It has been an exceptional few weeks for FINE+RARE events. From Hong Kong to London, Milan to the Scottish Highlands, this run of extraordinary occasions – each distinct in character – has been united by the thread that runs through everything we do: bringing people closer to the world's most exceptional wines and spirits in settings that do them justice. Tiberio Dinner Table by Sandy Keung, Hong Kong — Wednesday 21 May The run began with one of the most eye-opening evenings of recent weeks, centred on the wines of Tiberio, the Abruzzo estate whose commitment to a no-oak philosophy — for both fermentation and ageing, with the sole exception of Archivio — continues to challenge assumptions about what Italian wine can achieve without the influence of wood. The evening opened with three vintages of Fonte Canale: 2016, 2018 and 2023. The 2023 drew immediate attention — many guests found it hard to believe that a wine of such depth and power had not seen any oak influence whatsoever. Vibrant acidity and a clear capacity for long-term ageing were immediately apparent. The 2016, with more time in bottle, had moved into more evolved territory, displaying nutty and dried fruit notes while retaining impressive freshness. The 2018 proved a wonderful companion to the mixed clam dish, its texture and salinity enhancing the natural sweetness of the seafood. Among the whites, the standout for many was the Quarmari 2023 — exceptionally aromatic, revealing layers of beeswax, jasmine, caramel, lemon cream, basil and sweet spice. It was universally appreciated around the table, with some guests going so far as to compare its quality and presence to Corton-Charlemagne. The reds were equally compelling. Four vintages of Colle Vota — 2014, 2018, 2019 and 2021 — demonstrated remarkable depth and character across the board. Full-bodied and structured, with pronounced notes of dark fruits, liquorice, cedar, cinnamon and spice, the 2018 and 2021 in particular showed great power and concentration, their style subtly reminiscent, for some guests, of Château de Tours from Rayas. Paired with the lamb neck course, these wines were in their element. What surprised many most was that, despite their weight and complexity, not one had been aged in oak — a testament to the intrinsic power and expression of old vines. The inaugural 2014 vintage of Colle Vota was a particularly memorable moment. Despite showing early tertiary notes, it retained excellent fruit, freshness and structure, offering a compelling demonstration of the outstanding ageing potential these old-vine wines possess. It was an evening that left a very strong impression on everyone present, and a powerful reminder that great winemaking is, above all, about the vine and the land. Update by Jonathan Leung, Sales Manager, Hong Kong Castello di Ama — Vigneto Bellavista Vertical Dinner The River Café, London — Thursday 18 June One of the most memorable evenings of the year so far took place at The River Café, where proprietor Lorenza Sebasti guided a remarkable retrospective of Castello di Ama's Bellavista — the estate's defining wine, drawn from one of the highest and most historic sites in Gaiole in Chianti. Presented across nine vintages spanning more than three decades, from 1990 through to the newly released 2022, the dinner offered a rare opportunity to explore both the evolution and the extraordinary consistency of one of Tuscany's great wines. The oldest vintages were deeply impressive. The 1990, 1995, 2004 and 2006 demonstrated that great Chianti Classico belongs among the world's most ageworthy wines, maintaining freshness, detail and vivacity decades after harvest. For many around the table, however, the greatest surprise came from the 2011 — universally praised and the favourite of numerous guests — which has now entered an ideal drinking window, combining maturity, complexity and harmony in a way that rewards the patience Bellavista has always asked of its admirers. Among the younger vintages, the 2018 impressed for its purity and transparency, while the 2021 and 2022 elevated the conversation further. Both displayed remarkable polish, power and refinement alongside the freshness that has become an increasingly important hallmark of the site. It was the 2022 Bellavista that generated the greatest excitement. Awarded a perfect 100-point score by Antonio Galloni, the wine was the subject of considerable discussion throughout the evening, though the consensus was clear: the score tells only a small part of the story. What made the 2022 so fascinating was what it represents — a convergence of decades of technical progress, viticultural understanding and winemaking refinement in a single wine. It possessed concentration and potency, but delivered these with remarkable elegance, precision and energy. More than any previous vintage tasted, it felt like a blueprint for the future of the estate. Throughout the evening, Lorenza and Arturo offered invaluable personal reflections on the evolution of Castello di Ama, transforming the dinner from a vertical tasting into a living history of one of Italy's great estates. The River Café, with its understated elegance and deep connection to Italian cuisine, proved the perfect setting. The main takeaway was a simple truth: Bellavista is one of Italy's great wines, and only growing in stature and completeness. Across more than thirty years, through changing vintages and shifting climates, it has maintained a consistency of purpose and identity that very few wines anywhere in the world can match. Update by Dara de Lacy, Senior Sales Manager, UK EAWCO Rarities Selection — Bowmore & Springbank Masterclass FINE+RARE HQ, London A masterclass that set the bar high from the very first pour. We were delighted to welcome Christian Leusder, founder and owner of East Asia Whisky Company, to FINE+RARE headquarters for an evening dedicated to some of the rarest independent bottlings in existence. East Asia Whisky Company has been a longstanding and deeply valued partner of FINE+RARE. An exclusive independent bottler built on principles of understatement, exclusivity and meticulous attention to detail, EAWCO's portfolio spans blue-chip distilleries including Macallan, Bowmore, Springbank, Chichibu and Caroni. They remain the only independent bottler to have released multiple successful Mizunara cask bottlings from these houses — releases that have, remarkably, achieved higher prices than the original distillery bottlings of the same vintages. Christian guided guests through the history of the company before leading a tutored exploration of five extraordinarily rare expressions from Bowmore and Springbank: Bowmore PX Mizunara, 31 Year Old Bowmore Japan Edition, 30 Year Old Springbank Lumen Refill Sherry, 30 Year Old Springbank Yokai Series Asanoha Dragon, 24 Year Old Springbank Yokai Series Yurei (Ghost) Cat, 25 Year Old With a few surprises woven in along the way, the evening was a genuine privilege — one of those rare tastings where every bottle opened carries real weight and significance. For those who were unable to attend, a small number of these bottlings remain available, though given how few exist, they are being offered very selectively. All come very highly recommended. Update by Morgan Richards, Senior Account Manager An Extraordinary Journey Through Bordeaux's Greatest Estates Trattoria de La Trebia, Milan — Tuesday 23 June In Milan, an evening of extraordinary ambition brought together a side-by-side exploration of the 2012 and 2014 vintages through Bordeaux's most celebrated First Growth estates and the legendary Petrus. Far more than a tasting, this was a rare opportunity for guests to compare the expression of each château across two very different vintages — discovering how terroir, philosophy and vintage character shape wines that stand among the finest ever produced. The lineup was nothing short of remarkable. Across both vintages, guests tasted Château Margaux, Château Cheval Blanc, Château Haut-Brion, Petrus, Château Lafite Rothschild, Château Mouton Rothschild and Château La Mission Haut-Brion — fourteen wines in all, representing the very pinnacle of Bordeaux winemaking. The tasting was complemented by an exclusive five-course menu designed by the culinary team at Trattoria de La Trebia, crafted to enhance and showcase each wine served throughout the evening. If one wine captured the room above all others, it was the Château Haut-Brion 2012. Explosive from the first moment, with blackcurrant, smoke and herbs, it simply grew in the glass — every passing minute revealing more power, richness and intensity. Full-bodied, multi-layered and framed by wonderfully chewy tannins, this is a wine of real charm: approachable now yet built to last another twenty years with ease. A blend of 65.5% Merlot, 32.5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc, it offers extraordinary quality for its level — the kind of Haut-Brion that gives joy from the very first sip. Not to be missed. The Château Margaux 2012 also showed beautifully, drawing considerable admiration from guests throughout the evening. Designed for collectors, enthusiasts and connoisseurs alike, the dinner brought together extraordinary wines, great conversation and a shared passion for excellence — everything a FINE+RARE evening in Italy should be. Update by Jonathan Bruni, Sales Director, Continental Europe Visit to Hazelwood House Speyside, Scotland — Thursday 25 to Friday 26 June The series closed with something truly special: a private, two-day visit to Hazelwood House, the Gordon family home in the Scottish Highlands and the inspiration behind the House of Hazelwood collection — one of the world's greatest inventories of aged and rare Scotch whisky. Over two days, a small group of guests were given rare access to a world that very few ever see: private tours of the Balvenie and Glenfiddich distilleries, a whisky tasting drawn from House of Hazelwood's private reserves, a Gordon family archive session led by archivist Andy Fairgrieve, and an evening of wine, whisky and storytelling over a four-course dinner at the house itself — each course paired with exceptional wines from FINE+RARE alongside whiskies of extraordinary age and provenance. It was the kind of experience that simply cannot be replicated — not just rare access, but a genuine connection to the family, the place and the history from which these remarkable whiskies come. These past few weeks have captured everything we love about what we do at FINE+RARE – connecting people with the world's most remarkable wines and spirits, in the most exceptional settings, surrounded by the stories and the people that bring them to life.  We look forward to sharing what lies ahead for the rest of the year. Interested in joining us at future events? We are pleased to announce that it is now possible to browse, book and purchase event tickets directly through our website, with all tickets viewable in your portfolio. Get in touch with your account manager or visit frw.co.uk/events to see what's coming up — we'd love to see you at the next one.

Tiberio in Hong Kong, Castello di Ama and rare whiskies in London, First Growth Bordeaux in Milan and a private Scottish estate — a glimpse of our events programme week to week. Plus, you can now purchase event tickets directly through our website.

From a Tiberio dinner in Hong Kong to rare whiskies in Scotland, a look back at recent FINE+RARE tastings, dinners and experiences.

