ALLURING AUSSIES AND JURA GEMS 💎

What’s up winos,

How u doin? I’m still recovering from Sunday, physically (thanks to all the v generous customers who were sharing out their bottles) and spiritually from the truly holy experience that was meeting Wink Lorch. What a woman!!

Since we (I) went a bit mad putting together the bottle list for the launch, we’re lucky enough to have some stray Jura Jemz kicking around the warehouse. And guess who’s gonna benefit from those?

First up, pumped to have the long-awaited and much coveted wines of Thomas Jacquin in the house. Jacquin is one of the exciting new wave of Jura winemakers with their teeny tiny projects - he’s got two hectares spread over tiny plots in Arbois and Poligny, and works just like in the good old days, with barely any equipment. The resulting wines are full of soul and character, and they’re destined for a long life. We’ve got correspondingly miniscule quantities, so have at these here.

If you’re after bang for your buck (an increasingly laughable concept in the Jura) then you wanna get around the Guillot wines. The Poulsard in particularly is stupidly good value. Bargains to be had chez Kevin Bouillet too.

On the slightly less wallet-friendly scale, got a few strays from FRM and Tournelle. Icons only.

Anyway! Enough banging on about the Jura, it gets far too much airtime as it is. Let’s see what’s happening on the other side of the world, shall we?

Though we’re still in France with the names, we’re actually over in Oz, with fresh arrivals from Jean Bouteille and Château Comme Ci Comme Ça. I’m fairly sure ‘John Bottle’ isn’t a real name, but Jean-Baptiste Courdesses, the actual winemaker, is in fact French, so maybe it is? Whatever. JB bopped all over the world making beer, sake and wine before putting down roots in Basket Range, aiming to make fun wines with no adds. Mission accomplished, I reckon. His juicy carbo Syrah and refreshingly tart Tempranillo are the ideal shoulder season wines to ease us through the seasonal depression that inevitably accompanies the end of summer. Aaron Fenwick of Château Comme Ci Comme Ça is also making joyous bottles from organic grapes sourced from various growers in Adelaide Hills - his Pinot Gris rosé is also ideal for autumn, being blessed with more complexity than most bottles of the pink stuff, while his Savvy/Chardy blend is just crying out for something salty, whether that be a lobster bisque or my own personal serving suggestion of a handful from the nearest bag of crisps. Can’t go wrong either way.

Over in the Barossa Valley, Rasa are making weird, wonderful concoctions that have to be tasted to be believed. A peachy, peppery Semillon, a wacky, herbal take on Pedro Ximenez, a lesson in aromatics courtesy of Muscat and Riesling, and a crunchy, juicy blend that could be a dark rosé or a light red, I’m not gonna tell you how to think. These are bottles for those with a taste for the unconventional. Go on, live a little.

Lastly, ICYMI, we’re throwing the doors open for le premier salon de dan’s (translation: massive piss up) on Sunday 20th October. Tickets are flying already (I’m assuming everyone read the ‘£30 = unlimited wine for three hours’ part of the event description) so I suggest you get going on this before it’s too late. Don’t come crying to me, etc.

Love u!

xoxo

Megan