Located 100km south of Sancerre and 60km north of Clermont Ferrand, Saint Pourcain is the furthest outreach of Loire valley wines. The co-operative cellars here was founded in 1952 and following hard times in the 70s and 80s reorganised cellars and vineyards to focus their 450 hectares on the best sites for Chardonnay, Gamay, the local Tressalier, and paticularly Pinot Noir.
We thought we'd 'Peaked' at our first vintage of these Clare Valley classics, but they keep on knocking our socks off. This Riesling is immensely appealing, with flavours of lime peel and citrus lending appetising dryness. Not to mention perfect with firm-fleshed fish. It's a neat touch that flame-tressed Jane Mitchell should have chosen vineyards in the Auburn Hills as its source. Set on a seam of slate (bedrock of many German vineyards) the Clare is famed for scintillating Rieslings.
Pierre Gassman insists on late harvesting and lengthy cellaring after bottling, creating amply sweet, weighty yet balanced wines. This sumptuous, aromatic Riesling, ideal with poached fish or cheese fondue, offers a complex palate of fresh, honeyed, citrus zest flavours. Such depth of character is evident in all the wines from this celebrated, biodynamically-cultivated domaine, tended by generations of the Rolly and Gassman families since the mid-17th century.
Wine for game, roasts, grills and your closest friends. This velvety yet power-packed Shiraz is an elegant style that reflects its relatively cool-climate origins: South Australia's rarefied Clare Valley. Tim Gramp set up his "shed on a hill" there, tempted by unspoilt beauty and affordable 'terra rossa' soils. Heir to a wine dynasty dating back to 1847 (Johann Gramp planted the Barossa Valley's first vines) he's forged his own reputation for stellar reds.
Reach for this if you're cooking up something spicy. Well-made Grenache has a vibrant, peppery edge and you won't find one better built than Tim Gramp's. Heir to a winemaking dynasty dating back to 1847 (his forebears planted the first Barossa Valley vines, near now-notorious 'Jacob's Creek') Tim has carved a niche as South Australia's Grenache supremo. Successive vintages of this wine has always won plaudits for its resounding raspberry fruitiness and sheer oomph.
Magnificent Merlot sourced from South Australia's historic Langhorne Creek. Stewed plums with hints of vanilla on the nose; sweet berry and violet flavours; at its best with juicy steaks. The sort of forthright style Rob Dundon of Beresford has made his stock-in-trade. Snapped up by Hardy's after graduating from wine college, he rose up the ranks over a decade. Having bought his own century-old bluestone cellars in McLaren Vale, he's gone on to win over 1,000 medals.
It may be a cliché, but at this price, who cares? Rich flavours of tropical fruits, melons and cashews, framed by creamy French oak. Rob Dundon plundered his favourite McLaren Vale vineyards for this expensive-tasting Chardonnay. Since he left Hardy's to set up on his own in a suite of grand bluestone cellars, this prolific winemaker has racked up an impressive tally of wine show medals, aided by ex-Maglieri assistant cellar overseer Scott McIntosh.
Soft, rich, vivacious plummy fruit in this South American Merlot for midweek drinking with char-grilled steak or roast beef. The latest addition to our Casa Rivas range (showcase for Chilean brilliance) comes courtesy of grandiose, century-old Viña Tarapacá. Their 2, 600 hectare Rosario de Naltagua plot lies in a loop of the Maipo River, 40 minutes' invigorating drive south of Santiago. Ideal growing conditions, notably cold nights and hot days, produce deeply- coloured wines like this.
An inky-dark, roast beef-friendly blend of colorific southern French grape Malbec and Italy's Bonarda, with enticing aromas of plums, spicy oak and vanilla. Another milestone for Mendoza's power couple: Susana Balbo and Professor Pedro Marchevsky. He's managed Andean vineyards for 30 years, focusing on their ultimate expression: vivid wines with ripe tannins. 'Ben Marco' ('son of Marcos' in Hebrew) pays tribute to Pedro's father, who happily shared his grape wisdom.
