10 products
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
Sale
Quick view
2022 Salvaje Syrah
Regular price £16.00 Sale price £13.60 Save 15%Salvaje is freedom. It's a strong tie to nature and the earth; it's about maintaining the pure and natural state. Salvaje is an organic wine made without added sulphur and is the result of meticulous vineyard management. It's a vivid, wild and untamed red from Casablanca.
Tasting Notes
Colour
Deep violet-red.
Nose
The nose is very fruity with a predominance of black fruits such as blackberries and blueberries on the forefront followed by light notes of blackcurrants and violets.
Palate
The fruity intensity is present at all times and pairs with the very velvety, elegant palate to make this wine very easy to drink.
Production
The Syrah and Rousanne grapes were picked into bins, transported to the winery and immediately chilled. The reception process begins with a double selection system on conveyor belts both before and after being destemmed. The grapes are then crushed and deposited into stainless steel tanks, where they undergo a 3-day cold maceration at 6º–8ºC. The temperature was then raised for the alcoholic fermentation with native yeasts at temperatures controlled to 24º–27ºC with a pump over program managed according to enological criteria. The new wine remained on its skins for an additional 6–7-day post-fermentation maceration and a total vinification of approximately 20 days. Malolactic fermentation took placed naturally in stainless steel tanks, where the wine was aged for 12 months. The wine was the stabilized naturally without treatments. It was filtered with a 1-micron cartridge filter prior to bottling. The wine is aged for 5 months in stainless steel tanks.
Producers
Voted by Wines of Chile as "Winery of the Year 2016", Emiliana is one of Chile's most exciting producers and pioneers in organic and biodynamic winemaking. Since 1998, this Chilean winery has been producing award-winning wines from almost 1,000 hectares of vineyards in prime sites including Casablanca, Maipo, Cachapoal, Colchagua and Bio Bio.
Its spectacular biodynamic vineyard and winery at Los Robles is a model that attracts visiting viticulturalists and winemakers from across the world. Emiliana's innovative and natural-leaning wines are made with great care and attention and the results are inspiring.
Awards
Specifications
| Year | 2022 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Cultivar | 97% Syrah, 3% Roussanne |
| Country | Chile |
|
|
|
| Units of Alcohol per Bottle | 10.1 units |
| Type | Red Blend |
| Cellaring Potential | Awaiting info |
| Features | Vegetarian, Vegan, Organic, Sustainable |
| Allergen Information | Contains sulphites |
| Food Matches | A great match with lamb, sirloin, or other red meats. |
| Origin | Casablanca Valley |
| Appellation | D.O. Valle De Casablanca |
2023 Smalltown Vineyards The Black Craft Shiraz
Regular price £15.39 Sale price £13.08 Save 15%Germans were the first free immigrants into Australia in the 1850s onwards. They planted Shiraz in Barossa. Germans also invented letterpress in the 1500s. The suspicion around the “magick” of a printing press coupled with the inky hands of the printers meant that the art became known as the Black Craft. The wine is an homage to both the German influence of the oldest wine-making in Australia, as well as the letterpress.
Tasting Notes
A compelling, dark and rich chocolately beast. A classic Barossa Shiraz with intense savoury flavours of thick blackberry compote, black pepper and typical iron-rich beefy flavours. Not a hint of jam here, no sweetness, this is serious Shiraz for grown-ups with balanced acidity, a touch of cocao powder in the finish and tremendous length.
Production Method
This Shiraz is sourced from the finest available vineyard sites across the premium Northern Barossa Valley including for the most part Greenock, Western Ridge and Ebenezer. Aged 11 months in a variety of oaks, all American and French, new and old, around 35% new. All oaks were AP John, Barossa coopered. As usual withSmalltown, it was fermented in open fermenters. They don’t set the blades too close together during crushing so a fair bit of whole berry in the ferment which gives the wine generous fruit and soft tannins.
Specifications
| Year | 2023 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Cultivar | 100% Syrah |
| Country | Australia |
|
Alcohol content
|
14.5% alc vol
|
| Units of Alcohol per Bottle | 10.9 units |
| Type | Red Wine |
| Food Matches | As the name implies, black is the key - anything chargrilled would be superb here, so think griddle pans and barbecues! |
| Allergen Information | Contains sulphites |
| Origin | South Australia |
| Appellation | Barossa |
2021 Eikendal Charisma
Regular price £17.49 Sale price £14.87 Save 15%
This wine is an ingenious creation that certainly lives up to its name. It’s bold, charming and seductive, bringing together the flavours of Rhône, Bordeaux and Italy.
“… this is every bit as impressive as the Janina Chardonnay and could be viewed as its value-for-money twin.” Tim Atkin.
While this is highly approachable in its youth, with red fruit and violets on the nose, it certainly has the structure to age.
