Medium Bodied

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Domaine Andre Aubert

At the very heart of the Rhône Valley, at the northerly tip of the Southern Rhône, lie the vineyards of Grignan-Les-Adhémar. The chances are you haven’t heard the name before, few people have, but the wines are worth seeking out. It’s not a new wine region – vines have been planted here since around 500BC but it is a new name (formerly known as Côteaux-du-Tricastin). Domaine André Aubert, has been formed over decades and today comprises of more than 280 hectares spread from north to south of the prestigious Southern Rhone Valley on the appellations Côtes du Rhône, Côtes du Rhône villages, Visan, and Grignan-les-Adhémar.

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Domaine Baud Père et Fils

The estate history dates back to 1742, but it wasn't until 1950 when René Baud, the 7th generation, rebuilt the vineyard which had suffered from the phylloxera crisis and two World Wars.

Starting with only 4 hectares, the vineyard progressively expanded to 20 hectares with the help of successive generations. Now, managed by siblings Clémentine and Bastien, the 9th generation, the estate continues to flourish and grow, with a strong commitment to sustainable viticulture and preserving the traditions and style that makes the wines of the Jura so unique and incredible.

The domaine holds a certificate in sustainability by Terra Vitis.

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Bodegas y Viñedos Pardevalles

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Château du Moulin Noir

​This beautiful right-bank Bordeaux estate consistently produces high-value, elegant and classic Merlot dominant wines and is considered one of the most famous Château of this appellation. Located in Montagne-Saint-Emilion, Château Moulin Noir consists of seven hectares of vineyards on clay and limestone soils.

This château owes its name to a family feuddating back to the Middle Ages. Two brothers were arguing about their father’s legacy with the youngest brother being incredibly jealous that everything went to the elder. He was so jealous that he burnt the château to the ground - Moulin Noir translates to “blackened Mill”.

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Viñátigo

Juan Jesús is a proud native of Tenerife and the fourth generation of growers. During the thirty years that he's overseen Bodegas Viñátigo, he has considerably increased its holdings, planting varieties that he and his team recuperated from near extinction.

Driven by passion and love for his homeland, Juan decided to revive and work to save the native grape varieties that were brought to the Canary Islands by the conquers back in the 15th century and that had survived on the islands for centuries. He is a hero of contemporary Canarian viticulture. The wealth of knowledge that his work has created has helped underpin the significant expansion of wine styles that are now available throughout the archipelago, and his wines have achieved a calibre of class that many doubted the Canaries would ever produce again. (The Epic Wines of the Canary Islands, written by Santo Bains).

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Pearce Family Wines

In the early 2000's Nicholas Pearce was exposed to the garagiste movement in Bordeaux and was particularly inspired by négociants like Jean Luc Thunevin (Saint Emilion), James Sichel (Margaux) and Nicolas Potel (Beaune) from Burgundy.

After returning home to Ontario and starting his own wine company, he has had a hand in making 10+ wines in two hemispheres, 3 countries and 5 different appellations since the 2013 vintage.

Pearce Predhomme

Pearce Predhomme is a collaboration of like-minded individuals from around the globe. Founded with a mission to build and import wines from our favourite appellations while offering an unequaled value/quality ratio for the sommeliers & wine buyers in Ontario. This is a project between Toronto Sommelier and entrepreneur Will Predhomme and Ontario wine importer Nicholas Pearce they have partnered with Radford Dale in South Africa and NorthWest Wine Co in Oregon to create these special cuvées.

About the Winery

Pearce Family Wines

In the early 2000's Nicholas Pearce was exposed to the garagiste movement in Bordeaux and was particularly inspired by négociants like Jean Luc Thunevin (Saint Emilion), James Sichel (Margaux) and Nicolas Potel (Beaune) from Burgundy.

After returning home to Ontario and starting his own wine company, he has had a hand in making 10+ wines in two hemispheres, 3 countries and 5 different appellations since the 2013 vintage.

