Hundred Hills: Four impeccable releases, including the new Rosé de Saignée
Hundred Hills:
Four impeccable releases, including the new Rosé de Saignée
2018 First Edition, Hundred Hills
£245 per 6 bottle case in bond
2018 Blanc de Blancs No.2, Hundred Hills
£200 per 6 bottle case in bond
2019 Blanc de Noirs, Hundred Hills
£365 per 3 magnum case in bond
2021 Rosé de Saignée, Hundred Hills
£440 per 6 bottle case in bond
This week we had the chance to taste four exciting new releases from Hundred Hills, including a late release of their outstanding Blanc de Noirs in magnum and the much awaited release of their second Rosé de Saignée, not to mention the second released of their ‘First Edition’ and a single parcel Blanc de Blancs.
Simply put, whenever we have the chance to taste the new releases, it underlines to us just how well this estate has done and why they have received the plaudits, including the highest score for an English sparkling wine on jancisrobinson.com
For those who aren’t familiar with this headlining English sparkling wine producer, I haven’t been shy in my praise of Hundred Hills – and frankly each time I taste I have to remind myself that this 50-acre estate was founded only in 2013! Since then it has gone from strength to strength. Owners Stephen and Fiona Duckett happily concede that they are way ahead of their plan on account of the quality of the fruit that they are able to harvest year in, year out. This is one of the things that has struck me most; I am not just wowed by a particular vintage here, instead there is a remarkable consistency which comes from this site. The valley itself is crucial as is its orientation, which means that harvest need not be a rushed affair since they do not encounter any risk of rot as the fruit ripens and can determine the best moment to harvest with relative ease, without pressures forcing their hand. Crucially, the fruit can hang on the vine well beyond 100 days in a cool vintage and once it is harvested, it reveals a riper fruit spectrum than you might associate with the year, or even with English sparkling wine in general. This underlines the importance of the site, and explains why Stephen explored over 100 different locations in the UK before deciding where to base his estate. This is a vineyard that was selected after rigorous assessment of the location and terroir, a vineyard by design not by coincidence. As Stephen has told me previously, the data led them to plant here, nothing else. Had the data been more compelling elsewhere, elsewhere is where they would be.
As to the new releases, please see my notes below. It is clear Hundred Hills is coming of age – styles have gently evolved, but the un-English exuberance of fruit and purity that I have always recognised in the Hundred Hills wines thankfully remain. The bar is being raised year on year here; it is always about marginal gains – tiny improvements or adjustments that lift quality that percentage point higher.
2018 First Edition, Hundred Hills £245 per 6 bottle case in bond
2018 has proved to be a great English vintage on account of an excellent ripening season. This is a blend of 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay. The Pinot comes from the south-east facing parcels and the Chardonnay from the south facing hillside amphitheatre. Each variety had a long hang time – over 100 days on the vine. The Chardonnay was fermented and aged in oak casks, the Pinot in stainless steel. No malolactic fermentation was carried out, and the resultant wine spent 48 months on its lees before disgorgement. The only other First Edition released thus far was the 2016 – the estate’s inaugural release. 5 g/l dosage.
The nose reveals fine complexity, with creamy, white flower nuances complemented by zesty citrus, lemony notes, tangerine even. The palate showcases that telltale HH exuberance – creamy fruit, a luxuriant mousse with that zesty, orangey note carrying right through to the finish. Complex notes of patisserie, freshly baked, add further interest. Textural, stunningly pure with outstanding crystalline fruit. A very classy vintage for the First Edition, where the Chardonnay seems to match the Pinot on equal terms despite the blend. Very fine indeed. (SL)
2018 Blanc de Blancs No.2, Hundred Hills £200 per 6 bottle case in bond
Again, from the impressive 2018 vintage. The Chardonnay here comes from the north facing parcels towards the winery. Once more it was afforded over 100 days on the vine. The base wines were aged in a combination of oak casks and stainless steel without malolactic fermentation. Once blended, they were aged in oak to soften with regular batonnage. This wine spent 48 months on its lees before disgorgement. 7g’l dosage.
