Wines of the World

Munjebel Blanc 2021

Frank Cornelissen
“Our first white wine,” explains Frank Cornelissen of Munjebel Blanc, “started out as an orange wine, fermented on the skins for a long time. I loved the tactile feel and density, but I missed the finesse and precision of classic French white wines from the Loire Valley, for example. With the 2015 vintage, I modified our technique to seek the purity and flavors of Etna, which led us to maintain a short skin maceration period and age our white wines for a long time in the coldest part of our cellar before bottling.” The elegance, purity and density achieved make this wine an ideal companion for a wide variety of dishes and cuisines, from fish to white meats. » The white version of the Munjebel cuvée combines beautiful concentration, freshness and oriental aromas: orange blossom, jasmine, dried apricot. Produced on medium-altitude plots from Grecanico Dorato and Carricante in equal parts, on the Calderara, Borriglione, Crasà and Picciolo plots, Munjebel white is very mature. The vines are over forty years old; the grapes are destemmed, lightly crushed and macerated for about four days. No fining, no sulfiting, light filtration before bottling. This wine will pair with an almost infinite variety of dishes, meat and fish, oysters and shellfish, and all Asian cuisines.

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A great must-have and universally respected figure in natural wine, Frank Cornelissen is a classic. This man of constant questioning lives in human and cosmic resonance with his contrasting terroir: he has demonstrated that the powerful minerality of a great volcanic soil can be highlighted by the naturalness of his wines. The brilliance, the directness and the exquisite fruitiness of his vintages earn him the admiration even of those reluctant to go "natural". They are good initiation wines.
His Sicilian azienda is located in Passopisciaro, in the northern Etna valley. It is, he says, the "Night Coast" of Etna for the great diversity of its wines spread over many locations (contrade) at different altitudes. The climate is continental and harsh, even snowy, in winter, but very warm and sunny from June to September. The altitude gives the wines tension and elegance. The vines coexist with a Mediterranean polyculture: olive trees, almond trees, vegetable gardens... (Frank also produces olive oil). The age of the vines ranges from forty years to over one hundred years. The plots, nineteen in number, on twenty-four hectares in total, are all at altitude, between 600 and 900 meters, on several volcanic flows. They are all vinified separately: Frank decides on the blend based on the quality of the wines from each plot. In general, seven or eight vintages are made in addition to the generic wines (rosé, basic red and white). The soils are made up of different types of basalt, between powder and rock, with perfect drainage that allows for the production of concentrated and fine wines.
Nerello Mascalese dominates the estate's grape varieties. This great traditional red grape variety from the northern valley of Etna is the only grape variety used in the great vintages. Its growing cycle is long, which allows the vine to work the soil and capture its minerality in the fruit. Other grape varieties include: Nerello Capuccio, Minella Bianco, Minella Nera, Alicante Bouschet, Malvasia, Cattaratto, Moscadella, Grecanico Dorato, Carricante…

Pietre Blanc 2021

La Vinicola di Antonio Gismondi
What a wine! A pure pleasure in the glass, heralded by a beautiful, pure, innocent yellow color. The nose offers a gentle whiff of yellow flowers, a hint of blooming dandelion, and sun-warmed spring nature. These lovely sensations are confirmed on the palate, with one of the loveliest mineral nuances one could dream of: heated limestone, clay, wild herbs, and white fruits. Pietre is remarkable for its balance, its ease on the border between freshness and Mediterranean warmth. The freshness of the Apennine climate and the clay soil, elegantly carried by all the wines of this estate, certainly has something to do with it. Made from a blend of Malvasia di Candia and Falanghina directly pressed, Pietre Blanc evokes by its name the pebbles of its native province. The skin maceration is one or two days depending on the vintage, in stainless steel vats, as is the aging of six to ten months. Unfiltered, no sulfites at bottling. This well-balanced, floral and fruity white will harmonize with many dishes.

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The azienda of Antonio and Anabel Gismondi is located in Cerreto Sanita, in the Benevento region of Campania. A microclimate gives this area an almost continental feel: humid winds from the Tyrrhenian Sea collide with the first ramparts of the Apennine chain, causing condensation in the air and lowering temperatures, which are significantly cooler and more humid than on the coast. If we add a thermal inversion phenomenon between day and night, common in the Apennine climate, the freshness of the wines from the Antonio Gismondi estate is nothing mysterious in this southern Italy, which is nevertheless known for its very hot climate. The estate is family-run: for generations, the Gismondi family has cultivated vines and made wine using the most traditional and natural methods, to which are added biodynamic techniques. For a long time, of the fifteen tons of grapes produced each year, one ton was reserved for vinification on site for family consumption, the rest going to the local wine cooperative. It was the meeting with Massimo Marchiori and Antonella of Partida Creus that led Antonio and his wife Anabel to start producing natural wines at home, using the entire harvest. The two-hectare vineyard is located between 350 and 380 meters above sea level, on clay, loam, and stony soils, with two-thirds facing south, planted with vines around six years old. The remainder faces southwest and corresponds to the Pietre and Cerreto cuvées, with vines thirty years old. The grape varieties are Merlot, Freisa, and Sangiovese for the reds, and Falanghina and Malvasia di Candia for the whites.

