Category Archives: Newsletter Archive

Weekend Vinopolpick- 12/13

December 13, 2014

Veuve Clicquot

Arriving December 16th

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin is one of the world’s finer champagnes, the product of a winery founded by Phillipe Clicquot in 1772 in Reims. You could say Veuve is the first champagne house brought to recognition by a woman, Madame Veuve Clicquot, but this is an oversimplification. After her husband Philippe’s death in 1805, Barbe-Nicole Ponsardin (the Veuve or “widow” Clicquot) not only turned Veuve into the successful Champagne house it is today, but played a key role in transforming champagne from a cloudy product of fermentation into a clear bubbly. In short, she was the mother of the méthode champenoise, creating the Champagne we know and love today.

Before the early 1800s, champagne was consumed from a glass in an ice bath.… Read the rest

VinopolPick Thursday, December 11th

December 11th, 2014

Stay tuned for new 2012 Burgundy releases from Domaine Chevillon, our special highlight on mature Rieslings, and more best prices, but first:
Flash Sale!

Dom Perignon – Grand House, Grand Prices – Available Here Now


Dom Perignon Champagne Brut Plenitude P2 1998 ($399.95) $299 special, 9 bottles available
Wine Spectator 98 points “Offers precision and finely detailed form, powered by an expansive palate of flavor. The layers of ripe crushed blackberry and glazed apricot fruit complement the saline-tinged minerality and oyster shell notes, graced by hints of pastry, honeycomb and exotic spice. Mouthwatering and persistent on the zesty finish. Drink now through 2030.”
James Suckling 97 points “A P2 release indicating it has been matured to the 2nd Plenitude, the middle stage of Dom Perignon’s three-phase life as defined by Richard Geoffroy.

… Read the rest

Monday December 8th Newsletter

December 8, 2014

New Champagne, New Sales, Exploring Nahe Riesling, & Much More!

Jump Start Sale

Egon Muller Scharzhofberger Riesling Auslese 2011 ($419.95) $279 jump start special
Wine Advocate – David Schildknecht 96 points “Mullers 2011 Scharzhofberger Riesling Auslese delivers a penetrating and multifarious nose of heliotrope, lily, candied lime rind, quince preserves, white peach preserves, distilled herbal essences, marzipan and brown spices. Almost weightlessly delicate yet simultaneously expansive and creamy, this both caresses and stimulates the palate with a kaleidoscopically interactive array of those diverse and exotic elements that on the nose signaled its ripeness and botrytis ennoblement. An almost syrupy sense of white peach along with hints of white raisin that emerge in that prodigious finish fails to tip the scales in too-confectionary a direction thanks to a vibratory sense of energy and refreshing rivulet of juicy fresh peach and lime that is threaded throughout.”… Read the rest

VinopolPick Weekend Edition – Sat Dec 6th

Saturday, December 6th, 2014
A Wine of the Year – Rioja and Ribera – Non-Stop Deals

J Christopher – Wine of the Year

We were pleased to see that one of our long-time favorite Oregon producers was recognized by Matt Kramer, once upon a time wine writer for Portland’s Oregonian, and now of the Wine Spectator for producing one of Kramer’s Wines of the Year for 2014….

Jay Somers is the winemaker and co-founder of J Christopher Wines, at the outset a small winery on Chehalem Mountain.  After working with Cameron Winery for five years, he developed a passion for Oregon wines made in an Old World style – with lower yields, natural grape growing (low to no irrigation, limited chemical and mechanical use), balanced ripeness and hands-off winemaking.  

… Read the rest

VinopolPick Thursday – December 4th

December 4th, 2014
The Wine Deals Don’t Stop

Champagne Pierre Gimonnet

Since 1750, Didier Gimonnet’s family has been growing grapes in grand and premier cru villages, predominantly in the Côte de Blancs.  Passing of the centuries, the know-how and love of the vine all play an important part in the process of these Champagne growers who have continued to make classic Champagne from generation to generation.  The high percentage of old vines at this estate set it apart with 70% of holdings being over 30 years old, 40% over 40 years old, and 100+ year old vines, both in the Grand Cru village of Cramant and Chouilly.

Current owners, Didier and Olivier are a Récoltant-Manipulant (Grower-Producer): they produce Champagne from grapes grown in their own vineyards.  

… Read the rest