Spring Sale

We are delighted to once again partner with the esteemed Ch. la Mascaronne for this fresh and delectable rosé. The initial sensation of biting into a fresh red plum is followed by vivid notes of wild strawberries, raspberries and redcurrants. Above all, this is an energetic, pure and mineral wine with delicious freshness and a long, creamy finish.

{***}
{region}Provence{region}
{color}Rose{color}
{maturity}drink-now{maturity}
{maturity-text}Drink now{maturity-text}
{***}

Our friend Benjamin Leroux has made this excellent Burgundian Pinot Noir for us. Sourced exclusively from vineyards in Chorey-lès-Beaune, this wine punches above its weight in complexity and elegance. The nose is serious and brooding; pepper notes accompany charming wild-berry fruits. The warm and sunny vintage delivers generous morello cherry and subtle spice. It’s approachable now but has the structure to keep for three to five years. Pair this versatile wine with charcuterie, cheese and heartier dishes.

{***}
{region}Burgundy{region}
{color}Red{color}
{maturity}drink-now{maturity}
{maturity-text}Ready, but will keep{maturity-text}
{vintage}2020{vintage}
{***}

{***}
{region}St Estèphe{region}
{color}Red{color}
{maturity}ready-improve{maturity}
{maturity-text}Ready, but will improve{maturity-text}
{vintage}2017{vintage}
{ratings}

{ratings} {***}

Made from the fruit of a single vineyard (La Dalignère), this is inherently richer and more powerful than Sébastien's other Hautes-Côtes wines and he therefore chooses to raise it in barrel, rather than a combination of barrel and tank. The nose combines lifted floral and berry notes with an engaging earthy, spicy character. It has great concentration and depth of fruit on the palate, so try it with a hearty meat casserole. 

{***}
{region} Burgundy{region}
{color} Red{color}                      

{maturity}ready-keep{maturity} {maturity-text}Ready, but will improve{maturity-text}
{vintage}2018{vintage}{***}

{***}{region}Burgundy{region}
{color}White{color}                                                           

                                     {maturity}ready-improve{maturity} {maturity-text}Ready, but will improve{maturity-text}
{vintage}2018{vintage}
{ratings}  

[] Jasper Morris MW:: 89-92/100  

{ratings} {***}

Dominique has used a mixture of 500-litre demi-muids and barriques, with 20% new wood. The fruit, as usual, is 50-50 between Puligny and Meursault; both elements play their part. The vintage has given the wine a creamy attack and, initially, the wine is very full on the palate, but it trims to a more sculpted Puligny-style finish. Drink 2021-2025. 

{***}{region}Burgundy{region}
{color}White{color}                                                               {maturity}ready-improve{maturity} {maturity-text}Ready, but will improve{maturity-text}
{vintage}2019{vintage}{***}

This is a blend of Chatenière and Bas de Gamay à l’Est, both of which are on the same steep, southwest-facing slope. It’s an outstanding wine with a thick texture and a refined, flint reduction running through the core. Pure, mineral and grippy with plenty of dry extract, this is a wine of supreme class. Drink 2023-2029.

{***}{region}St Aubin{region}
{color}White{color}                                                              

 {maturity}laying-down{maturity} {maturity-text}For laying down{maturity-text}
{vintage}2018{vintage}
{ratings}

{ratings} {***}

This comes from the five hectares immediately in front of the château, a park until it was planted in 1986. Brian did not use any SO2 until after the malolactic fermentation, and the wine is only aged in minimum 500-litre barrels. It’s classically Puligny in style, with flinty reduction and a pure, floral, citrus profile. Drink 2021-2026.

{***}{region} Burgundy{region}
{color} White {color}                                                              
{maturity}ready-keep{maturity} {maturity-text}Ready, but will improve{maturity-text}
{vintage}2018{vintage}{***}

Using a more traditional blend, C des Carmes Haut-Brion focuses on Merlot subtly complemented by Cabernet Sauvignon. The fruit is in the spotlight here, offering an elegant range of aromas. Drunk young, the wine develops a crisp intensity which will gain the patina of beautiful complexity as the years pass.

{***}{region}Pessac-Léognan{region}
{color}Red{color}            {maturity}ready-keep{maturity} {maturity-text}Ready, but will keep{maturity-text}
{vintage}2017{vintage}
{ratings}
[] James Suckling:: 94-95/100

                                                                                                 
{ratings}

The secret of Tempranillo seems to reside in its hidden depth; gregarious and initially appearing far too attractive to be remotely serious, this wine gradually revels the true depth of its personality; the black fruits are ripe of course , but are backed by notes of laurel, licorice, garrigue and forest floor; the tannins are finely-tuned needless to say, but are swathed in a fine minerality; all in all this is clearly very fine indeed. Juan Carlos thinks it more closely resembles 2004 than 2001, but is sure that it will be better than both of them.

{***}
{region}Rioja{region}
{color}Red{color}                                                                                          {maturity}ready-keep{maturity}
 {maturity-text}Ready, but will keep{maturity-text}
{vintage}2007{vintage}
{ratings}
[]The Wine Advocate:: 98/100
{ratings} 

{***}
{region}Rioja{region}
{color}Red{color}                                                                                          {maturity}ready-keep{maturity}
 {maturity-text}Drink Now{maturity-text}
{vintage}1986{vintage}
{ratings}

{ratings} 

{***}
{region}Rioja{region}
{color}Red{color}                                                                                          {maturity}ready-keep{maturity}
 {maturity-text}Drink Now{maturity-text}
{vintage}1995{vintage}
{ratings}

{ratings} 

Bodegas C.V.N.E. is still owned and run by the Real de Asua family whose ancestors established it back in 1879. Its full name is Compañía Vinicola del Norte de España but it more commonly known as "coonay".

In the late 1980s the firm built a spanking new stainless steel winery in the town of Haro and is now producing thoroughly "modern" style Rioja wines. Both red and whites are produced and their white Rioja is one of the few remaining heavily-oaked examples on the market today.

The 2 different ranges of C.V.N.E, the Vina Real and Imperial, are rich, full-bodied Riojas, with the Reservas and Grand Reservas being some of the most long-lived in the region today.

{***}
{region}Rioja{region}
{color}Red{color}                                                                                          {maturity}ready-keep{maturity}
 {maturity-text}Drink Now{maturity-text}
{vintage}1986{vintage}
{ratings}

{ratings} 

{***}
{region}Rioja{region}
{color}Red{color}                                                                                          {maturity}ready-keep{maturity}
 {maturity-text}Drink Now{maturity-text}
{vintage}1977{vintage}
{ratings}

{ratings}