 Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We will be returning to doing just the one wine on Thursdays and Fridays until further notice. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.
White wines from the Cotes du Rhone went through an unfortunate slump in popularity, and there was a stretch in time where many sites were uprooted in favor of planting more red varieties. It's hard to find much that's really exciting and distinctive, even from some of our favorite small producers. We devour most everything we can get from Bastide Saint Dominique up and down their lineup, but even their basic Cotes du Rhone Blanc is in all too small a percentage of their production. This is he type of wine we wish we could From a single site with an average vine age of @30 years, Viognier is the primary grape in this blend with equal portions of Grenache Blanc and Clairette making up the balance. Lots of floral and tropical fruit to the nose from the Viognier, but tempered by some green citrus and cool melon tones. The palate has some of the plush fruit from the Viognier, but carries nice energy and citrus zest, freshening the finish with some clean lingering acidity. A tasty option for all kinds of Spring time meals and outdoor activities.
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 Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We will be returning to doing just the one wine on Thursdays and Fridays until further notice. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.
The natural wine movement has taken hold, even in countries with several millennia of cultivation like Greece. One of the things these types of wines do exceptionally well is to help breathe new life into underappreciated and forgotten varieties. Roditis is a native grape to the Peloponnese peninsula, historically best known for its blended us in making Retsina, but rarely featured on its own. Popularity has rebounded as more consumers look to find lighter, less alcoholic and more naturally acidic wines, which Roditis brings very well especially when planted in the cooler mountainous vineyards. This version feels like it learned some of the important lessons from the great Muscadet producers in the Loire, getting extra texture from their older vines by giving them more time on their lees before bottling. Not quite as much seashell and lean fruit found here as a Muscadet, but lots of clean fresh lemon and high energy citrus to the nose and palate, a touch of salinity and native yeast, but mostly clean and refreshing through the racy finish. This is probably at its best with a little bit of extra chill to really bring out the zesty character, while the fruit gets a bit softer as it warms Great for pool parties to mix it up, as well as light and briny seafood dishes.  Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We will be returning to doing just the one wine on Thursdays and Fridays until further notice. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.
The DNA of the Catena family is prevalent all over our Argentina selections, from their estate wines, value series under the Tilia name, and various spin-off projects from family members and long time employees striking out on their own. They are truly one of the most influential names in Argentinian winemaking, especially when it comes to exploring vineyards at higher altitudes. The more extreme growing conditions here stresses the vines and intensifies the resulting wines, most notably in their single vineyard/single parcel series of reds and whites, which are considered among the very best from the Southern Hemisphere. Their 'Appellation' series examines the same concept but at a more general and affordable look at individual varieties. This white is the newest entry in that series; a bit of a tweak in that it isn't a true single area, but a blend of common soil types dominated by clay. Inspired by the White Bordeaux style with Semillon dominating and a notable presence of French barrel aging, the tweak is using Chenin Blanc instead of Sauvignon Blanc that really plays up the waxy, honeyed richness in both varieties. Lots of golden fruit, barrel notes and beeswax to the nose, very lush and intensely promising, with an equal amount of weight and power to the palate. Surprisingly, the creamy citrus texture has very good acidity born from the higher altitudes that cuts through the finish to bring out some nice citrus tones and keeps the wine from feeling anywhere close to cloying of flabby, A great pairing with creamier seafood dishes or a saucy pork loin.  Even though we will not be doing the public tasting portion of the Insider's Pick until further notice, we will still be offering the wine for purchase with the usual 10% discount on Thursday and Friday. The wines will still be ones we highly recommend, and the tasting notes will still be our own. We will be returning to doing just the one wine on Thursdays and Fridays until further notice. We hope you are able to come by and get some wines to enjoy.
The general hierarchy for wine grapes in the Piedmont has Nebbiolo at the top, followed by Barbera and Dolcetto. At one time Barbera was actually at the top of this trio, until Nebbiolo based wines evolved and improved to become the long lived world class icons they are now.Very little vineyard space in the famed Barolo and Barbaresco growing regions is used for any grapes other than Nebbiolo because the wines and land are so prized. The occasional exceptions are often small, family owned plots scattered here and there that need to produce something special to justify maintaining their place among vines that could be earning a lot more money. This is very much one of those exceptions. Azelia is a small family estate in the famous hilltop town of Castiglione Falletto, recently celebrating their 100th anniversary of producing wine under their name. 'Punta' is a vineyard site at the top of one of many smaller hills surrounding Falletto, where Azelia has maintained a small 2+acre plot of Barbera with vines now exceeding 60 years of age. This is very close to the pinnacle of what Barbera can achieve, offering both intense black fruits and spicy, leathery savory tones with the brightness and fresh feeling palate the varietal is well known for at every price point. The little bit of extra bottle age brings out a bit of added polish to the texture as well as some tobacco leaf and old leather chair aromas, and could probably evolve well for another decade or more, but is in a wonderfully approachable place right now. Deserves to be paired with a great hearty meal with lots of roasted vegetables and meaty/mushroom-y main dishes. |
The Best of the Best.We offering free tastings on these wines in the store every Thursday and Friday, and a 10% discount off the retail price through the duration of the day. Come on by and give them a try! Archives
July 2024
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