Wine Terroirs

Located in the southern Rhone, the Costières de Nîmes, Luberon and Ventoux appellations share an ancient tradition of winegrowing that dates back to Antiquity. Situated within wildlife sanctuaries where conservation of biodiversity is key, they offer visitors both spectacular scenery and a distinctly Mediterranean, laid-back lifestyle, all of which is generously encapsulated in their wines. We have selected six wineries that stand out for the quality of their wines in order to turn the spotlight on the common traits between the three appellations, but also what makes them unique.

An article on South African wine pioneers and the dedication to their family heritage is a guaranteed page-turner that will draw you in with colourful characters as you devour each page.

Bordeaux experienced a host of weather events which had a negative impact on the development of the growing season, ripening and yields. They ranged from severe spring frosts to horrendous outbreaks of mildew and a cool summer with little sunshine, but ended with a mild autumn. A lot of hard work in the vineyards produced decent wines, some of them stellar even, but with significant inconsistencies from one appellation, or even property, to another. The following is an excerpt from our tastings, solely focused on the Crus Classés.

More often than not, only seasoned connoisseurs are familiar with Graves, despite the fact that the area produces very affordable, signature Bordeaux wines in a complete range of styles. Alain Echalier gives us a run-down of the appellation and offers a detailed visit to a selection of wineries.

For years, the rosé wine category in Italy was the underdog, considered a marginal genre, almost as if it were a 'non-wine'. In recent years however, global growth of rosés, and in particular still rosés, has allowed Italian wineries to free themselves of the shackles of cultural legacies that did not value the perception and positioning of pink wines. The undeserved victim of prejudices and absurd confusions, rosé is in fact one of the most cross-functional, versatile wines, both for its potential for expression and pairing possibilities.

Here, too, winter was wet but quite mild, leading to early budburst though the head start was lost due to a cold spring and start of April marked by frost. Flowering went well but June was particularly wet and caused shatter and disease pressure. Botrytis ultimately established itself well and harvesting went seamlessly, producing beautifully crafted noble-rot wines but in very, very small quantities!