September 30, 2013

Dealicious Wines/Clean Sweep/Clear The Decks

Solid, Some Amazing, Under $10:

Taz Chardonnay Santa Barbara 2008 ($17.95) $6.60 special
Wine Enthusiast 90 points “With this 2008, Taz brings to the table a wonderful Chardonnay at a great price. It’s dry and crisply acidic, with bright, perky flavors of oranges, peaches, Meyer lemons and smoky vanilla. Really nice and clean, a lovely wine and a good restaurant by-the-glass selection.”

Penfolds Thomas Hyland Shiraz 2010 ($17.95) $9.90 special
Wine Advocate 90 points “The 2010 Thomas Hyland Shiraz displays a deep garnet-purple color and aromas of ripe blackberry and cherry preserves plus hints of bacon, pepper, tree bark and cedar. Concentrated and taut on the medium-bodied palate, it has crisp acidity and a medium level of grainy tannins, finishing long.… Read the rest

Wine should bring joy. And for lovers of things exquisite, Andrea Sottimano’s wines are evocative, they can yield tears of joy. Here he is, at work and play in one of the family’s vineyards:

In this case, amongst the Dolcetto vines in the Bricco del Salto. As with all the Sottimano vineyards, a very natural viticulture is employed here. Since 1990, the Sottimano have been spared from herbicides, insectides, fertilizers, et al. They are true believers that if the objective is lively wine , the starting point must be a lively vineyard. 

The story of Sottimano has been one of brilliant Barbaresco cru vineyard acquisition. In 1975, the founder,  Maggiore Sottimano, purchased the vineyard in Cotta, along with the winery and cellar there.… Read the rest

From a remarkable site, high, high, high in the Andes, to…

…land here,at the lowest price in the USA!

Bodegas Colome Estate Malbec  Calchaqui Valley 2010 ($29.95) $21.90 Jump Start Special
Stephen Tanzer 91 points “Full red-ruby.  Musky aromas of cherry liqueur, blackberry, violet, roasted coffee and spicy herbs, along with a meaty whiff of reduction.  Wonderfully fine-grained and plush on the palate but with no heaviness; perfectly integrated acidity gives the wine a vibrant quality.  Finishes with serious but sweet tannins that spread out to coat the palate on the lively, subtle, long aftertaste.  A lot of wine for $30.” Wine Spectator 91 points This suave, racy red delivers game, crushed cherry and wild berry notes backed by fine tannins and bright acidity.… Read the rest

The Rhône river begins life way to the north in Switzerland. As it makes it way down through the length of France it widens to become the central feature of the Rhône valley, the famed region situated at the center of what are some of the most privileged vineyards in the world. Although often lumped together under the ‘Rhone Valley’ descriptor, the Northern and Southern Rhone regions are really quite distinct.

The Northern Rhône is a land of steep, steep slopes carved into granite hillsides by the progress of the river over thousands of years. These vineyards, some of the oldest in France, have had to be etched into the mountainside on narrow terraces and at dizzying heights.… Read the rest