French Wine

The Mellot family’s wine trade pedigree extends as far back as 1513 and their name has been associated with Sancerre since Cesar Mellot was appointed Louis XIV’s “wine counsellor, presumably a pretty good gig to have back in the 17th century – probably less so 100 years later. Suffice to say that the family survived the wrath of Madame Guillotine and are now one of the Loire Valley’s most respected players. Some 50 miles to the west of Sancerre, Reuilly is classic Loire Sauvignon country, its wines mineral and mouthwatering and providing the perfect foil to seafood or goat’s cheese.

This is from a variety of parcels on the ‘Butte de Chaume’, predominantly from younger (10-12-year-old) vines and predominantly from schist soils. The depth and luxurious texture from these vines is absolutely astonishing and seems all the more remarkable when you know that the wine is fermented and aged only in stainless steel. Harvesting is in small boxes and the grapes are cooled before a long, slow (4.5hrs) pressing in the cool room. Wild yeast ferment, partial Malo. Even at this ‘entry level’ and despite all the richness on show, this wine is beautifully precise and has exciting, bright, engaging acidity at the finish. It’s probably about twice the price of ‘yer average’ Anjou Blanc… which makes it quite outstanding value!

Chateau de Plaisance

Maison Roche de Bellene

Single vineyard, biodynamic and organic beauty. Notes of bergamot, peach and apricot - richness balanced by racy acidity.

M. Chapoutier

Rich and smooth, vibrant berry aromas packed with cherry and redcurrant flavous, touch of cassis.

Domaine de la Bastide

Château Dauzac is a 5th growth Grand Cru Classé wine with 49 hectares of vineyard in a single continuous block. Labastide Dauzac is their second wine and is produced on clayey gravel conducive to the best expression of Merlot and the intensity of Cabernet Sauvignon, Labastide Dauzac is characterized by its great suppleness and fruitiness. True to the Margaux terroir, Labastide Dauzac is a well-balanced wine.

The 2016 vintage is extremely rich and precise without being excessive, revealing bright fruit and a dense and complex raw material. The high percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon gives it an exceptional acidity/alcohol balance that is an indication of a great vintage.

Appearance: purplish red with purple tints.

Nose: the fruity nose is underlined by spices.

Palate: the attack is full, immediately conveying the pedigree of this balanced, complex wine. A precise Margaux with a fresh finish.

Château Dauzac

"Petit Guiraud is a fresh and precise Sauternes, and is the result of a long period of reflection on the wine style and its drinkability. As the flag-flyer for modernity and accessible pleasure, Petit Guiraud is a slice of luxury to be enjoyed every day." - Luc Planty, Director

Chateau Guiraud

A delicious off-dry style of Chenin Blanc with stony minerality, fresh just-picked walnuts, a hint of lime and a slightly sappy fresh note. The palate is honeyed with limeflower, apple, ginger and a clean mineral finish. The sweetness is perfectly integrated and balanced, resulting in a refreshing wine with good length. Will cellar brilliantly for as many as ten years becoming even more concentrated and refined.

Immediately impressive, this wine reveals its class from the start. Brambly fruit underpinned by subtle oaky nuances, lovely sweet spice - warm star anise with a touch of cinnamon. This classic Côtes du Rhône Villages is enriched with specially-selected parcels from Séguret and Sablet.

Maison Roche de Bellene

70% Grenache Noir and 30% Carignan Noir

Lovely red colour with purple hints. This intense red wine displays an astonishing nose of small red fruits with a hint of vanilla. On the palate the wines is full-bodied and smooth, completed by elegant fine tannins. The sweetness of the Grenache brings a long finish.

Domaine de la Baume

A Musacadet for ageing produced from the very best plots on the hillside of Moulin de la Miniere. Vinified in underground concrete tanks, matured on lees for 36 months. Rich pineapple and mango notes or complemented with a saline finish.

This light red wine has plentiful red fruit aromas, cherries and raspberries. Its is fleshy and soft with juicy fruit and a lively acidity. The supple tannins are ripe and light, the finish is silky and persistent.

