January 2019 Monthly Newsletter

January 2019 Tasting Events

We’re keeping it close to home this month with 2 staff driven tastings:
SATURDAY, JANUARY 12th - 2:00 to 5:00 pm
On Saturday 1/12 our “whatever we feel like opening tasting” will turn a bit more serious when we open selected
Wines of Burgundy- Older Vintages
A few reds, maybe a white and nothing younger than 2010

AND

THURSDAY, JANUARY 24th - 5:30 to 7:30 pm
They are enjoying the summer while we suffer the cold:
WINES of THE SOUTHERN Hemisphere
The Staff’s favorite wines from Australia, New Zealand Argentina Chile and South Africa

Discounts will be offered on all wines opened during these tastings.

WINE TASTING EVERY SATURDAY   2:00pm-6:00pm
‘Whatever we feel like opening”

The Last Saturday Wine School THEME: 
Garganega – the fifth most planted grape in Italy and the principal grape of Soave!
The last Saturday of the month changes from a “whatever we feel like drinking” tasting event to a mini wine school tasting. We’ll pick a topic, theme, etc. and taste with a purpose! 
Come anytime between 2 and 5 pm on Saturday, 1/27.

January “SHORT SIPS” CLASS – Meursault

Another in our occasional series on villages in Burgundy.

We’ll discuss the place and taste examples of one of the most famous villages in the world growing Chardonnay.
A one hour educational program, limited to eight people and held in our fine wine room. Because the demand has been so great we are doing the class twice in JANUARY – FRIDAY & SATURDAY, JANUARY 18th and 19th from 6:00 to 7:00pm –– There is a $15 per person class fee and availability is on a first come first serve basis but you can call & reserve spaces at any time.  (A great idea for your group as a prelude to dinner.)

JANUARY SPECIAL OFFERS

A SPECIAL OFFER: We are very pleased to offer a very special price on the Riserva from one of our favorite Chianti growers!
2015 Il Molino di Grace Chianti Classico Riserva, Tuscany, Italy - “The 2015 Chianti Classico Riserva (made with 100% Sangiovese) has a slightly herbal edge with dried herb and green olive. These come on the heels of sun-ripened tones of black fruit and blackberry confit. You get the ripe fruit flavors of a warm vintage such as 2015 with the tangy, spicy notes that are characteristic of the Panzano in Chianti subzone. Ultimately, those two sides come together with balance and harmony.” WA #239 Regular price: $36.99, On sale in January: $29.99 (no further discounts)
A SPECIAL OFFER: This is a beautiful, older, bottle conditioned Chardonnay from the Premier Cru vineyard of Les Chenevottes which sits a stone’s throw from Le Montrachet. The wine has been impeccable stored and is a tremendous example of grown up Chardonnay. To understand great white Burgundy, everyone should drink a wine like this at least once.
2001 Domaine Borgeot Chassagne-Montrachet, 1er Cru “Les Chenevottes”, Burgundy, France - “Beautiful. Intense and loaded with lime, honey and ripe fruit, but holding back, at least for now, in a manner suggesting this full-bodied white’s best days are still ahead, after medium-term cellaring. Long, juicy finish, with a delectable smoky aroma. Best from 2005 through 2013. 50 cases imported.” (WS 2003) Regular price: $79.99, On sale in January: $64.99 (no further discounts)

NEW ARRIVALS

2016 Shafer Vineyards Red Blend TD-9, Napa Valley, California - “The 2016 Red Blend TD-9 is blended of 58% Merlot, 26% Cabernet Sauvignon and 16% Malbec. It has a very deep purple-black color and displays ready-for-biz, fragrant scents of warm plums, Black Forest cake and blueberry compote with touches of baking spices, bay leaves and potpourri. Full-bodied with a serious, firm frame of ripe, grainy tannins, the palate delivers loads of black fruit and spicy layers with bags of vivacity and panache.” (WA 10/29/18) $71.99
2001 Domaine Saint Etienne Cotes du Rhone Villages, Rhone Valley, France – This 100% Syrah retains power and spice from this very good vintage. Michel Coullomb set up the family estate in 1988 in Montfrin, a little town located between Nîmes and Avignon, at the South of Côtes du Rhône, a few kilometers from Pont du Gard. Today, the vineyard (certified Organic) covers 40 hectares on a pebbles soil. The mix between the soil (pebbles) and the climate (sunny and dry), allows Michel to make fruity, friendly and spicy wines! $23.99
Nothing defines place like Grand Cru Burgundy. Drink your red blends, your natural wines but, eventually, as Neil deGrasse Tyson says: All roads lead to Burgundy.
2011 Maison Olivier Bernstein Clos de La Roche Grand Cru, Burgundy, France - The 2011 Clos de La Roche captures the essence of this site in its blue/blackish fruit, vibrant mineral notes, crushed rocks, mint and violets. Intense, aromatic overtones appear later, adding lift and finesse. This is a fabulous showing from Olivier Bernstein. A few years of cellaring will do the 2011 a world of good.” (AG Vinous 3/14)  $399.99
2014 Domaine Jean-Michel Guillon Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru, Côte de Nuits, Burgundy, France- “Tasted from barrel. A potent nose reflects notes of reduction, wood toast and menthol. There is seriously impressive size, weight and power to the full-bodied and muscular flavors that display notably more minerality on the hugely long and serious but impeccably well-balanced finale. This is structured and indisputably built-to-age but it’s not especially austere or rustic.” (BH 61) $219.99

NEW ARRIVALS – Cantina Del Pino Barbaresco

2014 Cantina del Pino Barbaresco Ovello, Piedmont Italy – “The beautiful 2014 Barbaresco Ovello opens to a precious and delicate personality. There is plenty of aromatic intensity here, and it comes forth with dried blueberry, pressed violet, wild rose and earthy truffle. The mouthfeel is silky and smooth, but it also shows firm density and solid structure. This Barbaresco should hold nicely for the next 15 years or so. Only 4,000 bottles were produced in this vintage.” (WA #238) $59.99
2014 Cantina del Pino Barbaresco, Piedmont, Italy – “The delightful 2014 Barbaresco by Renato Vacca and his family is a smooth and delicate wine. It shows a dark and intact color with light berry aromas followed by light shadings of spice, tar and tobacco. The wine appears light and streamlined in terms of mouthfeel, yet it also delivers power, structure and length. Some 8,000 bottles were made.” (WA 238) $41.99

MONTHLY SPECIALS