Looking back at our recent events

Last year, the great and the good gathered at the ancestral home of the legendary Gordon family (of William Grant & Sons). A hearty dram was poured for the world’s foremost drinks authorities and they were asked to name the liquid within. So far, so normal in the Scotch whisky world. What happened next is quite unusual. Not one of the experts – with decades of experience and dozens of book credits to their name – could so much as hazard a guess.   The answer to the seemingly simple but dastardly question dumfounded them all. The as-yet-unidentified liquid was a single grain Scotch whisky that had slumbered in a lone Sherry butt for 53 years. Now almost jet-black in colour, the single grain had taken on incredible, rich notes of dried fruits, roasted coffee, and muscovado toffee – and it was indistinguishable from a greatly aged single malt.   The Cask Trials, which is the name given to this highly unusual liquid that left some of the finest palates awestruck and not-so-secretly hoping for a bottle in their gift bag, is just one of the panoply of independently bottled House of Hazelwood releases from the Gordon family’s private Scotch whisky archives.   Somewhat surprisingly, you won’t find a single malt among them. These rare whiskies, which have been amassed over the past 100 years by the owners of Glenfiddich and The Balvenie, were released to the public for the first time in 2022 in two, painfully scarce, collections. The Charles Gordon Collection (all priced above £3,000 per bottle and aged for at least 40 years), and the Legacy Collection (priced between £950 and £2,000 a bottle) are all well-aged blended Scotch, blended grain and blended malt whiskies that have been matured in the most novel ways.   “Bringing old, expensive and unusual blended whiskies to the market is slightly counterintuitive,” House of Hazelwood Director Jonathan Gibson – who was instrumental in creating the range – candidly tells me. “It's not overly common within the industry.”  It’s also not overly common within the industry to bottle liquids of this age and provenance with playful names such as "Blended at Birth", "Sunshine on Speyside" and "The Old Confectioner’s", in understated packaging at these price points.  The liquids are undeniably scarce (once they’re gone, there really is no more) and old (few are under 40 years of age, and the oldest tops 50 years), but they are undeniably unusual and at odds with the highly successful formulaic approach others have followed of encasing precious liquids in highly ornate, priceless vessels that weigh more than a small child.    “They're not concept releases,” Gibson explains. “Everything is driven by the whisky. The packaging is quite straightforward. It's a nice bottle and it's classically engraved but we haven’t collaborated with the hottest designer. The idea is really just to give the whisky room, provide a platform, without overshadowing it,” he adds.   “Over the past 10-15 years – and it's no bad thing at all – you can see a lot more old age-statement single malts coming onto the market,” Gibson says, “And typically they're very straightforward in terms of their naming. It's distillery name, plus age statement equals a certain financial value.  “The naming of these releases is slightly playful, but actually if you look at them one by one, they're very straightforward. It's not quite a Ronseal, ‘it does exactly what it says on the tin’ approach, but it's not too far away from that. If you said ‘Blended at Birth’, it could be seen as quite playful but it's also quite descriptive and the same for ‘The First Drop’ and ‘Sunshine on Speyside’,” he explains.   It's clear Gibson, who has been involved in the project since the start, has genuine affection for the whiskies and the stories each one has to tell. He and the team are custodians of historical artefacts that the Gordon family have not parted with for the best part of a century.  “The First Drop”, for example, is named as such because it is the first liquid to run from the stills at the Gordon family’s Girvan grain distillery on Christmas day in 1964. This is the first and last time it can be purchased. “There's a real emotional tie from the family to these whiskies,” Gibson explains. “For the current family members, it's their dad who laid down these whiskies and he's not around anymore.  “I think it's actually quite difficult for the family to let some of these whiskies go, even though there's a begrudging acceptance that they can't drink such quantities and it was time they cut the cord and let these whiskies go out into the world.”  “There's a general principle that we're following where the whisky is ready to go when it's ready,” Gibson explains, “so we're not chasing down a 60-year-old age statement just so that we can put a big 60 on the bottle.”   It has been a pleasant surprise for all those involved to witness the reception the House of Hazelwood whiskies have received from an occasionally prickly and vocal audience.    “Sunshine on Speyside had an amazing response and it's one of the least expensive whiskies within our range,” Gibson says delightedly.   “It was selected because of its character and its flavour, and named because it has this amazing mango/ pineapple popsicle fruit character that transports you to sunshine and the Caribbean. It's one of those ones where everyone instantly agreed that it had to go into the first collection.   “I thought that everyone would be drawn to the oldest whisky at tastings but actually, this whisky captured the imagination of a lot of the writers and the trade.”   It’s hard to emphasise quite how unusual these whiskies are, as most releases – old or new – are described in hyperbolic terms.   “Blended at Birth”, which was released as part of the first collection, is a blend of malt and grain whisky that was married and matured as new-make spirit. Today, it is against the Scotch Whisky Regulations’ technical file to produce a whisky in this way, as you now have to age the malt and grain whisky components for a minimum of three years separately before blending them, so any liquids of this ilk on the market are painfully scarce.   “Unusual” and “esoteric” aren’t always necessarily loaded with positive connotations – you might take a sip of said liquid, politely smile and then return to something slightly less unusual and more palatable – but these whiskies have incredible balance and depth of flavour, in part because they are blends and not single malt whiskies.    “These old grains in particular are just unbelievable in terms of the flavour,” Gibson says with unfettered joy. “At a younger age, grain whisky is quite neutral in character but once you're past 30 years, if it's aged well, grain whisky has a luscious, delicious quality which adds so much to the final profile of the Scotch.    “The variation in style is enormous,” he continues. “I thought I understood old grain whisky but on exploring the inventory further you see these amazing grains that you didn't really know you could get.”   These whiskies wouldn’t have existed if it wasn’t for the foresight of the Gordon family  – and two brothers, in particular, who changed the company’s stars during the mid-20th century. The young Charles and Sandy Gordon brought much-needed vim and vigour to what could be a bit of a staid industry in the late 1950s. The pair famously refused to kowtow to demands from their grain whisky supplier – instead pulling the contract and setting up their own grain distillery, Girvan, in the 1960s. Charles – or Charlie as he was known – even forwent the comfort of his own home and instead lived in a caravan on-site during the build, riding a bicycle to stealthily check on the workers’ progress. His unconventional methods clearly paid off as the sizeable distillery (which still stands today) was built in a record nine-month period.  During their tenure, the duo also interrogated every aspect of whisky-making from distillation to maturation, resulting in the bold decision to employ an on-site coppersmith and cooper – which are still in situ at many of the William Grant distilleries today – to give the family more control. They were a formidable pair and the business arguably wouldn’t have survived some of the challenging periods in Scotch whisky’s history had it not been for their fortitude.     “There's something about family ownership that means you have a bit more luxury to maybe indulge some of your creative whims,” Gibson says with a wry smile. “This independence enabled them to explore ideas that might have been hard for others to justify to their board of shareholders.”  When other producers would have been forced to make very difficult decisions in order to survive those darker years, the larger, independent William Grant would have been slightly more insulated. Out of curiosity alone, they would have been able to hold on to barrels of maturing liquid and see how they developed over time.  These are the barrels that the House of Hazelwood team – and by extension us – now have access to. Each one has an incredible story – and an even better depth of flavour. With eight releases each year as a minimum – and the suggestion of some partnership releases to come as well – there is an audience, who count the great and the good among their numbers, desperate to venture into this unexplored and curious realm of blended Scotch whisky.  Explore all current listings of House of Hazelwood, browse all whisky or read more Editorial 

Few Scotch whisky releases have incited as much fervour and intrigue as the House of Hazelwood’s independent bottlings from the Grant family’s private cask library. We caught up with Jonathan Gibson to discover why this emporium of curiosities is so tantalisingly unusual

Exploring the success of the independent bottlings from the Gordon family’s extraordinary private collection

