×
White
750ml
Bottle: $39.94
12 bottles: $39.14
Musky apricot pit, peach and spicy vanillin oak on the nose. Densely packed but quite suave and fine-grained in spite...
12 FREE
VM
93
JD
91
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $39.84 $44.00
The color of this wine is best described as pale straw with a slight tint of emerald green. The nose opens as a...
Sale
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $24.94 $35.94
Moving to the four Chardonnays I was able to taste, the 2018 Chardonnay Sonoma Coast reveals a light gold color as...
12 FREE
JD
92
WA
90
Case only
White
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $51.93
This is a generous, layered white with lots of cooked apples and hints of coconut and vanilla. Full body. Phenolic...
12 FREE
JS
94
White
750ml
Bottle: $42.53
6 bottles: $41.68
COLOR: Medium Gold. NOSE: Pronounced pear and golden yellow apple lined with a floral note of jasmine, apricot, and...
12 FREE
White
750ml
Bottle: $46.50
12 bottles: $45.57
Stone fruits, buttered citrus, white currants, and brioche all emerge from the 2018 Chardonnay, a beautiful...
12 FREE
JD
92
WA
91
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $18.80
Color: Ruby red very intense with purple reflexes. Bouquet: Strong and distinctive with sensations of sour cherry...
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $34.90
Very intense and elegant ruby red colour; broad and complex fruity fragrance with hints of plum, cherry jam and...
12 FREE
Rapid Ship
Red
750ml
Bottle: $24.94
Ripe crunchy red forest fruits with notes of candied dark cherries. Rich and bold, with juicy tannins. (Bronze) -...
DC
89
White
750ml
Bottle: $45.93
12 bottles: $45.01
This too is firmly reduced so be sure to decant it first. Otherwise the round, delicious and lush medium weight...
12 FREE
BH
88
White
750ml
Bottle: $15.00
12 bottles: $14.70
Lively lemon curd, green apple, spice, white flower, and flinty notes emerge from the medium-bodied 2018 Beaujolais...
JD
88
Sale
White
750ml
Bottle: $44.69 $46.00
The wine is plush and enveloping, and yet like all of Jim Clendenen's wines, it also remains light on its feet. Hints...
12 FREE
White
750ml
Bottle: $44.80
6 bottles: $44.00
Fine and alluring with limestone and wet slate, lemon cream, lime peel and a vanilla pod kiss. A long, distinguished...
12 FREE
DC
96
VM
92
Case only
White
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $98.95
Aromas of candied fruit and honey with a buttered and mineral bouquet. The wine is well-balanced and round in the...
12 FREE
Case only
White
12 FREE
White
750ml
Bottle: $280.41
6 bottles: $279.20
Batard-Montrachet is one of the four great Grand Cru Chardonnay vineyards in the appellation of Puligny-Montrachet,...
12 FREE
White
750ml
Bottle: $80.19
12 bottles: $78.59
12 FREE
Case only
White
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $130.40
The 2018 Chardonnay Malans "Unique" is Martin Donatsch's Grand Cru, and its character is that of a great Burgundy....
12 FREE
WA
95
White
750ml
Bottle: $34.94
12 bottles: $34.24
The Estate Chardonnay shows great focus, epitomizing nature of the Eden Rift Estate. It is bright with notes of...
12 FREE
White
750ml
Bottle: $57.93
6 bottles: $56.77
This just takes off at the finish, with bright, tangy acidity and plenty of minerality. Full-bodied and so tangy and...
12 FREE
JS
95
WA
92

Chardonnay Irish Whiskey Primitivo 2018 750ml

Of all the white wine grape varietals, surely the one which has spread the furthest and is most widely appreciated is the Chardonnay. This green skinned grape is now grown all over the Old and New Worlds, from New Zealand to the Americas, from England to Chile, and is one of the first varietals people think of when considering white wine grapes. Perhaps this is because of its huge popularity which reached a peak in the 1990s, thanks to new technologies combining with traditional methods to bring the very best features out of the Chardonnay grape, and allow its unique qualities to shine through. Most fine Chardonnay wines use a process known as malolactic fermentation, wherein the malic acids in the grape juice are converted to lactic acids, allowing a creamier, buttery nature to come forward in the wine. No grape varietal is better suited to this process than Chardonnay, which manages to balance these silky, creamy notes with fresh white fruit flavors beautifully.

The Irish are hailed as being the original producers of whiskey in the British Isles, and their innovations and techniques were so successful, that neighbouring Scotland were quickly influenced by them in the 15th century. Centuries later, it was the Irish who brought whiskey to America, and their style of whiskey has since become popular all over the world.

However, it wasn’t always plain sailing for the Irish whiskey industry - from being a dominant force in the 19th century, whose produce was considered far superior to that of Scotland, political upheaval and war saw the Irish whiskey almost disappear forever in the early 20th century. Today, the Irish whiskey manufacturers are back on their feet, and they are once again proving that the original is often the best. With new distilleries opening every year, it is safe to say that Irish whiskey is very much back.

Irish whiskey differs from Scotch whisky in a number of ways, and not least the spelling - the extra ‘e’ was said to be added in the 19th century as a way of distancing the Irish drink from what they saw as an inferior Scottish product. Irish whiskey was traditionally made in enormous stills, as a way of ensuring consistency from bottle to bottle, and maintaining the quality and complexity their reputation was founded on. The typical tasting notes of fine Irish whiskey include apple and vanilla, alongside spicy and sweet touches of nutmeg and fresh hay, making this a highly pleasant and smooth drink, made for relaxation and stimulating conversation about times past.

As with many European grape varietals, there is some debate regarding the precise origins of the Primitivo grape. Most people now agree that it probably came from Croatia, where it is still used widely in the production of red wine, and it known as Tribidrag. However, today it is a grape most commonly associated with the powerful red wines of Puglia, the heel of Italy’s boot, where the intense sunshine and brisk Mediterranean breezes produce grapes of remarkable character and balance. Primitivo is a dark grape, known for producing intense, inky, highly tannic wines, most notably the naturally sweet Dolce Naturale and the heavy and complex Primitivo di Manduria wines. Primitivo tends to be naturally very high in both tannin and alcohol, making it ideal for both barrel and cellar ageing, which brings out its more rounded and interesting features.


Primitivo is not the easiest grape to grow or manage, and it has had something of a difficult century. Indeed, by the 1990s, there was little interest in Puglian wines in general, and winemakers were neglecting their Primitivo vineyards and looking to other, more commercially viable varietals. However, the last decade has seen this grape come well and truly back into fashion, with new techniques and a heightened interest in native Italian grape varietals bringing Primitivo back into the spotlight. It is now widely loved for its intensity and ability to be paired with strongly flavored foods.