Category Archives: Newsletter Archive

Vinopolis Newsletter – Friday 8/18/23

In This Newsletter:
Special Arrival
Azienda Agricola Arianna Occhipinti
Arrivals
Domaine Drouhin, La Jota, Saint Cosme, Saxum, and more!
Recently Reviewed
New accolades for Bedrock Wine Co.
Tenuta Delle Terre Nere
This Etna winery is heating up

Close-Out Sales
Raising the roof with lowered prices
Five Day Sale
Save with Selbach
Special Collector’s Arrival
Leonardo, Michaelangelo, Burlotto?

Special Arrival
“Azienda Agricola Arianna Occhipinti”

Arianna Occhipinti is part of the current generation of natural winemaking superstars. Although educated in enology and viticulture at Milan University, she truly learned the trade working with her uncle at COS winery in Sicily. This real world experience lead her to bucking much of the established wisdom in mainstream winemaking with massal selection vines, Biodynamic viticulture, biodiversity, minimal sulfur usage, no filtration, wild fermentations, and cement tank maceration.

Her style and passion have helped to reinvent winemaking in the minds of a younger generation, creating a beverage that is fresh, immediate, and tells a captivating story about place.

Occhipinti Sp68 Bianco Sicilia 2022 750ml $31.90 special, 21 bottles available
Importer’s Note “SP68 is the name of the road that cuts through my original vineyard in Vittoria. The name of a road, for a wine which is a journey. That of the farmers who already three thousand years ago left from the country with the amphorae, and then the casks, and inside the fruit of their labor, fatigue, joy, even the smell of the soil. The journey of the farmers, even today headed for their vineyard, amongst meetings and works exchanged, under the clear sky.”

Occhipinti Sp68 Rosso Sicilia 2022 750ml $31.90 special, 24 bottles available
Importer’s Note “73% Frappato, 30% Nero D’avola. The fruit is mainly destemmed and co-fermented with native yeasts in concrete tanks and with a two-week skin maceration. The wine is aged in concrete tank for 8 months and bottled unfiltered. Minimal sulphur is added before fermentation and at bottling. Occasionally the wine needs an extra addition after racking.”

Occhipinti Il Frappato Sicilia 2021 750ml $49 special, 24 bottles available
Arianna Occhipinti’s Note “Il Frappato stems from a dream which I had when I was a girl to make a wine that knows the land that I work, the air I breath and my own thoughts. It is bitter, bloody and elegant. That is Vittoria and the Iblei Mountains. It is the wine that most resembles me: brave, original and rebellious. But not only. It has peasant origins, for this it loves its roots and the past that it brings in; but, at the same time, it is able to fight to improve itself. It knows refinement without forgetting itself.”

Also Available from Occhipinti

Occhipinti Il Frappato Sicilia 2020 750ml $44.50 special, 31 bottles available

James Suckling 93 Points “Aromas of suede, dried rose and dried strawberry. Medium-bodied with slightly firm tannins. Linear on the palate and rather pretty, fresh and long. Drink or hold.”

New Arrivals

Oregon

“Domaine Drouhin”

Domaine Drouhin Oregon Laurene Pinot Noir 2019 375ml $39 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 96+ Points “The 2019 Pinot Noir Laurène is youthfully coiled at this stage and will take more time in bottle to unwind. It opens with flinty, rocky notes, fleshing out to blackberry, red cherry and dark, spicy undertones. The palate is silky, intense and long, with a plethora of savory accents hinting at more to come.”

Domaine Drouhin Roserock Chardonnay 2021 750ml $36 special, 12 bottles available
James Suckling 94 Points “Notes of dried apples, glazed lemons, orange curd, roasted almonds and crushed stones. Hints of dried lemon peel, too. Full-bodied and broad yet it is delicate with impressive fresh acidity. Incredible minerality here with a touch of zestiness at the end. Lingering finish.”

Domaine Drouhin Roserock Eola-Amity Pinot Noir 2021 750ml $36 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Spectator 94 Points “Graceful and precise, with dynamic cherry and red plum flavors highlighted by fresh violet and brown spices, which glide on the long, sleek finish toward refined tannins.”

Domaine Drouhin Roserock Zephirine Pinot Noir 2021 1.5L $128 special, 6 magnum bottles available
James Suckling 97 Points “Beautifully fragrant notes of cocoa-dusted raspberries and crushed blueberries with dried rose petals, sencha tea, cherry chocolate and crushed rocks. Ground spices, too. It shows both delicacy and power, with a compact and silky feeling to the tannin structure and impressive acidity which carries the freshness and tone through to the finish. Attractive tension of crunchy blue fruit and spices.”

Re-Arriving from Domaine Drouhin

Domaine Drouhin Oregon Dundee Hills Pinot Noir 2021 750ml $45 special, 14 bottles available
Wine Spectator 94 Points “Graceful and fragrant, with delicately layered cherry and raspberry flavors laced with rose petal, dusky spices and a hint of fresh forest floor. Ends with refined tannins.”
James Suckling 94 Points “Fragrant and open pinot with aromas of cherries, wild strawberries, orange zest, nutmeg and white pepper. It’s medium-bodied with silky, creamy tannins. Delicious balance of just-ripe berry fruit and subtle spice. Very long, too.”

Italy

“GD Vajra”

GD Vajra Barolo Albe 2019 750ml $33.50 special, 36+ bottles available
James Suckling 93 Points “A firm and polished red with berries and spices, like nutmeg and pepper. Orange peel, too. Medium body. Fresh and energetic finish.”

GD Vajra Barolo Bricco Delle Viole 2019 750ml $89 special, 24 bottles available
James Suckling 94 Points “Aromas of crushed stone, flowers and berries follow through to a medium to full body with firm and velvety tannins and a juicy finish. Very primary now and needs time to develop in the bottle. From organically grown grapes.”

GD Vajra Barolo Coste Di Rose 2019 750ml $69 special, 34 bottles available
Not yet reviewed- 2018 review listed for reference
Wine Advocate 94 Points “With fruit from above the village of Barolo, the G.D. Vajra 2018 Barolo Coste di Rose shows a large aromatic scope and ample substance. This vineyard is characterized by very high density Diano sandstone (typical of the area), which explains the wine’s bigger sensorial impact. Its texture is velvety and smooth, and the wine offers lots of purple and red fruits with soft earth and perfumed flower. The vintage is open knit and broad in scope, perhaps lacking some of the brilliant focus you get in the cooler years.”

GD Vajra Barolo Ravera 2019 750ml $89 special, 36+ bottles available
Not yet reviewed- 2018 review listed for reference
Wine & Spirits 96 Points “This wine shows a darker and more savory profile than Vajra’s Costa di Rose, its black-cherry flavors tinged with notes of licorice and tobacco. Scents of lavender and violet lend a delicate touch to the wine, which continued to gain verve and freshness with time in the glass.”

France

“Saint Cosme”

Château Saint Cosme is the benchmark for the Gigondas region. Wine has been produced on the site of Saint Cosme since Roman times, evident by the ancient vats carved into the limestone below the château. The Château itself has been in the hands of the Barruol family since 1490. Louis Barruol, the current owner and winemaker took over from his father in 1992,which marked a dramatic upswing in quality including the beginning of their négociant wines and converting biodynamic farming in 2010.

Saint Cosme Gigondas Rouge 2021 750ml $45 special, 36+ bottles available
Saint Cosme Gigondas Rouge 2021 1.5L $99 special, 12 bottles available
Vinous 92-94 Points “Deep magenta. High-toned cherry and blackberry aromas show veyr good clarity with black pepper and smoky mineral accents. Shows firm tension and a spicy cut to its gently sweet red and dark berry, bitter chocolate and succulent herb flavors. Youthfully gripping tannins lend framework to a long, smoky finish that echoes the spice and floral notes. This is textbook Gigondas, raised in a combination of one-third concrete tanks and two-thirds large oak barrels, 20% of those new.”

Saint Cosme Gigondas Hominis Fides Rouge 2021 750ml $125 special, 30 bottles available
Vinous 95-97 Points “Deep, vivid ruby-red. Intensely perfumed, mineral-tinged scents of medicinal cherry, redcurrant and cassis are complemented by suggestions of star anise, white pepper and pungent flowers. It offers densely packed bitter cherry, red berry liqueur, lavender and licorice flavors that open up very slowly with air. Extremely primary but highly promising, with a long, spice- and mineral-tinged finish shaped by youthfully firming tannins.”

Saint Cosme Gigondas Hominis Fides Blanc 2021 750ml $66 special, 12 bottles available

Saint Cosme Gigondas Le Claux Rouge 2021 750ml $125 special, 36 bottles available
Vinous 95-97 Points “Brilliant violet color. Displays pungent, mineral- and spice-accented cherry, black raspberry, potpourri and licorice aromas, along with hints of savory herbs, vanilla and incense. Chewy and tightly focused on the palate, offering bitter cherry, dark berry and Moroccan spice flavors that unfurl slowly through the back half. It closes with firm tension, chewy tannins and excellent tenacity, leaving resonating cherry and floral notes behind.”

Saint Cosme Gigondas Le Poste Rouge 2021 750ml $125 special, 30 bottles available
Vinous 95-97 Points “Deep magenta. Expansive, spice-and mineral-tinged black raspberry, kirsch and boysenberry aromas are complicated by suggestions of incense, lavender and smoky minerals. Alluringly sweet and focused in the mouth, offering densely packed red and blue fruit preserve, floral pastille and exotic spice flavors that smoothly balance weight and finesse. This wine shows superb finishing clarity and mineral lift on the penetrating and impressively long finish, which features polished tannins and resonating fruit, floral and mineral notes.”

Saint Cosme Le Poste Blanc 2021 750ml $66 special, 12 bottles available
Vinopolnote “If there was an appellation for white wines in Gigondas, this would be labelled Gigondas Blanc, but as none exists, this 100% Clairette wine must be declassified to AOC Côtes-Du-Rhône. Vinified in used traditional demi-muids without malolactic fermentation and aged 10 months on lees, this is crisp and satisfying with excellent minerality and flint notes.”

Arriving Late August
(Very Limited Arrivals!)

La Jota Ws Keyes Chardonnay 2020 750ml $109 special, 6 bottles available
Winemaker’s Note “The 2020 W.S. Keyes Chardonnay opens with a complimentary nose of white peach and other orchard fruit, jasmine, and almond. On the palate, a mineral-drenched core of red and green apples is complicated by maple butter, white pepper, and toast. The overarching compilation of fruit, floral, savory, and spice is remarkable, conveying both energy and richness in this complex bottle.”

Chateau Lassegue Les Cadrans De Lassegue GC 2020 750ml $29 special, 24 bottles available
Winemaker’s Note “Les Cadrans de Lassègue 2020 shows an intense and deep color. Black and red fruits abound on the nose, dominated by cherry, blackberry, and red currant, punctuated by nutmeg and rose petal. The palate is rich and fruit-forward, carried by silky tannins. The length, lively minerality, and persistent finish are the expression of the estate’s clay-limestone soils in an excellent vintage.”

Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 96 Points “This is made with fruit from the Sexton Vineyard, at 200 meters in altitude (80 meters higher than Tarraford). Within the vineyard, the clones are dominated by Gingin (brought over to Victoria by Phil Sexton), followed by Dijon clones, planted in the 1990s. The 2021 Sexton Vineyard Chardonnay is composed of 60% Gingin. Twenty percent of the parcels went through malolactic fermentation—clone 277 and some of the 96. This is salty as anything—a very good thing in my book—and the sheer intensity of flavor in the mouth is mouthwatering. Preserved lemon and grapefruit pith lace the edges of the mid-palate. Very smart—it has the Yarra precision of acid and streamlined phenolics, but it brings concentration of flavor and thrilling phenolics. Super smart wine.”

Giant Steps Sexton Vineyard Pinot Noir 2021 750ml $79 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Spectator 96 Points “Fragrant and expressive, with polished, creamy tannins setting the stage for blueberry, raspberry and cardamom flavors. Delivers details of palo santo, brown sugar, dried violet and sweet mint tea on the long, impressive finish. Drink now through 2034.”

Arriving Early September

Cameron Riserva Nebbiolo 2019 750ml $39 special, 36 bottles available
Winery Notes “Our Riserva Nebbiolo emanates from the perfect site for growing Nebbiolo in Oregon, the marine sedimentary soil of White Oak Vineyard. Most years our nebbiolos are reminiscent of Ghemme or Gattinara, but the 2018 has moved into the Langhe. Like the real deal, this wine receives a minimum of four years total aging. Its nose is characterized by dried cherries, dried currants, leather and rose petals. Its focused palate delivers a vibrant acidity typical of this varietal. The label represents our native Oregon White Oak.”

Cameron Pinot Noir Reserve Dundee Hills 2021 750ml $39 special, 36+ bottles available
Winery Notes “First and foremost bing cherry. Maybe a little stewed. Accentuated by a cocoa nib base note. Straw and sandalwood. Turkish fig, iodine and boysenberry. Ferrous on the nose, I want to say blood. A back note of sage and come with me on this one, nasturtium. Also library chair leather, candied orange rind, lavender, soft tannins, that roll across the tongue. A blend of Abbey Ridge, Clos Electrique, and La Colina vineyards.”

Recently Reviewed
New Accolades for Bedrock Wine Co.

