2016 Chateau Saint Georges (Saint Emilion)
Regular price £38.00 Save £-38.002022 Domaine de la Croix Belle, Le Champ des Grillons Rose
Regular price £46.00 Save £-46.002014 Chateau Brane Cantenac, Baron de Brane
Regular price £21.75 Save £-21.752016 Chateau Talbot, Connetable
Regular price £47.65 Save £-47.65ABOUT THE WINE
Legend has it that Chateau Talbot takes its name from a British soldier, Connetable Talbot, who was killed in a battle at Castillon in 1453; the estate was named in his honour. Since 1917, Talbot has been owned by the Cordier family. The family has invested heavily in Talbot to ensure that it achieves the quality levels of which it is capable. With 102 hectares of vineyards, Talbot is one of the largest estates in the Medoc. The second wine of this famed 4th Growth is sourced from vines of 30 years old and was vinified in stainless steel tanks, followed by an oak maturation of 15 months in 15% new barrels. The blend of the 2016 vintage consists of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon & 60% Merlot.
TASTING NOTES
Medium-bodied, dense fruit, extremely youthful, with plenty of potential for long-ageing. Red and black fruit, tobacco leaf and a stony mineral-character which will soften with time. Quite charming at this early stage; time will add polish to the long, smoky finish.
FOOD PAIRING
Strong flavours; lamb, beef stews, cured meat.
FRIARWOOD SAYS
A fabulous Talbot to drink at 10-15 years from vintage, somewhat forward, but for the moment one to store rather than consume.
2016 Chateau Lagrange (Saint Julien), Les Fiefs de Lagrange
Regular price £36.65 Save £-36.652016 Chateau Figeac, Petit Figeac
Regular price £150.10 Save £-150.102006 Chateau Leoville-Barton
Regular price £135.50 Save £-135.502011 Chateau Grand Corbin
Regular price £85.20 Save £-85.202018 Chateau Gloria
Regular price £130.75 Save £-130.75ABOUT THE WINE
One of the better-known Crus Bourgeois of the Medoc, still at reasonable prices. Chateau Gloria is made up of holdings of classified Crus and would deserve to be classified in its own right. Recent vintages have found all their character again, in the tradition of the great Saint-Julien wines. A surprising wine if you are prepared to wait.
2016 Vintage also available
2015 Chateau Cantenac Brown
Regular price £74.80 Save £-74.80The Chateau for Cantenac Brown is unique in the Bordeaux wine appellation. It is perhaps the only Bordeaux chateau designed as a traditional Tudor estate in the entire region! At the start of the 19th century, the well-known Scottish, animal painter, John Lewis Brown purchased the estate and Bordeaux wine vineyards. As was the tradition in the Medoc at the time, he renamed the estate Cantenac Brown. More recently, in 1989 AXA, the massive insurance company with several Bordeaux chateaux in their portfolio including Pichon Baron in Pauillac, and estates in Pomerol and Sauternes bought the vineyard. AXA sold the property in 2006 to the Halabi family.Today, the Simon Halabi family are the owners of Chateau Cantenac Brown. One of the first moves made by the new owners was to place Jose Sanfins in charge of the wine making at Cantenac Brown.
Among the finest Cantenac-Browns of the last three decades, the saturated purple-coloured 2015 is a sleeper of the vintage. Loaded with chocolatey black currants intermixed with sweet earth, cedar, and spice box, it exhibits medium to full body, surprisingly ripe tannin for a wine from this estate, a multi-layered texture as well as mid-palate, and a finish that lasts 25-30 seconds.
Any game, red meat, super creamy cheese and fatty fish cooked with complex herbs and spices. Lamb curry.
This is the wine for you if into earthy, tannic full-bodied wines.
2014 Chateau Cantenac Brown
Regular price £77.85 Save £-77.85The Chateau for Cantenac Brown is unique in the Bordeaux wine appellation. It is perhaps the only Bordeaux chateau designed as a traditional Tudor estate in the entire region! At the start of the 19th century, the well-known Scottish, animal painter, John Lewis Brown purchased the estate and Bordeaux wine vineyards. As was the tradition in the Medoc at the time, he renamed the estate Cantenac Brown. More recently, in 1989 AXA, the massive insurance company with several Bordeaux chateaux in their portfolio including Pichon Baron in Pauillac, and estates in Pomerol and Sauternes bought the vineyard. AXA sold the property in 2006 to the Halabi family.Today, the Simon Halabi family are the owners of Chateau Cantenac Brown. One of the first moves made by the new owners was to place Jose Sanfins in charge of the wine making at Cantenac Brown.
