Wine

Wine online from Great Wines Direct

Wine is typically a fermented grape-based alcoholic beverage. The sugar in the grapes is consumed by yeast, which then breaks it down into ethanol and carbon dioxide while also producing heat.

Different kinds of wine are mostly influenced by various yeast strains and grape varieties. These variations are the result of intricate interactions between the biological growth of the grape, the fermentation reactions, the terroir (growing region) of the grape, and the wine-making process.

Legal appellations are established in many nations to specify wine styles and quality. These often place limitations on the allowable grape types, geographical origin, and other characteristics of wine production.

Since ancient times, wine has been made. The Caucasus region in what is now Georgia (6000 BCE), Persia (5000 BCE), Italy, and Armenia (4000 BCE) has the earliest wine artefacts.

While there are some similarities between New World wine and alcoholic beverages manufactured by native Americans, these connections relate mostly to later Spanish practises in New Spain.

Later, as viticulture methods for Old World wine advanced, Europe would have three of the greatest wine-producing regions. Today, Italy, Spain, France, the United States, and China are the five nations with the largest wine-producing regions.

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White 14

San Marzano 'Edda Lei Bianco', Salento 2022 75cl £21.59

A very distinctive and complex wine with intriguing aromas of orange blossom and rosemary complemented by rich guava and peach with overlaying freshness Packs a punch of flavour

Red 12.5

Ibbotson Family Vineyard, Marlborough, Pinot Noir 2022 75cl £20.58

Enticing notes of dark brambly fruits are layered with subtle hints of Turkish spice through to a rich and weighty palate with a lovely, silky structure and a long savoury finish

White 11.5

Saint Clair Godfrey's Creek Noble Riesling, Marlborough 2023 37.5cl £20.99

A delicious dessert wine with honey, pineapple and papaya notes with a refreshing ginger twist

White 12.5

Chardonnay 23 Pete's Pure 75cl £12.35

Red 14

Bideona, Rioja, Tempranillo de Laderas 2021 75cl £16.46

A pure and precise wine with aromas of cherries and red berries layered with thyme through to a fresh palate with lovely fruit flavours

White 13.5

El Esteco Don David Torrontes 2023 75cl £11.77

Delicate aromas of roses and orange peel On the palate this wine is intense with notes of fresh tropical fruits and white flowers, lifted by a vibrant acidity

White 11

Tierra Antica, Valle Central, Chardonnay 2023 75cl £11.15

Ripe tropical fruit and white peach flavours with a creamy texture

White 13

Lismore Estate Vineyards, Cape South Coast, Chardonnay 2021 75cl £33.34

A complex, expressive bouquet leads to a lively and mineral palate of apricot, mandarin, orange zest and white peach, with notes of toasted hazelnut on the long, elegant finish

Red 13.5

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Meinert Cabernet Sauvignon 2018 75cl £15.91

An utterly delicious, silky-soft, rounded, medium-bodied Cabernet Sauvignon The aromas are of juicy, ripe black cherries with barbecued green peppers and fine dark chocolate On the palate it shows excellent texture, with beautiful balance and integration of the flavours There is no hurry to drink this, but it's so irresistible, why would anyone want to wait?

Red 13

Peregrine Wines Pinot Noir 2019 75cl £30.23

Central Otago has become one of the best places on the globe to find great pinot, even though the area accounts for only 24% of New Zealand's wine production Dark cherry, redcurrant and blackberry flavours finely layered with savoury and spice notes A supple and silken textured, elegant Pinot Noir

Red 14

Sierra Cantabria Rioja Gran Reserva 2016 75cl £33.16

A colossally complex, sumptuous, beautifully mature Gran Reserva, with a fabulously intricate and inviting bouquet of vanilla, fig, dark chocolate, vanilla bean, black truffle and autumn leaves The palate utterly lives up to the expectation set by the nose: super-soft, mature tannins; full-bodied and crammed with pronounced flavours of dates, seasoned wood, liquorice, hot tar, woodsmoke and brown cardamom Superb length on the palate Awesome wine, outstanding quality

Red 13

Bodegas la Purisima, Yecla, 'Campules El Moreno' NV 75cl £10.61

A deliciously moreish red, showing an abundance of black fruit and spicy overtones through to a juicy palate, full of fruit in an easy-drinking style

White 12.5

Weingut Leitz Magic Mountain Riesling (Dry), Rheingau 2022 75cl £20.65

This comes from Leitz's very finest - and steepest - vineyards The wine itself is far from steep: quite a bargain, in fact You get the amazing complexity that these vineyards have to give, with hints of clover honey, peach, mandarin orange, lime and elderflower In the mouth it is dry yet gentle and harmonious, and delicious to enjoy immediately

Red 12.5

Saint Clair, 'Origin', Marlborough, Pinot Noir 2022 75cl £20.58

A flavoursome Pinot Noir with ripe raspberry and black cherry fruits, vanilla and spice notes all enhanced by a silky finish

White 5.5

Fontanafredda Moscato d'Asti Half Bottle 2022 37.5cl £9.05

Admitting to liking Moscato d'Asti feels like confessing a guilty secret It's sweet It's a bit fizzy It doesn't have much more alcohol than lager It's not a "proper' wine Oh, but it's gorgeous, like sitting under a vine, popping juicy Muscat grapes into your mouth Instead of orange juice with your smoked salmon and scrambled egg, you ought to have this

Red 13

Louis Tete Beaujolais Villages 2022 75cl £12.73

"Light purple in colour, with a elegant, fresh intense nose of soft red fruits The palate is equally open and fleshy with lots of fruit and little tannin Wonderfully soft and accessible, plenty of character backed by good balancing acidity"