Tasting Notes
The Shiraz (Rhône Valley) lends a tight, fresh structure with aromatic and seasoned undertones. Petit Verdot (Bordeaux) contributes a rich berry character and the Sangiovese, in true Italian style, adds fruity flavours with flair on the palate. The result is a bold, charming, seductive and ultimately elegant wine.
Vineyards
Shiraz (Eikendal): 20 year old block planted at the top of the farm overlooking False Bay, planted in a north/south row direction, 3 333 Vines/ha, under irrigation. Petit Verdot (Eikendal): 12 year old block planted next to the Shiraz. Planted in a north/south row direction, 3 333 Vines/ha, under irrigation. Sangiovese: 19 year old block from a producer in Stellenbosch. Planted in a north/south row direction, 3 333 Vines/ha.
Vinification
All three cultivars are handpicked and cooled down. Only destemmed and not crushed. 10-15 day cold soaking before spontaneous fermentation. Shiraz: one pump over per day. Petit Verdot: two punch downs per day and Sangiovese: one walk through per day. After fermentation the wine is allowed to settle clean. Shiraz and Petit Verdot go into 500ℓ old Burgundian barrels and the Sangiovese will be blended into the previous vintage Charisma. All three cultivars are handpicked and cooled down.
Only destemmed and not crushed. 10-15 day cold soaking before spontaneous fermentation. Shiraz: one pump over per day. Petit Verdot: two punch downs per day and Sangiovese: one walk-through per day. After fermentation the wine is allowed to settle clean. Shiraz and Petit Verdot go into 500ℓ old Burgundian barrels and the Sangiovese will be blended into the previous vintage Charisma – meaning, for example, in Charisma 2018 the Shiraz and Petit Verdot are 2018 vintage but the Sangiovese is the 2019 vintage. The idea with this is to blend that beautiful freshness and Italian passion into the wine.
Accolades
92pts | Tim Atkin
"In its way, this is every bit as impressive as the Janina Chardonnay and could be viewed as its value-for-money twin. Made from the unusual trio of mostly Syrah with 17% Petit Verdot and 30% Sangiovese, it’s floral and refined with red cherry and raspberry fruit and filigree tannins. 2022-28"
Specifications
| Year | 2021 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Cultivar |
67% Shiraz, 32% Petit Verdot, and 1% Sangiovese |
| Country | South Africa |
|
Alcohol content
|
14.5% alc vol
|
| Units of Alcohol per Bottle | 10.9 units |
| Type | Red Blend |
| Cellaring Potential |
Up to 6 years if cellared correctly |
| Food Matching | Serve between 18ºC-20ºC. Pair with Mushroom & Chorizo Risotto, Veal, Chocolate Truffles |
| Allergen Information | Contains sulphites |
| Origin | Stellenbosch |
| Appellation | WO Western Cape |
2023 Waterkloof 'Circle of Life' Red
Regular price £14.99 Sale price £12.74 Save 15%A rewarding and satisfyingly juicy mix of Cab Franc, Petit Verdot and Syrah. Circle of Life tells the story of Waterkloof: a once conventionally farmed property transformed into a living, breathing organic and regenerative vineyard by Farm Manager Christiaan Loots and his team.
Tasting notes
A harmonious blend that combines the spiciness of Syrah, the ripe, youthful fruits of Petit Verdot and the juiciness from Cabernet Franc. The beginning is fresh and full of fruit with good acidity, evolving into riper flavours with lightly spicy notes. Elegant tannins and fine, bright acid on the finish.
Production
Circle of Life Red is neither defined by grape varietals, nor indeed a specific block within the vineyard, but instead encapsulates the myriad soils, aspects, altitudes and grape varieties found on this windswept, biodynamic farm. The windswept vineyard blocks are all south facing (less sun exposure), 200-350m above sea-level and a mere 2 miles from The Atlantic. These factors combine to produce low yields, balanced grapes and wines with a true sense of place. Production is a miserly 4 tons/hectare. Grapes are hand-harvested and brought to the cellar by horses for hand-sorting. Bordeaux varietals are de-stemmed, whilst Rhone varietals are whole bunch pressed. Fermentation takes place spontaneously with wild yeast in large, open-top wooden fermenters with foot-pressing or manual punch-downs 1-2 times per day. The wine is left on skins for 30 days before going through malolactic fermentation in mainly old barrels, then ageing for 20 months in the same vessels. The components are then blended and the wine ages futher in large wooden foudre. No fining, just a light filtration. No additons other than sulphur. Vegan friendly, biodynamic wine.
Producer
Founded by Paul Boutinot in 2004, Waterkloof is a family-owned farm using organic practices. The farm is perched high up on the windswept Schapenberg, overlooking False Bay and The Atlantic Ocean. Living soils, naturally low yields and a long growing season help provide talented Cellarmaster Nadia Barnard with naturally balanced grapes that are imbued with a truly defining sense of origin. Those grapes are then transformed into wine with a minimum of intervention. The resulting wines are fine, inimitable and best enjoyed with food.
