Fine Wine Club Archive
Explore your previous cases here in The Archive, with downloadable tasting notes from the winemakers behind your bottles. Plus catch up on live tastings.
Your case & tasting notes - July 2018
We buy our fine wines to order for club members so sometimes there's only enough for one bottle per person. Shop our in stock bottles here.
Stefano di Blasi Poggio di Guardia 2015
Country
Italy
Region
Tuscany
Grape
Merlot Blend
Market Price
£39.99
Angel Price
£19.99
Stefano di Blasi Poggio di Guardia 2015
By Stefano di BlasiWhen we first launched our Fine Wine Bond back in 2014 we felt a surge of both excitement and responsibility in the task of bringing outstanding wines to those wine lovers who are seeking the next level of wine appreciation.
The word from the Chief was: ‘Go big or go home.’
We didn’t hold back.
We rolled down to Tuscany and engaged the skills of, well, one of the greatest talents in Italy: Stefano di Blasi. He had previously been tasked by none other than Piero Antinori, of the winemaking Antinori dynasty, to make their SuperTuscan wine; the most aspirational standard of winemaking in Italy at the time, which broke all appellation rules surrounding permitted grape varieties, instead going flat out for realising the highest potential of wine quality this country could achieve.
And this is where the beauty of the Naked Wines model comes in to play.
Bond holders funded Stefano with the security he required to start this project a few steps ahead…. In the vineyard. Like his mastery in making Tignanello & Solaia, the unsung hero of this art lies in the positioning of the vines.
That is to say, the altitude above sea level (700 metres, for day/night temperature variances), the aspect of the vines (how much and for how long the sun falls on them) and how they are trained (low, bush vines in this instance).
Stefano believes that more than twenty years ago it was impossible to grow vines on this site, but with climate change he now has fewer challenges in achieving temperatures warm enough to ripen grapes perfectly.
And 2015 provided the ideal environment for perfectly balanced grape maturation and the balance of overall ripeness.
Stefano had all the tools he needed to make a fine wine.
Like those great Supertuscans before this one, it consists of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and …..(unlike those before it…) Rebo, a crossing between Merlot and Terledego, the latter of which brings incredible aromatic spice to this polygamous marriage.
From here Stefano separated the grape varieties into French oak barrels to mature for 14 months. The Rebo however went into 350 Litre and 500 Litres terracotta casks; the principle being to preserve the aromatic qualities of the variety.
Lastly, the wine appreciated 10 months maturation in bottle.
The tannin structure of this wine confers the capacity for long term (5-10 years) ageing. Should you choose to indulge before then, the wine would benefit from decanting a couple of hours prior to consumption.
This wine has a combination of red currant and blackcurrant flavours, coming from the cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc, as well as balsamic notes which gives it its undeniable Italian identity. The merlot bring a level of softness to the pallet, but it is not entirely smooth. Rather it is a well-structured wine with slightly grippy tannins; you should be able to feel these in your upper gums. These will slowly polymerize (come together) and become silky in 5-8 years. Oak spice from the new French oak barrels sum up the flavour profile of this wine.
Santolin Aliferous Pinot Noir 2016
Country
Australia
Region
Yarra Valley
Grape
Pinot noir
Market Price
£27.50
Angel Price
£16.99
Santolin Aliferous Pinot Noir 2016
By Adrian & Rebecca SantolinThis wine was conceived out of an aspiration to make the highest quality Pinot Noir possible.
Adrian and Rebecca put forward their pitch to the Angels in the 2016 Crush, where winemakers put forward their ultimate winemaking goal.
2016 in Australia was a warm vintage where all the fruit ripened in a short, six-week, window.
This has different influences on different varieties. For Pinot Noir in the Yarra Valley, it meant there was never going to be an issue achieving the optimum balance of fruit ripeness and what they call physiological ripening - where the pips ripen fully so there are no bitter, green flavours in the wine.
Furthermore, Adrian works with two different clones of Pinot Noir; MV6 which gives smaller bunches and a more meaty, juicy fruit profile; and D5V12 clone, traditionally used for sparkling wines. It gives a lighter, more aromatic character- which was ideal in the warmer 2016 vintage. It can be too light in other years.
So here he was spoilt for choice when blending the different components of the wine.
The final contribution to achieving such a fine wine was the careful use of oak.
The Santolins introduced this wine to 50% new and 50% used oak barrels. Too much can be overpowering, so getting the balance right is critical.
And here’s where things get mind blowingly cool.
Just as where the grapes grow has a major influence on how they taste (cool/warm climate - top of the hill, down on the plains), where oak is sourced from determines the flavour profile it will contribute to the wine. Adrian and Rebecca selected the following barrels :
Mercurey - for a more up-front toasty note.
Gillet - from Vosges forest, which gives generous palate weight
And Sirugue - which affords a more linear structure. A little bit of smokiness as well.
The wine rested in these barrels for 10 months before blending and bottling.
Once you take all these factors into account the final outcome, which you smell and taste in the glass before you, is amazing!
The wine has amazing aromas of clove spice (from the French oak), and ripe cranberries and raspberries. The palate is light, pure and very, very fine. Similar characters on the nose are evident on the palate. In addition, the mouthfeel of this pinot noir separates this from all other wines. It is just so darn silky. You almost don’t want to drink it, but to hold it your mouth for just a few seconds longer to savour that sensation.
Enjoy.
