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 - October 2020
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.
Kruger Family Pearly Gates Pinot Noir 2019
Country
South Africa
Region
Coastal Region
Grape
Pinot noir
Market Price
£19.99
Angel Price
£16.99
Kruger Family Pearly Gates Pinot Noir 2019
By Johan KrugerThis super-refined Pinot is Johan’s nod to Burgundy
I love Burgundy for its Chardonnay, but I really love its Pinot Noir. So I’m very excited to share this Pinot Noir with Angels. Having visited Burgundy several times, I acknowledge that we are in South Africa and not in Burgundy... but with the same traditional winemaking one does in Burgundy, we can get the best out of our unique site.
The vineyard is actually called ‘Pearly Gates’ - indicating the highest vineyard in the Upper Hemel and Aarde Valley. The cool climate and influence of the ocean allow for a slower ripening time, so the grapes develop more concentration of flavour and complexity. We use small French oak barrels and a soft approach to winemaking, to ensure this amazing Pinot Noir gets to the bottle as best it can.
On the nose there is a flinty minerality, dark cherries, strawberries and pomegranate with a touch of chocolate box in the background. The palate is tightly structured and densely packed with the flavours on the nose repeating on the palate and a velvety soft lingering finish. I do hope you have as much pleasure in drinking my Kruger Family Wines Pearly Gates Pinot Noir as I have had in making it!
As you well know already, I am a huge fan of Chardonnay, also of Burgundy, but what might be news to you, is that I also LOVE Pinot Noir, the heartbreak grape! Even more interesting is that we have been making our Upper Hemel and Aarde Pinot Noir called Pearly Gates, (indicating the highest vineyard in the Upper Hemel and Aarde Valley ) since 2015, the same year we started Kruger Family Wines for Naked Wines. Only after five vintages we had the quality good enough to be selected for Ray`s fine wine club!
More about Hemel and Aarde Pinot Noir:
The first Pinot Noir in the Hemel and Aarde Valley was planted in 1981 by Anthony Hamilton Russell of Hamilton Russell fame.
The cool climate and maritime influence of the ocean allow for a slower ripening time for the grapes of the Hemel-and-Aarde Valley. The longer hang time on the vine allows the berries to develop more concentration of flavour and complexity.
The general consensus amongst the winemakers of the valley, it seems that the vineyards need to develop further in order for the differences of the wards (sub regions) to become more pronounced in the wine. There are, however, some more obvious geographic and climatic differences that come into play as the vineyards develop:
Hemel and Aarde ‘Valley’ is closer to the ocean than ‘Upper’ and ‘Ridge’ resulting in cooler temperatures in the evening from the ocean breeze
Hemel and Aarde ‘Upper’ has significantly different soil types (decomposed granite and sandier soils)
Hemel and Aarde ‘Ridge’ is less affected by the effects of the ocean and is protected from the South Wester wind that brings rain and cloud cover by a small mountain range.
So, it should be of no surprise that I do prefer the granite soils of the Upper Hemel and Aarde and that I was very excited when my friend, Jan Hanekom, who owns the farm Pearly Gates asked me if I would be interested in making this wine with him. The vineyard is planted over four hectares, two being north south facing rows and two being east west, all around 500 meters above sea level and 5 kilometers from the Atlantic ocean, planted on decomposed granite soils.
Now to the winery – having visited Burgundy several times, I acknowledge that we are in South Africa and not in Burgundy, however the terroir might be so different between these two places, but with the same traditional winemaking one does in Burgundy, we can get the best out of our unique site. The grapes are harvested early in the morning, after which it travels for about two hours to our winery to be cooled down before we destem 75% of the grapes, to preserve all the delicate flavors, so with most whole berries and 25% whole bunches, we cold soak the grapes for three days, after which the cooling is switched off, while we wait for the slow, cool natural fermentation to begin. Only one pigeage or pump over is done per day for the 10 day fermentation, not to extract too much colour or tannin and to keep the soft, delicate flavor of this Pinot Noir vineyard intact. After fermentation is finished, the grapes are gently pressed and the new wine is transferred to small French oak barrels to undergo malolactic fermentation in barrel, we use 15% new French oak every year. The wine see three racking (moving from barrel to barrel) before bottling in December, again a very soft approach to winemaking to ensure this amazing Upper Hemel and Aarde Pinot Noir vineyard gets to the bottle as best it can.
On the nose there is a flinty minerality, dark cherries, strawberries and pomegranate with a touch of chocolate box in the background. The palate is tightly structured and densely packed with the flavours on the nose repeating on the palate and a velvety soft lingering finish!
