{"title":"WineSpark's Fifth Birthday Wines","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"folium-marlborough-sauvignon-blanc-2024","title":"Folium Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2024","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eTakaki grew up in Tokyo drinking European wines, and loved their character and how each year they tasted nuanced and different. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eSomething that’s impossible to find in a big commercial region like Marlborough.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eHe reckoned the difference was water - 99% of Marlborough vineyards are irrigated, while many old European vineyards get their special character from having to survive without regular water.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eSo the first thing he did when he bought his new vineyard in the Brancott Valley was to turn off the taps.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThe vines, usually happily watered and producing lots of fruit, regressed and produced next to nothing for 3-4 vintages.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eHis neighbours told him he was crazy - he probably was. But Takaki kept the faith and kept the taps off.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eAnd then something wonderful happened. The vines picked up and started producing incredible fruit. Fruit with complexity, purity and texture unlike anything he’d come across in Marlborough before.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eThis wine has all the fruity intensity of a Marlborough Sauvignon, but with the finesse and smooth texture of a great Sancerre.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-weight: 400;\"\u003eIn a big region like Marlborough, dominated by enormous companies churning out mass-produced Sauvignon Blanc, this wine is a breath of fresh air.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WineSpark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53339701150027,"sku":"FOLSVB24","price":20.22,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/0645\/5483\/files\/WS-HighKey-0141_1.jpg?v=1729089927"},{"product_id":"terre-des-dames-rose-amphore-magnum","title":"Terre des Dames Rosé Amphore 2025 Magnum","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn the back of this bottle, Lidewij has written - \u003cem\u003e‘Ceci n’est pas un simple rosé - c’est un VIN’. \u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn other words, this couldn’t be further from the mass-produced rosés made elsewhere in the Languedoc - it’s a proper wine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s a mouthwatering blend of Syrah and Grenache, hand-picked in the cool of night from dry-grown vines on Lidewij’s beautiful estate.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat really makes this wine shine is the ageing in clay amphora - which gives the wine a really special character and mineral bite. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLidewij compares it to the powdery, mineral taste of drinking fresh mountain water on a hike - I know exactly what she means.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s a sophisticated, fresh, and seriously food-friendly rosé - perfect for the summer we’re having.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd to celebrate our fifth birthday, you can double up and get a magnum for no extra cost.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eN.B. It's one magnum per order.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WineSpark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":56981257584971,"sku":"TDDAMP25","price":19.14,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/0645\/5483\/files\/WS-HighKey_0306.jpg?v=1784132288"},{"product_id":"tiberio-montepulciano-dabruzzo-2023","title":"Tiberio Montepulciano d'Abruzzo 2023","description":"\u003cp\u003eMost Montepulciano d’Abruzzo comes from the fertile flatlands by the sea - where the grapes ripen quickly, pile on colour and alcohol, and are often buried under oak. It’s all a bit much in my experience.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis Montepulciano is the complete opposite - a breath of fresh air (quite literally).\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCristiana Tiberio farms high up in the hills of Cugnoli, the Montepulciano grape’s historic home. Cool nights and fresh Adriatic breezes stretch the growing season, allowing the grapes to ripen slowly and gently, developing serious concentration, balance and complexity along the way.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eCristiana doesn’t do shortcuts - the wine is aged only in stainless steel to preserve the beautiful fruit purity, freshness and sense of place.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe result is a deep, vibrant red, with gorgeous flavours of juicy blackberry, coffee and dark chocolate. It finishes smooth and spicy with a lovely freshness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Wall Street Journal declared it ‘\u003cem\u003eItaly’s best bargain in red wine now\u003c\/em\u003e’. And at €21.86 for members, it might just be WineSpark’s now too!\u003cem\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WineSpark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57374922768715,"sku":"TIBMON23","price":21.15,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/0645\/5483\/files\/WS-HighKey-0244.jpg?v=1756915523"},{"product_id":"chateau-maris-les-amandiers-minervois-la-liviniere-2023","title":"Château Maris Les Amandiers Minervois La Livinière 2023","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis wine shows how truly great wine from Languedoc can be - if you give it the chance to shine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s from Château Maris in La Livinière - one of the Languedoc’s best wineries producing rich reds in one of the Languedoc’s best areas.