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Sicilian Special on Occhipinti SP68 + Burn Cottage + Mas de Libian + Stonegarden + Cantina Orsogna Tasting Saturday 2nd 3pm-6pm

by Annandale Cellars

OCCHIPINTI

SP68 ROSSO

WEEKLY SPECIAL
$45 per bottle*

We still have this special running on Occhipinti from earlier in the week seeing how quickly you snapped those up!

These are not 'bin-ends' or 'clearance items', they are wines we love to range in our store.

This week's special is on the classy '23 Occhipinti SP68 Rosso - an iconic Sicilian red blend of the indigenous Frappato and Nero d'Avola grapes. This wine usually goes for $61 per bottle on our shelves.

OFFER: BUY 6 BOTTLES OF OCCHIPINTI SP68 ROSSO FOR $45 PER BOTTLE

At $45 a bottle, this is a saving of almost 30%!

Arianna Occhipinti is an icon, not just in Sicily, but for the minimal-intervention wine movement in general. Organic farming, light handling in the cellar and alternative ageing vessels help Arianna get the most out of her grapes to faithfully express their sense of place. These wines are fantastic and often enjoyed by people that are not usually into minimal-intervention wines.


*price per bottle when ordering 6 bottles of Occhipinti SP68 Rosso Frappato Nero d'Avola 2023 in-store or online. Offer available while stocks last or until the end of the week - finishing at 11:59pm on Saturday 2 August.

Get in quick!

 

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Burn Cottage

Husband and wife Marquis Sauvage and Dianne Sauvage purchased the Burn Cottage property in 2002 after spending some time travelling the world's greatest wine sites. This is a fantastic site that still is, and has been grazed by sheep as far back as recent memory goes and has no neighbouring vineyards at all. This site was sought after by many others as well as it is sheltered from both northerly and southerly winds by large hills and forms a beautiful, protected bowl, much like a modern amphitheatre. Luckily, the Sauvage's were the lucky ones to pick up this plot and have established themselves as one of Otago's greatest producers.

In the late 1990's, one of Marquis' friends (Ted Lemon of Sonoma's Littorai) with years of conventional farming experiencing throughout Burgundy, California and Oregon under his belt was convinced that these methods could not capture the full picture of plant health and potential and turned to Steiner's theories of biodynamic agriculture. This influence made its way to Marquis who started farming Burn Cottage since its inception biodynamically in a region in which no one else at the time was doing it. With the help of one of the leading authorities on biodynamic farming and New Zealander him self - Peter Proctor, they were able to explore the potential of biodynamics successfully.

"We consider biodiversity to be the corner stone of healthy farming, and plant accordingly to create this environment within the vineyard and the farm."

Burn Cottage have over 20 hectares of land devoted to creating an enclosed ecosystem to their 10 hectares planted under vine. They have Highland Cattle to provide integrated grazing of pastures and to supply manure for their compost programs. They also keep bees and have planted an olive grove to produce olive oil in the future. All of this vineyard work is of course backed up with a delicate cellar hand - minimizing sulphur usage and avoiding all additives whenever possible. They avoid the use of cultured yeasts, bacteria, associated nutrient products and filters and also avoid racking whenever possible and do wine work according to lunar and celestial rhythms.

We've picked up a half dozen of two of their iconic Pinots to share with you. The '23 'Moonlight Race' is a combination of fruit from their 3 vineyards - Burn Cottage in Lowburn and Sauvage and Sappa vineyards in Bannockburn. This is their "estate" Pinot and is an excellent insight into their work and style. The '23 'Burn Cottage Vineyard' is a single vineyard expression of their iconic vineyard from where it all started. One of the greats of the region and of NZ. This is a fantastic winery producing some stellar Pinots from thoughtfully farmed vineyards - don't sleep on these!

 

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Mas de Libian

Mas de Libian are one of the most exciting biodynamic producers from Ardeche in the Rhône Valley. With history dating back to 1670 when the Thibot family purchased the manor, Jean-Pierre Thibot and his wife Jacqueline have been at the reins of the estate since the early 70s when he decided that wine would be the focus of the property, farming everything organically since. Their 3 daughters: Hélène, Catherine, and Cécile have all chose wine as their career paths and are involved in the estate.

