New Summer Sale: Domaine Rottiers; New Weekend – New Arrivals; The Rising Star of the Willmatte Valley: New Bow & Arrow Releases; New Spectator & Vinous Scores!; Staff Pick: Anne-Sophie Dubois; Case Picks; K Vintners: In-Stock Now!; New Grapelive Review: Mouzon-Leroux; The End is Nigh: Best Price Deals; What’s Got 300 Points and Is Arriving July 21st? Dominus 2013
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Summer Shipping Special:
Midwest, East, & South
For the summer season we are offering UPS Three Day Select Service for the price of UPS Ground for shipments normally traveling 4 or more business days by ground.
Free service upgrade only applies on single orders purchased and shipped during the promotional period. Additional fees will apply to orders held for any reason until after the promotional period and shipped by Three Day Select. Offer not valid on items purchased before the promotional period or on pre-arrival items that arrive after the promotional period ends.
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New Summer Sale Wine
Domaine Richard Rottiers Moulin-a-Vent, Beaujolais 2014 750ML ($24.95) Was $21.90, Now $18, 36+ bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 93 points “Produced from vines up to 80 years old, this is a powerful, wood-aged wine. Tannins are mixed with toast, spice and dark plum flavors. Acidity gives freshness and finishes the wine with very fine fruits as well as structure. Age this impressive wine and drink from 2018.”
Josh Raynolds-Vinous 92 points “Brilliant violet. Smoke-accented blackberry and cherry scents are complicated by suggestions of vanilla, violet and licorice. Sweet and seamless in texture, offering intense dark berry and floral pastille flavors that tighten up and become spicier with air. Weighty yet lithe, delivering a solid finishing punch of sappy dark fruit, smooth tannins and excellent persistence. This substantial yet energetic wine has the stuffing as well as the balance to age.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $23
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New Weekend – New Arrivals
France – Loire
Domaine du Collier Saumur Blanc, Loire 2012 750ML ($49.95) $36 special
VinopolNote: From mature vines between 20-75 years old and kept at low yields, this dry and rich white is a perfect entry point to the bottlings from the domaine. Really special stuff and unbelievable for the price.
Domaine La Grange Tiphaine Touraine Amboise Ad Libitum, Loire 2015 750ML ($21.95) $19 special
VinopolNote: A midweight to light red that is super gulpable. It’s a blend of the three big grapes for the Touraine—Gamay, Cab Franc and Cot—and goes down too easily. Don’t buy just one bottle. We warned you.
Domaine La Grange Tiphaine Touraine Amboise Becarre, Loire 2015 750ML ($31.95) $27 special
VinopolNote: This is a serious bottle of Cabernet Franc, on par with anything from Chinon excepting Baudry’s very top bottlings. The 2015 vintage brought a lot of ripeness, so no greenness at all and less herbal flavors than usual, but with lots of great dark fruit and some structure to balance it out. A real stunner and one to drink now or age for a little while.
Domaine La Grange Tiphaine Montlouis Nouveau Nez, Loire 2014 750ML ($31.95) $27 special
VinopolNote: We’ll keep this simple: this is one of the two or three best pet-nats we’ve tried. Made from 100% Chenin Blanc and sparkling as a result of a single fermentation, this is bubbly (though not as much as Champagne) and flat out delicious.
Domaine La Grange Tiphaine Touraine Quatre Mains, Loire 2015 750ML ($49.95) $41.90 special
VinopolNote: This is the top white from the estate—a 100% Sauvignon Blanc grown on Silex soils that reminds us of Dageneau in how it marries richness and minerality. In a vintage like 2015, it should be approachable young, but this stunner will only become more and more exciting with age. Damien Delecheneau is a producer to watch and this wine is the first item on his resumé.
Italy – Piedmont
Brovia Roero Arneis DOCG, Piedmont 2016 750ML ($31.95) $26 special
Importer note “The sole white wine of the estate is produced in the Roero district from an 0.80 hectare plot in Vezza d’Alba. The soil is essentially sandy in composition and sits at 340 meters altitude on south-facing slopes. The vineyard was planted in 1980. Harvest (manual) normally occurs in mid-September. The grapes are briefly macerated and the fermentation occurs at controlled temperatures (around 15 degrees Celsius) for two to three weeks. The wine rests in stainless steel until the early spring months of the following year and is usually released to the market, after several months of bottle aging, in late summer/early fall.”
