Over The Moon 750ml

With aromas of black cherry, basil, rosemary and spice and flavours of ripe plum and dark chocolate the wine surprises with its refreshing acidity and softness (due to a lack of tannin).

Production
This wine is made in the same way ancient wine was produced by the Sumerians and Egyptians. From evidence gathered from these old civilizations, we have reimagined what techniques they would have used to make wine. Using this  methodology and choosing robust grapes like Tinta Barocca, Shiraz and Grenache we have crafted a unique wine that is true to the ancient world of winemaking.

When I was asked what I thought of my experimentation in ancient winemaking, my answer was simple I was Over the Moon!, hence the name we have chosen. This is an old English saying which means we are very happy with the result. Id like to think that those Sumerians and Egyptians would have also loved the wine.

Food pairing

It is a great wine to be enjoyed chilled, and goes extremely well with spicy chicken and cashew nut, blackened, salt-backed sea fish and sushi.

Awards

A message from the winemaker....

You are an ancient Sumerian, a celebrated young citizen of one of the first great cities. You have been hunting since daybreak, and returning over the Euphrates and through the fortified walls of the great city, you are parched from the days ride. In short, you are dying for a drink of beer.

When you reach your favourite pub, the light is failing and the owner bar-ladys new slave is lighting tar lanterns at the door and cracking jokes with the prostitutes.

As you enter the wide room with its heavy beams and stone, beer-fermenting troughs, you smell something special, something unusual, something that only happens once a year fermenting wine.
Being of noble birth you are ushered through the expectant throng and up a few sets of stairs where your friends are already seated in groups; drinking straws of river reed at the ready. The wine has been fermenting for three days. It has been drawn from beneath the risen cap of hand-destemmed grapes and transferred by gravity into clay drinking vessels.

You lick your lips and wink to your hunting companions. Your timing could not have been better. The clay drinking amphora are placed between drinking groups, some of whom have already started singing bawdy pub songs, such is the anticipation.

And thats exactly how we made the main grape in this wine, Tourega Franca. We blended this grape of Portugal with another Portuguese grape used in Port production called Tinta Barocca.

And because we are obsessively experimental we made the Tinta Barocca the way ancient Egyptians crafted wine mostly by a method called carbonic maceration; still practiced today, which allows whole bunches to ferment without being destemmed. This you will see enhances the intriguingly lively, red berry aroma. We blended these two ancient winemaking efforts with some manually punched-down Shiraz for a bit of structure.

When I was asked what I thought of my experimentation, my answer was simple I was Over the Moon!, hence the name we have chosen. Id like to think that those Sumerians back from their hunting trip 4000 years ago would have tasted something quite similar.

Far too many winemakers chuck their wine in barrels for the extra flavour, not understanding the historical context of barrels, or their ancillary benefits to the chemistry of winemaking. Often the barrels are new and dominate the subtle aromas and flavours of a wine. Its impossible to argue that a wine shows a sense of place when smothered in oak it certainly doesnt show a sense of history like Over the Moon does. Thats why we use much older barrels with no obvious wood character.

We recommend you drink your ancient-style wine slightly chilled.

Tasting Note

With aromas of black cherry, basil, rosemary and spice and flavours of ripe plum and dark chocolate the wine surprises with its refreshing acidity and softness (due to a lack of tannin).

Food Pairing

Go Chilled - great on hot summer days this unusual, but delicious wine is best served slightly chilled. Like a Rose with attitude, or a biker Pinot Noir! It loves anything pickled try a mature chedder cheese with pickled onion, pickled fish, or our favourite pulled pork with pickled relish.

Bottle/bottles of wine only anything else in the image is for demonstration only