www.thewinesociety.com/discoveriesBTFeB15

‘Much of The Society’s success is down to the buyers — truffle-snufflers, experts at finding interesting parcels from smaller producers and not buying for the sake of fashion’

Charles Metcalfe, the International Wine Challenge

NEW DISCOVERIES SAVE £10 ON AN EXPLORATION MIXED DOZEN

THE BUYERS’EXCITING FINDS

FROM CROATIA TO SOUTH AUSTRALIA

The freedom to explore the world for interesting new wines is one of the most exciting and rewarding parts of a Society buyer’s job. Such freedom is, of course, only possible thanks to the loyalty and enthusiasm of our members, not to mention their insatiable thirst for good wine!

The diversity and quality of recent discoveries has been so impressive that we have assembled the following selection for members to explore. There are plenty of curios and rarities to delight, including rare grape varieties, unusual blends and unfamiliar regions. But there are also new and exciting �nds from familiar names – an unexpected blend from Bleasdale

in South Australia, for example, or a re�ned and fragrant new Pouilly-Fumé from the Comte and Comtesse d’Estutt d’Assay at Château de Tracy.

We wholeheartedly encourage members to explore these new discoveries, safe in the knowledge that each wine has been selected purely for the quality and sheer pleasure it provides. For Society buyers, the thrill of discovery is matched only by the joy of sharing, and we hope you enjoy these wines as much as they enjoyed �nding them. To encourage you to do so we include two six-bottle mixed cases with UK delivery included in the price, and an Exploration Dozen with a saving of £10.90.

NEW Juanicó Benteveo Chardonnay 2014Lively and vibrant unoaked chardonnay from the Juanicó region of Uruguay, just 10 miles north of Montevideo. Delicious aromas and �avours of apples and pears, with a touch of honey. 12.5% ref BT-UR411 £6.95 bottle £83 dozen

NEW Bleasdale Langhorne Crossing Verdelho-Sauvignon 2014This is a new �nd from one of our longest-term South Australian suppliers, Bleasdale. A great crisp, dry, fresh and very easy-drinking white with fresh lemon and quince aromas, and citrus and spiced pear on the palate. 12% ref BT-AU17431 £7.50 bottle £90 dozen Vina Laguna Malvazija 2013 Six million visitors a year mean that many small but good Croatian wine growers charge very fancy prices for their wines, but this attractively fragrant, crisp malvasia is a bargain. Fresh, lightly scented with hints of peach and honey. Serve as an aperitif or with light salads or shell�sh. 12.5% ref BT-CO11 £7.50 bottle £90 dozen

Skouras Cuvée Prestige White 2013Very appealing, well-balanced Peloponnese white. The fragrant moscho�lero grape gives perfume and bouquet and the local roditis grape lends a gentle, dry but rounded �avour. George Skouras is at the forefront of Greece’s modern wine revolution. 12.5%ref BT-GR791 £8.50 bottle £102 dozen

De Morgenzon DMZ Chenin Blanc 2014A �ne example of South Africa’s signature white grape, with bright citrus aromas and a food-friendly, creamy-textured palate. This is a blend from three Stellenbosch vineyards and is picked just a little earlier than usual to retain greater freshness. 14% ref BT-SA9731 £8.50 bottle £102 dozen

THE THRILL OF SHARING NEW DISCOVERIES

WHITES

The coastal village of Petrcane in Dalmatia, Croatia. Our new Croatian Malvazija (above) is a bargain

Society Buyer Joanna Locke MW (right) on a recent buying trip to Portugal

U N U S U A L GRAPE VARIETIESRegent is what is known as a complex hybrid variety, made by crossing diana and chambourcin. Diana itself it a cross between sylvaner and müller-thurgau, whilst chambourcin is another complex hybrid. The variety has seen increasing popularity in German vineyards, where its hardiness and disease-resistance make it an appealing alternative to, for example, spätburgunder (pinot noir). The grapes ripen well, with good sugar levels, making the �nished wines fruity, approachable and great for early drinking. Regent is also planted in the UK, and it is a component in our Three Choirs Rosé 2013 blend.

