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Just had reports that we will be seeing a good bit of sun on Sunday! What better than a bottle of Prosecco to bask in the warmth with? Our Ca' di Alte Prosecco will certainly hit the spot...
Ca' di Alte was created by winemaker Alberto Marchisio. Although Piemontese himself, he has been working in the Veneto for some years. He joined Cantina Colli Vicentini as director and winemaker with the 2012 vintage and has since dramatically improved the quality of the wines. The grapes are grown primarily on the hills south of Vicenza, the Colli Berici, where the hillside sites ensure lower yields and better ripeness of the grapes. With Alberto's hand in the winery, the delicate aromas of the wines have been preserved. The Palladian window on the label acknowledges the work of the great Andrea Palladio, many of whose masterpieces are now UNESCO World Heritage Sites. The 16th century architect lived in Montecchio Maggiore, home of the Colli Vicentini winery, and Vicenza most of his life.
The vineyards are located in the hills and are north facing. The hillside sites experience cooler nights, allowing the aromatic compounds of the grapes to develop. The vines are trained using the Guyot system. The soil is calcareous and of volcanic origin.
This Prosecco was made using the long charmat method. The grapes were hand-picked and the stalks removed before crushing. Soft pressing separated the skins and seeds from the must before alcoholic fermentation and second fermentation in a pressure and temperature controlled autoclave. After filtration and centrifugation, the wine was refrigerated and bottled under pressure.
Ca' di Alte Prosecco Spumante Extra Dry NV @ £13.95 - Buy it here!
This Prosecco is a light straw yellow with fine bubbles. A pleasant bouquet with notes of pear and floral hints is followed by a very bright, clean and lifted, palate. The finish is very dry, with lingering freshness.
Clearly it fits the bill perfectly so come and grab a few. Then there's no need to move at all on Sunday. Cheers!
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This has been a long-time favourite in the shop. Many of you can't keep your hands off it! Allegrini have managed something amazing here. Let's have a little read...
The Allegrini family estate covers 100 hectares of vineyard in the heart of the Valpolicella Classico area. The family has been growing grapes here for six generations, but the estate in its current form was founded by Giovanni Allegrini. When he died in 1983, it passed to his three children, who ran it together until Walter's death in July 2003. Franco now looks after the vineyards and is the winemaker, and Marilisa is director of marketing.
Palazzo della Torre covers 26 hectares of east-facing vineyard planted between 1962 and 2013, situated 240 metres above sea level. Allegrini purchased this vineyard in 1978. Soils are cretaceous and calcareous, with Pergola trentina trained vines planted at 3,000 vines per hectare.
While production quantities will be lower in 2014 thanks to a cloudy, wet summer, fine weather in September helped diligent producers harvest a smaller, but healthy crop. To counter the wet conditions, quality-oriented producers needed to do extensive work in the vineyards to battle disease and encourage ripening despite few sunny days. As such, this is a vintage of elegance rather than concentration.
Franco Allegrini used the modern version of the traditional 'ripasso' technique for Palazzo della Torre, drying a proportion of the grapes in the 'Terre di Fumane' drying centre, to intensify the character of this vineyard. The grapes to be dried were hand picked at the beginning of September, whereas those to be vinified immediately were picked at the end of the month. 70% of the grapes picked were vinified immediately and 30% were left to dry until the second half of December when they were vinified and then refermented with the wine from the fresh grapes. The wine spent 15 months in second-use barriques, was blended together for two months, then aged for a further seven months in bottle.
Allegrini Palazzo della Torre 2014 @ £18.95 - Buy it here!
Ruby red in colour, Palazzo della Torre has enticing aromas of cherry with rich dark chocolate notes. Velvety in texture, it is well-balanced and offers ripe, juicy dark fruit, with silky tannins and refreshing acidity.
Come and see what all the fuss is about. Perfect with a big roast dinner. Cheers!
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After a bit of a hiatus we finally have our hands on this again. We've stayed with this Sancerre since the shop began and here's a bit of reading to help you see why...
At the heart of Sancerre is Château de Fontaine Audon, a stunning 15 hectare vineyard with characteristic ‘Silex’ soils, owned by Langlois-Chateau, and one of only four châteaux in the Sancerre region. This site, along with four others in some of the Loire’s most prestigious appellations, form the 73 hectares of Langlois-Chateau’s vineyard holdings.
