Elegance and harmony awaits with an exclusive evening of exquisite Sancerre wines and the finest Sashimi Auckland City has to offer!

Set in the intimate 3-hat restaurant Cocoro (Japanese for ‘heart and soul’), Chef Makoto Tokuyama has curated a bespoke menu where every dish has been artfully matched with hand-selected wines from the famed Sacerre region, to create an evening that’s ichigo ichie: a bespoke culinary experience.

With only eight seats available, this is a rare opportunity to experience exceptional craftsmanship in food and wine, at its finest.

Note: Additional wines will be served in 150ml increments (excluding the Sauterness at 75ml), all at wholesale prices. The $210 dinner price is payable to the restaurant on the evening and wines prices below will be tallied for you during the evening and billed to you the following day.

Wine	Glass
Champagne Billecart-Salmon NV Le Réserve	$19.95 (150ml)
Alphonse Mellot 2017 Sancerre 2017 Côtes de la Charité ‘Les Pénitents’ Chardonnay	$15.00 (150ml)
Alphonse Mellot Sancerre 2020 ‘La Moussiere’ Rosé	$15.00 (150ml)
Alphonse Mellot Sancerre 2020 ‘La Moussiere’ Blanc	$15.00 (150ml)
Château D’arche, La Perle d’Arche (Sauternes)	$10.00 (75ml)

The post Sashimi and Sancerre at Cocoro [SOLD-OUT] appeared first on Dhall & Nash Fine Wines.

28 March, 2022|In Winery Spotlight, Wines

Library Release:

From Dhall & Nash’s very own ‘Unrelenting Artisan’
– Folium Vineyard

In the vast landscape of Marlborough wine, owning and drinking one of Folium’s meticulously aged gems is always a privilege and an opportunity not to be missed!

Generously, owner-winemaker extraordinaire, Takaki Okada, has made available to Dhall and Nash a limited number of 2013 Folium Reserve Sauvignon Blanc and 2012 Folium Reserve Pinot Noir.

Folium Vineyard’s Takaki Okada has been crafting supremely elegant & complex vinous jewels for more than 10 years. As you Folium fans already know, Takaki is a Japanese winemaker, who reveres the intricacies of French old-world wines and with his American wine schooling he cleverly wrests magical liquid from his Brancott Valley vines. This is not your everyday garden variety Marlborough savvy or pinot!

Not only is Takaki Okada an immensely likeable character – a one-man band doing everything by hand – he is also a meticulous, obsessive, and a detail-oriented passion-driven perfectionist. And rather witty to boot!

Exciting doesn’t adequately describe this wine release. Neither does riveting. This is certifiably enthralling, bewitching stuff. Imagine, if you can, your next Folium wine purchases have been lovingly cloistered in perfect cellar conditions for your tasting pleasure now.

Purity. Elegance. Depth. Persistence.

2013 Folium Sauvignon Blanc Reserve

“Fine with some wax and nuts as well as subtle hints of toffee covering the sweet pear and citrus fruit. Rounded with some richness, this is very stylish and distinctive.”
92/100 Points – Dr Jamie Goode, Wine Anorak

“Dry-farmed, high-density vineyard. 8-9 months on lees to counterbalance the high acidity. Complex mix of citrus, spice, celery, and saline. Finely textured, dry, taut, and really elegant. Mouth-watering freshness.”
17.5/20 Points – Julia Harding M.W., Jancis Robinson.com

“Hand-picked fruit, from vines planted in 1996, on clay soil, WBP and fermented at up to 20°C to 14.0% alc., the wine aged up to 8 months on lees. Bright, even straw-yellow colour with slight green hues. The nose is very fresh with vibrant and concentrated aromas of thirst-quenching white stone fruits, herbs, and gooseberries, along with complexing tropical fruit detail. Dry to taste and medium-full bodied, this has a fulsome mouthfeel with restrained flavour expression. Pure white stone fruits, gooseberries, herbs, and ripe tropical fruit flavours exude a subtle sweetness and richness, building in depth. The fruit is balanced by softly refreshing, lively, ripe acidity, and is carried with good drive to a long, positive, minerally finish. This Sauvignon Blanc has a subtle richness and presence, with pure stone fruit and herb flavours that will become more complex over the next 2-3 years.”
18.5-/20 Points – Raymond Chan Wine Reviews Sept 2014