This special offer case contains one bottle each of 2006 Costieres de Nimes, 2005 Scotto Zinfandel, 2007 Vega Sindoa Tempranillo Merlot, 2008 Franschoek Cellars Chenin, 2007 Irsai Oliver, Hilltop Vineyards and 2006 Highwood Chardonnay.
This classic rich, sweet sherry hails from the 140-year-old Sanlucar de Barrameda cellars of Pedro Romero, which used to supply more sizeable bodegas but now bottles wines under its own name. Burnished amber, with a combination of nut and fruitcake aromas. Spicy depth of flavour and dry finish.
Reach for this if you're cooking up something spicy. Well-made Grenache has a vibrant, peppery edge and you won't find one better built than Tim Gramp's. Heir to a winemaking dynasty dating back to 1847 (his forebears planted the first Barossa Valley vines, near now-notorious 'Jacob's Creek') Tim has carved a niche as South Australia's Grenache supremo. Successive vintages of this wine has always won plaudits for its resounding raspberry fruitiness and sheer oomph.
Two bottles of Sauvignon (of course, it is the country's most famous export), and one bottle each of Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Viognier. The perfect case for lovers of New Zealand's white wines.
With over 1,500 miles separating the Clare Valley and the Margaret River, you'd expect differences in styles between these two top quality wine regions. We've selected 3 bottles each of two different wines from two producers working hard to make wines that express their regional characteristics.
It may be a cliché, but at this price, who cares? Rich flavours of tropical fruits, melons and cashews, framed by creamy French oak. Rob Dundon plundered his favourite McLaren Vale vineyards for this expensive-tasting Chardonnay. Since he left Hardy's to set up on his own in a suite of grand bluestone cellars, this prolific winemaker has racked up an impressive tally of wine show medals, aided by ex-Maglieri assistant cellar overseer Scott McIntosh.
The purity and vivid clenliness balance the middle palate beautifully, and this is without a shadow of doubt, one of the best value and most scintillating Rieslings tasted in recent times.
Bruno Fina spent the 1990's running Sicily's experimental cellar at Alcamo, applying radical techniques to Sicilian varieties in pursuit of their true vocation. He advised growers making plantings - so he knows where the best grapes are, and what they can do. His cellar, near Erice, was ready for the superb 2005 vintage. Grillo, hitherto reserved for the production of Marsala, shines bright here in deliciously crisp, fragrant, full-bodied form. Try it with tuna or swordfish steaks.
Expensive-tasting, elegant, spicy Chilean Chardonnay made at century-old Viña Tarapacá. Their 2, 600 hectare Rosario de Naltagua plot lies in a loop of the Maipo River, 40 minutes' invigorating drive south of Santiago. Ideal growing conditions, notably cold nights and hot days, produce stylish, characterful wines like this.
Burdened by being in Gascony rather that a famous region the Plaimont cooperative nevertheless manages to stand above all others of its kind for attention to quality, a desire
Subjects of the Austro-Hungarian empire, the Endrici (Endrizzi in local dialect) family arrived in northern Italy in 1885 and established a formidable estate at the foot of the Dolomites in the now coveted Saint Michele All'Adige region. They've been making Cabernet in Trentino for four generations; this, from their Masetto vineyard, was aged in large oak barrels and is fresh and elegant, with peppery, red fruit flavours. Try it as an aperitif, with fish or mild cheeses.
This fresh white wine comes from the Douro Valley in Northern Portugal. Produced from grapes grown in the cooler, higher vineyards, the wine-makers aim for a balanced flavour extraction. The result is a zesty, aromatic wine showing tropical fruit and refreshing crisp acidity. Made by the Symington family, wine producers in the Douro region since the 19th Century.
You'll want to save this whopper Western Australian Shiraz, with its chocolate-rich, blackberry fruit, vanilla oak and spice for folks you want to impress. Or something baronial like haunch of venison. Mark Messenger has won massive acclaim for the style, raising the reputation of Juniper Estate to something like that of its illustrious neighbours Cullens and Vasse Felix (with which it shares the gravelly loams and balmy microclimate of Wilyabrup Creek).
