Lying close to Margaux's Châteaux Giscours and du Tertre, Château Cazauviel remains surprisingly under the radar. It was inherited by Régis Bernaleau from his father in 1978 and today remains in family hands. It is situated on the prized gravel soils of the Arsac plateau, which lends both an intensity and a finesse to the wine. This pretty claret is from a vintage struck by early April frosts – the most devastating for many years.
It reduced yields, but as Decanter wrote, "there are some excellent wines." Most, like Cazauviel 2017, are not long keepers, but makes delightful drinking now. Ideally open a couple of hours before serving and decant. It'll make a delicious glass with roast chicken with morels or a mushroom croustade.
Founded 200 years ago, Château Pédesclaux is a magnificent estate, both in terms of wine and architecture. It combines the beauty of the 19th century with the modernity and technological advances of the 21st.
The additional work was undertaken by architect Jean-Michel Wilmotte, whose aim was to place “production at the heart of the estate within a high-performance building that is entirely fit for purpose and makes a harmonious whole with both the château and its surroundings”. It's quite something to behold.
Since the Lorenzetti family took ownership they've converted to organic. Their top wine is a rich, Cabernet-based claret, supported by Merlot, and finely expresses its gravel terroir. Still a young wine – best to cellar or open early.
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Bright, exuberantly fruity Citrus & Vine is from an exciting family estate with a state-of-the-art cellar to boot. The land has been in the family for generations, but their first winery was only built just over a decade ago. The property lies in the Breede River Valley – with rich calcareous soils, the region is renowned not only for delicious, ripe fruit wines, but also for its citrus orchards, and for breeding horses. In fact the family excels at all three, and the wine’s name celebrates two of them.
Citrus & Vine, made purely from the South African speciality white grape Chenin Blanc, exudes lively and intense guava, lemon and passion fruit notes. Chill down and enjoy this fresh white solo, or with a peach and haloumi salad or chicken.
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Our scout and buyer for the Languedoc-Roussillon is Mark Hoddy. He's always searching the region's vineyards, to check out the vintage and the finest parcels of grapes. This is an ace find Mark discovered first in 2019 via an old friend in Corbières. Close by is Domaine La Lirande, a small estate founded in 1912 by the grandfather, François, in the tiny village of Coulobres. Every year, the Syrah from the domaine's 8 hectares of 40-year-old vines stands out for quality. Just taste the richness of this seductive red. Ripe black fruit, velvety, with smoky liquorice and wild herb notes, it's young, so best with hearty dishes like pasta bake or at a barbecue.
El Bombero red regularly sits in our customer’s Top 10, so we are excited to present its new sibling - a vibrant, fruity rosado. It comes from Cariñena, a hot, arid region of Spain where sun-loving grapes like Garnacha thrive. Along with big reds, the region produces bright, bold pinks. With just a few hours of contact between the grape juice and skins, the rosés catch the bright berry notes and a light hue.
El Bombero rosado is a wonderful example of a new wave of Garnacha rosés. It lies between Spain’s traditional fruity, medium-bodied rosés and the pale, light-bodied Provençal style. Showing great fruit finesse, it’s ideal to sip on its own, while its roundness makes it a great food wine as well – especially with a tasty paella.
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We're delighted to joined forces with the internationally respected Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, home to the largest living plant collection on the planet. Together we have produced a small range of wines that champion little-known grape varieties, often on the verge of extinction. Both parties champion biodiversity and work with nature to create beautiful things. In this case, a wine from a small family estate in Sicily.
This refreshing white is pure Carricante, an indigenous grape of the island, in particular of the volcanic slopes of Etna. Bright and zingy, with ripe stone fruits, floral hints and a crisp, mineral finish, this wine is a perfect foil for light, creamy pasta, risotto or seafood.