Description
As winter melts into spring, check out our new monthly pack.
We have focussed on 6 brand new bottles to introduce you to, all of them are organic too.
After the fuller bodied, heavy & richer styles we have been drinking & chatting about for the last few months we are so happy to be looking at fresher, lighter & zesty wines for the start of March.
We also decided this was the time of year to treat you to 2 Sparklings in the pack – upcoming birthdays, Mother’s Day, anniversaries & any-excuse friend/family occasions are calling to be celebrated so we wanted to give you the necessary tools!
The wines in this months pack are:
Cantine Rallo Grillo La Maggiore Pet Nat (Sicily)
This is an elegant natural sparkling wine with a soft mousse of bubbles, it is unfined & unfiltered so pours slightly hazy which only adds to the delightful Sicilian sunshine vibe we got from this wine when we sampled it recently.
From South West Sicily near Marsala, this organic fizz shows gentle lemon & apricot fruit on the nose, it is super crowd-pleasing & a pleasure to drink.
The tropical notes in the glass of mango, papaya, citrus & pear as well as crisp acidity are very quaffable, the lower fizz level (than Sparkling wines made in the traditional method – like Cava, Cremant or Champagne) also makes this an easy sipper & great alongside food.
Masia Salat Rosado Cava (Spain)
This is an organic Rose Cava blended with Trepat, Garnacha & Monastrell, made in the traditional method with a second fermentation in the bottle & 14 months of age on its fine lees. The juice is in contact with the skins for three hours to macerate & extract its beautiful pale pink hue & fruity aromatics.
It has a lovely balance of varietal aromas such as raspberry, fresh fig & delicate floral notes with fresh bread from the lees. It is very fresh & light on the palate, there is a great balance between the acidity & the fruit concentration with a smooth creamy mousse on the finish.
It is a fantastic choice to serve alongside Asian inspired dishes, seared tuna, tapas & even desserts. Rose’s are not just always aperitif wines!
Altolandon Mil Historias Malbec (Spain)
This pours a bright ruby to dark purple in colour like your classic Argentine Malbec & it promises plenty of power. The nose is complex with aromas of blackberry & blueberry, rose, rosemary & violets as well as a hint of spice. The palate is nicely concentrated & with fine smooth tannins. The flavours of blueberry, plum & blackberry are big with hints of bittersweet cocoa & dark cherry, plum, earth, espresso coffee, tobacco, black pepper & black tea.
Very complex & a real joy. This is your big red for this months pack (and probably your new favourite Malbec) Serve it alongside a steak dinner. Treat yourself.
Rocco Maura Cotes du Rhone Rouge (France)
This wine is a blend of the traditional Southern Rhone grape varieties (Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, Mourvèdre) with a majority of Grenache.
This is a supple, fresh & fruity wine. A more summery style of Cotes du Rhone than the huge big wintery versions we have been recommending lately. This is more focussed on fresher red fruit, cherry, strawberry & brambles with some black pepper spice. The structure arrives at the end of the palate & offers silky tannins.
It is aged in steel & not oak in order to focus more on freshness & fruit flavours.
Great with roast vegetables, ratatouille, vegetable quiche or with a creamy brie.
La Cepa de Pelayo Macabeo (Spain)
What a wonderful aromatic varietally expressive wine! Showcasing how good Macabeo can be.
First up on the nose we have ripe lemon & grapefruit, white flowers (orange blossom & jasmine) & a background of freshly cut grass. The palate is fresh & bright with citrus acidity & ripe white fruit (apple & pear) with hints of bakery.
Very pleasant with a medium body & good length. It is a richer style of white without any oak influence, it is dry & clean with minerality & salinity on the finish to balance the ripe fruit but it definitely has more weight & mouthfeel than just another bottle of dry white.
We like how food friendly this is – very flexible alongside chicken, meatier fish, pasta, risotto, crab, spicy pork dishes, anything with herbs, especially flavours like tarragon… Go for it, try it out – we told you it was food friendly!
Cantine Ermes Vento di Mare Grillo (Sicily)
Another Sicilian gem in the pack, another Grillo in fact, this time a still white.
Thanks to the wind, a constant companion for most of the year in this part of the island, which blows from the sea to the highest hills of the countryside to mitigate & refresh the grapes in the hot Sicilian summers, we can find unique freshness in these wines. This Grillo is distinctly Mediterranean & balanced by refreshing acidity & gorgeous sumptuous fruit.
Delicious organic Grillo showing fresh citrus, grapefruit, white peach, melon, spring flowers on the nose; lemon-lime, green apple, pear, grapefruit & a delightful minerality, saline note on the palate.
Grillo is a great grape & a real hero of Sicily, perfectly suited to Mediterranean cooking, it will be tasty alongside the Sicilian treat of arancini, seafood, fish, pasta dishes with tomato sauces or a creamy carbonara even.
