-
-
Hugh Hamilton, ‘Black Ops’, Shiraz Saperavi, 2018
£18.95Add to cartThe Dark Arts is a range of wines from varieties that are not meant to go together, but work! They refuse to be part of the status quo; they are wine as art. Made off the grid in an unconventional style that is all about varietals in quirky combos.
The Name
From that irrefutable source of Gospel Truth: Wikipedia…
“A black operation or black op is a covert operation typically involving activities that are highly clandestine and often outside of standard military protocol or even against the law.”
Under these conditions, if you think you’re going to get lots of “Background” information, think again, Sunshine…Nose
Cherry wood and forest floor waft out of the glass, then give way
to cherry fruit and woody spice.Palate
The palate has the pleasing tartness of a morello cherry, and the pure allure of a fresh baked cherry pie. The richness of the palate gives a luxurious depth and
a finish that lasts long after you have emptied the glass. -
Hugh Hamilton, Floozie, Sangiovese Rosé 2020
£13.95Add to cartAppearance: Pale pink
Nose: Like crunching your way into a perfectly ripe pink lady apple. There are notes of fairy floss and bubblegum but not enough to upset the poise and elegance of the whole
Palate: Textured like peach fuzz and pleasantly lingering
Food Pairing: Pear, Parmesan and Walnut salad
About the wine: “‘We’ll drink, a drink, a drink – to Lily the pink, the pink, the pink – the saviour of the human race…’ (Thank U Very Much – 1967). Well that’s a big claim for The Floozie, but this rosé will no doubt make for a happier human race – or at least for a few select members who partake of this wine! When the Hamilton family first produced wines in 1837 life was simple and rosé happened by default, as nature sometimes delivered a big red, and in other seasons a light red – almost a rosé. They took what nature offered them and enjoyed it!”
Suitable for vegans!
-
Hugh Hamilton Goldilocks Moscato 2020
£12.95Add to cartNotes From The Winery:
After a short slumber in just the right bed, our Moscato 'The Goldilocks' is back! She's washed out her pink dye and gone back to her blonde roots, but she's as pretty and mischievous as ever. Now in a bigger bottle, she's the perfect companion to any dinner, lunch, or breakfast!
Every family has a black sheep and Hugh is ours. Rebel. Reprobate. Rapscallion. Each wines he creates bears the indelible mark of his unique personality – just like Goldilocks- our limited parcel of handcrafted McLaren Vale grown Moscato.
Blonde, pretty, and a thief! Goldilocks Moscato steals attention wherever we pour her. Some might say it’s all too much, but we think this one’s just right.
-
Hugh Hamilton Black Blood I Cellar Vineyard Shiraz 2018
£33.95Add to cartWINEMAKER’S NOTES
Cellar Block – the home of the Black Sheep. We watch the change in seasons play out across it from our Cellar Door; summer heat through to winter squalls. But, below the ground, the black, cracking clay remains the same; steadily producing intense, structure driven, textural wines year in year out. Cellar Block is often the slowest to shine; the secrets of the black clay only told in time. The trade for this longevity in bottle is a more defined texture in its youth that needs age to become supple.BOUQUET AND PALATE
Rhubarb, leather and cranberry. Violets, blackstrap liquorice, blood and iodine. Lighter notes of broth and golden syrup. Dense and textural, with spectacular tenacity. Taut and fine. The assertive grip creating a wine that is big but not course.COLOUR
Crimson purpleDRINK
The hint is in the name – Cellar – this wine will reward the time. Think 6-10 years.FOOD MATCH
A choice cut of aged beef, cooked simply, but well – charred to tasteJAMES HALLIDAY TASTING NOTE
“From the Cellar Vineyard in McMurtrie Road and is the richest, desest of the three Black Blood wines, yet it doesn’t get bogged down in winemaking artefact. Layers of black cherries, plums and licorice infused with iodine and nori. Hull-bodied for sure, but the palate is bright and juicy with gently grip to the tannins. Neatly played.” – Jane Faulkner
-
out of stock
Hugh Hamilton ‘Hugh’s Mixed Up’ Shiraz Cordial 0%
£10.50Out Of StockMade from grapes, looks like wine, bottled like wine, but it’s not wine. Did Hugh get mixed up?! It’s not fermented so has zero alcohol but has all the health-giving benefits of wine.