Bedrock The Bedrock Heritage Sonoma Red 2021 750ml $51.90 special, 23 bottles available
“2021 Bedrock Wine Company, Bedrock Vineyard Heritage Red Wine, Sonoma Valley.
There’s so much going on here in Bedrock’s 2021 Heritage Red Zinfandel blend that it almost overwhelms the senses and you can tell this is something special, definitely one of my favorite versions to date, with a deep purple saturation of color, mineral tones and lovely aromatics that include floral and spicy elements along with incredible concentration of fruit, without heaviness or overt sweetness. This vintage has a thrill of energy to go with its fruit density with opulent and vinous layers of black raspberry, Italian cherry, wild plum, loamy mulberry and brambly huckleberry fruits along with perfectly judged wood accents, anise, sage, briar and incense. Morgan Twain-Peterson MW, winemaker and owner of Bedrock, uses only grapes that come from the original 1888 plantings at his Bedrock Vineyard, for this spectacular California wine from the heart the heart of the Sonoma Valley. This historic vineyard is set on well drained rocky soils in a climate that sees lots of sunshine and heat in the Summer, but that cools down dramatically at night with the valley pulling in cool air from the west and the Pacific as well as afternoon breezes. The Bedrock Vineyard includes a high percentage of Zinfandel, but there are dozens of other varietals interplanted here, including Mataro, Grenache, Petite Sirah and other rare old grapes, like Alicante Boushet and Carignan, all of which add to the complexity, balance, a touch of savoriness and very age worthy substance here. As reference points, I tend to try to compare and relate this wine to others in its class, but sometimes, in a vintage like this, that proves harder than you’d imagine, leaving me to just say this is one of California’s best wines with, as I’ve said before, a bounty of pleasure in the glass.”

-Grape Live 8/15/23

Tenuta Delle Terre Nere
This Etna Winery is heating up

“The Etna is the Burgundy of the Mediterranean,” says the man whose career as an importer of fine Italian wines is legendary. Marc De Grazia is one of the original ‘Barolo Boys,’ and his beloved Tenuta Delle Terre Nere was more than 20 years in the making. Today, he farms 29 parcels on the northern flank, and his portfolio of wines is the gold standard for Etna wine.”

-Wine Advocate

Terre Nere exists because one visionary saw the charred soils on the northern slopes of Etna (Terre Nere litrerally means “Black Lands”) and saw the potential for high quality viticulture. Why? Volcanic soils are acidic by nature, rich in minerals like potassium and iron, with excellent drainage, leading towards naturally small and concentrated berries. De Grazia has taken his love of Burgundy and translated it to Sicilian terroir, dividing the best of his land into “Crus” and even “Grand Crus” such as his Calderara Sottana, which was named one of Decanter Magazine’s Top Wines of 2022.

We still have a few bottles of this wine– don’t miss out on this unique and acclaimed wine!

Terre Nere Calderara Sottana Rosso 2019 750ml $59 special, 16 bottles available
Decanter 98 Points “100% Nerello Mascalese. A seductive nose with ripe berry fruit, white truffle and dried rose notes. Elegant and fresh with a balanced structure, volcanic mineral aromas and a vibrant finish. A refined wine that has energy and complexity with tension like silk, and will age well. Longstanding and persistent. Drinking Window: 2023-2045.”

Terre Nere Etna Rosso 2021 750ml $24 special, 14 bottles available
Wine Spectator 91 Points “A lively red that dances across the palate, with juicy wild cherry and strawberry fruit, light, fine tannins and fragrant accents of tea leaves, violet, graphite and spices. Drink now through 2028.”

Close-out Sale – Price Reductions
We’re Raising The Roof and Lowering Prices

Nin-Ortiz Planetes De Nin Priorat 2017 750ml WAS $49 NOW $44.50 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 95 Points “The 2017 Planetes de Nin comes from the four hectares of 20-year-old Garnacha and 11-year-old Cariñena in the Planetes vineyard in Porrera at 450 meters in altitude. It’s 60% Garnacha (some of it Peluda) and the rest Cariñena, harvested early. It fermented with indigenous yeasts and matured in 3,200-liter oak vats and one 1,000-liter amphora for 17 months. It has depth and harmony, and the vines are getting older and seem to be better and better balanced. This is not that different from the 2016; it feels quite stable and has its style and character, especially since the 2015 vintage. 9,704 bottles were filled in April 2019.”

Nit De Nin Mas D’en Cacador Priorat 2017 750ml WAS $99 NOW $89 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 97+ Points “The 2017 Nit de Nin Mas d’en Caçador is a vintage they talk about like this: “We will remember this vintage as one of the most extreme of the decade, along with that of 2012. It is in years like these that the work we do in the field is rewarded. In spite of the climatic exceptionality, we have acidity and pH that seem like a miracle to us. Our vines did not suffer the severe frosts of this 2017.” The wine has lower alcohol than the 2016 but the same pH of 3.3; insultingly young and tender, it doesn’t feel like the wine had a long élevage in oak. It has kept very good freshness and great balance. It’s tasty, pungent and long, with power and elegance and all the components to develop nicely in bottle.”

Ovum Rare Form Day Moon Brut Nature NV 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 29 bottles available
Winery Note “Day Moon is inspired by aged Blanc de Blanc Champagne. Striking straw gold color with a modest, fine mousse. An inviting nose of fresh brioche with a small pad of salted butter and lemon confit. Dried wildflower, straw and ginger follow. Pure energy races as the palate unfolds elegant layers of dried flowers and minerals. The restrained mousse is in harmony with the noticeably long, nutty finish. Native fermentation is completed in amphora, where it is then racked to age in neutral French oak for 1-2 years. Ksenija uses Riesling juice to build a yeast population that she will use to tirage the base wine at a specific atmosphere of pressure designed to match the vinosity of the wine (Day Moon: 3 bar). Minimum 18 months of bottle age on less, additional 6 months age post disgorgement. Brut Nature – 2gL dosage made from aged Riesling. *No added sulfites.”

Ovum Form For Love Nor Money 2020 750ml WAS $51.90 NOW $45 special, 20 bottles available
Winery Note “White gold in the glass, it’s aromas of ripe Bartlett pears and golden delicious apple are deceiving. Under the fresh fruit layer sits a brooding sea of herbs – lemon verbena, eucalyptus, sage. There’s even notes of bittering agents like wormwood and cassia bark, yet they’re not present on the palate. A lightning bolt of acidity strikes your palate upon first taste, and then begins the cascading flavors of salted lemon and white pineapple soaked in chamomile tea. The finish is dry, and layered with dried herbs as the wine warms in the glass. Biodynamic. 1970’s own rooted Riesling, grown at 400 feet on a South facing slope. The Ana vineyard has produced notoriously complex wines for decades. Nestled in the heart of the Dundee Hills, this site collects additional heat units that allow for even ripeness, while the volcanic soils help to maintain salty acidity.”

Siro Pacenti Brunello Pelagrilli 2018 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 31 bottles available
Wine Advocate 94 Points “In an elegantly designed bottle, the Siro Pacenti 2018 Brunello di Montalcino Pelagrilli delivers lots of dark fruit and blackberry, and the quality of the fruit is bold, fresh and still very much alive. The house style prizes concentration and oak spice, but the detailed-minded winemaking is impeccable. The wine is structured and firm and stands apart in a crowd, but alas, it does show an unfortunate 15% alcohol content.”

Paitin Barbaresco Serraboella 2018 750ml WAS $41.90 NOW $38, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 94 Points “This wine draws its fruit from across the Serraboella vineyard in Neive with vines of various ages. The 2018 Barbaresco Serraboella has a broad reach, thanks to its balanced aromas of wild berry, dried cherry, crushed roses and violets. The wine spreads cleanly over the palate, thanks to the extra volume offered by its earthy and delicately mineral flavors. Like other releases from Paitin, the standout feature here is the silky nature of the mouthfeel.”

Paitin Barbaresco Sori Paitin 2018 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 95 Points “The family that owns the Paitin estate lost its patriarch, Secondo Pasquero Elia, as this wine was being readied for release, and he would have been proud of the way this turned out. The 2018 Barbaresco Serraboella Sorì Paitin is glossy and polished with a super fine and delicate quality of fruit. It just glides over the palate as if it were on skates. That beautiful forward momentum is driven by light cassis, dried cherry, iron skillet, candied orange peel and crushed flowers. The finish is exceptionally smooth and elegant.”

Click here to Shop for all 110+ of our Close Out Sale wines!

Five Day Sale
Save With Selbach

Buy 6-11 bottles for a 5% discount
Buy 12+ bottles for a 10% discount

One of the most respected producers in all of the Mosel, the Selbach family has been producing Riesling from their family vineyards for 400 years. In this time, they’ve developed a skill or two while keeping their philosophy minimalist and production methods traditional. They continue, for example to use 1000 liter oak vats in the cellar with no fining, and use only wild yeasts.

They focus a lot of their creative energies on growing the best organic fruit in the vineyard instead of playing mad scientist in the winery later.
You will not find a purer example of Mosel Riesling than with the wines of Selbach-Oster.

Selbach (J.H.) Zelt Himmelreich Kabinett 2019 750ml $16 special, 36+ bottles available
VinopolNote: Purchased fruit from the one of the “Grand Cru” vineyards of the Mittelmosel.

Selbach-Oster Bernkastler Badstube Riesling Auslese 2019 750ml $45 special, 19 bottles available
Wine Advocate 96 Points “The 2019 Bernkastler Badstube Riesling Auslese * is deep and concentrated on the still reductive, flinty and stony nose. Piquant, racy, dense and rich on the palate, this is a laser-sharp, salty-piquant and crunchy Auslese with concentrated lemon chutney notes and lingering salinity and grip. It is stunningly precise and like an ice wine because everything is concentrated due to the perfectly clear and clean botrytis.”
Mosel Fine Wines 95 Points “The 2019er Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Auslese * comes from a parcel of old un-grafted vines in the Bernkasteler Graben situated next to the Bernkasteler Doktor and was fermented down to noble-sweet levels of residual sugar (117 g/l). It offers a superbly attractive and complex nose of grapefruit, yellow peach, honeyed pear, spices, flowers, and mint. The wine coats the palate with ample juicy and yellow honeyed fruits, almond cream, and a touch of nut paste and leaves one with a sense of herbal flavors reminiscent of great Doktor wines in the crystal clear and very long finish,. The after-taste of this truly magnificent Auslese feels sweet rather than noble-sweet.”

Selbach-Oster Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Spätlese 2019 750ml $31.90 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 93 Points “The 2019 Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Spätlese is very clear, pure and flinty on the intense, elegant, crunchy and slatey nose. Salty, piquant and lush on the palate, this is a crystalline, pure and salty Badstube that is juicier and rounder than the 2018.”
Mosel Fine Wines 92 Points “The 2019er Bernkasteler Badstube Riesling Spätlese was made from fruit picked at 90° Oechsle and was fermented down to sweet levels of residual sugar (69 g/l). It offers a very delicate and nicely perfumed nose of white flowers, rose petal, vineyard peach, apple, laurel, and herbs. The wine proves delicately juicy and refined on the smooth and slightly juicy palate and leaves a delicate sense of lightness in the more fruity-styled than really sweet-tasting finish. This is a joyful and remarkably easy-drinking expression of Spätlese.”

Selbach-Oster Graach Domprost Riesling GG 2020 $45 special, 13 bottles available
Stuart Pigott 95 Points “Expansive yet very precise, exotic-fruit nose. Powerful and concentrated, though only medium-bodied, with so many subtle mineral and exotic-fruit nuances. Very long finish. Drink or hold.”

Selbach-Oster Estate Riesling Feinherb 2019 $18 special, 36+ bottles available
Winery Note “Selbach-Oster Rieslings are not ‘Zeitgeist’-trendy wines that change according to the whims of fashion. Nor are they ‘made’ according to a recipe. Though they are deeply delicious, they do not seek to ‘seduce’ with short-term exotic aromas from specially cultured yeasts, aromatic enzymes or ice-cold fermentations. They are true characters, wines with structure, wines that display their heritage, rooted deep into the slate rock like our old vines – many of which are still on their own vitis vinifera roots.”

Selbach-Oster Schlossberg Beerenauslese* 2005 375ml $89 special, 9 bottles available
Wine Spectator 98 Points “Sweet and backed by a vibrant structure, this is elegant and detailed, with concentrated red berry, lime and nectarine. One of the few BAs to show a mineral component. Terrific balance and harmony, ending with a long, slate-tinged aftertaste. Drink now through 2040.”

Selbach-Oster Zelting Sonnenuhr Auslese** 2013 375ml $24 special, 10 bottles available
Wine Spectator 98 Points “Sweet and backed by a vibrant structure, this is elegant and detailed, with concentrated red berry, lime and nectarine. One of the few BAs to show a mineral component. Terrific balance and harmony, ending with a long, slate-tinged aftertaste. Drink now through 2040.”

Selbach-Oster Zeltinger Riesling Kab Trocken 2019 750ml $24 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Spectator 98 Points “Sweet and backed by a vibrant structure, this is elegant and detailed, with concentrated red berry, lime and nectarine. One of the few BAs to show a mineral component. Terrific balance and harmony, ending with a long, slate-tinged aftertaste. Drink now through 2040.”

Selbach-Oster Zelt Schlossberg Riesling GG 2019 $41.90 special, 33 bottles available
James Suckling 94 Points “This has the mandarin and yeasty aromas from long fermentation, but with some aeration, mirabelle and quince notes develop. A powerful dry wine that retains the classic Mosel vitality and crispness. Long, intense mineral finish. Better from 2021.”

