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That’s 200 gallons to be exact – the same amount that each American household was allowed to make for ‘personal use’ during Prohibition.
And the go-to grape during this DIY time wasn’t Cabernet or Merlot, it was the bold and juicy Alicante Bouschet - widely planted in California but originally from Portugal.
Today, award-winning winemaker Jamie Quendera has crafted a mighty, Reserva-quality red, from rare 100-year-old vines.
And the unique twist? Jamie aged the wine for 12 months in custom double casks. The top and bottom are French oak (imparting subtle spice) while the long side planks are American (for vanilla notes).
The result is an ultra-smooth, cherry-ripe, well-spiced drop!
The judges at the China's Wine & Spirits Best Value Awards were impressed by this rich, spicy Shiraz, unanimously awarding it a Gold. It’s from John Quarisa, who for many years made wine for the biggest names in Oz, winning both the Jimmy Watson and Stodart Trophies. Today, with the help of his wife Josephine, he crafts winners like this. ‘Passion is Everything’ is their motto, and, after just over a decade in operation, their winery in New South Wales boasts four stars from Aussie wine guru James Halliday. He describes the “exceptional value for money provided by the wines” and is full of praise for this red. It’s deliciously easy going, but still packs a punch of luscious ripe fruit. A sure bet for a bbq, a roast or a hearty bake.
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It won a Trophy for its first release, another Trophy and Gold for 2007 and 2009, and Gold for 2010.
It’s from the Elqui Valley, an extraordinarily high region next to the Atacama Desert.
Thanks to the wonders of irrigation, flourishing green vineyards stand out in stark contrast to their moonscape surroundings.
The award winning Viña Falernia was set up by Italians Aldo Olivier Gramola and Giorgio Flessati in 1995 and is one of only two wineries here.
Today they have extensive vineyards and a cellar packed with state of the art equipment.
With impressive richness, great complexity and finesse, this is a wine to decant and serve with roast lamb on a special occasion.
It ended up being considerably longer than intended, but all's well that ends well, because 10 years later it's proved to be absolutely stunning – a silky, velvety luxury wine. A great choice with lamb.
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Our Haut-Brion-trained winemaker, Jean-Marc Sauboua, founded Altos in 2006 and, all together, has won over 180 Golds, Trophies, plus many high scores.
He works with the young Amaia Amestoy and Hector Gomez in the cellar, whose CVs includes experience at Napa’s Château Montelena, Contino and Murrieta in Rioja and Villacreces in Ribera del Duero.
They made this wine from old-vine (80+ years) Tempranillo and Graciano, vinifying it using Burgundy’s pigeage method.
This involves fermenting in open vats and plunging the skins into the liquid three times a day – hands-on winemaking that delivers great results.
Aged for two years in half new French oak and bottled unfiltered, the wine offers seams of intense black fruit with spice-box complexity.
His secret? He's Bordeaux born and trained at First Growth Château Haut Brion. His aim was to make Grand Cru Classé wines in Rioja, so he chose only high altitude vineyards, the highest in all Rioja.
So grapes ripen slowly, with great finesse and intensity. Visit his winery, up in the clouds – it's cold! Salix Alba is a new release for him and very special.
It uses grapes solely from El Pisón, a tiny location where the famous Artadi bodega gets grapes for its £260 a bottle wine.
Ageing in all new French oak lends the finishing touches to this sumptuous red. A special dinner red.
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Altos is a top performing Rioja bodega with Trophies for 'Spanish Winery of the Year', 'Reserva of the Year' and 'Crianza of the Year'. Owner-winemaker is Haut-Brion trained Jean Marc Sauboua. This is 92-pt single vineyard Rioja.
Gold, International Wine Awards, 2020
90-94pts, International Wine Awards, 2020
90pts, James Suckling, 2020
92pts, Andreas Larsson, 2020
So we were thrilled when Andrew McPherson decided to craft a special Reserve edition.
It’s been made in honour of Andrew’s mother Doreen, a woman who embodied Australia’s great pioneering spirit and whose devotion to family inspired everyone around her.
To call this Andrew’s special project red is an understatement. He seeks out premium parcels of old vine Shiraz and Cabernet from acclaimed Victorian vineyards and treats the wine to long, luxurious ageing in finest oak barrels.
The result is a berry laden, richly concentrated, spicy red. Serve with prime steak or roast lamb.
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However, a down draught from the Andes and the Pacific’s Humboldt Current both help to moderate temperatures by day and ensure very cold nights.
In addition, the sunlight is exceptionally bright and snowmelt from the Andes provides all the irrigation water required.
Viña Falernia, one of only two wineries in the valley, was built in the late 1990s by Italian Giorgio Flessati and won a Trophy with its first vintage. Elqui produces “some particularly gutsy Syrah at altitudes of over 2,000 metres” (World Atlas of Wine), and the Carmenère is equally robust.
Deep bramble, cassis and spice character, it's great with lamb. Best decanted.
The wine is matured for 12 months in the barrels that used to hold the family's fine port. Unique method allows the wines to get extra layers of lovely spice, incredible velvety richness, superb complexity, and a light touch of sweetness.