BS Blanc de Sumoll White 2017

Partida Creus
Finely macerated, with a superb golden hue vering with orange, BS Blanc de Sumoll is made for the table and refined dishes. Vibrant and aromatic, it offers notes of citrus (grapefruit, orange, lemon), rose, peach, apple, quince, garrigue (thyme, rosemary), and quince, with a rather saline finish. It is also mineral with notes of honey, leather, and stone. This still, sunny Blanc de Noirs, made from 100% white Sumoll (a grape variety that has become extremely rare in Catalonia) and produced directly from the press, is a historic cuvée, the first produced by Massimo and Antonella. This is a very rare wine that should not be missed when a few bottles appear.

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Partida Creus is an important estate, both from a winemaking and historical perspective – we are talking here about the history of the vine in Catalonia. Massimo Marchiori and Antonella Gerosa, originally from Piedmont – and even from the Langhe region, where wine is well-known – first pursued careers as architects in Barcelona. But the wine bug bit them, and soon they abandoned the big city and its sophistication for the vineyards of southern Catalonia, in Bonastre in Baix-Penedés. There they found a quantity of abandoned vineyards planted with a dizzying diversity of traditional Catalan grape varieties that they passionately revived to save these varieties – and their wines – from oblivion. On their part, it’s not just a matter of saving heritage, no: it’s a matter of taste and nature. Natural wines, which they will continue to make from now on on these sandy, poor, clay-limestone or clay-gravelly, poor and poorly irrigated lands, where the vines suffer to give their best juice. Massimo and Antonella practice organic, biodynamic, entirely manual and natural viticulture in order to give new life to these wines. Vinyater, sumoll, garrut, monastrell, ull de perdiu, ull de llebre, sumoll, queixal de llop, cariñena, trepat, ceciat parent, maccabeu, parellada, pansé, vinel·lo, bobal, cartoixà vermell or xarel·lo: it is a true conservatory of the native Catalan grape varieties that Partida Creus cares for. Moscatel, Grenache, Merlot, and Cabernet (among others) are also grown here. Few wineries can boast growing so many different grape varieties. The wines reflect this diversity, with winemakers striving to best convey the signature of the soil and the grape variety: single-varietal wines are common among them, alongside extensive blends, all in the styles dear to Catalonia: still wine, "ancestral" sparkling wine, and even vermouth. The bottles themselves are works of art: bare glass, simply marked with two large stenciled initials that denote the cuvée. The wines, fresh, vibrant, lush but always straightforward and impeccably juicy and fruity, breathe life. The arrival of a Partida Creus at the table always elicits cries of satisfaction.

Bianco White 2012

Le Coste

A delicate amber color for a wine with an elegant and lively nose that lingers on the palate with notes of yellow fruits, enhanced here in the magnum format. This pleasant Italian macerated white, simply called "white" (bianco), is made from a blend of Procanico and Malvasia grapes grown on the volcanic soils of Lazio, on the borders of Tuscany and Umbria. After a late harvest, entirely by hand, the grapes are lightly crushed by foot and then macerated for two weeks in truncated French oak barrels. After pressing, the must is decanted for a few days before slowly completing its fermentation in tuns for about a year. The wine is then aged for seven months in barrels at the bottom of the cellar, in a natural cave, before being bottled. “This wine may not change the course of winemaking history,” writes one Italian commentator, “but it managed to give me a very good time, and that’s what matters. Believe me: we desperately need wines like this… In the glass, a beautiful yellow tending towards amber, opaque and rich. On the nose, a crackle of yellow fruits and volcanic sparks, and a beautiful acidity. After a few minutes, Bianco becomes sensorially capricious on the palate, like a chameleon, its beautiful acidity supporting the structure and highlighting its complexity. Almond, peach, hazelnut, yellow flowers, Annurca apple… Every moment in the glass reveals something new. »