SALE ENDS @6PM Monday the 21st

Special Collector’s Arrival

Leonardo, Michaelangelo, Burlotto?

These Wines Are True Modern Masterpieces

G. B. Burlotto Barolo 2019 750ml $79 special, 7 bottles available*
Vinous 92 Points “The 2019 Barolo is a very pretty, elegant wine. In this vintage, the straight Barolo has (unusually) a touch of whole cluster influence that drives the aromatic profile, adding gorgeous floral and savory intensity this wine does not typically have. Burlotto’s Barolo is far from an easygoing wine, it is a Barolo to cellar for a few years and drink for another decade or so beyond. This super-classic Barolo is an absolute gem.”

G. B. Burlotto Barolo Acclivi 2019 750ml $149 special, 10 bottles available*
Vinous 94 Points “The 2019 Barolo Acclivi is a very serious wine in this range. It possesses a gorgeous core and tons of supporting structure. I would give the 2019 at least a few years in bottle, as it really needs that time to release its aromatics. I have seen this wine blossom with cellaring, and imagine that will be the case here as well. Today, the Acclivi is quite closed, but time in the glass releases gorgeous red fruit and blood orange character. Although the Acclivi is not as coveted as the Cannubi or Monvigliero, it is an important wine in its own right, as several recent bottles of the 2006 showed. Think of it like Rousseau’s Clos Saint-Jacques relative to the Chambertin and Beze.”

G. B. Burlotto Barolo Cannubi 2019 750ml $349 special, 2 bottles available*
Vinous 98 Points “The 2019 Barolo Cannubi is a powerhouse. A Barolo of real substance and depth, the 2019 packs a huge punch. It offers a great foil to the finesse of Monvigliero. Black cherry, lavender, spice, menthol and leather infuse the 2019 with tons of complexity. Here, too, the tannins are wonderfully integrated into the wine’s fabric, but make no mistake about it, the 2019 has a ton of tannin!”

G. B. Burlotto Barolo Castelletto 2019 750ml $399 special, 2 bottles available*
Vinous 97 Points “The 2019 Barolo Castelletto is dazzling in the way it marries fruit density with the dark, balsamic-tinged profile and structural feel that is the signature of the wines from Castelletto. The 2019 is quite rich and yet the tannins- often a challenge here- are handled with real skill. Tremendous.”

G. B. Burlotto Barolo Monvigliero 2019 750ml $399 special, 10 bottles available*
Vinous 99 Points “The 2019 Barolo Monvigliero is a knock-out. What a wine. Rich and layered in the glass, with striking textural intensity, the 2019 unfurls beautifully with a bit of coaxing. All the elements are so well put together for a young wine. Crushed rose petal, mint, sage, rose petal and sweet pipe tobacco lend striking nuance to this dynamic, vibrant Barolo. The 2019 is quite simply magnificent. Its splendor only grows over time.”

*Not available online—call or email to purchase.
These wines are first come, first served and limited to stock on hand

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Vinopolis Newsletter – Wednesday 08/16/2023

In This Newsletter:

Arrivals
Eyrie, Patricia Green, Mt Eden
Wine of the Week
The Reserve of Reservas
Beat the Heat!
Crisp whites for the dog days of Summer

Close-Out Sales
New discounts from Markus Molitor, Muller-Catoir, and more top Riesling producers
Five Day Sale
Save with Selbach
Collector’s Corner
Can’t Beat Burgundy

New Arrivals

Mount Eden Wolff Vineyard Chardonnay 2019 750ml $24 special, 36+ bottles available
Mount Eden Wolff Vineyard Chardonnay 2019 case of 12 750ml bottles $259 special, 2 cases available
Wine Enthusiast 93 Ponts “Chiseled flint, lemon blossom and lime balm aromas pop on the nose of this bottling, from vines planted in 1976. The palate is tightly woven, with pear flesh flavors spiked by grapefruit zest and tangerine peel.”
Vinous 92 Points “The 2019 Chardonnay Wolff Vineyard is the hidden gem in this range, as it so often is. Silky yet deep, with impeccable balance, the Wolff Chardonnay bristles with nuance. Lemon confit, almonds, chamomile, apricot and yellow flowers all grace this classy, understated Edna Valley Chardonnay. Don’t miss it.”

Best Price in the USA!

Louis Roederer Brut Premier NV 6L $599 special, 1 bottle available
Vinopolnote “We’ve all heard of magnums and even Jeroboams, but when was your last opportunity to own a Methuselah (6 Liter) of Champagne!”

***For in-store pick-up only***

Arriving Aug 18^th

Saint Cosme

Re-Arrivals

Eyrie Estate Pinot Gris 2021 750ml $24 special, 12 bottles available
Winery Note “The desire to stay true to place and limit our impact on nature educates Eyrie’s viticulture and winemaking practices. In the winery, we refrain from unnecessarily manipulating the wines during their fermentation and maturation, allowing them to reflect the vintage. When Alsatian clones of Pinot blanc became available in Oregon, a small test plot was planted in Eyrie’s Sisters Vineyard. The block was doubled in the late 1990s. The crop is picked by hand, destemmed, pressed, and run to small stainless steel tanks to ferment and age. We take a slow approach; our Pinot blanc ages 3-4 times longer than most commercial versions before bottling.”

JK Carriere Provocateur Pinot Noir 2021 750ml $24 special, 12 bottles available
Winery Note “The color is red ruby. The nose presents cherry-raspberry-guava with a hint of warm tan oak spice. The palate portrays movement, starting as fully ripe, seductive cherry-peach and moving to darker savory grilled meats, soy and graham. It’s substantial with a medium-plus attack, good acid linearity, a sweet fruit core and finishing on particularly refined polished tannins. A village level wine playing well above its fighting weight.”

Patricia Green Old Vine Estate Pinot 2021 750ml $39 special, 24 bottles available
Winery Note “The Estate Vineyard, Old Vine bottling is the flagship wine of Patricia Green Cellars. It exists because it is both delicious and unique, but also because it shows a particular aspect of this vineyard and the Ribbon Ridge AVA as a whole. This bottling is made up nearly entirely from vines with 24-38 years in vine age, with a large amount being right at 32 years. We have discovered that at around 25 years of vine age we often see a change in the vines’ nature as they become bigger and healthier plants with deep root systems. Once this happens the fruit and resulting wines shift from the darker fruit spectrum to a brighter, redder style.”

Patricia Green Reserve Pinot Noir 2021 750ml $26 special, 12 bottles available
Winery Note “This bottling allows us to accomplish two things that are very important to us as a winery. The first thing is that it allows us to be incredibly detailed about the barrels we select for our vineyard designated wines, so they true expressions of the site on a year in and year out basis. The Willamette Valley Pinot Noir bottling ‘Reserve’ is almost entirely made up of barrels that simply were not included in a more prestigious bottling, which allows us to choose from larger sections of our diverse vineyards. Secondly, it allows us to create a blended wine that has a degree of consistency to it each vintage that is of incredibly high-quality and will retail for under $30.”

Wine of The Week
Tondonia- It’s here again, but won’t be for long

Lopez Heredia Tondonia Gran Reserva 2001 750ml $199 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 98 Points “The 2001 Viña Tondonia Gran Reserva is the follow-up of the 1995. There is a sense of harmony and elegance, of nuance and subtleness that wasn’t quite the same in the Bosconia, as comparing both wines is inevitable. They started picking the red grapes the 15th of October, and the last grapes were picked the 29th of October with good weather. The grapes ripened properly and thoroughly, and the wine has great balance for a long aging in bottle. This is 70% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacho and 5% each Graciano and Mazuelo that fermented in their 153-year-old oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in used barrels for 10 years. It has 13% alcohol, a pH of 3.4 and 6.4 grams of acidity (tartaric). The nose shows young (tasting it blind, you’d guess a 10-year old wine, not a 20-year-old wine!). It has a nose of sweet spices, underbrush and cigar ash, somewhat balsamic, bramble fruit with perfect ripeness, integrated and young but starting to show some tertiary complexity. The palate is velvety and medium-bodied, with fine-grained, chalky tannins denoting a limestone soil that brings finesse and texture and a sapid, tasty, almost salty finish. This is going to make a beautiful bottle of old Rioja in 30 years’ time! 25,000 bottles produced. It was bottled after being fined with egg whites in July 2012.”

Beat The Heat

10 White Wines for the Dog Days Of Summer

Chill ’em down so YOU can chill out

Greywacke Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2022 750ml $21.90 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Spectator 95 Points “Distinctive, succulent and wonderfully complex, offering stone fruit flavors on a rich, smooth and mouthwateringly juicy frame, with notes of honeysuckle, honey-preserved ginger, creamy lemon curd, ripe mango and flowers. Hints of spices linger on the long, expressive finish.”

Jules Taylor Sauvignon Blanc 2022 750ml $18 special, 26 bottles available
Winemaker’s Note “Mind-blowingly incredible diversity of full-throttle flavor, within a row, even within a bunch. Grassy, summery, bright honesty with a hint of spill the beans.”

Muller-Catoir Mandelgarten Riesling Trocken 2018 750ml $28 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 91+ Points “The 2018 Riesling (Gimmeldinger) Mandelgarten “VDP. Erste Lage” is pure, fresh and fine but also ripe and aromatic on the nose. The palate is pure, fresh and straight, less juicy now than the 2017 but nuanced and stimulating due to an earlier harvest. Stimulatingly salty and piquant on the finish.”

Pepiere Muscadet La Pepie 2021 750ml $18 special, 29 bottles available
Importer Note “In 2016, Pépière’s classic, earliest-release bottling saw an addition to the label, the “La Pépie” moniker, because of the necessity of adding non-estate fruit to the production. It marked the first time the estate had purchased fruit. It comes from neighboring parcels that match their terroirs and work philosophy.”

Pieropan Soave 2021 750ml $18 special, 23 bottles available
91 Points Wine & Spirits “Taut acidity enlivens flavors of fleshy pear and golden apple. Floral and fresh, with a touch of leesy richness, this is a classy table wine”.

Royal Tokaji The Oddity Dry Furmint 2019 750ml $18 special, 36+ bottles available
Vinopolnote “If you love your wines very zippy and a touch funky, this is the bottle for you. The Furmint is whole cluster pressed and then fermented in a combination of stainless steel tanks and Hungarian Zemplen oak with absolutely no malolactic fermentation.”

Schaller Chablis Vaucoupin 1er Cru 2021 750ml $39 special, 23 bottles available
Vinopolnote “A toothsome treat that is both refreshingly acidic and invitingly soft. From kimmeridgian clay-limestone soils and aged 10 months, 20% in oak barrels and 80% in stainless steel.

Remejeanne Chevrefeuilles Cotes Du Rhone Blanc 2022 750ml $19.50 special, 36 bottles available
Importer’s Notes “Certified organic. Chèvrefeuilles is French for honeysuckle, the perfume of which you cannot escape during springtime in the southern Rhône. The Klein family is widely respected for their supple and aromatic Côtes du Rhône rouges, and under the guidance of Olivier Klein, Réméjeanne’s white wines have reached the same level.”

Tan Fruit Petite Tan Fruit Chardonnay 2022 750ml $19.50 special, 36+ bottles available
Vinopolnote “Bright and tight, Chablisienne style Chardonnay. This goes down easier than Lemonade on a hot day.”

Tenute Bosco Piano Dei Daini Etna Bianco 2019 750ml $19 special, 23 bottles available
Vinopolnote “A blend of historically important indigenous varieties of Carricante, Catarratto, Grecanico and Inzolia from the vineyards in the two contradas of Paino dei Daini and Santo Spirito. A remarkably fresh wine, pleasantly persistent, with an appropriate balance of acidity and minerality.”

Close-out Sale – Price Reductions
Moving on up by marking wines down

Germany

Molitor Graacher Himmelreich Auslese** GK 2019 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 22 bottles available
Wine Advocate 96+ Points “The yellow-golden 2019 Graacher Himmelreich Auslese ** (Golden Capsule) is brilliantly clear yet also intense and concentrated on the pure, fresh, finely raisined and herbal (rosemary), slightly honeyed nose that is complex and ambitious. Dense and juicy, with a vivacious purity and great finesse, this is a concentrated, vibrantly fresh and tightly structured Auslese with a remarkably digestible finish. There might be some percentage of botrytis that gives this Auslese a lush texture that is otherwise terribly clear and vital.”

Molitor Graach Himmelreich Auslese*** Green 2018 750ml WAS $125 NOW $99 special, 24 bottles available
Wine Advocate 97 Points “Typically bright and open on the nose, with crunchy and flinty slate aromas, the coolish and precise 2018 Riesling Graacher Himmelreich Auslese *** (Green Capsule) is a very fine and elegant, crystalline, fresh and precise, very long and salty Riesling with sweet and concentrated fruit and a long, intense and tightly structured finish. This is a laser-sword Riesling that needs about a decade to refine, yet it will deliver for sure.”

Molitor Ockfener Bockstein Spatlese WK 2018 750ml WAS $31.90 NOW $28 special, 34 bottles available
93 Points Decanter “Here we jump to an iconic Saar site, defined by Devonian slate, greywacke, some quartzitic sandstone and steepness. Wet stone, white currant, yellow apple and some lemon combine in a lovely vision of freshness. This is bright but even in this iconic Saar vineyard the warmth of 2018 is apparent. Yet the stoniness cuts through and leaves us with that lovely, racy zestiness we all crave from Riesling. These citrus notions linger and will you to take another sip. Wonderful.”

