🦘AUSSIE PISS UP & FRIENDS🦘

Hey, Fionn this Thursday. Lots to cram in, so straight to it.

First up, a shiny new tasting has just been announced. On August 20th Riley Harrison will be gracing Dan’s for another classic aussie piss-up. These wines sum up everything good about modern Australian wine. Well-sourced fruit, squeaky clean forward-thinking work in the winery, and less dogma than you’ll find in Europe. Flawless, fault-free juice that is both fun and serious at the same time. I’ve also heard he is an all-round top bloke. Wines, snacks, and good chat are guaranteed. Plentiful supplies of VB, Shapes, and other miscellaneous aussie confectionery will as ever be rearing to go. Usual deal with tickets here.

If you can’t wait that long, we still have a few bits left of his from the first shipment. A pallet of his new stuff is also landing soon, so keep those eyes peeled.

Back over in Europe and we’ve got new bits from Masseria del Pino. After tasting through the range recently, these are stable and singing. Prices got slashed too cos we’re feeling kind. This couple swapped the day jobs for an abandoned bit of land way up high on Etna. Said site came with plenty of gnarly old vines for them to play with. When I say old, I mean old, like pre-phlyroxera OLD. The fruit on show here is so Sicilian, with a salty twang and plenty of herbal edge. Rumour has it that a certain Ganevat is a big fan of this one, he’s a man of good taste after all, and I can see why.

When they took over the land came it with a surrounding woodland teeming with abandoned vines that had returned to their wild state. Untamed, never sprayed, chemical-free their whole lives! Now they’re living their best lives, climbing high up into the forest canopy, yielding pathetically small but concentrated berries. These unadulterated grapes get picked at 4 am, under the full moon, for a pied de cuve. Blended into some directly pressed juice to kick start the ferment, the resulting Rosato is the purest expression of Etna you’ll find. You can feel that raw energy pulsating in the glass. Pomegranates, herbs, and smoke. A clear volcanic imprint that is unmistakably Etna. 800 bottles made. Yikes.

It’s easy to get caught up in the hype of big, brash spenny bottles that sometimes those offering serious value fly under the radar. Guilty as charged. So I’ll try and highlight some wines each week that punch above those price tags. Value in wine is hard to find these days. Especially, when we only want grapes grown in a good way, made by good people, from good places. Thankfully, Portugal has our back.
I’ve sunk these wines numerous times in Lisbon, so I was chuffed to see them being brought into the UK by a safe pair of hands.

This is a red with white wine texture. Not much else I’d rather drink on a warm sunny day. Serve chilled and expect plenty of juicy fruit, cola, and the irresistible desire to pour yourself another glass. The white companion is also a belter. Baby Burgundy vibes if you’ll believe it. All the citrus, florals, minerals. Both are going to be well stocked in my fridge this summer. Perfect to pour whenever I need people pleasing without putting a dent in my wallet.

Some new Jura too cos I cant help myself. O2Y should well be on your radar. Yves makes wines under the Novice label. Yoshi has a day job at Overnoy. Not sure what the third guy gets up to, but the internet says he likes cars. The cellar is full of vintage bangers apparently. They sound like a decent bunch, making decent wine, in a decent place if you ask me. Wines are the real deal too. Wines for people that don’t just love the hype, but actually love the region. Layered, powerful, and energetic. New school producers, old guard quality.

The Savagnin is silly good. Topped up but a blend of two vintages for the best of both. Fleshy yellow fruit from one, and that razor-sharp acidity from the other. Cheese, please.

The Chard is SERIOUS after 36 months of élevage. Rasping, full of texture and tension. Some things are worth the wait.

Lastly, some Alsatian Riesling getting the Jura treatment here. More old oak élevage, and a bit of time in bottle means we still get that puckering acidity we love but structure and complexity have been dialed up.

Enough rambling, boxes to unpack, boxes to repack, etc …

FIONN
XOXO