Champagne & Cheese Elegance Tasting Gift-Wrapped
A luxurious journey through Europe’s finest flavors awaits with this exquisite tasting pack. Featuring premium champagne from France, this collection is designed to delight the senses. Complemented by the elegant Provence Rosé, the refined White wine from Bordeaux, and the sparkling charm of Prosecco from Italy, this selection promises a feast for the palate. Carefully paired and elegantly gift-wrapped, this pack includes a personalized gift card, making it an unforgettable choice for celebrations, heartfelt gifts, or sophisticated evenings. Toast to life’s special moments with this extraordinary wines and cheeses.
1 x Maxime Blin Son Naturel Optimiste (Organic) - Champagne, France
Organic
Winemaker "A full bodied smooth and lingering Champagne, round, long, harminious, with a minerality on the finish. Ideal for an aperiftif, to accompany oysters and fish.
Maxime Blin is served on Qatar Airways & Air Italy
80% Pinot Noir 20% Chardonnay
Organic wines are made from grapes grown without pesticides, following strict organic standards. Organic wines are produced in vineyards that do not use synthetic chemicals. Certified organic wines have been certified by Association des Champagnes Biologiques in France.
Champagne Maxime Blin has captured the attention of the world's champagne experts. This fourth-generation family owned champagne house has produced many award winning champagnes which are rated highly and celebrated for their expression of the famous terrior in which the vineyard is located. It is one of the few certified organic champagne producers in the worrld. Situated in the Champagne village of Saint Thierry near Reims - the center of the Champagne world - boasting Veuve Clicquot, Pommery, Ruinart and Taittinger, Champagne Maxime Blin is the rising star amongst its big name neighbours.
Maxime Blin has been certified organic since 2021. The company. produced its first organic champagne in 2022. Maxime Blin champagnes are highly sought after due to the qualtiy and low volume of champagnes it produces. It cultivates the three Champagne grape varieties, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay on vines with an average age of twenty years.
Maxime Blin produces 11 champagnes ( Carte Blanche, Carte Douce, Rosé, Millésime, Grande Tradition, Cuvée l'Onirique, Cuvée l'Authentique, Cuvée Maxime, Millesime 1998, Cuvée Craziness, Clés d'Eole). Among the brands' many admirers which include artists, musicians, and wine experts, the Italian actress Manuela Arcuri, every year for her birthday, orders the Cuvée 'Craziness'.
Champagne is the most iconic sparkling wine in the world, produced in the region of Champagne in France. Synonymous with celebration, champagne is typically produced from a few specific varieties of grapes: pinot noir, chardonnay, and pinot meunier. With effervescent flavors of citrus, almond, and apple, champagne comes in varying levels of sweetness and has a moderate amount of alcohol. The most treasured Champagnes age for a minimum of 3 years.
The Champagne region is located 140 kilometres from Paris, France. While the vines in this region have been producing wine since the Roman era, it is only in the past couple of hundred years that winemakers began producing Champagne using méthode champenoise - the complex method that produces the style of Champagne the world knows and loves today. Another important component of the production of champagne is the chalk and limestone soils which dominate the Champagne region. Vines grown in these conditions result in wines that are high in acidity - a key component to making good sparkling wine. Champagne's northerly location - about as north as grapes can ripen - also allow for higher acidity and lower alcohol levels which are also very important for producing quality sparkling wine.
The UNESCO World Heritage site of the wine growing region of Champagne is best known for the world's most famous wine product: champagne. The region of Champagne, traces its roots to the early medieval kingdom of Austrasia that was annexed to the French crown in the 1300s. Right from the early ages, the region has been famed for its hillside vineyards and its strictly regulated methods of creating those pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay grapes into – champagne. It is this ‘Method Champenois’ that connects champagne to its rich history, geographical location and image of luxury.
1 x Rameau d'Or Golden Bough Provence Rosé 2022 ~ Provence, France
95/100 World Wine (2020 vintage)
Bronze - Mike Bennie, The Wine Front (2020 vintage)
95/100 Stuart Knox, The Real Review (2019 vintage)
93/100 Ralph Kyte-Powell (2019 vintage)
95/100 Huon Hooke (2018 vintage)
93/100 The Wine Front (2018 vintage)
95/100 Huon Hooke (2015 vintage)
18/20 Raymond Chan (2015 vintage)
Tasting Notes "Pale pink with light purple hues. On the nose, delicate with notes of red berries and pomegranate. The palate is refreshing with a lovely density, laden with white peach, rose petals and zest. The finish offers hints of spices and mouthwatering watermelon. Striking a delicate balance between fruit weight, phenolic grip and lip-smacking mineral acidity - this is the Provence we know and love - très beau."
