It’s the end of an era at Yapp Bros, long-time partners in the Spectator Wine Club, and many a wine-lover’s favourite independent merchant. My old mucker, the vinous truffle-hound that is Jason Yapp, is stepping down in December after 32 years with the company, having served variously as sales director, wine director and MD.
Yapps ferret out the finest, quirkiest, most interesting wines France’s hidden quartiers have to offer
Yapps have recently left the famously welcoming Old Brewery in Mere, Wiltshire, for larger, less romantic premises in Sparkford, Somerset, and Jas felt it time to step back. His liver will be relieved. I know mine is. I’ve lived a thousand lives on trips with Jason and his stepbrother Tom Ashworth (who remains as CEO), and after three decades ferreting out the finest, quirkiest, most interesting wines France’s hidden quartiers have to offer, Jason has decided that such jaunts abroad are for younger folk. Phew.
I found each trip more challenging than the last. The wicked pair – boisterous, extrovert Jason and fresh-faced, butter-wouldn’t-melt Tom – spent as much time getting me into mischief as they did buying wine. I’ve shared such adventures with you before: the gay bar in Biarritz, the eye-popping tranny bar in Avignon and the bizarre nightclub in Colmar where we made all sorts of friends; the magnum-a-head, 12-hour winemakers’ lunch at the bullfight in Dax; the tasting in Riquewihr where JY was so hungover I thought he was going to faint; and the shirt-popping cassoulet for six and brace of magnums he and I polished off à deux in Toulouse to a round of appreciative applause. Despite Jason’s retirement, Yapp Bros remain in fine fettle and so, in tribute to my old friend and tormenter, here’s my pick of their pops.
The 2023 Yapp Touraine Sauvignon Blanc (1), part of Yapps’ burgeoning own-label range, is just lovely. Crisp, clean and uncomplicated, it’s fresh and appealing with plenty of citrus/gooseberry fruit and a touch of herbs. £12.75 down from £13.75.
The 2022 Léon Beyer Pinot Gris Réserve Personelle (2) is so tasty and I love it. Marc Beyer, umpteenth grandson of Léon, founder of the maison in Eguisheim in 1580, hosted an unforgettable Spectator Winemaker Lunch for us a while ago and I never visit Alsace without popping in. Full, rich and peachy, with a delicate hint of lychee and ripe pear, it’s creamy, supple, dry to off-dry. £20.50 down from £21.50.
I’ve drunk more of the 2022 JL Chave Sélection ‘Circa’ St Joseph Blanc (3) over the past year than I have of any other wine. It’s a staple at Soho’s Academy Club, where I spend more time than is good for me, and I can’t get enough. From a single vineyard in the northern Rhône, it’s made entirely from Roussanne and is honeyed, nutty, peachy, creamy and utterly gorgeous. Only 400 cases made. £26.50 down from £27.50.
The 2023 Yapp Saumur Rouge (4) is from the Loire Valley and utterly charming: 100 per cent Cab Franc, it’s full of juicy berry fruit with leafy herbal notes and a savoury finish. Best served slightly chilled, it’s the model vin de soif. £11.95 down from £12.95.
The 2021 Domaine Maby ‘Variations’ Côtes du Rhône (5) was the standout red at the Yapp Bros table at the recent tasting of the Bunch, the loose coalition of the UK’s finest independent merchants. A blend of old-vine Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Carignan, it’s juicy, jammy, spicy and peppery and if you’re in any doubt as to the outstanding value of CDRs like this, then I beg you to try it. £13.95 down from £14.95.
The 2020 Domaine de Roquemale ‘Lema’ (6) from Dominique and Valérie Ibanez in the Roquemale Valley near Montpellier, is made from organically farmed, old-vine Grenache, Syrah and Cinsault and boasts plenty of dark cherry fruit, a touch of garrigue herbs and a long finish. £20 down from £21.
The mixed case (7) has two bottles each of wines 1-6. And finally, the perfect Christmas present, if you’re thinking ahead (8): a pair of magnificent magnums, the 2023 Domaine Vatan Sancerre, as seen in many a Michelin-starred restaurant, and the glorious 2020 Maxime Graillot Crozes-Hermitage Lises, an intense, concentrated but disarmingly fruit-forward Syrah aged in former Burgundy barrels. One magnum of each in a box for £99, down from £108. Delivery, as ever, is free.
Comments