A very classically styled Blanc de Blancs, not for its origins, but as a general comment. The fruit on the nose captures white flowers, lemon confit, and zesty orange as well as almondy patisserie. Once more the palate is luxuriant in style, but this is taut, energetic with mouthwatering fruit allied to a distinctive chalky dry mineral nuance. It finishes with power and intensity as well as a youthful touch of austerity. Compelling – it will be fascinating to see how this ages. (SL)
2019 Blanc de Noirs, Hundred Hills £365 per 3 magnum case in bond
A great success for Hundred Hills when first released, this single parcel Blanc de Noirs from the southeast facing hillside won many plaudits. Once more the fruit was on the vine for over 100 days leading to an impeccable Blanc de Noirs. This wine underwent full malolactic fermentation and in magnum it spent 42 months on its lees before disgorgement, in contrast to the bottles (30 months). 6g/l dosage.
A slightly deep, more burnished gold hue in the glass, the Blanc de Noirs reveals discreet notes of juicy red apple, blood orange and a touch of fresh mint. Showing fine poise on the palate, these red fruit notes develop, wild strawberry and red cherry amongst them with hints of pastry and patisserie, all carried by a fine, luxuriant mousse. The intensity impresses, as does the purity, with the palate leading to a finish that captures stone fruit characters, such as nectarine and peach. There is a certain zestiness to finish too, steeliness even, with a marked mineral note leading on and on. The magnums, with their 42 months on lees, show in a very complete manner – a great decision to bottle a small volume of this great wine in this format and to afford it additional time. (SL) Drink now to 2030
2021 Rosé de Saignée, Hundred Hills £440 per 6 bottle case in bond
The 2018 took our clients by storm – it caught interest and delivered on it. 2021 was a cooler vintage so to produce a Saignée of this calibre says plenty about the vineyard. The fruit for this cuvée comes from specially selected grapes on the south-facing hillside parcel. The fruit was on the vine for 112 days. Once destemmed and crushed, the grapes were left to macerate for 8 hours, when the colour from the skins gently bleeds into the juice. The juice is then bled off into small French oak barrels to ferment. 6g/l dosage.
We are delighted to receive an allocation of this Rosé de Saignée as production is very small and, given the style, the estate receives immense interest from many leading UK restaurants!
All Hundred Hills rosé possess a deep, bright hue in the glass. The team take considerable care to prevent any oxidation that would impair the colour. What a nose, it is extraordinary as if you closed your eyes, you wouldn’t be thinking of a sparkling wine; floral nuances, pink grapefruit, soft skinned berry fruit, cranberry and pomegranate. The palate shows abundant juicy fruit notes, with notes of baking spices and bitter orange. Mouthwatering with fine intensity and a head-turning exuberance of fruit, this vintage fits the HH style perhaps more so than the impressive 2018. The fruit is so pure and expressive; this will be a fascinating wine to partner to many dishes – it will prove incredibly versatile. Fascinating and individual. (SL)
Top tips and conclusions from the Atlas Big Barolo Bash
After our Big Barolo Bash held at Salisbury House, EC2M, on Wednesday 4th December 2024, I thought I would share a few thoughts as it is not often that you get the chance to compare 42 different Barolo spanning vintage 2011 to 2019.The wines shown were grouped by vintage rather than by grower. The aim was to encourage an understanding of vintage characteristics. We also felt this would spare clients the significant challenge of moving from a softer, lighter vintage to a richer, more tannic one and then back again in a repeated cycle through all producers. Deciding on a tasting order is never easy, even more so with a variety like Nebbiolo, known for its bright acidity and structural tannins. Our buyer, Seb Agnello, manned the 2018 and 2019 table. These two vintages show distinctly different styles. 2018 was a more mixed vintage, still with some notable successes. It is a lighter expression of the Nebbiolo variety, but by no means a poor vintage. It has always been our view that it was a misunderstood vintage; wines from this year have shown appreciably better after a little time in bottle, having been difficult to read when very young. From the wines shown, the Barolo Prapo from Ettore Germano impressed clients with its cherry red fruit – for a Barolo from Serralunga d’Alba, a commune known for richness and power, this is an incredibly pretty example, vintage in, vintage out. Chiara Boschis’ blended Barolo, Via Nuova, drawn from various crus from the across the region, received plenty of praise from clients, too. Perhaps the wine that impressed most from this selection was Vietti’s Cerequio 2018, which showed blue fruit touches, a fine freshness and those slightly rounder tannins that are common to La Morra. The 2019s were a last-minute addition and were the two single vineyard wines of Andrea Bosco which offered an opportunity to compare a Barolo from the lighter soils of Verduno with a richer wine