Molitor Urziger Wurzgarten Auslese** Trocken 2017 750ml WAS $69 NOW $49 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 96+ Points “Bottled with moderate 11% alcohol, the 2017 Riesling Ürziger Würzgarten Auslese ** (White Capsule) is crystalline and super precise on the clear and flinty nose that exhibits crunchy, iron-rich stone and lime zest aromas. It is lean and fresh but dense and intense on the palate, with ripe, round and concentrated Riesling fruit, some sweetness and refined acidity. This is an elegant, highly finessed and stimulating Würzgarten with a lingering, salty-piquant finish. This wine pairs its moderate alcohol level with great complexity and mineral tension.”

Muller-Catoir Burgergarten Breumel Auslese 2015 375ml WAS $49 NOW $39, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 96 Points “The 2015 Riesling Auslese Haardter Bürgergarten Im Breumel is very clear and concentrated on the nose, but also shows the brown seed aromas of ripe Riesling. Great class and precision here, with some minty flavors. The wine is very concentrated, lush and round on the palate; it reveals a super sweet raisin flavor, as well as great finesse and vitality. This is a gorgeous Auslese with salinity and grip.”

Muller-Catoir Burgergarten Riesling Spatlese 2017 750ml WAS $31.90 NOW $28 special, 25 bottles available
James suckling 95 Points “Stunning nectarine, peach and papaya character, together with lovely succulence and enormous vitality, make this a breathtaking sweet Spätlese with a finish that’s straight as a laser beam and super-clean. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.”

Muller-Catoir Haardt Riesling Trocken 2018 750ml WAS $26 NOW $21.90 special, 48 bottles available
Stuart Pigott 93 Points “Dried honeysuckle, loquat, mirabelle plums and dried lemons make for a concentrated and gripping nose. Warm and very structured on the full-bodied palate with some serious density and phenolics.”

United States

Melka Estates CJ Napa Cabernet Sauvignon 2017 750ml WAS $79 NOW $69 special, 17 bottles available
Wine Spectator 91 Points “Open-knit, offering a gush of steeped plum and açaí berry flavors laced with licorice and ganache hints. Lightens up just a bit through the finish, as the structure is on the modest side, but the fruit is a joy to drink.”

Click here to Shop for all 110+ of our Close Out Sale wines!

Five Day Sale
Save With Selbach

Buy 6-11 bottles for a 5% discount
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SALE ENDS @6PM Monday the 21st

Collector’s Corner
Can’t Beat Burgundy

Barthod Chambolle Musigny Les Cras 2019 1.5L $879 special, 1 bottle available
Wine Advocate 96 Points “The 2019 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Cras is similarly compelling, soaring from the glass with aromas of red berries, exotic spices, orange rind, musk and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and tightly wound, with a deep and vibrant core of fruit that’s framed by fine, powdery tannins, it concludes with a long, penetrating and intensely mineral finish. This is a magical Chambolle-Musigny worth a special effort to seek out.”

Coche-Dury Hospices Cuvee Chaudron Pommard 2019 750ml $799 special, 1 bottle available

Faiveley “Clos de La Roche” Grand Cru 2016 750ml $299 special, 6 bottles available
Importer’s Note “From one of the four Grands Crus of the Morey-Saint-Denis commune. 13.41 hectares (33 acres) is the total vineyard area of the Clos under production. Limestone dominates in the Clos de la Roche, where the soil is barely 30 cm. (12 inches) deep with few pebbles but with large boulders which give the climat its name.”

Faiveley Mazis Chambertin 2019 750ml $419 special, 5 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-95+ Points “Wild and brooding, Faiveley’s 2019 Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru wafts from the glass with aromas of smoked meats, spices, wild berries and forest floor. Full-bodied, layered and sapid, it’s broad and muscular, with a deep core of fruit and youthfully chalky tannins. This is a serious Mazis built for the long haul.”

Jean-Marc Millot Clos Vougeot “Grand Maupertuis” Grand Cru 2015 750ml $249 special, 2 bottles available
Jean-Marc Millot Clos Vougeot “Grand Maupertuis” Grand Cru 2016 750ml $249 special, 2 bottles available
Importer’s Note “Jean-Marc Millot has been growing grapes and making estate bottled wines since 1992. With an amazing lineup of vineyards under his name, including 3 Grand Crus (Echezeaux, Grands Echezeaux, and Clos de Vougeot), it was clear this domaine was headed towards greatness. It wasn’t until his daughter, Alix, arrived in 2014 and took on the full grape growing and winemaking responsibilities that this greatness was achieved. The wines have that rare ability to provide immediate carnal pleasure, while having the stuffing to age for decades. This is truly one of the most exciting domaines in Burgundy.”

Hubert Lignier Clos de La Roche 2018 750ml $519 special, 2 bottles available
Hubert Lignier Clos de La Roche 2018 1.5L $1049 special, 1 bottles available
Decanter 96 Points “Laurent Lignier uses 0.8ha of his two holdings in the climats of Les Fremières and Monts Luisants to produce this refined expression of Clos de la Roche. Savoury and sweet, with 30% whole clusters adding aromatic spices and extra structure in 2018, this is graceful, subtle and concentrated with palate-caressing summer berry fruit and refreshing palate length. Drinking Window 2026 – 2036.”
Wine Advocate 95+ Points “Revisited in bottle, Lignier’s 2018 Clos de la Roche Grand Cru lives up to its fine performance in barrel, wafting from the glass with aromas of dark berries, cherries and orange rind mingled with truffle, espresso roast, loamy soil and dark chocolate. Full-bodied, concentrated and seamless, it’s layered and vibrant, with a deep core of pure fruit that largely conceals impressive reserves of fine, powdery tannins. Concluding with a long and saline finish, it will merit and reward at least a dozen years’ patience, likely hitting its stride around age 20.”

Hubert Lignier Griotte Chambertin 2017 750ml $519 special, 1 bottle available

Louis Latour Romanee St Vivant Journaux 2016 750ml $599 special, 3 bottles available
James Suckling 100 Points “This is a grand cru that shows its intensity and complexity and greatness from the beginning. Blackberry, licorice and stone aromas. Full body and a center palate that shows ripe fruit and full richness. Then the tannins kick in. Great wine. Drink in 2024.”

Meo Camuzet Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru 2019 750ml $419 special, 2 bottles available
Vinous 95-97 Points “The 2019 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru is quite closed on the nose, offering discreet blackberry, raspberry and light violet aromas that you might mistake for a Vosne-Romanée. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent ripe tannins. This is a juicy Clos de Vougeot, a little savory and quite peppery on the finish, which you might misconstrue as a result of some stem addition. Sculpted with Jean-Nicolas Méo’s finest chisel, this is a wonderful Clos de Vougeot.”

Montille Vosne-Romanee 1er Malconsorts 2017 1.5L $949 special, 1 bottle available
Decanter 95 Points “The de Montille Malconsorts has lightened up in 2017, which may be a vintage thing. This is less oaky and chewy than some of its predecessors. The 100% whole bunches are very well done, adding some savoury, sappy notes to the layered red and black fruits, with floral top-notes wafting above the surface.”

Hudelot Noellat Vosne Romanee Beaux Monts 2019 $469 special, 5 bottles available
Vinous 94-96 Points “The 2019 Vosne-Romanée Les Beaumonts 1er Cru is well defined on the nose, a mixture of red and black fruit displaying fine mineralité and tension. The palate races out of the blocks with fine structure and delineation, and again, superb mineralité; palpable tension propels it through to the finish. You can almost feel the rock that lies just 20cm under the soil of this vineyard. Outstanding.”

Ponsot Clos de La Roche Vieilles Vignes 2016 750ml $799 special, 5 bottles available
Wine Advocate 97 Points “The 2016 Clos de la Roche Grand Cru Cuvée Vieilles Vignes is superb, bursting from the glass with aromas of juicy cherries, peonies, blood orange, licorice, raw cocoa and espresso roast. On the palate, it’s full-bodied, deep and succulent, with a concentrated, layered mid-palate, satiny structuring tannins and vibrant underlying acidity, concluding with a long finish. Harvested on October 7 at a comparatively high yield by Ponsot’s standards of 38 hectoliters per hectare, this year seems to have been perfectly adapted to Ponsot’s style. Vibrant, elegant and expressive, the 2016 is quite different from the richer, more powerful 2015, but in the fullness of time, I wouldn’t be surprised to see it surpassing its brawnier elder sibling.”

Cecile Tremblay Chambolle 1er Feusselottes 2019 750ml $999 special, 7 bottles available
Wine Advocate 95 Points “The 2019 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Feusselottes has also turned out beautifully, wafting from the glass with a complex bouquet of raspberries and blackberries mingled with hints of orange rind, violets and exotic spices. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and enveloping, it’s deep and fleshy, with a layered core of fruit, lively acids and remarkable structural finesse for such a young, undeniably concentrated wine. This might well be the finest Feusselottes that Tremblay has produced to date.”

Cecile Tremblay Morey St Denis Tres Girard 2013 750ml $399 special, 5 bottles available
Vinous “(vinified with 50% whole clusters): Medium red. Soil-driven aromas of mocha, earth and smoky, rocky minerality. Ripe and sweet, with a pungent mineral spine and sound acidity intensifying the wine’s red fruit flavors. Finishes with good mineral energy.”

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Vinopolis Newsletter – Monday 8/14/2023

In This Newsletter:

Arrivals
Von Winning, St Cosme
Oregon: More Than Just Pinot Noir
The Wines of Peter William

Close-Out Sales
New discounts from Spain, Germany, and Tuscany
Rockin’ Rhone Sale– Ends In 2 Days
Save up to 10% on Chateau Rouanne
Collector’s Corner

Welcome to California

New Arrivals

Von Winning Herrenletten Riesling Erste Lage Trocken $39 special, 17 bottles available
Importer Note “Limestone, Loam, & Red Sandstone. Fermentation & Elevage: Stainless Steel.”

Von Winning Jesuitengarten Riesling Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $119 special, 6 bottles available

Von Winning Kalkofen Riesling Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 95-96 Points “The 2021 Kalkofen Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from the plateau above Deidesheim and owes its density and complexity to 65-year-old vines growing on sandstone and limestone. The must is fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels, and the wine is maturing on the lees. The brilliantly clear and radiant sample opens with a deep, intense and elegant, still oaky but complex and fruit-intense bouquet that gives rise to the highest hopes. Rich and intense but also fresh and elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, mineral and textured Kalkofen that obviously wants to be a Meursault or Montrachet yet with the weapons of Riesling and also Buntsandstein. Whatever it is, this is an excellent and promising Kalkofen whose development and capacity I’d love to follow for at least a decade. The wine is dense and tight but also fresh and juicy and provided with very fine tannins and sustainable mineral acidity. Highly promising indeed.”

Von Winning Kieselberg Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-95 Points “The 2021 Kieselberg Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from a plateau above Deidesheim with sandstone and limestone in the soil. Fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak vats and still maturing in them, the barrel sample shows a clear, elegant and savory nose of bright and ripe fruit aromas intertwined with oaky and yeasty notes. Creamy textured and very elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, tight and saline-finishing Riesling with fine and grippy tannins and lingering salinity and mineral tension. It’s still very young but worthy to be cellared for at least a decade.”

Von Winning Langenmorgen Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-94 Points “The 2021 Langenmorgen Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage is grown in a cool area up by the forest on a light sandstone soil. It fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels, in which the wine is aging until today. The nose shows a brilliantly clear, fresh and flinty, very elegant GG with herbal and soil-driven, flinty-scented intensity and the coolish aromas of slow-ripening Riesling. Very elegant and refined on the palate, this is a round, lush and salty-savory Riesling classic that reveals a long, tight, saline and finely grippy finish. As per the vintage, this is a rather lean, straightforward but tensioned Riesling that will show its class in the years to come. Tasted as a sample at the domaine in November 2022. To be released sometime next year.”

Von Winning Pechstein Riesling GG 2021 750ml $119 special, 6 bottles available

Von Winning Ruppertsberger Riesling Trocken 2021 750ml $41.95 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 92+ Points “The 2021 Ruppertsberger Reiterpfad Riesling trocken VDP. Erste Lage shows a deep, intense and elegant, well balanced and quiet bouquet of ripe white fruits and coolish earthy soil notes of crushed stones and hints of iodine. On the palate, this is a full-bodied, elegant and textured Riesling with serious tannins that intermingle with the saline acidity yet need more time to blend in with the fruit. The oak vat might have been newer or smaller here than in the other Erste Lage Rieslings of the vintage, but the richness and substance of the Reiterpfad can afford it.”

Arriving Aug 18^th

Oregon: More Than Just Pinot Noir
The Wines of Peter William

Since 2013, husband and wife team Peter Adesman and Robin Miller have been making their single vineyard focused estate wines in Medford, Oregon. It’s already common knowledge that areas like Milton-Freewater in Eastern Oregon are producing some of the best Rhône varietals outside of the Rhône, now Southern Oregon is finally getting its due, even seeing recognition in top publications like Wine Enthusiast.

Peter William Grenache 2019 750ml $24 special, 24 bottles available
Gold Medal Winner! Oregon Wine Experience 2022 Competition
Wine Enthusiast 92 Points “Editor’s Choice. This is an exquisite example of the variety. The aromas pop, with pure notes of raspberry, orange twist and white pepper. Plump, pillowy fruit flavors follow. The purity is captivating. It’s an outrageous value.”

Peter William Malbec 2019 750ml $30.90 special, 24 bottles available
Winery Note “Our only Bordeaux Varietal, most often seen on its own from Argentina. This is a big, bold mouth-filling wine of great depth.”