Maturana tinta originally comes from the Jura region in eastern France, where it is known as trousseau. Permitted in Rioja, plantings are nonetheless sparse. Here, the vine produces small clusters of grapes with plenty of acidity and thick skins that can provide deep colour and tannic structure. It has lovely peppery notes and wonderful freshness.

Black kalavryta is an incredibly rare variety – there are less than four hectares in the world. It produces wines quite light in colour, with cherry, spice and red berry notes, not dissimilar to pinot noir. Tetramythos is the only producer to bottle it as a varietal, and the result is a fascinating curio.

The image on the front cover shows the sun setting over vines in South Australia.

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Solms Astor Langarm, Western Cape 2012This is an exciting and rather unusual blend of pinotage, touriga naçional, shiraz, grenache and mourvèdre sourced from various Cape vineyards, including well-placed sites on the Solms Delta farm. Fresh and fruity, with supple tannins and hints of spice, this is a style that can be enjoyed on its own or with grilled meats – braai style. 14% ref BT-SA10191 £7.50 bottle £90 dozen

NEW Anselmann Regent 2013A lovely German �nd, discovered and brought to our attention by a Wine Society member. Deep in colour with bags of soft, uncomplicated sweet, black-fruit �avour. Regent is the name of the grape, which is being increasingly planted in Germany. 13% ref BT-GE8611 £7.95 bottle £95 dozen

Villard Expresión Casablanca Syrah 2013The Casablanca Valley was Chile’s �rst cool-climate vineyard area, and produces here a fresh, �ne-�avoured syrah, with a hint of tar, from a vineyard in Tapihué. 13% ref BT-CE7931 £8.25 bottle £99 dozen

MavroKalavrita, Tetramythos 2013A delightful Greek rarity. Quite light in colour, like pinot noir, with a cherry-fruit nose and ripe spicy fruit �avour, this will make a delicious spring and summer red, drunk cellar cool, perhaps with tuna and sun-dried tomatoes.The 2008 is still excellent so it keeps too. Organically produced. 13% ref BT-GR781£8.50 bottle £102 dozen

Little Prince Cretan Red Karavitakis 2012An attractive mix of two local Cretan varieties with a naturally sweet ripe-tasting �avour reminiscent of good village Rhône. Grape variety kotsifali, aromatic and generous, blends well with the smaller-berried mandilaria which contributes colour and backbone. It’s a great authentically Cretan match. 13%Ref BT-GR811 £8.95 bottle £107 dozen Soli Pinot Noir, Edoardo Miroglio 2011Edoardo Miroglio is an Italian winemaker, working in Bulgaria, whose winery is located in the Thracian valley in the village of Elenovo. This is aged for 18 months in oak and a further year in bottle, resulting in a soft, elegant wine with cherry, red-berry fruit and subtle smoky notes. 13.5% ref BT-BG161 £9.95 bottle £119 dozen

Tocat de l‘Ala Garnatxa-Sira 2013Wonderfully layered, ripe blend of garnatxa, syrah and samsó (carignan) from Emporda in northern Catalunya (on the border of France), this has enticingly fresh blueberry fruit and round structure. 14.5% ref BT-SP9911 £9.95 bottle £119 dozen

Saint-Pourçain ‘Instan T’, Les Terres d’Ocre 2013This light, pretty Loire red is a traditional local blend of 60% gamay, providing lovely fruit, and 40% pinot noir, for �nesse and length on the palate. The wine is raised in cement tanks which helps to preserve the delicate and juicy red-fruit character. 12.5% ref BT-LO11301 £9.95 bottle £119 dozen

Rui Madeira Beyra Mencía, Beira Interior 2012More often known as jaen in Portugal, the mencía grape is undergoing something of a revival in north-eastern Spain as well as here on the cooler mountain slopes of eastern Portugal. Grown on granite and �int soils, organically and without the use of oak, this wine shows a real sense of place, as well as appetising balance between fresh wild-berry fruit and mineral tang. 13% ref BT-PW4911 £9.95 bottle £119 dozen

