One of the drawbacks of big tasting events is having to spit. I mean, you obviously must spit at any tasting or you’d soon be making as much sense as Donald Trump at an economic policy conference. But when the process requires backing away from the tasting table, finding a spittoon and then fighting back through the scrum, it can become a schlep – ok, admittedly a first world schlep.
Which was one reason it was great to come across Copenhagen Sparkling Tea Company, one of Fells’ new signings (lately of Enotria&Coe), to taste, swirl and swallow my way through their six sparkling teas with nary a worry.
Complexity and depth - just like wine
The company was established eight years ago by award winning sommelier Jacob Kocemba and Sten Hansen who saw a gap in the market – which there clearly was as their teas are now sold in 50 countries worldwide, including Fortnums and Michelin-starred restaurants. Three of the teas have no alcohol, three have just 5% and all are very different, reflecting the teas used, the ratio of green to white to black and herbal in the blend.
Sten Hansen - gap in the market
“We are trying to build taste in a subtle way and discovered that with teas you can get complexity and depth, just as with a wine,” Hansen said, pouring me some Lysegrøn, an award-winning mixture of Sencha Green, White Tea and herbal teas with suggestions of citrus peel and lemongrass on an orange-tinged wine. The result is very dry although quite moreish; Grøn, made from mainly green teas with 5% added white wine was more approachable but my favourite of the six is Blä, made from mainly black teas including Darjeeling. This was delicious, with a pleasing floral finish.
Not being a fan of most low/no alcohol drinks, I have to say this handsome looking and refreshing Sparkling Tea is truly enjoyable and at around £20 a bottle retail, pretty good value too.
Touching most bases
Fells tasting, February 18, 2025, IET Savoy Place
In a piece a few years ago I compared Fells to John Lewis/Waitrose suggesting it offered a comprehensive but down to earth range, touching most bases with high quality, family-owned producers offering a range of wines at most price points.
The 400 wines and fortifieds that were on show at this tasting come from almost 50 agencies imported by Fells that are all essential to their region, highly reliable producers who respect traditions but are also unafraid of modernity. It’s the sort of range you would show to someone who isn’t into wine, just to show them what they’re missing. That said, estates such as Famile Hugel, Familia Torres, Chateau Musar, Yalumba and Graham’s are almost household names even to the non-drinker and have a long, illustrious history behind them.
Hambledon - now up to 500,000 bottles a year
Three new producers have joined the fold so I started at the first, Hambledon Vineyard.
Bought in November 2023 by Fells’ owner Symington Family Estates and Berry Bros for just over £22m, Hambledon was founded back in 1952 in the eponymous Hampshire village by Major-General Guy Salisbury-Jones, which is also widely regarded as the birthplace of cricket (its famous cricket club was established in 1750).
“We’re typically making around 350,000 bottles a year but in 2023 this was up to 500,000. We don’t talk about last year,” says Hambledon’s Lauren Rose.
These are classy well-made wines with a range led by the perfectly decent Classic Cuvee and Classic Cuvee Rose both NV, the latter mostly made from the 2017 vintages then lees-aged for around 4 years – and unusually for a pink wine, 86% of the blend is Chardonnay, 14% Pinot Noir.
However, my favourite of the bunch is the Premiere Cuvee Rose NV, a really impressive wine made unusually from 87.5% Pinot Meunier (saignee to add to what is quite a deep red colour), 5.2% Pinot Noir and 5.2% Chardonnay. This is intense, savoury with six years on the lees giving wonderful complexity. Recommended.
Joseph Burrier – seven generations and counting
"It's a very special wine" - Julien Burrier
The Macon-Beaujolais region represents one of the larger gaps in my wine knowledge so I approached Fells next new signing, Joseph Burrier, with an open mind and palate. This is a 7th generation producer with the Burriers first starting production in Fuissé in 1854, arriving in the Maconnais in the late nineteenth century, according to Julien Burrier who was pouring his family wines.
Seven were being shown but the standouts for me were Joseph Burrier Pouilly-Fuissé Chateau de Beauregard 2021, a 100% Chardonnay made from the family’s flagship estate spread across three villages in the appellation. Aged for 10 months in old barrels and concrete tanks, the result is a deliciously balanced Chardonnay, honeyed with suggestions of jasmine, peach and white flowers on the palate.
Even better, arguably, is the slightly more acidity-driven Pouilly-Fuissé “aux charmes” 2014; sourced from single vineyard fruit, the wine has a bright yellow hue and a long, structured and complex finish that suggests relative youth rather than 11 years ageing.
Finally, the delicious Joseph Burrier Moulin-a-Vent 2022, a really intense, dark fruit-led Gamay with black cherry and a hint of tobacco on the finish. The young Julien Burrier ascribes its intensity to the sandy, pink granite soils of the tiny vineyard where the grapes for this Moulin-a-Vent are grown.
“It’s a very special wine,” he says – and I’m not going to argue.
Altesino - Montalcino pioneer
Stefan Neumann MS works as a consultant for Fells
There are a few gaps in the Fells crown (Germany, Austria and some Italian wine regions), but the powers that be here are getting around to filling some of these. The addition just this month of Altesino, one of the leading Montalcino producers is exciting news and the wines shown were as good as one might expect from an historic producer with roots in the 15th Century.
