Wine Producers

Sandhi Wines

In his recent review of the Sandhi wines, Antonio Galloni said: ‘It is quite conceivable that within a few years the Sandhi Chardonnays and Pinots could become reference point, benchmark wines for Santa Barbara, and California, for that matter’. This sort of praise will come as no surprise to those that are familiar with the project - a collaboration between Rajat Parr (wine director for the Michael Mina restaurant empire) and winemaker Sashi Morman (also behind Evening Land, Stolpman and Piedrasassi).

Santa Barbara is a very exciting area of California for those that are looking for wines with poise, finesse and great acidity to match the natural ripeness of fruit. Founded in 2010, Sandhi (which is the Sanskrit word for collaboration) work with fruit from the finest vineyard sites in the region and produce small volumes of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in a low-tech, hands-off way.

The wines undergo wild fermentations, there are no additions (except for some sulphur), they all go through malolactic conversion and a conservative amount of new oak is used during elevage. All of this conspires to give wines of incredible minerality and purity that are fully deserving of the plaudits they are receiving.

Backhouse

Backhouse is a label from O’Neill Vintners, one of the leading producers of quality Pinot Noir and Chardonnay in California. It was started by Jeff O’Neill, whose family have roots in winemaking dating back to the 1930s.

The inspiration for Backhouse comes from an old home that was once a refuge for vintners, writers, artists and anyone wanting to enjoy the Californian serenity. The vineyards are located in California’s famous Central Coast region that extends from the South of San Fransisco down to the Santa Barbara Highlands.

The Chardonnay is a lovely, fresh style with very gentle oak influence. The Pinot Noir, with the lion share of the fruit coming from Lodi, is a soft and elegant style wine with plenty of red berries and dark cherry on the palate.

Domaines Pierre Chavin

Pierre Chavin have been leading innovators of low and non-alcoholic wine for over 10 years. It was the brain-child of experienced oenologist Fabien Gross and Mathilde Boulachin, who cut her teeth in the marketing world before falling in love with wine and making it her career. Together they have revolutionised and disrupted the non-alcoholic market with the quality of their wines.

The vineyards are spread across beautiful Languedoc-Roussillon, the perfect region and terroir for growing Merlot and Chardonnay. Pierre Chavin take extreme care when making their wines, harvesting at night to maintain optimum freshness, before a gentle pressing and fermentation. The alcohol is carefully filtered, ensuring the character of the varietal is maintained.

It's easy to see why Pierre Chavin's iconic ‘Pierre Zero’ range of 0%, alcohol-free wine has become a global success, even receiving acclaim from Andreas Larsson, winner of the coveted 'Best Sommelier of the World' award.

Domaine Christophe Vaudoisey

Dating back to 1804, the Vaudoisey family have quite a few branches making wine in the village of Volnay, but it is Christophe that has developed the most prominent reputation in recent years following a string of awards in the Guide Hachette.

After taking over 11 hectares from his father in 1985, Christophe became the 8th generation to make wine at the domaine. After building a brand new winery in 2008 he was able to marry a traditional approach to viticulture with modern equipment, and while good before, the results have been superb since. Following 18 months in barrel (30% new) the wines are bottled without fining and filtration.

These are silky smooth, elegant wines that exude class. There is a bit of white in Meursault, but the lion's share of production is red. The domaine has holdings in a number of prestigious 1er Cru climats, but the village wines from Volnay and Pommard offer superb value for money and are drinking beautifully already.

Les Vignobles St Didier Parnac

Renowned as two of the leading pioneers of the Malbec grape in Mendoza, Argentina, Hervé and his wife Diane have decide to invest in a new project in Cahors, the original home of their favourite grape variety. The place is picture perfect; Hervé explained, when they first visited the vineyard land ‘we stood quite still and were both struck by its beauty and overwhelmed with an incredibly good and peaceful feeling’. Hervé and Diane also found themselves impressed by the diversity of the terroirs surrounding the Prieuré De Cénac. Built on a limestone headland dating from the Jurassic period, the Prieuré De Cénac dominates both valley and hills of the Cause at 300m above sea level, with 20-30% slope inclination. The main wine produced by Les Vignobles St Didier Parnac is named after the Prieuré De Cénac - and it is a beautifully well-made example of a traditional-style Cahors Malbec; structured and firm, yet wonderfully ample and generously-fruited. The Mission de Picpus is a thoroughly-modern expression of the Malbec grape, and recently picked up the Trophy for Best Cahors at the International Wine Challenge.