I do hope you have as much pleasure in drinking this Kruger Family Wines Pearly Gates Pinot Noir as we have had in making it!
Cheers
Johan Kruger, Winemaker
Trenza Family Collection 2016
Country
Spain
Region
Murcia
Grape
Monastrell Blend
Market Price
£23.99
Angel Price
£19.99
Trenza Family Collection 2016
By David and Jonas TofterupWinemaker David Tofterup introduces his family's fine wine.
Trenza Family Collection is a dream made a reality.
The dream started back in the late 1990´s when I was traveling around the world gaining knowledge and experience making wines working the different harvests in France, Chile and California. In 1997, Jonas Tofterup, my brother who is 10 years my junior, was asked to write an essay about what he would be doing when he turned 25. Jonas, inspired by my wine adventures, proudly wrote that he would be making wine with me his brother, creating a collection of family wines.
The dream slowly started taking form in 2001 when I settled down in Spain and discovered the old – dry farmed Monastrell from Yecla. These 50+ year old vines had a story of survival to tell and I was immediately drawn to it. It took me four years of trial and error experimenting with the Monastrell before I finally felt I had harnessed the quality, characteristic and true potential of the Monastrell that I believed would showcase this varietal and this region. From it, Trenza Family Collection was born and 2004 not only was the first release of our own wine label but was the first step in making our dreams into a reality.
Trenza, translate into the English word “braid". Trenza, refers to any object created by an interweaving of three or more separate strands of different materials in a diagonally overlapping pattern. A braided item would be preferred over an individual strand because the braid creates a stronger, more complex, and unique item. Generally, a braid is a braid, however, the colors, textures, materials, and braiding style allows each braid to be uniquely beautiful; This is what I do with each of our wines. I believe that with the grapes I have chosen to braid together, I have taken the best characteristics that each variety has developed and have created a strong Trenza with great personality, complexity, and uniqueness.
Our Trenza Family Collection 2016 has been created by interweaving and blending up 3 different grape varieties: the local Monastrell (Mourvèdre), the Cabernet Sauvignon, and the Garnacha Tintorera (Alicante Bouchet). Each of these grape varieties are recognized independently in the great World of wine for their unique characters that they bring to a bottle of wine.
The grapes come from carefully monitored and selected vineyards in the inspiring wine region of Yecla. The vineyards are up to 52 years old and are all located in the high altitude area called Campos Arriba that reaches 850 meters above sea level. I seriously value the old vineyards where the yields are reduced thereby resulting in grapes with outstanding potential from the start.
Monastrell 82%
There are many hidden secrets behind the Monastrell grape, two of which are its aliases Mourvèdre and Mataró.
Monastrell, regardless of what it is called, is often the hidden secret behind a quality blend. It is a grape variety that is best known coming from the premium wine regions of Southern Rhone Valley, France; California, United States; McLaren Vale, Australia; Stellenbosch and Swartland, South Africa. It is one of the three legs of the GSM blends (together with Grenache and Syrah). With all the glamor that these regions offer, Monastrell is indigenous to Spain and more that 75% of the worlds planting of this variety are Spain. The first records of the Monastrell varietal was found 500 years BC in the subregions of Valencia, Spain. In present time, the Monastrell continues to thrive in Spain, settling its roots in the South Eastern regions of Spain. It can be quite a productive variety, but yields are naturally kept low due to the age of the vines which are dry farmed. This leaves only about 1 kilo of grapes per vine, yielding tiny, thick skinned and very intensely flavored grapes rich in sugar at the time of harvest, resulting in wines rich in fruit, high alcohol and lots of soft tannins, giving the wine the structure necessary for it to age well. The wine produced from the Monastrell grape tend to have intense fruit with aromas reminiscent of black cherries, plums, and hints of game.
Cabernet Sauvignon 10%
This Bordeaux grape is arguably the most well-known variety in the world. Cabernet Sauvignon adds lots of rich black fruit flavors and soft ripe tannins to the blend, creating an even more complex wine.
Garnacha Tintorera 8%
This is one of the few varieties in the world when have a red pulp, creating opaque ruby colored wines. Apart from color, this fascinating grape gives refreshing acidity and refreshing berry fruit flavors to the blend, creating deeper and more ageable wine.