2012 Folium Pinot Noir Reserve

“Medium ruby-purple in color and filled with aromas of warm mulberries, kirsch and blackberry compote with hints of allspice, cloves and mushrooms. The2012 Folium Reserve PN is a light to medium-bodied wine offering delicate flavours and a silky texture. It finishes with good length.”
90/100 Points – Lisa Perotti-Brown, Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate

“Lovely cherry and plum fruit with a hint of sweet and sour. Linear and focused with nice brightness. Supple and drinkable.”
91/100 Points – Dr Jamie Goode, Wine Anorak

“… this fresh and elegant unfiltered pinot noir has aged beautifully thanks to its bright track of acidity, a gift from the vintage. Concentrated, complex and long with delicious savoury mature pinot character developing, this is a gem.”
The Wine Society

“Dark, deep, ruby-red colour with youthful purple hues. The bouquet is soft, refined and gently concentrated with aromas of ripe dark raspberry and black cherry fruit harmoniously integrated with notes of raspberry liqueur, black florals, and spices. Funky game and earthy elements emerge with aeration. Medium-bodied, soft, and plush fruit flavours of dark red berry and cherry fruit are melded with spice and earthy game notes. Some earthy nuances add complexity and interest. The palate has a concentrated core, and the mouthfeel features fine-grained tannins that grow, with piquant acidity providing tension and freshness. The wine carries to a fine-textured, dry and elegant finish. This is a soft, gently luscious, fine-textured Pinot Noir with good freshness and dark fruit flavours with a little funky, earthy complexity. Hand-picked fruit destemmed, given a cold soak and indigenous yeast fermented to 13.86% alc., the wine aged in 25% new French oak barrels.”
18.0/20 Points – Raymond Chan Wine Reviews June 2014

These painstakingly handmade wines whose beauty and delicacy are exquisitely revealed after years of aging are ready to be unveiled now!

Folium Vineyards celebrated it’s 10th Anniversary in 2021, Take a look here if you want to learn more about the history of this heartwarmingly boutique kiwi winery.

Celebrating Ten Years Of Folium: An Unrelenting Artisan

The post Library Release: From Our Very Own Unrelenting Artisan, Folium appeared first on Dhall & Nash Fine Wines.

Shana keeps the Dhall & Nash cogs turning smoothly. A lot happens in the background for us to run as efficiently as we do and Shana is the driving force behind this. With a background in media and marketing, Shana knows how to organise, plan and liaise with the team and the customers to keep everyone happy.

We sat down with Shana to ask her the burning question…

“What is your current favourite wine and why?”

2015 Folium Reserve Sauvignon Blanc

“It’s Spring and what better wine to encapsulate the season than with Folium – Latin for leaf.

Winemaker Takaki Okada takes detailed care of the vineyard, with help from his team of sheep, goats and chickens, before hand harvesting the grapes at optimum ripeness to carefully craft into a consistently excellent wine. Delicious paired with some fresh goats cheese or feta.”

2015 Folium Reserve Sauvignon Blanc – Marlborough, New Zealand
“Rich and very textural wine with plenty of weight and a smooth texture. Nicely layered, with a suggestion of toast and nuts from subtle oak influence and plenty of lees contact. Appealing wine showing a little bottle development. ”
Bob Campbell (92 points)

The post Staff Wine Focus with Shana Cameron appeared first on Dhall & Nash Fine Wines.

“Alphonse Mellot’s white Sancerres are amongst the most brilliant and pure illustrations of the genius of the Sauvignon grape”

– The World’s Greatest Wines, Michel Bettane and Thierry Desseauve

Not only are the wines from Alphonse Mellot considered to be some of the most outstanding Pinot Noirs and Sauvignon Blancs in the world, but the Mellot family itself must surely be one of the longest running winemaking dynasties that ever existed.