World Wine "Good depth of flavour. Crunchy, Juicy, delicious. Outstanding Provence Rosé" (2020 vintage)
Mike Bennie, The Wine Front "For cafes by the water in Provence, or something like that. Pale in colour and flavour, strawberries, some light cream, a smudge of gummy tannin lending some shape. It has good and perky freshness to it, dryer fruit characters, a touch of savouriness. It doesn’t really get out of first gear but it is very representative of the place and style. In the zone." (2020 vintage)
The Winemaker "Very pale with just a hint of peachy blush. On the nose, intensely floral with spice-tinged berries; on the palate it has a lovely density, laden with white peach, rose petals and grapefruit rind. Striking a delicate balance between fruit weight, lip smacking mineral acidity and taut, spicy fine-grained tannin - this is the Provence we know and love - tres elegant and long." (2020 vintage)
Stuart Knox - The Real Review "Palest of salmon-pinks in the glass. Strawberry, lavender and pink grapefruit aromatics. Great fruit intensity and balance between that fruit and acidity. The finish has a moment of phenolic grip kick in which focuses and lengthens the palate. Very much in the modern Provençal style, ticking all the boxes for summer drinking" (2019 vintage)
Ralph Kyte-Powell - The Real Review "The merest blush of pink slightly deepens its glittering appearance, introducing a subtle, savoury style that’s incredibly appetising. There are earthy, stoney aromas, suggestions of wildflowers, and a subtle thread of plummy fruit that translate easily into a smooth, dry mouthful of tangy, ripe flavour. It’s lingering and zesty with just enough phenolic structure to make it very food-friendly. A blend of syrah, grenache and cinsault." (2019 vintage)
Epicure Good Food, Wine Guide, The Age "Outstanding French Rosé...The bouquet is subtle, and more than simple fruit. Good depth of flavour." (2019 vintage)
Terry Georga "Rameau d'Or is the most classic of Provencal rosés; from the pale pink-salmon verging on peach-flesh colour, to the savoury spice and fruit it portrays. A delicate blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Counoise from Cotes du Provence it is a refreshing, versatile wine that suits aperitif drinking and the quintessential summer rosé." (2018 vintage)
The Winemaker "A delicate coloured rosé showing the traditional pale onion skin tones of rose from the sunny Provence area of Southern France. On the nose, the wine offers a hint of wild strawberries and delicate spicy notes reminiscent of rose petal Turkish delight. On the palate, the wine shows immediate soft berry-fruit flavours that are immediately appealing. Then a hint of white pepper and fennel spice comes through providing a fresh, almost tangy finish which lingers on the palate." (2018 vintage)
Drinkster, Philip White 'Provence Grenache Cinsault rosé stays fresh and pink with screw cap' "This is a bonny dry rosé of the best sort....mild rosepetal/rosebud perfume that wends from the thorns all the way along to Turkish delight is here....insinuations of gingery lime marmalade and leatherwood honey - are all here jumping and dancing so fresh and lovely." (2017 vintage)
Cameron Douglas MW "Attractive fragrances of light red fruits - light red cherry and strawberry with a hint of cranberry; these are repeated on the palate with crisp and refreshing acidity, very light and fine needlepoint tannins showing off a chalky mineral-like moment." (2016 vintage)
Wine of the Week "Fabulous lunchtime wine with attractive bottle presentation and a back label story to the entrance. The most delicate pink hue, subtle aromas of cherry and raspberry and almost bone dry to the taste which is savoury rather than fruity with spice and pepper nuances and a tangy finish."
Huon Hooke "An outstanding southern French rosé. The colour is pale salmon-pink and the bouquet is shy and subtle, savoury and more than simple fruit. Good depth of flavour, richness and the finish has harmony and persistence. Very more-ish. " (2015 vintage)
George Orwell ''All rosés are equal but some rosés are more equal than others.''
A blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Counoise
This wine is produced by Debussy which has several estates in the Rhone Valley, Provence and other Mediterranean regions. Debussy estates produce wines that express the characters and typicity of each of the French terroir that the vineyards are located, creating wines reflective of the regions and their popular wine styles. The name Rameau d'Or means 'Golden Bough' and is based on a fantastical tale of enchantments, transformations and love. A magical golden bough from an enchanted garden was given to a prince, by an eagle, to awaken a sleeping princess. A bough is so powerful that a single leaf from it would make one rich, young and beautiful. Unfortunately, this prince was not the most handsome man in his kingdom. Choosing a full led soul over outer beauty, he and his newly awoken princess set about to transform the lives of those around them.
Provence is a wine region in the far southeastern corner of France best known for the quality of its rosé wines and for its warm, mild climate. The vineyards of Provence cover an area of France's south-eastern coastline that measures roughly 200 kilometres from east to west. In this definitively Mediterranean climate – no Provencal vineyard is more than 55km (25 miles) from the Mediterranean – the vines enjoy around 3000 sunshine hours per year.
Rosé derives its name from the French word for pink. In Spain it is rosado and in Italy rosato. Rosé’s flavours and styles are as varied as the food it matches. Rosé predates white and red wine with ancient rosé-style wines dating back 8,000 years. The colour of a rosé can vary dramatically. A deep fuchsia pink rosé may be bone-dry, though it’s likely to be full flavoured given balance by a gentle squeeze of tannin. Tannin primarily comes from the skin of a grape – as does colour. It’s tannin that sets rosé apart from white and red wine. Almost all wine grapes have clear juice; it’s the skins that give the colour. Grenache is the most popular grape used in rosé, with its lifted confectionary aromas, juicy red fruit flavours and mild-mannered tannins creating the textbook triumvirate for rosé. The temperate Provence region of France is home to some of the world’s most accliamed rosé, perhaps naturally, given it’s widely planted with grenache and its Rhône varietals; mourvèdre, cinsault and syrah.
