Raphael Reichardt

There is Champagne, and then there are sparkling wines that are not Champagne, but are distinctive in their own right and absolutely must be tried. This pure Pinot Blanc de Noir with vintage and under 2g dosage definitely belongs in that category. A top food companion or also a sophisticated start to a menu! Something like this does not always have to come from France to be good!

For me, this wine is a vacation discovery of the best kind! As a Burgundy fan, you are always looking for precision and elegance, and I found these unexpectedly in hot southern Italy, in Campania. A polished, precise, extremely fine cuvée made from 3 indigenous grapes from the hinterland of Naples. This is great wine, the kind you would not expect! A hidden gem!

One of Germany’s iconic Rieslings at a wonderful stage of drinkability—this is a no-brainer. And all of this at a fantastic price-to-pleasure ratio. With maturity, the wine shows wonderful yellow-fruited exotic notes, a still precise, steely acid structure with superb length on the palate. A flagship!

Californian Chardonnay with drive and concentration for followers of the more opulent style. Golden yellow, concentrated, rich in extract and full-bodied. This wine needs food accompaniment; fatty fish, beurre blanc or light poultry can also tame the opulence.

The non-alcoholic world has evolved too; the days when cola and apple spritzer reigned supreme are over, thankfully! Not least thanks to great products like this. Sparkling tea infused with spices, with a complexity close to wine and genuinely exciting for wine drinkers to try as well. You have to try this at least once!

One of my favorite Sauvignon Blancs! This grape always divides opinion: for some it is too kitschy, while others cannot get it sharp enough! This Sauvignon Blanc shows itself to be incredibly fine, salty, terroir-driven, and at the same time with incredible length and power. In this form, Sauvignon also gives ambitious wine drinkers pleasure - even over the coming years. It just keeps getting better!