Stellenbosch-based Kanu – whose name relates to the legendary African bird of bounteous harvests and not the gangly ex-Arsenal striker – dates from 1692 when German soldier Matthias Greef was gifted the farm by a local governor. At first he used it to raise sheep and grow medicinal herbs, before sensibly switching to grapes. Much later, during the Anglo-Boer war, the estate was used as a horse supply camp, rifle range and hospital.

Fast-forward to modern times and Kanu’s global reputation was cemented in the early part of this century by head winemaker and Chenin Blanc guru Teddy Hall. His successor, and current incumbent, Johan Grimbeek, has continued the tradition of excellence and has a string of awards to his name.

Kanu is a member of the Biodiversity and Wine Initiative, an alliance between South Africa’s conservation and wine sectors that helps to preserve such exotic creatures as the cape leopard and geometric tortoise. It devotes over a third of its land to native wildlife.

Johan and his team focus on South African specialty Chenin (known locally as Steen) and a selection of warm-climate grapes like Shiraz, Chardonnay and Viognier. Though based in swanky Stellenbosch and utilising a high proportion of fruit from that district, Kanu does source from other premium areas too, meaning that its wines bear the more expansive ‘Western Cape’ appellation.

Best buy: Kanu Shiraz 2006 (€13.99) Matured in luxurious new French and American oak, this single-vineyard Shiraz is powerful, polished and loaded with glossy flavours of black cherry, dark chocolate, pepper and mocha.

See the new range from Kanu here.

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p.s. To celebrate the arrival of our African friends we are offering Wine Club Members €2 PER BOTTLE OFF FOR THE NEXT 7 DAYS. Offer applies online and in store but in both cases ends at 3pm Wednesday April 17th. Not a Wine Club member? CLICK HERE.

Vine tendrils enjoy the sunshine at Kanu Estate

Manuela Niederacher is Liaison Officer at the Dievole estate in Tuscany. It might sound like any old job in the wine business, if Dievole were any old winery. They just happen to be custodians of a 900 year heritage.

Manuela, tell us about Dievole, when did it all begin?

Wines have been made on this site for over 900 years, the first vintage going back to 1090 when the land was known as “Dieulele”, or in English, “divine valley”. Since then the estate has been passed on through various farming families and some of the families who live and work on the estate have been on the land for hundreds of years. This isn’t a place of work; it’s a home, a way of life, and much more than that to so many people.

What makes Dievole different from other Tuscan wineries?

For us, we have a great winemaking tradition and history, and a long, rich experience of Chianti winemaking, longer than most. With that in mind we’ve a lot of past success and heritage to live up to. We occupy a very special place here, right in the heart of Chianti Classico, and no doubt, the terroir we have to work on is second to none, but I think the people also make us unique. Everyone feels they have a role to play in keeping impeccably high standards in everything they do. It’s an ingrained determination to live up to a quality associated tradition, and what is now a world renowned reputation for quality. We have to use modern practices and technology to make the best wines possible but we have to repect the land and the traditions here as well, otherwise what’s the point.

Tell us about the Sangiovese grape, what’s all the fuss about?

The conditions here are near perfect for growing this native variety. It’s a grape that, if not ripened properly, can be a little harsh and acidic, but here in Chianti we achieve a wonderful balance. They are full, fruity and elegant. A real expression of Tuscany we think, and even better when enjoyed with good food. It’s our noble grape and a real expression of Tuscany we feel.

You have a Nero d’Avola from Sicily. What’s the connection there?

We have our own team in Sicily, employed by and part of the Dievole winemaking family, who source grapes from trusted growers who we’ve had a good relationship with for many years. The wines are made in Sicily by our own people who use contracted winemaking facilities and then the juice is brought to the Dievole estate here in Chianti where we bottle the wines. We use the same strict quality control procedures that all our Tuscan wines receive.

What is your favourite Dievole wine?

That’s a tough one! The Novecento is probably our most complex and luxurious wine. It’s our top Chianti and I would be hard pressed to go for anything over that. But the Vendemmia is our best selling Chianti, our customers love it. For everyday drinking probably the Dievolino. It’s a very good inexpensive Sangiovese.

To view the range from Dievole, with 20% off until the end of April, click here.

In the mid-1980s New Zealand released to the world what would become one of the most distinctive and appreciated white wine styles of the modern era. Sauvignon Blanc was the grape variety responsible, and Marlborough was the region on the tip of wine drinker’s tongues world over.

Cloudy Bay was the first winery to make the all-important breakthrough, and whilst as a global brand it may have lost some of its providence, it typified what so many people loved about this amazing new wine style.

Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc doesn’t hold back any punches, and by delivering big flavours it is hugely appealing and incredibly drinkable. The nose of freshly cut grass, nettles and gooseberry is only a precursor to the explosive party of tropical fruit and racy acidity that engulfs palate.

Located at the north eastern tip of the South Island, Marlborough benefits from a maritime climate, where its close proximity to the sea has a calming influence, bringing mild winters and cool summers. A key characteristic of this climate is the fall in temperature after dark. Whenever the grapes have been ripening during the day, consistent cold nights help bare fruit that will produce wines of high acidity, one of the trademarks of New Zealand wine.

The various vineyard plots make for interesting drinking. As the soils change so do the wines. The best sites have shallow, stony soils where irrigation is almost essential as they are naturally free-draining. Luckily, Marlborough receives relatively low rainfall otherwise it might not exist as a wine producing region at all.

Generally, the best wines come from winery-owned vineyards, where the winemaker can keep a tight control of irrigation, vine tending and harvesting. Some critics suggest that because contract growers are paid by weight, there is less emphasis on quality, although some now use contract wineries to make and bottle their own wine. The final proof can only ever be in the drinking.

With Sauvignon Blanc making such an impact it’s all too easy to overlook the other varieties on offer. Chardonnay is Marlborough’s second most planted white grape variety, but it certainly shouldn’t be looked upon simply as second best. Pinot Grigio (Gris) and Riesling will also stake a claim for the best white wine offering, but when it comes to red there’s only one. Don’t expect much change from a €20 note for the better Pinot Noirs, but these will often deliver better value than many a Burgundy Pinot Noir at twice the price.

For more information visit nzwine.com. To view the range from Curious Wines, with 20% off until the end of April, click here.

Someone asked this after spying the word on two of our floor-stacked wines, La Mano Bierzo Roble and Valtravieso Ribera del Duero Roble.

Roble is a commonly-seen but non-standardised Spanish labelling term indicating that the wine has been aged in barrel for a period that is less than that required locally to gain the starter Crianza designation, which is used for the youngest official category of oak-matured wine.

In the Spanish ‘hierarchy’ of wines, the ageing / quality ladder runs: Joven / Tinto (young, little or no oak ageing) -> Roble (some oaking) -> (moving onto the three legally-controlled terms) Crianza -> Reserva -> Gran Reserva.

So basically, Roble wines have seen a little bit of oak (less than twelve months anyway) and should present as young and fruity but with a bit of added weight, spice and interest from the wood. Similar terms to Roble include Semi-Crianza (which is slightly misleading as it conflates a legally-controlled term with an unregulated one) and the self-explanatory x meses en barrica (x months in barrel).

With 90% of Spanish blancos and rosados being totally unoaked, the whole Crianza / barrel ageing system as outlined above refers overwhelmingly to red wines and, in particular, to those coming from blue-chip DOs Rioja and Ribera del Duero.

Here is the latest in our ‘Seasonal Recipes’ series, a simple-but-amazing pasta dish that even the most ham-fisted of cooks can have a crack at. Do it!

Donal Hayes is owner and head chef at The Stolen Pizza, Kinsale, renowned in the town for its simple Italian food done well: homemade pasta and pizzas, fresh sauces, and lots of strong Italian flavours of garlic, basil, wild mushrooms, wine and olive oil, combined with local fish, meat and vegetables.

Penne Alla Luganica

Ingredients (serves 4)

400g Luganica sausage
1 large red onion
45ml olive oil
2-3 tbsp fresh very finely chopped rosemary
2-3 bay leaves
2g dried red chillies, finely chopped
2 tins chopped tomatoes
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
400g fresh penne
100ml double cream
160g Parmigiano Reggiano

Method
Put on a pot of water to boil. Remove the sausage casing and crumble the meat into a bowl. Finely chop the onions and brown them in a pan with hot olive oil. Add the meat, rosemary, bay leaves and chillies.

Cook for 5-10 minutes, then add the tomatoes to the pan and bring the sauce to the boil, and cook for a further 5-10 minutes. Check for taste and season with salt and pepper.

Boil the pasta until it’s al dente, then drain.

Stir the cream into the sauce and add half the grated cheese. Mix through the cooked pasta and serve with freshly ground black pepper and more grated cheese.

Buon appetito!

Chef’s tip
Luganica is usually from Lombardia, Trento or Veneto. It’s a fresh pork sausage which is sweet, long, thin and coiled. If your Italian deli/butcher doesn’t stock it, ask for a plain pork sausage without strong spices, rusk or bread content. Whatever you do, avoid the pink, pasty sausages from supermarkets. Not just in this recipe, but forever!

