It’s that time of year again. Mid-November for me means the Cork & Cask Winter Wine Fair. Not many wine retailers put on an event like this. In England perhaps Butlers Wine Cellar in Brighton come closest. Cork & Cask, based in Marchmont, just south of The Meadows in Edinburgh, does it twice a year. The format is that a selection of importers and agents Cork & Cask works with come along with perhaps ten wines, give or take, and pour them for the paying punters, with a discount, of course, on any wines purchased on the day.

The summer event has more beer, and a smaller number of wine importers. The winter fair, with Christmas approaching, is more wine-based. This 2025 event was the biggest yet, and dare I say best as well. The wine agencies present included Keeling Andrew, Dynamic Vines, Uncharted Wines, Modal, Roland, Vine Trail, Alliance, Sevslo and Indigo. You will see from these three articles that these guys alone brought along some affordable gems. I’ve also added in Diatomists’ Fine Sherries, Antonio becoming a welcome fixture now at this fair, and also Blind Summit Whisky, whose separate new release tasting I hope to be at this Saturday.

As an event open to the public it gets mighty crowded after an hour or two and this is the main reason I cannot possibly taste everything. When I’m at a table waiting for ten minutes for a pour that’s me done, but I’m not complaining. I hope you agree if you explore these three articles that there are some fantastic wines on the Cork & Cask shelves at the moment (all wines tasted were, on Saturday, available in-store and on-line).

The order of tasting within the three articles will be as follows:

Part 1 – Keeling Andrew, Dynamic Vines, Uncharted Wines and Diatomists Sherries

Part 2 – Modal Wines, Roland Wines, Vine Trail and Blind Summit Whisky

Part 3 – Alliance Wine, Sevslo (Glasgow’s finest) and Indigo.

So on with Part 1…

KEELING ANDREW

The boys behind Noble Rot have opened more retail stores in London (Shrine to the Vine), and continue to import a mix of cutting-edge new wines and contemporary classics. Charlie had ten wines to show here, with an emphasis firmly on Spain and Greece.

Two new Cuvées from Suertes del Marqués on Tenerife (Canary Islands) are always a treat to taste. 7 Fuentes is as good, and good value, as ever (£25) but pay a bit more and you have Trenzado. It’s a varietal Listán Blanco (aka Palomino) made in tank. Very slightly reductive (I was first to taste this) with that classic volcanic note, but with genuine depth and length. I am not the only person to suggest that the 2024 vintage is the best yet. £35. I bought one, an easy decision with that 10% on-the-day discount, but still worth every single penny at full-price.

Tetramythos makes a few different ranges, but the “natur” wines are very good, a step up from their less expensive wines which, don’t get me wrong, I will buy as well. I’ve enjoyed the Amphora Retsina before, and the orange Roditis. Here I’m going to single out the Natur Sideritis and the Natur Agiorgitiko.

Sideritis is a retsina variety here made as a table wine without resin. Mineral, citrus and savoury in 2024, and one to try if you want to try something different (£27). It’s really good. If you want to try one of Greece’s top (but often unsung) red varieties, the Agiorgitiko is a bit of a bargain for £24. I remember Agiorgitiko from Nemea in the 1990s and 2000s. It was often a bigger style of red than we have here. Okay, it does hit 13% abv, but it has a lovely cherry bouquet, lifted fruit and a little tannic bite.

Charlie also had two Lopez de Heredia red Riojas open. The Tondonia Reserva will now knock you back a cool £50, a bargain if you have that to splash. If not, Cubillo (£30) is the next best thing, perhaps and certainly more my price range these days.

Finally, I was surprised to see the Anthemis Samos Muscat open…because I’d only a week previously been at a local dinner party where it was served. For a less-known dessert wine option for Christmas this is definitely worth a go, and at £20 it isn’t too expensive. It’s a 2018 as well.

