Serve with roasted red meats or game, pâté en croute, mature cheeses such as fromages Mont d'Or, Cîteaux or Reblochon.

100% Chardonnay from the Cote Chalonnaise. 50% of the musts was fermented in French oak barrels, 10% of which are new oak. The ageing period lasts 16 months with regular stirring whilst the rest of the blend is aged in vats. This allows the wine to develop delicate cedar and nut notes whilst conserving its freshness and distinctive character. Favourable climate conditions in 2017 gave charm and generosity to the wine; a classic style of vintage that can also be enjoyed in its youth.

Clear, light yellow colour and a fresh nose characterised by flinty, mineral notes. The palate is smooth, round and very distinctive with a delicate touch of acidity that lingers on the fresh finish. Pair with baked salmon parcels and vegetable terrine.

Merry Edwards was a rare female graduate of UC Davis in 1973, and was hired as a winemaker by Mount Eden Vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains. She later upped sticks to Sonoma in 1977 where she promptly became winemaker at the Matanzas Creek Winery in Santa Rosa. It was not until the late 1990s that she managed to establish her own label, building her own winery in 2006.

Now in her seventies, it was time for Edwards to hang up the secateurs and leave the punch downs to someone else, so Edwards sold her winery to Champagne Louis Roederer. From 2015 onwards, current winemaker Heidi von der Mehden worked alongside Edwards and 2018 was her first vintage in full charge of everything.

When you taste this you realise that it’s not your typical porch Sauvignon Blanc, it’s a serious wine that Merry developed. She didn’t like Sauvignon Blanc and tried to make a wine she liked. That meant harvesting riper to get these tropical flavours and fermenting fully in oak.

But it’s not only harvest point that makes the difference: “We’ve built upon our style by changing how we farm, so we have very open trellises and canopies. Others want dappled light on their grapes, I go out there and we take almost all the leaves off on the morning side of the vineyards and help the sun to penetrate. This gets the pyrazine [the green, leafy notes so typical for Sauvignon Blanc] flavours out of the wine.” The wines ferment in wood and about a fifth of the oak is new, with the lees stirred to enhance the creaminess.

The nose initially has a little smoke and the merest whiff of grass, but the palate is rounded, warm, smooth, creamy. The oak is a textural element here, and the less stirring makes this super creamy. It is bold, ripe, concentrated but ultra-mellow; a wine one could luxuriate in right now, however, there would be rich reward for those who can leave this well alone and uncork it in five years’ time...

From one of our favourite domaines in Burgundy, this Pinot noir shows a beautiful ruby colour. This wine has fresh, red-fruit aromas on the nose, which is found again on the palate. Raspberry and cranberry notes, followed by a touch of cedar and spice. It has a rich and very ripe substance, with fine and round tannins. This is a very well-structured and pleasing wine, very approachable and versatile.

Thörle is a much-acclaimed family domaine based in Saulheim in the Rheinhessen, and since 2006 it has been run by brothers Christoph and Johannes. The vineyards are managed organically, and the domaine is being taken in a biodynamic direction. Soils are interesting and varied, with light clay, limestone, red sandy loam and even flint and schist. Riesling from limestone is an altogether different and more Burgundian prospect to wines from elsewhere in Germany that might be grown on slate or loam. 
Hölle is in a small, protected valley at 150-220m, with 35 year old, deep-rooted vines. This is a dry Riesling (1.8 g/l residual sugar). Very intense and precise with lovely pear, melon and citrus fruit. Really linear with a strong mineral core to it. Superb stuff, in a class of its own. 94/100

Domaine Michel Cheveau is a 14 hectare family estate run by Nicolas Cheveau. His cellars and vineyards are immaculate and are clearly run with meticulous care. Although small, the cave is full of large oak barrels, new and old, barriques and small capacity stainless steel vats.

