LEEUWIN ESTATE 2014 ART SERIES MARGARET RIVER RIESLING

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Brand owner Leeuwin Estate

RRP US $26, £21, €24

Markets Global

Contact simone@leeuwinestate.com.au

leeuwinestate.com.au

Together with Vasse Felix, Moss Wood and Cullen, Leeuwin formed part of the first pioneering generation of wineries established in Margaret River in the early 1970s, which were attracted to the potential of this new area some 300km south of Perth on the edge of the Indian Ocean, with its temperate climate and ideal terrain for growing grapes.

The Australian artist John Olsen was chosen to create artwork for the Art Series Riesling labels. He created four works entitled Frogs in Riesling, and these now run consecutively across each vintage of Art Series Riesling.

The winemaker’s tasting notes say: “Delicate with subtle perfume. A precise fruit spectrum of freshly cut limes and lemon skin integrated with lifted floral notes, hints of sweet spice and fragrant kaffir lime leaf. The palate has tension, it is taut and fine. The natural acid line gives definition and precision. Notes of lime flesh, lemon sherbet and Granny Smith apples on the palate lead to an elegant finish.”

GREENALL’S LONDON DRY GIN

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Brand owner Quintessential Brands

RRP £15.49 (70cl UK travel retail), €19.90 1-litre duty free

Markets Global Travel Retail exculsive

Contact oliver.storrie@quintessentialbrands.com

Greenall’s Extra Reserve (37.5%) is described as a new premium expression based on the original Greenall’s recipe and builds on the citrus element in Greenall’s Original through the addition of exotic citrus botanicals, including sweet Moroccan orange, Turkish grapefruit and Spanish lemon, which were said to be especially reserved for this new product.

CROFT TWIST

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Brand owner Gonzalez Byass UK

RRP £7

Markets UK initially

Contact Christina Turner, cturner@gonzalezbyassuk.com

+44 (0)1707 274790

The company says Twist is a “British take on the refreshing Spanish rebujito (fino/casera/lemonade, a garnish of mint and lots of ice)”.

It adds: “We found that using typical British cordials added some complexity and lovely fresh hedgerow notes.

“The sparkle accentuates the elderflower and lemon. It is drier than many aperitif drinks and its low alcohol means that you can enjoy a glass or two without feeling dizzy.”

The ingredients were blended, made fizzy and bottled in Manchester by Kingsland. The fino is from Jerez. The cordials are from Belvoir and the components are blended together with Manchester water from the Lake District.

CONO SUR BICICLETA LIMITED EDITION TOUR DE FRANCE PINOT NOIR

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Brand owner Cono Sur

RRP £7.49, €8.50

Markets Europe

Contact Ben Smith, bsmith@cyt-uk.com,

+44 7876 835 752

Cono Sur is marking its status as the official wine of the Tour de France with a new limited-edition range of labels.

The designs, by cycling artist Eliza Southwood, celebrate the feats of Miguel Indurain, who won the Tour de France five consecutive times in the 1990s, and are also a nod to the bicycles which are used by workers throughout Cono Sur’s vineyards in Chile.

Cono Sur brand manager James Hick said: “Bikes are an integral part of the Cono Sur story, thanks to the workers in Chimbarongo in Chile who pick the grapes travelling around the vineyards by bike.”

Cono Sur, under chief winemaker Adolfo Hurtado (see profile, page 16), has long been a leading exponent of

Pinot Noir in Chile, and its Bicicleta Pinot Noir is the UK’s best-selling Pinot, selling 1.27 million cases in the UK in the past 52 weeks, representing value growth of some 16% over the previous 52 (IRI reports, total off trade, 52 weeks to April 22, 2017)

H BY HINE

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Brand owner Thomas Hine & Co

RRP €40, £35, US $45

Markets Global

Contact Per Even Allaire, pallaire@hine.com, hine.com

H by Hine (40% abv) is described as a young, vibrant, VSOP cognac, blended from more than 20 eaux-de-vie from the Grande and Petite Champagne regions.