DYNAMIC VINES

Jean-Christoph was on-hand as usual to pour some classics from Bermondsey. One could hardly expect them to bring out the family silver (Gut Oggau, Tournelle, Chappaz etc) but we didn’t do too badly, with seven wines, from Burgundy, via Emmanuel Giboulot, Bordeaux via Cahors King Matthieu Cosse, and a curved ball from Yohann Moreno (Corbières).

Emmanuel Giboulot, who is based in Beaune itself, makes truly excellent wines, wholly natural save a tiny amount of SO2 at bottling when deemed necessary. He additionally works biodynamically, both in vines and cellar.

His Bourgogne Blanc 2022 is made in a mix of stainless steel and old oak and is a very fine and classic Chardonnay. Don’t be surprised at the price (£43). I used to pay this for Roulot’s BB years ago and you can double that now. But like Roulot’s entry level white, this is fine wine, and it will age.

The Bourgogne Rouge is similarly good, but if you want something just a little bit more interesting, and four quid cheaper, take a look at the 2023 Terres Burgondes IGP (£43). It’s a pale and youthful Pinot Noir from vines outside the Bourgogne appellation, at Saint-Marie-la-Blanche, ten minutes east from Beaune with a clay and limestone soil mix. Easy to drink, floral, very “alive”, a gentle wine that entrances. Cork & Cask say pair with chicken or veal in a cream sauce. Stomach rumbling already…

Matthieu Cosse is well-known among the kind of people who read my blog as the best grower in Cahors. These past few vintages he has been making wine in the Bordeaux region with his friend, Jérôme Ossard. These are superb wines at a good price and all three come highly recommended. The two reds, both 2020 currently, come from Blaye (£26) and from Fronsac (£30). When I first tasted this pair a couple of years ago they felt as if they needed some more time, but now they have lost their tannic edge and the fruit is shining. You pays your money and makes your choice between the two.

The Blaye Bordeaux Blanc was good from the off, and still is. Exceptional value from a Sauvignon Blanc with a bit of Muscadelle (£26). I think the cat is out of the bag though. Very popular. All natural wines, of course.

Apaché from Yohann Moreno/Vin des Potes is a light, carbonic maceration, blend of organic and biodynamic Carignan, Grenache and Mourvèdre from the Corbières region. The Vin des Potes project is worth following as they make wines not only in France but also in Italy and Greece. A dark-fruited and herbal red with just a lick of tannin. Juicy fruit, £25. I always enjoy a chance to drink this, and the label always gets a comment.

UNCHARTED WINES

It’s always good to catch up with Gus and he had brought along, well, not any of my Uncharted favourites like Hermit Ram or Domaine Chapel, but nevertheless a varied host of cracking bottles. I had to pass on the pair of wines from Sybille Kuntz, but I hope you agree that this small Mosel estate is always good.

I started with a Bourgogne Aligoté from just south of Dijon. Marc Soyard (Domaine de la Cras) has worked with the undisputed Aligoté master, Sylvain Pataille, and this “Tercet Aligoté” is another classy version of this resurrected and once again fashionable variety. Some classic acidity but toned down by the overt fruitiness here. £29.

Next, off to Savoie, a dispersed region which is getting very exciting now. Jura land is too expensive these days, and what’s left can be too marginal. Savoie has the soils and the altitude, and now some new blood to spice things up. Domaine de Lucey “Les Chemins” 2022 is 100% Altesse made in concrete hexagon (what is it with Savoyard vignerons and oddly-shaped vessels?). Zero additives here, not even sulphur. Lemony, savoury, very electric, nothing muted at all. The wines are made off 6.5ha of vines by Erwan Buchwalter at the Château de Lucey, overlooking the Lac de Bourget. The Chemins vineyard sits at 350 masl.