This is the lowest listed price on the West Coast today!
Brovia Vignavillej Dolcetto d’Alba, Piedmont 2015 750ML ($21.95) $18 special
Importer note “Harvested from classic clay-limestone soils from plots in Castiglione Falletto and Serralunga d’Alba, some planted in 1981 and the other portion in 1993. The grapes are crushed and fermented in stainless steel at 29 degrees Celsius for a period of a week to 10 days; then aged in stainless steel for seven to nine months before the bottling (unfiltered).”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
Brovia Barolo DOCG, Piedmont 2012 750ML ($51.95) $46 special
Antonio Galloni 89 points “Brovia’s 2012 Barolo is classy, polished and absolutely delicious. With a little bit of air, the 2012 can be enjoyed now, but it also has enough freshness and balance to drink well for at least a handful of years. I have seen Brovia’s straight Barolo age well, so I won’t be surprised if that turns out to be the case here as well. Floral and red stone fruit notes give the 2012 much of its freshness and mid-weight feel. This is an especially lifted, gracious Barolo for the vintage.”
Vinopolnote- Dear Antonio, how can opine such glorious testimony for a wine and then assign 89 points?
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The Rising Star of the Willamette Valley
We’d sing Scott Frank’s praise from the rooftops, but we might get lost in the choir:
“Scott Frank’s Rhinestones 2015 maybe the best under $25 wine I’ve ever tasted from Oregon” -Kerry Winslow, Grapelive
“This wine is way too easy to drink” –Josh Raynolds, Vinous Media
“…did I mention the cool factor? Sky high.” –Katherine Cole, The Oregonian
We can’t say enough good things about Bow & Arrow and the wines they make. Scott Frank seems to have cracked the code to do two things that are nearly impossible for other Oregon wineries. First, he makes always wines that are vibrant, fresh and delicious in a truly old-world fashion. The wines are awesome. There’s a liveliness that we find in the Bow & Arrow wines that can often be lacking from lots of other wines from this state—a zippiness, if you will. As a result, the wines (especially the wines we’re featuring today) can be compulsively drinkable. We may have mentioned this already, but the wines are great.
The other major puzzle that Scott seems to have cracked is affordability. We often see wines from the US marketed as ‘daily drinkers’ in style but the wines are priced at $30++, well north of a comparable wine from Europe. With Bow & Arrow, though, we’re pleased as punch that a delicious local wine is cheaper than most of the competition from Europe. (and delicious—that’s important, too). Scott Frank’s pricing seems free of ego that can sometimes infect his domestic brethren. We should mention again that the wines are awesome. Don’t forget that part.
New Releases from Bow & Arrow:
Bow & Arrow Hughes Hollow Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($37.95) $28 special
Case-12 Bow & Arrow Hughes Vineyard Hollow Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($419.95) $299 special (that’s only $24.92/bottle!)
VinopolNote: Hughes Hollow is an own-rooted vineyard. Scott Frank works with the Pommard clone of Pinot in the Jory soils. In the 2015 vintage, he used 10% whole cluster. The wine shows savory notes of black tea and freshly turned earth, lightened by aromas of red fruits and green herbs.
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The next best price is $35.95
The average price is $39
Bow & Arrow Vitae Springs Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($37.95) $28 special
Case-12 Bow & Arrow Vitae Springs Vineyard Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($419.95) $299 special (that’s only $24.92/bottle!)
VinopolNote: The selection for the Vitae Springs bottling comes from the highest block in the vineyard at an elevation of 800 feet. It was planted to the Pommard clone in 1999. The wine is fresh and inviting, showing a spicy nose with notes of violets, red roses and oolong tea. It has a refreshingly sappy persistence to the finish.