Situated in Sancerre, the stunning hilltop town bordering the River Loire in the Loire Valley, historic records mention the Mellot family in connection to wine production as far back as 1513. This winemaking family and business has survived medieval sieges, the French Revolution, phylloxera, two world wars and the enormous rise in international popularity of New World Sauvignon Blancs.

That is quite an achievement highlighting the resilience, forward-thinking and passion of this family.  It also shows they must produce something very special.

So what is it exactly that makes Alphonse Mellot so special?

Alphonse Mellot’s highly revered wines come from La Domaine de la Moussiere, which is a single vineyard of over thirty hectares, situated on the South-West upper slopes of the Sancerre hill. This premium location ensures the vineyard gets optimum exposure to the sunshine, vital in this cool climate region, as well as sitting on the perfect limestone rich soils. The vineyard includes some very old vines, some close to 90 years old, which contributes to the complexity and heritage of the wines.

The family’s success and recognition grew over the years and in 1698 Cesar Mellot became the Wine Advisor to King Louis XIV. During the 19^th century Alphonse Mellot established a tavern where people could relax and enjoy his local wines and the business flourished. Subsequently he was awarded a permit to ship the wines throughout France and internationally, thus launching their reputation for high quality wines around the world. The eldest son of the next generation has since always been called Alphonse Mellot and as the tradition continues the company is currently headed up by the 19^th generation Alphonse Mellot.

The family now focuses on premium Sancerre Blanc made from Sauvignon Blanc and Sancerre Rouge and Rosé produced from Pinot Noir. Alphonse Mellot follows biodynamic philosophies and an intense planting programme (8-10,000 vines per hectare) which produces low yields. Tending to the vines and harvesting is completely by hand, which is increasingly rare in this region. It’s tough work for the team of around 40 they employ, however, the result is grapes of outstanding quality which have perfect balance and optimum flavours. The winery itself has the latest technology as the Mellots seek to continuously produce some of the world’s greatest wines.

The Pinot Noirs undergo malolactic fermentation and spend around fourteen months in oak. The Sauvignon Blancs are often left to age on lees for 10-12 months, adding further depth and complexity to the wines.

Of course the Sauvignon Blancs display the wonderful racy acidity associated with this cool climate region along with the unique minerality from the chalky soils. The wines also offer tantalising citrus notes and delicate pear flavours. They have great texture and elegance.

Sauvignon Blanc has not always been the traditional white grape varietal of Sancerre. Pre-phylloxera, that is up until the 1860s, the region was primarily planted with red varieties – Pinot Noir and Gamay – and the primary white varietal was Chasselas. However, once grafting was required post phylloxera, it was Sauvignon Blanc which adapted the most readily for the whites and became the grape that brought fame and fortune to the Sancerre region. As mentioned above, Pinot Noir continues to grow and is also a focus for Alphonse Mellot. It is interesting to note that being so far West in Central France, Sancerre is actually closer to Burgundy than it is to some of the other regions of the Loire Valley. It is just 75 kilometres to Chablis, in fact, and therefore also sits on the same chalky limestone Kimmeridgean soils, along with marl and flinty subsoils.

So to answer our original question – the wines from Alphonse Mellot are special due to their prime location in Sancerre and their incredibly long family connection with the region. They understand the terroir and combine traditions such as working by hand and with the land, with modern technology where beneficial. The Mellots have always looked forward, adapted where necessary but stood by their ethos of continuing to strive generation after generation for perfection.

Dhall and Nash are delighted to offer you Alphonse Mellot La Moussiere Sancerre Blanc 2016, which according to Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast will have now evolved to be tasting its absolute best. He awarded this wine 91 points and says:

“The wine is sophisticated. It has a strong mineral texture and fine ripe citrus and pear fruits shot through with acidity. With its finishing fruitiness, this is already an attractive wine, although it will be better from 2018.”

2016 Alphonse Mellot La Moussiere Sancerre Blanc
“The wine is sophisticated. It has a strong mineral texture and fine ripe citrus and pear fruits shot through with acidity. With its finishing fruitiness, this is already an attractive wine, although it will be better from 2018.”
Wine Enthusiast (91 points)

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