Peter William Extravagance PWV Reserve Red 2018 750ml $39 special, 24 bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 92 Points “This is a 50-50 blend of Tempranillo and Syrah from the estate vineyard. Showcasing what are arguably the top two red grapes from the Rogue, this does not shy away from new oak (50% for 22 months) but has the muscle and fruit to stand up to it. Toasty, dark and tannic, it’s loaded with black cherry, mocha and smoky cedar flavors. It’s a big, bold red that’s ready for anything you put on the smoker.”

Peter William Rose Grenache 2022 750ml $24 special, 24 bottles available
Winery Note: “The wine shows bright, pretty strawberry & light cherry fruit on the nose and palate. Ample acid brightens the fruit flavors and will allow this wine to hold up in the bottle.”

Peter William Syrah Lot B-42 2018 750ml $24 special, 24 bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 92 Points “Briary black fruits are backed by a toasted cashew note in this rich red. The overall balance is spot-on, with ample acidity and tannins but nothing dominating. Drink this supple and tasty wine through 2026.”

Peter William Tempranillo “Lot W” 2017 750ml $24 special, 24 bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 91 Points “Editor’s Choice. Tempranillo shows lots of promise in Rogue Valley and this is a lovely example. ”

Peter William Viognier Daisy Creek Vyd 2022 750ml $24 special, 24 bottles available
Not yet reviewed, Review of the 2021 vintage provided for context
Paul Gregutt “Following on the heels of the outstanding 2020 this Southern Oregon winery nails another great Viognier. It’s a precise mix of fruit and botanicals, with cut and verve. Made at the Barrel 42 incubator, this is less peaches and creamy than the 2020, but just as good in its own way.”

Close-out Sale – Price Reductions

Spain

Bodegas Maranones 30,000 Maravedies 2016 750ml WAS $24 NOW $20.90 special, 24 bottles available
Wine Advocate 91+ Points “The fully developed, aromatic and open 2016 30.000 Maravedíes, with nice aromatics and a very pleasant palate. It’s fragrant and elegant, with pungent flavors and very good persistence. This is a superb showing for this bottling.”

Daniel Landi Las Uvas De La Ira 2018 750ml WAS $39 NOW $31.90 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 93 Points “The red 2018 Las Uvas de la Ira has been produced with Garnacha from the same five vineyards since the initial vintage (2012) in the village of El Real de San Vicente, which is one of the villages from Méntrida (Toledo) that are part of the Gredos Mountains. The vines range between 40 and 65 years of age, and they are located at around 750 meters in altitude on sandy granite soils with lots of silt. The different vineyards are fermented separately in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and a very gentle vinification, one-third with very long macerations to provide structure and depth, one-third with a very short maceration to provide fragrance, and the remaining third finished the fermentation without skins (like a white) to add juiciness. The élevage is in oak foudres of different sizes, from 1,500 to 4,000 liters. This is a little less aromatic and more austere but very focused and bright, from a village where the wines are serious and have a chalky texture, less floral but more citrus, a bit more backward. It has a compact palate, with very fine tannins and a more chalky finish. It’s interesting to taste it next to wines from other villages, as you clearly see the difference.”

Italy

Meleto Chianti Classico Gr Selezione Poggiarso 2018 750ml WAS $51.90 NOW $44.50 special, 12 bottles available
“Tre Bicchiere”-Gambero Rosso
Wine Advocate 93 Points “Once a Riserva and now moved up to the top appellation designation, the Castello di Meleto 2018 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Poggiarso sees fruit selected from across a 1.6-hectare vineyard site. Made with 100% Sangiovese and aged in oak for 27 months, the wine offers some tertiary definition with spice and smoke at the back of purple fruits. The oak spice is integrated (50-hectoliter barrels are used), and the wine concludes with elegant minerality.”

Meleto Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Trebbio 2018 750ml WAS $51.90 NOW $44.50, 23 bottles available
Wine Advocate 94 Points “Here’s a new submission from the stunning Castello di Meleto, which has stone walls and towers in Gaiole in Chianti. The 2018 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Trebbio is a terrific discovery. Made with all Sangiovese from a single vineyard, this wine offers fruit brightness, balance and evident mineral definition. These results are linear and sharp, and the fruit is slightly more vibrant here compared to the Poggiarso.”

Fattoria Luiano CC Ottantuno 2015 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 26 bottles available
Wine Spectator 95 Points “Heady aromas of kirsch, black cherry, violet, tar and iron signal this firm, dense red. Creates fine tension between the ripe, sweet fruit and bitter, savory elements, finding balance as this plays out on the long finish.”

Marcarini Barolo Brunate 2015 750ml WAS $69 NOW $59 special, 25 bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 96 Points “From one of the most celebrated vineyards in the denomination, this stunning red opens with enticing scents of rose, camphor, aromatic herbs and a whiff of sandalwood. The succulent, elegant palate delivers juicy Marasca cherry, crushed pomegranate, licorice and sweet tobacco framed by taut, polished tannins. It’s nicely balanced by fresh acidity.”

Austria and Germany

Max Ferd. Richter Veld Elisenberg Spatlese 2018 750ml WAS $29 NOW $24 special, 36 bottles available
Wine Advocate 94-96 Points “Sourced from old vines, the 2018 Elisenberger Riesling Spätlese was harvested in the third week of October as the very last “regular” wine (so 3.5 weeks after the Kabinett). It is based on completely healthy fruit and was vinified entirely in traditional fuders. Offering a deep and flinty bouquet, this is a lush, elegant, highly refined and stimulating Spätlese with a salty-piquant finish.”

Max Ferd. Richter Juffer Sonnenuhr Auslese 2018 750ml WAS $49 NOW $39 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 96-97 Points “The 2018 Brauneberger Juffer-Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese is very fine, concentrated and beautifully clear, with blossom honey and very fine berry aromas on the nose. (The 20% to 25% of botrytis is very clear and precise, almost imperceptible.) Lush and piquant on the palate, this is a generous but highly digestible Auslese with orange, raisin and (pink) grapefruit flavors. The finish is incredibly racy-piquant, salty and highly digestible. This is still a baby, but it is highly promising.”

Max Ferd. Richter Juffer Sonnenuhr GG 2018 750ml WAS $45 NOW $36 special, 36+ bottles available
James Suckling 94 Points “I love the discreet mirabelle, spice and angelica notes of this finely chiseled dry Mosel riesling that has plenty of depth and structure, but doesn’t yet announce it loudly. Needs some time to open up, but the classic elegance is already very clear.”

Max Ferd. Richter Wehlener Sonn Auslese *** 2018 375ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 97+ Points “The first three-starred Auslese since 2005 (prior to that, it was 1993, 1983 and 1975), the 2018 Wehlener Sonnenuhr Riesling Auslese *** was picked at about 145° Oechsle. This is incredibly clear, pure, fine and fresh on the lush, concentrated, herbal and grapefruit-scented nose. On the palate, this is a generously lush, refined and salty-piquant Auslese with a tight mineral structure and lingering salinity. This is highly refined and extremely stimulating.”

Leitz Rudesheimer Klosterlay Riesling Kabinett 2018 750ml WAS $24 NOW $19, 16 bottles available
Wine Advocate “The first Rieslings of the very dry and warm as well as early 2018 vintage are also promising and stunningly precise and elegant due to the conditions of the vintage that brought nothing but perfectly ripe and healthy grapes. Leitz pressed the grapes in fractions, so he was able to keep the acidity fine and fresh even though it is naturally lower than in 2017… Doubtlessly, Leitz is one of the region’s best Riesling producers. Having said that, he is also one of the best Riesling ambassadors in the wine world, with regular tastings in the US as well as in Norway, two of his most important export markets.”

Leitz Magdelenenkreuz Riesling Spatlese 2018 750ml WAS $26 NOW $21.90, 11 bottles available
Importer Note “Further east and upstream of the Klosterlay is the Magdalenenkreuz. The name translates to “the cross of Mary Magdalene,” named after a red sandstone cross that can be found amongst the vines. Here the soils are comprised of sandy loam—fatter and ideal for ripe expression; the riesling grown here is always textured, opulent and forward. Though the wine is of Spätlese quality it perceivably drinks more like a Kabinett.”

Loewen Thornicher Ritsch Riesling Auslese 2018 750ml WAS $44 NOW $36, 17 bottles available
Mosel Fine Wines 94 Points “The 2018er Thörnicher Ritsch Riesling Auslese was made from almost fully clean fruit harvested at 95° Oechsle and was fermented down to fully sweet levels of residual sugar. The wine offers a rather discreet and herbal nose where the fruity elements (including pear, lemon, starfruit, passion fruit and a hint of coconut) only gradually emerge from the glass. The wine may still be on the sweet side on the palate, but it already shows beautifully alluring and multi-layered flavors of pear, lemon, melon, lemoncello and coconut, all wrapped into some apricot blossom in the finish. This is a ripe but complex sweet wine in the making.”

United States

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Rockin’ Rhone Sale– Ends In 2 Days
Chateau Rouanne

Although the vines in this old Vinsobres estate were planted in the 1960’s, the viticultural history of the site dates back to Gallo-Roman times built upon limestone marl soils originating in the Pliocene era. Spread between 72 hectares it is also the site of three lieu dits: “Guerin,” “Les Cotes,” and “Les Crottes.” Louis Barruol, the 14th generation owner of the the winery Saint Cosme, was a long-time admirer of the finesse and elegance of Chateau de Rouanne’s wines, purchasing it in 2019 and has been crafting wines of undeniable power and terroir since.

Vinsobres has been underrated wine region for decades, but with people like Barruol investing their money and know-how, it is finally beginning to get its due. Look for beauty and elegance in the “Guerin,” bold power in “Les Cotes,” and richness and intensity in the “Les Crottes.”

Buy 6-11 bottles for a 5% discount
Buy 12+ bottles for a 10% discount

Chateau de Rouanne Vinsobres 2019 750ml $24 special , 36+ bottles available
Jeb Dunnuck 90 points “Looking at the reds, the 2019 Vinsobres is unquestionably outstanding and has lots of Syrah character in its dark, meaty fruits, peppery herb, violet, and chalky mineral-like aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied, nicely textured, and balanced, it has plenty of structure and will keep for 8-10 years.”

Chateau de Rouanne Vinsobres “Les Cotes” 2019 750ml $59 special , 20 bottles available
Wine Spectator 93 points “Winey and muscular, with cassis and bitter plum reduction notes leading the way, while baker’s chocolate, tobacco and warm humus fill in behind. Grippy and dark on the finish, with an old-school edge lingering. Syrah, Mourvèdre and Grenache. Best from 2023 through 2030. 350 cases made, 200 cases imported.”

Chateau de Rouanne Vinsobres “Les Crottes” 2019 750ml $69 special , 27 bottles available
Wine Spectator 93 points “Rich and well-built, this offers up a serious dark core of black currant and plum reduction flavors supported by graphite, humus and cast iron notes, with sweet bay leaf, violet and tobacco notes filling in the background. A wine with a smoldering intensity. Grenache and Syrah. Best from 2023 through 2032. 350 cases made, 200 cases imported.”
Jeb Dunnuck 91+ points “Lastly, the 2019 Rouanne Et Les Crottes is the same 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah, not destemmed, and brought up in demi-muids. It’s more straight, structured, and tannic, with lots of black fruits and chalky minerality. Fresh, focused, medium to full-bodied, and balanced, it needs 2-3 years of bottle age and will have 10-15 years of overall longevity.”

Chateau de Rouanne Vinsobres “Guerin” 2019 750ml $59 special , 27 bottles in stock now
Jeb Dunnuck 92 points “The Grenache-dominated single vineyard 2019 Vinsobres Lieu-Dit Guerin is brilliant as well. Concentrated, medium to full-bodied, and opulent, it has lots of red and black fruits, plenty of peppery herbs and meaty nuances, terrific balance, and outstanding length. It’s another gorgeous wine from this talented winemaker, and this is an estate to watch.”

These are the lowest listed prices for these wines on the West Coast!

SALE ENDS @6PM Wednesday

Collector’s Corner
California Wines We Cherish

Abreu Madrona Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon 2001 750ml $599 special, only 1 bottle available
Robert Parker 100 Points ” While I am not surprised that the 2001 Thorevilos turned out to be perfect, the 2001 Madrona Ranch was more of an eye-opener in that it has become even more extraordinary than I predicted eight years ago. A prodigious wine, with complex notes of subtle barbecue smoke intermixed with blueberry pie, black currant liqueur, acacia flowers, lead pencil shavings, and sweet foresty floor notes, this wine builds incrementally with layer upon layer of fruit, glycerin and concentration. The finish goes well past a minute, and the wine is full-bodied and deep, with wonderfully sweet tannin. It is still an adolescent in terms of its total evolution, but it is irresistible simply because of the flawless nature of the wine and incredible perfume and flavor intensity. Simply amazing!”

Aubert Pinot Noir UV-SL Vineyard 2016 750ml $159 special, 4 bottles available
Jeb Dunnuck 99 Points “The 2016 Pinot Noir UV-SL Vineyard flirts with perfect and is another incredible effort from the Sonoma Coast. Deeply colored, with ripe cherries, underbrush, black currants, graphite, blood orange, and forest floor notes, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, ample tannin, a big mid-palate, and a blockbuster finish. Despite being a rich, powerful wine, it shows remarkable elegance and purity, as well as a weightless, seamless texture. Brought up in 70% new French oak, drink it over the coming decade.”

