Discovering Nero d’Avola with Planeta // The Buyer

“Planeta   only recently planted its first vineyard (in 1985) and has been steadily growing ever since – one foot in traditions that date back to Roman times and the other in the contemporary wine world where its reputation for making a range of quality wines is mixed with a marketing saviness that you don’t always associate with Italian wineries. It’s fair to say Planeta has been at the forefront of taking Sicilian wine into the world of fine wine.” Read the full review.
 

Spain’s top £10 rosé and a luxurious Californian Pinot Noir among the stars this week // Matthew Jukes

2017 Ramón Bilbao, Rosado, Spain: The new vintage of this game-changing Spanish rosé is due on the shelves in late April so, hopefully, the timing of this article is spot on!  Beautiful in every way, including the price, this is a thrilling, perfectly balanced wine and it is stunning with the Chicken biryani.

Wine review: Will Lyons toasts Portuguese wines // The Sunday Times

2017 Quinta do Crasto, Douro: Home to vineyards painstakingly cut into terraces overlooking the river, the beautiful Douro Valley has been forging a new reputation for table wines. A blend of gouveio, roupeiro and rabigato grapes, this Crasto is dry, crisp and fresh. Serve nice and cold with goat’s cheese or shellfish.

 

Trimbach Riesling 2015 Alsace // Jancis Robinson

Sorry, Rieslingphobes. This week There Is No Escape from the world’s greatest white wine grape and our enthusiasm for it. Read the full review.
 

Trimbach embrace grand crus // Jancis Robinson

Two days after the outstanding Alsace Crus et Terroirs tasting described yesterday, the wine trade calendar served up icing on the cake in the form of a Trimbach tasting. Read the full article (login details required).

 

Victoria Moore: Why Riesling’s star is on the rise once more // The Telegraph

Jean Trimbach has just finished lunch at Sake no Hana, the Japanese restaurant on St James’s Street, London. The salmon teriyaki, he says, was: “Oh my goodness, amazing, delicious with the 2013 Trimbach pinot gris.” I can imagine; the stillness of the wine, off-dry and faintly floral, with the spice of the fish. But today it’s riesling I want to talk about with this Alsace producer. Read the full article (login details required).

 

Iconic Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars returns with a punch with 2015 Cabernets // Harpers

Harpers tasted the new vintage from preeminent Californian estate Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars, tracing the grapes and the soil to the same – if re-planted – site which gave birth to the victorious 1976 Judgment of Paris Cabernet Sauvignon. Read the article.

 

Matthew Jukes guide to the best English Wine // Daily Mail

English wine has come of age. Wine expert Matthew Jukes shares his top picks of world-class, home-grown tipples, including a stellar selection from Hattingley Valley.
Star Wine: The 2013 Kings Cuvée is a classic Hattingley Valley wine, with superb restraint and control, and incredible lightness of touch, balanced by serious depth of flavour. There’s so much going on here but it’s delivered with consummate ease. The 2014 Rosé (£36) is another great wine that can take on any rival on the planet with the utmost confidence. NV Classic Reserve (£30) is the workhorse wine at Hattingley but it lacks nothing in terms of class and elegance.

 

Vina Falernia Syrah 2013 // The Observer Magazine

If Hawkes Bay – and specifically Gimblett Gravels district and producers such as Elephant Hill and Craggy Range – is New Zealand’s best spot for Syrah, in Chile it’s the far north. The most extreme example is made in the Atacama desert by the Ventisquero winery…A little further South, in the Elqui Valley, home to astronomers, hippies and the producers of local spirit pisco before the wine industry discovered…Falernia’s example is always stunning value.

 

Domaine Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé 2016 // The Independent

Domaine Ferret Pouilly-Fuissé 2016 is extraordinarily complex, buttery, but shot through with clean mineral fruit flavours and ideal with oysters or prime white fish.

 

Australian Riesling Panel Tasting // Decanter April 2018

Skillogalee, Clare Valley, South Australia 2017: A lively and fruity style showing exotic guava and bright clementine flavours in a light, simple, yet elegant way. It is young but approachable at this stage due to its bright, tart acidity.

Stargazer, Coal River Valley, Tasmania: Charming apple and floral aromas combine with struck-match reduction. Peach flavours dance across the full-bodied palate, leading to an apple bite on the finish. A really enticing wine.

 

Wine Legend: Jermann Vintage Tunina 1997 // Decanter

A legend because… Silvio Jermann has always been inventive. Although he has produced varietal wines typical of the Collio region in Friuli, he created blends from the outset. Read the full review.

 

Chianti Classico 2013 & 2014 Panel Tasting // Decanter

Highly Recommended: Villa Cerna Riserva 2014: Graceful scents of plum and apple, with leafy woodland undergrowth and some crunchy cranberry too. A deft Chianti Riserva with the quick-footed, bright-contoured allure of the vintage.

 

Vernaccia di San Gimignano Panel Tasting // Decanter

Castello Montaùto 2016: Bright green-gold colour. Green apple skin and gentle cream aromas on the nose. Leaner and more citrus flavours on palate, with grapefruit and green olive. A straightforward style, but fresh and zesty to drink.

 

The World’s Best Rieslings from the Masters 2017 // The Drinks Business

Riesling is beloved by the wine trade, and our latest Riesling Masters showed why. With wonderful expressions from a wide range of countries and regions, there was something to appeal to every palate and budget, including Henschke Julius Riesling. Read the article.