1 x Chateau Marjosse Pierre Lurton Cuvee Palombre White 2020 - Bordeaux, France
92/100 James Suckling
93/100 James Sucking (2019 vintage)
92/100 Jean Marc Quarin (2019 vintage)
90/100 Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider (2019 vintage)
16.5/20 Jancis Robinson (2019 vintage)
Owned by one of the world's most famous winemakers, Pierre Lurton - president of two of Bordeaux's best-known chateaux, the Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) owned Château Cheval Blanc and Château d’Yquem.
James Suckling, ''..I like the density and concentration, with a delicious creaminess undercut by herb and spice...Almonds, fennel, yoghurt, grapefruit and pear skins on the nose, with some cloves and white pepper.''
Jancis Robinson "Cuvée Palombe, a startlingly rich white based on 45- to 70-year-old vines named after a pigeon. The blend is a third each of Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and the more perfumed Sauvignon Gris but seems to me to be dominated by the lovely beeswax and lanolin flavours of fully ripe Sémillon, a grape variety more often encountered in sweet white bordeaux. I originally tasted the wine at room temperature when it seemed almost fat, until a nice cooling breeze of Sauvignon Blanc blew across my palate on the finish. The wine benefited from being restored to the cellar before I tasted it a second time, when it was, again, such a welcome and characterful contrast to the technically perfect Sauvignon-dominated style that has become typical of Bordeaux Blanc." (2019 vintage)
James Suckling, "..Focused and elegant...A medium-to full-bodied white with complex aromas of dried lime, apricot, green mango, flint and toast. It’s textured and creamy with crisp acidity and flinty, subtly smoky layers." (2019 vintage)
Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider "Flowers, lemon rind, spearmint and honeysuckle notes are all over the place. Fresh, forward, fruity and with a creamy, yellow, citrus rind finish, with just a drizzle of honey, you can enjoy this on release." (2019 vintage)
Château Marjosse is owned by French 'wine royalty', Pierre Lurton - president of two of Bordeaux’s best-known châteaux; the Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) owned, Château Cheval Blanc and Château d’Yquem, Château Marjosse. Pierre Lurton comes from two of the great Bordeaux families. His father Dominique was the youngest son of the paterfamilias François Lurton; his uncle André Lurton who founded the eponymous wine company; his many cousins run châteaux from Pauillac to Pomerol. His mother is from the famous Lafite family.
The influential Club Enologique asserts that Pierre is the most accomplished wine personality of his famous family. Trained as a doctor but swapping his studies for wine making after four years. At 23 he took over Clos Fourtet in St Emilion, one of the fine Lurton properties, and in 1991 he was appointed head of Château Cheval Blanc (it was bought by Bernard Arnault of LVMH in 1998); in 1999 he took on Château d’Yquem, which had just been added to the Arnault portfolio.
Club Enologique describes Pierre Lurton as having the world’s most corporate wine job. "However he divides his time between two of the world’s most exalted wine properties, but comes down to earth in Entre-deux-Mers, the leafy, unpretentious appellation to the east of Bordeaux at Château Marjosse."
The Château Marjosse estate is located in Entre-deux-Mers, on the right bank of Bordeaux. Initially owned by the wine merchant Bernard Chénier, Château Marjosse was acquired by the Deleuze family, who, in 1990, gave some plots to Pierre Lurton to rent. In 1992, Pierre Lurton, who grew up in Château Reynier, neighbour to this magnificent Chartreuse, moved to a second home in Château Marjosse and, over successive years became the owner of the entire vineyard, as well as the Chartreuse in 2013.
Decanter "Since Lurton bought Château Marjosse in 1994, the estate has improved beyond recognition. Pierre's father, Dominique Lurton, also made over a further 30ha so that, under the Château Marjosse label, Lurton now exploits 42ha of vineyard, six hectares of white and 36ha of Bordeaux red – a total of 300,000 bottles a year. Pierre insists his wine is Bordeaux and not Bordeaux Supérieur because ‘my wine is only supérieur in the bottle’. His objectives are ambitious. As the quality of the terroir with clay-limestone soil is similar to some of the better areas in Saint-Emilion, he hopes to prove that wines from this area can rival those from more prestigious regions."
Sommeliers International "At Château Marjosse the land possesses yet another specific feature, known locally as “la Boulbène”, a silty-clayey texture that has developed on ancient alluvions. The fertility of these soils no longer needs to be proved, because, by chance, they are also found in Saint-Emilion, a terroir that is extremely familiar to the man who manages “Cheval Blanc” …. Pierre Lurton. Assisted in this transformation by Consultant-Oenologist Pascal Poussevin, whose recommendations range from vine growing to wine-making, Pierre Lurton’s estate has now reached its cruising speed … Beyond the fabulous adventures he experiences in his role as manager of Châteaux d’Yquem, Cheval Blanc, as well as estates in South Africa, Latin America and in Australia … it is undoubtedly with “the salt of this land here in the Entre-deux-Mers” that his years of quest for perfection will be revealed. It is clear that this region needs winegrowers of such calibre, those who possess a sixth sense and, using techniques that almost resemble intentional alchemy, transform the grapes they touch into wines that exude the unique character of a specific area."
