The Great Grey – Wacke  .
New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, is facing the perfect storm of reduced supply; yields are down about 30% due to the earlier than normal bud bursts being affected by spring frosts. With demand for Premium New Zealand Sauvignon still very strong we have just taken delivery of the last of 2020 stock remaining (5 whole cases!)Add labour shortages, increased packaging costs and a shipping industry still reeling from the joint efforts of Covid and the Suez canal blockage and we feel incredibly lucky to be able to write this offer at all.
Whilst the new 2021 vintage may be small, it is looking perfectly formed – with exceptional levels of concentration, intensity and purity of flavour that low yielding vintages bring. The issue is stretching the supply to meet demand, with most of our producers restricting orders by not taking on new accounts.
So in line with that, we are offering these last few cases to existing customers first, if you can let me know if you wish to take up the offer I will make sure we put a case aside before they hit the shop shelves on the 1st July.
Greywacke, Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2020, New Zealand
95 points – joint top scoring wine
Seductive bouquet of wild flowers and minerals, a fine-leesy complexity and fresh aromas and flavours of citrus, peach tea and sweet hay. Crisp, refreshing, fruity and dry with fine texture. Just enough concentration of flavour to contrast the fresh herb notes and salivating acidity. Well made and long.
£224 per dozen

Only produced in exceptional years and then only released if perfect. Only the 20th release of Barca Velha since the first vintage in 1952.I don’t like to write up wines for investment – wine needs to be consumed to be truly appreciated, however the philosophy of buy one for the cellar and one to sell later is rarely as clear cut. The only problem is getting a big enough allocation in the first place.
If you are interested please read on – we are currently well under market on this making it the perfect cellar investment opportunity.

from Steven Spurrier’s profile of this rare Portuguese wine, and a favourite of retired football manager Sir Alex Ferguson. 

Barca Velha was born in the Porto Ferreira stable and named in honour of its famous matriarch, Dona Antonia Adelaide Ferreira, who was affectionately nicknamed ‘Ferreirinha’ – or ‘little Ferreira’ in Portuguese, and responsible for laying down the best and most complete library stock the Port industry had ever seen.

Casa Ferreirinha was the first house in the Douro dedicated to making a table wine and today, with its 160 hectares of vines, provides the fruit that is meticulously blended to create Barca Velha, of which only 19 vintages have been released since the first vintage in 1952.

The winemakers

Only three winemakers have presided over the production of Barca Velha: Fernando Nicolau de Almeida, from 1952 to 1998; Jose-Maria Soares Franco, from 1998 to 2003; and Luis Sottomayor from 2003 to the present. Sottomayor joined the winemaking team in 1989, taking 14 years to study his trade under Almeida. 

Four or five of the main Douro grapes find themselves in the blend, those from lower altitudes for structure, those from the higher altitudes retaining acidity, all working together for a long-lived structure.

The wine is only bottled when there are no questions about its quality and it is deemed ready. Following three or more years of tasting, the final decision to carry the Barca Velha name rests with the head winemaker. A vintage not quite up to the highest standard instead takes the name Reserva Especial.

Sottomayor’s commitment to, and knowledge of, the Douro is unsurpassed. He takes great pride in the opportunity he has been given to perpetuate the Barca Velha story, while recognising that he is building upon the creativity and daring of those who first set out to produce this great wine.

Please note: Bottle prices are Duty Paid, they include Duty & VAT.

The IBD Prices are for Original Wooden Cases of three bottles. Duty & VAT is deferred.

If you require clarification or assistance with under bond transactions or wish to request an allocation for future releases, please contact samuel@harperwells.com