Winemaking:
I insured that the grapes were manually harvested in small cases of 15 kilos late September into early October 2016. Upon arriving to the cellar, the grapes were refrigerated for 24 hours before hand selection of individual clusters on sorting table followed by destemming but without crushing the individual grapes. The grapes were cold macerated for 72 hours at 5ºC before fermentation was initiated. The musts were manually pumped over and punched down several times daily during the 16-25 days of fermentation and maceration. The wine was racked to large new French Burgundy oak barrels of 500 litres where it underwent malolactic fermentation. The wine was aged for 24 months before it was bottled with a light filtration in April 2019.
The 2016 vintage is a beautiful blend. Opaque ruby red color with thick legs is beautiful in the glass. It has intense aromas of blackberries, black cherries, ripe plums combined with a rich mixture of Asian spices, toasted oak and cigar box. On the palate the black fruits are intensified by the complimentary notes of rich chocolate, toasted oak and cappuccino. The wine is full bodied, filling your mouth with lots of ripe tannins and juicy fruit. The wine has a long lingering finish. The wine will keep nicely throughout 2030.
This is a handcrafted Trenza that truly reflects the fruit, the terroir and the great potential of the denomination of origin of Yecla, as well as a Monastrell that shows our strong passion for wine.
Serendipia Cabernet Franc 2017
Country
Chile
Region
O'Higgins
Grape
Cabernet Franc
Market Price
£19.99
Angel Price
£16.99
Serendipia Cabernet Franc 2017
By Cristian AzocarPlush, juicy Cab Franc from one of the most sought after vineyards in Chile
My Serendipia Cabernet Franc is a terroir project, made by hand, on a human scale, with the least possible intervention - this is a very limited production of only 1,300 bottles. The fruit comes from the Las Quiscas vineyard, located in Peumo, in the heart of the Cachapoal Valley, recognized worldwide as one of the best terroirs in Chile.
The Mediterranean climate, with dry summers, warm days and cool nights and winters with low temperatures, is ideal for the growth of Cabernet Franc with the perfect concentration of fruit and freshness. The harvest is decided by walking through the vineyard and tasting the grapes, with no more technology than the team's intuition.
This wine has the very distinctive characteristics of Peumo, with hints of spices and herbs, but also of red fruits such as cherries, fresh fruit, wild blackberry, with fine tannin and with a nice amount of body. Dark cherry red in colour, it’s juicy and fresh, with a soft toasty background, and a lingering finish from 18 months of oak barrel ageing.
‘A casual, fortunate & unexpected finding, given by the encounter of friends around the art of wine’
Serendipia is a terroir project, made by hand, on a human scale, which seeks to represent the expression of Peumo with the least possible intervention, with classic and elegant wines.
Serendipia comes from vines planted in 2013 in slopes and plains of the Las Quiscas vineyard, located in Peumo, heart of the Cachapoal Valley, recognized worldwide as one of the best terroirs in Chile. The 2 hectares of Cabernet Franc are located six kilometres east of Lake Rapel, which refreshes the vineyard with its winds every afternoon. The grapes for this wine come from Block La Perdiz (The Quail), with loamy clay soils.
The temperate Mediterranean climate of the vineyard, with dry summers, warm days and cool nights and winters with low temperatures, is ideal for the growth of Cabernet Franc. The high thermal oscillation between day and night allow our wines to have a good maturity and maintain acidity, showing a good concentration of fruit and freshness.
The harvest is decided by walking through the vineyard and tasting the grapes, with no more technology than the team's intuition, seeking for maturity and rich concentration, while maintaining freshness and good acidity of the fruit.
Winemaking is carried out in an artisanal way, on a human scale. Fermentations are made manually in small tanks, without additives, at a temperature between 20 and 28 ° C. The natural fermentation lasted for 7 days and took place on small stainless-steel tanks at temperatures of 25 – 27°C, without additives. 1 or 3 punch downs were done daily, according to winemaker’s tasting. After racking, the wine went through malolactic fermentation inside the 225 litre oak barrels. After a long and calm aging of 18 months in a barrel room nestled in the hills, these wines are not clarified or filtered when bottled, in order to fully preserve the expression of their origin. This is a very limited production of only 1,300 bottles.
This wine that has very distinctive characteristics in Peumo, with hints of spices and herbs, but also of red fruits such as cherries, fresh fruit, wild blackberry, with fine tannin and with just the right touch of fat. Dark cherry red in colour, it shows a juicy, fresh, compact wine with crisp acidity, a soft toasty background, and a persistent finish given by the 18 months of oak barrels, 10% of them new.
Serendipia Cabernet Franc pairs excellent with charcuterie, meats with tomato sauce, grilled beef and pork, mushroom, eggplant and cheeses.