The Entre-deux-Mers region, nicknamed by wine experts as “Little Tuscany”, is unique and jealously protected by its inhabitants. "There are fifteen appellations that constitute the Entre-deux-Mers. The most well-known of them all, reputed for its dry, lively white wines, is certainly the one which bears the name of this region! The Entre-deux-Mers cultivates a certain speciality in producing white wines, due to its basic geological assets, possessing gravelly-limestone soils, upon which Sémillon, Sauvignon, Muscadelle and even Ugni Blanc grape varieties are planted. But the variety of soils and sub-soils associated with such a complex landscape provides a diversity of terroirs … These are favourable for producing red wines, that are regrettably not sufficiently well-known, but highly prized for the complexity of their aromas, their deep, vivid colour, as well as the concentration and elegance of their tannins." Sommeliers International.
Bordeaux, in the southwest of France, needs little introduction as one of the world's most famous, prestigious and prolific wine regions. Its three trump cards are diversity, quality and quantity. The majority of Bordeaux wines (nearly 90 percent of production volume) are the dry, medium- and full-bodied red Bordeaux Blends that established its reputation. The finest (and most expensive) of these come from the great châteaux of the Haut-Médoc and the Right Bank appellations Saint-Émilion and Pomerol. The legendary reds are complemented by high-quality white wines, both dry styles (particularly from Pessac-Léognan) and the sweet, botrytized nectars of Sauternes.
Sauvignon Gris is a pink-berried mutation of the Sauvignon Blanc grape. It most likely originated around Bordeaux, but has found itself quite at home in Chile. Sauvignon Gris is thinly scattered across other parts of the wine world, including Uruguay, New Zealand, the United States and Switzerland.
Its popularity among growers was historically severely limited by its low yields; in France in 2009 there were (officially) only 463 hectares (1144 acres) of vines. However plantings may be on the increase, in the Loire, in Bordeaux to add body to Sauvignon Blanc, and elsewhere around the world. While the clone is not legally permitted in some Loire appellations – such as Sancerre – it is generally agreed that Sauvignon Gris vines are present in a good number of vineyards in such zones.
Sauvignon Gris is less aromatic than its Sauvignon Blanc sibling, but certainly capable of producing interesting wines. Wines produced from Sauvignon Gris tend to be richer and more voluptuous in texture than Sauvignon Blanc, with ripe fruit flavors of mango and melon as well as citrus notes. The wines are usually dry and tend to have some of the herbaceous notes so typical of the Sauvignon family. The type of color mutation seen in Sauvignon Gris is a naturally occurring phenomenon and reasonably common. For example, Roter Riesling is a pink-skinned mutation of Riesling, Chardonnay Rosé is a mutation of Chardonnay and Pinot Gris is a light-berried variant of Pinot Noir. Sauvignon Gris is also often blended with Sauvignon Blanc, including examples where the former is a minor (usually uncredited) component of New World varietal Sauvignon Blanc wines.
The Sauvignon Blanc taste is one of the most identifiable in the world of white wines for a few reasons. First, it always has crisp, high acidity. Second, it has a chemical compound called pyrazine which gives grassy, herbal or bell pepper flavors. When grown in cooler climates or picked early, the herbaceous green character is most prominent. In warmer climates or allowed to hang longer on the vine, the pyrazine character diminishes in favor of riper fruit flavors ranging from grapefruit, to passion fruit and guava.
Sémillon is one of the wine world's unsung heroes. The gold-skinned grape produces France's most famous and revered sweet wines, notably Sauternes, and some of the greatest dry white wines of Australia - particulary those in the Hunter Valley.
1 x Bottega IL Vino Dei Poeti Prosecco DOC Extra Dry 2022 ~ Veneto, Italy
Bronze - Falstaff (2021 vintage)
Bronze - Tom Cannavan (2021 vintage)
Silver - The Prosecco Master, The Drink Business UK (2021 vintage)
Bronze - Decanter World Wine Awards (2021 vintage)
Multi-award winning winery
Organic
Bottega is famous for its top-end Prosecco served in gold bottles.
Falstaff "Golden pale with brilliant reflections. On the nose, notes of white rose, lychee, reminiscent of strawberry. On the palate, it is very fruit-driven, opening up with subtle creamy nuances."
Tom Cannavan "Pretty, floral and icing sugar notes lead on to that palate which, after an initial burst of peachy fruit, soon narrows to a reasonably long and very crisp and agile finish."
John Szabo, Master Sommelier (MS) "A prosecco made in a gentle, barely off-dry style (though still brut), lightly effervescent, crisp, fruity and floral. This is the sort of stuff to buy in quantity to have on hand for that spontaneous moment; it will appeal widely and fit almost any occasion, at a fine price."
Rhys Pender, Master of Wine (MW) "Floral, pear, green apple and honeydew melon notes on the nose. The palate has a lively, crisp mousse, racy acidity and green apple and mineral flavours in this dry Prosecco."
The Winemaker "Brilliant, with a rich and persistent foam and fine perlage. Straw yellow with fruity, flowery notes, with scents of acacia flowers, apple, white peach and citrus fruits. The taste is Fresh, delicate, fragrant and well-balanced"
Extra dry. It is a barely off-dry style Prosecco.
Bottega creates Prosecco in Venoto Italy using the classified Glera grape.