Pearce Predhomme

Pearce Predhomme is a collaboration of like-minded individuals from around the globe. Founded with a mission to build and import wines from our favourite appellations while offering an unequaled value/quality ratio for the sommeliers & wine buyers in Ontario. This is a project between Toronto Sommelier and entrepreneur Will Predhomme and Ontario wine importer Nicholas Pearce they have partnered with Radford Dale in South Africa and NorthWest Wine Co in Oregon to create these special cuvées.

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Mas Codina

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Bodega Marco Zunino

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Bodegas y Viñedos Pardevalles

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Villa Calcinaia

Villa Calcinaia is situated in the centre of Chianti Classico near the town of Greve-in-Chianti. This historic estate has been home to the Counts Capponi since 1524, and is maintained by Sebastiano Capponi and his brother Niccolo. In 1992, Count Sebastiano Capponi became the first in the history of the family to manage the winery personally, giving a new life to the vineyards and the cellar.

The family owns 200 hectares of land planted with olive trees, vines and pine trees. Organic farming is the standard at Villa Calcinaia where 75 acres of vineyard are planted with Sangiovese, Merlot, Canaiolo, Grechetto, Vernaccia, Trebbiano, and Malvasia. Through every vintage, the wines are crafted with food in mind. They are balanced, elegant, perfumed, and savoury yet refreshing with restrained vigour and intensity that ensures longevity.

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Alpha Box & Dice

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St. John

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Château de Parnay

Château de Parnay is the flagship of the AOC Saumur Champigny. The property is located along the Loire river, classified as UNESCO World Heritage, on the most reputable clay and limestone terroirs of the appellation. The historic property was taken over by Mathias Levron & Régis Vincenot in 2006 with the aim of restoring the nobility of this special place.

Drawing their strength from the authenticity of their values, they now cultivate 50 hectares of vines with the aim of producing exceptional wines in a way that respects the environment. They have been certified organic since 2013 and are about to be certified biodynamic too.

The Clos of Chemin des Murs is the jewel of the property! Coming from the imagination of it's orginal owner, Antoine Cristal, this Clos was built, planted and cultivated according to an unprecedented technique. On this half hectare of Chenin Blanc, each vine was planted on the north face of a stone wall. Through a hole in the stone the vine crosses through the wall and allowing the grapes to grow facing the southern sunshine. The vine is said to have its 'foot in the cool and belly in the sun'.

Domaine de Mauperthuis

A family estate created by Marie-Noëlle & Laurent Ternynck, Domaine de Mauperthuis is located in Prehy, near the town of Chablis. Their wines express the terroir of this amazing region and the vineyards are currently undergoing the transition to organic. Domaine de Mauperthuis covers around twenty hectares of vineyards around Chablis. The estate, in the Burgundy appellation, is planted in Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Sauvignon and César, on land facing south, benefiting from exceptional sunshine.

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Vignoble du Reveur

Vignoble du Reveur (The Dreamer’s Vineyard) is a domaine founded by the immensely talented Mathieu Deiss (of Domaine Marcel Deiss) and his partner Emmanuelle Milan. While working with his father Jean Michel Deiss at the family domaine, Mathieu received an inheritance of vines from his uncle in the commune of Bennwihr, just outside the valley of Kaysersberg in Alsace. While continuing to work at Domaine Marcel Deiss, Mathieu and Emmanuelle saw the opportunity to use these 7 ha of vines as a home to experiment, push boundaries, and explore a new path for biodynamic viticulture and their winemaking dreams.

As with all things Deiss, it starts in the vineyards and their natural environment. After taking on the vines in 2011, they converted the domaine to biodynamics (it had been previously organically farmed before his uncle’s health problems) and received Demeter certification in 2013. Mathieu and Emmanuelle employ the same co-planting philosophy as the one at Domaine Marcel Deiss. As Mathieu explains, “We’ve chosen not to accentuate any particular grape, but rather the texture, consistency, depth, and minerality of the wine”. The wines in the stunning lineup show what this talented couple is capable of; from direct-pressed, co-planted Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Blanc to skin macerated whites that set a new standard for the “orange wine” category. Mathieu and Emmanuelle’s intellectual curiosity pushes them to continue to experiment with new techniques in the cellar, including the remarkable “Rien en Bouge” cuvée, which is made with whole bunches of Pinot Noir macerated in direct-pressed Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc juice. Trailblazing is in the Deiss DNA, and in the future, we can expect many more paradigm-shifting innovations from this dynamic duo.