The wine is a blend from three of the best Chardonnay parcels from Solutre-Pouilly and Fuissé with ideal clay and limestone soils. The vines range from 25-40 years old.
The wine is a pure expression of the appellation, offering floral, honeyed, white peach characters, juicy fresh pineapple and a warm nuttiness that exudes charm and character. This is a wonderful Burgundy and immensely satisfying.
Cheveau is the master of subtlety, his wines remain elegant and restrained, never overdoing the oak which so many other producers do in a quest for more complexity. His Trois Terroir is a true reflection of the terroir of Pouilly Fuissé with just a hint of French oak to frame it. Sadly only tiny quantities are produced, but his are wines that should not be missed.

‘Les Champs Gains’ is a Puligny-Montrachet Cru that benefits from a high altitude terroir and limestone soils, instilling in its wines aromatic purity, richness of flavour and a clear minerality – all beautifully displayed in this wine.18 months ageing in French Oak, 25% new.

Jouard produces some of the best value wines in the Côte de Beaune. Stunning richness balanced by acidity and full flavours, all underpinned by a great mineral quality. Champ Gain is one of the top Premier Cru vineyards in Puligny-Montrachet. The texture of this wine goes beautifully with creamy dishes.

Drink up to 10+ years after the vintage.

Made using part appassimento method. Vibrant purple colour and a rich luscious nose full of sweet ripe dark cherry, plum, vanilla and christmas spice. Rich and velvety, with lots of juicy fruit. Very easy drinking. Great wine for roasted and grilled meats. Ideal with game dishes. Excellent with mature hard cheeses. 

Before picking, the ripe grapes are left on the vines for up to 15 days. The grapes begin to dry naturally on the vine (appassimento). The grapes are then carefully hand harvested before being pressed. After fermentation the wine is aged in oak for 3-4 months. This careful and prolonged winemaking delivers a wine of excellent quality and depth, yet at a snip of a price.

This Pinot Gris is a sourced from 30 year old vines in the sustainably farmed Tukwilla Vineyard in the Dundee Hills. Tukwilla is LIVE (Low Impact Viticulture and Enology) certified. Everything in this wine starts from the magnificent terroir that farming captures. In the winery, after gently pressing, the fermentation is managed in five separate lots, three in neutral French oak, for a complex array of aromatic expressions, textures, and fruit components, body and weight. The remaining stainless steel fermented and aged lots help to retain the verve at the core of the wine. Fermented completely dry for a rich, complex, and food-friendly wine.

From one of the top names in the region, Domaine Hubert Lamy. Highly perfumed with aromas of lime and tangerine on the nose. The palate shows great tension with racy acidity, fresh bitter lemon citrus notes and a precise, saline finish. From 10 parcels over three hectares of village St Aubin, this is aged mostly in larger 500- and 600-litre foudres, with about 10% in new barrels. Always with pinpoint freshness, this year the warmth of the vintage is still not really in evidence. Cool and assertive. Drink 2021-2024.

This domaine produces a range of 10 appellations from the villages of Volnay, Pommard, Beaune, Monthelie, Saint-Romain and Aloxe-Corton. Reyane and Pascal's son, Pierrick, the 6th generation of the wine growing family, joined his parents for the 2005 harvest, after completing his studies at the wine school in Dijon. Since 2015, this young man has been making his wine on his own, as his parents have now retired. He continues to respect the principles of sustainable viticulture while introducing new winemaking techniques to the domaine.

This is the second vintage Bouley has made from a property in the Citernes climat. The wine features dark fruits with lightness, but also some Aloxe-Corton rusticity to the tannins. Still showing a silky texture and some finesse, with good length on the finish. Attractive trufffle and woodlabnd notes are just strating to develop and complexity will continue to build in this exceptional wine for many years yet. 

The first vines on the Warramate vineyard was planted in 1970, purchased from Dr. Bailey Carrodus, the man who established Yarra Yering.

The connection between the two sites continues to today, incumbent Yarra Yering winemaker Sarah Crowe still crafts the Warramate wines in the Yarra Yering cellar.

The Warramate vineyard sits behind Yarra Yering further up the slope. The Chardonnay on this block is quite young, having only been planted in 2012 but the quality of this young vine fruit is showing plenty of promise and the wines are in already gaining global recognition.

The 2017 release received 94 points from James Halliday. It offers very good value for money for Yarra Valley Chardonnay fans.