We cherry-picked this perfumed, refreshing white, with its crisp apple skin and citrus flavours, from the massive range on offer from Navarra's Bodegas Principe de Viana. Established in 1983 in Murchante, to the north of the region, it has a gleaming new, technologically-advanced cellar and access to fruit grown over 400 hectares.
We cherry-picked this soft-textured rosado, with its pure Garnacha flavours of raspberries and spice, from the massive range on offer from Navarra's Bodegas Principe de Viana. Established in 1983 in Murchante, to the north of the region, it has a gleaming new, technologically advanced cellar and access to fruit grown over 400 hectares.
This Hamper contains one of each item: 75cl Bottle Adnams Selection White Burgundy, (intense lemon, melon and white peach flavours 13% ABV), 75cl Bottle Cotes du Rhone 'La Truel', Adnams Selection (ripe plums and herb aromas with concentrated richness and heart warming substance 15% ABV), 500ml bottle Adnams Broadside Bitter (rich fruit cake aromas; a beer to savour 6.3% ABV), 500ml Bottle Adnams The Bitter (a refreshing beer of real flavour with a distinctively hoppy and dry with malt aromas 4.5% ABV), Adnams Christmas Pudding (deeply fruity but notably light with a healthy splash of Broadside 900G), Mulled Wine Sachet (28g), Mulled Beer Sachet (28g), James Christmas Pudding Truffle (45G), Chocca Mocca real Strawberry and Cream (100G), Adnams Beer Chutney with Broadside (410g), Adnams Seville Orange Marmalade made with Broadside (454g). Balsamic pickled onions (250g), Adnams Drop Stop - this little device makes pouring wine easy.
The name ERAL BRAVO is inspired in the family tradition of breeding the Iberic bull, the Toro Bravo, in the Salamanca region in Spain. In this region, Eral is the name given to the bull of between two and three years of age. At this age, the Iberic bull starts showing his essential characteristic: the bravery or bravura. The characteristics highly sought and praised in the breeding of the Toro Bravo and so respected in this noble, elegant and unique animal coincides with the concept of wines with which the Sánchez Nieto Family identifies itself. This Malbec reveals a deep red purple colour. To the nose, rich plum, blackberry and raspberry flavours, with spicy notes, nicely infused with toasty oak, with hints of chocolate, smoke, and tobacco. Wine with good concentration, ripe and sweet tannins, with flavours lasting throughout the extraordinarily long finish.
This 12 Bottle Case contains: One Bottle of The Adnams Selection Fino, Pale Dry Sherry and The Adnams Selection Ruby Port, Two Bottles of The Adnams Selection Fizz, Rosé Brut and 2008 The Adnams Selection Fine Dessert Wine, Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh and Three Bottles of 2009 The Adnams Selection White Burgundy, Cuvée Paul Talmard and 2007 Rioja Crianza 'Monte Acuro' The Adnams Selection
This 12 bottle case contains: 1 Bottle of Puerto Fino, Emilio Lustau ; 2007 Chateau Liot, Sauternes; 2005 Quinta do Crasto, Late Bottled Vintage Port; 2 bottles of The Adnams Selection Champagne, Brut; 3 Bottles of 2006 Meursault, Domaine Henri Germain and 4 Bottles of 1998 Chateau Patache d'Aux, Medoc
Impressive depth of flavour with a wild edge and classic structure. "Telmo tames Toro" might set the cat amongst the pigeons, but of all the clever growers in this neck of northern Spain, he is not mad keen on over-oaking what can be pretty hefty, Tempranillo-based wines. Thi shows dark, brooding black fruit, with ethereal, lifted, almost flora aromatics. Drink 2010 - 2020. Serious kit.
Burdened by being in Gascony rather that a famous region the Plaimont cooperative nevertheless manages to stand above all others of its kind for attention to quality, a desire.