Notes from the Winery: 'Hugh's Mixed Up' is our non-alcoholic Shiraz Cordial – perfect with soda water, an orange slice and a little sprig of rosemary for a weekend mocktail!
-
-
Hugh Hamilton, The Scallywag, 2020
£12.50Add to cartKnock, Knock. Who’s there? Chardonnay. Chardonnay who? You know me. I’m THE classic white grape variety and I’m back. Where on earth have you been for the past few years? Quite simply I never went away; I’ve just been out of the spotlight while people have been sucked in by that shallow 'other white'. But guess what? They are now sick of it. Quite understandably because it lacks depth and it’s always the same old, same old. On the other hand, I have always been about character and that means you don’t tire of me easily. So, I didn’t go away but nevertheless I’m back with renewed interest and, believe it or not, popularity. Now you can fall in love with me… all over again. Convince me you Scallywag!
Winemakers Notes : The amazing array of soils and topographies in McLaren Vale make an amazing range of styles and wines possible here. This Scallywag gains lift from the elevated deep sand of Blewitt Springs and also solidity from the cracking black Biscay soils on the road to Willunga.
Bouquet and Palate : A core of lush fruit gift-boxed in fine French oak. Melon, lemon and bay leaf. Notes of vanilla and cardamom. The wine is very Vale, the palate possessing both length and breadth. A touch of texture stops it all from getting too much as does a fine line of crunchy acidity.
Go on to watch Hugh's video on The Scallywag and his analogy how yesteryear's over-oaked Chardonnay is the kind of girlfriend you won't be introducing to your Mother!
Suitable for vegans!
-
Hugh Hamilton ‘The Rascal’ Shiraz 2017
£19.95Add to cartSTORY
“Shiraz and McLaren Vale”. A famous pairing. Are there others? The Royal Family and Corgis? Gin and Tonic? Bogart and Bacall? But why the connection? Pedigree and history: the variety has shown its suitability for so long to the region’s maritime but warm climate, and old yet well-preserved soils, that it’s hard to imagine one without the other. Shiraz in McLaren Vale grows well, always ripens, and with correct vineyard management, produces wines of great depth, flavour and structure.WINEMAKER’S NOTES
Hugh secured three of the very best vineyards in the Vale and dedicated himself, and those he trusted, to develop and work with these very particular parcels of land. The Rascal is a celebration of the three distinct styles that are achieved on these sites when the vines are tended carefully and the wine made with absolute respect for time and place.BOUQUET AND PALATE
Red fruits and black rise from the bowl of the glass, violets and vanilla too. Elements from each estate vineyard are clear; Cellar structure, Church generosity, and the elegant perfume of the Black Sheep Block. The interplay produced is focused, balanced, and intense. The wine undulating with tar, blackberry, rose, and dark chocolate. Underneath lies low notes of marzipan and cinnamon. Full bodied and moderately textured; all violets, velvet and leather.FOOD MATCH
You’ll need your barbecue nice and hot. Char Siu BBQ Pork, Balsamic-Soy Mushrooms.DRINK
Still fresh, the best is yet to flesh out, 3-10 years.COLOUR
A solid block of black and purpleSuitable for vegans!
-
Hugh Hamilton, ‘The Villain’ Cabernet Sauvignon 2018
£17.95Add to cartWith the luxury of drawing weighty, textured Cabernet from the cracking black soil of Hugh Hamilton’s Cellar block and blending this with the high tone perfume of the Black Sheep block, Hugh is able to produce a wine of both presence and elegance.
Renowned as one of the world’s great red grapes, Cabernet arguably finds its greatest expression in the maritime climate of Bordeaux. McLaren Vale is warmer and drier, but shares those maritime conditions.
Nose
A compelling perfume of roses, cherry wood, and incense.
Palate
Char, roses and Darjeeling tea. A fine texture as of emery.Suitable for vegans!
