Mixed Wine Boxes

Try the new Wine Exploration Box - September 2020, carefully selected by the Hay Wines team for its customers. If you are looking for an adventure in the fantastic world of wine, then you have just found it! Each month our Sommeliers will put together a selection of 6 different wines made from unusual grape varieties, or coming from lesser-known and emerging wine regions of the world. We will "virtually" take you on to a "wine exploration" of new aromas, flavours and styles from producers and appellations that are normally more difficult to find and to try. The Wine Exploration Box for this month is composed of one each of the following: 1. Calusari Pinot Grigio, Romania, £8.29 (1 bottle) Ripe pear and spice on the nose follow through on to the palate in this beautifully refreshing crisp dry white. 2. Laurence de Veyrac Picpoul de Pinet, Languedoc, France, £9.99 (1 bottle) On the nose at first there are exotic fruit aromas which develop into floral notes of broom flowers, apple and citrus fruit. The palate is strong with stone fruit flavours balanced by crisp minerality, flinty tones and fresh lychee notes. On the finish, there is a touch of candied fruit sweetness. 3. Gaia Estates Notios White, Peloponnese, Greece, £13.99 (1 bottle) Produced from two pink-skin grape varieties of Greece that combine their virtues, Moschofilero and Roditis. Moschofilero from the mountainous vineyards of Arcadia wine region brings fruitiness and crisp acidity, while Roditis from the planes of upland Corinth provides elegance. 4. La Piotta Croatina, Lombardy, Italy, £9.99 (1 bottle) Ruby red in colour with nuances of plum, it has an intense aroma with hints of red currants, blackcurrants and pleasing spicy notes. On the palate it is full-bodied and rounded with pleasing tannins. It combines well with numerous dishes: in particular charcuteries, meat-based pasta dishes like agnolotti, braised and roast meats and game. 5. Gran Cerdo Tinto, Rioja, Spain, £10.49 (1 bottle) The wine is driven by primary red fruit flavours such as cherry, strawberry and raspberry. This combined with a hint of violet and a slight earthy edge from the minimal intervention winemaking process gives the wine a slight herbaceousness and added layers of complexity. 6. Kaiken Terroir Series Malbec Blend, Mendoza, Argentina, £10.99 (1 bottle) Intense red colour with violet hues. Ripe black fruit in the nose, such as blueberries and blackberries, hand in hand with Malbec´s floral aromas. On the mouth it brings out all the silkiness of the Malbec backed by the structure and freshness of Petit Verdot, ending with a mineral finish provided by the Bonarda. A long and lingering finish.

Try the new Wine Exploration Box - August 2020, carefully selected by the Hay Wines team for its customers. If you are looking for an adventure in the fantastic world of wine, then you have just found it! Each month our Sommeliers will put together a selection of 6 different wines made from unusual grape varieties, or coming from lesser-known and emerging wine regions of the world. We will "virtually" take you on to a "wine exploration" of new aromas, flavours and styles from producers and appellations that are normally more difficult to find and to try. The Wine Exploration Box for this month is composed of one each of the following: 1. Alamina Feteasca Regala, Romania, £9.99 (1 bottle) A lovely citrus/pineapple character with a hint of white-pepper like spice. The lively fruit salad continues onto the palate which finishes with a very slight touch of sweetness and a slight grippiness, which is unusual in white wines, but a typical part of Feteasca Regala variety. 2. Casa Ferreirinha "Planalto" Douro Branco, Douro, Portugal, £9.99 (1 bottle) Good complexity of aromas, with floral notes, tropical fruit, white fruits and earthy, slightly shrubby tones. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied and reveals a lively and well-integrated acidity, alongside floral notes and touches of white fruit. It has an extremely elegant finish. 3. Colomba Bianca Vitese Zibibbo, Sicily, Italy, £10.49 (1 bottle) This crisp, fruity wine made 100% from Zibibbo grapes, shows lifted notes of succulent white peach combined with soft floral aromatics of orange blossom and jasmine. Bright and perfumed with a zesty citrus finish. 4. Wilder & Wilder Tabula Rasa Red (50cl), South Australia, Australia, £8.99 (1 bottle) We are delighted to introduce the rule-breaking Tabula Rasa. Each year, the slate is wiped clean and, with no preconceptions, every vintage is original. Drawing on fruit from historic vineyards across South Australia, this delicious wine captures the very essence of one season in a playful format that just demands to be drunk. 5. Bonfire Hill "Extreme Vineyards" Red, Various Regions, South Africa, £11.49 (1 bottle) An intriguing, inviting blend of red summer fruits, spring fynbos flowers, Indian spice and just a hint of toasty oak on the nose. The palate is surprisingly decadent, rich, with almost creamy tannins. It is balanced, with just a hint of a refreshing, almost salty, acidity. 6. Koch Kekfrankos, Hajos-Baja, Hungary, £11.99 (1 bottle) Dark ruby colour and a lovely spicy aroma with good structure and body. Kekfrankos (Blaufrankisch) is a very popular varietal in Hungary, a slightly different style. It produces deep red wines, with smooth tannins and spicy flavours and aromas of blueberries with black pepper.