The Domaine has gradually expanded, now owning 25 hectares of vineyards and 8 hectares of “nourishing” land planted with olive trees, grains, hay, a vegetable garden and flower garden as well as a few beehives. Since the inception of the estate's viticultural activity, everything has been farmed organically, plowing the soils, hoed by hand in the spring and used copper and sulphur treatments on the vines. This eventually led to biodynamic certification in 2005. When the daughter Catherine joined the Domaine in 2006, she bought a workhorse named Nestor from Franche-Comté, with whom she plows 5 hectares of vines. In 2016, a blonde horse named Bambi joined Nestor's company to help Catherine plow the vineyards in this traditional manner.

"Our salvation resides above all in the work of our hands and the love of our hearts."

Their vineyards are primarily south and southwest facing with the soils of their Côte du Rhône parcels composed of clay and limestone with some rocks. For their wines that are classified as Côte du Rhône Villages, however, the terroir is uniquely that of large round river rocks and red clay. The average vine age is 30 years old as well. These are wines that are distinctive and quite fresh for Rhône wines and ridiculously well-priced.

We've stocked up on these seriously good Rhône gems for the winter. The '24 'Buve d'Z*n Rose' is comprised of equal parts of Grenache, Syrah and Counoise and is fresh, light and easy to drink. The '24 'Vin de Petanque' is made from younger vines of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, Counoise, and Vaccarèse and made in a fresh, easy-drinking style that can be sipped on while playing a game of Petanque. Finally, the '23 'Bout d'Z*n Rouge' is made of 75% Grenache and 25% Syrah and is a lighter, more savoury and fine expression of a Rhône blend that you would usually find from this region. Mas de Libian are making some of the most fun and fresh wines in the Rhône Valley - stock up on these while stocks last!

 

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Stonegarden

Stonegarden is led by Rockford's Ben Radford and is a source of some very special vines. Tucked away in Eden Valley, Stonegarden is a single vineyard home to 160 year old vines! These old vines tell a story that very few can and produces wines of concentration, detail and character due to the low yields that these vines muster each year. These vines have been farmed organically for over 10 years now which is important for ensuring the longevity of these vines going forward. The site is unique in that there are quite a few varietals planted here that all perform extremely well in their own right: Shiraz, Grenache, Cabernet and Riesling and the main grapes here. These old vines understandably only produce small quantities, but small quantities of high-quality and unique wines that represent something more than just fermented grape juice.

We have a full suite of the stunning Stonegarden wines on offer. The '24 'Stonegarden Riesling' is a great Eden Valley Riesling with more intensity and drive than most (thanks old vines). Anyone who loves SA Riesling should definitely try this. The '21 'Northwest Grenache' is sourced from the northwest block of the vineyard, picked earlier and spends some time in 500L oak barrel and ceramic eggs. This rendition of Grenache is light and spicy unlike most other from the Barossa zone. The '20 'Field Blend Grenache' is a bit darker and more powerful than the previous one and spends some time in seasoned 500L oak barrels which adds to the structure of the wine. The '21 'Stonegarden Cabernet Sauvignon' boasts some of the oldest Cabernet vines in the country and is made of a couple of different picking runs - the first for that leafy varietal lift and the second pick for a bit more ripeness and plush tannins. A lick of new oak gives this some backbone too. Finally, the '21 'Stonegarden Shiraz' is also made from 2 picks spaced 15 days apart (the second pick containing some whole bunches) and ages in 500L French oak of which 25% is new. This is Eden Valley Shiraz at it's finest in a beautiful vintage. These are some expressive wines made by a classis Australian winemaker from ridiculously old vines - who wouldn't want to give these a try?

 

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Cantina Orsogna Tasting

Saturday 2nd

3pm-6pm

Join us this Saturday as we taste through the some exciting wines from Abruzzo in Cantina Orsogna!

Founded in 1964, Cantina Orsogna is a co-operative winery located in the Majella hills of Abruzzo, just 15 km from the Adriatic Sea. They are the largest producer of biodynamic wines in southern Italy and have been farming biodynamically since 2005. These are the wines that we'll be pouring on the day:

2022 Lunaria Ramoro Pinot Grigio Ancestrale Pet’Nat

2022 Lunaria Ramoro Pinot Grigio

2024 Lunaria Charisma Trebbiano

2024 Lunaria Civitas Pecorino

2020 Lunaria Montepulciano d'Abruzzo

These are some fresh and exciting wines from one of Italy's most iconic regions - come down to the store and give these a try!

Wishing you a great week from the team: Chris, Pete and Aaron.

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