Handford Wines

	Single Bottle	In a case of 12

White
Dog Point Vineyard Section 94 Sauvignon Blanc 2008, Marlborough	£19.99	£18.99
Section 94 Sauvignon Blanc is candidate for New Zealand’s best Sauvignon Blanc. Aged for 18 months in older French oak and named after a cartographic reference to a part of their vineyard, the aromatics demonstrate the complexity that Sauvignon Blanc can achieve in experienced hands: a complex melange of gooseberry, beeswax and a touch of rose petals, the palate a perfect marriage of chalky minerality and subtle tropical fruits. Should age for 4 or 5 years.
Eben Sadie Palladius 2005, Swartland (6)	£34.95	£33.20
Multi-faceted blend including Chenin Blanc, Viognier, Chardonnay, and Grenache Blanc. More structural than previous vintages, this full flavoured wine builds with complex sensations and waves of stone fruits that are woven into tingling minerality and bone dry acidity. There is super echoing length on the finish. Always a good one for aging. Drink now to 2015+
Mount Mary Vineyard Chardonnay 2008, Yarra Valley, Victoria (6)	£55.00	£52.25
The fruit for the 2008 Chardonnay comes from the original Chardonnay block planted in 1971/2 and a 20 year block. A small proportion (2 barrels) went through malo-lactic this vintage and it was matured 11 months in oak, 20-25% new, with lees stirring for 3-4 months. It has delicate aromas of peaches, lemon tart, cream, chalk, key lime and meal. The medium-bodied palate has crisp acidity with an enticing bit of ginger coming thorough on the long, minerally finish. This wine is a little tight at the moment and would benefit from another year in bottle and should cellar to 2017+.
Champagne Dom Perignon 2002 (6)	£115.00	£109.25
The 2002 Dom Perignon is at first intensely floral, with perfumed jasmine that dominates the bouquet. With time in the glass the wine gains richness as the flavours turn decidedly riper and almost tropical. Ripe apricots, passion fruit and peaches emerge from this flashy, opulent Dom Perignon. The wine's volume makes it approachable today, but readers in search of more complexity will want to cellar this for at least a few years to allow for some of the baby fat to drop off. Geoffroy describes the vintage as very ripe and adds that some of the Chardonnay showed the ill-effects of the hot growing season in it the somewhat burned, dehydrated fruit that came in that year. This bottle was disgorged in July, 2009. To be released summer 2010. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2032. 96/100 RP
Champagne Louis Roederer Cristal 1981 (6)	£245.00	£232.75


Red
Piper's Brook Pinot Noir 2007, Tasmania (6)	£21.95	£20.85
Classy dark fruited Pinot from the most famous winery in Tasmania. Lush and ripe but still elegant and classy. Cool climate style that is very similar to a village wine from the Cotes de Nuits in Burgundy. Drink now to 2016+
Dog Point Vineyard Pinot Noir 2008, Marlborough	£26.95	£25.60
Colour Ruby. Bouquet shows aromas of ripe red fruits infused with violets and an underlying earthy character. Palate is richly flavoured with dense red and black fruits, showing a combination of excellent tannin structure, well integrated oak and a rounded, lingering earthy finish. Match with duck, cervena, red meats and especially truffled venison and mushroom pie. Cellaring for 4 to 6 years. One of the finest Pinot Noirs of the Marlborough region.
Mount Edward Pinot Noir 2008, Central Otago	£29.95	£28.45
The 2008 Pinot Noir is what Mount Edward Pinot Noir is all about. Their style is one of grace and subtlety, wines that express Central Otago characters without the need for over the top concentration or brute force. The 2008 vintage has delivered a wine that shows such pure fruit, a fine balance of tannin and acidity all with a silky soft texture. It is a wine that shows clear typicity of region as well as varietal definition. In 2008 Central Otago saw a growing season that was to all intents and purposes - fairly average - both in length and in temperature. As a result they carefully managed their own vineyards and crop thinned extensively to achieve optimum balance. In a year that saw New Zealand record its highest ever grape crop it was essential to keep vineyards in check if one wanted to grow premium wine. Mount Edward's vineyard crew needs to be congratulated in 2008. "One of the more arresting sights during my time in Central Otago was winemaker Duncan Forsyth’s pastel blue suit straight out of Saturday Night Fever. Fortunately his vinous sense is better than his sartorial and Mount Edward continues to produce great Pinot Noir." Neal Martin Sept 2009 - The Wine Journal on E Robert Parker .com
La Petite Eglise 1998, Pomerol	£35.00	£33.25