A luxurious journey through Europe’s finest flavors awaits with this exquisite tasting pack. Featuring premium champagne from France, this collection is designed to delight the senses. Complemented by the elegant Provence Rosé, the refined White wine from Bordeaux, and the sparkling charm of Prosecco from Italy, this selection promises a feast for the palate. Carefully paired and elegantly gift-wrapped, this pack includes a personalized gift card, making it an unforgettable choice for celebrations, heartfelt gifts, or sophisticated evenings. Toast to life’s special moments with this extraordinary wines and cheeses.
1 x Maxime Blin Son Naturel Optimiste (Organic) - Champagne, France
Organic
Winemaker "A full bodied smooth and lingering Champagne, round, long, harminious, with a minerality on the finish. Ideal for an aperiftif, to accompany oysters and fish.
Maxime Blin is served on Qatar Airways & Air Italy
80% Pinot Noir 20% Chardonnay
Organic wines are made from grapes grown without pesticides, following strict organic standards. Organic wines are produced in vineyards that do not use synthetic chemicals. Certified organic wines have been certified by Association des Champagnes Biologiques in France.
Champagne Maxime Blin has captured the attention of the world's champagne experts. This fourth-generation family owned champagne house has produced many award winning champagnes which are rated highly and celebrated for their expression of the famous terrior in which the vineyard is located. It is one of the few certified organic champagne producers in the worrld. Situated in the Champagne village of Saint Thierry near Reims - the center of the Champagne world - boasting Veuve Clicquot, Pommery, Ruinart and Taittinger, Champagne Maxime Blin is the rising star amongst its big name neighbours.
Maxime Blin has been certified organic since 2021. The company. produced its first organic champagne in 2022. Maxime Blin champagnes are highly sought after due to the qualtiy and low volume of champagnes it produces. It cultivates the three Champagne grape varieties, Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier and Chardonnay on vines with an average age of twenty years.
Maxime Blin produces 11 champagnes ( Carte Blanche, Carte Douce, Rosé, Millésime, Grande Tradition, Cuvée l'Onirique, Cuvée l'Authentique, Cuvée Maxime, Millesime 1998, Cuvée Craziness, Clés d'Eole). Among the brands' many admirers which include artists, musicians, and wine experts, the Italian actress Manuela Arcuri, every year for her birthday, orders the Cuvée 'Craziness'.
Champagne is the most iconic sparkling wine in the world, produced in the region of Champagne in France. Synonymous with celebration, champagne is typically produced from a few specific varieties of grapes: pinot noir, chardonnay, and pinot meunier. With effervescent flavors of citrus, almond, and apple, champagne comes in varying levels of sweetness and has a moderate amount of alcohol. The most treasured Champagnes age for a minimum of 3 years.
The Champagne region is located 140 kilometres from Paris, France. While the vines in this region have been producing wine since the Roman era, it is only in the past couple of hundred years that winemakers began producing Champagne using méthode champenoise - the complex method that produces the style of Champagne the world knows and loves today. Another important component of the production of champagne is the chalk and limestone soils which dominate the Champagne region. Vines grown in these conditions result in wines that are high in acidity - a key component to making good sparkling wine. Champagne's northerly location - about as north as grapes can ripen - also allow for higher acidity and lower alcohol levels which are also very important for producing quality sparkling wine.
The UNESCO World Heritage site of the wine growing region of Champagne is best known for the world's most famous wine product: champagne. The region of Champagne, traces its roots to the early medieval kingdom of Austrasia that was annexed to the French crown in the 1300s. Right from the early ages, the region has been famed for its hillside vineyards and its strictly regulated methods of creating those pinot noir, pinot meunier and chardonnay grapes into – champagne. It is this ‘Method Champenois’ that connects champagne to its rich history, geographical location and image of luxury.
1 x Rameau d'Or Golden Bough Provence Rosé 2022 ~ Provence, France
95/100 World Wine (2020 vintage)
Bronze - Mike Bennie, The Wine Front (2020 vintage)
95/100 Stuart Knox, The Real Review (2019 vintage)
93/100 Ralph Kyte-Powell (2019 vintage)
95/100 Huon Hooke (2018 vintage)
93/100 The Wine Front (2018 vintage)
95/100 Huon Hooke (2015 vintage)
18/20 Raymond Chan (2015 vintage)
Tasting Notes "Pale pink with light purple hues. On the nose, delicate with notes of red berries and pomegranate. The palate is refreshing with a lovely density, laden with white peach, rose petals and zest. The finish offers hints of spices and mouthwatering watermelon. Striking a delicate balance between fruit weight, phenolic grip and lip-smacking mineral acidity - this is the Provence we know and love - très beau."