-
Hugh Hamilton, ‘The Ratbag’ Merlot, 2019
£17.95Add to cartHugh Hamilton is the 5th generation of a large wine dynasty and is regarded as the black sheep of the family. His daughter and 6th generation of the family, Mary, continues the legacy, making Hugh Hamilton winery Australia’s oldest wine family.
McLaren Vale is red wine heaven, with an ideal climate for bigger-bodied reds, but, with careful site selection, the region can grow pretty much anything. Merlot can be more difficult than some, with erratic yield and ripening habits; its unpredictability is sufficient reason for calling it ‘The Ratbag’. It certainly has a
character all its own.The Ratbag is always a reminder to Hugh that Merlot is so much more than just a soft red wine. Each year the fruit that grows in their Church Vineyard tenaciously produces the most varietal Merlot I have ever tasted – not only soft, but full of character and class.
Suitable for vegans!
-
Hugh Hamilton, The Bloodline Set
£175.00Add to cartHugh and Mary bring you their own unique trio of wines, a Grenache, a Shiraz and a Pedro Ximenez in honour of their forebear, Richard Hamilton.
Richard, a respectable tailor living on the high streets of Dover with his wife and 8 children, engaged in a second business under the cover of darkness – smuggling casks of Bordeaux wine across the English Channel. When Richard decided a change of scenery was needed he packed up his family and headed for the newly colonised South Australia. It was here that he started growing Grenache, Shiraz and Pedro Ximenez grapes for ‘the health of the family’. So started South Australia’s first wine dynasty that continues to this day.
Now, 180 years on, Richard’s legacy and secret are materialised in this beautifully crafted tailor’s crate – a trio of noteworthy wines smuggled beneath a limited edition cashmere throw both included in the order. Be one of the first to own a piece of genuine Australian Wine History.
HAMILTON 1837 GRENACHE 2016
There is an amazing duality that is fresh, perfumed and alive but there is also such amazing depth and length to the palate.
In part, the perfume is the result of the 30% whole bunch fruit included in the ferment but there is a very defined varietal lift that insists the whole bunch character is far from the whole story. The tremendous fruit character is carefully held in check by the assertive palate structure.HAMILTON 1837 SHIRAZ 2016
A necessary component was to add depth to the palate and to complement the high tone aromatics. The answer lay in the middle of the Church Block in the 21 rows of Shiraz that usually make Black Blood II. The generosity of the palate grounded the flightiness of the other two Shiraz, easing them into a satisfying whole.HAMILTON 1837 PEDRO XIMENEZ NV
Voluptuous, intense and sustained, the Pedro is a masterpiece made possible only by time and patience; so long in fact that the wine has long ago outlived the vineyard that made it. If given the chance it will outlive all of us as well.
Over many years the original base has been over-blended multiple times, with lengthy periods of rest between better known as the Solera system, building phenomenal depth of flavour and viscosity. The cumulative effect of many years of slow evaporation has concentrated and enhanced the character. A fitting respect for its rarity is achieved at the end of the bottle as you try to extract every last drop, knowing that there isn’t any more where this came from.This product includes a crafted tailor’s crate and a limited edition cashmere throw!
-
out of stock
-
Hugh Hamilton Agent Provocateur 2018 Grenache, Gewürztraminer, Viognier
£19.50Add to cartAlthough a few less grape varieties than the 2017 vintage, the 2018 Agent Provocateur is a great introduction into the world of Dark Arts (Hugh Hamilton’s range of blended wines)
Hugh Hamilton is the 5th generation of a large wine dynasty and is regarded as the black sheep of the family.
His daughter and 6th generation of the family, Mary, continues the legacy making Hugh Hamilton Australia’s oldest wine family.
Hugh is the master of a most reprobate flock and his Agent Provocateur is a member of his Dark Arts range – a range of wines from varieties that are not meant to go together but work!
Winemaker’s Notes “The previous incarnation of the Agent had five components, and yet this one has only three. Whether it was to do with the vintage or the varieties I’m not sure, but we were able to complete the picture with less on the label this year.”
Bouquet Roses. Roses. Roses. Raspberry. Roses.