It's no secret that 2015 was a stellar year in Bordeaux. with Margaux performing particularly well. Baron de Brane is the second wine of Château Brane-Cantenac, a second growth château owned by Henri Lurton and one of the oldest and largest properties in Margaux. The blend is made up of about 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot, the grapes coming from mid-age vineyards, some on gravel beds 12 metres deep. Aged for a year in French oak this is a supremely elegant wine. Bursting with pure cabernet fruit, seductive cassis, a touch of bramble, with notes of sweet briar and cedar. There is a voluptuousness and charm that makes this classic Margaux most alluring, with silky tannins and a lingering finish. Drink now-2025. 

The estate of Thörle is based in Saulheim in the Rheinhesson and their recent Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder in German) vintages have been proclaimed as some of the finest reds produced in the country. Thörle has been run by brothers Johannes and Christoph since 2006. They work organically and are moving towards biodynamic culture. And, of course, besides Pinot Noir the brothers also grow Riesling.  Grown predominantly on limestone, these wines are altogether different and more Burgundian in prospect to wines from elsewhere in Germany that might be grown on slate or loam. 

Slightly smoky scents of red and black berries with nutty, earthy-mineral tones and floral nuances. So clean and ripe on the palate; fresh and rather cool fruit, though abundant, and contrasted with slightly nutty and smoky wood notes, a hint of  meatiness and chalky-mineral tones. Fine, lithe, youthful tannins. Juicy and tangy with good persistence, and a cocoa-dusted, taut finish. Sublime.

Double the fun! The prettiest pink, this is dry and elegant, with fresh strawberry and pear on the nose and notes of peach, wild raspberries and hints of florals on the palate. The finish is deliciously long, with just enough texture to stand up to delicate dishes. Just add a sunny day.

n.b. Picture shows 1 x Magnum with 1 x 75cl for scale purposes only.

The BIG one! A double magnum of this exquisite rosé - perfect for the end of lockdown summer party! The prettiest pink, this is dry and elegant, with fresh strawberry and pear on the nose and notes of peach, wild raspberries and hints of florals on the palate. The finish is deliciously long, with just enough texture to stand up to delicate dishes. Just add a sunny day.

n.b. Picture shows Jeroboam in middle, with magnum and 75cl included for scale only.

A sublime Cru Barbaresco, from the legendary Produttori. The 2016 Barbaresco Riserva Muncagota is yet another frankly awe-inspiring wine from winemaker Aldo Vacca. Rich, deep and super-expressive, the 2016 hits all the right notes. fine aromatics that mix an exotic array of baking spices with stony minerality, graphite, black liquorice, soft leather spiced plums and black cherry. The palate is dense and focused, dark fruited and broody but also revealing massive concentration, though with some reluctance, given it's relative youth. Silken tannins and seamless harmony make for a wine of serious expression. The Muncagota is another wine in this range that will clearly reward cellar time to reach full potential, but provides exquisite pleasure already. 

From gravel-clay vineyards in the northely appellation of Saint Estephe in the Medoc. 2015 was an exceptional year in the Medoc, leading to age-worthy and fully ripe wines. A medium-bodied yet very powerful wine that delivers blackcurrant fruit, spice and strong tannin in great harmony. There is a silkiness to this wine that is the source of it’s elegance.  The long finish is smooth and polished, with lingering cigar box and graphite tones. Drink 2020-2026

In the most accurate and faithful way possible, this unapologetically oaked white wine mirrors the terroir in which the Chardonnay vines are grown. In other words, it is an expression of the low vigour, stony, clay-rich Bokkeveld Shale derived soils and the heavily maritime-influenced climate.

Made using uncomplicated (not simple) winemaking techniques, this is an athletic, chiseled and precise wine. It embraces the very adult tastes of salinity, brininess and minerality, balanced by fully phenolically-ripe fruit, all of which are the hallmarks of the great and classic white wines of the world.

A classic Provencal rose, beautifully pale pink in colour with a delicate nose of wild strawberry, morello cherry and a definate hint of sea air. An abundance of fresh red fruit on the palate, with balanced acidity and a crisp finish. Our all-time bestseller.

n.b. new label for 2020 vintage