". We could not agree more. A truly charming wine and a real "Wow".
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Domaine Danjou-Banessy
Old vine Grenache grown on decomposed black schist with a limestone sub soil with some quartz, that produces something amazing. Ethereal, sublime and fesh, this achieves a level of finesse akin to fine red Burgundy. Remarkable, special, very good indeed.
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Domaine Danjou-Banessy
Old vine Grenache grown on decomposed black schist with a limestone sub soil with some quartz, that produces something amazing. Ethereal, sublime and fresh, this achieves a level of finesse akin to fine red Burgundy. Remarkable, special, very good indeed.
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Azienda Agricola Vicentini Agostino
Vicentini is a family business where Agostino works with his wife, Teressa, and their children Emanuele and Francesca. Based in San Zeno, a village at the mouth of the Val d‘Illarsi which resides inside both the Soave and Valpolicella DOCs, but is outside of their respective Classico zones. But don't let this last point cloud your vision to their outstanding wines produced in two distinct and great terroirs. The first terroir is on volcanic rock within the Valle dei Ciliegi, here the land is largely responsible for their "Valpolicella" and "Soave Casale". The second terroir is on limestone in the commune of Terrelunghe, where Garganega and Trebbiano di Soave are grown for the 'Terrelunghe' Soave. The 2022 vintage of this extraordinary wine was awarded Tre Bicchieri in Gambero Rosso 2025 edition. Beautiful, direct wine with tension and intense, spicy stonefruit and citrus fruit which is tangy, salty and stony. Brilliant, brilliant wine. The Casale vineyard is outside of the Classico zone, but consistently produces one of Soave’s most heralded and best loved wines. The fifty year old vines on volcanic soil give very low yields producing a wine of great balance and real interest. The grapes are hand-picked, sorted and de-stemmed before being fermented in temperature-controlled steel vats. Winemaking is hands off and the fruit speaks directly of this wonderful, carefully worked site. Outstanding stuff.
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Gian Luca Colombo
A pure, fresh and approachable Barolo from talented winemaker Gian Luca Colombo. Award-winning winemaker and consultant Gian Luca has a tiny 4 hectare of vines and whose winery is located in his garage (literally a garagiste producer) in the small northern Barolo commune of Roddi. He works organically in the vineyards and has a low interventionist approach in the winery the absolute key being to allow the vineyards and vintages to show their individual characteristics in the bottle. The grapes for his Barolo come from the Bricco Ambrogio cru in Roddi itself, Roere di Santa Maria, and the noted cru of Bussia, all harvested in October and maturing for at least 18 months in Austrian oak before a further 3 months in clay amphorae. This quite simply has to be among the most approachable and enjoyable young Barolos we have tried and although has decades left in it yet is a pleasure to drink now. Intense aromas with great depth and concentration of pure fruit with slight, lifted floral and minerally notes. The palate is fresh and smooth with loads of juicy, ripe fruits, fine elegant tannins and a long length. "Pale orangey garnet. Heady, complex nose suggests bonfires overlaying pungent fruit. Fine, tamed tannins still definitely present. Appetising dry (but not drying) finish". 17/20 jancisrobinson.com
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Mas Sibert
Natural Petit Verdot raised in amphora by vigneron Simon Bertschinger. The winery is based in Fos, but the vineyards are just south of Faugeres in the clay foothills. Simon is doing some remarkabke stuff with some interesting grape varieties. Bright and vigourous but with depth and focus. Brilliant wine.