Cristian Azocar, Winemaker
Ostler Lakeside Riesling 2013
Country
New Zealand
Region
Otago
Grape
Riesling
Market Price
£19.99
Angel Price
£16.99
Ostler Lakeside Riesling 2013
By Jeff SinnottJeff Sinnott & Jim Jerram of Ostler Vineyard describe the environment which contributes to the wide array of flavours in their off-dry, aged Riesling.
Lakeside is becoming a very special part of our vineyard matrix at Ostler. We have several vineyards up & down the valley, this being the most inland some 80km from the ocean’s moderating influence. Perched on a low terrace beside Lake Waitaki it is also one of the warmest sites and as such gives us the potential to ripen Riesling late in the season. What sets this block apart from the others is that it has no limestone influence. The soils are a mix of alluvial greywacke brought down the mighty Waitaki River prior to the dams being built. Interspersed with these round river stones are micaceous quartz nuggets produced from glacial outwash rather than river alluvium. What this really means is that this site is rocky, very rocky, so rocky in fact that rabbits need to take a cut lunch when they visit.
The 2013 season was fairly benevolent by Waitakian standards. Early spring was coolish up until November then warmed beautifully through the flowering month of December and onward into mid summer. The fruit set well which was helped by reliable rainfall through most of the season meaning there was little supplementary irrigation. What that meant was that we ended up with a beautiful crop of well set bunches which were then thinned down to two per shoot. January to March temperatures were slightly above average which gave us lovely uniformity in the ripening fruit. The canopies remained green through most of the season. By the time of harvest conditions had cooled off considerably, allowing for the fruit to ripen slowly and steadily right through until mid-autumn.
As we have mentioned before Riesling has an uncanny ability to continue ripening in seemingly unhospitable conditions. Which is one of the reasons we grow it in the first place. That and the fact that it has the potential to make some of the most fascinating wines on the planet. Whether it be in the slate soils of northern Germany, the dry sandy loams of South Australia or the lush, limestone rich slopes of Alsace in France Riesling seems to retain its charm, finesse and class in cool climates. Retaining its lovely aromatic freshness fruity acidity, and salty tang. The best wines are capable of ageing in bottle for decades as a recent tasting of a 1949 Mosel demonstrated. At its best it retains this freshness long after primary fermentation esters diminish in bottle. Sometimes it develops a distinctive toasty aroma, a bit like good quality marmalade on toasted Vogel’s bread. Sometimes these toasty notes develop further into full on kerosene like aromas that seem to divide wine lovers. Some revel in this fusil goodness while others are offended, to those we say, drink while young. The offending compound is know in winemaking circles as TDN (trimethyldihydronapthalene) produced by vines as a sort of sunblock during ripening if the fruit is exposed to too much UV light so if one is to minimise the kerosene in one’s Riesling then one must do other than mad dogs & Englishmen and stay out of the midday sun. Maybe that’s one reason it does so well in a cool climate.
We are now starting to learn this vineyard and work with its distinctive aromatic signature of floral characters and spice. This year’s shows classic mandarin/grapefruit characters alongside the lime sherbert & root ginger characters showing the influence of a later harvested component. In the mouth it is quite full bodied but seamless in terms of structure. The essential element of acidity gives the wine spine while the fruit weight and a minimal trace of residual sugar gives flesh to its well proportioned bones. Given the considerable hang time during ripening we would expect this wine to develop some TDN with age so embrace it, rip open a bottle after 5 or so years, thank the lord for Alfred Vogel & Frank Cooper and revel in all its toasty, marmaladey goodness – we will.
Jeff Sinnott & Jim Jerram, Ostler Vineyard
Borgo delle Oche Traminer 2019
Country
Italy
Region
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Grape
Gewurztraminer
Market Price
£22.99
Angel Price
£13.99
Borgo delle Oche Traminer 2019
By Nicola PittiniThe region of Friuli Venezia Giulia is situated in the north eastern part of Italy, on the borders with Slovenia and Austria. It’ s divided in several areas of production of wines and it’s known for the finest white wines of Italy. The areas are hilly at the eastern part of the region and flat in the central.
The Borgo delle oche Traminer aromatic comes from a flat area in the central part of the region between two rivers ( Meduna and Tagliamento ) and it’s characterized for gravel soils, in fact the name of this area is Grave. They have an alluvial origin given from the floods of the rivers. There is a mixture from completely stony and mixed with some clay and sand texture. The vineyard of this wine comes from clay and sandy soil rich of stones too. This type of earth gives it a salty characteristic but also a strong freshness. The white stones give a perfect maturation to the grapes and the nearness of the Alps, without a filter from a hilly belt, leads to a slight difference of temperatures between day and night especially at the end of the summer, near to the harvest time. This gives to the grapes a full concentration of aroma precursors that leads to a great aroma complexity and strength to the wines.
