Boekenhoutskloof Porcupine Ridge Syrah
Azulejo Tempranillo
Azulejos (“tiles” in English) are a quintessential part of Spanish art, just as wine. Each region in Spain has its own distinct style of producing the azulejos. With this collection of wines we pair the most attractive and trendiest wine regions with a particular azulejo style, using a modern approach that results in a pairing that brings out the best qualities of both. This Tempranillo originates from the region of Rioja. Made in a modern, fruit-forward style, this wine is bright with violet hues and a cherry red rim. Aromas of ripe blackcurrant, cherries and prunes are supported with notes of vanilla, shaved coconut and spices. Smooth and silky on the palate with sweet, plush tannins and a balanced, pleasant and persistent finish.
Freixenet Prosecco Rose
Enjoy catch-ups with friends over a bottle of Freixenet Prosecco Rose. This glittering pink beauty contains vibrant flavours of fresh red berries with a touch of floral. Light and effervescent, this is a wine made for good times and best enjoyed with great company.
Rocksand Shiraz
Not only has this family estate won 60 Golds in a decade, but also 'Best Wine in the World'. That was for their 2005 Shiraz in 2008! The secret to this weighty, spice packed red is the sandy soils, which hold little rain for the vines, plus the unrelenting hot sun. The result is a modest yield of small berries crammed with juicy flavour. With this style of wine, award winning winemaker Jaime Quendera is now forging a reputation for Setúbal's rich, bold reds. Mostly Shiraz along with a splash of local variety Alicante, Jaime finished the wine in expensive oak barrels to add a gorgeous spicy vanilla lift to the blueberry, blackberry and peppery fruit. A fine treat to serve with spicy chorizo sausages, a hearty stew or the Sunday roast.
Aluado Alicante Bouschet
They said he was 'aluado' ('loony') but the ever inventive José Neiva Correia has proved his doubters wrong. Alicante Bouschet produces some of the world's deepest coloured wines and is often used to enhance Portugal's top reds. Here you find it in its pure form thanks to José. A legend of Portuguese wine, he combines generations of tradition with an inquisitive spirit undimmed at 60+ years of age. Following on from last year's triple Gold medal triumph, José again used grapes from his own historic estate, Quinta de Porto Franco, which dates back to the 12th century and is thought to be the oldest vineyard in Alenquer. Thanks to a great season, Aluado 2017 is a big, rich wine best served with roast meats - try with pork or rack of lamb.
The Holdings Syrah Malbec
This luscious red comes from Zuccardi - an outstanding, third generation family cellar founded in the 1960s by Don Alberto Zuccardi. A decade before, he'd started an irrigation company, then planted a vineyard to demonstrate to other producers how his system could benefit grape quality. The rest, as they say, is history, and Zuccardi have become one of the leading cellars in Mendoza. Today his grandson Sebastián is winemaker, assisted by Rubén Ruffo. This is a silky, elegant red, with Syrah adding spicy red fruits and structure to Malbec's darker velvety berry notes. Recommended with chilli, a beef stir-fry or on its own.
Vinha do Fava Touriga Nacional
The word 'Nacional' is reserved for treasures that fly the flag for Portugal. Touriga Nacional certainly does that. Ten years ago the Freitas family planted the grape on their acclaimed Fava vineyard. In 2015 it produced a wine so special that it was bottled under the vineyard name for the first time ever. It won a string of Gold on its debut - making over 60 Golds in 10 years for this fine family estate. The 2016 won Grand Gold, and the 2017 here has won Gold, Double Gold, Grand Gold and Best in Show ... ! Dating back to 1920, Casa Ermelinda Freitas is run by fourth generation Leonor Freitas, who has been awarded a 'Comendadora' (equivalent to a Dame) for her services to Portuguese wine. Her daughter Joana follows in her footsteps. Aged in barrel, this rich red is packed with spicy berry, herb and mineral character. A top match with slow cooked beef or lamb.
Camino de Seda
Stones & Bones
A frequent Gold medal winner, Stones & Bones is so-called because it’s grown in a landscape littered with ancient boulders and dinosaur fossils. In the modern Portuguese tradition, the wine is a blend of local and international grapes. Touriga Nacional, the backbone of vintage port, joins forces with Syrah, Tinta Roriz and Alicante to produce truly mammoth, rich fruit flavours. Equally impressive is the winemaker, Diogo Sepúlveda, who relaxes after work by cycling or playing football, or, more unusually, bull wrestling! Having worked in Pomerol, then in the Barossa with heirloom Shiraz vines, his credentials for making this rich, old vine Portuguese red are second to none. For maximum enjoyment, decant and serve with a rich beef casserole.
Baía de Tróia Castelão
From vineyards planted 2,000 years ago, this rich, dark, velvety black red is only made in the best years. One sip and will take you back in time to the first century AD where vineyards were planted to serve the ruling elite at the thriving Roman port of Troia. Here, on Portugal’s windswept Atlantic coast, the only grape that thrives in the dry, sandy soils and under 300 hours of super-hot sun a month, is local star Castelão. This small, dark-skinned grape boasts fathomless depths of flavour – if you know how to unlock it. Enter Gold-medal maestro at Portugal’s most awarded winery, Leonor Freitas – nicknamed the “Dame of Castelão”. Baía di Tróia delivers an immensely concentrated, black red – rippling with ripe plums, red berries and black fruit, laced with chocolate, spice and toasty oak. At 15.5% smooth power, it's not for the faint-hearted! A rich casserole ideal.