Domaine Saint-Cyr with its instantly recognisable labels is one of the wonderful Bojo domaines Uncharted love so much (I think their Nouveau was hand-collected by Rupert for the annual Fête in London this year). Cork & Cask has some, Saint-Cyr’s “French Kiss Kanon” Nouveau, for just under £20. Gus showed their Chénas “Les Journets”. All I will say is that Chénas, once ignored, is coming to be quite fashionable on account of the better ripening global climate chaos has brought to the Cru’s western hills. It is also Beaujolais’s smallest Cru.

But special mention is saved for another Saint-Cyr wine, Raphael’s Aligoté, called Alien. 80-year-old vines on clay and limestone in the far south of the Beaujolais region. It spent two years in 600-litre oak. No additives whatsoever. Okay, it costs £37, but this wine is a far cry from the Aligoté of old. Gorgeous, creamy, melons with minerals and a wine that is just “vivid” in scent, fruit and tension.

I want to mention a couple more bottles here. Rodrigo Martin’s Espera “Alvarinho na Ânfora” is a flor-aged, zero-zero (no additives, not even SO2) from his Espera label (he’s the same guy who makes the Nat Cool wines). It comes from vineyards just north of Lisbon. Very dry, but it has lively peach and pear fruity freshness. £40. More serious than many Portuguese wines you may have become used to but top quality for the price.

Also, last but most definitely not least (my favourite wine on this table), “Les Vestides” from Romain le Bars. It’s described as a Tavel Rouge (I was sure Tavel was an appellation for just Rosé, but who cares?). Well, it turns out this is the kind of Tavel we used to love, technically a Rosé but more like a light red than a “pink”. Semi-carbonic Cinsault and Grenache from a Pfifferling protegé. Very fruity, but with bite. Only £22 as well.

DIATOMISTS SHERRY

I first discovered Diatomists at the Cork & Cask Winter Wine Fair back in 2022, very soon after I’d moved to Scotland. The venture was started by three friends, and the one I met was the very warm and affable Antonio Morenés Bertrán, their Sales Director. He does seem to enjoy coming to Edinburgh. He was showing eight wines last Saturday.

First, a new bottling for me. Sotovelo 2023 is a Palomino table wine, very fashionable now, of course. Off chalk, it was still aged under flor,  but without fortification it turns in just 12% alcohol. Dry and mineral with a grainy texture, but nice lemon fruit. Excellent, and £24.

There were two Manzanillas on show, but I was especially impressed this time with the Fino El Puerto de Santa Maria (15% abv, £17/half bottle). I’ve bought the Manzanilla a couple of times but this grainy, mineral wine seems a lovely expression of terroir and will make a nice change. It was bottled just two months ago and it is so fresh.

The Amontillado (£22 for a half bottle) is a single bota, 12-y-o wine with a bright amber colour and lots of depth, yet it is still super-fresh. A style I’m drawn to, now more than ever before. Then there’s the “Medium”, a style I am rarely drawn towards. But this is very nice. Another single bota, the key is the age of the blend, at least 19-year-old wines in here. Lovely raisin fruit on the nose, getting complex even at a tasting, fresh but with a bit of sweetness. Tempted (also £22/half).

Finally, the Pedro Xímenez Single Bota 5-year-old, sweet, dark, a bouquet of rich caramel, deep and long. I wish I’d had the muscles to grab one for Christmas, perhaps it ain’t too late. In case you think I’m especially weak, I was carrying several 75cl bottles home.

So, hopefully you consider that a good start. These wines will doubtless fly out at the lower end of the price spectrum, but the more expensive treats are, well, tempting for Christmas. Best from each table? Tough as always, but:

• From Keeling Andrew, the Suertes Trenzado is my clear winner.
• For value as well as quality, from Dynamic Vines, the Cosse Blaye Rouge on this occasion.
• From Uncharted Wines, the Tavel from Romain Le Bars.
• From Diatomists, if I have to choose, a wine that has already achieved praise from bigger names than me, the Fino El Puerto de Santa Maria.

Next-up, in Part Two, look out for gems from Modal, Roland, Vine Trail and Blind Summit Whisky Bottlers.