For the Syrah Purists - 'No Place Like Home' by Sam Lambson of Minimalist Wines
© Minimalist Wines
Celebrated as the mastermind behind the captivating "Stars in the Dark" Syrah, Sam Lambson has garnered immense praise from critics Jancis Robinson, Neal Martin, and Greg Sherwood. His unwavering passion for crafting elegant cool climate Syrah has led to the creation of No Place Like Home, a new single-origin Syrah joining the Minimalist Wines family. The 2021 (its very first vintage) and 2022 (its second vintage) are now available in Hong Kong. (There's more! As a special treat, we are offering an exclusive 20% off discount on all Minimalist Wines from this latest shipment. Read till the end for details!)
Sam has been farming a 3-hectare vineyard on a long lease in Niemandsrivier, Elgin of South Africa, and it is from this vineyard that the grapes for No Place Like Home are sourced. Planted in 2006, the vineyard showcases the remarkable coexistence of three distinct Syrah clones, thriving on the diverse composition of Sandstone and Shale soils. The vines lie on a plateau at 200m above sea level, influenced by maritime winds off the Cold Atlantic Ocean just 10km away.
According to Sam, "Vines located in the same block can react to their environment in unique ways, and No Place Like Home is an exploration of the variation that exists within a single vineyard.... we identified four distinct pockets across the 3-hectare parcel. We then harvested and fermented them separately before meticulously blending only the best barrels to produce the most complete wine."
Special Offer : 20% off all wines from this RELEASE
Promotion period: until Apr 15, 2024
🗓️We will have a free tasting event of the wines next week. Stay tuned for updates if you want to taste before purchasing !🗓️
Minimalist Wines No Place Like Home 2021 – Bt | Greg Sherwood MW 96
(20% off) HK$310 ▷HK$248
An alluring and instantly impressive classically styled wine aged in neutral 228 litre French oak barrels for 16 months, reveals complex aromatics of ripe black plum, boysenberry, potpourri, sweet black peppercorns with a hint of sweet grilled herbs and black berry reduction. The intensity and precision of this 2021 are notable and follow to an elegant, medium-bodied palate that coats the mouth with sumptuous, saline cassis fruit layers, sweet smoky black currant and subtle hints of kelp and oyster shell minerality. This is another delightfully vibrant expression that will seduce many Syrah obsessives, with its 20% whole bunch portion adding an extra little complexing sapidity on the long finish. Undoubtedly a wine that is going to cause a stir… but that is exactly what Sam Lambson has become famous for! Start chasing an allocation now and drink this beauty on release and over the next 6 to 10+ years.
- 96, Greg Sherwood MW, Wine Safari, February 2023
Minimalist Wines No Place Like Home 2022 - Bt | NM94
(20% off) HK$310 ▷HK$248
The 2022 No Place Like Home is pure Syrah from Elgin containing 20% whole bunches, matured in used oak barrels. This is higher-toned and more opulent than the Stars In The Dark, with dark fruit but more floral in style. The medium-bodied palate has saturated tannins, very harmonious and poised, gently building in the mouth with veins of blue fruit towards the finish. There is a very seductive tenderness here. Sophisticated Syrah…but also delicious!
- 94, Neal Martin, Vinous.com, August 2023
Minimalist Wines Connect the Dots 2021 – Bt | NM91
(20% off) HK$245 ▷HK$196
The 2021 Connect the Dots is pure Syrah sourced from Elgin, Stellenbosch and Agulhas, 15 to 100% whole bunches depending on the parcel, matured in 225 and 300-liter used French oak. This is more reserved on the nose than its peers yet well-defined with dark berry fruit, white pepper and touches of potpourri. Very subtle. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, quite edgy on the entry, with very pure fruit and a slightly confit-like, peppery finish. This is a delightful Syrah from winemaker Sam Lambson.
- 91, Neal Martin, Vinous.com, August 2023
Minimalist Wines Stars in the Dark 2022 - Bt | NM96
(20% off) HK$310 ▷HK$248
The 2022 Stars in the Dark comes from Cape Agulhas, stomped underfoot with one-third whole bunches, aged in 3rd and 4th fill French oak. The red fruit on the nose seems to "hug" the olfactory senses, very pure and beautifully delineated, an underlying mineralité gaining momentum with aeration. The medium bodied palate has fine-grained tannins, extremely well-balanced with a precise, edgy finish, black pepper and black tea lingering temptingly. This continues Lambson's strong run of form and comes highly recommended.
- 96, Neal Martin, Vinous.com, August 2023
Minimalist Wines Experimental Noir Grenache 2022 – Bt | JR17
(20% off) HK$185▷HK$148
Pale, transparent red. Wow, this is spine-tinglingly pure! It tastes like rose petals and wild raspberries turned into silk and wrapped around tiny, mountain-stream-smooth pebbles. Pixels and petrichor. Playful at first, then very serious. The tannins are like the bark of the paper tree, smooth and pocked and rustling and super-fine and you want to rub your cheek against them. I LOVE THIS!
- 17, Tamlyn Currin, Jancisrobinson.com, October 2023
Minimalist Wines Experimental Blanc White Blend 2022 – Bt | JR17.5
(20% off) HK$185▷HK$148
Seriously complex and exciting. The wine itself feels as if it's humming with excitement, as if it's full of refracted light. The flavours are layered and interspersed, spiralling out from the centre and back in again. Stories within stories. Textures and angles. Apples and pear skins tucked into crumpled silk, chai spices and shells furrowed into the fissures of driftwood. The finish feels as if it's glittering on your tongue, like a shower of very tiny crystals. Glittering on and on. Really, really exciting. This is a wine you'd want to spend time with, take slowly.
- 17.5, Tamlyn Currin, Jancisrobinson.com, October 2023
Promotion period: until Apr 15, 2024
In stock now, and offered subject to final confirmation and remaining unsold. E. & O. E.
*Standard delivery conditions apply, and a surcharge will be added to orders delivering to Discovery Bay, Ma Wan and Hong Kong International Airport. Please check our delivery and storage policy for more details.