Blankiet Paradise Hills Vyd Mythicus Cabernet 2013 $249 special, only 1 bottle available
Wine Advocate 96+ Points “The 2013 Mythicus is so backward, but a wine of extraordinary intensity. Loads of tannin, massive extract, a blue/purple color, gorgeous purity and overall depth make for a compelling wine, but this 100% Cabernet Sauvignon effort is one for patient connoisseurs. Forget it for 5-7 years, and drink it over the following three decades.”

Blankiet Paradise Hills Vyd Proprietary Red 2016 750ml $219 special, only 1 bottle available
Vinous 98 Points “The 2016 Proprietary Red Paradise Hills Vineyard is magnificent. Deep and expressive on the palate, the 2016 possesses tremendous intensity but delivered in an understated voice. Dark cherry, plum, mocha, new leather and spice develop with time, but it is the wine’s total sense of poise that once again is truly impressive.”

Hundred Acre Kayli Morgan Vineyard Cabernet 2009 750ml $529.95 special, 3 bottle available
Wine Advocate 96 Points “Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon Kayli Morgan Vineyard gives up bold blackcurrant cordial, blackberry compote and raspberry pie scents with hints of chocolate-covered cherries, roses and lilacs plus hints of charcuterie and yeast extract. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is wonderfully elegant, with wonderful vivacity and perfume and a satiny texture with a very long finish.”

Melka Estates La Mekerra Proprietary Red 2012 750ml $149 special, only 1 bottle available
Robert Parker 98 Points “This is Philippe Melka’s Northern California version of Cheval Blanc and he has pulled it off brilliantly. A real look-alike for that great estate in St.-Emilion, this wine has beautiful mulberry, black cherry and blackcurrant fruit mixed with licorice, forest floor and incense. Terrific in texture, opulent, full-bodied mouthfeel, stunning purity, yet a freshness and liveliness that is just remarkable.”

Ridge Monte Bello Santa Cruz Mountains 2012 750ml $279 special, 2 bottles available
Vinous 97+ Points “The 2012 is a racy, voluptuous Monte Bello built on a core of sweet red fruit, with striking perfume, silky tannins and fabulous overall balance. The 2012 is of course an infant, and the new oak is still evident. As Vinous readers know, Monte Bello is a wine that really should not be touched until its tenth birthday, and even that requires an optimistic view. The 2012 has been a consistently brilliant wine. Today, it is once again stellar.”

Ridge Monte Bello Santa Cruz Mountains 2013 750ml $349 special, only 1 bottle available
Wine Advocate 100 Points “The 2013 Monte Bello is a very special vintage for this great wine. Amazingly, it has yet to shut down, unfurling in the glass to reveal a bouquet of black raspberries, cassis, rich espresso roast, cigar wrapper, subtle black truffle and burning embers that has already integrated its 100% new oak remarkably completely. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, powerful and multidimensional, with a lavishly textural attack that segues into a stunningly layered, richly structured mid-palate endowed with incredible depth and concentration underpinned by succulent acids. The finish is long, vibrant and beautifully delineated. The 2013 is a blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 5% Merlot, and it attained 13.6% natural alcohol. Analytically, this ranks as one of the most tannic vintages of Monte Bello ever produced, but the tannins are of such high quality and cloaked in such a wealth of fruit that Ridge forwent their habitual egg white fining this year—beginning a trend that has continued since. This profound Monte Bello will begin to blossom as it reaches age ten and should prove practically immortal.”

Rudd Oakville Estate Red 2015 750ml $179 special, only 1 bottle available
Wine Advocate 98+ Points ” …has a very deep purple-black color and is scented of freshly crushed black currants, blackberries and black cherries with touches of cedar chest, pencil lead, menthol, Chinese five spice and violets, plus a waft of sandalwood. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is very finely crafted with amazing freshness and vivacity, framed by firm, ripe, fine-grained tannins and finishing with lingering exotic spice notes.”

Sine Qua Non Grenache Female 2013 750ml $319 special, 2 bottles available
Wine Advocate 98 Points “Showing similar to a previous bottle tasted in Colorado, the 2013 Grenache Female (78% Grenache, 19% Syrah and 3% Mourvedre) is more high toned and pretty than the 2014, with perfumed notes of black raspberries, licorice, herbes de Provence and violets. Similar on the palate to the 2014, yet perhaps with a touch more tannin, give this beauty a few years and drink it through 2033.”

Sine Qua Non Inaugural Grenache Eleven Conf Vineyard 2003 750ml $3199 special, only 1 bottle available
Jeb Dunnuck 100 Points “In addition to these new releases, I was also able to taste through a number of older vintages, including the 2001 Albino, 2006 Hoodoo Man, 2003 The Inaugural, 2004 Ode to E, 1998 E Raised, 2001 On Your Toes, 2005 Nail in My Cranium and 2007 Syrah Dangerous Birds. To say I came away impressed would be an understatement. Anyone who claims this big, rich style can-t age needs to taste these wines. I opted to just list my scores for the older releases as I find Bob-s initial write-ups spot on.”

Sine Qua Non Inaugural Syrah 2003 750ml $1499 special, only 1 bottle available
Robert Parker 100 Points “The mind-boggling 2003 The Inaugural Syrah is an emotional experience to taste as well as drink […] Awesomely long, I still tasted this wine 60 seconds after I had spit it out – no easy task, even for a professional. This majestic Syrah should be a modern day legacy for Sine Qua Non, ranking alongside the other stunning Syrahs they have produced, such as the two 2002 cuvees, Just For The Love Of It and Heart Chorea. This is a nuanced, complex wine, whereas the 2004 Poker Face is more exuberant and flamboyant. It should age beautifully for 10-15+ years.”

Sine Qua Non Into The Dark Grenache 2004 1.5L $1399 special, only 1 bottle available
Wine Advocate 99 Points “More up-front and open-knit, as is common with this estate’s wine, it’s the purity paired with serious richness that sets it apart. While still youthful and benefiting from a healthy decadence, I think it’s drinking at point and would aim to drink bottles over the coming 4-5 years. It will evolve gracefully for longer, but I see no reason to hold off.”

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Vinopolis Newsletter – Friday 08/11/2023

In This Newsletter:

Arrivals
Marc Colin and Caballus Cellars

Close-Out Sales
New discounts from Spain, Germany, and Tavel
All Week Sale — Ends Tonight
“L’Aventure” in Savings
5 Day Sale
Rockin Rhones: Chateau Rouanne
Collector’s Corner

Teutonic Treats

New Arrivals

“Marc Colin”

Founded in 1970 by Marc and Michele Colin, Domaine Marc Colin now spans 26 appellations in St. Aubin, Chassagne, Puligny, and Santenay. Some of the oldest parcels have been in the Colin family for more than 100 years. While the family does own prime territory in Chassagne, home base in St. Aubin features parcels of the very best vineyards, En Remilly and Chatenière, to name a few. These vineyards accrue prestige due to their sloped location; while much of St. Aubin resides on flat ground (rendering less interesting wines) the Colin properties are all situated on finely pitched hillsides. The resulting wines shimmer with savory minerality and luster.

Marc Colin Bourgogne Aligote 2021 750ml $34.95 special, 48 bottles available

Marc Colin Bourgogne Blanc 2020 750ml $39 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate “The 2020 Bourgogne Chardonnay offers up aromas of honeyed orchard fruit, white flowers, citrus zest and freshly baked bread. Medium to full-bodied, ample and seamless, it’s a bright, charming wine that will drink well on release.”

Marc Colin Bourgogne Blanc 2021 750ml $41.90 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate “Notes of citrus oil, white flowers and crisp green apple preface the 2021 Bourgogne Chardonnay, a medium-bodied, racy and incisive wine that exhibits more cut and tension than the last handful of vintages.”

Marc Colin Chassagne-Montrachet Village Blanc 2020 750ml $89 special, 12 bottles available

Marc Colin Chassagne-Montrachet Village Blanc 2021 $89 special, 12 bottles available

Marc Colin Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Vide Bourse 2020 750ml $119 special, 3 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-95 “The 2020 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Vide Bourse is another highlight, wafting from the glass with aromas of citrus oil, white flowers, pear and frangipane. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, it’s rich but tensile, its enveloping core of fruit girdled by racy acids and chalky structuring extract. It’s the finest Vide Bourse I can remember tasting chez Colin.”

Marc Colin Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Vide Bourse 2021 750ml $119 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 91-93 Points “Aromas of orange oil, peach, white flowers and buttery pastry introduce the 2021 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Vide Bourse, a medium to full-bodied, ample and textural wine that’s layered, seamless and saline, but which can’t quite match the cut and tension of the Cailleret this year.”

Marc Colin Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Vide Bourse 2021 $119 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 91-93 Points “Aromas of orange oil, peach, white flowers and buttery pastry introduce the 2021 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Vide Bourse, a medium to full-bodied, ample and textural wine that’s layered, seamless and saline, but which can’t quite match the cut and tension of the Cailleret this year.”

Marc Colin St Aubin 1er Cru Cuvee 5c 2021 750ml $79 special, 12 bottles available

Marc Colin St Aubin 1er En Montceau 2021 750ml $89 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 91-93 Points “The 2021 Saint-Aubin 1er Cru En Montceau has also turned out beautifully, delivering aromas of pear, crisp green apple, clear honey, mint and iodine, followed by a medium to full-bodied, satiny and seamless palate. Racy and incisive, it’s a pure, elegant wine that will offer a broad drinking window.”

Re-Arrival

Caballus Cellars Pinot Noir WV 2014 750ml $79 special, 36 bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 95 Points “Co-winemakers Véronique Drouhin-Boss and Isabelle Dutartre call this “the story of our friendship in a bottle,” and what a fine bottle it is. It’s a full throttle wine, thoroughly expressing the richness and power of the best Oregon Pinot Noirs. Dense and detailed around potent black cherry fruit, it extends itself with lovely threads of toast and coffee, from fermentation with native yeasts, and aging in roughly one-third new French oak.”

Close-out Sale – Price Reductions

Spain

Daniel Landi Las Uvas De La Ira 2018 750ml WAS $39 NOW $31.90 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 93 Points “The red 2018 Las Uvas de la Ira has been produced with Garnacha from the same five vineyards since the initial vintage (2012) in the village of El Real de San Vicente, which is one of the villages from Méntrida (Toledo) that are part of the Gredos Mountains. The vines range between 40 and 65 years of age, and they are located at around 750 meters in altitude on sandy granite soils with lots of silt. The different vineyards are fermented separately in oak vats with indigenous yeasts and a very gentle vinification, one-third with very long macerations to provide structure and depth, one-third with a very short maceration to provide fragrance, and the remaining third finished the fermentation without skins (like a white) to add juiciness. The élevage is in oak foudres of different sizes, from 1,500 to 4,000 liters. This is a little less aromatic and more austere but very focused and bright, from a village where the wines are serious and have a chalky texture, less floral but more citrus, a bit more backward. It has a compact palate, with very fine tannins and a more chalky finish. It’s interesting to taste it next to wines from other villages, as you clearly see the difference.”

Italy

Fattoria Luiano CC Ottantuno 2015 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 26 bottles available
Wine Spectator 95 Points “Heady aromas of kirsch, black cherry, violet, tar and iron signal this firm, dense red. Creates fine tension between the ripe, sweet fruit and bitter, savory elements, finding balance as this plays out on the long finish.”

Kellerei Kaltern Quintessenz Classico Superiore 2017 750ml WAS $16 NOW $11.90 Special, 29 bottles available
Vinous 91 Points “Bright red. Spicy herbal red berries and flinty red cherry on the nose, then brisk and easygoing in the mouth, with smooth flavors and a hint of peppery bite on the long back end. Not the last word in complexity but juicy and full of early appeal. Try it lightly chilled.”

Kellerei Kaltern Saleit Chardonnay 2018 750ml WAS $16 NOW $11.90 Special, 24 bottles available

Austria and Germany

Leitz Rudesheimer Klosterlay Riesling Kabinett 2018 750ml WAS $24 NOW $19, 16 bottles available
Wine Advocate “The first Rieslings of the very dry and warm as well as early 2018 vintage are also promising and stunningly precise and elegant due to the conditions of the vintage that brought nothing but perfectly ripe and healthy grapes. Leitz pressed the grapes in fractions, so he was able to keep the acidity fine and fresh even though it is naturally lower than in 2017… Doubtlessly, Leitz is one of the region’s best Riesling producers. Having said that, he is also one of the best Riesling ambassadors in the wine world, with regular tastings in the US as well as in Norway, two of his most important export markets.”

Leitz Magdelenenkreuz Riesling Spatlese 2018 750ml WAS $26 NOW $21.90, 11 bottles available
Importer Note “Further east and upstream of the Klosterlay is the Magdalenenkreuz. The name translates to “the cross of Mary Magdalene,” named after a red sandstone cross that can be found amongst the vines. Here the soils are comprised of sandy loam—fatter and ideal for ripe expression; the riesling grown here is always textured, opulent and forward. Though the wine is of Spätlese quality it perceivably drinks more like a Kabinett.”

Loewen Thornicher Ritsch Riesling Auslese 2018 750ml WAS $44 NOW $36, 17 bottles available
Mosel Fine Wines 94 Points “The 2018er Thörnicher Ritsch Riesling Auslese was made from almost fully clean fruit harvested at 95° Oechsle and was fermented down to fully sweet levels of residual sugar. The wine offers a rather discreet and herbal nose where the fruity elements (including pear, lemon, starfruit, passion fruit and a hint of coconut) only gradually emerge from the glass. The wine may still be on the sweet side on the palate, but it already shows beautifully alluring and multi-layered flavors of pear, lemon, melon, lemoncello and coconut, all wrapped into some apricot blossom in the finish. This is a ripe but complex sweet wine in the making.”