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Domaine Vendome
Syrah 50% from Mercurol (1970s) & 50% from Larnage (early 2000s), destemmed, 21-25 day concrete vat vinification at 26°C, pumping overs, 2 x part vat empting/refillings, concrete vat raised until March, then raised 1-2 year 600-litre oak casks another 9-10 months, unfined, filtered, 2,000 bottles made. "This is from loess soils in Larnage and granitic soils in Erôme, aged 6 months in concrete and 1 year in barrel. Fresh and vivid with nice brightness to the juicy red fruits. There’s also some red cherry and a bit of plum. Hints of olive and black cherry, too. Very fine and expressive". Jamie Goode on wineanorak.com 94/100
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Chateau de Beaucastel
Château de Beaucastel has long been regarded as one of the greatest wines in France. It is notorious for its elegance, balance and ageing potential. Beaucastel has an exceptional terroir at the Northern limit of Châteauneuf du Pape, exposed to the Mistral wind. All thirteen varieties of the appellation have been organically grown since the sixties.
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Domaine Danjou-Banessy
Natural, biodynamic and vegan. Grenache, Carignan and Mourvedre from 80 year old vines, Made without filtering or fining. Pale but gorgeous mid red colour. At first on the nose, you are like "What even is that?". Whatever it is, you know that you like it. Elegant, subtle fruit is intermixed with gentle herb, earth and savoury charachters. Deep and wonderful. On the palate the wine is elegant and deep again, but not heavy in the slightest. Ruffled fruit and savoury notes with minerality and real finesse. These wines are like no other from the Roussillon. Outstanding. Magnum sized.
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La Reserve Saint Dominique - Eric Bonnet
80% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 7% Mourvèdre and 3% Cinsault. Vinified in stainless-steel tanks. 30% aged in stainless-steel tanks for six months, and 70% in concrete tanks for nine months. "Tasted blind. Sweet red-fruit and mulberry notes. Some peppery notes on the palate. Sweet mid palate and an earthy note underneath. Dense and tight on the mocha-infused finish". Score 16/20 jancisrobinson.com When to drink 2030 - 2040 Date tasted 5 Oct 2023 92/100 Vinous 91-93/100 Jeb Dunnuck
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Dom. Gramiller
50% Grenache Blanc, 40% Clairette (planted 1950) from 0.9 hectare on very stony alluvial soils at Sablet and 10% Roussanne on Gramiller at La Montagnette at Rasteau. The wine sees ferment in 80% steel vat, 20% old oak cask. Then bred for 6 months. 2,500 bottles produced. The nose is all freshly cut juicy pears and gorgeous white flowers - so pretty, utterly charming. More fruit and flowers to the palate's silky juice. This is medium-bodied, elegant and long Southern Rhone white wine with fine acid. Really jolly drinking and great with delicate fish or simply as the classiest aperitif.
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Domaine Zind-Humbrecht
The nose reminds of the aromas in the vineyard during flowering. It expresses delicate flowers, some fruits, never overpowering, just like a very delicate perfume. The palate follows perfectly with a delicate structure, almost aerial and lingers on for a long time. Dry finish with the classic varietal tannic structure but also a certain roundness induced by the fruity flavour of the wine. The mouth feels like soft velvet and is already so easy to enjoy. This wine will go with seafood, salads, crab, fish dishes.
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Charles Heidsieck
Charles Heidsieck Blanc de Blancs is a pale, crystalline gold colour. The nose is characterised by aromas of mature Chardonnay; white peach, candied citrus with notes of lime, honeysuckle and fresh hazelnuts giving way to subtle hints of tangerine and lemon. On the palate, the Blanc de Blancs bears all the hallmarks of a Charles Heidsieck Champagne: boldness, generosity and elegance. Embracing yet light, it displays appealing mineral, slightly salty, iodine notes, and has a silky, creamy texture – unexpected from a Chardonnay – that leaves a lasting impression.
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Domaine des Soulanes
An absolute classic Roussillon 'house' blend from the master Daniel Laffite (the hardest working man with the hands to prove it!). The classic Soulanes recipe of richness, purity of beautiful fruit, freshness and seamlessness. Delicious and underpriced. This wine never lets you down.
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Ridge Vineyards
Ridge have made this Zinfandel every year for fifty-six years. Consistency of quality and vineyard character are its hallmarks. A dry winter with a moderate spring and summer ripened the grapes evenly. Showing plentiful fruit, elegant tannins and bright acidity, this fine wine will develop fully over the next fourteen years.
