What's new

Thank you to everyone for tuning into IGTV to see Ned Llewellyn & Arnaud Hereu, winemaker from Odfjell Vineyards, discuss the 2020 vintage in Maipo. Here's a summary of Arnaud's experience, "Spring frosts, a warm summer and drought has accelerated the development of vines and has led to an early start to picking, with a low production in all the Chilean vineyards in comparison with last year. The low yield per vine plus the heat has produced very concentrated grapes with a good quality, and that are very healthy because the drought caused the decrease of disease in the vines. As we continue with the harvest we will probably finish earlier than normal." Salud Arnaud and to all the team at Odfjell!

Katia Nussbaum shares diary entries of her experience of the Coronavirus from her San Polino estate in Montalcino, aptly named her ‘Coronadiary.’ This includes personal trials, tribulations and observations as well as those of her far-flung family and her work family. She has mused with particular acuity on how the coronavirus has affected our world view and what changes it might manage to effect in the future. Click the link to see the free entries on jancisrobinson.com where the full diary entry is available to subscribers.

Work continues as usual for Pazo Senorans in Rias Baixas! Here's Vicky Mareque and winemaker Ana Quintela tending to Albarino vines. They're demonstrating you can still look fabulous whilst practicing safe viticulture! Sending our love to everyone at Pazo Senorans, we can't wait to share a bottle Albarino in the near future

News from our friends across the Atlantic - At Tinto de Rulo in Bio Bio, Chile they have completed their harvest. Tiny, organic plots of País and Malbec, ranging from 70 to 200 years in age, have been picked across Itata and Bio Bio. Jaime, Claudio & Mauricio are looking after their amazing team, keeping them safe during this time. We send our thoughts and best wishes to all of you, and look forward to sharing a glass of delicious País with you soon!

Riecine Chianti Classico Riserva 2016 has be reviewed as ‘Outstanding’, scoring 95 points in the recent Chianti Panel Tasting for Decanter Magazine.

Good morning from Manos Negras! To kick off Malbec month here's winemaker Alejandro Sejanovich getting his hands gorgeously black with freshly picked grapes at the winery in Mendoza. He's tells us the fruit is delicious, well-structured and with excellent concentration. We can't wait to try it! Wishing our friends in Argentina all the best.

Make the most of home and drink great wine! Amanda from team Alliance presents Zephyr Sauvignon Blanc from Blenheim in Malborough. Winemaker Ben Glover says "I have always wanted to express the exquisite refined bouquet, the precise structure and the 'line' of these aromatic wines from our farm. Zephyr allows me to do this - winegrowing is a natural expression and extension of what our family and I have done on this property for years and the opportunity to pay them back with home grown, world class wines is too good to be true." #winetasting #stayhome #inthistogether

We work with some incredible winemakers. Here's a charming message from Rosalia and Carmen at AltoLandon in Manchuela. Like many of us, they are adapting to a new way of working life and continue to make the best of it! We send love from the UK and look forward to sharing a glass of delicious Bobal with them very soon! #inthistogether #spanishwine #winemaker #organicwine

Introducing Qupé to our Californian portfolio! Qupé is an iconic Central Coast California winery, focused on cool climate expressions of Rhône varietals and Chardonnay. They practice sustainable farming with some organic production too. Make sure to taste soon! #stayathome #drinkwine

In the midst of a troubled week here’s a snapshot of some beautiful scenes from the Iona Estate in Elgin, South Africa. They’re experiencing another perfectly formed vintage, with super-cool autumnal weather that’s ideal for their estate Sauvignon Blanc. Iona not only farm sustainably, they support a sustainable workforce - the team live and work on the farm with their families, so there’s a great sense of community and promotion of wellbeing. Something we can all get behind. #Inthistogether

We were really touched to get this video and message from Ben Glover at Zephyr Wines from Marlborough, New Zealand. Nice to see that normal life carries on, where it can, and that we are in this together. Can’t wait to taste that Chardonnay.

Bodegas Bernabeleva, Navaherreros Garnacha 2017 was listed in Jancis Robinson top red wines in her write up about Viñateros and given 16.5 points. "Quite gamey and interesting on the nose. Really quite fine and delicate. Very appetising. Maybe not for long ageing but great fun."

Pilton Cider is the second cider to be added the portfolio to answer to the call for lower alcoholic alternatives to wine. The mere words, Pilton, Somerset, evoke an image of sun dappled orchards in late summer. A truly English scene where cider has been made for generations and is integral to the fabric of the community.

Giles Cooke MW shares his thoughts on the 2020 harvest from the Thistledown wine company. "There is no denying the fact that vintage 2020 will always be remembered as the vintage of the bush fires, but we owe it to all those affected to craft the best wines possible from what is turning out to be an amazing ripening season." Click the image for the whole report.

We were excited to read that Jamie Goode has spent some time out in the Duoro and written an outstanding review of one of our new Portugese producers, Quinta da Costa do Pinhão, who produce all of their wines with minimal intervention and a wild ferment.

The future just arrived. We are very happy to say the new 2020 Portfolio is now available digitally and will be in printed form soon. Click on the image for the online version.

The first of our new, lower alcoholic alternatives to wine to arrive is Once Upon a Tree Cider. Cider being made exactly the same way as wine – it is just naturally fermented apple juice. And it is naturally lower in alcohol, most between 3% to 8.5%. We have tasted them with many different dishes and all of us are very confident that not only are they a great drink, but they accompany many different foods well too. Simon Day, an experienced winemaker, had some form of epiphany in 2007 while in the corner of an orchard in Herefordshire. He decided to embark on a cider journey with the fundamental assertion ‘We will let the fruit do the talking’. And the approach seems to have borne fruit, if you pardon the pun.

Lembranzas Albariño has won Gold medal in the Berliner Wine Trophy. The worlds largest International "Organisation of Vine and Wine" competition.

Sofia Bosco started Tenute Bosco in 2010 in an attempt to breathe life back into two small vineyards on the slopes of Mount Etna. Some of the vines are over 120 years old, and pre-phylloxera, on land recovered 300 years ago from the cooled lava flow following Etna’s last major eruption.

We all need a little 'Funkstille' (radio silence) in our life now and again. Kick back and take a moment to enjoy the silence with 3 labels and one delicious bottle of Grüner Veltliner.

Thanks to it's popularity at launch, Alice from Produttori du Manduria was out of stock for a while. Very happy to say we now have stock again!

There has been a huge spike in interest in Vegan friendly wine, and for many years, our Chilean friends at Odfjell has been producing them, but from the 2019 vintage onwards they will also come with vegan certification on the label.

The true character of a site is only revealed through the work and determination of tending each vineyard with meticulous care and vinifying with minimalist winemaking techniques that fully express the terroir.” – Paul Hobbs . We have understood the philosophy behind Paul Hobbs wines since we started importing them, but now you can listen to Paul Hobbs as he explains the philosophy behind his wines himself.

Another proud moment for the team at Thistledown Wine Company. We are very proud to announce that the Thistledown Vagabond Grenache 2018 received high praise from Sarah Ahmed whom awarded it 96 points.

are a Valencian producer in a village called Ontinyent. They are nurserymen, growing interesting varieties from around the world and selling them onto prestigious wineries. La Tribuna, a red blend of Monastrell, Syrah and Garnacha is also suitable for Vegan diets.