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750ml
Bottle:
$12.05
12 bottles:
$11.81
COLOR: Clear pale yellow in colour, with greenish reflections.
NOSE: Fresh and slightly fruity bouquet with delicate...
750ml
Bottle:
$47.16
$52.40
Colour: Lively, deep ruby-red; nature's gift.
Perfume: Complex scent of ripe red fruit (mainly black cherry), spices,...
750ml
Bottle:
$12.94
12 bottles:
$12.68
Made from 100% Garganega, the main grape variety in the Soave DOC. A bright, fresh wine with delicate almond blossom...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$18.00
Strong Soave tradition here, drawing on the older nomenclature of the zone that once referenced Chablis-type and...
750ml
Bottle:
$29.94
12 bottles:
$29.34
• 100% Carignan.
• Practicing Organic.
• Poor Ranch Vyd (mult-generational family owned on benchland outside...
1.5Ltr
Bottle:
$21.85
$23.00
6 bottles:
$13.87
Pale yellow with greenish hues. Light-bodied and refreshing, offering a bouquet of melons, ripe apples, and pear....
750ml
Bottle:
$29.94
6 bottles:
$29.34
Colour: Deep, almost solid ruby red.
Nose: Intense fruity notes of blackberry, blueberry, vanilla, myrtle, leather...
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$18.13
Big raspberry and plum aromas on the nose as well as a hint of eucalyptus and liquorice. The wine is rich and mouth...
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$16.85
Roasted coffee and liquorice on the nose with some blackberry notes and a light smokiness showing the age of the...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.93
12 bottles:
$13.65
All old vine Carignan, the 2019 Côtes Catalanes Tessellae from Jean-Marc Lafage offers a beautifully pure nose of...
375ml
Bottle:
$33.60
Among the greatest sweet wines in the world. Let's get that straight. Only equalled by Germany. There is density and...
375ml
Bottle:
$11.64
$13.00
The custodian of the oldest vines in Soave, a great many pre-phylloxera centurions, while the majority are circa...
750ml
Bottle:
$16.89
$18.00
The custodian of the oldest vines in Soave, a great many pre-phylloxera centurions, while the majority are circa...
750ml
Bottle:
$35.90
12 bottles:
$35.18
The oldest vines in all of Soave: pre-phylloxera centurions, many nearly 140-years-old. The vinosity, sap, mineral...
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$23.42
A full bodied, round wine that leads with aromas of ripe yellow fruits and lemon curd with notes of pleasantly bitter...
750ml
Bottle:
$21.20
12 bottles:
$20.78
• 100% Mavrodaphne.
• Low yielding vines from loamy clay soils.
• Fermented and aged in stainless steel.
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle:
$68.50
Rich and powerful with expressions of ripe cherries, dark chocolate and spices. This full bodied wine is supported by...
Carignan Garganega Mavrodaphne Sideritis
Carignan is an ancient blue-skinned grape varietal, thought to be indigenous to the Aragon region of Spain. However, today it is most commonly associated with the fine wines of southern France, and has been grown in many countries around the world which have the warm and dry conditions it requires to thrive. Carignan is recognized as being quite a sensitive vine, highly susceptible to all kinds of rot and mildew, although producing excellent results when given the right conditions and handled correctly. Its high tannin levels and acidity make the Carignan grapes very astringent, and as such, they are often used as a blending grape to give body to other, lesser bodied varietals. Despite this, with careful treatment, Carignan can produce superb single varietal wines packed full of character and unique attributes.
Italy is a fine country for white grape varietals, and white wines have been produced in this ancient country for thousands of years. One of the more popular varietals in the modern age is Garganega, which is currently the 5th most planted white grape across Italy. This grape is most closely associated with the Veneto region of Italy, although it is also grown in Sicily, where it is known as Grecanico Dorato. Garganega is a rigorous, hardy grape, which can grow in huge yields - explaining its popularity in the past. Today, winemakers must be careful to keep yields as low as possible, as this a varietal which can easily lose its distinctive characteristics and fine qualities when grown in bulk.
We know Garganega most commonly from the Soave wines which have been consistently popular over the past few decades. Indeed, the Soave Classico wines which still sell in large quantities across the globe are made from 70%-100% Garganega varietal grapes, and these wines showcase the varietal’s fresh and delicate qualities. The most common flavors present in Garganega wines are delicate, citrus notes, balanced by a hint of almond, and the best examples have remarkable balance and length, with wonderful aromatic notes.
In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.
Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.
Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.
Additional Information on Greek Wines
Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?