The story behind the House of Hazelwood

House of Hazelwood: selling the family jewels

"È stato un anno davvero terribile," dice Mark Gaskain. È settembre 2024 e siamo alla fine di quella che è stata una stagione di crescita difficile in gran parte dell’Europa – con piogge apparentemente senza fine. Fortunatamente, Gaskain sa che tali sfide fanno semplicemente parte del lavoro. È un agricoltore, nato e cresciuto, ora alla guida dell’azienda di famiglia e responsabile della produzione di 70 milioni di mele all’anno. Ma nell’ultimo decennio ha aggiunto un nuovo ramo all’attività – dopo aver venduto un’ampia porzione di terreno nientemeno che a Champagne Taittinger nel 2015. Quel terreno è ora la sede di Domaine Evremond – uno dei progetti di vino inglese più entusiasmanti fino ad oggi. 
 La storia è iniziata quasi un decennio fa. Patrick McGrath – fondatore e CEO di Hatch Mansfield, che rappresenta Champagne Taittinger nel Regno Unito – stava cercando di aggiungere un vino spumante inglese al portafoglio dell’azienda. Erano i primi anni 2010 e lui aveva intravisto un’opportunità in questa categoria nascente – ma Pierre-Emmanuel Taittinger suggerì che, invece di acquisire una tenuta esistente, McGrath avrebbe dovuto crearne una propria, lavorando con Taittinger. Taittinger aveva intrapreso un’iniziativa simile in California, creando Domaine Carneros con il loro agente statunitense, Kobrand, sotto la guida dello zio di Pierre-Emmanuel, Claude. Insieme, decisero di fare il grande passo. 
 Affidarono all’esperto di vini inglesi Stephen Skelton il compito di aiutarli a trovare il sito perfetto – che doveva avere terreni gessosi, pendii esposti a sud/sud-ovest (per la massima esposizione al sole) e un’altitudine inferiore ai 100 metri (con la temperatura che diminuisce di 1°C ogni 100m, qualsiasi cosa al di sopra sarebbe stata semplicemente troppo fredda nel clima marginale inglese). Si decise per il Kent – con facile accesso alla Champagne – ma ci vollero 18 mesi per trovare il sito giusto. Allo stesso tempo, i Gaskain stavano valutando la vendita di una parte dei loro terreni (un’avventura nella frutta morbida si era rivelata difficile e volevano tornare al loro core business delle mele). Il tempismo fu fortunato e i frutteti di Stone Stile Farm – intorno al villaggio di Chilham, a sud-ovest di Canterbury – erano perfetti. Come mi disse Alexandre Ponnavoy (Chef de Cave sia per Taittinger che per Evremond), se un sito può produrre buona frutta – è un buon indicatore del suo potenziale viticolo. Nel 2015, l’accordo fu firmato e il progetto lanciato con grande clamore all’Abbazia di Westminster. Domaine Evremond prende il nome da Charles de Saint-Evremond (1614-1703), un francese, saggista e primo ambasciatore dei vini di Champagne – che li portò alla corte di Carlo II – ed è sepolto a Poets’ Corner. Sebbene Didier Pierson – un viticoltore in Champagne – avesse già prodotto vino inglese sotto l’etichetta Meon Hill, Taittinger fu una delle prime grandi Maison di Champagne a investire in Inghilterra (Pommery aveva acquistato vigneti nell’Hampshire nel 2014). Non sorprende che la copertura mediatica fu estesa: i Champenois stavano arrivando per produrre vino spumante sul nostro territorio – e gli scettici francesi avrebbero dovuto ricredersi mentre il mondo iniziava a riconoscere la qualità dello spumante inglese. 
 Le prime viti di Evremond furono piantate nel 2017, con ulteriori aggiunte nel 2020 (il team si stabilì al Premier Inn locale per affrontare il lavoro in piena pandemia) e nel 2024. Il terreno qui presenta uno strato di argilla alluvionale sopra il sottosuolo gessoso che fa parte del bacino di Parigi, condiviso con gran parte del nord della Francia (inclusa la Champagne). Tuttavia, intorno a Canterbury, c’è più selce nel terreno – qualcosa che, secondo Ponnavoy, emerge chiaramente nel vino, conferendogli un carattere minerale e riduttivo. C’è anche una netta influenza marittima – che modera le temperature ma porta anche brezze oceaniche da Whitstable, che dista solo dieci chilometri. Per Ponnavoy, è la combinazione tra i terreni gessosi del sito, la morbidezza marittima e i venti marini – una “climatologia contrastante” – a definire i vini di Evremond. 
 Gaskain è profondamente coinvolto nel progetto – la sua conoscenza approfondita del territorio è una risorsa inestimabile, sapendo ad esempio dove si trovano le sacche di gelo potenziale o dove il terreno potrebbe essere troppo fertile per le viti. Lui e il suo team gestiscono quotidianamente il sito, guidati da Christelle Rinvelle (Direttrice dei vigneti Taittinger). Attualmente hanno 62 ettari di vigneti, suddivisi tra 45% Chardonnay, 45% Pinot Noir e 10% Meunier. Hanno piantato Chardonnay nelle aree con lo strato di terreno più sottile, consentendo alle radici di accedere quasi direttamente al substrato gessoso, mentre il Pinot Noir e il Meunier si trovano nei lotti più ricchi di argilla e ghiaia. Le viti sono ampiamente distanziate (5.000 viti per ettaro – metà della densità di impianto che Taittinger utilizza in Champagne) e allevate più in alto rispetto all’altra parte della Manica, permettendo una migliore circolazione dell’aria (che aiuta a gestire la pressione delle malattie) e una chioma più ampia (per favorire la maturazione). Sebbene non siano mai stati utilizzati erbicidi e ci sia un impegno concreto verso la sostenibilità, Gaskain è chiaro sui limiti della viticoltura nel Kent: “Il biologico è una follia in questo clima,” mi dice – come forse ha dimostrato il 2024. Sebbene il team disponga di irroratrici specifiche per la vite, Gaskain può anche utilizzare le attrezzature del suo frutteto – un vantaggio quando le condizioni sono difficili – e irrorare l’intero sito in un solo (lungo) giorno. 
 Hanno raccolto quantità minime di frutta nel 2018 e 2019, con la prima vendemmia di dimensioni commerciali proveniente dal 2020 (fortunatamente la vendemmia dell’uva si colloca comodamente tra quella delle Gala e delle Braeburn). I primi vini furono prodotti presso i vicini Simpsons e, dal 2020, si stabilirono in un vecchio fienile di cemento nel sito – con l’intera operazione alimentata da un generatore. Nel giugno 2022, iniziarono i lavori per una nuova cantina (“Eravamo fuori budget quattro settimane dopo l’inizio,” dice McGrath, con un sorriso stanco). La stessa azienda che lavorò al Tunnel della Manica scavò 83.000 tonnellate di gesso (circa 2.000 camion) per far posto all’edificio a tre piani che si estende per 20 metri sotto terra. Progettata dall’architetto di Reims Giovanni Pace, l’idea è che la cantina si integri nel paesaggio – piuttosto che imporsi su di esso. Ha la capacità di immagazzinare 1,5 milioni di bottiglie – tutto senza consumare ulteriore energia per il raffreddamento, grazie al naturale fresco sotterraneo. 
 I lavori sono stati completati in tempo per la vendemmia 2024 – un sollievo indubbiamente per il team. C’è qualcosa di affascinantemente britannico, leggermente improvvisato e da outsider in questa operazione – nonostante i capitali molto seri dietro di essa (finora si parla di 17 milioni di sterline investiti). “Tutti hanno dovuto darsi da fare,” dice McGrath. Potrà essere il CEO di Hatch e uno dei fondatori di Evremond, ma è anche il primo a indossare gli stivali di gomma per aiutare alla vendemmia – e ha trascorso più weekend tra i filari di chiunque altro. Vitalie Taittinger ha preso il posto del padre come Presidente di Taittinger, e la figlia di McGrath, India, gestisce il lato commerciale di Evremond – rendendo l’operazione davvero un’impresa di famiglia, anche se con un certo tocco di eleganza in stile Champenois. Con l’associazione a Taittinger, naturalmente, le aspettative sono altissime – qualcosa di cui McGrath è dolorosamente consapevole. Parlando con Ponnavoy – responsabile della vinificazione sia di Taittinger che di Evremond – c’è stato qualcosa di molto entusiasmante nel creare un progetto da zero, anche se non senza difficoltà. Ha insistito per conservare la piccola vendemmia del 2018 solo per la proprietà, permettendo loro di seguire i vini in vasca per diversi anni e conoscere meglio il sito. È stato un costo enorme e ha ritardato la prima uscita, ma qualcosa che ha ritenuto essenziale. 
 “Era davvero importante non fare la copia di un altro spumante, non produrre uno… ‘stile’,” dice. L’obiettivo, invece, era: “Identificare il terroir, identificare il suolo, identificare il clima e riprodurre tutto ciò nella bottiglia. Trovare l’identità di Evremond.” Inevitabilmente, c’è la tentazione di tracciare paragoni tra Taittinger ed Evremond, ma il team è chiaro sul fatto che si tratta di progetti totalmente separati, con DNA molto diversi. Lavorando con uva inglese, Ponnavoy ha ritenuto fondamentale gestire l’acidità potenzialmente pungente (e il vino subisce quindi una fermentazione malolattica completa), ma – per lui – la sfida più grande era evitare l’amaro che trova comune in alcuni vini inglesi. Gestire i composti fenolici per evitarlo era dunque essenziale, mentre si è concentrato anche sulla consistenza delle bollicine – lavorando per ottenere una mousse molto fine, qualcosa che ritiene distingua il vino dalla concorrenza. 
 Con il tempo, Evremond spera di produrre 400.000 bottiglie all’anno, anche se il primo rilascio ne conta solo 120.000. Ci sono piani per aggiungere una cuvée millesimata e una rosé una volta che le viti saranno mature e avranno imparato a conoscere il sito, ma per ora producono solo la Classic Cuvée non millesimata. Ora, a dieci anni dall’acquisto del terreno, l’Edition 1 della Classic Cuvée è pronta per il rilascio. Per un debutto, è un risultato straordinario – forse non sorprendente, data la caratura dell’operazione. Incredibilmente fine, tesa e stratificata, con note di conchiglia d’ostrica, iodio e selce, è un vino pieno della promessa di ciò che Evremond può realizzare. 
 La Classic Cuvée Edition 1 di Domaine Evremond sarà rilasciata giovedì 3 aprile: contatta il tuo Account Manager per registrare l’interesse o iscriviti qui per ricevere una notifica.

Dieci anni fa, Champagne Taittinger fece qualcosa di inaspettato: acquistò un terreno nel Kent. Alla vigilia dell'uscita del primo vino del progetto, Sophie Thorpe ha incontrato il team di Domaine Evremond per parlare delle sfide e dei successi della loro avventura inglese.

Champagne Taittinger bought land in Kent 10 years ago. As the first wine from the project is released, we talk to the team behind Domaine Evremond

