Zinfandel, Carignan, Barbera, Mendocino, USA | Like splitting your popsicle in half to share with your best bud. From New-Cali winemakers Shaunt and Diego, ‘Populis’ is their purchased fruit line from trusted organic growers in Mendocino, equally delicious & gluggable. ‘Reversee’ is a high-toned, crazy fresh, chillable red, with each grape undergoing separate fermentation to preserve maximum freshness & distinction. Made using a technique the winemakers call the 'reverse saignée’ (sounds fancy don’t it!) — here they take a third of the grapes, press them to rosé juice and add that back to the tank in order to decrease the concentration and make a lighter, snappier wine. The result is a nonchalant party juice – red plum, savoury strawberry dessert, liquorice flowers, little spice in the background & sparkling salt crystals to finish. No need to overcomplicate things, drink with yesterdays pizza on the fire escape while watching the world go by.

Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Chardonnay & Merlot, USA | This foresty cutie is a cheeky, natural reinterpretation of the classic Bordeaux blend. From one of our favourite New-California winemakers, shaking things up while simultaneously taking them back to the foundation of winemaking in this region. Time-honoured pinch-hitters cab sauv & merlot get a little help from cameo appearances by their friends zinfandel and chard – bestowing an extra serving of juicy red fruit & prickly acid, respectively. Each grape is fermented and aged separately before being blended into the most delicious whole possible. This wine is overarchingly green in the best possible way, like a brushstroke of juniper berry & fronds, while retaining the airy drinkability that is so synonymous with Les Lunes’ wines. Lil’ lees wafts, cherry candies from Bulk Barn, Cali-dreamin’-wave-ridin’ minerality, raspberry coulis & cat lick tannins that string these elements together like a rose gold charm bracelet. A real crowd-pleaser capable of convincing anyone of the endless possibilities of natural wine irrevocably.

Carignan, Mendocino, USA | Like riding a bicycle without training wheels for the first time, exhilarating. Planted in the early 1920s and named in honour of Larry Venturi’s (of the famous Italian wine growing Venturi family in Mendocino) great-grandmother, the Elvie’s block is the gem of the Venturi Vineyard. Here the gravelly loam soils contain a mixture of sandstone, shale and quartz, formed from alluvial flows (old rivers), depositing fist-sized stones along the way. All of which come together to create very well draining soils, highly deficient in organic matter, with a mildly acidic pH, allowing for optimal nutrient uptake (you’re a soil scientist now!). Time is the key to this juicy & medium bodied buddy, 30 days of maceration to extract reassuring tannins, followed by 24 months collecting itself & 12 months in bottle to fully integrate. Carignan is typically fruit forward in nature, with richer savoury notes such as cured meats, spices and medium tannin, here we see a more nuanced west coast expression, with a slightly more pronounced and satisfying tannin. Wet wood, purple petals, haskap berries, the inside of a peppercorn, high tones of cranberry ice cream drizzled in sour lemon oil & a gentle unctuousness which coats the mouth. Pour alongside juicy pot roast & scrolling through the Craigslist ‘Free’ sectio