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The Le Coste azienda is located in Italy, in Gradoli, in the province of Viterbo, in the northeast of Lazio. The estate was created in 2004 by Clémentine Bouveron and Gian Marco Antonuzzi. Clémentine is an oenologist and has already worked at Domaine Hauvette and Trévallon, in the Alpilles, as well as in Sauternes, at Château de Rayne-Vigneau. When Clémentine and Gian Marco took over the estate, it covered three hectares at an altitude of 450 meters and appeared as an abandoned garden of vines and olive trees. They recreated it in a traditional polycultural way with agroforestry, livestock farming, and viticulture to produce wines without additives and without deviation. The surface area has since grown to approximately fourteen hectares. The terroir overlooks Lake Bolsena. Its volcanic nature explains the lightness of its recently formed soils: lapilli tuffs, volcanic ash in varied layers, rich in minerals. This soil, very poor in organic matter, must be amended, and natural caves enlarged by older generations serve as cellars. Shared between vines, olive trees, elms, century-old oaks and wild chestnut trees, the site is a marvel of plant diversity. The biodynamic methods used at the estate include manure compost, horn silica and herbal teas that strengthen the defenses of the vines, which are trained in the traditional way, in low goblet training with a stake. The grape varieties are numerous, indigenous and ancient, reproduced by mass selection in the old vines still present on the estate. The wines express the local terroir and a strong Italian identity, with very varied profiles.

Rubaiyat Red 2009

Barranco Oscuro

Elegantly aged in magnum format for over thirteen years, this is a classic from the Barranco Oscuro estate. It offers a full-bodied, tannic, and dry profile, rich in mature notes of black and red fruits (blackcurrant, raspberry). Leather and earth also dominate, accentuated and enhanced by aging. Smooth, roasted, and nuanced notes of chocolate and spices, and superb balance. Rubaiyat is an allusion and homage to the Persian poet Omar Khayyam, a polymath who wrote a poetic cycle entitled Rubaiyat in the 11th century, glorifying mystical and physical intoxication. The Persian origin of the Syrah grape variety, from which this wine is entirely composed, was not for nothing in this choice of name. Rubaiyat comes from Syrah vines planted in 1996 at an altitude of approximately 1,290 meters and facing south on schist and clay soils. The harvest, manual, carefully sorted and destemmed, macerates in stainless steel vats and ferments with indigenous yeasts. The vinification is naturally controlled by the coolness of autumn nights in the mountains. Malolactic fermentation followed by aging takes place for sixteen months in old barrels. No sulfites are added, the wine is unclarified, and lightly filtered at bottling.

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Between the Sierra Nevada and the sea, in Andalusia, the Sierra Contraviesa boasts the highest vineyard in Europe (1,368 meters) at its summit. Barranco oscuro means "dark valley" in Spanish, but this valley is part of the past; it was the original site of the property, but it was moved at the end of the 19th century, when phylloxera put an end to a period of intense winemaking and mass production. In 1979, the estate was taken over by Manuel Valenzuela, who decided to work it using natural methods and without resorting to modern oenology methods. Initially, he bought grapes, but his goal was to replant vines, which he did between 1982 and the mid-1990s. Currently, the twelve hectares of Cortijo Barranco Oscuro extend over a drop of almost 1,400 meters. On a poor, dry, schistose terroir, two localities concentrate the plots: Cerro Las Monjas at the very top and Hoyo y Cerro de Las Gayumbas lower down, near the winery buildings. Strong thermal contrasts explain the freshness of the wines, produced without the addition of exogenous yeasts and without any inputs in the vineyard or cellar. Although the estate is not certified organic due to the disillusionment Manuel suffered from fraud in this area, his estate is a member of the Spanish Association of Natural Wine Producers. His wines are straightforward and clean, without compromise: they are wines that give joy through the seriousness of the work that went into their production.

Vino Rosato Rosé 2021,

Corva Gialla
The pretty light pink color of this Vino Rosato heralds the pleasure of floral notes on the nose and palate: rose, red fruits, citrus, lovely acidity, and a touch of bitterness on the finish, reminiscent of grapefruit peel, which gives it great charm. To obtain this Rosato, a blend of Montepulciano and Sangiovese, the Montepulciano harvest macerates for 48 hours on the skins before being pressed, while the Sangiovese is pressed directly at the entrance to the winery. The musts are then fermented together in fiberglass vats where they continue to refine until bottling in March. Rosato will suit everything you want from a rosé, and more: its purity and balance raise it above the standard image of summer rosés.

