Country: France Region: Burgundy
Varietal: Chardonnay Vintage: 2021
Producer : Jaffelin
Description: If you are coming from Dijon, it is at Ladoix that the Côte de Beaune begins. Ladoix shares with Aloxe-Corton and Pernand-Vergelesses the honour of producing the famous wines of the hill of Corton. The appellation was instituted in 1937. The vineyards grow red or white wines according to whether the soils best suits the Pinot Noir or the Chardonnay grape.
The soils of the upper slopes are pebbly and reddish (iron-rich olite) with a high limestone content and quite marly. These suit great white wines. Mid-slope, reddish-brown calcareous soils with abundant limestone debris grow full-bodied and flamboyant red wines. Clayey soils at the foot of the slopes take away some of their fire. Exposures: easterly or South-East to South. Altitude: 230 to 325 metres.
Tasting Note: Beautiful and evolving. Nose full of stoney honeysuckle and some notes of tropical fruits. A rich palate but also with a striking lemony acidity that holds the balance. Long, weighty, fresh and salty finish.
Great with Fish, white meats, goat cheeses.
GRENACHE OF THE YEAR
'If a case still needs to be made for those that doubt McLaren Vale Grenache is inimitable, thrilling and unquestionably world class, then here is Exhibit A. Stunning.’
'Among Australia's very greatest reds.'Halliday Wine Companion
96 points - Robert Parker Wine Advocate96 points - JamesSuckling.com96 points - The Real Review94 points - The Wine Front
Country: Australia Region: McLaren Vale
Varietal: Grenache Vintage: 2023/24
Colour: Red Style: Dry
Producer: Thistledown
This is a wine that is quickly selling out all around the world. The world is beginning to see the value in these Old Vine Grenache, we feel its becoming the rightful heir to some of the premium Pinot Noirs in the market.
On a beautiful hillside in the Clarendon sub-region of McLaren Vale sits a remarkable site that has vines 100 years of age. The entire site is dry-grown bush vines and has been farmed by the same family for 3 generations. This wine is sourced from one particular block where the canopy is raised slightly higher above the ground, allowing for better air circulation and increased radiated sunlight.
The fruit was hand-picked and 20% was retained as whole bunches to be placed on the base of a 2ton open fermenter. Wild fermented and gently hand plunged twice a day during active fermentation. Pressed off to 300-litre hogsheads, of which 20% were new.
Tasting Note: Here, we have blackberry and mulberry, raspberry pip and star anise, layers of coal dust, dirt and graphite, clove and even nutmeg/cinnamon. The tannins are über fine, chalky, grippy and gently chewy. It is a wonderful thing to experience the “feel” of the wine as much as the taste. Interacting with red wine in this way
Food PairingA great match for many Asian-style dishes as long as they aren’t too spicy.