Diving into Domaine Evremond – Taittinger’s new English wine

Alla scoperta di Evremond: il nuovo progetto enologico inglese di Taittinger

In 1991, Jean-Luc Thunevin made the first vintage of Valandraud. In the workshop next to his house, he produced just 100 cases of wine from tiny yields, de-stemming and punching it down by hand and ageing it in 100% new French oak. Although it didn’t have a name yet, the garagiste movement had been born.  As the Super Tuscans had in Italy, these maverick bottlings, operating outside the official classification, rocked the world of wine – especially in the conservative heartland of Bordeaux. At the same time, the likes of Harlan and Colgin were starting to prove the power of Cabernet Sauvignon in Napa. Meanwhile on the East Coast, a lawyer called Robert Parker had already gathered a loyal following for his newsletter, offering independent advice and a novel scoring system. The internet was just getting started. Everything in the world of wine was changing.  “In the 1990s there was formidable energy and consumers who were ready to accept something new,” says Thunevin. But the Bordeaux wine trade was stuck in the Middle Ages, he says; it was aristocratic, closed – and one reason why the garagistes, a collection of outsiders, caused quite such a stir. Thunevin himself had been in banking, while Jonathan Maltus (Le Dôme) was a British businessman and Stephan von Neipperg (La Mondotte) a German interloper. With the challenging conditions of 1991, the first vintage of Valandraud had little impact. He made a tiny volume of red, and then a rosé de saignée that he gave away to friends. “L’histoire, c’est ’92,” Thunevin tells me, almost whimsically. The wine, a product of much more favourable growing conditions, put him on the map. “I created a revolution,” he says today. The 1991 Valandraud was released to négociants for 13€; the 2022 came out at 118€.  It was Michel Bettane who coined the term “vin de garage”, sneeringly suggesting that these new-fangled wines could be made in someone’s garage. But, as Jean-Luc Thunevin told me, “By talking about me, they made me exist.” Without such outrage from wine’s more traditional core, the garagistes likely wouldn’t have had the same success. Combine Bettane’s throwaway comment with the rise of garage music in the US and UK, and the movement gained an accidental cool-factor – but that’s all changed now.  “I don’t think anybody wants to admit they were a garagiste anymore,” Jonathan Maltus – the Englishman who created Le Dôme in 1996 – says. He looks back on the time with relative fondness, however. He’d arrived in Bordeaux in 1994, buying Ch. Teyssier, having sold his petrochemical business and decided after a stint in Cahors that he needed to be in the “Formula One” of wine, making for Bordeaux. It was an English wine merchant who told him how a single-vineyard Pomerol called Le Pin was causing a stir – one of a handful of “cuvée wines” that were becoming incredibly popular. As a canny businessman, he decided to give it a go himself.  “It was really exciting – and there was no budget,” Maltus says frankly, explaining how the movement rapidly became a game of one-upmanship. They would instantly snap up any new machinery or equipment, pushing their concepts further and further to out-do each other. Green-harvesting and picking only the ripest berries in multiple passes was de rigueur; the vines often stripped of their leaves to expose the fruit to the sunshine and maximise ripeness (something climate change has put paid to). Yields were consistently low, with over 30hl/ha considered too much to produce the requisite concentration. Maltus explains how the introduction of double-sorting and cold-soaking was radical – both expensive tools, with the latter requiring protective gas and the ability to chill tanks. He would put the wine into one set of new French oak barrels for malolactic fermentation, before transferring the wine to another batch of new oak for ageing. The resulting wines were bold, rich and lavish. “I like to think of it as a kind of Vivienne Westwood period,” Maltus says.  Ask any of the garagistes who inspired them and they’ll point to, among others, Le Pin. Although owner Jacques Thienpont firmly believes Le Pin is not – and never was – a garage wine; he feels that it is sometimes mistakenly seen as one because it was so successful at the time. Ironically, the wine was originally made in a garage, from just one hectare of vines. It was the sensuality of the wine that inspired Jean-Luc Thunevin, he tells me. He visited Le Pin several times and Thienpont told him that wine was all about the quality of the soil, rather than winemaking. “In the cellar, there are no secrets,” Thienpont says. Thienpont wasn’t Thunevin’s only advisor; Alain Vauthier of Ausone happened to be a school friend, and helped the amateur winemaker.  This tension between terroir and technique is at the heart of the garagiste movement. Jean-Luc Thunevin tells me how Valandraud was not a garage wine, but a “garden wine” – from 300 vines he planted on 0.6 hectares, a single site captured in 300 bottles. For Stephan von Neipperg, who made the first vintage of La Mondotte in 1996, from 4.5 hectares, “It’s a terroir… without an outstanding terroir, you cannot make an outstanding wine.” The garagistes, in his mind, by contrast were about “making the wine easier to understand – round, ripe, sometimes too ripe, extracted” – it’s a term he assigns to the likes of Ch. Gracia – first made in 1997, in a back-alley of Saint-Emilion.  Whether you are convinced these wines were true expressions of site or not, they were a direct contrast to the Médoc Classed Growths – where vast swathes of land were used to create a blend each year. Was it a reaction to the Left Bank’s dependence on blending, maybe even a complacency? Perhaps, but it was also a consequence of what each of them could afford; none of them, at first, had the cash to buy any more land. Thunevin’s methodology, for example, wasn’t idealistic; he had to do everything by hand because he didn’t have a tractor or any other equipment, splurging on new barrels alone, and turning a profit for the first time only in 1995.  It’s hard to untangle the movement from Parker’s influence – but few of the early renditions earned the big scores one expects and associates with these vins de garage. Le Dôme, for example, only earned 100 points in 2010 – long after Maltus had started reining in the style, La Mondotte in 2009. Although 1992 Valandraud kickstarted the movement, Parker only gave it 87-88 points when he first rated it in February 1994. Time blurs lines, inevitably – and, although it’s undeniable that Parker’s palate aligned with plush, polished styles, the truth around his influence is more complicated.   “We realised that the whole thing was just becoming a parody of itself,” Maltus says. He points to 2002 a real turning point, but it was only from 2008 that he stopped double oaking, reduced the proportion of new oak to 80%, and more recently started picking earlier. It’s the same across the spectrum, with many of these rebel estates now part of the formal classification system – absorbed into the establishment.  The instigator Jean-Luc Thunevin was branded Bordeaux’s “bad boy” for having challenged the status quo. It’s a reputation that he worked hard to keep – continually pushing forward (indeed, he even makes wine under the Bad Boy name today). Asking what prompted him to create Valandraud – and make it so differently, he says, “I have always been out of my mind. I always wanted to do things that were a bit shocking.”  Today, Bordeaux has more competitors than ever before, with a world of fine wine that is now truly global. Thunevin feels it’s a region in crisis – in need of another bad boy to take the baton. He was an outsider with nothing but a romantic dream of making wine. Whether you like what he did or not, he changed Bordeaux for good. “Les rêves sont nécessaires à notre équilibre,” he tells me – dreams are essential for our balance. The garage movement was just one chapter in Bordeaux’s lengthy history, but perhaps it’s time for another wave of disruptors – after all, they may just be the key to its long-term survival.  Browse all Bordeaux listings or read more about Bordeaux 

When it comes to wine, little has changed in Bordeaux for centuries – but in the 1990s a group of outsiders shook things up: the garagistes. Sophie Thorpe talks to three of the movement’s leading figures about its legacy – and what it means for Bordeaux today

Talking to Valandraud, Le Dome, La Mondotte and Le Pin about Bordeaux’s garagiste movement and what it means for Bordeaux today

The legacy of Bordeaux’s garagistes

Disrupt and disturb: the legacy of Bordeaux’s garagistes

Burgundy’s vignerons are currently preoccupied with the 2024 vintage – one that has been challenging, with warm, wet weather and high disease pressure, leading to a relatively late harvest in comparison to recent years. But we’ll soon be back on the ground, tasting the 2023s with producers. We’ll be providing a full, detailed report as soon as we can, but – in the meantime – here’s a preview of what to expect from the year.   The 2023 growing season in Burgundy  The growing season wasn’t – for once – hugely eventful in 2023, until the harvest, at least. The winter was warm and dry, delaying budbreak until early April and allowing the region to escape the dangers of frost. The warm weather continued, with a quick and even flowering – promising a generous and homogenous crop. Across the season, rainfall was average for the region. Showers seemed to arrive when needed to support vine growth, with some storms in June, but any disease pressure was easily handled by producers. There was a little localised hail in July, with some damage reported in Meursault.  The first grapes were brought in from 25th August (starting with those destined for Crémant de Bourgogne). Fruit destined for still wines started coming in from the very end of August: 29th for Alvina Pernot, Au Pied du Mont Chauve and Louis Jadot following on 4th September, and Samuel Billaud in Chablis on 11th, with all the fruit in by the end of September. Just as harvest got underway, however, temperatures soared: making for incredibly challenging conditions. As Frédéric Barnier at Jadot explained, it was the first time they’d had to pick in the middle of a heatwave – but was, as he said, “probably our future”. The challenge was largely human: ensuring the safety of those out in the vines picking. There were widespread reports after five people died further north in Champagne due to the strenuous conditions. Some producers harvested at night, or as early as possible once dawn broke, ensuring they stopped before the heat of the day set in, to reduce the risk to pickers. Barnier explained that, although challenging for the team, the hot spell was helpful for the reds. While they picked the whites, the conditions allowed the Pinot Noir to concentrate and gain density, as well as reducing the sometimes-extreme volumes.  The yields were so generous (thanks to the even flowering, warm conditions and plentiful rainfall) that green harvesting was key. Frédéric Weber of Bouchard explained how the vineyards were “a wall of grapes” and they had to drop half the crop. Faiveley green harvested across 80% of its vines. Nevertheless, producers saw record volumes, even on normally low-yielding old vines. At Heresztyn-Mazzini, they reported finding single bunches on their old vines that weighed half a kilo, and Cyril Audoin found he was at the legal maximum even on his oldest plots. At Domaine des Lambrays, Jacques Devauges reported that there’s a third more of their Grand Cru Clos des Lambrays in the vintage, with an impressive 40hl/ha. There were even reports of producers reaching 100hl/ha in potential crop.  Although most vignerons saw even higher yields than 2022, that wasn’t universally the case – as at Lamarche and Hubert Lamy, who both brought in slightly smaller crops than the year before. Even at these addresses, however, producers are happy to have full cellars – and with high-quality wines too.  Key decisions for Burgundy 2023  “It was hard to make bad wines in 2022, but was very easy to take wrong decisions in 2023,” said Louis-Michel Liger-Belair of Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair when we visited him last year.  Harvest dates are always important when it comes to the pernickety Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, but there were many elements to consider in this vintage. Space was a challenge for some producers, on a purely practical level, needing the requisite number of tanks at the right time to allow them to harvest at the right time. The hot end to the season risked losing freshness, so preserving acidity – especially in the whites – was key. As mentioned above, managing the crop-load was important, balancing quantity and quality. Yields were less of a concern when it came to the white grapes, as Chardonnay is better able to manage high yields, however there was potential concern over concentration for the reds. Good producers, of course, are well aware of the need to balance the vine to avoid any potential dilution – and handled the season to harvest a good crop of high-quality fruit.  With the Chardonnay, Barnier explained how at Jadot they blocked the malolactic on some lots to retain freshness; while for the reds, sorting was important (to remove any shrivelled berries) and saignée common. At Jadot, they bled off between 10 and 20% of the juice. We haven’t yet spoken to many producers regarding élevage; with higher volumes, however, we anticipate that there may be higher portions of new oak at some addresses, while others will have looked to alternative vessels to complement their “standard” portion of wood.  The style of the wines in 2023  So far, we’ve tasted very little – only the whites from Samuel Billaud and Alvina Pernot (both of which were very impressive – find more on these below), and we’ll be reporting more once we’ve been out to taste more comprehensively. We can, however, tell you what producers are saying – and what we’re expecting based on the growing season and our conversations so far.  Following on from the good yields of 2022, 2023 was another plentiful vintage – allowing producers to replenish stocks, and cellars are looking much less bare. With the warm weather and good rainfall, the wines are riper than the 2022s, quite generous in style, with an approachability that means they will drink well in youth – yet don’t let that fool you into thinking they don’t also have good acidity.  We have heard rumours of heterogeneity, and – as ever – producer decisions are key in determining success; with the human hand likely more important than site this year. Those that over-cropped risked producing dilute wines – but they are undoubtedly in the minority, and lesser names. That said, from what we’ve tasted and heard, there is good consistency across sites – from village through to Premier and Grand Cru, and across the Côte d’Or.  Alcohol levels are average for the region – sitting between 12% for Bourgogne or village wines, and up to 13.5% for some Grands Crus. The reds are not powerhouses; Jean-Marie Fourrier compared them to 2009 for their ripeness and the generous yields, but Barnier at Jadot feels they sit between the 2017s and 2019s in terms of richness, with a “buvabilité” (“drinkability”) that is very appealing. We expect the whites to be particularly strong this year – offering similar acidity levels to 2022, but additional richness.  At Alvina Pernot, it’s brilliant to see the style develop – with a very complete range of effortless composure; we loved all the wines, but the Meursault Perrières was an undeniable highlight. Alvina Pernot and Philippe Abadie love the purity and balance in their wines, and suggest the 2023s are a blend of the 2020 and 2022 vintages, while Barnier points to a vintage somewhere between 2015 and 2018. The 2018 vintage is also the reference point for Samuel Billaud in Chablis, whose wines were already enticingly aromatic in July this year – precise and gourmand, with a satisfying suppleness.  News from the region  Burgundy, more than ever before, is a region constantly shifting, with land changing hands, producers and ranges evolving. Here are some of the key developments to be aware of for the vintage:  William Fèvre: This benchmark Chablis producer was acquired by Domaines Barons de Rothschild (of Ch. Lafite Rothschild fame) and 2023 will be the first vintage under their ownership – although be reassured that longtime winemaker Didier Séguier remains in situ.  Alvina Pernot: Alvina Pernot stepped down from her family estate (Domaine Paul Pernot) in time for the 2023 harvest, to focus exclusively on her project with husband Philippe Abadie. There is also a new Premier Cru in the line-up this year – Puligny-Montrachet Champs Gains.  Henri Boillot: The 2023 is the 40th vintage that Henri Boillot has produced of their monopole Clos de la Mouchère – a site to which he is rightfully attached. He also noted that the range is around 90% domaine in the vintage.  Hubert Lamy: The 2023 vintage is the first to be made in his new, enlarged cellar.  Charles van Canneyt: The star winemaker behind Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat purchased Domaine des Chézeaux and the 2023 vintage will see the first wines made by him from the estate (under a name that remains to be confirmed). The acquisition brought some prime vineyards, including Griotte-Chambertin, Chambertin, Clos Saint-Denis and Lavaux-Saint-Jacques.  Duroché: The 2023 will be the first vintage of a new Corton from Duroché (half a hectare in Corton Rognet). Technically it is négoce, but is domaine in all but name as they are farming the site themselves.  Olivier Bernstein: Although the Bernstein team has long been farming organically, the 2023 vintage is the first on their path to official certification.  Bouchard Père & Fils: Since Artémis Domaines (the Pinault family of Ch. Latour) purchased the company in 2022, Bouchard has been winding down their négoce operation and the 2023 vintage will be the last for the final few négoce wines, with the range domaine-only from 2024.   What we know so far about Burgundy 2023  A relatively uneventful growing season with a heatwave during harvest  A plentiful crop of good-quality approachable reds and whites  Alcohol levels are average for the region, between 12 and 13.5%  The whites expected to be particularly strong, combining richness and good levels of acidity  The reds seem juicier in style, destined to drink well in their youth and for the medium term  A vintage where producer decisions rather than site seem to have dictated the style of the wines   Keep your eyes peeled for further coverage of the Burgundy 2023 in the coming weeks. In the meantime, browse all available Burgundy 2023. 

