The fall of communism in Hungary saw many new beginnings, and one of note for wine lovers was the formation of The Royal Tokaji Company by wine-writer Hugh Johnson, and a consortium of foreign investors with the sole vision of revitalising the magnificent sweet wines of Hungary. The Royal Tokaji Company today is a benchmark for the noble wines of the region, from their 3 Puttonyos wines at around 60-90 grams per litre of residual sugar through to the intense Essencia at 450-850 grams, they are wines that offer the drinker a unique insight to one of the great wine styles of the world. In truly exceptional years Royal Tokaji selects the finest berries from its finest vineyards and carefully produces a few barrels of Single Vineyard Aszú. 2017 was such a year, just the eighth this century, showing exceptional richness, structure and backbone balanced by lively acidity - a truly volcanic vintage. Summer was hot, so we began the Aszú berry harvest in early September and continued to pick steadily in the ideal autumn weather. In particular October provided three textbook weeks for fine quality Aszú, with day after day of early morning mists, afternoon sunshine and drying winds. The Aszú wines show great structure, plenty of botrytis, depth and freshness with excellent complexity, all attributes of long ageing potential. The excellent Aszú berries with good structure and perfect botrytis were macerated in fermenting must for two days. After pressing and finishing fermentation in barrel the wines were filled into Hungarian oak casks in our extensive, deep underground cellars to mature for over two years. The final blends were carefully crafted in the spring of 2020. Bottled at 203.3 grams of residual sugar per litre. Nyulászó (meaning “a good place to catch hares”) is a celebrated First Growth vineyard overlooking the village of Mád. Its volcanic bedrock is overlaid with rich, brown clay interspersed with lighter rhyolite tuff, consistently producing racy, perfumed, elegant wines with a steely backbone. This wine is lively and elegant, highly perfumed on the nose with ripe peach and apricot on the palate balanced by silky acidity. The finish is long and incredibly complex.

The nose is spritely and fresh showing fresh lemon, cypress and crushed shell. The palate is fine and long with fresh acidity providing drive and texture, flavours of citrus blossom and wet stone. Piquepoul has long been a favourite of the Lloyd Family and was selected as having potential as a new variety for McLaren Vale. We imported the cuttings in 2009 from a nursery in southern France and some years later had our first release in 2015. The variety has proven itself to be well suited to our Mediterranean climate and has found a new home in the Vale. Its fresh acidity and lively texture make it a great accompaniment for seafood, particularly oysters and other shellfish. Coriole was founded by Hugh and Molly Lloyd in 1967, and they released their first wine in 1969. The Estate is still owned by the Lloyd family and is now managed by Mark and Paul Lloyd. Coriole is situated in the undulating hills of the densely planted McLaren Vale region just within sight of the sea and less than an hour from Adelaide. The original farmhouses were built in 1860 and are now the epicentre of the garden and cellar door at the winery. The original vineyards were planted in 1919. The Lloyd family are considered pioneers in the McLaren Vale region, and visionaries in the planting of Italian and French varieties. Long before it was fashionable, Mark Lloyd developed vineyards of Sangiovese, Picpoul, Chenin Blanc, Nero dAvola, and others, plus of course, Shiraz. They are considered one of the leading lights of the region.

Pressing Matters is a small, family-owned Tasmanian vineyard producing award-winning Rieslings and Pinot Noir. Although the Rieslings from Pressing Matters are influenced by Mosel styles, they are created to represent and enhance the exceptional qualities that Tasmanian Rieslings can produce. Pressing Matters R0 Riesling is an acid driven wine with almost no residual sugar – it is narrow on the palate and if people like dry white wine – this is a super-dry white wine! However the lack of sugar does not mean a lack of floral and citrus fruits on the nose and palate. Pale with green tinges. On the nose, preserved lime, dried rose petal and pear. A Cox’s orange crunch. Clean and clear palate; vibrant and juicy with great length. The R0 is a perfect complement to seafood and shellfish.

Tenute Orestiadi, born in 2008 in the heart of the Belice Valley, in Gibellina, Sicily, where perfumes and Mediterranean colors intertwine with myth and art. After the 1968 Belice earthquake, the entire valley became the center of cultural exchange and dialogue for the Mediterranean area, transforming the arduous times into energy after a historically and economically complex moment. The fil rouge of the reconstruction is the close connection between agriculture and art, which becomes an identifying feature of the company. In 2018, Tenute Orestiadi started a collaboration with La Gelsomina, located on mount Etna, thanks to the sharing of the same values and the same love for the territory. One of the most representative varietals of all of Sicily, Grillo, is grown in the province of Trapani with care and experience: the quality is controlled from the vine to the bottle, so as to provide a unique experience to the wine lover. The 2021 vintage is a straw yellow colour with greenish reflections. This elegant wine shows a complex blend of Mediterranean aromas mixed with hints of tropical fruits. The palate is fresh and persistent with marked sapidity and excellent structure.