Sustainability
As well as being ECOCERT certified as organic, and working biodynamically, Waterkloof goes much further than many in its efforts to be a highly sustainable winery. A member of The Integrated Production of Wine Scheme, a voluntary environmental sustainability scheme established by the South African wine industry in 1998, and of The Wine and Agricultural Ethical Trading Association, a multi-stakeholder, non-profit voluntary organisation which actively promotes ethical trade in the wine industry, it is has also been a member of the World Wildlife Fund’s Biodiversity & Wine Initiative from its inception. Through a partnership between the IPW and the BWI, Waterkloof is a WWF Conservation Champion and has in place a formal nature conservation plan that includes: clearing approximately 55 hectares of land from alien invader species and restoring the Cape’s precious indigenous flora and fauna; re-establishing natural vegetation in previously disturbed areas; introducing preventive erosion control measures; providing migration corridors for species between isolated areas of natural vegetation; mulching of winter cover crops to create a healthy environment for the natural predators of vine pests and installing perches for birds of prey for natural rodent control measures.In the vineyards, drip irrigation is used only on young vines as a more efficient system to conserve water. Most of Waterkloof is dry-farmed; the biological control of pests is employed as an alternative to chemical spraying; annual legume cover crops are sown to add nitrogen to the soil and annual grain cover crops are sown in alternate rows as a carbon source and to return nutrients to the soil; earthworms are farmed and their casts are used to make a tea, which is used on the cover crops and soil as a living fertiliser; 380-400 tons of compost a year are made each year to boost carbon matter in the soil, to enhance its water holding capacity, and to boost the level of microbes in the soil keeping it fertile and alive; and, as part of the estate’s biodynamic regime, various foliar feeds are made. No damaging herbicides, pesticides or fungicide are used, only natural predatory fungi and metabolites to control mildew and to build the plants’ immunity. Six Percheron horses are used to plough, compost, spray and harvest the vineyards to reduce damage to the soil and vines and to reduce carbon emissions. Using the horses also teaches the handlers the rare skill of training these horses. A flock of chickens reduces the number of pests in the vineyard and returns nitrogen to the soil and compost, as well as providing fresh, free-range eggs for the restaurant. A small herd of cows is kept, which is key to producing biodynamic composts and teas, and a flock of sheep and a herd of goats are allowed to graze in the vineyards in winter to naturally reduce the level of weeds and vegetation between vine rows, as well as to put nitrogen back into the soil.
In the cellar, waste water gets pumped through a stainless-steel filter into a bioreactor where it is combined with the rest of the waste water from the building. Aerobic bacteria remove most of the contaminants before the water is pumped into a sand bed to remove any solids. From there, it runs into a reed bed for a final clean up and it is then used to irrigate the young vines. Peroxide is used a cleaning agent in the cellar as it breaks down in water after 15 minutes, leaving no residue. The cellar itself is built into the hillside to maintain a stable temperature, to avoid pumping the wines and hence reducing energy usage. Used boxes, dividers, bottles, screwcaps, plastics, paper and labels are recycled with an external company that take everything away for recycling. Old, unused bottles are sold to bottle recyclers who wash and resell them.
Specifications
| Year | 2023 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Cultivar | 38% Cabernet Franc, 28% Merlot, 18% Syrah, 16% Petit Verdot |
| Country | South Africa |
|
Alcohol content
|
12.5% alc vol
|
| Units of Alcohol per Bottle | 9.4 units |
| Type | Red Wine Blend |
| Cellaring Potential | Awaiting info |
| Features | Vegetarian, Vegan, Sustainable, Natural |
| Allergen Information | Contains sulphites |
| This very versatile wine will complement numerous dishes from a tomato based stew to meat on the bone. | |
| Origin | Stellenbosch |
| Appellation | WO Stellenbosch |
2024 Les Eglantiers Tavel Rose AOC
Regular price £16.49 Sale price £14.02 Save 15%“Bold. Elegant. Unapologetically Tavel.”
Tasting Notes
Colour
Beautiful vivid pink with bright glints. Revealing fresh fruit flavours of wild strawberry, this rosé has gentle acidity showing a smooth elegance and intensity with a plump finish.
Nose
Reminiscent of small red fruits (red cherry, strawberry) with nuances of white-fleshed stone fruits (white peach, nectarine).
Palate
Revealing fresh fruit flavours of wild strawberry, this rosé has gentle acidity showing a smooth elegance and intensity with a plump finish.
