At the foot of the majestic Schlossberg hill, in a setting of vines and roses, the Domaine Weinbach "wine stream", named after the small stream that crosses it, was built in 1612 by the Capuchin monks. Sold as national property during the French Revolution, the Estate was acquired in 1898 by the Faller brothers who passed it on to their son and nephew Théo. A great figure in the Alsatian vineyard and ardent promoter of its recognition as an Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée, Théo Faller works for the quality of Alsace wines and the development of their incomparable terroirs and grape varieties. In love with his property, he develops it, enlarges it and embellishes it. From 1979, his wife Colette and his daughters Catherine and Laurence demonstrated the same passion for the great wines of Alsace and the same unfailing attachment to quality. Since 2016, Catherine Faller has been running the Domaine with her sons Eddy and Théo. This Gewürz is drawn from a parcel of 40–50-year-old vines from the Wolfreben lieu-dit in the Kaysersberg valley between the Clos des Capucins and the village of Kaysersberg. The soils are composed of sandy silt over granite pebbles. The Gewürz in this terroir ripens early, producing wines with complex aromatics and powerful concentration. The 2021 is just the third release for this single-vineyard bottling. Finishing with 15 g/L residual, it’s an explosively aromatic wine redolent of petal, lychee, rose water and Turkish delight. Although intense and viscous, this is so wonderfully refined, pure and savoury with all the classic Weinbach precision and detail. The driven finish is epic and studded with the mouth-watering freshness of bitter grapefruit and mineral steel. Biodynamic.

Château Rayne-Vigneau produce both a dry and sweet white wine on the estate with the sweet style taking all the accolades in recent years. Great vintages like the 2009 can produce a wine of sheer opulence and concentration. Layered honey, apricot and orange zest are all tighly packed in a Sauternes that is a perfect match for intense cheeses and flavoursome desserts.

As the vines have aged, the monopole Clos de Rougemont, from a small vineyard close to Tours, has even greater depth of flavour, and a delicious long dry finish. It is planted on pure limestone soil and vinified in barrel with a tiny proportion of new oak. A truly stellar Vouvray!

VIE DI ROMANS Vieris Sauvignon Blanc, Isonzo DOC Rive Alte , Friuli Venezia Giulia

A great expression of Sauvignon Blanc, with plenty of tomato vine and flinty character, with a lick of passionfruit and stonefruit. Ripe and expressive, with great citrus characters. Great weight and texture.

Organic. As always, this was drawn from mature, 35- to 40-year-old vines rooted entirely in the limestone soils of Chavignol. The multiple sites are largely sloping vineyards on the lower flanks of the Chavignol hillside terroirs of Les Chasseignes, Les Longues Fins and La Rue de Vaux. Importantly, Boulay also includes fruit from his younger vines growing on the great hillsides of Clos de Beaujeu, Monts Damnés and La Grande Côte. The juice was naturally fermented and aged for nine months in tank on lees, with a small volume also fermented in a single large wooden cask.

CLOTILDE DAVENNE Saint Bris Vieilles Vignes Clotilde Davenne wines come from the village of Courgis, right next door to her winery in Prehy. The Saint Bris Vieilles Vignes has an intense fresh minerality with grapefruit, mandarin and peach notes. The wine has a pleasing texture with a mighty yet refined balance between the concentrated flavours of stone fruit, citrus, blackcurrant, leaves and dried fruit. A harmonious and flavoursome wine with a long and elegant finish.

Awarded with a “Coup de cœur" (= favourite) prize by the 2018 guide of prestigious "Revue des vins de France", the Domaine Emile Beyer is a true rising star in the Alsace region. In Eguisheim (Alsace) since 1580, Emile Beyer has preserved family know-how for 14 generations. Christian and Valérie Beyer now manage this 17 hectares estate, half of which is located on the Grands Crus and Lieux-dits hillsides. The soil is a living environment and a source of energy for the vines. By taking care of their terroirs, Domaine Emile Beyer promotes the balance of the vine and preserve the subtility and unique character of Alsacian wines. All the Alsatian grape are present in the vines: riesling, gewurztraminer, pinots (white, gray and black), muscat, sylvaner and even, for Crémants, chardonnay and auxerrois. The estate uses sustainable farming practices and is in conversion to organic. All Grand Crus are in conversion Demeter (biodynamic).