Wine behind the label

‘an incredibly in-depth and addictively readable survey of wines of quality from around the world

with intelligent tasting notes and informative background to the producers. For me, by far the best of the wine guides’

Steven Spurrier, Decanter Magazine

‘i’m a fan.’

Hugh Johnson

‘this is an astonishing achievement.’one cannot even begin to imagine the hours and dedication that have gone into a

publication like this”

Tamlyn Currin, Jancis Robinson.com

‘this is robert parker territory but succinct and cheaper’

Joanna Simon, Sunday Times

‘with its championing of authenticity of origin, gifted winemakers, smaller producers, organic and biodynamicwinemaking, as well as its wealth of detail, this could well become the annual guide by which all others are judged.’

Fine Wine Magazine

‘... a guide that’s immediately established itself as more or less indispensable.’

Peter McCombie MW, Restaurant Magazine

i heartily recommend this book as a thorough independent overview

of the world’s best wine estates’

Tom Cannavan, wine-pages.com

‘if you are passionate about your wine and pay serious attention to sampling the world’s finest bottles

then this book should be on your shelf... I would strongly recommend this excellent guide’

Dr Edward Fitzgerald, Oxford University Wine Society

‘...a tremendously useful and comprehensive reference work...(it) is

bang up to date. Any wine nut will have a lot of fun with this book’

Jamie Goode, wineanorak.com

Nearly twenty years experience as a wine consultant, wine buyer, writer and editorial director have provided David with the background to co-author and edit a wine guide of such breadth and scope.

During this period he has travelled widely and been exposed to hands-on winemaking and was one of three principal judges for the New York Times "Wine Today Europe" site of the early 2000s.

Today he focuses his research on his own areas of expertise. He travels extensively to both France and Spain, taking in visits to all the major fairs and exhibitions. Alimentaria in Barcelona and Fenavin in Ciudad Real are consistent dates on his calendar as are Vinisud in Montpelier, the bi-annual tastings organised by Inter-Rhne and the annual primeur tastings in Bordeaux.

Visiting winemakers in their cellars though remains a cornerstone of the work on Wine behind the label. As well as extensive visits in Europe, David visits the West Coast of the United States in most years. The vast majority of the most exciting hand-made wines Stateside can only be tasted in this way. As a part of this he has been invited to key local fairs and tastings. Qualified as a chartered accountant in 1959 and became passionate about food and wine whilst working in Italy in the early sixties.

There he encountered not only his future wife, Sonia, but also 2 litre bottles of "Valpollicella" made in a cantina in the back streets of Milan. He soon began to appreciate better quality wines, particularly French, and returning to London began building up his knowledge of wine with the help of Hugh Johnson. Wine and food soires at the Blech's South Kensington home became a regular feature and the purchase of a run-down pub in Wales as a second home in 1971 prompted them to consider commercialising Sonia's abilities as an accomplished amateur cook. "Sonia, darling - you can cook a bit - let's open a restaurant". The pub was converted into a smart restaurant avec chambres, and opened in 1974, and in 1976, Sonia became the first woman chef in the UK to obtain a Michelin star.

Returning to London to open the Mijanou restaurant in 1980, which became one of the fashionable restaurants of the decade, the innovative wine list resulted in many awards, and soon he was being asked to write a wine column for a magazine called "Restaurant Business" (now defunct - but not his fault!) and to help other restaurateurs with the composition of their wine lists, a function he still carries out today. The consultancy developed and in 1989, started his own wine importing company, The Wine Treasury, which specialises in wines from California, being one of the first in the UK to realise the quality potential of Californian wines, some of which are now truly world class players.

The tail began to wag the dog, so in 1996 the restaurant was sold to concentrate on the wine business and the soires re-appeared in a much more professional fashion with regular visiting wine producers as special guests. He continued to w...

introduction  6

Awards  7

How to use this guide 8

New Wine App 9

france  10

Bordeaux 13

Médoc, Graves & Sauternes 21

Saint Emilion, Pomerol & other Bordeaux 40

Burgundy  61

Chablis & Yonne 63

Côte d’Or & Côte Chalonnaise  75

Mâconnais  127

Beaujolais  138

Alsace 145

Champagne 159

Loire Valley 179

Jura, Savoie & Bugey  211

Rhône Valley  217

Northern Rhône 223

Southern Rhône  238

Languedoc & Roussillon   273

Languedoc  276

Roussillon  310

Provence & Corsica  326

South-West France 344

Italy  354

Piedmont & North-West Italy  357

North-East Italy 395

Tuscany 425

Central Italy 473

Southern Italy & Islands 496

Spain (incl. Sherry)  525

North-East Spain  526

North-West Spain   580

Central, Southern Spain & Islands  617

Portugal (incl. Port & Madeira) 646

Germany 677

Austria  706

Other Europe, North Africa & Middle East 727

north america  757

California Overview 757

California North Coast 759

Napa & Carneros 786

Central Coast & Sierra Foothills 827

Pacific North-West 859

Oregon 862

Washington State 876

Rest of North America 885

south america  892

Argentina  895

Chile  903

Uruguay  911

Brazil  912

australasia  919

Australia  919

South Australia 920

Victoria & Tasmania 959

New South Wales & Queensland 983

Western Australia 995

New Zealand  1015

south africa 1042

grapes  1089

Glossary 1100

Index 1107