Piper's Brook Reserve Pinot Noir 2004, Tasmania (6)	£42.00	£39.90
Beautifully crafted cool climate Pinot Noir that almost resembles the finest Cote de Nuits Burgundies. This reserve wine has extra depth and length and concentrated raspberry and strawberry fruit flavours that are thoughtfully integrated with expensive new oak. From the best old vine parcels, this wine is a real Pinot collectors wine. There are very few examples from down under that are in this quality league. Pipers Brook Estate Reserve, which sees more new oak (40-50%), displays a deeper ruby color along with a sweeter, black cherry-scented nose revealing hints of plums, allspice, and toast. With more depth and complexity than the regular bottling, it demonstrates good potential for Pinot Noir grown on this island off South Australia’s coast.
Piper's Brook Reserve Pinot Noir 2005, Tasmania (6)	£42.95	£40.80
Beautifully crafted cool climate Pinot Noir that almost resembles the finest Cote de Nuits Burgundies. This reserve wine has extra depth and length and concentrated raspberry and strawberry fruit flavours that are thoughtfully integrated with expensive new oak. From the best old vine parcels, this wine is a real Pinot collectors wine. There are very few examples from down under that are in this quality league. Pipers Brook Estate Reserve, which sees more new oak (40-50%), displays a deeper ruby color along with a sweeter, black cherry-scented nose revealing hints of plums, allspice, and toast. With more depth and complexity than the regular bottling, it demonstrates good potential for Pinot Noir grown on this island off South Australia’s coast. Drink now to 2016+.
Marchesi Antinori Tignanello 2007, Toscana (6)	£72.00	£68.40
The 2007 Tignanello is especially ripe and opulent in this vintage. Masses of dark, baked red fruits, scorched earth and sweet oak emerge as this richly-textured Tignanello flows from the glass. The wine possesses superb fruit density and tannin depth. This is a remarkably concentrated, balanced and vibrant Tignanello. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2028. "Antinori’s 2007 Tignanello is wonderfully ripe and seductive in its dark cherries, flowers, spices, tobacco, sage, cedar, mint and minerals. This is as opulent a Tignanello as I have ever tasted but there is just enough acidity and structure from the Sangiovese to keep things from going over the top. The wine’s richness and warmth are such that in a blind tasting I mistook the 2007 Tignanello for a wine from Maremma! The dense, muscular fruit follows through to an impeccable finish with no hard edges and impossibly fine, silky tannins. Simply put, the 2007 is a magnificent Tignanello. The 2007 Tignanello is 80% Sangiovese aged in 300-liter French oak barrels (1/3 new), 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, both aged in 100% new 225-liter French oak barriques. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2027."(95/100 POINTS) Antonio Galloni
Mount Mary Vineyard Pinot Noir 2006, Yarra Valley, Victoria (6)	£79.95	£75.95
The 2006 Pinot Noir spent 22 months in barrel, 15% new. With a pale to medium ruby colour, it gives fragrant aromas of violets, game, red cherry and wild strawberry with an earthy whiff of forest floor and truffles. Medium-high acid and a low to medium level of fine tannins lend just enough structure to the intense palate. Long in the finish, this wine is starting to drink now and should continue to be delicious until 2015+. 600 cases were made. 93+/100 RP
Poggio di Sotto 2004, Brunello di Montalcino	£110.00	£104.50
The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino is just as beautiful in bottle as it was in cask. This is a supremely layered, exquisite Brunello that flows onto the palate with tons of grace and class. Medium in body, the wine reveals gorgeous inner perfume framed by ripe, silky tannins that caress the fruit all the way to the close. The wine gains freshness and volume in the glass, exhibiting supreme beauty. Sweet scents of roses linger on the long, refined finish. Simply put, this is sublime juice. If my barrel tastings are any indication, the Riserva should be even better. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2022. 95/100 RP

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