Their Saumur vineyard was one of the first in France to receive the Terra Vitis certification, which guarantees the vines are grown, and wines produced, with the utmost respect for nature and the environment. Translated from Latin, it reveals the inseparable link between terroir and vine.
With a romantic family history behind it, Langlois-Chateau, founded following the marriage of Edouard Langlois and Jeanne Chateau in 1885, has been specialising in the sparkling wines of the Loire for more than 130 years. Today, under the watchful eye of François-Régis de Fougeroux, elegant sparkling Crémant de Loire wines are expertly crafted from the chalky Silex soils, with grapes hand-picked before vinification by varietal and terroir.
Langlois-Chateau, Chateau de Fontaine-Audon Sancerre 2016 @ £18.95 - Buy it here!
A clear pale lemon colour. Floral aromas develop into fresh grass. On the palate, refreshing acidity is balanced with fruit flavours of green apple and white grapefruit.
If you've missed out in the past then we have a lot here to make sure that never happens again. Come and give it a try. Cheers!
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Wowee! It's here! The Puech-Haut Rosé is back in town and as good as ever. For those of you who never managed to try it as it was constantly selling out, this is amazing. Let's have a bit of a read about these two and see what the difference is...
Chateau Puech-Haut Rosé Prestige 2016 @ £14.95 - Buy it here!
This is one of the best Roses we have ever tasted - a refreshing peach and lychee on the nose with a clean and elegant medium bodied pallet. Robert Parker describes this as a 'fabulous Rose that's perfect for hot summer days'. We think it's delicious at any time of the year, either on its own, with lighter foods such as poached salmon or trout and perfect with Bouillabaisse - a really classy drop.
Chateau Miraval Provence Rosé 2014 @ £17.95 - Buy it here!
An absolutely gorgeous pale pink colour with is beautifully entwined with a nose of wild strawberry and stone fruit, with soft floral notes. Smooth and drinkable palate texture, with peach notes and tangerine joining layers of berry fruit.
Similar but also very different at the same time. Always down to the drinker to decide what they prefer. Come on down and have a try of these wonderful Rosés. They will blow you away! Cheers!
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This one is finally back after a good long time. A definite favourite of ours and many of yours too. Let's find out more..
Enate was founded in 1991 with the aim to produce high-quality wine in the Somontano appellation. The winery has a strong link to contemporary art: the building itself is an architectural masterpiece, and the internal decorations. This commitment and love is reflected in the wines' labels, which are reproductions from contemporary artists' paintings. Enate is a modern winery open to visitors the whole year.
Somontano which means “at the foot of the mountains” is located in Aragon in the foothills of the Pyrenees. Here the mountains give protection from cold northen-influence and provide a gentle south-facing amphitheatre of suitable vineyard land between 350 and 650 m above sea level. Even if Aragon is not at the level of their prestigious neighbours, Somontano wines are among the most reliable and best value in Spain.
The Enate Barrica differs from his cousin 234 Enate, which has been fermented in barrels. This is a full and creamy wine with beautiful aromas and a long finish.
Enate Barrica Somontano 2009 @ £13.95 - Buy it here!
Intense golden colour, notes of tropical fruit and smoke provided by the barrel aging. The wine is dense and creamy on the palate with fresh acidity and a long finish.
Come and see why we regularly run out of this gorgeous one. Cheers!
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Another mention for the Seifried Estates Nelson Pinot Noir. 15% when you buy two or more at the moment! Definitely work a look. Wanna know a bit more before you buy? Have a little read...
From small beginnings in 1973, when Hermann Seifried and his New Zealand wife Agnes first planted grapes in the Moutere Valley near Nelson, this is a family business with a focus and passion for beautifully crafted wines.
2016 marks 40 years since the family's first grape harvest, and with all three Seifried children now fully involved in the business, over 250 hectares of sustainably accredited Estate owned vineyards, and exports to over 20 countries around the globe, there is indeed reason to celebrate.
Seifried is a family business sharing their wines with the world and is home to the fabulous 'Sweet Agnes' Riesling - NZ's most awarded dessert wine. "Fruity, fresh, varietal and very inviting bouquet of fresh dark cherry and light red fruits, some plum; baking spices of cinnamon and vanilla. Dry, fruity and flavourful with light red fruits of plum and cherry,light toast oak layer, medium+ acidity and fine tannins. Balanced and well made." 90 Points - Cameron Douglas MS, November 2015
So whenever you get at least two bottles of this stunning pinot noir we'll give you 15% off. That's something anyone can enjoy! Cheers!
