From the rolling Tuscan hills just beyond the Ligurian border, the 2023 Vermentino ‘Vignebasse’ by Terenzuola delivers a vibrant, expressive white that brings sun, sea, and stone into perfect harmony. Grown on the estate’s lower vineyards—le vignebasse—this is a wine that showcases Vermentino at its most elegant and refreshing.
On the nose, it bursts with aromas of citrus blossom, ripe pear, and a touch of wild rosemary. The palate is zesty and mineral-driven, with notes of lemon peel, white peach, and a subtle saline edge, all wrapped in a clean, mouth-watering finish.
What sets this Vermentino apart is the winemaking: cold maceration and careful fermentation in stainless steel to preserve purity, followed by time on the lees to add texture and complexity. It’s a beautifully structured white, balancing freshness with depth.
Perfect as an aperitivo or paired with seafood, grilled vegetables, or creamy pasta dishes, this is a go-to bottle for those who love crisp whites with personality.
Pieropan Soave Classico 2023 is straw yellow in colour, with greenish hints. On the nose it has aromas of almond blossoms and marzipan, with a touch of citrus. On the palate it is rounded and has flavours of ripe fruit perfectly balanced by a fresh, clean acidity that enhances its long length.
The 2021 Chardonnay Santa Rita Hills Cuvée shines with brightness and precision. Aromas of citrus, white flowers, slate, and a hint of white pepper are elegantly layered, offering remarkable clarity. Its crisp, saline-driven finish is exceptionally refined and captivating.
The Vieilles Vignes (old vine) Pouilly-Fuissé showcases a deep golden hue and captivating aromas of brioche, complemented by subtle notes of stone fruits and flowers, all underscored by a restrained minerality. The palate is layered with green apple flavors, hints of citrus, creamy oak nuances, and a mineral-driven austerity that culminates in an impressive, lingering finish.
A wonderfully fresh and zippy Hautes Côtes de Nuits bursting with aromas of citrus zest and green apple with subtle notes of toasted brioche. The palate has excellent tension with concentrated fruit flavours that linger on the finish.
2021 was a challenging vintage for winegrowers and producers in Burgundy. There were historically low yields due to catastrophic spring frost and hail, compounded by a cold, wet growing season. It is a return to a more classic vintage marked by bright acidity and freshness thanks to the cooler temperatures and resulting slower ripening, which allowed for full flavour development.
‘La Rocca’ is golden yellow in the glass, with intense, concentrated perfumes that follow through to the palate. On the nose, classic ‘La Rocca’ aromas of nuts and exotic fruits lead to an elegant and beautifully balanced palate, with notes of spice and a light minerality on the long finish.
The 2022 vintage was characterized by a winter without significant rainfall, both snowy and rainy, and mild temperatures that led to an early but always dry spring. Prolonged below-average temperatures over the spring caused slow and stunted bud burst, followed by high temperatures in June which necessitated emergency irrigation in some vineyards where both the scarcity of substrate and the drainage capacity of the soil have made irrigation vital. Due to the difficult conditions, the bunches were smaller, both in size and yield, however the 2022 vintage shows great balance and a pleasant minerality.
La Giustiniana Gavi di Gavi 2023 is straw-yellow in colour with a greenish hue, this wine delights with aromas of white fruit, stone fruit and lime zest, which are immediately beguiling and followed by a subtle yet persistent bouquet of green apples. The palate is well-balanced with a fresh acidity and impressive structure. Almond notes linger on the finish.
Deliciously aromatic with scents of honeydew melon and orange blossom, delicately infused with herb botanicals. A bright expression of Sauvignon Blanc, with juicy lemon and steely cassis flavours and a generously textured palate garnished with a flourish of pastis and wildflowers. It is a wine with impressive structure and depth.
A relatively dry winter was followed by unsettled spring conditions, including isolated frosts. Minimal damage was sustained, but the intermittent cold nights continued well into spring, disrupting flowering and causing low berry numbers and millerandage (uneven berry size) in some varieties. As summer progressed, El Niño brought its signature warm, dry conditions. Extremely low rainfall was recorded throughout the summer, to the point of a drought being declared in mid-March. Bunch numbers were low across the region from the outset and the hot, dry summer condensed berry size, so reduced yields were inevitable. Fortunately the loose bunches reduced disease risk and resulted in immaculately clean, ripe fruit. Sauvignon Blanc ripeness levels were excellent across all sites. Cooler nights in February stretched out the ripening and led to wonderfully crisp acidity. 2024 saw pristine fruit with generous depth of flavour.
This is an elegant Sauvignon Blanc with signature aromas of blackcurrant leaf and flint on the nose, with subtle orange blossom notes. The palate is fresh with a racy acidity alongside lychee, pineapple, and tangy fresh lime flavours.
The 2023 vintage was characterised by low yields and early ripening, resulting in wines of excellent concentration and marked freshness, particularly in the whites. Late-season rain delayed ripening on reds, leading to challenges, but increased flavour development and elegance.
David Moret’s 2022 vintage in the Côte de Beaune was characterised by abundance and excellence. The growing season began with a cold, wet winter, which resulted in a slower start to the growing season and delayed budburst, saving the vines from the worst of the spring frosts. The winter rains also replenished soil water reserves and sustained the vines through four heatwaves during the summer. Harvest was earlier than usual, but the quality of the fruit harvested was excellent, with vibrant aromatics and balancing acidity.
David Moret is a micro-négociant making wines in his small cellar in Beaune. Despite first studying oenology, he went on to sell winemaking supplies before finally deciding to make wines himself. With no family-owned vines, David bought grapes and purchased his first barrels in the late 1980s, starting his own, eponymous label in 2000. Since then, he has continued to buy small parcels of grapes from top growers and ferments using indigenous yeasts. His wines are bottled without fining or filtration, after being naturally settled while ageing in oak. David uses 20% new oak for his Villages wines and up to 40% new oak for his Premier and Grand Crus.
The Domaine de Bel Air 2023 vintage in the Loire began with a cool and relatively rainy winter which replenished soil water reserves after the hot and dry 2022 vintage. The vineyards largely escaped the threat of spring frosts and flowering and fruit set took place under excellent dry and sunny conditions at the end of May. It was very dry during July and August and some welcome showers arrived in September and gave the vines a necessary boost to complete the final stages of ripening. The harvest began in mid-September and the quality of the fruit was excellent.
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The villagers are out there with a vengeance to get that Frankenstein
You made all the required mock ups for commissioned layout, got all the approvals, built a tested code base or had them built, you decided on a content management system, got a license for it or adapted:
This is quite a problem to solve, but just doing without greeking text won't fix it. Using test items of real content and data in designs will help, but there's no guarantee that every oddity will be found and corrected. Do you want to be sure? Then a prototype or beta site with real content published from the real CMS is needed—but you’re not going that far until you go through an initial design cycle.
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