Craig Stapleton is an ex-US Ambassador to Prague who saw the potential for wine making in the Czech Republic, and together with his brother Benjamin Stapleton, sought out Moravian winemaker Jaroslav Springer to form a partnership that could showcase that potential. So it was that in 2004 Stapleton & Springer was formed to grow vines around Bořetice, south of Brno. Unusually, they have always concentrated on red wine and Pinot Noir in particular (which makes up 75% of their plantings) with the lofty inspiration of the fine wines of Burgundy. The vineyards are tended organically, and they keenly follow the practices of the Loire Valley’s biodynamic guru Nicolas Joly. The keen adherence to as natural a process as possible extends into the winery where sulphur dioxide usage is kept to the minimum. In this case we have two red Pinot Noirs, an unusual white Pinot Noir and a totally off-the-wall but delicious orange Pinot Noir.