Next month our team will be heading out to Burgundy to taste and dig into the 2023 vintage. Ahead of our full report and as the first wines are released en primeur, here’s everything we know so far

Ahead of our full report on Burgundy 2023, here’s everything we know about the vintage, the growing season and the wines produced

A first look at the Burgundy 2023 vintage

Burgundy 2023: first look

Entrare nella bottai­a della Ch. Smith Haut Lafitte è come fare un salto nel passato, pieno dell’odore del legno stagionato, di un fuoco aperto e degli stessi attrezzi che i bottai usano da secoli. Poche tenute hanno il lusso di un bottaio interno. Sebbene i produttori lavorino inevitabilmente a stretto contatto con le tonnellerie (aziende produttrici di botti, come François Frères, Stockinger e altre), avere un artigiano in loco, che lavora fianco a fianco con il team di cantina per creare botti esclusivamente per il proprio terroir è un’altra cosa. “È molto importante per la precisione del vino”, spiega il Cellar Master Yann Laudeho. 
 Florence e Daniel Cathiard, proprietari della tenuta di Pessac-Léognan, hanno costruito una bottaia in loco quasi 30 anni fa, nel 1995, e l’attuale bottaio, Yann Dez, lavora qui dal 2021. Il padre del nativo di Bordeaux era un metalmeccanico, e Dez è entrato nel mondo della fabbricazione delle botti del tutto per caso – aveva un amico tonnelier e si è aperta un’opportunità di lavoro al momento giusto. Prima che se ne rendesse conto, Dez aveva imparato il mestiere da alcuni dei migliori bottai del paese (incluso uno che ora realizza le botti a Ch. Margaux), passando 15 anni a lavorare sotto Didier Fesil. Fesil fu il primo bottaio della famiglia Cathiard nel 1995, poi fondò una piccola tonnellerie propria (Tonnellerie Bordelaise) ed è stato nominato il miglior “Maestro Bottaio” della nazione – due volte. In effetti, Fesil è ancora molto coinvolto nella tenuta, aiutando a scegliere il legno per le botti e consigliando su tutto ciò che riguarda la quercia; ed è stato Fesil a proporre Dez per il ruolo a Smith Haut Lafitte. “Non ci sono libri,” dice Dez, quando chiedo dell’arte della costruzione delle botti. “Si tramanda da tonnelier a tonnelier." Le prime testimonianze della bottaia come mestiere risalgono al 900 a.C. – con l’arte tramandata di generazione in generazione da allora. “Io continuo la tradizione,” dice Dez, chiaramente con un senso d’orgoglio per questa antica abilità artigianale. Ma con la polvere, il rumore e il lavoro fisico coinvolti, le scuole di tonnellerie, mi racconta Dez, faticano a reclutare giovani. È comune che i bottai abbiano problemi alle spalle e alle orecchie (a causa del martellare continuo) – e lo stesso Dez si è rotto un gomito. 
 In teoria, il processo può essere meccanizzato – ma Dez è chiaro su quanto sia importante lavorare a mano, e non solo per preservare quest’arte antica. “Sento col naso, percepisco la resistenza,” dice. Ogni botte, spiega, è diversa – con un numero di doghe leggermente diverso e una forma leggermente diversa, tutto adattato in base al legno con cui sta lavorando. Selezionare il legno giusto è fondamentale – “leggerlo”, spiega, osservando la grana per vedere dove ci sono potenziali punti deboli, capire dove si eserciterà la maggior pressione e collocare ogni doga di conseguenza, assicurandosi che nemmeno una goccia possa filtrare dalla botte finita. “È un lavoro che è sia fisico, sia al tempo stesso richiede pensiero,” dice Dez – e questa combinazione è gran parte del suo fascino per lui. È affascinante sentire come Dez parla delle botti; per lui, ognuna ha una personalità unica. Quando gli chiedo come sa di aver fatto una botte davvero buona, alza le spalle: “On le sent.” (“Lo senti.”) Mentre si tosta una botte, mi racconta, il profumo del fumo cambia, rilasciando aromi diversi – cosa che sento mentre lavora davanti a me. Sapere quando ha passato il tempo perfetto sul fuoco è il segreto – e riguarda più del semplice odore, è un istinto viscerale che non riesce del tutto a spiegare. 
 Smith Haut Lafitte approvvigiona quercia da una gamma di foreste, e prova continuamente legni di diverse foreste, tostature e fa degustazioni alla cieca, anche se – dopo oltre 25 anni – sanno cosa funziona per il loro vino e il loro terroir. Il Cellar Master Laudeho spiega che, per lui, Tronçais e Jupilles sono i migliori – “diamanti” che completano alla perfezione il loro sito. E l’equilibrio è la chiave; il legno lavora per il vino, non il contrario. 
 Sembra un lavoro solitario, commento, a martellare nella sua torre – ma non è qualcosa che lo disturbi. “Sono un po’ perfezionista,” mi dice. Avere solo se stesso su cui contare, e sapere di poter garantire che ogni botte soddisfi i suoi standard rigorosi, gli si addice. In effetti, non si accontenta nemmeno degli strumenti standard – la maggior parte se li costruisce da solo, progettati su misura per adattarsi al suo modo di lavorare. Mi descrive un martello specifico che ha realizzato, e come gli consente di lavorare meglio e con maggiore precisione, il manico in legno quasi setoso per le ore di utilizzo, modellato sulla sua mano. Le uniche tecnologie elettroniche che si sono guadagnate un posto qui sono le cuffie con cancellazione del rumore e un altoparlante Marshall. Nel tempo libero è musicista, e un ulteriore vantaggio del lavorare da solo è che può passare tutta la giornata ad ascoltare musica. “Tutte le botti che ho fatto,” dice, “sono fatte con la musica.” Evita tutto ciò che è troppo moderno o elettronico, preferendo il vecchio jazz, con un po’ di reggae, ska jazz e funk nel mix, a seconda del giorno. Sebbene non senta che la musica che ascolta influenzi la sua attività di bottaio, sospetta che il suo umore lo faccia – e la musica ne è una parte importante. 
 La lavorazione del legno è molto più di un lavoro per Dez. Scorgo un bellissimo baule accanto al suo altoparlante, ed è uno che ha realizzato lui. Ha anche un laboratorio a casa, trascorrendo il tempo libero a costruire di tutto, dai supporti per chitarra e giocattoli ai lampadari – qualsiasi cosa, dice, che non sia dritta, e quindi non possa davvero essere fatta da una macchina. 
 È straordinario guardarlo lavorare – nello stesso modo in cui i bottai hanno fatto per secoli – con una naturale intuizione, facilità e precisione. C’è sicuramente qualcosa di musicale in tutto ciò, un mestiere che ha un suo ritmo. Realizza circa 300 botti all’anno, e forse non sono solisti – ma ognuna contribuisce con la propria nota alla sinfonia di quell’annata. 
 Esplora tutte le inserzioni attuali di Ch. Smith Haut Lafitte oppure leggi di più su Bordeaux

Le botti di legno riempiono la maggior parte delle migliori cantine del mondo e molte sono realizzate a mano. Proseguendo la nostra serie che vi porta dietro le quinte di Bordeaux, ci siamo intrufolati nella bottega di Smith Haut Lafitte per scoprire di più su questa speciale arte.

