Janny Condemine Macon-Peronne Le Clou 2015

 Leeu Passant Dry Red
36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Cabernet Franc and 31% Cinsault

Review:

Western Cape (13.5%) No one could accuse this wine, released for the first time in 2015, of being unambitious, but it’s quite a début. Inspired by the Château Libertas wines of old, it’s a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Cinsaut, showing impressive, stony precision, notes of spice, dark tea and reduction, a hint of graphite and a taut, lingering finish. 2019-30 - Tim Atkins 94 Points

36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Cabernet Franc, 31% Cinsault. Cinsault comes from the two oldest registered red wine vineyards: Wellington (117 years old) and Franschooek (91 years old), while the Cabernet Franc comes from high up in the Helderberg and the Cabernet Sauvignon from bush vines lower down the Helderberg. The new oak portion was fermented in upturned 500 litre barrels to achieve better integration. Floral, perfumed and beautifully aromatic. Very fine, a bit peppery and juicy, slightly grippy red cherry and raspberry fruit with some nice spiciness. Juicy, pure and fine with lovely precision. Jamie Goode 95 Points 

A late harvest Riesling with fruity sweetness and great aging potential, aromatic bouquet of honey, melon, ripe fruits. Grapes come from Brauneberger Juffer and Juffer-Sonnenuhr - one of the most prestigious vineyards in the Mosel winegrowing region. The vineyard faces south and provides the best conditions for growing Riesling.

Pairs well with pâté, Asian cuisine.

Review:

"Possessing a richer, off-dry style, yet still clean and balanced, the 2015 Brauneberger Juffer Riesling Spätlese offers terrific notes of crushed rocks, dried herbs, and sugared citrus to go with a medium to full-bodied, textured, layered style on the palate that makes it incredibly drinkable. As with the other Riesling from this estate, it’s impeccably made and is going to shine on the dinner table."
- Jeb Dunnuck (March 27th 2019), 91 pts

Delicious Riesling, exotic and mineral, concentrated aromas and flavors of pear, pineapple and honey.
Grapes come from Brauneberger Juffer and Juffer-Sonnenuhr - one of the most prestigious vineyards in the Mosel winegrowing region. The vineyard faces south and provides the best conditions for growing Riesling.

The grapes were planted in 1990.
Aging for 6 months in large oak barrels.
Filtration.

Pairs well with dessert and cheese.

Review:

"The 2015 Brauneberger Juffer Riesling Auslese boasts a big, sweet, full-bodied style that nevertheless stays clean and nicely balanced. Showing lots of sugared citrus, quince, mint, and hints of diesel fumes, it shines for this mid-palate depth, has terrific balance between its acidity and sugar, and offers a great finish. This cuvée comes from vines planted in 1990 and was brought up all in large oak barrels."
- Jeb Dunnuck (March 27th 2019), 92 pts

Fullerton Bennett Vineyard Pinot Noir  (magnum) is made from 100% Pinot Noir - 8 years old

18 months in 5% new French Oak and 95% neutral French Oak

Bennett Vineyard is grown in sedimentary Bellpine soil. A new and exciting site in 2015, this hidden jewel of a vineyard produced a graceful Pinot Noir and it is bottled exclusively in 1.5L and 3L magnums. The quality and value of this wine combine with the large format bottles to create an ideal wine for the upcoming fall and winter holiday seasons. Whether shared at your table or gifted to family or friends, this unique bottling is sure to please.

Aromas of cherry and raspberry fold into layers of rhubarb, clove, and pipe tobacco. The lengthy, mineral-driven palate showcases the captivating elegance of Pinot Noir.

Upon arrival, the grapes were immediately de-stemmed into open-top fermenters. Following a seven-day cold soak, the wine started fermenting slowly at a cool temperature. To manage extraction, we utilized one to two punch-downs and one pump-over per day, with two rack- and-returns at the beginning and middle of fermentation. Following two days of seling, the wine was racked to barrel and aged for 18 months in 5% new French oak and 6 months in tank prior to being bottled.

Fullerton Five Faces Pinot Noir 100% Pinot Noir - 7-40 years old

FIVE FACES is an acronym for the five members of the Fullerton family - Filip, Alex, Caroline, Eric and Susanne. 
A blend from Fullerton's best vineyard sources, Five FACES Pinot Noir always showcases the breadth of the terroir in the Willamette Valley with the inclusion of both volcanic, basalt-based soils and sedimentary, sandstone-based soils. The fruit hails from geographically diverse sites within the valley, each with their own unique micro-climates.

Lovely ruby with aromas of cherry, strawberry, cinnamon, bramble, and brooding humus. Fresh on the palate with nice persistence leading into the soft, noteworthy tannins. Drink now or hold for up to 5 years.

In order to build a complex and layered Willamette Valley blend, we used open-top, closed-top, and barrel fermentation. For the open-top tanks, we favored punch-downs, whereas the closed-top tanks received pump-overs exclusively. The rotator barrels spun on a schedule yielding a gentle extraction. All methods also received a minimum of two rack-and-returns at precise times during the fermentation process. Nearly all lots were cold-soaked for up to 10 days, and ambient yeasts carried out the fermentation. In total, we utilized 15% whole clusters. The wine was aged for 11 months in 20% new French oak barrels.

Review:

"The 2015 'Five Faces' Pinot Noir shows deep profile with aromatics leading to wild mushroom, black cherry and wild blackberry. The palate displays a medium weight with flavors of orange zest, black truffle, wild blackberry cobbler and a hint of cola. This is delicious and shows excellent balance. (Best 2017-2027) - July, 2017 (OB)"

- International Wine Report (July 2017), 91 pts

Mas des Capitelles Vintage Faugeres 40% Old Vines Carignan, 30% Mourvedre and 30% Grenache

No oak.

This wine has a purple intense color.
Aromas are reminicent of Mediterranean character with blackberry, garrigue, thyme and some herbal spice.
The mouthfeel is rich and fresh with some mintiness and a great length to the finish.

We called this new cuvée "Vintage" because this wine represents for us both tradition and modernity.
Tradition because in French, this term is used to designate old products having a style and excellent quality.
Modernity because we also wanted an international name, open to the world and understood by all wine lovers.

"La Catiede" is the name of the "Lieu-dit" where the vines are planted. It has been in the Laugé family for many generations and naming a Cuvée La Catiede represent the heritage and an hommage to their ancestors.

Grown on Schist soilsThe Carignan and the Mourvedre are aged in French Oak barrels for 24 months.

Minimum use of Sulfites
Traditional vinification with 30 days skin contact maceration.
The Grenache was vinified with delicacy, the Mourvèdre was harvested at optimum maturity and the Carignan was selected from our oldest vines
Average yield of 20 hl/ha.
Unfiltered wine

Pairs with delicious with lamb and grilled vegetables.

Review:

"The most expensive release in the 2015 Faugères Vintage, which comes from very old vine Carignan, Mourvèdre and Grenache, with the Carignan and Mourvèdre brought up barrel, and the Grenache all in tank. It shows some oak influence yet has wonderful fruit, notes of white flowers, vanilla, and pepper, medium to full body, and an elegant, seamless texture. Give bottles a year or so and it should keep nicely through 2025. It’s another beautiful wine from this estate."
- Jeb Dunnuck (March 27th 2019), 92 pts