from La Morra; respectively, the wonderfully refined Agostino Bosco, Barolo, Neirane and the darker, brooding Agostino Bosco, Barolo, La Serra. Clients seemed interested in how these two most recent vintages would shape up in time. While the 2019s are the product of hot year, these showed how that vintage manages to show a certain classicism. They will warrant 8 to 10 years in bottle before showing in their prime. In contrast, the 2018s, with their lighter accent, are already starting to show well, even if some of the leading examples will still demand 4- or 5-years patience before really starting to sing. The 2017 table was, for me personally, one of the most fascinating. Not only were some of the region’s most notable growers featured in this line up, but it showcased a vintage that I fear has been a little overlooked. 2017 was a hot and dry vintage and in an earlier era I don’t believe the wines would have come through as well as they have. Growers have had to adapt to modern day conditions in Barolo; whatever way you cut it, this is down to climate change. As I remarked to various clients, in the 1990s there were perhaps three notable vintages which delivered ripe fruit and fine structure, other vintages in which many growers lost precision and freshness in their wines but a greater number of years in which it proved tough to ripen Nebbiolo fully. Leaf-plucking became routine to expose the fruit to the sun and allow aeration. Rolling the clock forward, between 2010 and 2020 we have not had a bad vintage. There have been challenging conditions, but we have had four great vintages - 2010, 2013, 2016 and 2019. Then there have been some more mixed years, but ones in which good growers have nevertheless excelled. Today it is more about providing some protection to the fruit, as opposed to exposing it. This is quite an incredible switch around to have occurred in just 20 years. Growers have needed to learn fast – to learn how to prepare their vineyards for the modern-day challenges of heat and drought, when not so very long ago, the challenge was inclement weather. 2017 is a successful hot vintage, particularly given there were four months in the growing season without any rain. The cooler weather at harvest really assisted in providing freshness to the aromatics and brightness to the fruit; this was notably evident in the selection of 2017s at the tasting. The two wines from Brovia were just beautiful; both the Brea ‘Vigna Ca Mia’ and the Villero were way ahead of the quality that a reading of the vintage reports might suggest possible. Instead we found pure fruit, refined tannins, glossy textures and a complex amalgam of fruit nuances and tertiary notes. Equally compelling were the duo from Poderi Oddero. In the amazingly graceful Vigna Rionda, from one of the region’s finest terroir, Oddero has crafted a genuine beauty in 2017 and I would suggest it isn’t far removed from the quality they delivered in the tremendous 2016 vintage; this should be a wine on your watch list if you a fan of the finest Barolo. The Bussia Vigna Mondoca showed in a similarly impressive manner; Bussia, in Monforte d’Alba, is a controversially large cru but when you taste wines of this calibre, there is no doubting that it has the potential to rank highly, depending on the exact location of the vines within the . Very rich, with a deep damson, plum quality to the fruit and hints of spice, this rich Barolo will demand patience, even in a year like 2017 where some wines are starting to drink. In this latter category, we would place Vietti’s reliable Castiglione blend and, surprisingly, Vajra’s 2017 Ravera, which seems to show very little of the austerity that is more typical of this cool, elevated Novello cru. The 2016 table certainly drew considerable attention, as clients were aware that this vintage is considered to be one of the all-time greats. The 2016 vintage represented the perfect growing season with no excesses or problematic weather. These wines have such appealing fruit and fine tannin that a number show that they are already approachable though even the humblest from this vintage have ageing potential. The table was manned by Atlas’ Nick Pitcher, who commented that clients were impressed by the 2016 Barolo del Comune di La Morra from Renato Corino on account of its expansive, rounded fruit. Renato has always made rich, softly textured wines and his entry level Barolo, principally made from young vines in Rocche del’ Annunziata, has always been considered by Atlas to be something of a bargain; the 2016 is no exception in this respect. Brovia’s Barolo 2016, from across their holdings, also impressed, making for an impressive showing on the night for this traditional producer when you consider how well their 2017s showed. The Brovia and Corino 2016s offer great value, a point borne out by client purchases! Parusso’s lesser known Mariondino from Castiglione Falleto also won favour with its intense fruit, with the touch of oak adding tobacco and vanillin notes, one of the few wines in the room to be aged in that manner. Nick also showed the component wines of Arnaldo Rivera’s Collector’s Case, as Nick said what a vintage for the cooperative of Terre del Barolo to launch a premium mixed case. Clients were fascinated to taste six different crus, each from one of six of the different communes of Barolo, all from the same producer, and from the same vintage. As one client commented ‘A great dinner party experience to be had tasting single cru Barolo at a bargain price!’