2022 Bel a Ciao Orange Wine, Olivier Cazenave et Château, IGP Atlantique, France,

Because of Olivier’s somewhat “revolutionary” approach to winemaking and love of breaking the rules, in such a traditional region, he created the Bel a Ciao label ... named after a revolutionary song which also features in La Casa de Papel on Netflix (you’ll need to Google it!). Here he produces an exciting Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc orange wine, with grapes sourced from a friend’s vineyard, which by 2021 will be organic. The wine has refreshing citrus aromas such as tangerine as well as wild flowers. The mouth is fresh, lively and complex with notes of fresh tropical and citrus fruits. A slightly spicy, long lemon finish. The lack of sulfites used in the vineyard and in production combined with careful winemaking, this wine has incredibly low sulfite levels in the finished wine.

Vinified as you would a red wine, protected with carbonic ice during the filling process, with 2 weeks of skin maceration of the Semillon must to extract the orange colour, before a gravity fed run off into a separate tank for 6 months at 5°C until bottling. There are no added sulfites in order to preserve the authenticity of the site and variety. A tiny amount of Sauvignon Blanc (2%) is added just before bottling to enhance the freshness and acidity.