Vinification
Direct pneumatic pressing after a cold maceration on skins for 12 – 24 hours to extract tannins and colour. Racking of the must during 36h followed by alcoholic fermentation in temperature regulated stainless steel vats for 8 to 10 days at 18 – 20°C. No malolactic fermentation to preserve the freshness of the wine. The wine is matured on fine lees. Aged in stainless steel vats for 3 months.
History
Since 1880, five generations of the Brotte family have been making wines with passion and authenticity. The fruit for this wine comes from selected small wine producers in the Rhône Valley, all of whom have been partners of Maison Brotte for several decades. The vines are planted on a very beautiful clay-silt terroir and which benefit from a lot of sunshine. The hot and dry climate therefore favours the ripening of the grapes and the good health of the vineyard.
Blair's Personal Tasting Note
" 'Proper’ rose, fabulous colour & depth. Aromas/flavours of primarily strawberry but also a touch of red cherry, refreshing acidity and delightful complexity & length. Drinks very well on its own but got the depth to stand up to fairly serious food flavours. Extremely well made and tastes around £20 worth. Anything less and it’s stunning value." August 2025
Specifications
| Year | 2024 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Cultivar |
80% Grenache Noir, 20% Syrah |
| Country | France |
| Alcohol Content | 13% alc vol |
| Units of alcohol per bottle | 9.75 units |
| Type | Rose Wine |
| Food Matches |
Serve as an aperitif or enjoy with cold fish starters, seafood pasta, herb sausages, chicken and pomegranate salad, sheep cheeses or fresh slices of melon. |
| Origin |
Southern Rhône |
2021 Dornier Cocoa Hill Ruby Red
Regular price £14.99
In a time of seafaring and spice, pirates played in Table Bay…
Among them was Long Ben – as fierce as he was tall,
he looted and pillaged and scavenged from all.
Ben fast became known for being up to no good,
and so fled from the seas and gave up his loot.
He planted some vines, as was the way,
and peered out towards the ocean almost every day.
Long Ben would have gazed longingly at the vista of Table Bay
from where our vines grow today, on Cocoa Hill.”
Among them was Long Ben – as fierce as he was tall,
he looted and pillaged and scavenged from all.
Ben fast became known for being up to no good,
and so fled from the seas and gave up his loot.
He planted some vines, as was the way,
and peered out towards the ocean almost every day.
Long Ben would have gazed longingly at the vista of Table Bay
from where our vines grow today, on Cocoa Hill.”
Tasting Notes
Aromas of raspberry, cherry and a hint of eucalyptus. The palate is full, fresh and lively with a subtle and well-balanced tannin structure.
History
Dornier is a family owned winery situated in The Golden Triangle area of the upper Blaauwklippen Valley Stellenbosch. The primary focus at Dornier lies in the production of premium quality wines with minimal intervention which are expressive of the unique terroir of The Golden Triangle whilst showcasing the complexity and finesse of the noble grape varieties planted at Dornier. Reverence for tradition is salient at Dornier as is difference where it leads to improvement.
Dornier Wine Estate is located on 3 different farms in the Upper Blaauwklippen Valley namely Groenkloof, Heldemeer and Stellenrust (Homestead) the latter of which includes a historic Sir Herbert Baker designed homestead and one of the first wine cellars ever built in Stellenbosch in the late 1600s.
Dornier proudly boasts an A rating with IPW (Integrity and Sustainability) given its ongoing efforts incorporated and devotion towards sustainable farming practises with integrity.
Dornier also holds an A Rating with WIETA - a pro-active world-class and sustainable ethical trade programme for the South African wine industry and aligned sectors. given its efforts incorporated and devotion towards facilitating fair working conditions and sustainable ethical trade within the wine industry and its aligned sectors.
Fermentation & Aging
All components of this blend were fermented separately in vineyard specific batches with pump-overs for colour and tannin extraction being performed five times daily. The wine was barrel matured for 12 months in French oak barrels and a small un-oaked component was used to provide a fresh and lively character.
Vintage Conditions
The vines are planted on our Groenkloof farm on the slopes of the Stellenbosch Mountain. The soil is composed of coffee coloured decomposed granite. The vines get full sun which allows for optimum development of rich berry characters in the grapes.
Accolades
- 4.5 John Platter Stars
- TOP 100 SA Wines
- Veritas Silver Outstanding
Specifications
| Year | 2021 |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
| Cultivar |
Merlot (34%), Shiraz (30%), Cabernet Sauvignon (19%), Malbec (14%) and Petit Verdot (3%) |
| Country | South Africa |
|
Alcohol content
|
15% alc vol
|
| Units of Alcohol per Bottle | 11.3 units |
| Type | Red Wine |
| Cellaring Potential |
Up to 5 years |
| Food Matching | Braised oxtail, Boeuf bourguignon, charcuterie platter and smoked kudu Carpaccio. |
| Allergen Information | Contains sulphites |
| Origin | Stellenbosch |
| Appellation | WO Western Cape |