Among the finest Cantenac-Browns of the last three decades, the saturated purple-coloured 2000 is a sleeper of the vintage. Loaded with chocolatey black currants intermixed with sweet earth, cedar, and spice box, it exhibits medium to full body, surprisingly ripe tannin for a wine from this estate, a multi-layered texture as well as mid-palate, and a finish that lasts 25-30 seconds.
Any game, red meat, super creamy cheese and fatty fish cooked with complex herbs and spices. Lamb curry.
This is the wine for you if into earthy, tannic full-bodied wines.
2014 Chateau Lagrange (Saint Julien)
Regular price £144.00 Save £-144.002018 Chateau Nouret Cru Bourgeois
Regular price £46.00 Save £-46.002016 Chateau Gloria
Regular price £130.75 Save £-130.75ABOUT THE WINE
One of the better-known Crus Bourgeois of the Medoc, still at reasonable prices. Chateau Gloria is made up of holdings of classified Crus and would deserve to be classified in its own right. Recent vintages have found all their character again, in the tradition of the great Saint-Julien wines.
TASTING NOTES
A majority Cabernet Sauvignon blend, expect beautiful aromas of blackcurrants and blueberries. The body is full, with very fine tannins that are strong and bright. Drinking very well right now, and will continue to develop over the next two decades and beyond.
2018 Vintage also available
2015 Chateau Marquis d'Alesme
Regular price £68.10 Save £-68.10ABOUT THE WINE
Château Marquis d'Alesme is a distinguished wine producer that has been tending to an exceptional terroir in the heart of the Bordeaux region since 1616. With a unique combination of mystique and classicism, the estate is a land of culture and passion that consistently delivers premium Margaux wines.
The vineyard, spanning 15 hectares, is managed in a meticulously individual manner, much like a beautiful garden, with utmost care and craftsmanship by the team.
TASTING NOTES
The grapes of this wine were carefully selected by hand and underwent rigorous sorting in both the vineyard and cellar. Fermentation took place in 80 hl truncated wooden and stainless steel vats, followed by malolactic fermentation in barrels. The wine was aged in French oak barrels, consisting of 65% new and 35% first-fill barrels, with 3 months spent on lees. This Margaux wine is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot. The nose is complex and rich, with fragrances of black fruit such as dark mulberries, liquorice, and smokiness. The palate has a lively vibrancy, followed by powerful yet, silky and elegant tannins. This wine is not shy but provides lush exuberance with layered, deep fruit notes with savoury complexity, which linger in the long, showy finish.
FOOD PAIRING
Juicy and tender grilled lamb chop with a balsamic reduction with creamy garlic mashed potatoes, and mushroom duxelles
FRIARWOOD SAYS
The vines, averaging 40 years of age, are planted on clay-limestone, silica-gravel and silica-marl soils.
2008 Chateau Leoville-Barton
Regular price £141.55 Save £-141.55ABOUT THE WINE
Château Léoville Barton is the smallest portion of the great Léoville estate and has been owned by the Barton family since 1826. There is no château and the wine is made at Langoa Barton. Léoville Barton's 48 hectares of vineyards are located in the east of the St-Julien wine appellation and lie on gravelly-clay soils. Since Anthony Barton took over the reins from his Uncle Ronald in the mid-80s, quality has soared at Léoville Barton and the wine has gone from being a solid mid-league performing 2ème Cru Classé to one of the most exciting and scintillating wines in St. Julien.
TASTING NOTES
Powerful, heavily-extracted, built for the long-term. Ripe, opulent aromas – blackberry, fig, cedar, smoke – and an oak-rich, grippy palate, with prune, cassis and black olive on the long, lingering finish. Best from 2020, and will age well until around 2050.
FOOD PAIRING
Smoked duck, beef stew or lamb leg are all perfect pairings.
FRIARWOOD SAYS
Just entering its drinking window; drink or hold.
2012 Chateau Palmer, Alter Ego de Palmer
Regular price £246.25 Save £-246.252014 Chateau Pontet Canet
Regular price £126.30 Save £-126.30ABOUT THE WINE
Classified as a 5eme Cru Classe, own by the Tesseron family also owner of Lafon Rochet in St Estephe. Today, Chateau Pontet-Canet is owned and run by Alfred and Michel Tesseron. The Tesserons have vastly improved the quality of the Pontet-Canet wines which are now full-bodied and packed with ripe, chewy, black fruits and fine tannins with great aging potential.
2014 Clos du Marquis
Regular price £160.75 Save £-160.75