The Wine
There’s no way we’d suggest anything other than Italian here, and Dievole’s Rinascimento Sangiovese blend would sing like Silvio Berlusconi alongside Donal’s Penne. Vibrant cherry fruit, peppery spice, crisp acidity and big, crunchy tannins – a match made in heaven!

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CLICK HERE to see our Italian reds, most of which would be pretty good partners for the dish above – and all included in our 20% OFF ITALY promotion.

Easter is just around the corner and for those of you who gave up something for Lent – chocolate, cursing, wine – the long wait is almost over. Well done on your self discipline and iron will (or sorry if it didn’t work out for you). But the time for feasting and gorging is back again and we have just the thing to ease you back into normal service.

Our Easter Mixed Case features a tempting selection of casual quaffers, customer favourites and big names from both hemispheres and in both colours (with apologies to fans of pink). The best bit – apart from the inclusion of popular Pope-themed Rhône, Chateauneuf du Pape – is that there’s almost €40 OFF the combined normal selling price!

This great value (23.75% discount) box contains one bottle each of the following 12 wines.

Whites:
1 x The Ned Sauvignon Blanc 2012, Marlborough, New Zealand (RRP €14.99)
1 x Grandiose Sauvignon Blanc 2011, Gascogny, France (RRP €10.99)
1 x Tiger Horse Chenin Blanc – Viognier 2011, Western Cape, South Africa (RRP €10.99)
1 x Rapido Garganega 2011, Veneto, Italy (RRP €9.99)

Reds:
1 x Bosquet de Papes Châteauneuf du Pape 2009, Rhone, France (RRP €32) (“Sexy … with a terrific finishing thrust” (!) says Robert Parker.)
1 x Bleasdale The Broadside 2010, Langhorne Creek, Australia (RRP €14.99)
1 x Dignité Syrah 2009, Languedoc, France (RRP €14.99)
1 x Solonio Il Grottone Cabernet – Shiraz 2009, Lazio, Italy (RRP €13.99)
1 x Bozeto de Exopto Rioja 2011, Rioja, Spain (RRP €13.49)
1 x Grandiose Cabernet Sauvignon 2011, Languedoc, France (RRP €10.99)
1 x Tiger Horse Shiraz – Mourvedre 2012, Western Cape, South Africa (RRP €10.99)
1 x Rapido Sangiovese 2011, Puglia, Italy (RRP €9.99)

The normal price for this delectable dozen is €168.39 but you can avail of our special price of €129 until Easter, with free delivery straight to your front door. Order before 2pm Thursday March 28th to ensure receipt in time for the big day.

Châteauneuf and roast lamb, anyone?

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*CLICK HERE to order the Curious Easter Mixed Case.

The Chianti Classico Consorzio has created a new classification – Gran Selezione – to sit at the top of its hierarchy. Once the Italian Ministry of Agriculture gives its approval the new law will come into effect later this year and wines from the 2010 vintage – not yet sold – can qualify for the title.

In essence a designation for single-estate wines (much prized in the wine world), products in this new category must be crafted solely from grapes grown by the proprietor (i.e. not bought on the spot market or from contract growers), cannot be sold within 30 months of the harvest (6 months longer than Riserva) so as to allow time for Sangiovese’s classic astringency to resolve, and must receive at least three months’ pre-sale bottle maturation. Yields are kept at 52.5 hectolitres per hectare, the same as for regular Riserva.

The idea isn’t to eclipse what was until now the DOCG’s flagship band, Chianti Classico Riserva, but to highlight an especially-deserving subset of these wines. The quality of Chianti Classico, of which 78% is exported, has never been higher – 60% of the vineyards have been replanted with superior clones over the past fifteen years – and this latest measure is an attempt to further raise the bar for producers and for the prestigious DOCG to differentiate itself from its less celebrated sibling, Chianti. Estates expect to be able to charge a significant premium for their Gran Selezione offerings too.

Reaction has been mixed with some big names like Piero Antinori heralding the new measure as a major improvement: “Chianti Classico bought in bulk and bottled by wine merchants won’t be allowed to use Gran Selezione on the label”, he notes approvingly. Some are not sure, with one bet-hedging producer saying he didn’t know if Gran Selezione was going to be a “Gran Successo (a big success) or just a Gran Casino (a big mess)”.

Others have outright dismissed the new category as mere “bureaucratic tinkering” that doesn’t add any value to Chianti Classico or do anything to shine a spotlight on the region’s choicest terroirs.

