Cellar for up to 10 years. Decanting is optional, up to an hour before serving.

While they are best known as movie-makers, wine-making has been a tradition in the Coppola family for generations. Inspired by his grandfather Agostino, who distilled wine in the basement of his New York apartment, Francis Ford Coppola set out to join the wine business himself.

In 2006, he purchased and renovated the famed Chateau Souverain in Sonoma County, California. Copenhagen’s Tivoli Gardens served as a visual inspiration, and the renovated chateau has become the base of operations for producing a gorgeous range of life-affirming wines.

The Director’s Cut range is an opportunity for wine-makers to release their inhibitions, and show their interpretations of Californian classics. Loaded with scents of black fruit, chocolate cherries, spice and hints of smoke, this majority Cabernet Sauvignon blend is a feast for the senses. It was aged for 15 months in barrels of French and American oak, lending a savoury edge to the palate. It is dominated, however, by concentrated blackberry and blackcurrant flavours, with hints of cocoa and star anise. It is sumptuous and full-bodied, a truly decadent expression of a Californian staple. The Cabernet Sauvignon is combined with Petite Verdot, and smaller percentages of Syrah, Petite Sirah, and Cabernet Franc. It’s a perfect pairing for dishes with portobello mushrooms, or a ribeye steak.