Zinfandel ‘Heritage’, De Loach
De Loach was founded in 1973 by San Francisco Firefighter Cecil De Loach. The estate was later taken over by Burgundian Jean-Charles Boisset, who has converted all their vineyards to organic and bodynamic practices.
This wine is unusual in that it presents great Californian wine at a sensible price, usually there is the mass-produced stuff at the bottom end of the market and then a big jump to the premium £30+ end. This is a great wine at a great price. Medium/full-bodied with loads of juicy bramble fruit and smooth, velvety tannins. A crowd-pleaser and a great pizza or BBQ wine.
‘La Magendia’ Jurancon Moelleux (37.5cl), Clos Lapeyre
Jean-Bernard Larrieu makes some of the best wines in Jurancon at Clos Lapeyre. This isolated area lies inland in the foothills of the Pyranees and is home to some of the best sweet wines France has to offer (without paying Sauternes prices). Petit Manseng is the main grape for producing these delicious, honeyed wines and it's bright acidity is what makes it so successful; no matter how rich and unctuous the wine, it still feels fresh and mouth-watering on the finish. In case you were wondering, La Magendia means 'the best' in the local Occitane dialect; very fitting, as this is truly stunning.
Perfect with fruit desserts (rhubarb or apple crumble...?) and is a star with blue and rind-washed cheeses.
Soave Classico, Monte Tondo, Veneto, Italy
Beautiful, elegant Soave from a great, family-run, organic estate in the volcanic hills of Veneto. The grape variety here is Garganega, and this is an expression with great precision of flavour. Unoaked, light and elegant, it is a very versatile food wine; a great match for all light pasta dishes, salads or simply grilled fish.
Highmoor whole cheese
Highmoor – Made by Rose Grimmond in Oxfordshire
A semi-soft, washed rind cheese with brothy and bacony notes from the rind made at the Nettlebed Creamery near Henley by Rose Grimmond. Rose's family are dairy farmers and the family farm, located 1 mile down the road, provides all the beautiful organic cows' milk used to make the Nettledbed cheeses. Shape, taste and texture all make Highmoor an interesting addition to any cheese board and given the closeness of the cow to creamery to No2 this is also a great cheese to eat to reduce your food miles and support two local businesses.
Organic Macabeo, Castano, Yecla
This is a great value certified organic wine from the Castano family in South East Spain. This Macabeo (known as Viura further north in Spain and Macabeu in France) is a lovely light, fresh wine with good depth of citrus flavours. A versatile food wine with enough flavour to stand up to some spice but also delicious on it’s own!
‘Hecula’ Monastrell, Castano, Yecla
Based in Yecla, Familia Castaño is known for its huge efforts to promote one of Spain’s native varieties: Monastrell. Castaño embodies the best of what southern Spain has to offer, producing rich, warm-climate wines, with almost Syrah-like complexity, which overdeliver in terms of value year after year. Castaño began bottling characterful, single-varietal Monastrell in the 1980s, when the variety was used exclusively for bulk wines and blending. Today, in the expert hands of Daniel Castaño and his family, the variety maintains high quality even at moderate to generous yields. 80% of the family’s 600 hectares of vineyards are dedicated to Monastrell, with smaller plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon, Macabeo and Chardonnay among others.
This is a big, rich, full-bodied wine made from the Monastrell grape in the Yecla region of south west Spain. Really over-delivers for the price; so tasty! Has always been one of our favourites, and now it's certified organic! Win Win
A great steak wine, but also just one of the best all-round wines on the market. Seriously good.
Monbazillac ‘Jour de Fruit’ 37.5cl, Domaine de l’Ancienne Cure
Monbazillac has a long history (known as early as the 14th century) and is one of the world’s great sweet wines; similar in style to Sauternes but usually offering better value for money. Here, Christian Roche is one of the best winemakers and his attention to detail and organic practices shine through in the wines.
Light and juicy, with the sweetness balanced by good acidity, this is a great introduction to dessert wines; perfect as an all-rounder with a cheese board or with fruit desserts.
