Our Wines in the Press

Olly Smith's best festive drinks
IMPRESS YOUR GUESTS: If you’ve ever enjoyed a glass of Pinot Grigio, this is next-level loveliness. Peachy with flashes of mineral brilliance, this white gem has rare depth with a saline streak. I cannot believe how good it is. Liquid joy from Germany.

Olly Smith - You magazine, 12/12/2021

Tasting Notes
This estate always makes a traditionally styled wine and their 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape is no exception, revealing a medium ruby/purple color as well as spicy, gamey notes of red and black currants, smoked game, peppery garrigue, and new saddle leather. Medium to full-bodied, with terrific elegance (which is the vintage), a gorgeous texture, and outstanding length, this is classic, old-school Châteauneuf du Pape done clean, balanced, and brilliantly! It’s going to evolve nicely for 15 years or more. Drink 2020 - 2035. 94/100.

Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com

Top of the pops: The best wines for your Christmas celebrations, from Champagne to English sparkling
Legend holds that the monk Dom Pérignon learnt how to make sparkling wines at an abbey in Limoux, home of this Crémant, before applying his knowledge back in Champagne. This likeable, wild strawberry-scented rosé is made by Philippe Collin, the son of a Champenois vigneron.

Douglas Blyde - Evening Standard, 25/11/2021

Olly’s blowout red wines
Firm power and heady perfume surge into a robust finish in a surreptitiously spiced icon. Treat yourself.

Olly Smith - You magazine, 5/12/2021

Best Christmas wines: Whites and sparklers
If you love sauvignon blanc, then my tip of the year is this wine from little-known Menetou-Salon, just down the road from the most famous sauvignon blanc-producing villages in the world, Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé. It is nothing short of electrifying on the nose and palate, the sort of wine listed at the finest restaurants – at a very different price! This will amaze you with its elegance and persistence of flavour.

Matthew Jukes - Daily Mail, 10/07/2021

Vintage Report: A Taste of the Top Southern Rhônes
(Southern Rhône - Wine of the Vintage & Key Producer). This traditional estate owns 18ha of Châteauneuf, with considerable plantings of old-vine Grenache. Fermented in concrete vats, then aged in concrete and old foudres. Very full-bodied, lovely sweetness to the fruit, very fine tannins and great freshness. Shot through with juicy, sweet, chocolatey tannins, great concentration - but very well balanced. Not heavy or aggressive. Stony minerality on the finish. The most impressive barrel sample of Vieux Donjon I've ever tasted, profound stuff. Drink 2025-48. 98/100.

Matt Walls - Decanter magazine

The wines of Southwest France: a buyer’s guide
Domaine Ilarria is one of Irouléguy's leading producers. Exhibiting great aromatics this Tannat and Cabernet Sauvignon blend has soaring floral notes, combined with spicy red berries and a touch of menthol. Although concentrated on the palate this is not a clumsy, tannic beast, instead there is plenty to enjoy with blackcurrant and damson fruit, with beautifully integrated wood. An intriguing, elegant and classy wine with a refined finish and good ageing potential. Organic and Biodynamic. Drinking Window 2021 - 2026, 93/100 points.

Andy Howard MW - Decanter.com

Wine Spectator
Juicy and well-defined, with a mix of red and black cherry and currant notes that have good energy, with violet, sanguine and singed alder accents filling in throughout. The racy, focused finish pulls everything together. Drink now through 2026. 93/100.

James Molesworth - Wine Spectator

Fizz collection late 2021
Pale pink. Richly guava-scented and really lovely ripe-guava fruit on the palate. A particularly distinctive sparkling rosé with exceptional richness and depth of fruit. Generous strawberry and watermelon fruit. Broad and filling but not remotely fat or flabby. We tried this with brined, smoked turkey crown and it was outstanding. I can imagine it would be just as delicious with pigs in blankets... Top tip for Christmas Day?!

Tamlyn Currin – JancisRobinson.com, 24th Nov. 2021

The best white wines to buy for Christmas 2021
White châteauneuf has become forgotten, but it can be magical. The one from Domaine du Père Caboche is lovely: an aromatic cloud of subtle flavours.

Victoria Moore - The Telegraph, 22nd November 2021