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBen Darnault of Mas Calamiac fame is the head winemaker here - everything he touches seems to turn to (liquid) gold.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe reason this wine is so good, is that absolutely zero expense is spared in the making of it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s from the oldest Syrah vineyard at Château Maris, which is totally organic, biodynamic and dry-grown.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe immaculate fruit is hand-picked in the vineyard and then each berry is painstakingly hand-removed from the stems in the winery. The whole process takes two days and ten people!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut Ben tells me this meticulous work is completely worth it - it produces the perfect ferment and as a winemaker there’s very little he needs to do with it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe wine spends 18-24 months in new French oak and then finishes its ageing in concrete eggs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eYou end up with a wine with incredible intensity and gorgeous bright aromatics, but it’s also so easy to drink - which is how you know that Ben Darnault has had his hands on it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIf you love a good \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eCôte-Rôtie, but don’t love shelling out €100+ for it, then you’ll be in heaven with this wine.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WineSpark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57375066227019,"sku":"CMAMD23","price":33.98,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/0645\/5483\/files\/WS-HighKey_0302.jpg?v=1784135856"},{"product_id":"cornin-macon-fuisse-les-bruyeres-2024","title":"Cornin Mâcon-Fuissé Les Bruyères 2024","description":"\u003cp\u003eMâcon has long been seen as the value and volume end of white Burgundy.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eMost bottles are labelled as Mâcon-Villages, with grapes picked from several villages, blended together and sold by the big negociants. Solid white wine, but often uninspiring.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut there’s a new generation of Burgundian winemakers coming through who are eager to show the true potential of the region and its villages. Small can be beautiful too!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRomain Cornin is a shining example of this, as one of the rising stars of the Burgundy wine scene.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis comes from Romain’s youngest Chardonnay vineyard, which he planted with his late father 15 years ago. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt’s north-facing, just over the hill from the more famous Pouilly-Fuissé, and based on blue schist soils, which he tells me are very unusual in the area.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eRomain is all about natural winemaking. The wine is aged in stainless steel to preserve the fruit and freshness, and left unfined and unfiltered to keep its full texture and character.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is a gem of a white Burgundy at an amazing price - a buttery, lemony and crisp Chardonnay with beautiful energy and minerality.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WineSpark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57547161469259,"sku":"DCMFLB24","price":24.31,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/0645\/5483\/files\/WS-HighKey-0249_02f3c208-2fdc-4c1c-91fc-2e8ea3e748ab.jpg?v=1758883112"},{"product_id":"la-suerte-de-arrayan-garnacha-2020","title":"La Suerte de Arrayán Garnacha 2020","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan style=\"font-family: -apple-system, BlinkMacSystemFont, 'San Francisco', 'Segoe UI', Roboto, 'Helvetica Neue', sans-serif; font-size: 0.875rem;\"\u003eGarnacha is all the rage in Spain right now, and after tasting this wine, hopefully you’ll agree.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe grape’s thin skins and light colour remind some people of Burgundy Pinot, but you get more power and more alcohol. It’s ideally suited to the heat and altitude of central Spain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis wine is from the Méntrida region, in the mountains just south-west of Madrid. Until recently, most Garnacha from here was shipped up to Rioja to bulk up their reds.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTalented young winemakers like Maite Sánchez are driving the Garnacha revolution in Spain.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Suerte de Arrayán is a single-vineyard, high-altitude Garnacha from 70 year-old vines. The nose is delicate and creamy, with lovely juicy red fruit. It leads to a palate that is balanced, juicy and elegant, with tons of minerality and complexity.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThink Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but with extra elegance and freshness.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSarah Jane Evans MW gave the last vintage 93 points in Decanter magazine - for a wine of this age and quality, it’s a total steal at the price.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WineSpark","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57547204034891,"sku":"ARYSRT20","price":19.77,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0512\/0645\/5483\/files\/WS-HighKey-0241.jpg?v=1753255669"}],"url":"https:\/\/winespark.co.uk\/collections\/winesparks-fifth-birthday-wines.oembed","provider":"WineSpark","version":"1.0","type":"link"}