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Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $19.94
12 bottles: $19.54
The bright mirabelle, Amalfi-lemon and white-pepper aromas pour from the glass of this energetic gruner veltliner,...
JS
92
Rapid Ship
White
750ml
Bottle: $19.94
12 bottles: $19.54
A classic Gruner Veltliner for the notes of lentil, white peach, smoke and milled pepper. Lithe and creamy, this...
WS
90
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Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $45.60 $48.00
12 FREE
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Sake/Fruit Wine
12 FREE
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Sake/Fruit Wine
12 FREE
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Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $46.74 $49.20
12 FREE
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Sake/Fruit Wine
12 FREE
White
1.0Ltr
Bottle: $14.30
12 bottles: $14.01
This wine shows a light yellow color with green tints. The wine offers apple and pear fruits on the nose. Dry, fresh,...
White
750ml
Bottle: $12.50
12 bottles: $12.25
This wine shows a light yellow color with green tints. The wine offers apple and pear fruits on the nose. Dry, fresh,...
Sale
Sake/Fruit Wine
1.8Ltr
Bottle: $74.67 $78.60
A stout, robust and incredibly dry sake, prominent notes of black walnuts and caramel shading into spicy flavors of...
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Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $36.48 $38.40
A stout, robust and incredibly dry sake, prominent notes of black walnuts and caramel shading into spicy flavors of...
Sale
Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $91.28 $96.08
6 bottles: $88.01
Delicate tropical aromas of melon, lychee, and pineapple with the floral hint of honeysuckle. Feather-light, layered...
12 FREE
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Sake/Fruit Wine
300ml
Bottle: $15.05 $15.84
Layers of dried flowers and baking spice give way to savory salinity. Slightly dry and medium-bodied. Clean and...
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Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $28.88 $30.40
Layers of dried flowers and baking spice give way to savory salinity. Slightly dry and medium-bodied. Clean and...
Sale
Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $30.78 $32.40
Instead of big, heady, fruity aromas, this showcases the grain and the koji. Notes of charred pizza crust and roasted...
White
1.0Ltr
Bottle: $26.00
12 bottles: $25.48
A combination of second press juice from all of the white wine holdings covering the entire four hectares. Because...
12 FREE
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Sake/Fruit Wine
1.8Ltr
Bottle: $32.49 $34.20
6 bottles: $31.20
A remarkably elegant honjozo popular with local Miyagi drinkers, this is made from premium Yamada Nishiki rice milled...
Rapid Ship
Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $16.25
12 bottles: $15.44
A remarkably elegant honjozo popular with local Miyagi drinkers, this is made from premium Yamada Nishiki rice milled...
Sale
Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $20.52 $21.60
Rich and full, bursting with umami. Deep bass notes of soy sauce mingle with grains and freshly cut herbs.
Sale
Sake/Fruit Wine
720ml
Bottle: $45.60 $48.00
The NV Azuma Ichi Junmai Daiginjo has interesting crispy and refreshing notes, such as green apple, lime and green...
12 FREE
WA
90

Gruner Veltliner Japanese Whiskey Melon de Bourgogne Sake

Gruner Veltliner is a pale skinned white wine grape varietal most closely associated with central European countries such as Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia. In recent years, it has spread somewhat to several New World countries, where it is becoming gradually more popular and regularly seen in wine stores. One of the main attractions of this grape varietal for winemakers is the fact that it is highly versatile, and can be used for the production of several different wine styles, including young, dry white wines, excellent sparkling wines, and it is also a grape varietal which is well suited for aging Gruner Veltliner has the ability to express much of its terroir, and the best examples are generally those which are full of delightfully mineral-rich flavors alongside the more usual notes of citrus fruits and peach.

Whisky might not be the first thing that springs to mind when we think of Japanese fine produce, but over the past one hundred years, this fascinating and multi-faceted country has diligently forged a unique whisky identity which is growing in popularity, and which is entirely its own.

The story of Japanese whisky begins in 1918, when Masataka Taketsuru was sent to Scotland to undertake a tour of single malt distilleries in the Highlands, and bring home a knowledge of whisky and distillation skills. He returned full of inspiration, helped no doubt by his new Scottish wife, and alongside his friend, Shinjiro Torii, set up what would become a successful whisky industry.

Today, the Japanese whisky industry is spread over a relatively small handful of distilleries, which continue to use Scottish techniques and recipes, but with a hefty dose of distinctly Japanese experimentalism. This is displayed most obviously in the barrelling techniques the Japanese use - to create a distinctly Oriental set of tasting notes, native Japanese oakwood casks are used for ageing, alongside casks taken from plum wine producers, which impart a beautiful set of floral flavors to the whisky.

While some distilleries produce some excellent single malts, the majority of Japanese whiskies are blended, which reveals a unique set of flavors and aromas ranging from honeysuckle and orange blossom, to toffee and acetone.

One of the more unusual French grape varietals, Melon de Bourgogne has been grown in and around the Loire Valley for several hundred years. In fact, this grape was first planted in the Loire region of Pays Nantais back in the mid 17th century, after a devastating frost decimated most of the red grapes which were typical in the area. The winemakers of Pays Nantais were keen to cultivate vines which were hardy, high yielding, and capable of surviving another such frost, and so turned their attention to Melon de Bourgogne for this very reason. The native home of the varietal is actually in Burgundy, where it is still grown to a lesser extent.


Because Melon de Bourgogne produces naturally heavy yields, the vintners of Pays Nantais go to great lengths to reduce the amount of fruit the vines bear. This allows the finest characteristics of the grape to come forward, and also opens up the opportunity for it to express the wonderful granite and schist soils in which the vines are grown. Melon de Bourgogne is a minerally white wine grape varietal, with a very subtle set of fruit flavors. It is prized for its freshness and brightness, and is seeing a revival in the twenty first century as an excellent wine for pairing with a wide range of foods.