Selection
Selection
Wildman Wines 2022 Astro Bunny Pét-Nat 1.5 L
Australian Sparkling
Vermentino, Zibibbo, Grüner Veltliner, Nero d’Avola and Verdejo make up the blend. The wine is pale, hazy orange, with spice, white pepper and cut lime. Peach and nectarine appear with watermelon. The fruit comes from Adelaide Hills, Riverland and McLaren Vale sites. Zibibbo receives twenty-four hours of skin contact, and secondary fermentation takes place in bottle after frozen juice is added.
Mark Haisma 2020 Saint-Péray
French White
Equal parts Marsanne and Roussanne are vinified separately: Marsanne in tank and Roussanne in used oak. The wine is juicy, with clear mineral character. Its luminous yellow-green colour accompanies ripe white fruit, lees, chopped herbs, chamomile and red apple. A lemon-soap note is also present. The profile is rich and fruity, and the alcohol level is thirteen and a half percent.
Champagne Clos de la Chapelle Instinct Premier Cru Brut NV
French Sparkling
Pinot Meunier, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay form the blend. White fruit appears first, followed by white flowers. The initial impression is fine and delicate, while the palate is generous and precise, with mineral character. The mousse is soft, and bottle ageing contributes depth. The wine has good length and is suited to aperitifs, first courses and fish.
Ken Forrester 2022 The FMC Chenin Blanc
South African White
Chenin comes from low-yielding bush vines planted in nineteen seventy-four on Clovelly soil. The fruit is hand selected at full maturity. Fermentation and maturation take place over twelve months in new four-hundred-litre barrels, with time on the lees. Pear, lemon, peach and apricot appear with honeysuckle, dried apricot, vanilla and honey. The profile is fresh, and the finish is long and pithy.
Ogier 2020 Héritages Châteauneuf-du-Pape
French Red
Grenache accounts for seventy-five percent of the blend, with Mourvèdre at fifteen percent and Syrah at ten percent. Deep ruby colour has purple highlights. Cherry, raspberry and blackcurrant appear with black pepper, eucalyptus and leather. The wine is full on the palate, with pure fruit, tannins and a long sense of freshness. Stewed black fruit, mocha and a light animal note are also present.
Le Chiuse 2023 Rosso di Montalcino
Italian Red
Ruby colour with violet reflections accompanies cherry, violet and orange peel. Cardamom, wild herbs and spice appear with dried flowers, cinnamon and undergrowth. The fruit is crisp and persistent. The texture is dense and silky. Smooth tannins and ample acidity accompany a long finish. Fermentation takes place in cement with indigenous yeasts, and the vines grow in sandy clay soils.
Domaine Elian Da Ros 2021 Chante-Coucou Côtes du Marmandais
French Red
Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec and Syrah are vinified separately in open concrete vats with gentle extraction. Dark colour accompanies preserved black fruit, blueberry, ripe blackberry, cassis and prune. Peony and dried chrysanthemum appear with resinous, balsamic notes recalling pine and cypress. Ripe tomato, pink pepper and Espelette pepper are also present. The vines grow in clay-gravel soils over grey marl molasse, and the vineyard is farmed biodynamically.
Domaine des Pasquiers 2022 Gigondas
French Red
Equal parts Grenache and Syrah are vinified and aged for nine months in concrete tanks. Red and dark fruit appear with clove and wet tobacco. Dark cherry, garrigue, mulberry and spice accompany graphite, earth, mineral and meaty notes. The wine is medium- to full-bodied, with depth, velvety tannins and a long finish. The vineyards are certified organic.
Phantom Creek Estates 2020 Becker Vineyard Cuvée
Canadian Red
Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc form the blend. Kirsch, plum and spiced blackberry appear with dried sage, dark chocolate, cedar and oak. The profile is full-bodied and balanced, with fruit weight and a long finish. The historic vineyard lies on the Black Sage Bench. Higher spring rainfall and mild temperatures were followed by hot, dry conditions through harvest. Smaller berries contributed concentrated flavours and elevated tannins.
Frank Cornelissen 2021 Munjebel Rosso
Italian Red
Nerello Mascalese grows on volcanic soils, with vines averaging sixty years of age. The grapes are harvested by hand, destemmed and gently pressed. Spontaneous fermentation lasts sixty days in epoxy tanks with indigenous yeasts. Maturation also takes place in epoxy. The wine is neither fined nor given added sulphur dioxide, and filtration uses five-micron cartridges. The vineyard is farmed organically.
