Grilled peach and burrata salad, roasted vegetables, spicy Thai dishes, sushi, pizza

Dried apricot, honeysuckle, peach, tangerine, fresh herbs, juicy stone fruit, medium body

Varietal:

Aligoté, Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer

Vintage:

• 2023

ABV:

• 13%

Funky Scale:

Mostly Funky

Style:

Region:Oregon, United States

Joe Swick is a 5th generation Oregonian winemaker who captures the true taste of the Pacific Northwest through his wines. Joe sources his grapes from organic, biodynamic and sustainable vineyards in Oregon and Washington. After years of traveling and harvesting in various pockets of the world, such as Piedmont, Portugal, and Tasmania, Joe returned to Oregon to start his very own label in 2013. He embraces the minimal approach when making his wines such as using native yeasts, aging in old barrels and adding minimal sulphur during bottling—only when absolutely necessary. While Joe started out with a focus on making Oregon Pinot Noir, he now has explored many other grape varietals and experiments with different techniques during élevage.

Roast chicken, Moroccan spices, grilled vegetables, aged cheeses

Apricot, orange peel, dried flowers, herbal tea, subtle tannin

Varietal:

Viognier

Vintage:

• 2022

ABV:

• 12%

Funky Scale:

Middle of the Road

Style:

Region: McLaren Vale, Australia

Poppelvej is the project of Danish brothers Jens and Uffe Deichmann. The name means “street of poplars,” referencing the street where they grew up in Denmark, and the original hand-painted sign from their great-great-grandfather now hangs in the winery.

Uffe moved to South Australia for a harvest and ended up staying after meeting his future wife, Nicole. The couple eventually settled in McLaren Vale, where Poppelvej was founded in 2016.

The wines are made from sustainably farmed vineyards in McLaren Vale and Adelaide Hills. Fermentations are low intervention with minimal additions, and the wines are typically bottled without fining or filtration. Production is small, around 4,000 cases annually, and the wines reflect both the creativity of their makers and the character of the region.

Roasted squash, grilled fish, risotto, aged cheeses

Apricot, honey, citrus peel, white peach, rhubarb

Varietal:

Grechetto

Vintage:

• 2022

ABV:

• 11.5%

Funky Scale:

Middle of the Road

Style:

Region: Tuscany, Italy

The Juice Asylum is a small experimental project founded in 2016 by winemaker Alessio Guidi at Avignonesi in Tuscany. Created as a space for creative winemaking, the project focuses on minimal intervention and allowing wines to express their origin as naturally as possible.

Grapes come from certified organic and biodynamic vineyards, and the wines are made with gentle techniques such as spontaneous fermentation, co-fermentation, and alternative aging vessels. Rather than heavily shaping the wines in the cellar, Alessio aims to let the fruit and vineyard character guide each bottling.

Production is very small, around 1,700 cases annually. Influenced by natural wine producers from regions like the Loire Valley, Jura, and Swartland, the wines reflect Alessio’s curiosity and commitment to ex

Roasted vegetables, grilled lamb, spiced dishes, aged cheeses

Dried apricot, honeyed citrus, herbal tea, quince, tannic texture

Varietal:

Khikhvi

Vintage:

• 2024

ABV:

• 13%

Funky Scale:

Mostly Funky

Style:

Region: Kakheti, Georgia

Pheasant’s Tears was founded in 2007 by American artist and winemaker John Wurdeman and Georgian farmer Gela Patalishvili in the village of Tibaani in Kakheti. Their work focuses on reviving Georgia’s ancient winemaking traditions and preserving the country’s vast diversity of indigenous grape varieties.

The winery farms organically across several vineyard sites in Georgia and works with native grapes such as Rkatsiteli, Saperavi, and many lesser-known varieties. Most wines are fermented and aged in traditional qvevri, clay vessels buried underground, following techniques that date back thousands of years.

With minimal intervention in both vineyard and cellar, Pheasant’s Tears produces wines that reflect Georgia’s deep winemaking heritage and the unique character of its landscapes.