Ceritas, Rivers-Marie, Nicolas-Jay: three top American mixed cases

The American wine scene is a fast, exciting place - it can be hard to keep up. New names are constantly hitting the tracks, and some are hard to find on this side of the Atlantic (or on both sides of the Atlantic, in fact). Sought-after bottlings from small estates score high and vanish immediately. Well, at Uncorked we’re trying to spread the American love. We’ve held back a selection of some top US wines to offer as mixed cases: Ceritas, Rivers-Marie and Nicolas-Jay are all at the cutting edge of the American scene. And we’re delighted to be offering you money off and free delivery to showcase selections of what each of these top producers do. /NT

Rivers-Marie mixed case — £375 inc duty & VAT

‘Single variety wines made to reflect the vineyard and vintage from which they came’ is the motto at Rivers-Marie. Thomas Rivers Brown was already one of California’s most sought-after winemakers when he teamed up with Genevieve Marie Walsh to launch Rivers-Marie. They’re based in Napa, and make some stunning Cabernet, but most of their vineyards are on the extreme western coast of Sonoma. Those sites are all about cool climate Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. The wines are restrained, classy and site-driven, and inspired by Thomas’s love of Burgundy.

Contains one each of the following:

2019 Bearwallow Anderson Valley Chardonnay

2021 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

2021 Bodega Thieriot Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

2019 Silver Eagle Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

2019 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

2018 Calistoga Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Ceritas mixed case — £450 inc duty & VAT

Ceritas is making some of California’s most highly regarded single-site Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, from the West Sonoma Coast down to the mountains of Santa Cruz. Founder John Raytek believes there are world-class sites here that allow wine to speak of a profound sense of place. ‘The foundation of great wine is outstanding fruit’, he asserts, and the Ceritas team spend as much time as they can in the vineyards with their growers: ‘we like to wear the dirt’. There is no farming dogma; it is all about observation and empiricism. And in the winery, it’s all about doing less, well.

Contains one each of the following:

2020 Charles Heintz Sonoma Coast Chardonnay

2020 Peter Martin Ray Santa Cruz Mountains Chardonnay

2020 Cuvee Annabelle Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

2020 Cuvee Chloe Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

2020 Hellenthal Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir

2020 Colima California Cabernet Sauvignon

Nicolas-Jay mixed case — £465 inc duty & VAT

Nicolas-Jay is the unlikely story of the friendship between one of the most esteemed winemakers anywhere on Burgundy’s Côte d’Or, and the former president of MCA/Universal Records. Jean-Nicolas Méo and Jay Boberg had been friends for 30 years, sharing a lifelong obsession with Pinot Noir, before they decided to formally join forces in 2013. They believed there was huge untapped wine potential in Oregon, and founded Nicolas-Jay as an exploration of the distinct terroirs of Oregon’s Willamette Valley. It began with the purchase of the Bishop Creek vineyard, and they also source fruit from high-quality growers. Jean-Nicolas supervises winemaking, Jay is ‘the world’s most enthusiastic cellar rat’, and the wines are stunning.

 Contains one bottle each of the following:

2021 Bishop Creek Yamhill-Carlton Chardonnay

2021 Bishop Creek Yamhill-Carlton Pinot Noir

2021 L'Ensemble Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

2021 Own-Rooted Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

2021 Momtazi McMinnville Pinot Noir

2021 Nysa Dundee Hills Pinot Noir