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Cantine Barbera

Cantina Barbera is located in the Menfi Coast, on the west coast of Sicily. The vineyards are about one mile from the Mediterranean Sea: an uncontaminated deep blue sea, facing South, where low cliffs and sandy dunes create a beautiful environment protected by the Belice River Natural Reservation Fund.

A third generation farmer, Marilena Barbera farms the Inzolia that her grandfather planted in the 20's, just as she attends to the native varietals that are the new frontier of her own generation: Perricone, Nerello, Alicante, Nero d'Avola and Grillo. Marilena makes her wines praticticing organic farming and natural winemaking, while paying utmost respect to Menfi's terroir.

"At the winery, I chose to work only with spontaneous fermentations and to adopt non invasive winemaking practices, in order to respect the unique personality of Sicilian native grape varieties and the beautiful land to which they belong."

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Niepoort

There is a revolution happening in the Douro, and Dirk Niepoort is leading the troops. For centuries this part of Portugal has been known only for its port, but today, many of these Portuguese winemakers are beginning to make red and white table wines with the same grapes that have traditionally only been used for ports.

Dirk was born in 1964 to a traditional Port family that has been in business since 1842. The first wine Dirk participated in making was the Niepoort Vintage Porto of 1987. At the time, the family-owned no vineyards, and had to source all its wine and grapes from other growers. Since then, he took over the management of the winery and set to purchasing top, old-vine, steep vineyards to secure top-quality grapes. He also started a project of making dry wines, from these prized, generally north-facing vineyards. The Niepoort house still keeps a complete line-up of Porto wines, ranging from Tawny to Colheita and Garrafeira (a tawny aged in 10L glass bottles, that only Niepoort makes), and from Ruby to Vintage. The dry wines, which now make up about 75% of the winery's production, include whites Redoma and Redoma Reserva, and reds Vertente, Redoma, Batuta, and Charmes. 

Today, the Niepoort family owns 80 HA of vines in the Douro, all farmed organically, incorporating some Biodynamic principles as well. They also have purchased some truly amazing, old vine vineyards in Bairrada, Dao and Vino Verde. Dirk also now has vineyards in the Mosel in Germany, which he vinifies with his two sons. While the Ports remain fairly traditionally made, the still wines have evolved considerably since the days of the late 90s and early 2000s when big, powerful, oaky wines were the trend. Today, the wines are very much in keeping with today's more progressive drinking wheelhouse. Namely, lower alcohols (often 11-13%), lighter, fresher, more drinkable-styled wines with minimal new oak influence. 

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Olivier Riviere

With about 25 hectares of rented and owned vineyards in Rioja Alta, Rioja Baja, Rioja Alavesa, and splitting his time between his own wines and consulting with other producers, it would be an understatement to say that Olivier Rivière is busy. Originally lured to Spain in 2004 by Telmo Rodriguez to convert his vineyards to biodynamics, Olivier came to appreciate the rich history of Rioja and the diversity of its soils and grape varieties. In 2006 he started his own project, and owing to the high cost of land in Rioja, he traded his farming talents for access to grapes from the best sites he could locate.

Olivier was born and raised south of Bordeaux in Cognac. He later studied enology in Montagne St-Emilion, focusing on biodynamic farming, followed by practical experience there, and later in Burgundy. The list of estates where he has worked is impressive by any standards, from the most dedicated fans of natural wines (Elian da Ros & Domaine de Chassorney) to ultra-traditionalists (Domaine Leroy.) When his plans to set up a Domaine in Fitou fell through, Olivier decided to spend a few years consulting in Spain, and he’s never left.

In keeping with his education and advocation, nearly all of Olivier’s vineyard sources – whether owned or leased – are farmed organically with biodynamic practices. The fruit is harvested by hand, and each variety is fermented separately. Depending on the source, it may be partially destemmed or fermented whole cluster. Fermentations are with indigenous yeasts. Macerations are gentle and short. Aging takes place in stainless steel or cement tanks, foudre, and barrel with each container chosen to benefit the expression of the terroir. SO2 is kept to a minimum, usually added only before bottling. There really is no precise recipe, only the guiding principles of minimal intervention and taste. These are not your grandparent’s Riojas, nor are they your parent’s. These wines represent a novel approach that relies almost entirely on the specificity of the site and the transparency of winemaking necessary to capture it.