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Azienda Corva Gialla ("yellow crow") is a winery in Lazio, Italy, located on the edge of Umbria in the Alta Tuscia Viterbese. A volcanic region considered one of the most beautiful in Italy and characterized by its calanches, tall tuff rock formations delineating deep valleys carved by numerous streams and torrents. Corva Gialla is located in Lubriano, opposite Civita di Bagnoregio. Alta Tuscia is proving to be a breeding ground for young winemaking talents devoted to nature who are enhancing these lands deprived throughout history. Founded in 2017, the estate comprises four hectares cultivated by Beatrice Arweiler, originally from another wine-growing region, between the Rhine and the Moselle. The new owner also planted an olive grove (Frantoio and Leccino varieties) and developed the estate into a mixed crop and livestock system. The vines were planted with the help of Gian Marco Antonuzzi of the Le Coste estate. The friable volcanic soil lends itself beautifully to viticulture and the planting of grape varieties such as Grechetto d'Umbria, Trebbiano, Vermentino, Sangiovese, and Ciliegiolo. The estate's wines are quintessentially Italian, meaning they are crafted primarily for enjoyment. They are straightforward, deep, and easy to drink, expressing the strong minerality of their soils.

Xarel Lo Domaine Blanc 2016

Clos Lentiscus
Festive, light, and crisp, this dry white wine made from pure Xarel Lo is, above all, a seducer. Aromatic and creamy with beautiful notes of white peach and tropical fruit accents, it has something to please every palate. The vines from which it comes grow on sandy-limestone soil. After the manual harvest, maceration is brief and pressing is very gentle to obtain the best from the grapes. Fermentation takes place in French oak barrels with indigenous yeasts. Aging takes place in the same containers for six months. Best served chilled.

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It is in Sitges, Catalonia, in the heart of the Garraf Natural Park, that Manel Avinyo and his brother Joan took over the family estate, renamed Clos Lentiscus by Manel. Even though Barcelona is only a half-hour drive away, the beauty of the landscape is striking and the immersion in nature is total: Mediterranean forests rub shoulders with Catalan scrubland (thyme, rosemary, rockrose, mastic tree which gave its name to the estate, etc.). The Penedès region also has a long winemaking history. Nestled in its gentle hills is Clos Lentiscus, in the Penedés appellation, on twenty hectares of sandy and clay-limestone soils facing due south at an altitude of 225 meters. According to historical documents, the family of Manel and Joan Avinyo has been established there since at least the 14th century. For a long time, the grapes were sold to local cooperatives, but as soon as the two brothers took over the estate, organic and biodynamic farming replaced conventional practices, the entire harvest goes into the house vintages, and organic and biodynamic practices have allowed this beautiful property to regain its former prestige: in the 19th century, its wines were sold in France and as far away as the Americas. Very quickly, Manel received a nickname: The Bubbleman, a tribute to his talent for vinifying cavas, these sparkling whites characteristic of the northeast of the Iberian Peninsula, from indigenous varieties for which Catalonia holds the secret: sumoll, ull de llebre, xarel·lo, malvasia of Sitges, cartoixà vermell, cariñena (carignan), accompanied by tempranillo and muscat of Alexandria. The vines are old, some of them centuries old. No synthetic additives are used in the vineyard, and operations such as planting, pruning, de-budding, and harvesting are dictated by the lunar phases. Pollination is facilitated by the presence of beehives; sheep contribute to fertilization and control of the plant cover. Ringo, the white horse, takes care of working the soil.

Elegance, purity, and a crisp minerality due to limestone characterize the productions of Clos Lentiscus. The note of controlled oxidation, when it is felt, does not dominate the tasting, and the wines are never deviant. The cavas are known for being exuberant, but those of Clos Lentiscus never have more than two grams of residual sugar per liter. The estate also produces still wines, red, white, and rosé.