NEW Château Ka Source de Rouge 2012A smooth and ripe cabernet-syrah-merlot blend from this Lebanon producer in the Bekaa Valley. Plummy, spicy and savoury with soft tannins from careful oak ageing. Drink this year and next. 14% ref BT-LE681 £10.50 bottle £126 dozen

NEW Ad Libitum Maturana Tinta Rioja 2012A unique style of Rioja made from the rare, ancient maturana tinta grape. Quite unlike anything else you are likely to have tasted from Rioja. It is refreshing, peppery and tangy, and a curiosity well worth exploring. Now to 2018. 13% ref BT-SP9991 £10.95 bottle £131 dozen

REDS

Vidiano Klima Karavitakis 2014Karavitakis, based near Chania, is one of a clutch of dynamic Cretan wineries that have revitalised the island’s winemaking using indigenous varieties. Vidiano, with lime and apricot aroma and plenty of spicy fresh fruit, is a very promising white which father Karavitakis helped to discover near Rethymno, and his son Nikos makes brilliantly combining late and early-picked fruit. 13% ref BT-GR801 £9.95 bottle £119 dozen

NEW Pouilly-Fumé ‘Les Princes Ermites’ 2013 Sauvignon blanc specialist Denis Dubourdieu is now consulting here, taking this �ne Loire property to even higher standards of excellence. Produced by the Comte and Comtesse d’Estutt d’Assay at the Château de Tracy, this is a re�ned example of Loire sauvignon and a great buy. Ripe, fragrant, and perfectly balanced. Now to 2017. 13% ref BT-LO11261 £13.95 bottle £167 dozen

Vines growing in Lebanon’s dramatic Bekaa Valley

This offer is open until Sunday 1st March, 2015 while stocks last To order www.thewinesociety.com/discoveries 01438 740222

WINE CLUBOF THE YEAR

CHALLENGE 2014

Key

- bone dry to intensely sweet

screwcap synthetic closure

MIXED CASES FREE UK DELIVERY

Saint-Pourçain ‘Instan T’, Les Terres d’Ocre 2013

Rui Madeira Beyra Mencia, Beira Interior 2012

Château Ka Source de Rouge 2012

Ad Libitum Maturana Tinta Rioja 2012

Anselmann Regent 2013

MavroKalavrita, Tetramythos 2013

REDS

Solms Astor Langarm, Western Cape 2012

Villard Expresión Casablanca Syrah 2013

Soli Pinot Noir, Edoardo Miroglio 2011

Tocat de l‘Ala Garnatxa-Sira 2013

Saint-Pourçain ‘Instan T’, Les Terres d’Ocre 2013

Rui Madeira Beyra Mencía, Beira Interior 2012

WHITES

Vina Laguna Malvazija 2013

Pouilly-Fumé ‘Les Princes Ermites’ 2013

De Morgenzon DMZ Chenin Blanc 2014

Juanicó Benteveo Chardonnay 2014

Vidiano Klima Karavitakis 2014

Bleasdale Langhorne Crossing Verdelho Sauvignon 2014

Pouilly-Fumé ‘Les Princes Ermites’ 2013

Vina Laguna Malvazija 2013

Bleasdale Langhorne Crossing Verdelho-Sauvignon 2014

Skouras Cuvée Prestige White 2013

Juanicó Benteveo Chardonnay 2014

De Morgenzon DMZ Chenin Blanc 2014

NEW DISCOVERIES REDS NEW DISCOVERIES EXPLORATION DOZEN

NEW DISCOVERIES WHITES

£55

£49

A six-bottle case containing one each of the following:

A 12-bottle case containing one each of the following:

A six-bottle case containing one each of the following:

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The Wine Society is a mutual organisation, so our members’ satisfaction is paramount. If, for any reason, you haven’t enjoyed a wine we want to hear about it and will happily offer a credit, a replacement or a refund. thewinesociety.com/promise

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£99 A SAVING OF £10.90

A village scene in the wine region of Melnik, Bulgaria. Our new Bulgarian pinot noir is soft and elegant