Altesino’s big claim to fame, however, is that it was the first in the region to introduce the concept of a Montalcino cru, back in 1975 – and cru wines are now all the rage here – whilst four years later they scored another first by using barriques, strange when one thinks of how integral oak is to one’s impression of Montalcino, although Altesino, like other producers here, now tend towards larger oak barrels.
So how were these wines?
The Altesino Brunello di Montalcino 2020 was delicious (as you might expect from this forward, ready to go vintage) with a complex and beguiling bouquet giving way to intense dark berry fruit, tobacco and chocolate flavours; really well balanced but quite intense. As was the DOCG Riserva 2019, quite austere with black fruit supporting a big palate, I had the sense this was at the very start of what will be a long life.
The single vineyard DOCG Montosoli 2020 was showing a complex array of flavours including liquorice, violet and dark cherry: drinking well now this will evolve beautifully.
The most impressive wine was, unsurprisingly the magnum single vineyard DOCG Montesoli 2014 – incredibly complex, with a nuanced structure showing the age wonderfully. Altesino wins my prize for most charming white of the tasting – its Bianco IGT Toscana 2023, a moreish, fresh blend of Vermentino, Viognier and Chardonnay. An antidote to all those dark tannins, and a real joy.
Highlighting Vasse Felix's exceptional Cabernet
Paul Holmes a Court leading the Vasse Felix masterclass
And there was more joy to be had at the Vasse Felix Masterclass, hosted by Paul Holmes a Court whose trailblazing father Robert bought the now iconic property back in 1987 before dying three year later at the tragically early age of 53.
This was an absolutely fascinating event, highlighting why Cab Sav from Western Australia is unique and why those from Vasse Felix are exceptional.
Vasse Felix was established in 1967 by one Tom Cullity, one of those winemakers who saw the potential of this remarkable Margaret River site for Cab Sav and Chardonnay. Since taking over, the Holmes a Court family together with legendary winemaker Virginia Willcock has farmed the 300+ha of vines holistically, paying special attention to the unique soils and location.
“She’s a superstar: she joined us for her first vintage in 2008 and we’ve been partners in crime ever since. Once met, you never forget her,” he said.
This was a fascinating vertical of Vasse Felix Cab Sav, showing one wine a decade since 1989: the 1989 (in the last chance saloon but still singing), the 1999, the 2008, the 2018 and the 2021.
“Different eras, different winemakers – just three in over 50 years – and different technologies have marked our journey,” said Holmes a Court.
Each of the vintages since 1999 is actually a blend of Cab Sav with other varieties including Shiraz in that year (making this a ‘big wine’), Petit Verdot and increasingly Malbec (17.5% in the 2018, my favourite of these wines, classy, elegant and distinctive with unexpected floral cherry notes) and 19% in the 2021 (very fresh and forward but definitely needing more evolution).
Holmes a Court said that whilst Margaret River accounts for just 2% of Australia’s grape crush, it accounts for 20% of its premium wine offering.Tasting these remarkably distinctive wines, I can understand why. So what’s the secret, at Vasse Felix anyway? How did Vasse Felix come to lead the region as a producer of fine Cabernet – and other wines?
“Three things mark us out: our unique biodiversity including ancient soils which yield very intense grapes; a very long ripening season. And heritage clones, including Houghton and Gingin, which are unique to Western Australia,” he says.
For an in-depth tasting with Virginia Willcock click here.
Understanding the Chateau Musar blend
Marc Hochar asks "Is Musar a Bordeaux blend?"
The second masterclass was a fascinating comparative look at Chateau Musar, Chateau Léoville Barton (not imported by Fells) and Vilafonté asking the question: is Chateau Musar a Bordeaux blend?
Musar’s founder Gaston Hochar was a big fan of Bordeaux and had links with that famous French region and with Major Ronald Barton who was stationed in Lebanon during the war but, to my mind, it is not quite a Bordeaux blend, as Marc Hochar pointed out during the tasting because of Musar’s unique blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carignan, something which has stayed constant throughout the years.
My takeaways were how well the Musars have held up over the years (2008 is particularly fine, although the 1970 I tasted at the stand later had, understandably perhaps, peaked), how impressive the South African Vilafontes are and how – to me – tannic, dense and hard going the Léoville Barton Bordeaux are.
Rounding up
So, a great tasting. Even the sun turned up, affording nice views of the Thames from the IET venue balcony, across from where Chris Blandy was showing his exciting new varietal Madeira range, four wines highlighting Sercial, Boal, Verdelho and Malmsey, a novel way to attract new consumers to this historic region.
So, many great wines. Did I have a favourite, a wine I would have taken away with me? That would have to be the E Guigal Condrieu La Doriane 2022, a superlative white flower, apricot and peach-licked Viognier from the masters/rescuers of the famed Rhône variety.
“This is made wholly from our own grapes but the volume is tiny, really quite ridiculously small,” admitted Philippe Guigal as he poured me my third taste of the wine. Quite sublime…. and impossible to spit.
Fells is a commercial partner of The Buyer. To discover more about them click here.
