Wine
Wine
Campolargo 2017 Bical Barrica Bairrada
Portuguese White
Cinnamon, quince and green plum appear together in a perfumed profile with fresh fruit and acidity. The wine is light-bodied and it also has an almost oxidized character. Whole Bical grapes from clay-limestone soil are pressed and decanted before fermentation in used French oak barrels without temperature control. The wine remains in those barrels until bottling.
Comando G 2018 La Bruja de Rozas Garnacha
Spanish Red
Juicy red fruit appears with violets, herbs and spice. The palate is mineral, salty and finely textured, with freshness, depth and a chalk-and-granite character. Fermentation and maturation both take place in oak vessels of different sizes, using Garnacha from Las Rozas de Puerto Real. Production totalled 53,478 bottles, and bottling took place in August.
Château Le Grand Verdus 2015 Bordeaux Blanc
French White
A round profile and comparatively low acidity place particular emphasis on apricot and nectarine, while the overall character remains fresh and clean. Sauvignon Blanc makes up sixty percent of the blend, with thirty percent Semillon and ten percent Muscadelle. The wine is white, comes from the Bordeaux region of France and carries the Bordeaux Blanc appellation.
Fort Berens 2018 Reserve Cabernet Franc British Columbia
Canadian Red
Cedar, dark cherry and black raspberry appear with sweet spice, sarsaparilla, dill, smoke and savoury rusticity. The wine has a smooth, medium-plus palate, bold character and a shorter finish. Partial whole clusters were used, fermentation occurred with native yeasts, and maturation lasted fourteen months in wood. Made from Cabernet Franc, the wine carries the British Columbia VQA designation.
Progetto Calcarius Nù Litr Rosso Puglia 1 L
Italian Red
Red flowers and fruit, undergrowth, sweet spice and Mediterranean scrub appear in a savoury profile with delicate tannins and a persistent finish. The wine ferments spontaneously in open stainless-steel tanks with five days on the skins, then rests for six months in steel before bottling. This red comes from white limestone stones and calcareous subsoil in Puglia and is presented in a one-litre bottle.
Progetto Calcarius Nù Litr Bianco Puglia 1 L
Italian White
Bombino Bianco from younger vines in Gargano National Park produces a straw-coloured dry white. Lemon, pear and orange peel appear with fresh, savoury citrus character, an agile body and a precise finish. The vineyards lie on white limestone rock in the park and are farmed with biodynamic methods. This organic, natural wine contains eleven-and-a-half percent alcohol and comes in a one-litre bottle.
Envínate 2017 Táganan Tinto Tenerife
Spanish Red
Red fruits include sour cherry and cranberry, joined by blackcurrant, wildflowers, potpourri, liquorice, pepper, petrichor, smoke and volcanic mineral character. The palate is saline, savoury and richly flavoured, with firm but not grippy tannins and a long, tangy finish. Mixed red grapes from Taganana parcels ferment separately in concrete or plastic vats, then mature in neutral oak for eleven months.
Envínate 2018 Táganan Blanco Tenerife
Spanish White
Albillo Criollo, Forastera, Gual, Listán Blanco, Malvasía and Marmajuelo come from old parcels on Tenerife near the coast. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel with natural yeasts and partial skin contact. Ageing continues on the lees in concrete and in 288- and 600-litre vessels, followed by bottling without filtration and with only a minimal dose of sulphur dioxide. The profile is salty, smoky, floral and nutty.
Clos du Tue-Boeuf 2020 Tutti Frutti Rosé
French Rosé
An experimental field blend brings together Gamay, Pineau d’Aunis, Chenin, Menu Pineau and Meslier. The grapes come from a 0.3-hectare parcel on flint clay and are purchased from organic growers. The vines are ninety years old, and the reported yield is twenty-five hectolitres per hectare. Fermentation and ageing last eight months in a Burgundy barrel.
Lammershoek 2006 Roulette Red Swartland
South African Red
Warm fragrant spice, bright red fruit and fynbos appear with freshness, mouth-filling red fruit, fine tannins, minerality and a spicy, peppery finish. The blend includes Syrah, Carignan, Grenache, Mourvèdre and Viognier. Grapes are hand sorted before cold maceration and fermentation in open concrete vats. After malolactic fermentation in concrete, maturation lasts twelve months in French oak, twenty percent new, before bottling without fining or filtration.
