May Subscription Wines
Lucy Chilvers • Nuria • 2022 • Xarel-Lo, Muscat d'Alexandria • Orange • El Penedes, Spain
Lucy Chilvers is on a one-woman mission to show us how diverse Xarel-Lo can be, with this cuvee showing its possibilities when given more substantial skin contact. The wine is a blend of a parcel of Xarel-Lo grapes grown on sandy clay soils with some Muscat D’Alexandra, the grapes are all destemmed and then fermented separately, with the Xarel-Lo spending three weeks on the skins, and the Muscat just two – after which, the musts are combined and aged in stainless steel. Lots of fleshy stone fruit with floral hints from the Muscat, and an underlying briny salinity.
Organic, Biodynamic Practices, Zero SO2
Preparation: Serve Chilled
Food: Bacalao, Seafood Croquette, Roasted Celeriac
Rigour and Whimsey • Bifrost 2022 • Riesling, Gewürztraminer • Orange • Okanagan Valley • Canada
Beautifully aromatic orange from some of the most cutting-edge winemakers in Canada. The wine is a co-ferment of roughly equal parts Riesling and Gewürztraminer, which are destemmed and then fermented on the skins in stainless steel tank for one month, before barrel ageing for six months, and bottling without filtration or fining. Assertive tannins and intriguing bitters combine with lots of sappy fruit from the Gewürztraminer, which were picked late to achieve optimum ripeness.
Organic
Preparation: Serve Chilled
Food: Grilled Octopus, Aged Gouda, Spiced Lamb
Markus Altenburger • Skins & Stones Weiss • 2022 • Grüner Veltliner, Gewürztraminer, Sauvigon Blanc & others • Orange • Burgenland, Austria
With juicy stone fruit, zesty citrus, nutty tones and herbal complexity, this is everything you want from a skin maceration wine. Blending Grüner Veltliner, Gewürztraminer, Sauvigon Blanc, Welschriesling, Neuburger, Muskat Ottonel, all grown on the rocky responsible for the second part of the name, half of the grapes are macerated for ten days and the other half direct pressed, before spontaneously fermentation and 9 months aging in a mixture of concrete eggs and oak barrels. A tactile yet deep wine from the legendary Austrian producer.
Preparation: Serve chilled
Oliver Cohen • Deferlante Rouge • 2022 • Merlot, Carignan, Ugni Blanc • Red • Herault, France
Another inimitable wine from an especially creative winemaker. Here, Cohen co-ferments the red grapes Merlot and Carignan with Ugni Blanc for five days, followed by ageing in fiberglass tanks, and bottling without any additives. Bursting with generous fruit in wild berries and ripe plums, the wine has persistent acids that are held beautifully in its smooth and silky texture.
Organic, Zero SO2
Preparation: Serve at room temperature
Food: Lamb Chops, Brisket, Grilled Mushrooms
Naboso • Zore • 2022 • Blaufränkisch, André • Red • Bratislava, Slovakia
Light and crunchy, but with plenty of aromatic depth. The wine is produced from a blend of Blaufränkisch and André – a cross between Blaufränkisch & St. Laurent – which undergo carbonic maceration. With lots of juicy wild berries and punchy acids, it can be serve chilled, and as with many bottles from these exciting progressive winemakers from Slovakia, the wine offers excellent value.
Preparation: Serve chilled, or at room temperature
Food: BBQ Sausages, Roast Duck, Mushroom Stroganoff
Maude Rochette • Shirley Cougar • 2022 • Gamay • Red • Beaujolais, France
Stunning purity in this amphora-aged Gamay from sommelier-turned-winemaker Emélie Hurtubise. The vines are grown on pink sand and granite soils, with the grapes undergoing a light extraction of just ten days maceration before spending ten months in the amphora, and bottling without fining or filtration. Delicate aromas of dainty red fruits and flowers in a really light and pretty expression of Gamay.
