The Edit - Robin's picks for this month - a three bottle box set. October 2025.

The Edit is our monthly selection of what's exciting and drinking well, chosen by Robin, founder of Iron & Rose and still a wine obsessive. The three bottles selected change each month to reflect the season, the food we're enjoying, and often to introduce new arrivals. Three wines to introduce you to our world of natural wine, to encourage you to delve deeper, or for a treat to yourself or as a gift.

Subscribe for regular deliveries and save even further. Although the price of The Edit varies according to the wines chosen each month, (this month it is £72.50) it is always be between £60 and £90 and by subscribing you'll save an additional £3.50 off each box set - enough to buy yourself a V60 pour-over coffee from PetitGlou to enjoy while you scan the shelves in Iron & Rose or relax after some intensive market shopping.

This box set contains three bottles, one of each of the following wines, made by inspirational producers, the kind of wines which inspired Robin to start Iron & Rose back in 201. 

Our theme for October is (re)discover - exploring countries and grape varieties that are less well known, and revisiting regions that are more familiar but finding wines that don't conform to the norm and growers who are bringing new life and fresh interest. This Edit travels from the Black Sea Coast of Bulgaria to the Northern Rhône valley in France and the toe of Italy. With a dry but complex white, a lighter bodied and a fuller bodied red there's something to suit the wonderful autumn produce we're seeing in the market and whatever weather October throws at us!

Odessos, Riesling 2023, Black Sea Coast, Bulgaria (white): 

Odessos is a young project from brothers, Georgi and Vladislav Vankov who are part of the new wave of Bulgarian winemakers. The pair have travelled extensively and gained invaluable experience and inspiration at some of the most prestigious wineries in Australia, New Zealand and Chile in order to start their own project back home where they pursue and present their own interpretation of the Northern Black Sea region. Their urban winery is found in the coastal city of Varna where they make their wines with minimal intervention with grapes from carefully selected sites in surrounding villages.

Their Riesling is from a single vineyard near the village of Venchan surrounded by hills and the Zlatina river yet just 25km from the Black Sea. The label is a nod to the brother's worldly travels and the Eden Valleyesque style of this Riesling. The nose brings lime, beeswax and a little petrol while the palate exhibits excellent freshness while being tight and rich with citrus peel and great minerality. Great with Thai or seafood.

Producer - Odessos Urban Winery
Country - Bulgaria
Region - Black Sea Coast
Sub-Region - Varna
Variety / Blend - Riesling
Wine Style - White Wine
Farming - Sustainable 
Vegan

Eric Texier, Chat Fou, VDF Northern Rhône, France (red): 

In 1992 Eric Texier gave up his career as a nuclear engineer to pursue his dream of making wine without any experience or any contacts, just the drive to make it happen. After working under several established winemakers and making negoce wines from the crop of his like minded peers, Eric and his wife, Laurence purchased a tiny parcel of their own in the almost forgotten, Brezeme.

Brezeme is the southern most appellation in the Northern Rhône found on the left bank of the Rhone rich in limestone and clay soils that grow rockier as the slopes rise. It was once known for making wines that rivalled those of Hermitage, yet by the 1960s there was just a single hectare of vines. With a little help from Francois Pouchoulin (aka the godfather of Brezeme) the appellation has been firmly put back on the map with Eric its leading grower.

Today Eric and Laurence have 12 hectares of vines, all grown organically since the beginning and with some biodynamic influence. This includes a tiny plot outside of the appellation, from another forgotten region on the other side of the Rhone in the Ouveze valley of the Ardèche. This site has granite soils, and is at a higher altitude and a higher temperature too and is home to the grapes of this wine. 

Another cat related wine is always welcome at Iron & Rose! The Chat Fou, or 'crazy cat' is a playful, juicy red made with a combination of red and white grapes - 45% Grenache, 40% Cinsault and 15% Clairette, hand harvested, partly de-stemmed and co-fermented with native yeasts in open top concrete tanks. With a 'less is more' approach, no extraction techniques are used. It's aged in concrete for 12-18 months before bottling without fining or filtration and just a tiny amount of sulphur. Super bright and crunchy red fruit, suitable slightly chilled.

Producer - Eric Texier
Country - France
Region - Northern Rhône
Variety / Blend - Grenache, Cinsault, Clairette
Wine Style - Red Wine
Farming - Organic
Vegan     

A'vita, Il Rosso, Calabria IGP, Italy (red)

A'vita is a relatively new project based in the wild rolling hills of Ciro, Calabria, nestled between the Ionian Sea and the Sila mountains. They have four vineyards across eight hectares where they take great care and attention, favouring biodiversity through organic practices and minimal tilling to maintain soil diversity. They grow only grapes native to Calabria: Gaglioppo, Magliocco, Greco nero and Greco Bianco which give the best representation of their terroir.

The Il Rosso is made from grapes from A'vita's seaside vineyard, 'Fego' and is mostly Gaglioppo with a little addition of Magliocco to soften Gaglioppo's robust tannins. This unoaked, well balanced red is fruit forward with a delightful blend of fresh floral aromas and some hints of liquorice and cinnamon. 

Producer - A'vita
Country - Italy
Region - Calabria
Sub-Region - Ciro
Variety / Blend - Gaglioppo, Magliocco 
Wine Style - Red Wine
Farming - Organic
Vegan

The wines in this box set are available in limited quantities so we may need to offer alternatives but these will be of similar price and equal value!