New to BBX

Celebrated British artist Kate Boxer created her dashing dandy – a nod to our former customer Beau Brummell – for the latest in our limited-edition series of Good Ordinary Claret. Just 7,000 bottles have been produced.

Our best-selling wine for many decades, GOC, as it's known, brilliantly highlights the drinkability of modern red Bordeaux. Bright, medium ruby in colour it has a siren-like nose of black cherries, bramble fruit and wood smoke. The palate follows through with a long, velvety finish. Equally at home with a weekday supper or a grand Sunday roast, it is the perfect wine for all occasions.

Our white Graves is bottled for us by Famille JM Cazes. The quality of the 2016 vintage is evident on the nose, which shows pronounced white peach and melon aromas. The palate shows a wonderful balance of ripe citrus fruit, with a crisp, refreshing finish which is the hallmark of the Graves. The pure, dry finish means this would be perfect with seafood, but its marked complexity will stand up to far richer dishes as well.
Max Lalondrelle, Wine Buyer 

A fraction paler than last year and lighter than one might expect of Bordeaux Rosé but this is very much fruit forward with spicy raspberry and strawberry flooding the palate. Generous in every sense.  Good acidity and so there’s plenty of freshness with some spice at the back of the palate.  Vibrant and easy to enjoy.  As ever I’m unshakeable in my belief that a wonderful Spring and Summer awaits, this 2016 will go down very well indeed.
Martyn Rolph, Private Account Sales Manager.

A dense, deep-purple colour presages a nose of violets, followed by blue and black fruits, harmoniously entwined. Behind that we find eucalypt and hints of undergrowth. The palate is reassuringly complex, with impressive grip buttressing the softly seductive fruit. All in all, this is very complete, spicy and rich. In other words, completely delicious.
Simon Field MW, Wine Buyer

Ninety percent of the fruit is from the Berri vineyards, where the vines are young, planted in 2007 on alluvial river soil which produces juicy and upfront styles. With ripe and fragrant strawberry fruit aromas, there is a touch of rose. The wine is pure and juicy, with a wonderful lightness of touch, very fine tannins and concentration. Drink now to 2025.
Davy Zyw, Wine Buyer

Bright and ripe classic Sangiovese notes on the nose of red and black fruit vying for attention, with a certain meaty nuance in the background. Lots of fine red fruit on the palate, tempered by crisp acidity and fine, ripe tannins, all in balance with a pleasing mouth-feel and satisfyingly complete finish. This is hard to resist now, but will become even more harmonious if cellared for another four to six years.
Chris Pollington, Private Account Manager

L’Heritage is 100% Grenache cuvée, its vines dating back to 1924. Matured and aged in cement only, this is an outstanding celebration of the varietal and stands up very well next to other well-known all-Grenache wines in the region, its logic-defying combination of weight and evanescence a source of indescribable pleasure.
Simon Field MW, Rhône Wine Buyer

Located high in the hills behind the villages of Roaix and Rasteau, Escaravailles dates from 1953 and is now in the more than capable hands of Gilles Ferran, who has constructed a new cuverie and built the reputation of the domaine into one of the leading names in the region.  Escaravaille, for those of an inquisitive disposition, is the Occitane word for beetle (hence the labels) and also the term once used to describe the black-robed monks of the region, presumably from the Benedictine order. Gilles farms 40 hectares in Rasteau and 15 in Cairanne and his wines are justly celebrated as leading examples in both villages.

Remarkable value can be found in Trimbach's Vielles Vignes bottling, this is textbook dry Riesling. The nose offers intense citric fruit with hints of riper white stone fruit, very clean and fresh. Impressively textured on the palate, there is more flesh and concentration and flesh on show here than I expected. Lime fruit and mineral hints, beautifully balanced with saline notes.  Deliciously dry on the finish, inviting you in for more.