Domaine de Colette

Not your usual Muscadet, Francois Menard has crafted this single vineyard cuvee as part of his expressions series- somewhat experimental one-off wines from vary small parcels of vines showcasing how varied Muscadet can be. Coming from a Gneiss terroir on the Févrie plot in Maisdon, this single-vineyard cuvée of Muscadet Sèvre et Maine sur Lie has benefited from a short skin maceration before pressing the grapes in order to give this wine the aromatics, complexity and structure that characterize it. Wild yeast fermentation and with 8 months lees aging in glass lined concrete tanks. Overt and very ripe apricot notes make up a rich full bodies wine with a generous texture and incredibly long finish.

A refreshing and fragrant Cabernet with fresh and bright flavours of blackcurrant. Silky textured, lifted on the mid-palate and with a smooth ripe finish.

The grapes come from chalky - clay soils on the slopes of the Loire Valley known as ‘The Garden of France’. A delicious soft dry white, with balanced acidity, characterized by a fruity and floral bouquet. Very aromatic with pleasant flower and fruit fragrances recalling the flower of the vine and the fruit of the sauvignon, ideal for drinking by itself in a large glass.

Famille Bourgeois Sancerre

Domaine de la Motte is a 25 hectare, family-run winery handed down from father to son since 1950. Now under the stewardship of Bernard Michaut, an ex-chef, who works with his son Adrien. Their winemaking is meticulous and the wines are benchmarks for the region. They are fastidious about producing concentrated, mineral and very precise wines which reflect the particular terroirs of Chablis, with vines on both Portlandian and Kimmeridgian soils. Motte's wines are regularly chosen for the Tastevinage label, a rigorous selection by the Confrérie des Chevaliers de Tastevin of wines they regard as offering the best of the region in terms of quality and style.

Aromatic fruit with the tiniest hint of sandalwood smoke on the nose. The palate has lovely weight with ripe, fleshy cooked lemons, a touch of stone fruit and a good mineral backbone. Far superior than the name "Petit" might suggest.

Earthy and baked red plums on the nose. An almost Burgundian savoury quality on the palate with characteful gamey and fruit richness. Balanced with a bright acidity on the finish.

The Florensac terroir is one of the oldest planted vineyards near the Mediterranean coast and unusually for the South of France, this is a specialist white wine producer benefiting from the cooling breezes that moderate the heat. The vineyards are certified as HVE3, meaning they acheive the highest standards of sustainable agriculture.

Grown on high ground in vineyards that are planted on clay and limestone soils. The vines are night harvested in order to preserve aromas and freshness. Once fermented the wine is aged on fine lees with regular stirring of the lees in order to bring out richness and roundness. A bright and pale yellow wine with very fresh aromas of white flowers, acacia and hawthorn, this is a “gourmet” Picpoul.

Pale yellow colour with brilliant green reflections, a fresh and fruity nose marked by notes of lemon and grapefruit; exotic, lively and fresh in the mouth, revealing a beautiful richness supported by citrus flavours and beautiful length.

Les Vignerons de Florensac

Les Vignots is one of the most famous vineyard in the appelation, located on the north at the very top of the hillside of Pommard ( 330m altitude)

A Pinot Noir from the southern Loire region of the Auvergne. Fresh and aromatic with sappy green notes, hints of herbs and ripe cherry fruit on the nose. The palate is elegant and textured with smooth, sappy red cherry fruit. Beautifully expressive and elegant. A pure, lighter-style red wine with no harsh edges.

Desprat & Saint-Verny

Chateau Cissac

Shows lovely balance of ripeness, varietal purity and finesse. Fragrant rose-petal/water and grapefruit aromas with a hint of sweet spice, pretty rich and pineappley, but with fine structure and complexity, spicy juicy fruit and acidity combine well to finish.

Cave de Turckheim

A very fruity and refreshing easy to drink rosé, with a bouquet full of ripe red fruits. A particularly well-balanced and structured wine with the aromatic themes continuing on the palate.

Famille Bourgeois Sancerre

Outstanding single-vineyard Sancerre from Bourgeois; intensely flavoured with a bone-dry finish.

Famille Bourgeois Sancerre

The white Santenay Clos de Malte is a rich and structured wine. It is elegant and fresh, with fruity, citrusy aromas and a hint of woody notes.

Vines grown on limestone and clay soils, vinified and aged in concrete.

Deep, earthy, incredibly tight in its youth this will certainly benefit from a few hours in a decanter. Upon opening up the herbaceous, spicy notes and elegant shapes come to the fore.