Stone, Vine and Sun, a modestly sized operation near Winchester, keeps winning awards as the best independent wine merchant, and I’m not surprised. There’s a nimbleness to these smaller companies; chaps (or chapesses) whizz off to investigate some little half-hidden vineyard, and because they need less stock than the giants,
they can snaffle undiscovered treasures without the fear of running out during the life of the list. And it helps having people who really know their wine and can sniff a bargain like a pig finding truffles.
This month’s Mini-bar contains four of their best parcels. Three come from southern France which, as I have often said, now produces some of the most delicious and best-value wines in the world. Take M. Fontaneil’s Côtes de Roussillon Blanc 2005 (1). It is gorgeous.
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