We visited Pessac-Leognan’s Smith Haut Lafitte to talk to the wine estate’s master cooper, Yann Dez – and find out all about the art of barrel-making

Meeting Smith Haut Lafitte’s Master Cooper

Lavorare a ritmo: Master Cooper di Smith Haut Lafitte

2018 Ch. Mauvesin Barton (in jeroboam) + Champagne Elise Bougy, Le Mesnil – chosen by Damien Barton-Sartorius  “To me, a meal is always about a moment. Sometimes very important ones such as announcing a baby, sometimes it’s more casual as would be a meetup with friends. I like to think that the bottle should never be more important than the moment. It should not frustrate the generous person who wanted to share a special bottle that becomes overlooked – or even worse steals the show... Unless it is the show! The special bottle then becomes a moment of its own. It is an interesting thing (and sometimes fun!) to taste great labels blind, judge them on their value/pleasure. But it tears away what wine should be: excitement. If I am going to drink a Mouton Rothschild 1945, I honestly don’t really care if it’s good or not. It’s a piece of history in a bottle that I will be sharing with friends and I would really like to know this ahead of time so I can be excited about it for as long as possible. Just like planning holidays ahead!  “Christmas is an important moment but the moment is family, not the wine that will be put on the table. I want a wine that will trigger some chat. Briefly – before enjoying the wine as a lovely drink, fuel of diverse conversations. There should be enough of it to spend some time with it. Aim for large format. We all know that even a magnum can be short…  “To be very personal here, I just got married and I will spend my first Christmas Eve with my wife’s family. A bit of home, some volume to enjoy and share: Ch. Mauvesin Barton 2018 in jeroboam is my choice for dinner. Oh but what would Christmas be without Champagne… a sneaky bottle to share only with my wife before the dinner: Elise Bougy Le Mesnil. Now I am excited for Christmas!”  Damien Barton-Sartorius is the 10th generation of his family to run the Bartons’ Saint-Julien Classed Growth estates (Ch. Langoa Barton and Ch. Léoville Barton), while his sister Mélanie is at the helm of Ch. Mauvesin Barton, together continuing their grandfather Anthony’s and mother Lilian’s legacy. 2010 Ch. Latour, Pauillac – chosen by Jonathan Maltus  “We’re drinking Ch. Latour 2010. There are 10 of us – all family – two grandparents, four parents and the rest kids. As a family we don’t enjoy turkey so we have beef Wellington – which I’m hoping this will go well with.” Jonathan Maltus is the man behind the Saint-Emilion property Le Dôme, one of Bordeaux’s original garagistes. 2001 Richebourg, Grand Cru. Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat – chosen by Charles van Canneyt “For dinner, a Richebourg 2001. Perfect to drink now and taking full advantage of the complexity and power of a Richebourg – with a good capon! We had Suchots 2017 – all about the fruit – when we put up the tree, a vintage that’s approachable young and very enjoyable!”  Charles van Canneyt is one of Burgundy’s most talented winemakers. The young vigneron is at the helm of Domaine Hudelot-Noëllat, based in Chambolle-Musigny, and also has a négociant label under his own name.  2015 Ch. Haut-Bailly + 2019 Meursault, Les Vireuils, Domaine Roulot – chosen by Véronique Sanders “It’s so very difficult to choose just one bottle… while many people start their celebration with Champagne I always love to start (and finish) with a glass of Sauternes or Barsac. Right now I am loving Ch. Haut-Bailly 2015 which is so charming and is pure pleasure! Of course I also love wines outside of Bordeaux – white Burgundy being my weakness… I have my eye on a bottle of Domaine Roulot Meursault Les Vireuils to share with the family this year.”  Véronique Sanders is the powerhouse at the helm of Ch. Haut-Bailly, the leading Pessac-Léognan estate.  2018 Paul Cluver Estate Chardonnay, Elgin, South Africa – chosen by Spencer Fondaumiere  “I grew up in Nairobi at a time when the wine scene was not nearly as advanced as it is now. My mother enjoyed her wine. My dad was a beer man through and through. What was regularly available was wine sold in five-litre boxes labelled as ‘late harvest’, with just enough sweetness to interest you to get to the bottom of the bottle – or more accurately the last dredges of the cask. I have now lived in Cape Town for the last 11 years and my wine appreciation has grown a little bit beyond the voluminous late harvest on tap.  “Christmas is a time for family and my mom and dad will be spending the holidays with me and my family. Since I last saw her, Mom has developed an appreciation for cool-climate Chardonnay and I am quite keen to crack open this bottle that has a bit of age on it. I am hoping it will be like nothing she has ever tasted before and I am hoping even more that she will like it. Dad, on the other hand, remains partial to beer, but every Christmas I optimistically open a bottle and hope that this will be the wine that converts him into a wine lover. That being said, there is not too much 2018 Chardonnay hanging about so it may not be the worst thing if this doesn't turn out to be the one.”  Spencer Fondaumiere is one of the most exciting names on Africa’s wine scene. The Kenyan chef-turned-sommelier and serial entrepreneur is now Chairman of the South African Sommelier Association and has two businesses – using his expertise to advise wine-drinkers, restaurants and producers via Slowgold and Wineyard East Africa. A trio of Bouchard’s best – chosen by Frédéric Weber  “For Christmas with my family, I have planned a 2016 Meursault Genevrières to accompany the foie gras that my sister makes herself every year. I like the combination because our Genevrières has just the right freshness and delicacy, especially in 2016, to awaken the tastes and accompany the sweetness of foie gras seasoned with a touch of Sichuan pepper and a hint of fleur de sel, a great match! With the duck, of course a Beaune Grèves Vigne de l’Enfant Jésus 2003. Two-thousand-and-three was my first vintage in the house [at Bouchard], 20 years ago already, great memory of this harvest and Baby Jesus is a nice wink for Christmas Eve! And then a Corton 2013, my mum loves Le Corton and we don't refuse her anything.”  Frédéric Weber is the detail-oriented Head Winemaker at Bouchard, one of Burgundy’s leading, quality-focused producers and négociants. He has been at the company since 2002, taking over fully from his predecessor Philippe Prost from the 2014 vintage.  Champagne Corbon, Brut d'Autrefois, Avize (and a couple of back-up bottles) – chosen by Chris Gaither MS  “Christmas is always a special time of the year for my family. My wife, Rebecca (also a Master Sommelier), who is Jewish, always looks forward to the combo of Hanukkah and Christmas celebrations back-to-back, especially with our young daughters. We tend to favour multiple evenings of delicious food and drink that we can enjoy, albeit with moderation. And she and I rarely finish a bottle when drinking together at dinner, if it's only the two of us sipping. Surprised? It’s partially because we have two kids and run two businesses (Ungrafted and GluGlu), so work doesn’t stop even after dinner! So, on Christmas evening we'll be having a low-key 'Jewish' Christmas dinner, with a few other Jewish families. We are going to order Chinese food from one of our favourite restaurants in Millbrae (Wonderful is the name if you'd like to know), and chow down on some tasty dishes with a few of our favourite bottlings from producers we admire.  “Rebecca and I are huge fans of Champagne, and most times if you ever see us sipping on something together, it's usually just that. Champagne Corbon is a tiny grower based in the Vallée de la Marne (run by Agnès Corbon – ladies rule!), but they sell a good portion of their fruit from their vineyards there. They own two hectares of vineyards in Avize, of which they use to produce most of their wines. The Brut d'Autrefois is based on a 35-plus-year-old perpetual reserve (or solera) that is roughly based on 90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Noir. The solera consists of a single neutral oak vat that is 50% drained each year for bottlings of D'Autrefois, and then refreshed with a new year's vintage. Delicious, exuding a bit of richness, with nice texture, and loads of complexity. We were fortunate enough to get a few bottles of these, and I think we'll be drinking the last one we have... for now... The other bottles are ‘just in case’ bottles that we love.  “2018 Domaine Weinbach, Riesling Schlossberg, Grand Cru, Alsace: Who doesn't like Riesling? Any sommelier with street cred will tell you to drink more Riesling – it's routinely underappreciated in the world of wine, and you can get fantastic examples that are made with the same care as Grand Cru wines in other regions, but at less than half the price. Weinbach is one of our favourite domaines within Alsace, and it is currently run by Catherine Faller (again, shoutout to all the ladies making the magic happen in wine!) and her sons, Eddy and Theo. This Riesling is coming from their holdings in Schlossberg, the first Grand Cru to be ratified in Alsace in 1975. The wine almost always has a deftly balanced touch of botrytis, with lovely bruised apple and peach, with a very noticeable meyer lemon twang on the finish.   “2011 Fixin, Premier Cru, Clos de la Perrière, Domaine Joliet Père & Fils: This particular vineyard is a monopole within the village of Fixin, and this bottling is 100% Pinot Noir. It is run by Bénigne Joliet, who purchased the vineyard from his other family members in 2004, with the goal of making the Clos de la Perrière one of the more famous vineyards in the Côte de Nuits in Burgundy. Rebecca had the opportunity to visit the estate and meet Bénigne back in 2014 on a visit. She purchased the bottle of 2011 Clos de la Perrière on this trip. I’m super excited to drink it with her! She’s great at putting bottles away and not touching them!”  Chris Gaither MS was born in Atlanta and started working in hospitality to help pay the bills while at college. He gradually fell into the wine side, becoming hooked and – after a stage at The French Laundry in 2008 – launched into San Francisco’s wine scene, working at top restaurants and earning various awards. He became the fourth black person to pass the Master Sommelier exam when he passed in 2022. Married to a fellow Master Sommelier, Rebecca Fineman, together they own and run two restaurant/wine bars, Ungrafted and Glu Glu, in San Francisco. 2003 Chinon, Les Roches, Domaine Alain & Jérôme Lenoir – chosen by Ivan Massonat  “Of the (many) bottles I intend to open, one is high on my expectation scale: a 2003 Chinon from Domaine Lenoir. It’s a bare bottle, without any label nor cap, that I bought from Jérôme [Lenoir] a couple of years ago, after a few hours of tasting down in his ‘cellar of wonders’. After tasting several decades, 2003 had struck me as super fresh and elegant, like magically untouched by the famous 2003 summer heatwave in France. I would like to open it for New Year’s Eve, with one my best friends from high school who’s also a wine lover – and not a label drinker!” Ivan Massonat is the ex-financier that created Domaine Belargus, the Anjou estate that has fast become one of the Loire’s most famous, shining a light on its varied terroir through a single grape – Chenin Blanc. Stellar Spanish and South American bottles – chosen by Carlos de Carlos  “This year we have some cousins from the USA that will come home for Christmas evening and dinner. As they come to try some good South American wines, I will drive them around some of my all-time favourites for dinner. So the selection will be: Baettig Los Primos Chardonnay 2021 for the aperitivo. A wine that shows the very best of the south of Chile with a finesse and minerality that I love. Then Viña Cobos Chanares Malbec 2018 – one of my favourite wines in Argentina coming from Los Arboles in Tunuyán, Valle de Uco. Really special vintage from a really unique vineyard! And the grand finale will be Vega Sicilia Unico Reserva Especial 2008-2009-2010 [the 2020 release] – not only because the wine itself, but also because it was a very special present for my birthday that a very close friend gave me… and will be tasted alongside my favourite dish, Spanish paella.” The charming Carlos de Carlos is one of the founders of Baettig, along with winemaker Francisco Baettig, a Chilean producer that is one of our favourites. A flight of Champagne, Burgundy and Bordeaux – chosen by Blandine de Brier Manoncourt  “This Christmas my family will begin with a fabulous Champagne, Laurent Perrier’s Grand Siècle Itération No. 26, which we will enjoy as an apéritif around the tree. At the table, our dinner will begin with Corton-Charlemagne from our dear friend Stéphane Follin-Arbelet, the 2008 vintage, which will pair perfectly with a lobster dish. Next is, of course, Figeac! First the 2010 vintage of Ch. Figeac – it is magnificent right now, and goes very well with truffled capon. Finally we will enjoy our favourite vintage of Ch. Figeac, the 1990. We wish everyone a very happy Christmas and a wonderful New Year!”  Blandine de Brier Manoncourt is daughter of the iconic Thierry Manoncourt who established Figeac’s modern reputation. Having studied at Sciences Po Bordeaux, she is Co-owner and General Secretary, especially involved in managing the property’s heritage.  2001 Ch. Figeac – chosen by Frédéric Faye  “My family is very excited this year to serve one of my favourite vintages of Ch. Figeac at our Christmas dinner, the 2001. This is a vintage in its full maturity, a vintage which sadly is often overlooked by wine-lovers but is in fact one of the great references of the property. Fresh, elegant, with a beautiful concentration… it will pair perfectly with ris de veau in a sauce à la morille. Wishing a happy Christmas and New Year to you and your families!”  Frédéric Faye is Managing Director of Ch. Figeac, where he has been working for over two decades, having arrived as an intern in 2002. Blanquette de Limoux, Antech, Brut Nature – chosen by Christina Stanley  “I share a holiday tradition of sipping bubbles with my mum while cooking, before any guests or family arrive. My dad suffered a stroke back in 2014, and she is his caretaker. Last year, when she tasted Varnier-Fannière Blanc de Blancs, she said, “This tastes like every good time I have ever had,” but Champagne is not what we drink while cooking. You know what’s great with a splash of orange juice? Antech Blanquette de Limoux Brut Nature. It has delightfully bright, lemony acidity, an abundance of chalky minerality, and it’s inexpensive. The main grape is Mauzac, locally known as ‘Blanquette’. Wonderful as a versatile aperitif and perfect as a Mimosa base, Blanquette de Limoux plays a starring role in any holiday gathering.”  Christina Stanley is an Advanced Sommelier and the Wine Director at The Slanted Door Napa – an outpost of Charles Phan’s group of legendary restaurants that are a reference point for fine dining and modern Vietnamese food. 2008 Merlot, Miani, Colli Orientali del Friuli – chosen by Michele Dal Forno  “I think I would pick a Merlot from Miani. Enzo, the owner, is truly the ‘last of Mohicans’ of vignerons in Italy, as he is seriously devoted to his vines and the wines he makes are a pure expression of each varietal he grows. I was lucky enough to taste many of his wines last summer with himself and some other friends and I was shocked by the genuineness of them all. In particular the Merlot 2008 was so fresh and rich that I was literally blown away when I tasted it. If you want to understand how an authentic Merlot should taste, Miani is the one.”  Michele Dal Forno is one of Romano Dal Forno’s sons, founder of the legendary eponymous Valpolicella estate  1988 Ch. Montelena, Napa – chosen by Maya Dalla Valle   “After a fantastic 2023 harvest, we are relaxing and celebrating this holiday season. At our most recent team holiday dinner we decided to open a magnum of 1988 Ch. Montelena to commemorate the successes of the 2023 growing season and vintage. With the recent passing of Mike Grgich, it was also an homage to one of the great winemakers of Napa. The wine was stunning, and well appreciated by all of us as red wine producers.”  Having travelled and made wine around the world, Maya Dalla Valle returned to Napa in 2017 to make wine with her mother Naoko at Dalla Valle, as well as embarking on a new project in collaboration with Ornellaia, DVO. 2016 Champagne Henriot, L’Inattendue – chosen by Stefan Neumann MS  “Expect the ‘unexpected’! Henriot’s single expression of Avize called L’Inattendue (translating literally as ‘the unexpected’) from the 2016 vintage is something I look forward to sharing with my family on Christmas Day. Full of energy, this pure Chardonnay gives me on the one hand the comforting softness of spiced pear and golden apple, but on the other hand the razor-sharp freshness of lemon and orange peel. This, in front of the family’s Kachelofen (tiled ceramic stove), paired with a freshly cured trout, might sound simple yet is heaven to me. If life has taught me one thing – you can’t beat an old-time classic.”  Austrian-born Master Sommelier Stefan Neumann cut his teeth at restaurants in Vienna and Salzburg before moving to the UK. He’s worked at many of Britain’s most illustrious establishments, most recently on the floor at The Fat Duck. Today he works as a consultant, using his extensive expertise to advise clients and companies. Explore more Editorial 