Organic
Preparation: Serve at room temperature
Food: Mushroom Tart, Falafel, Rillettes
Come Isambert • Grimace • 2022 • Grolleau Gris • Rose • Loire, France
Stunningly refreshing and delicious rose from a very exciting and talented producer, who isn’t afraid to experiment. Here, Grolleau Gris grapes from twenty-five-year-old vines, and grown on schist soils, are given a short maceration on the skins, and vinified without any additives. The result is a wine with a striking pink hue, delicate fruit flavours, and stunningly vibrant acidity.
Organic
Preparation: Serve chilled
Food: Grilled Red Mullet, Cured Trout, Tomato Salad
Domaine Rietsch • Entre Chien et Loup • 2021 • Auxerrois, Pinot Blanc • White • Alsace, France
Jean-Pierre Rietsch is making some beautiful wines in Mittelbergheim, Alsace, and the domaine has become known for the diversity of styles they produce. This one is a blend of Auxerrois and Pinot Blanc grapes, which are fermented with indigenous yeasts, and aged in foudre on the lees for 9 months, after which they are bottled without fining or filtration. Its aromatic, mineral and saline, with a creamy mouthfeel and citrusy acids.
Organic
Preparation: Serve chilled
Food: Dover Sole, Clams, Goat’s Cheese Salad
Thierry Diaz • Bang Bang Macabeu • 2021 • Macabeu • White • Roussillon, France
As with all his wines, this cuvee is produced with grapes from a single plot, lending to a wonderfully pure expression of the terroir. The grapes are fermented with native yeasts and vinified without any additives. Lots of fruit concentration in notes of pineapple, lemon, and melon, but with wonderful freshness and salinity to cut through.
Organic, zero so2
Preparation: Serve chilled
Food: Manchego, Bacalau, Grilled Sardines
Raisin a Plume • D'Est En Ouest • 2022 • Cabernet Franc • Sparkling • Muscadet, France
Fun and vibrant petnat that makes the ideal party fizz, but also makes a very good aperitif, especially with charcuterie. It’s produced from Cabernet Franc grapes which are pressed off, fermented with native yeasts, and then refermented in bottle to generate the effervescence. Fine bubbles and lively acids, with all the peppery spice and crunchy fruit you expect from Cab Franc.
Preparation: Serve from ice
Food: Saucisson, Tuna Tostada, Gougères
Domaine Einhart • Muscana • 2022 • Muscat d'Alsace • Orange • Alsace, France
A really unique and complex orange wine made from a blend of old-vine red and white Muscat d’Alsace. The grapes are grown on three different types of oolitic limestone, destemmed after hand-packing, with the maceration taking places for six days, and fermentation and ageing in stainless steel vats on fine lees. Bags of energy and aromatic depth with lots of juicy stone fruit and citrus and a powerful structure.
Organic
Preparation: Serve chilled
Food: Chicken Tagine, Twice-Cooked Pork, Munster
Brand Bros • Holy Chapel • 2019 • Pinot Blanc • White • Pfalz, Germany
This Pinot Blanc showcases the grape at its best, with the five years of ageing putting it in a perfect place. The grapes come from a single vineyard, and spend 12 hours macerating on the skins before being pressed off for fermentation and a year of ageing in old barrels on the lees, and bottled without fining, filtration or any added sulphur. The result is a pour with the fruity energy and character of a natural white but with impressive precision and mineral elegance.
Zero SO2
Preparation: Serve chilled
Food: Roast Chicken, Veal Schnitzel, Mussels
Domaine Sauveterre • Chevrot • 2015 • Chardonnay • White / Oxy • Burgundy, France
Stunning Chardonnay with a real sense of terroir definition, but produced in Burgenland, not Burgundy. The grapes are planted on mica schist and limestone loam soils, with spontaneous fermentation and 16 months ageing in oak barrels and concrete eggs. Reductive but expressive, with stony minerals, concentrated orchard fruit, and a creamy richness balanced by lively acids that persist in the finish.
Organic
Preparation: Serve lightly chilled
Food: Roast Chicken, Grilled Turbot, Risotto Milanese
