Press

Delicate, lightly floral aromas sit atop peach and juicy ripe pear, the the palate has more easy drinking, stone, fruit flavours, but edged with a fine line of grapefruity citrus to give definition.

The CALMEL & JOSEPH ‘LES CRUS’ SAINT-CHINIAN BLANC 2018 is a rare thing indeed, with the Saint-Chinian commune being primarily a red wine area. But the chaps have herded together a quartet of some tasty white varieties – grenache, blanc roussanne, vermentino and viognier – to create a proper tasty drop. The bouquet has the most bounteous stone and orchard fruit aromas, which are held aloft by some savoury wood tones straight off the vine from the six months ageing in oak, that add a smidge of smoke to the nose. On the palate, there is a floral delicacy initially to the peach and apricot fruit. Then, crisp citrus acidity dashes in through the mid-palate, giving the wine a freshness and elongating the time on the tastebuds. The mineral tone comes through on the generous finish in this lovely white Saint-Chinian.

UK wine lovers, need a robust red wine for late autumn/lockdown drinking? Terry Kirby (The Independent) has some suggestions, including our Cotes du Roussillon Villages 2014, available to order online from WineTrust (£10 off your first order) : https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/food-and-drink/red-wine-drink-autumn-halloween-bilbao-reserva-cotes-du-rhone-b1420012.html

"Packed with fresh, juicy red cherry and strawberry fruit" - happy to see that our Pinot Noir got the thumbs up from UK wine journalist Christine Austin, writing for the Yorkshire Post last weekend. UK wine lovers, if you're tempted to give it a whirl you can find it in Waitrose.