This juicy, full of fruit Aussie red sums up the best of Aussie wine – gorgeous ripe fruit, good intensity and freshness. Great value too. Way & Cat is short for ‘wayfaring catador’, catador being Spanish for taster. So the name is a tribute to how the team source their fruit – they head out into the vineyards to taste the grapes of their grower friends. When they find the selections they like, they vinify each parcel separately, then blend the results into fruit first expressions of the varieties they chose.

That blend changes vintage by vintage, depending what performs well that year. It's top for versatility too – great as a glass on its own, tasty with roasted vegetable quiche, sausage and mash. And just the ticket at a barbecue.

These wines kick started the region's renaissance and became some of the most exclusive and expensive in the world. Saracosa is from the Barbanera family estate, overlooked by the Saracosa hill near Montalcino. Half the vineyards are in the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, and the remainder just beyond. In the fine 2019 vintage Saracosa's old vines delivered exceptional concentration.
The fruit was then part-aged in French oak barriques to lend a toasty layer of complexity. Dense, dark cherry and chocolatey tones make this a serious choice for pasta with pork ragù or bistecca alla fiorentina (steak with cannellini beans in tomato sauce).

Château Pavie Macquin was founded by in the 19th century by Albert Macquin, the man credited for introducing grafted vines to France thus saving the country's vineyards from destruction by phylloxera.

In 2021, winemaker Nicolas Thienpont waited patiently for perfect ripeness, harvesting the grapes as late as October 19th. The resulting wine is a stunning expression of this exceptional vintage and terroir. Intense black and blue fruit aromas mingle with captivating floral notes of violets and iris. The palate is full-bodied and structured, with polished, tensile tannins that beautifully balance the wine's exuberant fruit. There is excellent drive and elegance through the long, compelling finish, suggesting this Pavie-Macquin will age gracefully for years to come. A profound Saint-Émilion that exemplifies the heights of this celebrated appellation.

94-95 points James Suckling

"Lots of blackberry and inky character to this year. Always refined and polished with lovely length and medium body. 79% merlot, 19% cabernet franc and 2% cabernet sauvignon." (6/2022)

93-95 points Wine Advocate

"Another success in this challenging year is the 2021 Pavie Macquin, a promising effort that offers up aromas of sweet berries, Indian spices, licorice and bay leaf. Medium to full-bodied, layered and incisive, it's a tensile, tightly wound wine that's concentrated and penetrating, concluding with a mineral finish. Its low pH profile means that this is always an estate that gains a lot from élevage, but even at this early stage, it's clear that this has excellent potential. (WK)" (4/2022)

94 points Decanter

"Bramble, coffee and caramel notes on the nose. Juicy and vibrant on the palate, this has a gentle coursing of strawberry and blackcurrant fruit with blackcurrant leaf giving a savoury, almost herbal edge, while the crushed stone and slate bring in minerality and salinity on the finish. Detailed and nuanced - I like the overall texture, there is grip and aromatic interest with density, chew and a gorgeous core of acidity that keeps things playful and joyous. Supremely alive and thriving on the palate with a persistence that doesn't let up. I love this and think it will be excellent after ageing. Tasted twice. (GH)" (3/2022)

Accolades:

Robert Parker 93-95/100

Bettane & Desseauve 95-96/100

Wine Spectator 92/100

J. Suckling 96/100

Vinous - A. Galloni 94+/100

The Wine Independent 92-94/100

Alexandre Ma 95-97/100

Vinous Neal Martin 93/100

L’Épiphanie de Pauillac is the latest of our secret releases from iconic Bordeaux châteaux. It hails from Pauillac’s top tier – a Premier Grand Cru Classé estate. There are only three in the appellation: Lafite Rothschild, Mouton Rothschild and Latour. We guarantee this wine is from one of them. It isn’t their Grand Vin, of course, but it’s made from the same fruit by the same winemaker and housed in the same barrels. Yet it costs less than 1/16th of the Grand Vin’s price.

L’Épiphanie de Pauillac has blackcurrant, cherry and ripe plum infused with subtle spice, cedar and cigar box notes. These classic aromas combine with firm tannins for a complex wine with a long finish. By all means open a bottle now, but cellaring will pay dividends.