"Borgo delle oche” was an ancient name of the road where the cellar is located in the medieval hamlet in Valvasone , which boasts feudal roots. Owners are Luisa Menini and Nicola Pittini , together in the life and work, with the same passion for Vineyard and high quality wine making. The strictly family run estate and its small size allow for scrupulous care of the vineyards. The way of working in the cellar is directed at preserving the grapes primary characteristics as near as possible and producing wines which keep them over time. Their autochthonous grape varieties are Refosco dal Peduncolo Rosso and Friulano. Aromatic Traminer is their most awarded wine.
The grapes of this Traminer, better known as Gewurtztraminer, the same that are cultivated in South Tyrol or Alsace, are harvested at fully maturation when the colour of the skin becomes completely purple; a half of them are macerated for several hours in to the press, then pressed and the must is fermented in steel tank at controlled temperature. The other part are fermented on their skins for six days in steel and with controlled temperature too. Then the wines, at the end of fermentation, are put together in steel, on their fine lees and they lay there for seven months with weekly batonnage, a strong control is put on avoiding the malolactic fermentation. The result is a fresh , salty , full bodied wine with an intense wheel of aromas of agrumes, tropical fruits and roses that hits the nose and fulfils the mouthfeel.
Terrafusa Civetta 2017
Country
Italy
Region
Sicily
Grape
Nerello Mascalese Blend
Market Price
£19.99
Angel Price
£17.99
Terrafusa Civetta 2017
By Dino DistefanoDino and Sophie explain the background to their Siclian wine from Etna.
Etna has long been a wine hot spot. Grapes were grown there as far as in Ancient times and winemaking carried on over the centuries.
In modern times, Etna wines got noticed after some foreign winemakers established themselves on the volcano, bringing with them new practices, just like the Greeks, the Romans and the Borbone had done before over Sicily’s many colonisation waves. They contributed to the growing professionalism of wine practices on Mt Etna, and also to its promotion in Italy and beyond.
What made Etna an auspicious land for winemaking was always its very particular mix of mineral-rich volcanic soil, warm climate and the vicinity of the sea and its mild winds. At 800-900 meters above sea level, Etna vineyards experience temperatures much cooler than in the rest of Sicily, with important jumps between day and night. Warm daytime temperatures boost sugar development and cool nights help to preserve aromas, freshness, and acidity.
Etna’ long-lasting volcanic activity over the centuries has created an extremely fertile multi-layered lava soil together with a natural drainage system essential to the vine's healthy growth. Iron, copper, potassio, phosphoro are among the many key nutritious elements that have helped vine to thrive on the volcano’s slopes.
We (Dino and Sophie) share a passion for wine and always dreamt of making our own. As a Sicilian researcher and a French journalist, we decided to expand our knowledge in the field and enrolled in professional wine courses. At the same time, we travelled frequently to Etna, where Dino is from, looking for the perfect vineyard. In Vallone Rosso - the Red Valley - we spotted a beautiful vineyard with a magnificent view on the volcano, with old, low-yield, high quality vines. We befriended the owner and agreed on a plan to convert the vineyard into an organic, zero-pesticide, bio-dynamic project to produce the best possible natural wine that would truly reflect its special terroir. It’s been four years since and the two of us are having the best fun experimenting with low-intervention winemaking, learning each year from our experience to deliver maximal quality. The first year, a superb red Civetta was born. Then, in 2018, Provence-born Sophie got tempted to explore the rose route, and a very special Storta followed. In 2019, we made a long skin-contact Orange wine in amphora, as well as another beautiful red Civetta.
Nerello Mascalese (red) and Carricante (white) are the main indigenous grapes that grow on Mt Etna. We believe that focusing on indigenous grapes or “cepages” is the best and most natural way to reflect the land’s terroir. We decided to embrace the secular tradition, growing only indigenous grapes.
We love Nerello for its strong red berries taste, spicy hints, tobacco and vanilla infusions and liquorice finish. It reminds us of Pinot Noir, with a volcanic twist.
Great with slow cooked meet like lamb shank, pork or roast chicken, grilled vegetables, caponata, ragù pasta, creamy tagliatelle and lasagna.