One of the most valid criticisms levelled at Gran Selezione is that the typical consumer is already unsure or unaware of the difference between Chianti and Chianti Classico (answer: the latter represents the historical heartland of the production zone, must adhere to stricter production laws, and has to be at least 80% Sangiovese, as opposed to 70% for the standard version) and that introducing new terminology will only muddy these waters even more.

If drinkers understand the Chianti / Classico distinction then they have to get their head around what Riserva means as well (answer: the wine has been aged for an extended and legally-defined period of time). It is easy to imagine that only the most involved wine drinkers will go to the trouble of comprehending all of this and then trying to assimilate the details of Gran Selezione too.

And as if all that wasn’t enough to absorb, in a side measure the Consorzio decided that the trademark black rooster logo that graces the necks of all Chianti Classicos is to be redesigned. No one said it’s easy trying to keep on top of the Italian wine world.

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See all our wines from Italy here, with 20% off until 30th April.

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Note: Image sourced from the official Chianti Classico website.

Our Spring specials continue with 20% off over 100 wines from Italy, New Zealand and Bordeaux, but there’s even more to add a boing to your step with up to €5 per bottle off wines from Rioja, Ribera del Duero and South Africa in March!

From Rioja, we’ve wines from Lar de Paula, Bodegas Exopto and a relatively recent addition, Heredad de Baroja, with 91-Parker Roble from €9.99 up to silky Reserva from only €15.99.

From Ribera del Duero, we’ve three powerhouse reds from Bodegas Valtravieso, wines with that trademark combination of power and elegance that defines great Ribera, now from only €11.99.

And from South Africa, we’ve the popular Cape Heights Shiraz, Chenin Blanc and Sauvignon-Colombard for only €8.49, saving you €1.50 per bottle.

All prices valid until 31st March and while stocks last. 20% off promotions on Italy, New Zealand and Bordeaux until 30th April. For over 120 wines on sale in March, click here.

Bordeaux is virtually guaranteed to throw up something new and interesting every year as there’s probably nowhere that vintage is more important, or unpredictable. After the exalted vintages of 2009 and 2010 – two of the best in decades with corresponding demand – 2011 and 2012 will provide much greater challenges in terms of good quality at an accessible price.

Snap up what you can of 2009 and 2010 but don’t dismiss 2011 just yet, we’ve been quick to grab some early bargains from this much more fickle vintage. These will become much rarer in the next couple of years as demand will inevitably supercede a sense of ‘good value’, driven by an insatiable appetite for this famed region from China and beyond.

Claret fans are already crossing their fingers for a good 2013, but let’s enjoy some great vintages while we have them.

Our picks:

Château Rivensan Bordeaux 2011 (Introductory price €9.59) A real bargain, rich and expressive showing wonderful juicy fruit, with mature, melt-in-the-mouth tannins and lashings of savoury, earthy flavours on a long, smooth finish.

Château Bellevue Gazin Blaye 2009 (Introductory price €11.19) Fresh and fruity with toasty notes underpinning ripe, concentrated fruit, this is exuberant and showy with complex and indulgent aromatics. Beautifully structured on the palate with full fruit and a long, savoury finish.

Château Cambon la Pelouse Haut-Médoc 2007 (Introductory price €18.99) From another challenging vintage, this gem of a find has just hit perfect drinking. Rich, full and expressive with mature, melt-in-the-mouth tannins and lashings of savoury, earthy flavours. Just let it decant for a while first.

See all our wines from Bordeaux here, with 20% off until 30th April.

Fans of our top-selling wine for the last two years, The Ned Sauvignon Blanc, might be interested in the latest addition to our New Zealand range. Named in the World’s Top 50 Most Desired Wine Brands by Drinks International last year, Wither Hills was founded by none other than The Ned’s Brent Marris.

Wither Hills’ Ben Glover (above centre) explains: “My father grew grapes for many wine companies and so I have been involved in wine all my life. I met Brent Marris during his Oyster Bay days and when he left to set up Wither Hills, he asked me to jump on for the ride, and oh what a ride! Brent left the business in 2007 and I became Chief Winemaker, carrying on what we had set up in place. In reality, nothing changed! The Wither Hills team had to step up to the challenge of continuing to build our reputation. Our winemakers bring together a combination of experience, passion and drive for excellence. The current team have a lot of fun bringing all of this to fruition… in a glass!”

Best buy: Wither Hills Sauvignon Blanc 2011 (Introductory price €10.99) Fleshy tropical melon, guava, ripe gooseberry aromas leap from the glass followed by more elegant refined herbaceous ripe green smells of fresh fennel, tomato leaf, coriander and nettles, all bundled together with citrus lime.

See the new range from Wither Hills here.