A simple photo for this simply wonderful wine. We've had this producer for a pretty long time now and they've been very good to us. Let's have a look at our new addition.

In 2010 Felice Mergè, guided by his father Armando’s experience, buys and restores a building long known as the Cooperativa Comunale dei Produttori di Erchie, active since 1949. Renamed Masca del Tacco, the building is brought back to its original rural splendor but at the same time enriched with the latest equipment and innovative production techniques, aimed to produce the best wine quality without losing its traditional nature.

The warmth of the land and the sea influx of the Salentina peninsula, the hard-working hands of farmers, the weather: these factors result in extremely characterized wines by Masca del Tacco.

Masca del Tacco Salice Salentino Riserva 2015 @ £21.95 - Buy it here!
Bright garnet Red. Balanced aromas of red currant, forest fruit and orange zest, tobacco, violet, iron, humus and menthol, soft and revealing. The flavor is intense and well structured, harmonious, and balanced complexity. Elegant sip, ripe tannins, fruity and fresh with a very long persistence. 

If you're a fan of Masca del Tacco's other wines then this will be right up your street. Cheers!

 

More and more new wine from us. There's a great selection of things to try including this. Its little on the expensive side but for good reason indeed.

This small, authentic boutique winery on Mount Etna, was established by Giuseppe "Peppino" Mulone in 1954. Santa Maria la Nave grows indigenous varieties such as Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio in an ancient vineyard with rich, fertile volcanic soils. Passion and respect for the unique microclimate, along with artisanal vinification are at the heart of the Santa Maria La Nave project. Produced in small quantities, from dramatic surroundings, these are exquisite, food friendly wines.

The 2014 vintage in Italy was very difficult, as much of the country endured flooding. However, despite the abundant rains, the volcanic soil (which absorbs excessive water), the constant winds and strong sun protected the grapes grown on Mount Etna. This unique site has once again produced grapes in perfect condition.

 

Santa Maria La Nave 'Calmarossa' Etna Rosso 2014 @ £37.95 - Buy it here!

An enticing nose of wild red fruits and vanilla, which are complemented by a touch of cinnamon. A refined structure on the palate with elegant tannins and a harmonious, lingering finish.

A long time favourite producer of ours and now we have a now addition from them. We've stocked their sauvignon blanc and also their pinot noir and now it's time for their chardonnay.

Don Maximiano Errázuriz founded Viña Errázuriz in 1870. With his great vision for the future and his innovative, pioneering spirit, he planted the first French grape varieties in the Aconcagua Valley. His initiative and creativity were handed down to future generations and, in just over a century, his descendants consolidated the winery and positioned their wines among the world’s most noteworthy. Here, we invite you to get to know some of the main landmarks that have shaped the history of this family vineyard, currently one of the best examples of successful winemaking in Chile.

This year, Viña Errázuriz is proud to celebrate its 148th anniversary, carrying on the tradition in the same innovative and visionary spirit that has been its inspiration since the winery was founded in 1870.

Errazuriz Wild Ferment Chardonnay 2016 @ £14.95 - Buy it here!
This wine is unbelievably well balanced, with subtle tropical stone fruit in the form of apricot and peach mingling with subtle oak characters and a rich creaminess.

Such a wonderful wine from a wonderful producer in a wonderful country. Come and get it! Cheers!

We've hosted wines from Hugel since before the shop even existed. They're a staple of any wine shop and the reason is simply that they do what they do better than anyone. Time to find out a little more.

Hugel & Fils, founded in 1639 in picturesque Riquewihr, Alsace, France, is still 100% family owned and managed by the 12th consecutive generation of the family.

The family owns a 30 hectares estate of prime sites in Riquewihr, mostly classed Grand Cru, and buys grapes from a further 110 hectares farmed under contract. The Hugel estates are planted with only the noble Alsace grape varieties, with vines averaging 35 years of age.

Hugel production averages 110,000 cases per year, of which around 90% is exported to more than 100 countries worldwide, where “Alsace” is often synonymous with “Hugel”. Hugel wines, with their distinctive yellow labels, express the pure varietal character of Gewurztraminer, Riesling, Pinot Gris, Muscat and Pinot Blanc, all of which have no “make-up” from oaking or sweetening.

Familie Hugel Classic Pinot Noir 2014 @ £13.95 - Buy it here!

Made from the famous grape variety of Burgundy, this agreeable red wine presents a distinctive Alsace character. This is an elegantly structured, red wine with a long lasting flavour with slight smooth presence of tannin leading to a well-balanced and fruity finish.

A lovely addition to the shop. Pinot noir is always a winner so having more is always a plus! Cheers!

It is with great please that we announce the next wine tasting evening and this time we go back to our roots in terms of layout and style with Northern Italy.

This amazing region has incredible amounts of potential and a lot of it is currently being use to it's maximum. Beautiful vineyards host amazing vines and grapes which are worked heavily to produce some of the worlds most fantastic wine. Light and easy to deep and powerful, they do it all and none of it is to be missed.

Our tasting will be the best way to get to grips with what the Italians are capable of. If you love Italian wine or are a novice with it we will guide you through it with all the skill required to make sure you leave knowing much more than you come with. We will be tasting 6 very different wines with a selection of charcuterie, cheeses, breads and all sorts of other classics at around the half-way point but we must remind you that this will almost certainly not equal a meal!

The tasting is going to be held at the shop on Wednesday the 27th of March from 7.30 to 10pm. As our licensing requires us to close the shop by 10pm latest we kindly ask participants to arrive at the shop by 7pm in order to begin on schedule.

The cost of a ticket is £40 and can be purchased either by coming to our highstreet shop (open Tuesday to Saturday 10am-8pm) or by paying through Paypal using our website at:

http://www.grandcruco.com/wine-tasting/public-tastings/northern-italy-tasting-1-27-03-2019-detail

Don't miss out! There aren't many tickets to go round! Cheers!

Due to an issue with out mailing system we only be announcing our next tasting on our social media and website so if that sounds like a piece of you then read on!

It's about time we head back to a place where wine thrives. A place where the sun beats down and the juices produced reflect this: it's Spain.

And, of course, we won't just be looking at anywhere in Spain. No, no, no. We will be looking directly at Bodegas Manzanos of the Rioja region. These guys have been producing wine here since the late 19th century and the quality they make is just astounding. White, pink and red; all of it hits the spot perfectly.

We will be putting together the usual selection of spanish meats and cheeses just to make sure that everything is as on the mark as possible, of course. We will remind you that this food does not equate to a meal so a little something before hand might be a good idea.

The tasting is going to be held at the shop on Tuesday the 8th of October from 7.30 to 10pm. As our licensing requires us to close the shop by 10pm latest we kindly ask participants to arrive at the shop at 7.15pm in order to begin on schedule.

The cost of a ticket is £35 and can be purchased either by coming to our highstreet shop (open Tuesday to Saturday 10am-8pm) or by paying through Paypal using our website at:

http://www.grandcruco.com/wine-tasting/public-tastings/finca-manzanos-tasting-08-10-2019-detail

Don't miss out! There aren't many tickets to go round! Cheers