Magnum Munjebel Blanc 2019,

Frank Cornelissen
A key figure in natural wine, a universally respected figure in this category of wines, Frank Cornelissen is a classic. This man of constant questioning lives in human and cosmic resonance with his contrasting terroir: he has demonstrated that the powerful minerality of a great volcanic soil can be enhanced by the naturalness of his wines. The brilliance, integrity, and exquisite fruitiness of his vintages earn him the admiration even of those reluctant to accept "natural." They are good introductory wines.
His Sicilian azienda is located in Passopisciaro, in the northern Etna Valley. It is, he says, the "Night Coast" of Etna for the great diversity of its wines spread over many locations (contrade) at different altitudes. The climate is continental and harsh, even snowy, in winter, but very warm and sunny from June to September. The altitude gives the wines tension and elegance. The vines coexist with a Mediterranean polyculture: olive trees, almond trees, vegetable gardens... (Frank also produces olive oil). The age of the vines ranges from forty years to over one hundred years. The plots, nineteen in number, on twenty-four hectares in total, are all at altitude, between 600 and 900 meters, on several volcanic flows. They are all vinified separately: Frank decides on the blend based on the quality of the wines from each plot. In general, seven or eight vintages are made in addition to the generic wines (rosé, basic red and white). The soils are made up of different types of basalt, between powder and rock, with perfect drainage that allows for concentrated and fine wines.
Nerello Mascalese dominates the estate's grape varieties. This great traditional red grape variety from the northern valley of Etna is the only grape variety used in the great vintages. Its growing cycle is long, which allows the vine to work the soil and capture its minerality in the fruit. Other grape varieties include: Nerello Capuccio, Minella Bianco, Minella Nera, Alicante Bouschet, Malvasia, Cattaratto, Moscadella, Grecanico Dorato, Carricante...
Produced on mid-altitude plots from Grecanico Dorato and Carricante in equal parts, on the Calderara, Borriglione, Crasà and Picciolo plots, this white is very ripe. It combines beautiful concentration, freshness, and oriental aromas: orange blossom, jasmine, dried apricot. The vines are over forty years old; the grapes are destemmed, lightly crushed, and macerated for about four days. No fining, no sulfiting, and light filtration before bottling. This wine pairs well with an almost infinite variety of dishes, meat and fish, oysters and shellfish, and all Asian cuisines.

Melocoton Beer 2020, Cyclic Beer Farm

Cyclic Beer Farm
Packaged in 75 cl bottles so that everyone can satisfy their thirst, the beers from the Barcelona-based brewery Cyclic Beer Farm play between classicism and flights of inspiration, in a contrasting and creative way, in the Catalan style. Based on classic principles and a Belgian fermentation model, the two brewer-winemakers Joshua and Alberto play with ingredients, aromas, and macerations, including cereals, fruits, vegetables, and grape skins from Catalan grape varieties, to achieve flavors reminiscent of an unidentified drinkable object (OBNI). Whether they assert themselves through balance or a certain controlled dissonance, these beers will never leave you indifferent and will reveal their full potential in the summer heat, served well chilled.
Melocotón, with an alcohol content of 5.5%, is a limited edition beer, a work of craftsmanship, and indulgence. Six hundred grams of organic peaches from the orchards of Ordal (Catalonia) very ripe (“we like them like that,” say the two brewers), scrupulously selected, in maceration per liter of beer, who can say better? The brew is based on barley and wheat, a mix of funky saison and sour saison. The acidity is very pronounced, and gives a very refreshing whey flavor, the bewitching aroma of peach unfolding in the background with a particular force in retro-olfaction. Another experiment from the Cyclic Boys that was worth trying and which we predict will be a hit on the terraces this summer.

Volta Beer 2020, Cyclic Beer Farm

Cyclic Beer Farm
Packaged in 75 cl bottles so that everyone can satisfy their thirst, the beers from the Barcelona-based brewery Cyclic Beer Farm play between classicism and flights of inspiration, in a contrasting and creative way, in the Catalan style. Based on classic principles and a Belgian fermentation model, the two brewer-winemakers Joshua and Alberto play with ingredients, aromas, and macerations, including cereals, fruits, vegetables, and grape skins from Catalan grape varieties, to achieve flavors reminiscent of an unidentified drinkable object (OBNI). Whether they assert themselves through balance or a certain controlled dissonance, these beers will never leave you indifferent and will reveal their full potential in the summer heat, served well chilled.
Volta is a pilsner-style beer with an alcohol content of 4%. It was created in homage to a classic competition in Catalonia, the Volta Catalunya cycling race, which is celebrating its hundredth edition this year (2021). The brew is made from organic pilsner malt and malted wheat flakes. The infusion is then made with organic lemon juice and zest as well as Ceylon black tea. The color is pale yellow, slightly cloudy. On the nose, a great freshness is immediately evident. On the palate, we perceive a very nice lemony acidity where the sour bite of the lemon juice is felt more than the aroma of the zest. The slightly tannic and floral note of Ceylon tea plays in the background. A very nice, expertly balanced success from Cyclic brewers, whose name, for the occasion, matches the one they gave to this beer.

Jeroboam Munjebel FM Red 2016

Frank Cornelissen

Delivery possible in the Île-de-France region only
The Feudo di Mezzo plot, from which this Munjebel red comes, is very large. It is divided into two parts: the sottana, the lower part, and the soprana, or Porcaria, which is the upper part. Although relatively lower than the estate's other plots, it produces wines of remarkable elegance. The soil is quite deep, which can pose maturation problems in wet years, but the plot benefits from good ventilation, which compensates for this drawback. This wine is all Burgundian elegance and roundness, even in hot years: it is characterized by its finesse and adapts to the most varied dishes.
Natural wine without added sulfites.