Arché – Sangiovese Rubicone IGT, 2018
This medium-bodied wine has a pleasant, fresh bouquet with a dark cherry and plum nose. Very easy on the palate with light tannins and a smooth finish.
Beaujolais Villages ‘Combe aux Jacques’, Louis Jadot, 2017
– Fragrant aroma of roses and violets. Juicy flavours of raspberries and cherries backed by earthy notes and hints of herbs. Excellent structure with firm tannins.
Bela Sombra Reserva, Limited Edition, Quinta da Alorna, 2013
Colour: Ruby
Vinification: Pre-fermentative cold maceration for two days. Delastage technique for color extraction during alcoholic fermentation. After malo-lactic fermentation, the three grapes are aged for 12 months in French oak barrels. After bottling, the wine ages for 3 months.
Nose: Black berries and jam aromas due to grapes maturation. Ageing in French oak barrels gave it spicy notes.
Palate: Well balanced and soft tannins.
Tasting Note: Long lasting finish, remaining ripped plums and coffee.
Gastronomy: Perfect to serve with roasted or stewed meat.
Bergerac AC Vieilli en Fut de Chene Domaine de Mayat, 2016
Made from 100% Merlot, deep garnet red wine with powerful aromas of black fruits. A round, velvet taste with a rich structure of tannins. Showing some bottle age and drinking very well now.
Bodega Roda – Roda I, Rioja DOC, Spain 2006
Intense, deep, black cherry red background with bright red cherry red hues in the rim. On the nose their is great balance between the oak and the fruit, in particular black plums, with some dark chocolate and sweet spices on a background of stark minerality showing through, providing a very elegant and complex bouquet. Medium bodied but showing great lenght. Mouth filling without weighing you down. The ripe black plum fruit shines together with some cocoa and dark chocolate blending perfectly with the sweet tannins from the oak. A very elegant, pleasing wine to the palate. Beautifully balanced, silky smooth, arousing an inviting moreish feeling that makes it a great food companion
Aged in 50% brand new and 50% second use French oak barrels. 16 months in barrels and 20 months cellaring in bottle. Bottled April 2008.
Brentino, Vigneti Maculan, 2017
– Intense and impenetrable ruby red colour. Dark ripe fruit such as cherries and plums, oriental spices and vanilla. Full-bodied and dry, with good freshness, persistence and balance.
Cannonau di Sardegna Costera, Argiolas, 2017
Made from the Sardinian clone of Grenache called Cannonau, Carignan & Bovale Sardo, it is a chunky, robust, meaty effort revealing scents of garrigue, kirsch liqueur, white chocolate, pepper, and spice. Full-bodied, with terrific fruit as well as loads of personality.
Casanova di Neri – Brunello di Montalcino 2013
Casanova di Neri’s Brunello di Montalcino is a beautiful wine, from one of the all-time great Brunello vintages. Refined and elegant with gorgeous aromas of ripe cherries, blackberry, smoke, leather and fresh floral notes. Focused and tightly wound with wonderful fine-grained tannins and a long lingering finish.
Casanova di Neri
The Casanova di Neri Estate was founded by Giovanni Neri in 1971 and is now run by his son Giacomo. Giacomo has spent several years acquiring the best possible vineyards within the Brunello di Montalcino DOCG area. Most recently, he has re-developed the winemaking facilities at Casanova di Neri and has just completed an impressive underground winery and cellar. Giacomoâ??s passion and expertise, together with 55 hectares of vineyards, represent the ideal combination for producing wines with exceptional personality, uniqueness, and recognisable characteristics. The Casanova di Neri vineyards, set on the slopes of Montalcino, are influenced by radical differences in soil, microclimate and surrounding vegetation, whilst maintaining a maximum separation of just one kilometre. Although primarily an advocate of Brunello (a Sangiovese clone), Giacomo has recently experimented with international grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon for his Pietradonice DOC. The winery is now recognised as one of the finest producers in Italy. It has been awarded the Tre Bicchieri at the Gambero Rosso and received international recognition in the wine industry’s most important publications.
