The Week Wine Club: Save up to £48 on our stunning Summer wines from Swig
Save up to £48 on our wine editor Bruce Palling's stunning Summer selection from Swig
Swig is the only one of our six preferred wine merchants that is purely online, but this doesn’t daunt buyers. I find that what customers want is a wine merchant that can uncover wines that punch above their weight, regardless of the conventional wisdom that it needs to be a red Bordeaux or white Burgundy – I only wish people with that attitude would forget about their prejudice and try the Chianti Rufina or the Monserito Gavi on offer here, as they might be in for a surprise.
As usual the selection below is available either as a pair of each in a mixed case, or as whole cases. The mixed case includes two bottles of each of the selected wines. The Week Wines price: £154.70, usually £187.78. Click here to order. Also available are a mixed red case, a mixed white case or 12 bottle cases of each of the wines. All are at an exclusive price for readers of The Week and with free UK mainland delivery. Terms & conditions apply. Offers end midnight 16th July 2017.
Domaine Terre des Chardons “Bien Luné”, Costières de Nîmes 2015 The Week Wines bottle price: £14.50, usually £17.95
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This was a real find from the southernmost appellation of the Rhône, but it is more akin to the sophisticated wines of the northern Rhône: not your typical jammy, robust Côtes du Rhône, but an ethereal, scented beauty in the style of the refined wines of Château Rayas, the greatest of all Châteauneuf-du-Papes. Swig discovered this at the annual organic wine fair in Marseille, after trying more than 300 of the offerings. It is produced just south of Nîmes, on the very edge of the Camargue. The producer is a well-known organic vegetable producer, and the winemaker was a runner-up on Masterchef in 2012. It is composed of 80% grenache and 20% syrah. The Week Wines price: £174.00, usually £215.40. Click here to order
Corbières, Château de Durfort 2013 The Week Wines bottle price: £11.50, usually £13.59
This is a wine that will appeal to those who want the warm embrace of a classic Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but at a considerably better price. Although it has the same grape composition as a Châteauneuf, it is smooth-bodied, with a serious amount of power. If you like big Australian reds, this will appeal – it would be the perfect accessory to a robust boeuf bourguignon or pappardelle al ragù. The Week Wines price: £138.00, usually £163.08. Click here to order
Chianti Rufina “Cedro” Lavacchio 2014 The Week Wines bottle price: £12.95, usually £15.95
Classic – a beautiful food wine. The perfect antidote for those who think Chianti is merely a quaffing wine with little complexity. The organically produced Rufina from Stefano di Blasi (the former technical director at Antinori) benefits from having the riserva wine included in this vintage. Interestingly, the blend is 90% sangiovese and 5% each of canaiolo and ciliegiolo, which adds depth and flavour. This is a glorious bottle, ready for immediate consumption. The Week Wines price: £155.40, usually £191.40. Click here to order
Domaine de la Rochette Sauvignon Blanc, Touraine, Loire 2016 The Week Wines bottle price: £10.95, usually £13.50
For those who adore the sharp focus and tautness of classic sauvignon blanc, this is the perfect wine to purchase, give the torrid time the Loire has been through with both frosts and rising prices. This producer uses slower fermentation techniques, which is reminiscent of Pouilly-Fumé. It is a far cry from the more “fruit salad on speed” versions from New Zealand. It has a slightly stonier and flintier element, with a greater overlay of citrus, than is usual from these wines. For many years this was the sauvignon blanc “pour” at Claridge’s. The Week Wines price: £131.40, usually £162.00. Click here to order
Riesling Stefan Winter 2016 The Week Wines bottle price: £14.50, usually £15.95
At last, a Riesling that is truly bone dry. I have become seriously cynical about winemakers’ claims to produce dry wine in Germany, but Stefan Winter has proved me wrong. He is one of the Rheinhessen’s most exciting and brilliant producers, making vibrant and energetic wines. This is the perfect summer wine – green apple and zingy sweet lime, with a glorious minerality in the payoff. Blue Nun lovers, you have been warned. The Week Wines price: £174.00, usually £191.40. Click here to order
Monserito Gavi del Comune di Gavi, Tenuta Carretta 2015 The Week Wines bottle price: £12.95, usually £16.95
Gavi became fashionable more than 50 years ago, but has been overlooked by the more trendy regions ofTrentino and Alto Adige, which is a shame. This wine comes from north of Genoa towards Piedmont, and is the most satisfying expression of the cortese grape. It is refreshing without being in any way austere and has a satisfying backbone, which gives it a lovely lift. It is owned by a well-known Barolo producer who buys in the grapes, which are then overseen by Donato Lonati, one of the best-known oenologists in northwestern Italy. Ideally suited for summer. The Week Wines price: £155.40, usually £203.40. Click here to order
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