Palate Rich and textured, the palate persists, revealing multiple layers of fruit, warm spices, cherry-pie, fresh strawberries, plums, pink lady apples, blueberries, and musk sticks.
Food Match The Agent loves a duck – preferably with 5-Spice, perhaps as a pancake, but definitely with spice to match the wine.
-
-
Hugh Hamilton, ‘Jekyll & Hyde’, Shiraz Viognier 2017
£25.50Add to cartIf you are a wine geek, you know of ‘co-fermentation’; a process in which two varieties (in this case, red Shiraz and white Viognier) are picked on the same day and blended at the crusher. This produces a result quite different to blending ‘finished’ red and white wines. The tannin and fragrance of the small amount of Viognier are amplified by the process, and the resultant wine is more fragrant and shows greater depth and even-ness of tannin structure than we’d otherwise see. (Hugh won’t mind admitting he swiped the idea from the French).
WINEMAKER’S NOTES
There aren’t many times I can think of when adding a lighter
colour leads to a darker one but the Jekyll is just that kind of
paradox. By co-fermenting the varieties the Viognier skins help
the colour molecules to form more stable complexes, and thereby
create a darker colour.NOSE AND PALATE
Fragrant orange blossom, jasmine, and violets. Pulpy dark fruits,
plums, dark cherries, and cedar. The palate rolls with toasty oak,
peach notes, more plums, and firm French oak. The resonant,
lingering palate manages to be both structured and soft textured
– like a favourite pair of jeans. -
Hugh Hamilton, The Moocher, Mourvèdre 2018
£19.50Add to cartLazing around on the vine it’s always the last to harvest; no
variety mooches more than Hugh Hamilton’s Mataro. Luckily this loafer is no
slouch in flavour and so always worth the wait.The rows of the Church vineyard are hemmed in by a creek at one
end and an enormous old gum at the other. In years like 2018 this
can mean one end is dipping its toes in the water while the other is
getting fairly thirsty. I think the range of flavours we see rolling
about this wine is, at least in part, due to this variation along each
row. Rich fruit but still crisp and with tremendous structure.Cherry wood, char and plum jam, a lick of toffee apple too, giving
a bouquet of salivating freshness. Opulent, it luxuriates on the palate,
seeming in no particular hurry to be anywhere else. The creamy
wave of plush fresh fruit foams out into a pleasantly drying leather
and tobacco finish.Pan fried maple and apple pork chops, or a roast beetroot and butternut pumpkin salad with tahini.
-
Hugh Hamilton, The Intruder, Sauvignon Blanc 2019
£14.50Add to cartMcLaren Vale is the source of many fine wines but it isn’t as often
associated with the massively popular Sauvignon Blanc as some
other regions. The truth is this intruder has every bit as much
punch as its better-known neighbours – perhaps even a little
more.Vintage 2019 started for Hugh Hamilton with a visit to this vineyard. Where they would usually sample and see how the fruit was developing over a
number of weeks, they harvested this one almost immediately after
that first visit, and the timing has proven just right.Gooseberry, light florals, lemon zest and thyme. The wine wafts
readily from the glass with a subtle tropicality; honeydew,
rockmelon, and passionfruit. A zesty palate of white flowers,
peach blossom, and green apple. Fine textured and lingering.Ginger and scallion fish dumplings, or ginger, shiitake, and tofu chinese dumplings.
Enjoy our wonderful wines
from award winning wineries
CONTACT US
Tilley's Wines,
Eastfield Road, Wollaston,
Northamptonshire, NN29 7RS
Tel: +44 (0)1933 664 792
Email: info@tilleys-wines.com
Fax: +44 (0)1933 665 854
Privacy Policy |
Terms & Conditions
Privacy Policy |
Terms & ConditionsCUSTOMER SERVICES
SECURE PAYMENTS BY
Newsletter Sign-up
2013 Tilley's Wines, Eastfield Road, Wollaston, Northamptonshire, NN29 7RS. All Rights Reserved.
Web Design by Blayney Partnership
Sign up to our Newsletter for a chance to Win[e]!