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Weingut Heinrich

Gernot and Heike Heinrich founded their winery in 1990 with just one hectare and have steadily grown to 90 hectares today. Heinrich was one of the first in the region to transition from simple white wines to high-quality reds in the early 1990s and became famous for powerful red blends such as Salzberg, Gabarinza, and Pannobile. In recent years, the focus has turned to Blaufränkisch from the nearby Leithaberg DAC, and to “Freyheit,” a line of natural wines produced with minimal intervention in the cellar. Heinrich converted to biodynamics in 2006 and is a member of Respekt, a certifying body for biodynamic viticulture in Austria. Heinrich today is one of Austria’s most innovative wine producers.

Neusiedlersee, named for Lake Neusiedl, is a wine-growing area located north and east of the lake and is home to the Heinrich winery. The moderating effect of the lake combines with the warm Pannonian climate, and its alluvial soils provide ideal conditions for red grape varieties. The Heinrich estate consists of 90 hectares in three main areas: Heideboden (sandy-loam soils that stretch from the village of Gols to the shores of Lake Neusiedl); the Parndorfer Platte (low-lying hills with gravel soils located near the winery); and Leithaberg (a hill of limestone and schist soils on the northwestern edge of the lake).

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Château Combel-la-Serre

Julien Ilbert is a young, charismatic vigneron with a fresh perspective on his native Cahors. Vines have been in the Ilbert family for generations, though grapes had always been sold to the local cave coopérative. In 1998, Julien decided to break off and start his own estate. Things didn't exactly go according to plan, and a chance meeting with Mathieu Cosse at a rugby match quickly led to a seven-year relationship, with Julien being Mathieu's main source for high-quality Auxerrois (aka Malbec, aka Côt).

After an amicable split in 2005, Julien was back on track to producing his own wines: Château Combel-la-Serre was born. 25 hectares of Auxerrois are planted on a diverse amount of terroirs, all within 5 kilometres of the cellar. Though a Cahors wine only needs to be 70% Auxerrois to get the appellation, Julien believes it is the only grape suitable for what he's trying to accomplish. As such he has consciously avoided planting the traditional Negrette and Tannat and completely eschewed the more recent trend of planting Bordeaux varietals.

The estate is certified organic as of the 2015 vintage, but chemicals have not touched the vineyards for quite some time. Everything was conventionally farmed from the advent of such technology, but the death of Julien's grandfather from Parkinson's deeply affected the family's agricultural philosophy. Convinced that the chemicals he'd openly exposed himself to day in and day out were at the root of his illness (on top of the vines, an additional 40 hectares of cereals were worked by the family at the time), the Ilbert stopped using these products on their land.

The wines have also evolved in the decade since Julien launched his own estate, culminating in what we now get to enjoy in our glasses. Though you should never judge a book by its cover, Julien has made the decision to design playful labels and bottle the wines in Burgundian bottles, two seemingly superficial details that are actually a very bold statement in the ultra-traditional mindset of most Cahors producers.

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Aphros

Founded in 2002, Aphros is a project designed to combine ecological and economical aspects to create true sustainability. Their belief is that nature and labour should combine in a meaningful way and they seek to capture this through Biodynamic viticulture, letting the uniqueness of the land shine through the fruit for inimitable wines. Loureiro and Vinhão have grown in these vineyards for centuries and serve as the reference point for the region.

The grapes are sourced from the Lima sub-region and the vines of Casal do Paço are situated in a south-facing amphitheatre north of the Lima River on gentle slopes with cool Atlantic breezes.

The winemaking is traditional, taking place in the basement beneath the main house. The cave is buried and naturally cool and damp. They once again straddle the line between a modern and traditional character with the addition of modern stainless steel equipment and traditional open-top lagars, and granite stone tanks, for red wine production.