Drink Small, Do Good: 

[August 1st, 2025]

Laithwaites has a long history of supporting smaller producers, going right back to Tony Laithwaite when he first took his van to Bordeaux 60 years ago.  The buying team still follows this philosophy where they can, adding wines from winemakers and producers they’ve met on their travels: producers that become part of the Laithwaites vinous family.   

So, as the days grow shorter and the air turns crisp, we have a selection of wines which are layered, warming and full of character - and, sadly in these times, from growers who need Team Laithwaites more than ever.   

“This is a list of wines with real heart, and choosing them is about more than taste: it’s about keeping traditions alive and supporting communities whether they’re facing fires in the Midi or earthquakes in Sicily,” says Laithwaites Wine Director Liz Smith, adding: “It’s about making sure the next vintage is another we can toast.”   

Whites 

Flor de San Martín Garnacha Blanca 2024, Viño de España - RRP £9.99 

A century ago, 192 vinegrowers banded together in Navarra’s rugged highlands to preserve their local traditions.  Today, the cooperative is still going strong with winemaker Gonzalo Zelayeta vinifying select parcels of hand-harvested grapes grown exclusively in high-altitude vineyards in the foothills of the Pyrenees.  Fresh and zippy - a great white for seafood. 

La Multa Albilla Sobre Lías 2023 - RRP £14.99 

Norrel Robertson MW (‘El Escoces Volante’ - ‘the flying Scotsman’) fell in love with the ancient, high-grown vines of Calatayud in 2003 and hasn’t left. His passion is to search out old, abandoned family vineyards, high up in the hills, and resurrect them - it certainly takes hard work and dedication to save them.  Garnacha is his passion, along with Spain’s rare varieties that have almost disappeared.  Enter Albilla - a delicate white grape which, as Norrel is proving, shows superb citrus intensity when grown on low-yielding, old vines.  Four months’ lees ageing has lent the fruit a creamy roundness. 

Clos de la Vierge 2022, Jurançon - RRP £19 

Clos de la Vierge is a tiny, 3-hectare vineyard run by two 70+ year old sisters, Anne-Marie and Christiane, who tend vines that are almost the same age, while their 95-year-old maman looks after the kitchen garden.  Their fabulous Clos de la Vierge white is made purely from the local superstar grape, Gros Manseng.   Délicieux with garlic chicken.       

Rosé  Loubissou Organic 2024, Languedoc Cabrières AOP - RRP £20.00  

Tucked away in the Languedoc is the forgotten 'cru' of Cabrières (it's actually where where Gérard Bertrand sources fruit for his £165-a-bottle pink…).  In the village, there's a small cooperative with just 10 members, one of whom owned the organic Loubissou vineyard with its prized ancient schist soil.  This grower retired last year, and thanks to the enthusiasm of customers Laithwaites has been able to buy the vineyard and lease it to a young couple who tend vines next door, saving the plot from being lost forever.   

(Limited samples available)    

Reds 

Il Brutto Negroamaro Primitivo 2023, Puglia IGP - RRP £12.99 

So low-yielding and unprofitable were the heirloom Negroamaro and Primitivo vines behind this wine that the growers in Puglia had booked the bulldozer to rip them out so they could plant something more profitable. However, champion of the region and its great traditions, Angelo Maci (triple awarded 'Winemaker of the Year') persuaded them that the fruit of these old vines could make a magnificent rich red. The vines’ twisted trunks may be ugly (‘brutto’) to outsiders, but they’re things of beauty to those in the know.   

Tenuta Fenice Nero d’Avola 2023, Sicily - RRP £12.99 

Rich, barrel-aged Nero d'Avola is a tribute to Dino Taschetta's grandfather and his vineyard.  An earthquake struck in 1968 and the vines were abandoned until Dino nursed them back to life. Now the grapes make this rich, blackberry-spiced red.   

Liz says: 

“The following reds are from our producers currently battling the extreme wildfires in southern France. We’re focusing our efforts on making sure their wines get the attention they deserve and helping with cash-flow where we can.”   

Vertiges 2024, Vallée du Paradis IGP - RRP £13.99 

The name 'Vertiges' translates as 'fear of heights' - apt for a wine made from grapes gathered on precipitous slopes by the Peyrepertuse Castle, 500m above sea level on a ragged Pyrenean peak.  Winemaker Benjamin Andrieu isn’t phased though, making this appealing red from Grenache and Carignan - smooth, silky and going to be delicious with grilled meats.   

Charles Cros Grande Réserve 2023, Hauterive IGP Corbières - RRP £14.99 

“Fabrezan is one of the key areas hit by the region’s wildfires and we’re doing what we can to support our producers in the impacted zones,” says Liz.   For over 40 years, Corbières’ Cave de Fabrezan has proudly made nearly all its reds by maceration carbonique, an exacting and costly method which produces deliciously silky, fruit-filled wines. This wine has been made exclusively for Laithwaites from an exceptional parcel of pure Syrah and named after Fabrezan’s most famous ‘son’, Charles Cros.

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Note to Editors – About Laithwaites

Laithwaites Wine was founded in 1969, when Tony Laithwaite drove a van of Bordeaux wine to England to share with family and friends.  Laithwaites has since grown to become one of the UK’s largest wine merchants, yet remains family-owned and still gives pride of place to smaller producers. 

The Laithwaites wine team tastes over 40,000 wines a year before selecting the best buys for customers. Laithwaites offers 1,200 wines from 26 countries, ranging in price from £4.99 up to £1,200 a bottle and all covered by a 100% guarantee of enjoyment. 

They also offer an extensive gifts range, complimentary Wine Advisor service, and host a range of events.  Laithwaites Wine is the only UK wine merchant to win the Service Mark accreditation from the Institute of Customer Service and has twice been awarded Online Retailer of the Year. 

Laithwaites is delighted to be one of ten leading retailers which have signed up to the 'SWR Bottle Weight Accord'.  Founded in 2021, the Sustainable Wine Roundtable (SWR) is the only global independent multistakeholder roundtable in wine.  Jancis Robinson is a founding member and with now more than 100 members from around the world, the SWR has become the centre for collaborative action across the wine supply chain.

Please mark as #gifted

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Further information:    

Ali Mann [alison@ew-pr.co.uk]

emma wellings pr: 020 8996 5168