£50-100 per bottle

72 year old vines. Lovely freshness here, dark fruit, tension, power, salinity and nervous energy. This is intense and powerful, with loads of salinity: so mineral, but also lots of burnt orange peel, and some almond kernal. It’s so complex and very well balanced: an astonishing Barolo from a real magician.

This is one of the finest sites of the Côte Blonde, and it produces a wine of huge elegance and subtlety, although you’ll want to tuck it away for a few years before pulling the cork.

The nose is already inviting, showing power and deep cherry fruit. There’s amazing drive and energy on the palate, with black fruits, spice and fine tannins. The power is undeniable, but it’s so elegant and finessed.

This is always one of the prettiest in the Grivot cellar, and 2022 is no exception. There is a sweet balance between the graceful tannins and red berry fruit, with fresh drive and elegant body.

One of Loosen and the Mosel’s greatest vineyard sites on rich blue slate soil. (The Sundial of Wehlen) is a precipitously steep and rocky vineyard that yields wines with a lively mineral character and a delicate, zingy acidity that perfectly complements the expression of white peach and lemon fruits on the palate. The 24 months ageing gives the wine amazing complexity and length.

The Ürziger Würzgarten vineyard forms a massive amphitheatre of red, volcanic sandstone and red slate that is unlike any other site in the Mosel region. It’s compact, energetic and concentrated with a core of tantalising exotic fruits and spicy aromas.

From the Ornato vineyard in the commune of Serralunga d'Alba the 2020 vintage is beautifully open and expressive with wild flowers and herbs at the forefront. Expect the structure that this vineyard gives, along with the vibrant acidity and freshness that the 2020 vintage provides.

Tasted April 2023. 80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon. 14.5% ABV. Long and robust, there's more peppery Cabernet Sauvignon character in the 2022 Clinet than one might expect from Pomerol. This is a powerhouse shaping up to be a long lived wine, but there's also an elegance to go with the structure here. With hints of mint leaf, liquorice, and fennel, the herbal lift makes this an intriguing prospect.

The superb 2022 vintage was another relatively cool year for Seña, like 2021, and the influence from proximity to the ocean can certainly be felt in the pure line of acidity and elegant fruit. Winemaker Francisco Baettig talks about 'fine tuning the style' of Seña in recent years, using old oak foudres and reducing the time spent ageing in barrel to avoid having the wine in wood over a second summer. The result is gorgeous and justifies Seña's position as one of the great red wines of the world, with a rich spiced fruit character and beautifully silky tannins. This has all the structure to age for a very long time, and will reward patience.

Cheval des Andes is an exceptional blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon from Las Compuertas and Paraje Altamira in Mendoza. There's lots of violet, blackberry and plum here, with lifted minty, floral limestone character. There's a boldness to the fruit in this warmer year and a round feel to the tannins, before leaving a fresh, energetic finish.

Lingua Franca is the project started by Master Sommelier Larry Stone, with the help of winemakers Thomas Savre and Dominique Lafon. The 2019s might be the finest set of wines they've produced yet. This is one of their top Pinots, perfumed and ripe with red and black berry fruit, incense and exotic spice. It perfectly treads the line between richness and finesse. They used a very small 8% whole bunches and 26% new French oak.

‘GC’ stands for Gary Charles, aka ‘Gazza’ and this wine pays tribute to Gary Farr’s knowledge and achievements over the past 40 years. The Chardonnay is sourced from the Côte Vineyard, which according to the Farrs, will make up the ‘backbone’ of the By Farr wines for the decades to come. This site consists of diversity of aspects (North/North-East/East) as well as soil types, including loam, limestone and black volcanic soils. The grapes are whole bunch pressed and fermented in French oak barrels, of which 50% is new, with some light lees stirring to help to start the malolactic fermentation. This Chardonnay was bottled 11 months after picking. The 2023 ’GC’ Chardonnay is long on the palate brimming with wonderful notes of lemon curd, with textured, precise fruit and its typical mineral and tightly-coiled freshness.

Four vineyards provide the fruit for The Factor, including some very old vines of 120 years plus. It's a classic Barossa Shiraz, made just with French oak. Very expressive with lifted black fruits such as plum, blackberry, compote, vanilla bean, dark cocoa and maraschino liqueur. Complex, luxuriously dense and alluring. The mineral components highlight Barossa Ironstone, dried earth and eucalyptus. The wine’s voluptuous texture envelops the mouth with soft yet dense tannins and mouth filling viscosity. The flavours linger and the cleansing acidity polishes the palates gorgeous length and depth. Oak maturation is harmonious and well integrated adding to complexity on release.

The 2022 is a superb vintage from this Tuscan estate, based on 60% Cabernet Sauvignon and 40% Merlot. There is a richness of red and black berry fruits combining with leather, liquorice and cinnamon spice. The tannins are plush and velvety and there is a refreshing acidity that lingers on the finish, displaying this wine's pedigree.