Michael David Winery 2013 Earthquake Cabernet Sauvignon Lodi
American Red
Molasses, Bing cherry and black plum appear alongside blackcurrant, cherry, blackberry, cassis, tobacco, chocolate and savoury spice. This Cabernet Sauvignon is full bodied and mouth-filling, with fine-grained tannins and a plump finish. The wine is made entirely from Cabernet Sauvignon and aged in American oak. The fruit comes from Lodi, and the finished wine contains fifteen percent alcohol.
Pierre-Olivier Bonhomme 2020 Melon de Bourgogne
French White
Organically grown Melon de Bourgogne comes from the village of Oudon in the Loire and is harvested by hand. The grapes are pressed and aged for about six months in neutral 500-litre barrels. The profile is pure and balanced, with roundedness from barrel ageing and bright acidity. Melon de Bourgogne was once common in Burgundy and is the variety used for Muscadet.
Abbazia di Novacella 2023 Grüner Veltliner Alto Adige Valle Isarco
Italian White
Greenish-yellow in colour, this Grüner Veltliner shows fresh green apple, a juicy, fruity palate and a peppery finish. The vineyards lie in the Bressanone basin at 650 to 750 metres, with permeable moraine deposits of mica schist, paragneiss and quartzite. Three quarters of the must ferment and mature in stainless steel, while one quarter uses 30-hectolitre oak casks. Maturation lasts six months.
Claus Preisinger 2024 Puszta Blanca!
Austrian White
Grüner Veltliner, Pinot Blanc and Muscat Ottonel form a 60/35/5 blend. The fruit comes from biodynamic vineyards in Burgenland on limestone and gravel soils. Fermentation begins spontaneously in stainless steel with seven days of skin contact, followed by seven months on the lees. Preserved lemon, honeysuckle, ginger, pomelo, yellow grapefruit and pineapple accompany a mineral, saline structure.
Ampeleia 2018 Kepos Costa Toscana Rosso
Italian Red
Bright ruby in colour, this red wine brings fresh cherry, plum, raspberry and floral notes. Tension, salinity, tannins and fruit appear on the palate. Fruit comes from three vineyard sites at different elevations, with soils ranging from stony to volcanic. The wine is organic, and its grapes are grown biodynamically under Demeter certification. It contains thirteen percent alcohol.
Les Cortis 2020 Xylofaune
French Red
Made entirely from Mondeuse, this red wine undergoes carbonic maceration as whole clusters and ferments with indigenous yeasts. Ageing lasts twelve months in tank and 500-litre demi-muids. The six-hectare estate lies near Belley, west of the Massif des Bauges in Savoie. Its clay-limestone parcels are cultivated according to biodynamic practices. The finished wine contains 10.5 percent alcohol.
Merkin Vineyards 2020 Shinola Orancia
American White
Made from the white grape Malvasia Bianca, this skin-contact wine is deep gold in colour and comes from Buhl Memorial Vineyard in Yavapai County. The grapes ferment on their skins for ten days in stainless steel. Honeyed melon, honeysuckle, orange peel, citrus oil and lilac are present. The profile is layered, with some astringency on the finish.
La Frenz 2022 Reserve Chardonnay
Canadian White
Light lemon in colour, this Chardonnay presents light stone-fruit aromas. It is dry and medium-plus bodied, with a smooth, thicker mouthfeel and a buttery texture. Tropical fruit, butterscotch and sweet spices are also present. Fruit comes from the Naramata Bench in British Columbia's Okanagan Valley. It can develop in bottle for up to five years under the winery's cellaring guidance.
Patrick Bouju 2019 Môl
French Red
Syrah, Carignan, Merlot, Cinsault, Muscat and Gamay make up this red blend. Organic fruit comes from Auvergne and Languedoc. Fermentation begins spontaneously in fibreglass, with the Syrah partly destemmed and the remaining grapes kept as whole clusters under naturally formed carbon dioxide. Maceration lasts ten days. Ageing lasts nine months in tank, and the wine is bottled without fining, filtration or additions.
Doudet-Naudin 2022 Bourgogne Chardonnay
French White
Pale, brilliant gold in colour, this Chardonnay shows ripe fruit, quince, broom and rennet apple, with white peach, bergamot, exotic fruit and a light citrus presence. Clay and chalky marls underlie the regional Bourgogne vineyards. Grapes are harvested by hand, pressed pneumatically and vinified at controlled temperatures. The must settles in stainless-steel vats, and maturation continues in stainless steel for eight months.
