Owned by the same family that makes Marqués de Murrieta in Rioja (they were originally from Galicia). It’s a white pepper scented, bone dry style with plenty of texture and weight on the tongue, showing notes of stone fruit and pear and a crunchy, stony finish.
Wine Type: White
2013 Neudorf, Twenty Five Rows Chardonnay, Nelson
( N/A, 14% )Produced in small quantities from Tim and Judy Finn’s vineyards in Nelson, this lees-aged Chardonnay sees very little oak and is made in a “Chablis” style. It’s a subtle, herbal white with notes of baking spices and citrus and appealing texture and concentration.
2013 Collefrisio, Vignaquadra, Abruzzo
( £13.50, 13.5%, Dvine Cellars )An impressive Pecorino from the Frisa hills of the Abruzzo, this shows that you don’t need wine to make a tasty white. Peachy and just off-dry, it’s got bags of flavour, bright acidity and a taut, minerally finish.
2013 Neudorf, Moutere Chardonnay, Nelson
( N/A, 14% )The top Chardonnay from Neudorf and one of the best examples of the grape in New Zealand, this is an aromatic, textured, beautifully balanced white with seamless oak integration. Pear, melon and nectarine fruit are intertwined with flavours of cinnamon and citrus-like acidity. This will age well, too.
2013 Granbazan Ambar, Albariño, RÃas Baixas
( £17, 12.5%, www.amathusdrinks.com )A strong contender for the title of Spain’s worst wine label, this is an Albariño that tastes a lot better than it looks. It’s a bone dry, saline white with notes of citrus and oyster shell and a long, citrus fresh finish. Minerally and focused with a hint of fennel on the finish.
2012 Massolino Nebbiolo, Langhe, Piedmont
( N/A, 14%, Liberty Wines )Fascinating to taste this wine under screwcap and cork and perform a contrast and compare job. They are both excellent, as you’d expect from a top producer in an outstanding vintage, but I slightly prefer the brightness and purity of the screwcapped wine. Fresh and elegant, with pure raspberry and cherrystone fruit, subtle oak and the chalky minerality that’s so typical of Serralunga.
2014 Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc, Marlborough
( N/A, 13.5% )Is Cloudy Bay finally back on form after several lacklustre vintages? So it would appear from this latest release. It’s still a little pricey for what it is, but it’s appealingly fresh and refined, with subtle nettle and gooseberry fruit, a hint of struck match and a long, tapering finish.
2010 Bouchard Père & Fils, Beaune du Château, Beaune 1er Cru, Burgundy
( £25.99, 13.5%, BJR Hanby, Cambridge Wine Merchants, Le Vieux Comptoir, Waitrose )Beaune whites are not as well known as its reds, although both tend to be under-rated. Leesy, soft and gently oaked, this is a comparatively forward style with subtle oak framing and notes of lemon butter and honey. The acidity of the 2010 vintage lifts the wine on the finish.
2013 LongavÃ, Sauvignon Blanc, Leyda Valley
( N/A, 12%, Bancroft Wines )A joint venture between J Bouchon of Chile and South African Sauvignon specialist, David Nieuwoudt, this is a wine that lives up t its pre-release hype. Creamy, goosberry and nettley fruit with bags of texture and tangy acidity and a long, elegantly tropical finish with a touch of sweetness.
2013 Flor de Vetus, Verdejo, Rueda
( £12-15, 13%, Excel Wines )Verdejo can be a bit of a one glass grape, but this high altitude example is chiselled and refined, with tangy acidity, flavours of pear, citrus and stone fruit and a long, satisfying, stony finish.
2013 Laroche, La Collégiale, Chablis, Burgundy
( £14.99, 12%, Majestic )Easy drinking, commercial Chablis made in the classic style without oak. 2013 was a tricky vintage in the region, but winemaker Grégory Viennois has done a lovely job here, combining citrus fruit with minerality and good mid-palate creaminess.
2011 Domaine Laroche, Chablis 1er Cru Les Vaudevey, Burgundy
( £19.69, 12.5%, www.thefinewinecompany.co.uk )I’ve been very critical of the 2011 vintage in Chablis (because of a root vegetable-like taint called geosmin that I find on too many of the wines) but this is a welcome exception to the rule, a clean, appealingly developed Chardonnay from an excellent Premier Cru. There’s a touch of oak on this wine, but it’s steered by fruit. Honey, pear and aniseed spice are nicely combined on the palate.