Stockist/Retailer: Hay Wines

(2025) From 10- to 20-year-old organic vineyards, and with 15% Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend, this was aged 14 months in French oak barriques. A similar feeling of density and cedary concentration as the Galantas, and again just a glimpse of gently leafy character, but meaty as ripe blackcurrant begins to emerge. In the mouth this fairly explodes with flavour and richness, the flood of fleshy and sweet black fruit and sumptuous texture marries with firm but chocolate-dense tannins and loads of spice. The tannin and cedary power of the oak really grip towards the finish, though acidity is fresh and well matched, suggesting this should drink well for some time.

(2024) Kleine Zalze is one of the bigger names in Stellenbosch, producing a whole range of Chenin Blanc wines, so if this is the one you want, check the label before buying. From 35-year-old bush vines in two vineyards, it had 24 hours skin contact then was pressed to a combination of older French oak barrels and terracotta amphora. The nose has plenty of ripe, vanilla-touched apple, but there's a stone-fruit, apricot and yellow plum deeper note too. In the mouth a generous texture has a bit of fat and weight giving good mouthfeel, the fruit stays this side of exotic, and the barrel adds nothing more than a whisper of creaminess. Quite long and rather satisfying Chenin. Watch my full video review for more details.

(2023) From a single block of Chardonnay, this is the first time Klein Constantia have had the correct vintage conditions to make a zero dosage cuvée - this has less than 2g/l of residual sugar. Sherbetty notes are joined by developed autolytic notes that are bready and yeasty. There's a sour lemon background. In the mouth it is of course dry, with pithy lemon and grapefruit, but not aggressive. That little bit of creamy leesiness and again some sour lemon gives this balance in the finish, a fresh and featherlight style.    

(2023) It's around a decade since I had a big wine touring professional trip to Ontario, but having returned on holiday late in 2023 I discovered just how much the wine industry on the Niagara Peninsula had grown, and how good the wines were. Here's a Niagara Pinot were whole clusters where wild yeast-fermented before 23 months in French oak. And it is a lovely wine: pale and almost translucent, sous-bois and cherry, a gentle smokiness and a sappy touch of something herbal to add interest. In the mouth the coffee character from the barrels gives a really gentle and dark underpinning to the fruit. Tannins are elegant and acidity well-balanced, in a rather lovely Pinot.

(2023) There's also 12% Barbera in this Italianate blend, picked relatively early, the wine co-fermented with wild yeasts. It was aged in older oak for three months before bottling. Creamy black berries infuse the nose, hints of spice and chocolate, but a brightness too. The palate has plenty of bite from plum-skin acid and tannin, dry and savoury, the acid forms a very direct core through plummy red fruits. Good length.

(2022) A Grüner Veltliner from the cool Finger Lakes in upstate New York, home to some excellent Riesling, so why not Grüner? There's an elderflower and gooseberry twist to this, quite Sauvignon-like, then the palate broadens into a fleshy and ripe, even just off-dry mouthful of peach and mango exoticism. Tangy apple and citrus notes join toward the finish, to leave this very sippable and Oriental cuisine-friendly.

(2022) From vines with an average age of 25 years grown on predominantly gravel soils. There's 5% Petit Verdot and 4% Malbec in the blend and the wine spent 14 months in French oak, 40% new barrels. It's a rich, deep, cherry- and blackcurrant-scented wine, with a definite, firm herbal and cedary edge. In the mouth quite buoyant and ripe black and red fruits, a lean spine of acid and fine tannins, leaving it fresh and quite racy on the finish.

(2021) A white Vermouth (think Martini or Cinzano Bianca) but this one from Spain and emphasing more of the local citrus fruit in its aromas and flavours. Aromatic herbs and the peel of several different citrus fruits are macerated for several months then blended with an aged white mistela (sweet wine) to give a sweet but very grown up Vermouth full of interesting nuances. There's angelica, anise and basil, lots of leafy green herbs and that citrus hint of lime and mandarin orange. In the mouth there's no mistaking the concentration and intensity here, or the 18% alcohol, but the layers of smoky, fruity and herbal flavours run with delightful acidity to the finish. Drink on its own with ice, or as the base for Martinis and other cocktails. Watch the video for more information.

(2021) An arresting nose of pink grapefruit and burstingly-ripe nectarine on this Sauvignon Blanc (with some Riesling and Pinot Gris in the blend I believe) from Steve Smith's Pyramid Valley. There's a preserved lemon suggestion of firmness too, taut and bright. In the mouth so juicy: more nectarine, very ripe melon, just a hint of more exotic fruit and a fat orangey tang. Textured and creamy-rich on the mid-palate, the juicy freshness is maintained by the squeeze of grapefruit acidity and salinity in the finish. Imported into the UK by Louis Latour Agencies. Watch the video for more information and food-matching ideas.

(2020) The label gives no clue, but this Blanc de Blancs, all-Chardonnay Crémant must be at the highest limit of 'Brut', with a definite sweet edge on the palate. Effervescent, fresh and charming, easy-going peachy fruit and a delicate mousse give way to that fairly sweet palate, not a lot of toast or autolysis evident, but there is a bit, and that suits the aperitif or lighter dessert credentials of this wine. The acid balance freshens the finish.