Benjamin Darnault Maris Syrah 2015
Country
France
Region
Languedoc-Roussillon
Grape
Syrah | Shiraz
Market Price
£24.99
Angel Price
£15.99
Benjamin Darnault Maris Syrah 2015
By Benjamin DarnaultBenjamin Darnault is the flag-bearer for the tiny appellation of Minervois La Livinière the first region in the Languedoc to be classified as a Cru. What this essentially means is it has a unique and special climate, soil and general surrounds that render it higher quality than its neighbours. While Ben’s regular Minervois is everyone’s favourite ‘Tuesday night wine’ ; an easy-going winner, this wine from Minervois La Livinière is on another level.
The grapes come from an individual site called L’Enfer, which offers more consistent quality fruit than those which surround it. Furthermore, this vineyard is managed organically and bio-dynamically.
“What on earth is that and why should I be interested?”
Organics you will probably be more familiar with; no herbicide sprays to kill weeds and no chemical sprays to kill pests.
Biodynamics takes this philosophy a little further.
Biodynamics is to viticulture what homeopathy is to medicine; a sense of reconnecting oneself with the earth. Some call it unscientific witchcraft, but either way you look at it, it doesn’t hurt to spend more time in the vines, with closer attention to the health of the vineyard.
So how can it influence how the wine tastes? Well, by spraying different ‘preparations’, such as cow manure stored in cow horn which was buried underground through the winter (yes, really!), Ben believes this encourages more microbe activity in the soil, making it more tolerant to drought and heat. Since using these practices he has seen better acidity in the wine. So, when you consider how ripe the wines can get in the Languedoc, having more freshness and vibrancy through greater acidity is a definite bonus. To summarise, it is believed that biodynamics gives the wine more life and energy.
The grapes are all hand harvested, meaning more stringent selection of quality grapes. From there they go through a sorting table which vibrates all the dried berries out, leaving only juicy yumminess. And then further scrutiny on another sorting table where eight people go through every bunch and berry to ensure only the elite get through. It’s easier to get into Oxford of Cambridge than it is get into Ben’s Maris Syrah.
The reason for this detail is enable Ben to be much more hands off in winemaking. With this quality of fruit, you don’t need to ‘work’ the wine as much, meaning less movement and intervention to achieve colour, tannin and mouth-feel.
It’s fermented in concrete tanks, as this keeps the purity of fruit as well as keeping the temperature more stable – important from a wine balance perspective.
Then it is transferred to new and old barrels for one year, mainly just to ‘polish’ the wine. The barrels help to refine the tannins and the tiny amount of oxygen that permeates the oak gives a roundness to the palate. Yum!
Finally, all barrels are blended and transferred to large concrete eggs; something which the world of wine has turned to in the last ten years or so. Ben has trialled blending the wines together in concrete tanks, in large oak barrels and concrete eggs and the latter always comes out with more juiciness, roundness and fruitiness. He’s not exactly sure why, but the shape of the egg helps move the contents of around in a kind of vortex that many believe is better for evolution of the wine. (Science vs nature again!)
What the sum of all these parts leads to is a preservation of the fruit which the Cru of Minervois La Livinière offers – black olives, tapenade, red and dark fruits. Ben is looking for a round and soft texture. He sees this wine as full bodied but not heavy; a wine to quench your thirst.
Richard's Elgin Chardonnay 2017
Country
South Africa
Region
Western Cape
Grape
Chardonnay
Market Price
£28.99
Angel Price
£16.99
Richard's Elgin Chardonnay 2017
By Richard KershawIt’s a pleasure and an honour to call Richard Kershaw MW a Naked Winemaker.
His attention to detail and drive for quality knows no limits and each year he seems to turn the dial upwards on his pedigree of winemaking.
He makes wine under another label, Kershaw, which sells in fine wine merchants for twice the price of this wine and I am always keen to ensure they reflect the same level of quality.
To that extent, we discussed removing one final piece of modification to the wine, fining and filtration, in order to best preserve all its best attributes.
And you can clearly see how this 2017 vintage reaps the rewards of that call.
It has an extra dimension on the palate, an extra layer of character, which would otherwise have been stripped in the previous ‘finishing’ of the wine.
As a vintage, 2017 was quite a dry year but unusually cool as well. This resulted in cold nights, requiring more time for the grapes to warm up into the day. In turn, this brought greater acidity to the wine - note, the wine is not acidic, it is simply more vibrant, electric; a definite positive.
As some of you who follow Richard already know, he is particular about the choice of clones he selects for each of his wines. In his Elgin chardonnay he only uses Burgundy clones (95, 96, and 76 in case you are wondering) as well as 548 Entav (they could do with a masterclass in marketing when naming these clones) which is from cuttings taken from Corton Charlemagne in Burgundy, arguably a wine region producing some of the best chardonnay on the planet. So the pursuit of quality and standards is evident the whole way through.
From there the wine was made with a hands off approach, that is to say natural fermentations (no added yeast= more interesting flavours), no additions of enzymes (to clear the juice or help it settle in tank) and no filtration as mentioned above. So it’s a natural interpretation of the Elgin terroir, without any detractions.
Richard feels this terroir can rival Burgundy, home of chardonnay. He has studied the breakdown of climate between both regions.- humidity , rainfall, cloud cover - and each show that there is great potential to produce high quality Chardonnay, i.e. they both have textural qualities rather than a richness or sweetness to fulfil that mouthfeel.
This chardonnay is 100% fermented in barrel, all French, almost all of them are Burgundy coopers (barrel makers) - so the toasting levels are carried out specifically with an eye on Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
But that is not to say this is an oaky chardonnay. It is subtle and fine.
The wine tastes of ripe lemons, juicy pomelo grapefruit, with a beautiful texture that gives the wine just the right amount of weight. As mentioned above it has a crispness due to good acidity, and the oak is perfectly integrated with the fruit.
I would consider 2017 to be one of the best vintages of this wine (2015 was a thing of beauty too).
And Richard tells me good things are in store for 2018….