Karlsmuhle Kaseler Nies’ Chen Auslese LGC 17 750ml WAS $41.90 NOW $33 special, 22 bottles available
James Suckling 93 Points “Stand back as this riesling fireball arrives! Full of energy with a dynamic interplay of citrusy acidity and aromatic sweetness, which ranges from peaches and blackcurrants to mint. With more length, this would have been rated even higher. Drink or hold.”

Karlsmuhle Kaseler Nies’chen Kabinett 2019 750ml WAS $19 NOW $16 special, 33 bottles available

Karlsmuhle Lorenzhofer TBA 2007 375ml WAS $119 NOW $99, 22 bottles available
93+ Points Wine Advocate “…Dried peach, apricot, and date mingle with quince preserves, licorice and further suggestions of herbal concentrate both on the nose and palate. While impressively viscous, this preserves a welcome lightness of touch and vivacity illustrative of the best aspects of the vintage, and its residual sugar is remarkably restrained in expression…”

Korrell Paradies Riesling Trocken Nahe 2017 3L WAS $179 NOW $149 special, 3 bottles available
Grapelive 94 Points “The radiant and graceful Korrell Paradies Trocken leads with expressive pure apple tones. [It] impresses for its elegance and subtle character. It’s a wine of great poise and delicacy, especially admirable for such a young Riesling. The monopole estate vineyard, Paradies, is the oldest single site Korrell has and is the flagship wine from winemaker Martin Korrell.”

Korrell Von Den Grossen Lagen Ries Trocken Nahe 2017 750ml WAS $33 NOW $29 special, 36 bottles available
James Suckling 94 Points “What a beautiful nose of leaves and white flowers, dripping after rain. With aeration, peach, nectarine and mandarin-orange notes emerge. Concentrated, racy and very polished, this is a stunning dry riesling with a long, mineral finish. Drink or hold. Screw cap.”

Kruger-Rumpf Abtei “1937” Riesling (Reserv) 2018 750ml WAS $39 NOW $33 special, 36+ bottles available
Grapelive 94-96 Points “The 2018 barrel sample of Kruger-Rumpf’s Abtei 1937 was stunningly gorgeous with brilliant details, ripe extract density, vivid mineral tones and vibrant acidity showing a purity and vitality of youth, but with the complexity and length of its old vine material. Georg Rumpf has crafted a Trocken beauty here with layers of delicacy and substance. This juice is on par with almost any GG, making it an incredible value already.”

France

Manissy Tavel Tete De Cuvee Rose 2021 750ml WAS $26 NOW $21.90, 16 bottles available

Winery Note “Grenache , Clairette, Cinsault. 13.5% alc. Certified Organic. Over 100 years old, the Tête de Cuvée was the first wine to be made by the Château starting in 1915 by the Brothers of the Holy Family and is still made in the traditional way; Grapes are destemmed, crushed and cold-soaked for 24-48 hours before pressing, native yeast fermentation for 15 days.“

La Chablisienne Les Clos Chablis 2018 WAS $69 NOW $59 special, 21 bottles available
Le Guide Hachette “The Chablis Grand Cru are complete wines, with strong personality, and never cease improving with age. These nectars with their elegant colour and strong nose are particularly racy on the palate, offering a gloriously long finish and a remarkable keeping potential.”

La Chablisienne L’Homme Mort Chablis 2019 WAS $39 NOW $34.50 special, 30 bottles available
Le Guide Hachette “Pale gold in color, a limpid and brilliant wine. Initially fresh and deliciously floral on the nose, enhanced by a touch of minerality. Becomes more intense on aeration. Nicely fresh, taut and immediate in the mouth with fine precision. Long, finely mineral finish. A Chablis 1er Cru designed for keeping.”

Lanson Brut Champagne Pere& Fils NV 750ml WAS $49 $39 special, 32 bottles available
Winemaker Note “Lanson ‘Père & Fils’ Brut is a brand new, enriched evolution of the classic Lanson Black Label Brut, and is named after the first bottle of Champagne Lanson ever produced. Created as a tribute to the Lanson family , Champagne Lanson ‘Père & Fils’ is aged in the cellars for a minimum of 4 years to allow the wine to flourish and its aromas to develop perfectly. Blended using a selection of the best Champagne Crus from 10 different vintages, the result is a rich, elegant Champagne with a fresh finish. After 4 years of ageing, the ‘Père et Fils’ Cuvee unveils a magnificent bright golden colour, animated by tiny bubbles. The nose reveals aromas of ripe fruits, honey and spices. On the palate, this blend offers a complex, full and persistent impact with honeydew flavours.”

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All Week Sale
L’Aventure

In 1996 the respected Bordeaux winemaker Stephan Asseo wanted to break out of a creative rut and moved his family to California. Now in Paso Robles, about as far west as he could possibly move he began mixing Bordeaux and Rhone varietals, aging wines in clay amphora as well as oak barrels, and many new adventures that strict French winemaking regulations had prevented in the past. His new project became a runaway hit with collectors and was quickly followed by accolades from top wine reviewers.

Buy 3-5 bottles for a 5% discount
Buy 6+ bottles for a 10% discount

L’Aventure Estate Cuvee Paso Robles 2019 750ml $119 special, 20 bottles available
Jeb Dunnuck 100 Points “Pure perfection from Paso Robles […] Incredible cassis and black berry fruits as well as violets, chocolate, graphite, and who knows what else emerges from the glass, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a concentrated yet weightless mouthfeel, building tannins, and a great finish. It’s more seamless and approachable than the more backward, structured 2018 and will have two decades of prime drinking.”

L’Aventure Estate Cuvee Paso Robles Red 2020 750ml $119 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 99 Points “Deep ruby-purple, it has a pure core of cassis and slowly unfolding accents of licorice, cured meats, tobacco leaves, cedar and truffle. Full-bodied, juicy and alluring, it floods the mouth with layers of blue fruit, floral perfume and spice. It is supported by powdery tannins and boasts a tremendously long, detailed finish.”

L’Aventure Cote A Cote Paso Robles Red 2020 750ml $109 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 98 Points “The 2020 Côte a Côte is a beautiful blend of 45% Grenache, 30% Syrah and 25% Mourvèdre and one of the most successful wines I tasted from the challenging 2020 vintage. Deep ruby-purple, it offers pure aromas of blackcurrant, boysenberry, tar and pipe tobacco, continually unfolding with each return to the glass. The full-bodied palate offers wave after wave of perfumed fruit and tremendous spicy accents. It’s powerful yet harmoniously structured with powdery tannins and seamless acidity, and it offers a very long, detailed finish.”

SALE ENDS @6PM TODAY

5 Day Sale
Chateau Rouanne

Buy 6-11 bottles for a 5% discount
Buy 12+ bottles for a 10% discount

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Collector’s Corner

Teutonic Treats: Keller, Molitor, Von Winning

Von Winning Kieselberg Riesling Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-95 Points “The 2021 Kieselberg Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from a plateau above Deidesheim with sandstone and limestone in the soil. Fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak vats and still maturing in them, the barrel sample shows a clear, elegant and savory nose of bright and ripe fruit aromas intertwined with oaky and yeasty notes. Creamy textured and very elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, tight and saline-finishing Riesling with fine and grippy tannins and lingering salinity and mineral tension. It’s still very young but worthy to be cellared for at least a decade.”

Von Winning Langenmorgen Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-94 Points “The 2021 Langenmorgen Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage is grown in a cool area up by the forest on a light sandstone soil. It fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels, in which the wine is aging until today. The nose shows a brilliantly clear, fresh and flinty, very elegant GG with herbal and soil-driven, flinty-scented intensity and the coolish aromas of slow-ripening Riesling. Very elegant and refined on the palate, this is a round, lush and salty-savory Riesling classic that reveals a long, tight, saline and finely grippy finish. As per the vintage, this is a rather lean, straightforward but tensioned Riesling that will show its class in the years to come.

Von Winning Kalkofen Riesling Grosses Gewach 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 95-96 Points “The 2021 Kalkofen Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from the plateau above Deidesheim and owes its density and complexity to 65-year-old vines growing on sandstone and limestone. The must is fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels, and the wine is maturing on the lees. The brilliantly clear and radiant sample opens with a deep, intense and elegant, still oaky but complex and fruit-intense bouquet that gives rise to the highest hopes. Rich and intense but also fresh and elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, mineral and textured Kalkofen that obviously wants to be a Meursault or Montrachet yet with the weapons of Riesling and also Buntsandstein. Whatever it is, this is an excellent and promising Kalkofen whose development and capacity I’d love to follow for at least a decade. The wine is dense and tight but also fresh and juicy and provided with very fine tannins and sustainable mineral acidity.”

Von Winning Grainhubel Riesling Grosses Gewach 2021 750ml $59 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 94 Points “The 2021 Grainhübel Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from a south-facing slope with red sandstone and tertiary limestone in the soil. Fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels and aged in them to the present day, this barrel sample opens with a clear, elegant, very aromatic nose of tropical fruits intertwined with flinty tones as well as spicy oak notes. Round and elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, intense and fruity Riesling with very attractive lush fruit that is taken to a long and aromatic finish by stimulating saline acidity. The finish is tight, intense and provided with fine tannins. An excellent grand cru that will be released sometime next year.”

Von Winning Ungeheuer Riesling Grosses Gewach 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 95-96 Points “Tasted as barrel sample in November of this year, von Winning’s 2021 Ungeheuer Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage is deep, very fine and clear on the elegant and balanced saline nose that is nothing less than spectacular in its seamless and pure appearance. Round and lush on the palate, with a salty piquancy and a dense, still yeasty texture with very fine tannins, this is a generous and complex Riesling from the famous Forster Ungeheuer that has been appreciated from wine geeks such as Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Otto von Bismarck and Robert M. Parker Jr.”

Von Winning Pechstein Riesling Grosses Gewach 2021 750ml $119 special, 6 bottles available
Importer’s Note: “The name of “Pechstein” stems from the black basalt rubble that is found there together with weathered red sandstone, sandy loam and friable clay. The extinct volcano, Pechsteinkopf, which is seen above the forest, distributed large quantities of volcanic rock over the area in ancient times. For this reason, the subsoil of the Pechstein also contains several basalt veins. The basalt rubble that contributes to easy warming of this site actually does not stem from the site’s subsoil, but rather from an old stone quarry just a couple hundred meters away. As was common in the 19th century, the basalt from the quarry was distributed in the vineyard and ploughed into the soil to improve it. The 17.1 hectare Pechstein is located at 120 to 150 meters a.s.l. and has a gentle 6 to 10 % slope gradient. The clay and loam in the Pechstein contribute to the excellent water storage capacity of the soil.”

Molitor Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Auslese*** GK 2017 750ml $299 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 100 Points “As always, Molitor’s 2017 Riesling Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Auslese *** (Golden Capsule) is one of the ripest and most concentrated Auslesen of the vintage. Incredibly clear and intense notes of ripe peaches and mangoes on the nonetheless delicate and fresh nose intertwine with noble slate, fine oak and nougat aromas. The wine is round and elegant on the palate, with stunning vivacious, filigreed acidity that gives it lightness, great finesse, lots of salt and tension and stimulating grip. This is still a baby, but in terms of complexity and finesse, it’s one of the finest wines Markus Molitor has produced in 2017. I cannot remember having tasted a three-starred Auslese from the Zeltinger Sonnenuhr that was so fresh, lean and filigreed. This 2017 Sonnenuhr is precise as a Swiss watch. Tasted at the domain in April 2019.”

Molitor Zeltinger Sonnenhuhr Beerenauslese * 2017 750ml $399 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Advocate 100 Points “The 2017 Riesling Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Beerenauslese * (Golden Capsule) is intense, fine and flinty on the highly precise nose with crunchy slate and grapefruit notes. Dense and concentrated on the palate, it has sweet but elegant and highly refined fruit intertwined with salty-finessed slate salinity and delicate acidity. This is a beautifully balanced BA from Molitor’s most important grand cru vineyard. Many readers might prefer its sweet and charming richness to the delicate finesse and crystallinity of the Würzgarten BA, which will be ready to drink sooner. But this Zeltinger Sonnenuhr in turn will gain even more finesse and drinkability over the years. Tasted at the domain in April 2019.”

Molitor Zelt Sonnenuhr TBA GK 2019 750ml $499 special, 12 bottles available
Molitor Zelt Sonnenuhr TBA GK 2019 375ml $249 special, 18 bottles available
Wine Advocate 97 Points “The 2019 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Trockenbeerenauslese is deep, intense and flinty on the nose that exhibits clear, ripe and concentrated fruit with very fine botrytis notes intertwined with aromas of crushed slate and candied lemon rind. Round and elegant on the seamless palate, this is a rich yet finessed and elegant, super tensioned and mineral TBA with electrifying acidity and a highly stimulating finish. There are not many TBAs around that are as digestible as this one, which is really extraordinary. 6.5% alcohol. Tasted in May 2021 (AP 29 20).”

Keller Rieslaner Monsheimer Silberberg Riesling Beerenauslese Goldkapsel 2018 375ml $219 special, 6 half bottles available
Vinopolnote “Rieslaner is a cross of Riesling and Sylanver. Rieslaner was bred for its potential for excellent botrytis concentration, which makes it an ideal Beerenauslese, but is also a specialty of Keller, who produces this wine in several styles.”

