OVID Vineyards Syrah 2012Ethereal, focused Syrah from the rocky hillsides of Napa's most exclusive growing site, Pritchard Hill. The beauty of this wine lies in the tiny sizes and large quantities of batches in the blend, with higher proportions of whole bunches adding savoury complexity to some lots. The destemmed bunches ensure that bright Syrah fruit shines through but the structure is wonderful, not just from those stems but also fermentation in Burgundy and Bordeaux

¾ parts Alma Finca

it is long and silky with plenty of depth and definition

Sourced from the gravelly soils that define the Graves appellation

Maxime has shown with this elegant wine from Leully above Nuits-Saint-Georges that he has an excellent understanding with Chardonnay as well

A touch of salinity and a delicate grip on the finish showcase the influence of the blue slate soils that define this wine’s identity

so a perfect expression of what Aube is all about

the idea is that a butt from this solera used to be locked away as someone from the Valdespino family wanted to keep the wine to themselves

is a small winery in Petaluma

depth of taste and a richly expanding aroma

Generous and soft on the palate

but handled with requisite lightness of touch as to be approachable now (ideally with a couple of hours in the decanter)

stony texture