Available in 5cl, 20cl, 70cl/75cl and 300cl bottle sizes it is said to be fresh and floral in character. It was blended to be served frozen in a shot glass.

HUSH HEATH ESTATE SPARKLING APPLE WINES

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Brand owner Hush Heath Estate

RRP £15

Markets Global, with an initial UK launch

Contact Zoë Dearsley, zoe@hushheath.com

Here are two sparkling English apple wines made from Hush Heath estate in Kent. The white and rosé sparkling wines are made from 100% juice from Cox, Bramley and Egremont Russet apples, all grown and hand-picked at the estate. Winemakers Owen Elias and Victoria Ash are said to use the traditional champagne method of production, fermenting the juice in stainless steel tanks and using champagne yeasts for the secondary fermentation in the bottle.

In terms of tasting notes, Hush Heath owner Richard Balfour-Lynn said: “Our two new wines are a white, pure apple that is crisp, clear, and very expressive on the nose with ripe green and red apples and citrus. The palate is bursting with concentrated orchard fruit flavours and benefits from a creamy mousse.

“Our rosé is a beautiful pale pink colour created by adding a dosage of strawberry and blackcurrant. The palate is luscious, creamy and full of ripe English fruit. It finishes with a hint of sweetness and a lingering character of red fruits and cream.”

ADNAMS COPPER HOUSE DRY GIN & TONIC CANS

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Brand owner Adnams

RRP £1.99 per 25cl can (in Adnams stores) or £21.99 for a pack of 12 (online at adnams.co.uk)

Markets UK-only

Contact callcentresales@adnams.co.uk

Adnams has launched its award-winning Adnams Copper House dry gin (5% abv) in a convenient, ready-to-drink gin & tonic format, designed for picnics, festivals and enjoying while out and about.

Said to be hand crafted from East Anglian malted barley and made using the London dry method, the gin is distilled with six botanicals including sweet orange, hibiscus flower and juniper berries.

To complement the gin’s combination of aromatic flavours, Adnams’ head distiller, John McCarthy, has developed a bespoke tonic water.

BULBASH NO1 MALT VODKA

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Brand owner Bulbash

RRP €20, £16, US $22

Markets Global

Contact Alina Zhuk, +370 612 08181,

+375 293180600, +375 17 202 43 70

Bulbash No1 Malt (40% abv) is said to be made from “elaborately selected Belarusian alcohols, and only natural ingredients”.

Bulbash says it is a combination of the best alcohol production technologies, cutting-edge methods of selecting high-quality alcohol, and innovative blend filtration. The company says it produces Bulbash Malt organically, from real malt. The recipe is said to be refined and production is quite difficult.

THE ROMAN ROAD CHARDONNAY 2016

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Brand owner Simpsons Wine Estate

RRP £22.99

Markets UK

Contact Simpsons Wine Estate, sales@simpsonswine.com

The Roman Road Chardonnay 2016 is the first wine from Simpsons Wine Estate in Barham, Kent. Using 100% estate-grown Chardonnay, the wine has been produced from grapes picked during the first harvest in October 2016.

Charles Simpson says: “We planted our first vines in the Roman Road vineyard in 2014 and carried out our first harvest last October. We wanted to set aside a small quantity of Chardonnay to make our first still wine from the estate. Primary and malolactic fermentation took place in stainless steel tanks in our new winery, before moving to spend three months in French oak barrels.”

Ruth Simpson adds: “Our Roman Road vineyard is on the sunny, sheltered slopes of the North Downs of Kent. Exuding a true sense of place, the wine is elegant and linear, with a distinctive mineral quality that you would expect from fruit grown on these chalk soils. Created from Chardonnay clone 584 during the outstanding 2016 harvest, this single vineyard, still white wine displays aromas of white peach and lime, followed by flavours of cashew and hints of spice.”