Michel Redde and other great white wine offers

This week we have some more terrific white wine offers – top Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé from the Loire + great offers on the stunning Vasse Felix 2010 Sauvignon Semillon, a wonderful Albariño from Martín Códax in Rías Baixas and just 60 bottles of the beautiful Glen Carlou Quartzstone Chardonnay.

Michel Redde et Fils is an esteemed Loire Valley producer dating back to 1630, when François Redde was already documented growing vines in Pouilly-sur-Loire. In the early 1950s, Michel Redde took control of the family’s 15 acres after the death of his father. Over a decade he built the La Moynerie property, and has since expanded it to the 85 acres it is today.

In 1977, Michel’s son Thierry, in turn, made winemaking his career. Thierry Redde grew up at his family’s winery and worked in the Côtes de Blaye and Côtes de Bourg in Bordeaux before joining his father, Michel, in winemaking at the age of 19. Today, Thierry Redde and his sons are the 13th and 14th generations of winemakers in the family. The resolute insistence on absolute quality has earned Michel Redde a place among the top handful of producers in the Pouilly regions, with a reputation for excellence and consistency that is second to none. Wine and Spirits Magazine named the 2005 La Moynerie Pouilly Fumé as the best Loire Sauvignon Blanc of the vintage.

The 85-acre estate vineyard called La Moynerie is situated in the heart of the appellation on the crest of a hillside overlooking the Loire River, exposed directly to the south. The soils in which the Sauvignon Blanc is planted vary, checkerboard fashion, between two types: chalky clay soils, which yield wines of elegance, harmony, concentration and longevity; and clay and silica soils, ranging in colour from red to blue-black, which produce nervy, vibrant wines with the "gunflint" character typical of Pouilly-Fumé. The best vineyard sites lie at relatively high elevations of up to 1,000 feet, and in cool springtime’s, frost is a constant threat. Michel Redde's Pouilly-Fumé "La Moynerie" is produced from the estate's younger vines, which, benefitting from the vineyard's southern exposure, yield a ripe, intensely perfumed wine of quintessential typicity.

Michel Redde’s Sancerre, Les Tuilières, is produced from grapes and musts purchased from numerous growers with whom the family has done business for years. The Sancerre appellation is characterized by three soil types: the "caillottes," pebbly chalk and limestone soils; the "terres blanches," chalky clay and marl soils; the "argilo-calcaire," limestone, clay and silaceous sandy soils. The caillottes produce fresh, fruity, lively wines; the terres blanches, less prevalent in Sancerre than in Pouilly, produce wines of body and structure; the argilo-calcaire soils produce wines of less finesse and elegance but are responsible for the minerally notes typical of Sancerre. The most balanced wines are produced principally from the caillottes, which bring out the dry, refreshing acidity of the Sauvignon Blanc, and the terres blanches, which lend it depth and complexity.

UK allocations of these wines are limited to only 50 cases and we have just 10 cases of each available.