World Wine "Good depth of flavour. Crunchy, Juicy, delicious. Outstanding Provence Rosé" (2020 vintage)
Mike Bennie, The Wine Front "For cafes by the water in Provence, or something like that. Pale in colour and flavour, strawberries, some light cream, a smudge of gummy tannin lending some shape. It has good and perky freshness to it, dryer fruit characters, a touch of savouriness. It doesn’t really get out of first gear but it is very representative of the place and style. In the zone." (2020 vintage)
The Winemaker "Very pale with just a hint of peachy blush. On the nose, intensely floral with spice-tinged berries; on the palate it has a lovely density, laden with white peach, rose petals and grapefruit rind. Striking a delicate balance between fruit weight, lip smacking mineral acidity and taut, spicy fine-grained tannin - this is the Provence we know and love - tres elegant and long." (2020 vintage)
Stuart Knox - The Real Review "Palest of salmon-pinks in the glass. Strawberry, lavender and pink grapefruit aromatics. Great fruit intensity and balance between that fruit and acidity. The finish has a moment of phenolic grip kick in which focuses and lengthens the palate. Very much in the modern Provençal style, ticking all the boxes for summer drinking" (2019 vintage)
Ralph Kyte-Powell - The Real Review "The merest blush of pink slightly deepens its glittering appearance, introducing a subtle, savoury style that’s incredibly appetising. There are earthy, stoney aromas, suggestions of wildflowers, and a subtle thread of plummy fruit that translate easily into a smooth, dry mouthful of tangy, ripe flavour. It’s lingering and zesty with just enough phenolic structure to make it very food-friendly. A blend of syrah, grenache and cinsault." (2019 vintage)
Epicure Good Food, Wine Guide, The Age "Outstanding French Rosé...The bouquet is subtle, and more than simple fruit. Good depth of flavour." (2019 vintage)
Terry Georga "Rameau d'Or is the most classic of Provencal rosés; from the pale pink-salmon verging on peach-flesh colour, to the savoury spice and fruit it portrays. A delicate blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Counoise from Cotes du Provence it is a refreshing, versatile wine that suits aperitif drinking and the quintessential summer rosé." (2018 vintage)
The Winemaker "A delicate coloured rosé showing the traditional pale onion skin tones of rose from the sunny Provence area of Southern France. On the nose, the wine offers a hint of wild strawberries and delicate spicy notes reminiscent of rose petal Turkish delight. On the palate, the wine shows immediate soft berry-fruit flavours that are immediately appealing. Then a hint of white pepper and fennel spice comes through providing a fresh, almost tangy finish which lingers on the palate." (2018 vintage)
Drinkster, Philip White 'Provence Grenache Cinsault rosé stays fresh and pink with screw cap' "This is a bonny dry rosé of the best sort....mild rosepetal/rosebud perfume that wends from the thorns all the way along to Turkish delight is here....insinuations of gingery lime marmalade and leatherwood honey - are all here jumping and dancing so fresh and lovely." (2017 vintage)
Cameron Douglas MW "Attractive fragrances of light red fruits - light red cherry and strawberry with a hint of cranberry; these are repeated on the palate with crisp and refreshing acidity, very light and fine needlepoint tannins showing off a chalky mineral-like moment." (2016 vintage)
Wine of the Week "Fabulous lunchtime wine with attractive bottle presentation and a back label story to the entrance. The most delicate pink hue, subtle aromas of cherry and raspberry and almost bone dry to the taste which is savoury rather than fruity with spice and pepper nuances and a tangy finish."
Huon Hooke "An outstanding southern French rosé. The colour is pale salmon-pink and the bouquet is shy and subtle, savoury and more than simple fruit. Good depth of flavour, richness and the finish has harmony and persistence. Very more-ish. " (2015 vintage)
George Orwell ''All rosés are equal but some rosés are more equal than others.''
A blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Counoise
This wine is produced by Debussy which has several estates in the Rhone Valley, Provence and other Mediterranean regions. Debussy estates produce wines that express the characters and typicity of each of the French terroir that the vineyards are located, creating wines reflective of the regions and their popular wine styles. The name Rameau d'Or means 'Golden Bough' and is based on a fantastical tale of enchantments, transformations and love. A magical golden bough from an enchanted garden was given to a prince, by an eagle, to awaken a sleeping princess. A bough is so powerful that a single leaf from it would make one rich, young and beautiful. Unfortunately, this prince was not the most handsome man in his kingdom. Choosing a full led soul over outer beauty, he and his newly awoken princess set about to transform the lives of those around them.
Provence is a wine region in the far southeastern corner of France best known for the quality of its rosé wines and for its warm, mild climate. The vineyards of Provence cover an area of France's south-eastern coastline that measures roughly 200 kilometres from east to west. In this definitively Mediterranean climate – no Provencal vineyard is more than 55km (25 miles) from the Mediterranean – the vines enjoy around 3000 sunshine hours per year.
Rosé derives its name from the French word for pink. In Spain it is rosado and in Italy rosato. Rosé’s flavours and styles are as varied as the food it matches. Rosé predates white and red wine with ancient rosé-style wines dating back 8,000 years. The colour of a rosé can vary dramatically. A deep fuchsia pink rosé may be bone-dry, though it’s likely to be full flavoured given balance by a gentle squeeze of tannin. Tannin primarily comes from the skin of a grape – as does colour. It’s tannin that sets rosé apart from white and red wine. Almost all wine grapes have clear juice; it’s the skins that give the colour. Grenache is the most popular grape used in rosé, with its lifted confectionary aromas, juicy red fruit flavours and mild-mannered tannins creating the textbook triumvirate for rosé. The temperate Provence region of France is home to some of the world’s most accliamed rosé, perhaps naturally, given it’s widely planted with grenache and its Rhône varietals; mourvèdre, cinsault and syrah.
