Viognier Le Paradou, Chateau Pesquie, Ventoux, France
This family run domaine came to being in the early 1970s, when Odette and René Bastide spotted the potential of the Ventoux region and took over an area of rundown vineyards. In 1985 Edith and Paul Chaudière took control and created one of the first independent wineries of the AOC, in an area which had previously been dominated by cooperatives. In 2003, Paul and Edith handed over the running of the estate to their two sons, Alexandre and Frédéric, who have since set about converting the domaine to organic farming. They are blessed with vineyards in an enviable location, ideally situated at the crossroads between the Alpine and Mediterranean worlds. An average altitude of the vineyards of more than 300 metres and the wide variation of temperatures between days and nights create an excellent physiological balance in the vines, adding colour, concentration and balance to their wines.
The Opportunist Shiraz, Wild & Wilder, Langhorne Creek
Wild & Wilder is all about good clean fun. Working hand in hand with their merry (in a good season) band of growers, they craft wines of supreme quality but don’t take it all too seriously.
Great fruit, grown by great people and made with a lot of love by people that know that wine is all about the good times, delicious food and creating great memories. Founded by Giles Cooke MW & Fergal Tynan MW, who also make the Thistledown wines, the mundane is just not in their DNA. Being involved in every stage of the winemaking process from bud burst to bottle means that every bottle from Wild & Wilder is an experience you’ll want to try again.
Montepulciano d’Abruzzo, ERA, Veneto, Italy
From the winemaking team at Cantine Volpi comes this delicious range of organic cuvées called ‘ERA’, which we believe are a fantastic addition to our Italian portfolio. From their 5 distinct regional bases (Veneto, Marche, Abruzzo, Apulia and Sicily), the Volpi team cultivate a wide range of grape varietals that are fashioned into fresh, food-friendly wines.
Bonfire Hill Extreme Vinyards, Western Cape, South Africa
Winemaker Trizanne Barnard has years of international winemaking experience. Her passion lies in the Western Cape, making wines sourced from the most extreme vineyards and blending them to perfection.
Trizanne seeks out grapes from wind-ravaged vineyards in Elim, the old expanses of the Overberg Highlands, from dryland bush vines in the warm Swartland and from the high slopes of the Piekernierskloof. They then all come together under Trizanne’s watchful eye to create wines full of flavour, tannin and texture.
Montsablé Pinot Noir, IGP d’Oc
Wines inspired by the spirit of place – ‘L’esprit de lieu’. The wines of Terres Fidèles are created in the Roussillon and surrounding regions, a place of remarkable stories where layers of history and cultures are embedded in the raw and wild landscape. Authentic, crafted small batch wines. Wines of the wilds. Old vine Grenache, Carignan, Malbec, Cinsault, Viognier and more. Wines to share…, some of which, namely Felicette, Mont Rocher and Montsablé we have been proudly producing for some time.
Gruner Veltliner Funkstille, Austria
We all need a little ‘Funkstille’ (radio silence) in our life now and again.
Kick back and take a moment to enjoy the silence with a glass of Grüner Veltliner. With its subtle exotic hints, ripe pear and fresh citrus flavours, it’s a dry wine with complex flavours. The palate is rich with flavours of melon and grapefruit with a refreshing, zippy finish.
Verdejo, Silga, Alvarez y Diez, Do Rueda
Alvarez y Diez is one of the most important producers of the D.O. Rueda. They have made major investments to ensure that the winery is at the vanguard of changing wine styles in the region. Concentrating on the indigenous Verdejo and Sauvignon Blanc, they were one of the first to produce the crisp, herbaceous style that is associated with Rueda today and also the first to introduce screw caps to the region.
Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico, Zaccagnini, Marche, Italy
On the opposite coast to Tuscany lies the less well known, but no less beautiful, region of Marche. This is where you will find the family run Zaccagnini winery, established by two brothers.
Playing to their strengths, they have focused on the local grape Verdicchio, and the results are spectacular. Their range of three Verdicchios are as distinctive and individual as you could wish for, with each wine having its own personality and textural signature. All are benchmark examples of this lesser known region on the East coast. Whilst they have been working organically for a few years, from the 2020 vintage, the wines are being certified as organic.
Riesling Riserva Pacifico Sur, Valle de Casablanca, Chile
Tutunjian Estate have vineyards across the Central Valley region, with their oldest vineyards located in the prestigious Apalta region of the Colchagua Valley. Well known for their expertise with Malbec and Carmenere, they also work with many other traditional grapes, always choosing the best terroir for each.
Chenin Blanc, ‘Releaf’, Western Cape
A self-empowerment project, ‘Releaf’ project symbolises the true meaning of sustainability and harmony within nature. Sustainable agriculture is used in order to cultivate 100% hand harvested, organically grown grapes that are used to produce two separate cuvées. Every effort has been made to ensure this wine is as eco-friendly as possible, down to the fact it is packaged using partially recycled glass and is labelled with recycled paper and sustainable ink.
A portion of the proceeds of the Imbuko Releaf wine goes towards supporting the Imbuko Schools Support Project – through which the estate supports a number of children in education by funding scholarships to local schools.
Pinot Grigio Delle Venezie, Mabis, Biscardo Uvam, IGT, Veneto
The Biscardo Family have been making wine from their base in Soave for over 150 years and are currently led by brothers Maurizio and Martino. During the course of Maurizio’s long and illustrious career, he has consulted for well-known wineries around Italy and in doing so he came across the vineyards for their Puglian wines. Both the Pugliese and Veneto wines are characterised by an almost dangerous drinkability, aromatic purity and exceptional value for money.
Syrah Solevari Reserve, Viile Timisului, Romania
The Cramele Recas Estate, owned by Englishman, Philip Cox and his Romanian wife Elvira, have put in a huge amount of work into transforming their slice of grape growing history into a contemporary winemaking haven.
The immaculate vineyards are a combination of evolved plantings from 1447 and much more recent plantings too. With recent investments into modernising and improving their winery, they regularly host world class flying winemakers, vintage to vintage, to work with their team. This enables them to create top quality wines and constantly challenge themselves push innovations and approach winemaking with an open mind.