Château Canon la Gaffeliere, Saint Emilion Grand Cru Classé, 2006
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate 92 points.
“Stephan von Neipperg’s splendid 50-acre vineyard on clay and limestone soils has once again produced a beautifully ripe, concentrated, textured, sensual wine of both power and elegance. The 2006, an unfined, unfiltered blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, reveals sweet aromas of fruitcake, cassis, black cherries, roasted herbs, cedar, and spice box. This pure, textured, forward beauty should drink well for 12-15+ years.” February 2009
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate 91-94 points.
“Stephan von Neipperg’s flagship estate (and, in my opinion, one that should have been upgraded to a premier grand cru classe in the new St.-Emilion hierarchy) has turned in another stunning performance. A blend of 55% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc, and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, from small yields of 35 hectoliters per hectare, the 2006 exhibits a dense ruby/purple color as well as scents of creme de cassis, pain grille, espresso roast, chocolate, and spicy roasted herbs. Dense, medium to full-bodied, and surprisingly opulent for a 2006, with oodles of fruit, and terrific structure as well as purity, it is a more noble expression of Neipperg’s other St.-Emilion, Clos de l’Oratoire. Anticipated maturity: 2011-2024.” April 2007
Château Chasse-Spleen, Moulis en Médoc, 2008
Soft and approachable, this fruit forward claret has immediate appeal. Concentrated black cherry aromas dominate the nose alongside herb and sweet spice hints. The palate shows earthy and more savoury characters and is rounded with a pleasing mouthfeel, all very well balanced.
Château Chasse-Spleen
Château Chasse-Spleen is a leading estate in Moulis. Although classified as a Cru Bourgeois, it regularly outperforms many of the Médoc’s more renowned classed growths.
A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. It is matured in oak barriques (40% new) for 18 months and is bottled unfiltered.
Château Chasse-Spleen, Moulis en Médoc, 2010
A beautiful effort from Chasse-Spleen, this dense purple wine exhibits plenty of black currant and black cherry fruit with some licorice, roasted herbs and forest floor. Medium to full-bodied and supple, the final blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 45% Merlot has produced a fleshy, succulent style of Chasse-Spleen to drink over the next 15+ years.
Château Chasse-Spleen
Château Chasse-Spleen is a leading estate in Moulis. Although classified as a Cru Bourgeois, it regularly outperforms many of the Médoc’s more renowned classed growths.
A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. It is matured in oak barriques (40% new) for 18 months and is bottled unfiltered.
Château d’Agassac, Haut Médoc, Cru Bourgeois, 2011
– TO THE EYE : A beautiful, intense sparkling garnet red. When held up to the light, crimson and violet tints can be detected. Incomparable brilliance.
– ON THE NOSE : From the outset the powerful, harmonious bouquet releases roasted-coffee notes along with hints of mocha and Tonka beans wrapped up in a delicious vanilla-tinged woodiness, all backed up by spicier aromas in which notes of clove and pepper stand out.
– AFTER AIRING : As the bouquet evolves the dominant notes are defined against a mineral backdrop in which hints of graphite emerge, backed up by nuances of bitter cocoa and liquorice. After a few minutes of oxygenation, the aromatic structure intensifies and, in successive touches, more burnt notes of sandalwood and mild spices (cinnamon) appear.
– ON THE PALATE : The tannins are very silky, providing a smooth, delicate, supple texture without any excess woodiness. The texture of this suave, full wine gets richer as the tasting goes on but without the slightest aggressiveness, while the tannic structure is pleasingly pronounced. The finish is long-lasting and supple with mineral notes combining flavours of graphite and hot chocolate, all backed up by a lightly woody, fresh texture.
Tasting note elaborate by Thierry Nérisson, Sommelier