1 x Chateau Marjosse Pierre Lurton Cuvee Palombre White 2020 - Bordeaux, France
92/100 James Suckling
93/100 James Sucking (2019 vintage)
92/100 Jean Marc Quarin (2019 vintage)
90/100 Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider (2019 vintage)
16.5/20 Jancis Robinson (2019 vintage)
Owned by one of the world's most famous winemakers, Pierre Lurton - president of two of Bordeaux's best-known chateaux, the Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) owned Château Cheval Blanc and Château d’Yquem.
James Suckling, ''..I like the density and concentration, with a delicious creaminess undercut by herb and spice...Almonds, fennel, yoghurt, grapefruit and pear skins on the nose, with some cloves and white pepper.''
Jancis Robinson "Cuvée Palombe, a startlingly rich white based on 45- to 70-year-old vines named after a pigeon. The blend is a third each of Sémillon, Sauvignon Blanc and the more perfumed Sauvignon Gris but seems to me to be dominated by the lovely beeswax and lanolin flavours of fully ripe Sémillon, a grape variety more often encountered in sweet white bordeaux. I originally tasted the wine at room temperature when it seemed almost fat, until a nice cooling breeze of Sauvignon Blanc blew across my palate on the finish. The wine benefited from being restored to the cellar before I tasted it a second time, when it was, again, such a welcome and characterful contrast to the technically perfect Sauvignon-dominated style that has become typical of Bordeaux Blanc." (2019 vintage)
James Suckling, "..Focused and elegant...A medium-to full-bodied white with complex aromas of dried lime, apricot, green mango, flint and toast. It’s textured and creamy with crisp acidity and flinty, subtly smoky layers." (2019 vintage)
Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider "Flowers, lemon rind, spearmint and honeysuckle notes are all over the place. Fresh, forward, fruity and with a creamy, yellow, citrus rind finish, with just a drizzle of honey, you can enjoy this on release." (2019 vintage)
Château Marjosse is owned by French 'wine royalty', Pierre Lurton - president of two of Bordeaux’s best-known châteaux; the Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) owned, Château Cheval Blanc and Château d’Yquem, Château Marjosse. Pierre Lurton comes from two of the great Bordeaux families. His father Dominique was the youngest son of the paterfamilias François Lurton; his uncle André Lurton who founded the eponymous wine company; his many cousins run châteaux from Pauillac to Pomerol. His mother is from the famous Lafite family.
The influential Club Enologique asserts that Pierre is the most accomplished wine personality of his famous family. Trained as a doctor but swapping his studies for wine making after four years. At 23 he took over Clos Fourtet in St Emilion, one of the fine Lurton properties, and in 1991 he was appointed head of Château Cheval Blanc (it was bought by Bernard Arnault of LVMH in 1998); in 1999 he took on Château d’Yquem, which had just been added to the Arnault portfolio.
Club Enologique describes Pierre Lurton as having the world’s most corporate wine job. "However he divides his time between two of the world’s most exalted wine properties, but comes down to earth in Entre-deux-Mers, the leafy, unpretentious appellation to the east of Bordeaux at Château Marjosse."
The Château Marjosse estate is located in Entre-deux-Mers, on the right bank of Bordeaux. Initially owned by the wine merchant Bernard Chénier, Château Marjosse was acquired by the Deleuze family, who, in 1990, gave some plots to Pierre Lurton to rent. In 1992, Pierre Lurton, who grew up in Château Reynier, neighbour to this magnificent Chartreuse, moved to a second home in Château Marjosse and, over successive years became the owner of the entire vineyard, as well as the Chartreuse in 2013.
Decanter "Since Lurton bought Château Marjosse in 1994, the estate has improved beyond recognition. Pierre's father, Dominique Lurton, also made over a further 30ha so that, under the Château Marjosse label, Lurton now exploits 42ha of vineyard, six hectares of white and 36ha of Bordeaux red – a total of 300,000 bottles a year. Pierre insists his wine is Bordeaux and not Bordeaux Supérieur because ‘my wine is only supérieur in the bottle’. His objectives are ambitious. As the quality of the terroir with clay-limestone soil is similar to some of the better areas in Saint-Emilion, he hopes to prove that wines from this area can rival those from more prestigious regions."
Sommeliers International "At Château Marjosse the land possesses yet another specific feature, known locally as “la Boulbène”, a silty-clayey texture that has developed on ancient alluvions. The fertility of these soils no longer needs to be proved, because, by chance, they are also found in Saint-Emilion, a terroir that is extremely familiar to the man who manages “Cheval Blanc” …. Pierre Lurton. Assisted in this transformation by Consultant-Oenologist Pascal Poussevin, whose recommendations range from vine growing to wine-making, Pierre Lurton’s estate has now reached its cruising speed … Beyond the fabulous adventures he experiences in his role as manager of Châteaux d’Yquem, Cheval Blanc, as well as estates in South Africa, Latin America and in Australia … it is undoubtedly with “the salt of this land here in the Entre-deux-Mers” that his years of quest for perfection will be revealed. It is clear that this region needs winegrowers of such calibre, those who possess a sixth sense and, using techniques that almost resemble intentional alchemy, transform the grapes they touch into wines that exude the unique character of a specific area."
