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750ml
Bottle:
$21.92
6 bottles:
$21.48
Our Maturana Tinta vines produce small clusters of grapes with high acidity and good resistance to vine diseases, all...
750ml
Bottle:
$12.57
12 bottles:
$12.32
Colour: Intense bright red colour with violet reflections.
Nose: Flavours of prune, tobacco and vanilla.
Taste: Dry,...
750ml
Bottle:
$27.20
12 bottles:
$24.70
A supple red marked by black currant, blackberry and fruitcake flavors. Spicy, with powdery tannins lining the...
750ml
Bottle:
$22.00
12 bottles:
$21.56
Made from 100% Lledoner Negre, the local name for Garnacha in this part of Catalunya, Pla de Gates showcases the...
750ml
Bottle:
$27.94
12 bottles:
$27.38
Named after the Sky God ‘for its light, ethereal qualities,’ unfiltered, Ouranus has a hazy plum hue, but lovely...
750ml
Bottle:
$44.46
$46.80
The 2020 Atalier Caíño was produced with ancient vines in the same place as Perez gets the Albariño. It has...
750ml
Bottle:
$22.94
This Cagnulari Isola dei Nuraghi IGT is a tribute to the founder of the winery, Billia Cherchi, who rediscovered this...
750ml
Bottle:
$27.94
The Cagnulari – Isola dei Nuraghi IGT – is an ancient grape variety of Usini rediscovered and appreciated by...
750ml
Bottle:
$22.95
12 bottles:
$22.49
The 2022 Nero d'Avola is dark and woodsy in the glass, with dried blueberries and exotic spices lifted by sage hints....
750ml
Bottle:
$14.94
12 bottles:
$13.94
Focussed herbal, wild black fruit and tobacco nose. The youthful palate is poised and approachable with a soft...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$45.98
A wine that talks about roots and new beginnings. Covered cherry red colour. Intense aromas of ripe fruit, spices,...
375ml
Bottle:
$65.94
The acidity of the Riesling grape keeps this sweet dessert wine in balance with notes of honey and caramel.
750ml
Bottle:
$12.93
12 bottles:
$12.67
Notes of blackberries, blueberries, licorice, lavender and rosemary. Full-bodied with firm, sleek tannins. Firm and...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.84
$15.41
Offers a stream of juicy cassis, fresh red currant and dried herbs that race alongside smoked sandalwood and pencil...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.25
$13.95
12 bottles:
$10.45
A fun wine made from a blend of red and white grape varieties with balanced fruit and a clean finish.
750ml
Bottle:
$13.25
$13.95
12 bottles:
$10.45
A unique, mellow, easy-drinking wine with a subtle cherry fruit core and a soft finish. This wine is soft and mellow...
750ml
Bottle:
$13.25
$13.95
12 bottles:
$10.45
With powerful pineapple and apricot qualities, this tropical wine is best enjoyed with fruit or cheese.
750ml
Bottle:
$11.94
$13.01
An excellent deep, spicy, intriguing red wine from Sicily, the 2023 Nero d’Avolo is a tank-fermented and aged, dark...
Ice Wine Mencia Nero D'avola Savatiano
Italy’s largest island, Sicily, has a wine producing history that can put most other European regions to shame. It was producing quality wines before the days of the Roman empire, and even the Ancient Greeks were not the first to cultivate vines on the island. For as long as anyone knows, the key grape varietal of Sicily has been Nero d’Avola, the beautiful, deep blue skinned grape which produces the region’s characterful, powerful red wines. While in the past, Nero d’Avola was mainly used as a blending grape, due to its deep color and intensely full body, it is today being increasingly celebrated as a single varietal wine grape, and is perfect for those who like their wines boisterous, loud and strong.
Nero d’Avola is grown pretty much everywhere on Sicily, as demand for wines made from this grape have never been higher. Despite its power and body, it is quite a versatile grape - it can be aged in oak barrels, which produces a dense and dark wine which puts its intense characteristics to good use, but it is also often drunk quite young, which allows its jammy, plummy character to come forward. It is also used to make rose wines in some appellations of Sicily, demonstrating a softer side to this otherwise heavy, deeply flavorful grape.
Savatiano is probably Greece's most well known and most widely grown grape varietal, as it is the primary grape used in the production of Retsina, where the fermenting juices of the Savatiano varietal are flavored with pine resin in order to make this distinctive and famous wine. One of the reasons for the wide cultivation of this grape is due to its hardiness, and resistance to drought conditions. In the sun-drenched and dry, rocky Greek landscapes, this makes it an ideal vine to grow for wine-makers who require a strong and bounteous yield each year.
However, there are plenty of examples of Greek white wines which use the Savatiano grape but withhold from the addition the pine resin flavoring, allowing the true characteristics of this varietal to shine through. The result is often very pleasing indeed, with Savatiano grapes generally producing extremely well balanced and rounded white wines, with a juicily fruity flavor. Their aromas can vary quite a lot, with many Savatiano wines bearing the fragrance of citrus fruits, and also occasionally having a strong floral aroma reminiscent of elder and rose. Due to the relatively low acidity of Savatiano grapes, the wines which use them (including Retsina) generally bolster themselves with the addition of smaller quantities of more acidic varieties, such as Assyrtiko or Rhoditis, in order to improve their sometimes weak structure.
Additional Information on Greek Wines
Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?