Hillside Winery 2017 Mosaic Naramata Bench
Canadian Red
The blend is thirty-three percent Merlot, twenty-five percent Cabernet Franc, eighteen percent Malbec, seventeen percent Cabernet Sauvignon and seven percent Petit Verdot. It matures for eighteen months in French oak, forty-two percent new. The tannins are mostly dispersed, leaving a silky, dry texture. The fruit comes from vineyards on Naramata Bench in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley.
Gérard Bertrand Château La Sauvageonne 2011 Grand Vin Rouge Terrasses du Larzac
French Red
Grenache is joined by Syrah, Mourvèdre and Carignan. Grapes are harvested by hand and sorted. Maceration lasts twenty to twenty-five days in temperature-controlled vats, while maturation lasts twelve to sixteen months in two-hundred-and-twenty-five-litre French oak. Deep ruby colour with brick-red highlights accompanies wild thyme, rosemary, ripe black fruit, jam, gingerbread and mineral notes. The palate is lively and balanced. Spice and tannins are present, and the finish is long.
Domaine Jean Bourdy 2020 Côtes du Jura Rouge
French Red
Trousseau, Poulsard and Pinot Noir are co-fermented. The wine spends two years in large French oak. Alpine bramble, dark cherry and red plum appear with Asian spice, damp earth, dried flowers and game. The profile is tangy, lightly oaked and medium-bodied, with high acidity, medium tannins and low sweetness. The finish is dry. Wild yeast is used.
Domaine Nicolas Rossignol 2017 Bourgogne Pinot Noir
French Red
Pinot Noir grows on poor, well-draining soils. The wine has medium-intensity cherry-red colour. Red fruit, sweet spice and undergrowth accompany silky tannins and lively acidity. The finish has a mineral character. The profile is structured and fruit-focused, and the texture is smooth. The vineyard is managed under a reasoned approach. Maturation uses sixty percent wood and forty percent tank.
Las Moradas de San Martín 2019 Senda Garnacha 1.5 L
Spanish Red
Old bush vines grow on granitic, sandy-loam soils. The grapes are harvested by hand and sorted on a table. Fermentation uses indigenous yeasts, and maturation lasts ten months in five-hundred-litre French oak. The wine is bottled without fining or filtration. Cherry colour accompanies floral notes, plum, scrubland and mineral character. The profile is fresh, lively and aromatic, with a long finish.
Domaine Sébastien Giroux 2021 Pouilly-Fuissé Les Raidillons
French White
Chardonnay grows in clay soils with little limestone at three hundred metres. The vines face east and average forty-five years of age. Grapes are harvested by hand and pressed slowly. Fermentation uses indigenous yeasts at low temperature. Half the wine matures in tank and half in four-hundred-litre barrels on fine lees for eleven months. The wine is lightly filtered before bottling.
Quinta da Falorca 2016 T-Nac Reserva Dão
Portuguese Red
Touriga Nacional comes from more than thirty clones, with vines more than forty years old on granitic soils. The grapes are harvested by hand into eighteen-kilogram boxes and fermented between twenty-six and twenty-eight degrees. The wine ages in stainless steel and bottle without oak. Dark plum, earth, violet, spice, herbs and graphite appear with vigorous acidity, fine-textured tannins and a persistent finish.
Tenuta delle Terre Nere 2017 Santo Spirito Etna Rosso
Italian Red
Dark spice, menthol and wild berry appear with cranberry, strawberry, star anise, blood orange and thyme. The palate is fresh and juicy, with vibrant acidity and tight, fine-grained tannins. The finish is firm. Pomegranate and salty notes are also present. Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio are used, and the red wine contains fourteen percent alcohol.
Graci 2023 Etna Rosso
Italian Red
Red berries and cherries appear with herbal tea, dried flowers, earth and blood orange. Fresh minerality, spice and vertical tannins are also present. Nerello Mascalese grows between six hundred and seven hundred metres on Etna's north-eastern slope. Spontaneous fermentation takes place in cement with thirty days of maceration, and the wine matures for eighteen months in cement.
Manvi 2019 Ojas Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva
Italian Red
Prugnolo Gentile is selected and harvested by hand. Production includes destemming, gentle pressing and natural fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless steel between twenty-five and twenty-eight degrees, with several weeks of maceration. Maturation includes twenty-four months in French oak and one year in bottle. Myrrh, Damask rose, linden honey and ginger are present. The palate is clear and fresh.