Famously controversial for opting out of the Grand Cru classification back in 1975 on account of the overly generous yields & low sugar levels (low quality) required, in the past five years the negociant has added 15 hectares of prime Grand Cru sites, notably in Osterberg, Geisberg, & Schlossberg, bringing their total to 45ha.  So the family are clearly not closing the door on the possibility of releasing single Grand Cru vineyard wines, albeit in tiny quantities. However they lament the fact that France’s supermarkets continue to buy up 75% of the region’s production, selling Grand Cru wines at around €7/bottle on the shelf.
Meanwhile their brands of (Riesling) Cuvee Frederic Emile, (Pinot Gris) Reserve Personnelle & (Gewurztraminer) Cuvee des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre remain central  to the range, made from both own fruit & bought in fruit; they remain a clear step up in terroir finesse from the fruitier ‘Reserve’ lines.  Clos Ste. Hune is estate’s finest Riesling, from a 1.67ha ‘clos’ within Grand Cru Rosacker; the provenance readily communicated but still absent from the label.  So as winemaker Pierre Trimbach signs off his 34th vintage in charge, this is still very much an estate to watch.

These wines are considered the benchmark for quality, consistency and style.  
Martyn Rolph, Private Account Manager

It can only be one wine - Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc! As ever, this is a clear notch above everything else on the N.Z. Sauvignon shelves, firm Kaffir Lime with all the usual grapefruit dominating the nose and palate. Cloudy Bay always has that extra layer, this year it has to be the ever so soft peach and nectarine lingering at the back of the palate. Very simply – what’s not to like?
Gary Owen, Private Account Manager

I am somewhat biased as I was fortunate to taste this at Maison Francois Perrin whilst looking out over the Provençale landscape. Pale salmon in colour, the nose is wonderfully fresh with aromas of wild strawberry and hints of fennel and orange peel. Crisp and dry across the palate with gentle flavours of red currants, strawberry, and a touch of savouriness comes through at the back with flicks of spice. Detailed and precise with a moreish finish; the Perrin's have excelled again here with a delicious rose wine truly representative of the regions finest. Drink and enjoy without thinking, ideally this summer once available.
Chris Lamb - Private Account Manager

I described the 2015 release as ‘dangerously drinkable and probably the perfect Provence rose’ and this continues a theme! Very pale, with wild strawberry and fennel on the nose. Excellent freshness on the palate, with a seam of red fruit and saline tang on the finish. As effortlessly enjoyable as always and sure to become a staple of picnics, BBQs and sunny summer evenings.
Fergus Stewart - Private Account Manager

As ever, this is a Bourgogne which punches significantly above its weight. A good dollop of Savigny, Santenay, Beaune, Monthélie and St Romain make their way into the blend, not as off-cuts, but because Ben sees this as his vinous business card. Raised in large foudres, this is as gorgeous as ever, with an incredible purity of juicy, red berry fruit. The quintessence of Burgundian Pinot Noir. Drink 2018-2024.
Adam Bruntlett, Burgundy Buyer

Having created a name for himself as régisseur (general manager) of Comte Armand in Pommard from 1999 until 2013, Benjamin Leroux established a small négociant business based in Beaune in 2007. The emphasis is on Côte de Beaune whites and Côte de Nuits reds. The company also owns a small holding of Bâtard-Montrachet and since 2014 some vineyards in Meursault. In a short space of time Benjamin Leroux’s wines have built an impressive reputation. Ben is a big fan of his 2016s, praising the sizzling tension of the whites and the beautiful quality of the Pinot fruit, which allowed him to use more whole bunches than in 2015. In early stages of élevage he drew comparisons to 2010, and feels these are wines which will surprise people and gain complexity with time. Thanks to his strong relationships with suppliers, Ben was able to maintain production at around 2015 levels despite the frost, although in general he has less Village and Grand Cru wine and more at the Premier Cru level. For reasons of space, the limited volumes of Grands Crus have not been included in this catalogue. Since the 2014 vintage, all white wines are bottled under screwcap.