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Cantine Paoloni
Brilliant straw yellow . Intensely fruity bouquet with notes of white peach and grapefruit combined with hints of aromatic herbs. On the palate it is intense and mineral.
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Gian Luca Colombo
A beautiful and pure expression of young Nebbiolo from one of the most exciting winemakers in Italy. After Gian Luca completed his Masters in Viticulture and Oenology after 11 years of study and worked as a wine consultant across Italy in 2011 he started his own small winery in the heart of his native Langhe. Within 3 years he won the Gambelli award for Young Winemaker of the Year. His small Segni di Langa estate is located in Roddi in Barolo country and working sustainably he takes a very minimal interventionist approach allowing each vintage to showcase itself. Making his wines in the 'garage' beneath his house he typifies the small scale, high quality, personal style of winemaking. His Nebbiolo d'Alba is from a single 50 year old vineyard just a few hundred yards from the renowned Barolo Cru site of Monvigliero and is only labelled a Nebbiolo rather than Barolo due to not following the rather exacting rules required to do so! Aged in Austrian oak and clay amphora for around 1 year this is a refined, fresh and perfumed expression of Nebbiolo. The palate is filled with very pure ripe, juicy red and dark fruits with touches of spice and herbal notes, ripe tannins which balance nicely with the fresh acidity on a lovely long finish. Drinking well now though will have the capacity to age and develop for the rest of the decade. Try with red meats, roasted root vegetables, and mature hard cheeses.
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Domaine des Trinités
Made by Simon Coulshaw of the minimal-intervention school. Biodynamic farming although not certified. 100% Roussanne planted on their highest vineyards, a steep north-facing slope in the foothills of the Cévennes mountains. Isolated vineyards surrounded by herbaceous shrub and woodland on schist and basalt boulders. Hand-picked at 20-25 hl/ha, Five days' on skins then 48 hours of cold settling before racking. Spontaneous fermentation, no enzymes, no fining, minimal sulphur and sulphites. Carbon dioxide nap used to avoid oxidation.
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Domaine D'ourea
From a pebbly vineyard located on the sandy banks deposited by the river Ouvèze. A beautiful mix of indigenous, rare and wonderful grapes (Grenache Noir, Aramon, Counoise and Oeillade) vinified whole-bunch with a short maceration and then 6 months breeding in concrete vat produce a relaxed, supple, savoury and classy drinking and tapas wine. A great introduction to this most exciting of estates based in Vacqueyras and Gigondas. Serve cool (16c).
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Domaine Vendome
100% Marsanne from loess soils at Larnage that abut Hermitage. Vendome's name for plot is "Chapelle". Grapes are hand-harvested then destemmed, pressed, steel vat fermented until specific gravity 1040, then new 228-litre oak (steamed not toasted) cask fermented, raised 10 months, malo blocked, first year 2023, wide bottle, organic wine, 2,500 bottles produced. "Yellow robe; the nose has a walnut aroma up front, a peach, infused herbal tea backdrop, discreet cooked lemon. The palate opens with elegance, holds attractive gras, is a little locked away for now, but the quality of the gras - its relaxed nature - bodes well for the future. The length works well, is refined and sure. This is classy, serene. Decant it. 13°. 100% Marsanne. 2030-31 Oct 2024 ****(*) on Drink Rhone, John Livingstone-Learmonth "Pure Marsanne grown on loess next to the Hermitage Hill. Fermented in 500 litre new French oak, but this is steamed, not toasted. Bold pear and peach fruit with lovely density, showing richness but also freshness. Has a fine spicy dimension with beautiful weight and balance. Amazing texture to this wine". 95/100 Jamie Goode on wineanorak.com
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Domaine Danjou-Banessy
100% Grenache from 130+ year old vines. Complex floral aromas. On the palate the fruits, such as raspberry and morello cherry, are crunchy and fresh. There is also a very strong stony/mineral feeling. The finish is long and pure. A vibrant wine.