Domaine Les Capréoles 2024 L’Hydrophobe Brouilly
French Red
Gamay grows on Brouilly's blue-stone diorite soils. The grapes are harvested by hand. Vinification includes full whole-bunch carbonic maceration with indigenous yeasts and barrel ageing. Deep cherry colour and garnet reflections accompany peony, Burlat cherry, black fruit and toast. The profile is structured and deep, and the wine contains thirteen and a half percent alcohol.
Chateau Musar L’Arack de Musar 500 mL
Lebanese Other Spirits
Grape alcohol with an average age of five years forms the base. The spirit is distilled four times, with anise seeds added during the fourth distillation, then aged for one year in terracotta amphorae. Clear and colourless, it shows anise, fennel and liquorice, with a clean, smooth and powerful palate and a long finish. It contains fifty-three percent alcohol.
Frank Cornelissen 2017 Munjebel Classico Bianco Terre Siciliane IGT
Italian White
Grecanico Dorato and Carricante come from vineyards between 620 and 750 metres, with mostly ungrafted vines averaging more than forty years old. Production includes destemming, cold skin maceration, pressing, fermentation and maturation for about eighteen months on the lees. The profile has a deep yellow colour, white-fruit and almond notes, a delicate palate and bitterness from the maceration.
Matsui Sake Brewery Kagura Midnight Blue Junmai Muroka Nama Genshu
Japanese Sake
Floral and ripe-fruit aromas accompany a silky, balanced palate, gentle rice umami and a clean, lingering finish. Iwai rice forms the base of this junmai sake. It is an unfiltered, unpasteurized and undiluted nama genshu release. The sake's flavour changes with serving temperature. The brewery is based in Kyoto, Japan, where the sake is produced.
Domaine Roland Lavantureux 2020 Bourgogne Épineuil Les Fauconniers
French Red
Pinot Noir comes from vines planted between nineteen sixty-nine and nineteen seventy-eight on clay and limestone. The fruit is completely destemmed and ferments as whole berries in stainless steel. Maturation lasts one year, with seventy-five percent in barrels and twenty-five percent in stainless steel. Crunchy red fruit appears with floral notes, peppery spice and a mineral backbone. Sulphur is added only at bottling.
Domaine des Marnes Blanches 2021 Trousseau Côtes du Jura
French Red
Trousseau grows on marl and limestone in the Jura. Whole clusters ferment with about fifteen days of maceration, and the wine spends ten months in oak foudres. The profile is richly aromatic and structured, with a generous texture, mineral balance and marked tannins. The vineyard is certified Organic, with grassed rows and worked soils, and the wine contains eleven percent alcohol.
Nicolò Grippaldi 2023 Il Vino di Pico Sicilia Rosso
Italian Red
Cherry, pomegranate, macerated strawberry and violets appear with heather, tobacco leaf, mineral notes and salt. The still red wine is dry and medium-bodied, with fresh acidity and tannins of medium intensity. Nerello Mascalese and Nero d'Avola are used in equal proportions. The wine is produced organically in Sicily and contains fourteen and a half percent alcohol.
Borgo Stajnbech 2015 Stajnbech Rosso Trevenezie IGP
Italian Red
Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso and Cabernet Sauvignon grow at Belfiore di Pramaggiore on clay soils. Vinification includes soft pressing, cryomaceration, traditional red fermentation and ten to fourteen days of maceration. The wine matures for fourteen months in French oak. Blackberry, morello cherry, vanilla and spice appear in a dry, full profile, with chocolate, red berries and oak on the finish.
Piaggia 2017 Carmignano Riserva DOCG
Italian Red
Raspberry and strawberry appear with dark ruby and garnet colour. The palate is dense, with a melting texture and a long finish. Sangiovese is joined by Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. The fruit comes from an old vineyard at Piaggia, about 250 metres above sea level, with southwest exposure and clay and galestro soils. Grapes are harvested by hand and selected in small boxes. Fermentation is spontaneous, and skin maceration lasts eighteen to twenty-eight days.
Raventós i Blanc 2016 Silencis Xarel·lo 1.5 L
Spanish White
Xarel·lo comes from an east-facing vineyard with fifty-year-old vines rooted in limestone soils containing marine fossils. The wine is dry, acidic and saline, with fennel in the profile. Fermentation takes place without oak. The wine ages on its lees and is bottled without stabilization or filtration. Viticulture on the property extends back more than a century. This is a still white wine from Penedès.