The Entre-deux-Mers region, nicknamed by wine experts as “Little Tuscany”, is unique and jealously protected by its inhabitants. "There are fifteen appellations that constitute the Entre-deux-Mers. The most well-known of them all, reputed for its dry, lively white wines, is certainly the one which bears the name of this region! The Entre-deux-Mers cultivates a certain speciality in producing white wines, due to its basic geological assets, possessing gravelly-limestone soils, upon which Sémillon, Sauvignon, Muscadelle and even Ugni Blanc grape varieties are planted. But the variety of soils and sub-soils associated with such a complex landscape provides a diversity of terroirs … These are favourable for producing red wines, that are regrettably not sufficiently well-known, but highly prized for the complexity of their aromas, their deep, vivid colour, as well as the concentration and elegance of their tannins." Sommeliers International.
Bordeaux, in the southwest of France, needs little introduction as one of the world's most famous, prestigious and prolific wine regions. Its three trump cards are diversity, quality and quantity. The majority of Bordeaux wines (nearly 90 percent of production volume) are the dry, medium- and full-bodied red Bordeaux Blends that established its reputation. The finest (and most expensive) of these come from the great châteaux of the Haut-Médoc and the Right Bank appellations Saint-Émilion and Pomerol. The legendary reds are complemented by high-quality white wines, both dry styles (particularly from Pessac-Léognan) and the sweet, botrytized nectars of Sauternes.
Sauvignon Gris is a pink-berried mutation of the Sauvignon Blanc grape. It most likely originated around Bordeaux, but has found itself quite at home in Chile. Sauvignon Gris is thinly scattered across other parts of the wine world, including Uruguay, New Zealand, the United States and Switzerland.
Its popularity among growers was historically severely limited by its low yields; in France in 2009 there were (officially) only 463 hectares (1144 acres) of vines. However plantings may be on the increase, in the Loire, in Bordeaux to add body to Sauvignon Blanc, and elsewhere around the world. While the clone is not legally permitted in some Loire appellations – such as Sancerre – it is generally agreed that Sauvignon Gris vines are present in a good number of vineyards in such zones.
Sauvignon Gris is less aromatic than its Sauvignon Blanc sibling, but certainly capable of producing interesting wines. Wines produced from Sauvignon Gris tend to be richer and more voluptuous in texture than Sauvignon Blanc, with ripe fruit flavors of mango and melon as well as citrus notes. The wines are usually dry and tend to have some of the herbaceous notes so typical of the Sauvignon family. The type of color mutation seen in Sauvignon Gris is a naturally occurring phenomenon and reasonably common. For example, Roter Riesling is a pink-skinned mutation of Riesling, Chardonnay Rosé is a mutation of Chardonnay and Pinot Gris is a light-berried variant of Pinot Noir. Sauvignon Gris is also often blended with Sauvignon Blanc, including examples where the former is a minor (usually uncredited) component of New World varietal Sauvignon Blanc wines.
The Sauvignon Blanc taste is one of the most identifiable in the world of white wines for a few reasons. First, it always has crisp, high acidity. Second, it has a chemical compound called pyrazine which gives grassy, herbal or bell pepper flavors. When grown in cooler climates or picked early, the herbaceous green character is most prominent. In warmer climates or allowed to hang longer on the vine, the pyrazine character diminishes in favor of riper fruit flavors ranging from grapefruit, to passion fruit and guava.
Sémillon is one of the wine world's unsung heroes. The gold-skinned grape produces France's most famous and revered sweet wines, notably Sauternes, and some of the greatest dry white wines of Australia - particulary those in the Hunter Valley.
1 x Bottega IL Vino Dei Poeti Prosecco DOC Extra Dry 2022 ~ Veneto, Italy
Bronze - Falstaff (2021 vintage)
Bronze - Tom Cannavan (2021 vintage)
Silver - The Prosecco Master, The Drink Business UK (2021 vintage)
Bronze - Decanter World Wine Awards (2021 vintage)
Multi-award winning winery
Organic
Bottega is famous for its top-end Prosecco served in gold bottles.
Falstaff "Golden pale with brilliant reflections. On the nose, notes of white rose, lychee, reminiscent of strawberry. On the palate, it is very fruit-driven, opening up with subtle creamy nuances."
Tom Cannavan "Pretty, floral and icing sugar notes lead on to that palate which, after an initial burst of peachy fruit, soon narrows to a reasonably long and very crisp and agile finish."
John Szabo, Master Sommelier (MS) "A prosecco made in a gentle, barely off-dry style (though still brut), lightly effervescent, crisp, fruity and floral. This is the sort of stuff to buy in quantity to have on hand for that spontaneous moment; it will appeal widely and fit almost any occasion, at a fine price."
Rhys Pender, Master of Wine (MW) "Floral, pear, green apple and honeydew melon notes on the nose. The palate has a lively, crisp mousse, racy acidity and green apple and mineral flavours in this dry Prosecco."
The Winemaker "Brilliant, with a rich and persistent foam and fine perlage. Straw yellow with fruity, flowery notes, with scents of acacia flowers, apple, white peach and citrus fruits. The taste is Fresh, delicate, fragrant and well-balanced"
Extra dry. It is a barely off-dry style Prosecco.
Bottega creates Prosecco in Venoto Italy using the classified Glera grape.