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Vinopolis Newsletter – Wednesday 08/9/2023

In This Newsletter:

Featured Arrival
Marlborough Man: Kevin Judd of Cloudy Bay strikes out on his own
Arrivals
Falkenstein and Von Winning!

Close-Out Sales
More discounts from Brunello, Alto Adige, Germany, and Tavel
All Week Sale
“L’Aventure” in Savings
Collector’s Corner

Champagne from Veuve and Venoge

Featured Arrival

“Greywacke (Pronounced Greywacky)”

“With 25 years at Cloudy Bay, Kevin Judd was key to the global renown of Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc. Today his Greywacke wines are standard bearers in their own right. This elegant, textural vintage brims with zippy pineapple sorbet, elderflower blossom and green mango freshness, with bracing lime acidity and a creamy passionfruit curd finish.”

-Decanter

New Arrivals

“Falkenstein”

Hofgut Falkenstein produces very traditional Saar Rieslings. Relying on ambient yeasts they ferment the musts in old oak casks in a deep, cool, and damp cellar with moldy stone walls, and most of the wines end up either naturally dry or off-dry. Falkenstein specializes in these distinctive, bracing, ripe and racy, Rieslings from low yields and old vines which have made them a cult favorite among Somms and collectors. These are rare releases and they never last long.

Grab yours today!

Vintage	Wine	Price	Availability
2022	Falkenstein Mutter Anna Kabinett Trocken Ap1 750ml	$33 special	12 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Spatlese Feinherb AP3 750ml	$36 special	15 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Egon Kabinett Trocken Ap19 750ml	$33 special	12 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Euchariusberg Kabinett Gisela Ap8 750ml	$50 special	18 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Herbert Kabinett Feinherb Ap15 750ml	$33 special	15 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Nieder Herrenberg Spat Feinherb 1.5L	$79 special	3 magnum bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Krett Auf Holzchen Kab Trocken AP21 750ml	$33 special	12 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Kugel Peter Kabinett Ap12 750ml	$33 special	18 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Spatlese Trocken Lorenz Manni Ap18 750ml	$39 special	12 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Spatlese Feinherb Meyer Nepal Ap11 750ml	$36 special	18 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Munny Kabinett Trocken AP9 750ml	$33 special	12 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Spatlese Feinherb Onkel Peter Ap4 750ml	$39.95 special	18 bottles available
2022	Falkenstein Pet Nat 750ml	$33 special	12 bottles available

If you like Falkenstein Rieslings You might like…

Falkenstein Rose Trocken 2021 750ml $29 special, just 10 more bottles available
Mosel Fine Wines “The 2021er Niedermenniger Herrenberg Rosé Trocken is made from fruit picked on what was planted by the Webers as Spätburgunder 25 years ago but which the authorities now say is a mutation and not legally Spätburgunder. It offers a very playful nose of pomegranate, cooked raspberry, and spices. The wine is still quite tart and firm on the palate and leaves an almost white wine feel in the long finish.”

Arriving Friday

“True and Pfalz: The Grand Crus of Germany”

Named for the actual historic figure Leopold Von Winning who was one of the early figures involved in the modernization of the Pfalz wine industry. Like Leopold before them, Von Winning has concerned itself with harnessing the very best that the Pfalz has to offer in order to bring the industry into the modern world. This selection of their wines represents the cream of the crop of the entire region, as “Grosses Gewachs,” aka Great Growths or Grand Crus, like their namesakes in Burgundy, are a heavily regulated system of the best sites in the region.

Von Winning Kieselberg Riesling Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-95 Points “The 2021 Kieselberg Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from a plateau above Deidesheim with sandstone and limestone in the soil. Fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak vats and still maturing in them, the barrel sample shows a clear, elegant and savory nose of bright and ripe fruit aromas intertwined with oaky and yeasty notes. Creamy textured and very elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, tight and saline-finishing Riesling with fine and grippy tannins and lingering salinity and mineral tension. It’s still very young but worthy to be cellared for at least a decade.”

Von Winning Langenmorgen Grosses Gewachs 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93-94 Points “The 2021 Langenmorgen Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage is grown in a cool area up by the forest on a light sandstone soil. It fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels, in which the wine is aging until today. The nose shows a brilliantly clear, fresh and flinty, very elegant GG with herbal and soil-driven, flinty-scented intensity and the coolish aromas of slow-ripening Riesling. Very elegant and refined on the palate, this is a round, lush and salty-savory Riesling classic that reveals a long, tight, saline and finely grippy finish. As per the vintage, this is a rather lean, straightforward but tensioned Riesling that will show its class in the years to come.

Von Winning Kalkofen Riesling Grosses Gewach 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 95-96 Points “The 2021 Kalkofen Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from the plateau above Deidesheim and owes its density and complexity to 65-year-old vines growing on sandstone and limestone. The must is fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels, and the wine is maturing on the lees. The brilliantly clear and radiant sample opens with a deep, intense and elegant, still oaky but complex and fruit-intense bouquet that gives rise to the highest hopes. Rich and intense but also fresh and elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, mineral and textured Kalkofen that obviously wants to be a Meursault or Montrachet yet with the weapons of Riesling and also Buntsandstein. Whatever it is, this is an excellent and promising Kalkofen whose development and capacity I’d love to follow for at least a decade. The wine is dense and tight but also fresh and juicy and provided with very fine tannins and sustainable mineral acidity.”

Von Winning Grainhubel Riesling Grosses Gewach 2021 750ml $59 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 94 Points “The 2021 Grainhübel Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage comes from a south-facing slope with red sandstone and tertiary limestone in the soil. Fermented spontaneously in 500-liter oak barrels and aged in them to the present day, this barrel sample opens with a clear, elegant, very aromatic nose of tropical fruits intertwined with flinty tones as well as spicy oak notes. Round and elegant on the palate, this is a full-bodied, intense and fruity Riesling with very attractive lush fruit that is taken to a long and aromatic finish by stimulating saline acidity. The finish is tight, intense and provided with fine tannins. An excellent grand cru that will be released sometime next year.”

Von Winning Ungeheuer Riesling GG 2021 750ml $74.50 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 95-96 Points “Tasted as barrel sample in November of this year, von Winning’s 2021 Ungeheuer Riesling trocken VDP. Grosse Lage is deep, very fine and clear on the elegant and balanced saline nose that is nothing less than spectacular in its seamless and pure appearance. Round and lush on the palate, with a salty piquancy and a dense, still yeasty texture with very fine tannins, this is a generous and complex Riesling from the famous Forster Ungeheuer that has been appreciated from wine geeks such as Johann Wolfgang Goethe, Otto von Bismarck and Robert M. Parker Jr.”

Von Winning Pechstein Riesling GG 2021 750ml $119 special, 6 bottles available
Importer’s Note: “The name of “Pechstein” stems from the black basalt rubble that is found there together with weathered red sandstone, sandy loam and friable clay. The extinct volcano, Pechsteinkopf, which is seen above the forest, distributed large quantities of volcanic rock over the area in ancient times. For this reason, the subsoil of the Pechstein also contains several basalt veins. The basalt rubble that contributes to easy warming of this site actually does not stem from the site’s subsoil, but rather from an old stone quarry just a couple hundred meters away. As was common in the 19th century, the basalt from the quarry was distributed in the vineyard and ploughed into the soil to improve it. The 17.1 hectare Pechstein is located at 120 to 150 meters a.s.l. and has a gentle 6 to 10 % slope gradient. The clay and loam in the Pechstein contribute to the excellent water storage capacity of the soil.”

Close-out Sale – Price Reductions

Italy

Brunello?! At these low prices?!

La Fortuna Brunello Di Montalcino 2017 750ml WAS $59 NOW $49 special, 35 bottles available
Wine Advocate 93 Points “The mid-weight 2017 Brunello di Montalcino shows a smooth approach with cherry fruit and cassis. No part of this wine is overblown, and in fact, this Brunello maintains a silky personality overall. The alcohol is high at 15% in this hot vintage, although it feels relatively well tucked into the subtle fiber of this accessible Brunello. Production is 30,000 bottles.”

La Gerla Brunello Riserva Gli Angeli 2015 750ml WAS $99 NOW $89 special, 25 bottles available
Wine Spectator 96 Points “Rich and round, here is a red full of macerated plum and cherry flavors, with almond, leather, spice and earth accents. Firms up on the finish, where the vibrant fruit echoes.”

High-toned, high-altitude wines from Alto Adige
Kellerei Kaltern Quintessenz Classico Superiore 2017 750ml WAS $16 NOW $11.90 Special, 29 bottles available
Vinous 91 Points “Bright red. Spicy herbal red berries and flinty red cherry on the nose, then brisk and easygoing in the mouth, with smooth flavors and a hint of peppery bite on the long back end. Not the last word in complexity but juicy and full of early appeal. Try it lightly chilled.”
Kellerei Kaltern Saleit Chardonnay 2018 750ml WAS $16 NOW $11.90 Special, 24 bottles available

Germany

One of Mosel’s finest since the Napoleonic Era

From the Nahe region and a patchwork of soils along the Nahe river that is thought of as Germany’s answer to Burgundy.

A wholly unique terroir at the intersection of four major German wine regions: the Nahe where the winery is located, the Rheingau and Mittelrhein to the north, Rheinhessen to the east.

France

One of the world’s most famous and prestigious wine-making Cooperatives

Click here to Shop for all 70+ of our Close Out Sale wines!

All Week Sale
L’Aventure

Buy 3-5 bottles for a 5% discount
Buy 6+ bottles for a 10% discount

SALE ENDS @6PM FRIDAY

Collector’s Corner

“Veuve Clicquot”

A poem written for this special collaborative bottling:

My Heart That Blooms in the Darkness of the Night

From all my heart,

the life of flowers flew away.

My everlasting affection for the flowers,

flew off beyond the universe

to show its vitality,

to gaze at the extremes of life.

– Yayoi Kusama

Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame Yayoi Kusama 2012 750ml $189 special, 12 bottles available
(Yayoi Kusama Limited Edition)
Wine Enthusiast “#3 Wine Of The Year (2020) – With a slight preponderance of Pinot Noir in the blend, this wine is rich and impressive. It is still young, with a crisp edge that makes the fruit shine. Apple and citrus flavors are integrated into a mineral vein.”
Decanter 96 Points “A generous golden colour betrays the dominance of Pinot Noir in the blend; this theme thereafter maintained by aromatics of fig, wild strawberries and Mirabelle plums; behind that, jasmine, red apples and a distant whiff of woodsmoke. Engaging already, in other words. One’s impressions are confirmed and amplified on the palate, with the aspiration voiced by both chef de caves Dominique and Didier, to allow the ‘cooler’ Pinot Noir sites full rein. This is eloquently evidenced by a subtle and deftly textured structure, the primary fruit notes of nectarine and citrus peel underscored by a richer, still somewhat reticent, core, darker and more savoury of intent and oh, so subtle at the moment. I have every confidence that this characteristic will come into its own over the longer term and mark the 2012 as one of the more successful outings for this outstanding cuvée.”

De Venoge

It is our pleasure to offer these wines from one of the most exclusive Champagne houses in France. Founded in 1825 by Henri-Marc de Venoge, a Swiss immigrant to the region, these wines are still made in a traditional style rarely seen in modern Champagnes. While most champagnes these days are made in a crisp, fresh, but brittle style, the champagnes of De Venoge undergo Malolactic fermentation, resulting in a rounder, fatter, elegant style that can age for decades. Luckily, the winery has done the hard work already (resisting the temptation to pop the cork) and aged these wines for immediate consumption.

Most of the bottles produced by De Venoge never leave their country of origin, most that does leave France is allocated to high end restaurants in London. This is a rare opportunity to drink a wine with a longer history than many countries!

De Venoge Cordon Bleu Brut 2002 750ml $79 special, 7 bottles in stock
Wine Spectator 93 points “A core of mineral-accented smoke, spice and honey notes is wrapped with flavors of glazed apricot, lemon preserves and candied ginger in this vibrant and well-balanced version. Creamy, with a lasting finish. Drink now through 2025.” Only 3,000 cases made.

De Venoge Louis XV Brut 2006 750ml $189 special, 18 bottles in stock
Wine Advocate 96 points “The assemblage of the 2006 Louis XV Brut Millésimé is about the same as the 1995 and 1996—composed of 50/50 Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, all from grand cru villages. The only difference is that the Chardonnay from Le Mesnil-sur-Oger (10% of the assemblage) spent 12 months in oak barrels … the 2006 has a golden color and opens with a deep, ripe, elegant and vinous bouquet with toasty and chalky lemon and fresh.”

De Venoge Louis XV Brut 2008 750ml $249 special, 33 bottles in stock
James Suckling 95 points “This is really punchy and broad-shouldered with muscular structure and citrusy undertones. Full body. Lightly tannic and a fresh and vivid finish. This is the first vintage without malolactic Fermentation ever. One for the cellar. Better in 2022“

De Venoge Louis XV Brut Rose 2002 750ml $189 special, 21 bottles in stock
Wine Spectator 93 points “Harmonious, with fine intensity, offering rich notes of spice cake, toasted almond, dried cherry, grilled plum and smoky mineral. Almost velvety in texture, with juicy acidity that brings you back for another sip. Delicious. Drink now through 2022.” Only 54 cases made.

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Thank you from the team at Vinopolis!
Be well & drink well.