There’s no better time than Christmas to crack open a bottle of something special. We asked some of the biggest names in the industry – from top sommeliers to superstar winemakers – to tell us what they’re uncorking this year, and why

We asked some of the biggest names in the wine industry – from top sommeliers to superstar winemakers – to tell us what they’re uncorking this year, and why 

What the wine world is drinking this Christmas 

What those in the industry are drinking this Christmas

With the recent fruitful set of vintages from practically all the classic French regions, you would be forgiven for thinking one is spoilt for choice for quality and even quantity. The utter devastation across France’s vineyards this spring, however, due to persistent and heavy frosts, was a real wake-up call. There will be very little wine made in 2021 throughout France and the scarcity in the next 12 months will be a reminder of just how volatile and vulnerable wine production can be. Chablis took a particularly big hit, with production set to be down by as much as 80%. Expect to see global shortages of the more basic appellations (Petit Chablis, Chablis and Bourgogne Blanc) imminently, with 2020 stocks of these wines already largely sold. With this in mind, we look at the Premier Cru and Grand Cru 2020 releases with added interest and gratitude. Fortunately, it turned out to be another hugely successful vintage for the region (and Burgundy more generally), yet quite different in character to 2018 and 2019. Like much of Western Europe, Chablis experienced the warmest 12 months of temperatures on record, warmer even than 2003. This meant a very early start to the 2020 growing season and, while there were outbreaks of frost, the damage remained minor, particularly when compared to 2021. It was, according to Domaine Long-Depaquit’s Matthieu Mangenot, “a very easy vintage to manage, in terms of viticulture”. With a 40% reduction in rainfall and over 300 hours more sunshine than average, there were next to no disease issues in the vineyard. The dry weather even retarded weed outbreaks and this meant little to no spraying was required in the vineyards. But this shortage of water was bound to also stress the vines. “The drought caused the vines to slow down the maturation process of the grapes,” explained Mangenot. “This was quite an unusual phenomenon.” Since the growing season had started early, vignerons were looking to pick early, but the sugar in the grapes remained low throughout the summer and was only rising very slowly, pushing picking dates later and later. While this raised concerns over when to pick, it also provided many benefits to the final wine – benefits that would only become apparent after fermentation. For Mangenot, the very slow maturation process allowed more acidity to be retained. The berries also remained very small, helping to increase concentration. Despite this, the potential alcohol remained very reasonable – producing much more “classic” levels in the finished wines, around 12.2-12.5%. The other advantage of this slow ripening was that, unlike in the last few hot vintages, there was a lot more time at harvest to pick. Vignerons could take their time and pick certain plots only at optimum ripeness. In fact, after a couple of days spent harvesting the more mature vineyards, Long-Depaquit took a two-day break and slowed down the picking, just to enable the grapes to reach that extra level of maturity. While Domaine William Fèvre’s Didier Séguier was concerned about the effect of the sun’s intensity in July, he was happy to find “a very fresh profile to the vintage” – driven by what he describes as the “double face of the grapes”. One side of each row and therefore bunch was more exposed to the sun, providing a riper, warmer fruit profile, while the other side of the row, where the fruit was more shaded, produced fresher and greener flavours. Combined, the results proved complementary. Importantly Séguier noted that, while 2020 was a warm year, August was not as hot as in 2019; as such, the grapes were not as extremely ripe as in 2019, but did ripen less uniformly. WiIliam Fèvre started harvesting on 25th August – the earliest harvest date in the domaine’s history, alongside 2003. For Séguier, the main challenge was the difference in ripeness – “not just even between parcels, but also on the same row and even the same grape!”. In this respect, selection was key. For most, harvesting took place from 22nd to 23rd August and continued over a two-week period. Yields overall were about 20-30% down, due to a number of factors. A very cold snap in the spring damaged some vines, while the small berries also meant there was a lot less juice in the berries, and the bunches themselves were also much smaller. The biggest threat to yield, however, was the number of shriveled berries due to the drought. While these could easily be removed at sorting and therefore not affect quality, it was the main cause for the drop in yields. In many ways, 2020’s warm, sunny conditions seem similar to those of 2018 and 2019, yet the profile of the wines is completely different. The alcohol levels are much lower and the acidity levels much higher – the pHs sit around 3.3 to 3.35 (compared to 2019 which was closer to 3.45). Another point of contrast with 2019 was the relatively high levels of malic acid in the grapes found at some properties/in some vineyards – something that typically decreases in very sunny vintages This worked in the vintage’s favour for producers like Mangenot, since after malolactic fermentation there was more lactic acid. This added richer notes to off-set the citric acid backbone of the wines, bringing greater balance. All these factors are in direct contrast to 2019 – a very successful vintage, but almost the opposite in terms of flavour profile. “In 2019 there was lots of evaporation of water from the berries creating an intensely concentrated and stone fruit aromatic profile,” says Mangenot. “The grapes were ripening extremely quickly in 2019 and it was a rush to pick everything before the danger of over-ripeness crept in. If anything, the 2020 was the opposite, with some wines having a green, lighter, herbal edge – on the positive side of that spectrum.” For him, the 2020 vintage has become difficult to compare. “While it shares the very warm conditions of 2003, 2009, 2015, 2018, it doesn’t behave in the glass like any of them.” For Vincent Dauvissat, it reminds him of 2002 with a touch of 1997 – two dry vintages that managed to preserve their acidities and mature beautifully. “It is a vintage with a lot of charm and a very nice freshness,” he says. Dauvissat, unlike Long-Depaquit, had very little malic acid in his grapes and seemingly fewer issues with drought. “The vines at the estate do not seem to me to have had any water stress,” he says. “A few plots on the plateaus would have shown a little more, but the maturities followed their normal rhythm.” The 2020 vintage, according to Mangenot, is “one for the laboratory”. He thinks it is fascinating how the Chardonnay is adapting to climate change. How the Chardonnay can react on the vine to warmer and drier vintages without losing its sense of place. “Despite the heat and dryness, the alcohol levels are normal, the acidity levels are exceptional and the overall balance on the palate means the wines are representative of an excellent vintage for the region.” Mangenot was so impressed by the fleshiness in his Premiers Crus and Grands Crus, he was confident enough to extend the wines’ élevage on their lees – adding further tension and flavour complexity to the wine. “It is a vintage with great ageing potential in terms of balance and acidic backbone,” he says, comparing it to 2017 or 2012 – very popular vintages for vignerons in Chablis, where the acidity is classic but there is flesh too. It is what he calls “a truer expression of Chablis”. Séguier is also extremely pleased with the vintage. “The 2020 has the freshness of 2017, and the concentration and the expression of 2019,” he says. “A vintage that expresses a superb minerality and freshness with a nice intensity of fruit and especially citrus fruit characters.” While many wines are still maturing in tank (due to the extended élevage), there is a great sense of relief from those we spoke to. Firstly, no vigneron in Chablis is comfortable picking their grapes in August. The weather tends to still be very warm, bringing concerns about the grapes’ health once picked in such hot conditions. For Mangenot, however, this was managed well in 2020 and did not negatively affect the wines. Secondly, the year proved that a warm dry vintage can still produce a very classic Chablis style – defined by a citric fruit profile, floral aromatics and distinct mineral salinity. From what we have tasted this summer, the wines are excellent. The vintage offers great terroir focus, with each of the Premiers Crus and Grands Crus being unique in terms of flavour profile and structure. It looks set to be a classic vintage for the region, with lots of freshness and minerality – and a fascinating year in which to explore Chablis’s diversity. With production levels decimated in 2021, this will be a vintage to go long on. Learn more about the Chablis region or read more Editorial

Hot and dry, 2020’s conditions don’t seem to lay the ground for classical, pinpoint Chablis – yet somehow the wines are just that. We spoke to some of the region’s top producers about the vintage’s unexpected outcome

Speaking to top Chablis producers about how 2020’s hot and dry conditions unexpectedly produced classical, pinpoint wines.

Top Chablis producers on the 2020 vintage

Chablis 2020: a mineral, saline sucker punch of a vintage

Jonathan-Didier Pabiot

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La consegna locale è gratuita per ordini superiori a 1.800 HK$ (in un'unica destinazione). Per ordini inferiori a questo importo, la consegna costa 150 HK$ fino a quattro casse e 50 HK$ per ogni cassa aggiuntiva.

Le spedizioni partono da €15 in Italia e da €45 verso la Svizzera e il resto d’Europa per un massimo di 48 bottiglie (75 cl). I costi variano in base alla destinazione. Per spedizioni più grandi è possibile richiedere un preventivo.

La data indicata di seguito è quella in cui il tuo ordine verrà spedito dal nostro magazzino locale. La data di consegna finale, insieme ai dettagli completi di tracciamento, ti verrà fornita una volta che il nostro team avrà elaborato la tua richiesta.

Puoi organizzare il ritiro presso il nostro negozio al 22° piano, 8 Wyndham Street, Central Hong Kong.
Gli orari di ritiro sono dalle 9:30 alle 18:00, da lunedì a venerdì.

Puoi organizzare il ritiro presso il nostro magazzino STI INTERNAZIONALE SPA, in Viale del Lavoro 57, 37051 Bovolone, Verona.
Gli orari di ritiro sono dalle 8:30 alle 12:30 e dalle 13:30 alle 17:30, dal lunedì al venerdì. Siamo chiusi nei giorni festivi.

Questo è il valore di mercato stimato attuale per questo articolo.

I prezzi impostati manualmente verranno sovrascritti. I vini già inseriti non sono interessati.

Aggiorna tutti i vini non inseriti al prezzo di mercato corrente.

Imposta tutto al prezzo di mercato

rappresenta tutti i vini attualmente presenti nel tuo Portafoglio che non sono conservati con noi. Premi l'icona

La mia cantina

Nome

Prezzo netto

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Nuovo portafoglio

Non hai alcuna fattura in questo momento.

mostra tutti gli articoli del tuo Portafoglio che sono attualmente sul mercato.

In vendita

mostra tutti gli articoli attualmente presenti nel tuo Portafoglio. Da questa pagina puoi eseguire azioni individuali su di essi.

Panoramica

mostra tutti gli articoli attualmente in attesa di un'azione da parte dell'utente.

In sospeso

Questo è il prezzo di mercato dinamico dell'articolo al netto del margine di negoziazione.

Questo è l'importo del profitto che riceverai se la tua inserzione verrà venduta.

I pagamenti pre-autorizzati consentono transazioni automatiche per tuo conto, garantendo pagamenti fluidi e senza complicazioni. Questo permette di elaborare addebiti ricorrenti, abbonamenti o pagamenti programmati senza approvazione manuale ogni volta.

Il numero di casse che desideri mettere in vendita

Il tuo articolo del catalogo verrà archiviato. Sei sicuro di voler continuare?

I tuoi articoli del catalogo verranno archiviati. Sei sicuro di voler continuare?

Prima di richiedere la consegna, puoi modificare la quantità per ciascun articolo nella tua selezione qui sotto.

*Il prezzo di mercato è dinamico e può variare. Al momento della vendita, dal prezzo finale sarà detratta una commissione di negoziazione del 10%.

Prezzo di mercato totale*

Il prezzo fisso personalizzato al quale desideri vendere ciascun articolo.

Dividi in {caseSize} singole bottiglie da {bottleSize}cl.

Titolo

mostra tutti gli articoli che attualmente conservi con noi. Questi articoli possono essere venduti.

Disponibili per la vendita — gli articoli conservati con {name} sono idonei per essere inseriti nel marketplace.

Profilo

Questo articolo si trova presso FINE+RARE.

Questo articolo si trova presso FINE+RARE HOME Hong Kong, ed è disponibile per la consegna o il ritiro in sede. La maggior parte delle consegne a Hong Kong può essere effettuata entro 3 giorni lavorativi; la data esatta sarà comunicata al momento dell'organizzazione della consegna. Le consegne internazionali richiedono tempi più lunghi, ti preghiamo di contattarci per maggiori dettagli.

I vini venduti en primeur saranno rilasciati dal produttore dopo limbottigliamento, tipicamente 18 mesi dopo la fine della cosiddetta campagna. Il tuo vino sarà poi conservato da FINE+RARE in un deposito doganale fino a quando deciderai di richiederne la consegna.

Ci riforniremo di questo articolo al prezzo garantito dalla nostra rete di fornitori e organizzeremo una spedizione rapida a FINE+RARE.
 I tempi di consegna dipendono da molte variabili, ma in genere per un approvvigionamento rapido sono 2-4 settimane.
 Una volta confermato l'ordine, ti terremo aggiornato sulla data di arrivo prevista.
 Ogni articolo viene controllato all'arrivo dal nostro team di esperti e le fotografie sono disponibili su richiesta (si prega di notare che potrebbero essere applicati dei costi).

Reperiremo questo articolo attraverso la nostra rete di fornitori e ne organizzeremo la spedizione a FINE+RARE.
 I tempi di consegna dipendono da molte variabili, ma una stima media è di 6-12 settimane.
 Una volta confermato lordine, ti terremo aggiornato sulla data di arrivo prevista.
 Ogni articolo viene controllato al momento della ricezione dal nostro team di esperti, con fotografie disponibili su richiesta (si prega di notare che potrebbero essere applicati dei costi).

Jonathan-Didier Pabiot

Filtro

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