Product Information: The 2022 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Baudines has a bit more flesh and opulence than usual thanks to a warmer, dry season and about One-third new oak this release. An excellent, mineral example of the terroir. The 3.6-hectare Les Baudines vineyard sits up high on the slope, near the tree line on the southwestern border of Chassagne. It’s essentially a continuation of Les Embazées but sits higher on the hillside, on poorer soil, with a higher limestone content. It’s a very cool site with primarily white, rocky clay soils—a terroir perfectly aligned with Leroux’s desire to produce fine-boned, chiselled Chassagne. Leroux’s vines were planted in the 1980s. From a season of contradictions. William Kelley writes, 'the 2022 vintage is proof that Burgundy hasn’t lost its capacity to surprise. How could the hottest, driest vintage since 1947 deliver wines so succulent, suave and charming?' Every wine critically reviewed was outstanding for its appellation. The whites offer freshness, density and the site transparency that we love from top Burgundy. While the red Burgundies purr with succulent textures, elegant tannins and appetising freshness. And although 2022 was a ripe year, the finesse and balance are extraordinary across the range. After the challenging, low-yielding 2021 season, 2022's warm, dry, and sunny conditions were a blessing for Burgundy’s vignerons. The success of season was owed to reasonable yields, cool nights and a couple of good rain events at critical periods. All factors that lead to beautiful balanced fruit with excellent vibrancy and freshness throughout. Maker: Lauded wine critic, Jancis Robinson boldly compares young Benjamin Leroux to the legendary Henri Jayer, 'You may remember that when I asked Allen Meadows, aka Burghound, who he thought might be a natural heir to the late great Henri Jayer of Burgundy, one of the two people he cited was young Benjamin Leroux of Domaine Comte Armand.' Henri Jayer is synonymous with Burgundy and remains one of the most revered wine personalities of the 20th century. If Jayer is the undisputed king of Burgundy, then Benjamin Leroux is emerging as his rightful heir. Leroux shares Jayer's perfectionism and diligence, with a remarkable ability to uncover potential in challenging sites. His meticulous vineyard and cellar techniques ensure that each wine reflects a steadfast commitment to quality, much like his revered predecessor. Born and bred in Beaune, Leroux was a prodigy, studying at the Lycée Viticole in Beaune from age 15 and taking the reins at the esteemed Domaine Comte Armand when he was just 24. Leroux would stay at Comte Armand for fifteen vintages, while simultaneously launching his eponymous négociant operation in 2007. By 2014 Leroux left Comte Armand—in great shape, to concentrate on his personal venture. The first stage of his evolution allowed him to establish the winery (in the old Jaboulet-Vercherre premises off the Beaune périphérique) and refine his ideas and understanding of the terroirs with which he wanted to work. The way Leroux structured this side of his business was highly innovative. His aim was to create the same quality standards of the finest domaines, despite not owning most of the vineyards. In tandem with his excelling négociant business, Leroux has quietly been building up his family’s impressive domaine holdings, which now run to eight hectares. Though he worked these vineyards organically and biodynamically from the beginning, it took him several years to apply for organic certification, which came in 2016. Ben’s first vineyard purchase was a 0.16-hectare slice of Batard-Montrachet in 2009, though most of Leroux’s white vineyards lie in Meursault and top-tier parcels in Genevrières-Dessus and Charmes-Dessus. For the reds he farms his beloved Blagny 1er Cru La Pièce Sous le Bois, in Volnay Santenots and there are a number of small parcels in Vosne-Romanée. These wines are a reminder of why people buy, drink and obsess over great Burgundy. The Philosophy: Ben has long-term relationships with the growers he works with, some of which he pays by land area rather than the quantity of fruit harvested. This allows him to dictate lower yields, ripeness, date of harvest, and so on. He only works with high-quality growers who plough or do not use herbicides or pesticides. Most are organic or biodynamic. For those that are not, there is an understanding that they will move to organics over five years. Like the greats before him, Leroux’s knowledge of the Côte is encyclopaedic, and he has unearthed some very exciting, previously less well-known terroirs for his portfolio. It’s important not to underestimate how close Leroux works with these growers, as that is one of the keys to his ability to coax the finest fruit quality from the vineyards. He never buys juice or finished wine, only fruit; he nominates the harvest dates and will pick himself if necessary. In terms of winemaking, this has been one of the most dynamic cellars on the Côte for fifteen years. Leroux works with some 50 appellations, and every wine has its own bespoke treatment according to the conditions of each vintage. This makes it difficult—and sometimes misleading—to generalise about the winemaking. We can say that the cellar is using more and more 600-litre, 1200-litre, and even larger casks for the whites; and more 450-litre to 600-litre barrels for the reds. In regards to wholebunch, generalising is like trying to hit a moving target: in any given year, Leroux works with between 0% and 90%. It depends on what's right for the fruit. Antonio Galloni gives high praise, stating, 'Benjamin Leroux is quiet and unassuming, but his wines more than speak for themselves... These are some of the most interesting wines being made in Burgundy today.' Nose - Orchard Blossoms, Lemon, Toast Inviting richness on the nose, White fruits. light cedary spice. Palate - White Fruits, Nutty, Spicy Rich and toasty on the palate, nutty and spicy, quite marked by the oak but still has lovely fruit at the core. Finish - Lemon Juice, Piercing Stone Minerals, Linear Lemon juices, Stony Minerals, driven by fresh acid line.

Clemens Hill was founded over 20 years ago in a remarkable setting within the bucolic Coal River Valley. The wines of Clemens Hill are and will always be, an expression of the whims of nature inexorably bound to the wisdom of winemaking. Indeed, the pursuit of a vinous expression of place takes precedence over the pursuit of accolades, but perhaps as a result of that philosophy, over time the wines have become festooned with prizes and accolades. Clemens Hill vineyard nestles into the north-east facing slopes of the ancient glacial carving that is the Coal River Valley. It sits just 75m above sea level and is cooled by maritime valley breezes while capturing the bright crystalline sun. It enjoys both shelter and exposure. Rainfall is a capricious 500mm per annum, so it is supplemented with irrigation in times of stress. Flinty minerality with hint of nougat, white peach and mouth-watering lime citrus on the nose. A punchy, powerful palate with delicious salty caramel richness right at the end. On the finish, the fruit powers through and the acid hits a crystal clean note.