. It is hard to argue with that. While the Arnaldo Rivera wines aren’t in the Premier League of Barolo, they are well made, approachable and provide a good introduction to understanding the single cru vineyards and the communes that make up the patchwork that is Barolo. Unsurprisingly, the lighter tannins and juicy red from on the Monvigliero impressed various tasters as did the richer, Vigna Rionda. The inclusion of the 2016 Neirane from Agostino Bosco sparked interest too, with many clients returning to the 2019 to refresh the comparison; the 2016 is just starting to drink as this vineyard possesses lighter soils with an element of sand, whereas the 2019 will need more patience. Then finally, we had a mixed table spanning the vintages from 2015 back to 2011, manned by Atlas’ Toby Herbertson. This table was a real draw as it allowed clients some insight into how Barolo ages; this was very much needed as some clients weren’t particularly familiar with the region. Some clients started tasting here, which might not have made it easier to move onto younger wines thereafter. The ability to compare wines from the same growers in 2011 and 2012 fascinated people and both vintages impressed. 2011 is one of those vintages that is starting to drink really well – it was a hot vintage, by the standards of that point in time, but it was wonderful to see how, if anything, the wines seem to have picked up a little more precision as they have aged. Both the Sandrone Cannubi Boschis 2011 and the Vietti Ravera 2011 found favour. The 2012 Sandrone, Le Vigne, shows just how well Sandrone adapt to vintage conditions. The 2013 Cappellano Pie Rupestris was very popular on the night; clients were impressed by the complexity and quality, though some struggled to spot the value in contrast to other wines shown. The conversation surrounding this table focused on when Barolo tannins start to soften and when wines come on stream for drinking. The lighter framed 2014s were up against it, sandwiched as they were between the more tannic 2013s and the bolder, richer 2015s. That said, many clients commented on the attractive nature of Vajra’s 2014 Ravera, which, like the 2017 of the same wine, showed in a forward drinking manner with a dark, glossy fruit, floral aromas and hints of spice. Indeed, all Vajra’s wines were complimented for their accessibility and the purity of the fruit. Finally, the two 2015s proved fascinating to taste. Giovanni Rosso’s Cerretta shows just why there is excitement brewing about this estate. It captured a flinty mineral note that added complexity to a rich palate of dark, slightly brooding fruit, while the tannins were finely expressed and far less obtrusive as they can be in young wines from this Serralunga d’Alba-based cru. Vietti’s inaugural Riserva also attracted plenty of attention; the extra ageing having softened and rounded out the tannins.All in all, the evening was a great success and we have received many positive comments on the venue and the format. We will certainly be running another event at this venue in the New Year.My final thoughts concern the way in which things have evolved in Piemonte. Climate change has meant that Barolo vintages face few of the pitfalls they once did. Instead, there are different challenges, more often than not related to heat and drought. In rapid time, growers have adapted in both the vineyard and cellar to meet these challenges, and today, I would argue, Barolo is one of the most consistent wine regions in Europe. There is just so much to explore, different crus with different altitudes, exposures and soils, as well as producers who employ different techniques. Without doubt, Nebbiolo is a sensitive grape variety that reveals different nuances in different conditions; it rivals Pinot Noir in this respect. Putting on a tasting like this allowed us to share our fascination with the wines and the region. Frankly there has never been a better time to buy Barolo – perhaps you could argue it is the last bastion of great value for finely nuanced reds In Europe. Certainly, £300 per case doesn’t get you far in Burgundy or Bordeaux, but it can get you an impeccably crafted, single vineyard Barolo. That point came across loud and clear to our audience on Wednesday night.
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Atlas Fine Wines' Simon Larkin MW reviews 12 Saint-Julien 2005 Châteaux
Learn about the wines of one of Bordeaux’s most consistent communes in our latest YouTube video.
Join Simon as he shares his insights following an extensive tasting of all 11 Classified Growth Châteaux of Bordeaux’s Saint Julien appellation, plus one outlier. All the wines tasted were from the 2005 vintage – "one of the greatest vintages Bordeaux has ever produced." As Simon suggests, Saint-Julien may lack a First Growth Château but, tasting wines such as Léoville-Las Cases and Ducru-Beaucaillou in such a great vintage, it is hard to argue that they are not of First Growth quality.
See below for Simon's tasting notes.
