September 2012 Newsletter

SEPTEMBER TASTING EVENTS

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 7th -  5:30 to 7:30pm
The Natural Chilean Wines of
WINEMAKER Louis-Antoine Luyt
The only Chilean winery in the Louis Dressner Protfolio.
Special prices will be offered on Luyt wines during the tasting.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 25th – 5:30 to 7:30 pm
Judy Fowler – Owner & Winemaker of Puriri Hills New Zealand Winery
and
Aaron Nieman from De Ponte Cellars, Dundee Oregon

BEER TASTINGS ON FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14th and 21st.
5:30 to 7:30 pm Watch for details via e-mail & Facebook.

DUE TO SCHEDULING CONFLICTS THERE WILL BE NO SHORT SIPS IN SEPTEMBER.

SPECIAL OFFER ON MONCHIERO BAROLO

Barolo has been made at Montanello since the 1200’s. The Monchieros took over the 44 acre estate in 1954 from which they produce about 1,250 cases of Barolo a year. In 1989, they also bought two small vineyards nearby, Le Rocche and Roere. Both estates are located in Castiglione Falletto, a region renown for Barolos of rich bouquet, velvety texture, power and great longevity. We have the 2005, 2006 and 2007 vintages, all great years in the Piedmont and each vintage sells for a very reasonable $39.95.
Buy a 3 bottle vertical (regularly $119.95) from these three great vintages for only $99.95!

DOMAINE AND MAISON LEROY

Lalou Bize-Leroy the owner of Maison and Domaine Leroy “stands alone at the top of Burgundy’s quality hierarchy.”(RP)  No one in Burgundy makes better Chardonnay and Pinot Noir and thus no one, anywhere, makes a better Chardonnay or Pinot Noir.  She is a perfectionist who produces wines from ridiculously low yields and bottles them naturally, without fining or filtration. Her wines are expensive and I enjoy them only occasionally. Recently at a restaurant for a family celebration, I brought a Domaine Leroy 1997 Corton Charlemagne, the only white wine in the Domaine portfolio. The waiter opened it cautiously and as he took a short sniff his eyes widened and he passed the bottle to me. The nose was an almost heady combination of honeyed pears, melon and ripe fruit and the body and finish belayed the wines age. It was, in a word, memorable. We have two remaining bottles at $299.95 and while it is drinking beautifully, these bottles need to find a good home and so we are discounting the bottle price to $249.95. Here is the original review from 1999:
1997 Domaine Leroy Corton Charlemagne -Domaine Leroy’s sole white, the 1997 Corton-Charlemagne, reveals magnificently ripe aromas of poached pears, apples, smoke, anise, earth, and grilled oak. This sweet, rich, tangy, lively, medium to full-bodied wine offers a flavor profile composed of candied lemons, minerals, and nuts. It is extremely well-balanced, concentrated, and possesses a long, toasty finish. Drink it over the next 10-12 years. Bravo! (WA #125). If the Corton is a stretch you may want to try the 2009 Maison Leroy Bourgogne Blanc, a highly allocated benchmark for basic white Burgundy and probably the finest Bourgogne Blanc produced in ’09. Rich with tropical fruit and melons yet understated; a bit of tension here. $64.95

NEW ARRIVALS

The mother of all southern French Roses:
2011 Domaine Tempier Bandol Rose - (50% mourvedre, 28% grenache, 20% cinsault and 2% carignan):  Light orange-pink.  “Heady aromas of pit fruits, orange pith, strawberry and white flowers, with a subtle herbal quality in the background.  Fleshy, palate-staining nectarine and red berry flavors are braced by zesty minerality and show impressive depth.  Clings with impressive tenacity and leaves suave floral and candied citrus notes behind.” (IWC July, ’12) $37.95
Recently received some cases of David Phinneys, D66 ($39.95) a Grenache) based wine from The Roussillon. In an interview he talks about “discovering” this area of France. Say what?  Don’t tell that to Chapoutier (and others) who has been making terrific wines in that region, like the one below, for years.
2009 Chapoutier Cotes du Roussillon Villages Bila Haut Occultum Lapidem - “From Grenache, Carignan, and Syrah planted in a mixture of gneiss, schist, and chalk, and vinified half each in tank and barrel (demi-muids as well as barriques), is scented with rosemary, sage, blackberry, mulberry, which are joined on a rich, expansive palate by marrow-rich meatiness and a striking, saline, iodine-tinged savor that I can only liken to shrimp shell reduction. (It there’s a wine for “surf ‘n turf,” it’s this.) The sense of clarity, brightness, and energy here is utterly infectious and the combination of pure dark fruits, invigoratingly pungent smokiness, and saliva-inducing salinity is bound to induce hunger - among other things for the next sip. Look for at least ten or a dozen years of stimulating acquaintance.” ( eRobertParker.com #195)  $24.95

GREAT VALUE WINES - PALESTRA From Portugal’s Douro

Wines from Portugal, like Palestra, made from the same grapes used to make Port are THE best wines values around. The 2009 Palestra has a certain boldness and meaty characteristics with great red fruit so typical of these wines. It drinks so much better then the price. Have it with burgers, pasta or steak.  $10.95

AND NOW A WORD ABOUT CORKS

Firstly, the truth is that we LOVE the screw cap. It may be the perfect closure for wine. I often tell people that, if given a choice hundreds of years ago between the screw cap and a cork would early winemakers pick the cork? Not a chance, but at the time cork was the best available option. Secondly, a couple of important points about removing corks especially from older vintages. If you are opening a wine that has a bit of bottle age, say five plus years, please remember to be gentle with the cork. Sometimes a cork will dry out at the top and care must be taken to turn the screw completely through the cork and pull gently. For this we do NOT recommend the Rabbit or the lever models of openers as they apply too much pressure too quickly. Rather, the simple Screwpull or Pull-tap is the tool of choice. MOST IMPORTANTLY – If you break the cork when opening the bottle it does NOT mean the wine is bad, it simply means the cork is broken. If you cannot remove the remaining piece of cork you may need to push it into the bottle and then filter the wine into a decanter. We believe that, outside of a good glass, the right opener and a decanter, the next most important tool is a screen to filter wine.  Please remember that a broken cork is NOT a reason to return a wine and is NOT a wine defect.

MONTHLY SPECIALS