Penfolds 2020 Bin 23 Pinot Noir
Australian Red
Cranberry red in colour, this Pinot Noir brings wild raspberry, strawberry conserve and a faint green-olive note with daphne, azalea, camellia, rose, rosewater, saffron and toasty oak. Cold lamb, forest floor, strawberry pips, pomegranate and rhubarb appear with cola, bergamot, graphite and wet-riverstone minerality. Fruit comes from Tasmania, Henty and the Adelaide Hills. Maturation lasts seven months in French oak barriques, twenty-four percent new.
Pacina 2019 Donesco Toscana Rosso
Italian Red
Made entirely from Sangiovese, this dry red comes from younger vines at the Pacina estate in Tuscany. Fermentation and malolactic fermentation take place in concrete, and ageing lasts approximately twenty-four months in concrete and stainless-steel tanks. The wine is neither fined nor filtered, and selected yeasts are not added. Total sulphur is ten milligrams per litre. The vineyard work is organic, and the finished wine contains 14.5 percent alcohol.
Nicosia 2019 Lenza di Munti Etna Rosso
Italian Red
Brilliant ruby in colour, the wine combines eighty-five percent Nerello Mascalese with fifteen percent Nerello Cappuccio. Floral notes and red fruit appear in a lively, smooth profile with strong minerality and an intense fruity finish. The grapes come from volcanic soils on lava terraces at an average elevation of 720 metres. Fermentation lasts ten to fifteen days in stainless steel, and ageing includes four months before bottling plus five to six months in bottle.
Raúl Pérez 2020 Ultreia Mencía
Spanish Red
Ripe red fruit appears with balsamic and mineral notes, while the palate is fresh and balanced, with soft tannins and a persistent finish. The wine is made entirely from Mencía grown around Valtuille in Bierzo. Fruit is selected from the upper rows of the parcel, fermented in open vertical vats and aged for twelve months in neutral barrels. The finished wine contains 13.5 percent alcohol.
Le Grappin 2023 Beaujolais-Villages
French Red
Whole clusters from fifty-year-old, gobelet-trained Gamay vines are fermented semi-carbonically in concrete for several weeks. The wine is then pressed into an oak vat for nine months of ageing before being racked and bottled without fining, filtration or added sulphur. Granite and schist underlie the Les Raisses site in Lancié, next to Fleurie. Retained carbon dioxide gives the finished wine a slight prickle, and alcohol is twelve percent.
Echo Bay 2017 Synoptic
Canadian Red
Merlot makes up thirty-nine percent of the blend, with twenty-two percent Cabernet Franc, fourteen percent Cabernet Sauvignon, eleven percent Malbec, seven percent Carménère and seven percent Petit Verdot. The grapes are destemmed, gently crushed and fermented separately, then spend four to five weeks on skins. Barrel ageing lasts eighteen months, with twenty percent new oak. The vineyard is farmed organically, with additional biodynamic preparations. Production totalled 360 cases, and alcohol is 13.8 percent.
Poplar Grove 2018 Merlot
Canadian Red
Medium ruby in colour, this blend contains eighty-nine percent Merlot, four percent Malbec, three percent Petit Verdot, two percent Cabernet Sauvignon and two percent Cabernet Franc. Cranberry and red cherry meet sage, red raspberry, bramble and vanilla. Medium-plus tannins and acidity provide structure, while sweet tobacco and piecrust appear in a lengthy finish. The wine spends twenty-one months in French oak and one year in bottle.
Poplar Grove 2017 Merlot
Canadian Red
Merlot forms eighty-five percent of the blend, joined by seven percent Malbec, five percent Cabernet Sauvignon and three percent Cabernet Franc. Fruit, baked flavours and chocolate appear in a dry profile. The wine spends twenty-one months in barrel, using twenty-five percent new oak and seventy-five percent one-to-three-year-old barrels, then another year in bottle. It comes from the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia.
Poplar Grove 2016 Merlot
Canadian Red
Glimmering ruby in colour, this blend combines eighty-nine percent Merlot with eleven percent Cabernet Sauvignon. Blueberry and aged leather appear in the aromas, while dark chocolate, dark cherry and bay leaf define the palate. The wine is light yet well structured. Hand-picked berries are sorted, cold-soaked for four days and fermented in stainless steel. Ageing lasts twenty-one months in French oak, followed by one year in bottle.
Poplar Grove 2015 Merlot
Canadian Red
Dark ruby in colour with a subtle brick edge, the wine has marzipan, baking spice, dried fruit, vanilla and strawberry-jam aromas. Black plum, dried cherry and black pepper appear with soft, velvety tannins and a medium finish. The blend is eighty-eight percent Merlot, five percent Cabernet Sauvignon, five percent Cabernet Franc and two percent Malbec. Ageing lasts twenty-one months in French oak.