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The next best price is $35.95
Also available here now from Bow & Arrow:
Bow & Arrow Melon Johan Vineyard, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($24.95) $18 special, 36+ bottles available
Grapelive 91 points “Inspired by the Loire Valley’s Muscadet Sevre et Maine, the natural and stylish biodynamic Melon de Bourgogne by Bow & Arrow delivers brisk and bright salty flavors with a touch of New World richness, but remains faithful to the French version with driving acidity and steeliness making for a vibrant example of this varietal. Bow & Arrow’s Johan Vineyard Melon starts with an austere nose of saline, ether, crushed earthy stones, straw bale and zesty citrus leading to a pithy palate of lemon/lime, unripe melon and a core of stone fruit, making it a superb seafood companion. Frank’s touch is brilliant here, as with Johan’s fruit giving loads of energy and character. It opens to fleshy peach and kiwi along with some bitter herb and spice offering a fruity vs savory balance. The hint of brioche/lees offers mouth feel and substance. This white impresses for its zip and restraint while still giving texture and layers. The vintage shines through in all of the Bow & Arrow wines. These are wonderful efforts.”
Josh Raynolds-Vinous 89 points “Bright straw. Aromas of lemon zest, green apple and quinine, along with subtle floral and herb nuances in the background. Juicy orchard and citrus fruit flavors unfurl slowly with air and show good delineation and lift. Finishes on a zesty lemon note, showing good cling and lingering florality.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $22
Bow & Arrow Rhinestone Red, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($24.95) $19.60 special, 13 bottles available
Bow & Arrow Rhinestone Red, Willamette Valley 2015 1.5L ($59.95) $39 special, 12+ magnums available
Case-12 Bow & Arrow Rhinestone Red, Willamette Valley 2015 750ML ($299.95) $219 special, 1 case available (that’s only $18.25/bottle!)
Grapelive 94 points “Scott Frank’s Rhinestones 2015 maybe the best under $25 wine I’ve ever tasted from Oregon. In fact the 2015 is so good I almost prefer it to some over $50 Pinot Noir offerings. This is serious stuff that really delivers the quality and depth you’d not maybe expect from this fun blend… It redefines Oregon’s paradigm! The 2015 starts with a nose of dark roses, spice, truffle and blue fruits leading to a vivid palate of black cherry, blueberry, plum and tart currant fruits along with walnut/cedar, peppery stones, sage/mint/anise, cinnamon and iron/mineral tones finishing long and lingering with strawberry, earthy beet root and lavender. The texture is amazing and the mouth feel is exceptional considering how alive and bright this brilliant medium weight wine is. It is a satiny stunner with glorious vitality and grace. Don’t over think the grapes or label: this wine is the new Oregon and it deserves your open mind and attention. Drink this over the next 5 to 10 years. What a truly fantastic effort!”
John Gilman 92 points “The 2015 version of Rhinestones is a blend of sixty percent pinot noir and forty percent gamay. The wine is a tad tight when first opened, but with a bit of swirling offers up a lovely bouquet of red and black cherries, a touch of pepper, spit-roasted meats, fresh herbs and dark soil tones. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied and tangy, with a fine core, lovely focus and grip and a long, moderately tannic finish. This is 12.5 percent octane and absolutely laser-like on the palate, with superb backer energy. I am sure this is intended as an early quaffer for restaurants in Portland, but this has the balance and structure to also age very well indeed! 2016- 2030.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $23
This is the only listing in the USA today for the magnum!
Love lighter-bodied local wines? Don’t miss this great buy from Matello, also under $30 and also brilliantly delicious. The ‘Souris’ cuvee was the winery’s barrel selection, but the winery discontinued the practice with the 2012 vintage. (It’s a wine built to age – the 2007 is showing beautifully now…) We snapped up the last of it at killer prices because the winery was running out of cellar space:
Matello ‘Souris’ Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2012 750ML ($41.95) $29 special
Case-6 Matello ‘Souris’ Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2012 750ML (249.95) $166 special (that’s only $27.67/bottle!)
Case-12 Matello ‘Souris’ Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2012 750ML ($449.95) $299 special (that’s only $24.92/bottle!)
Josh Raynolds–Vinous 93 points “Vivid ruby-red. Heady, complex scents of fresh red and dark berries, incense and Asian spices, with a bright mineral overtone. Intense black raspberry and spicecake flavors convey a shapely, seamless quality. Fleshes out and deepens with aeration and finishes sweet and extremely long, with lingering smokiness and harmonious tannins.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $42
Matello ‘Souris’ Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2011 750ML ($41.95) $28 special, 14 bottles available
Josh Raynolds-Vinous 91 points “(from fruit grown in the Whistling Ridge and Durant vineyards; made with 55% whole clusters and raised in 40% new oak): Vivid red. Vibrant red berry and Asian spice aromas are given depth by notes of vanilla and licorice and pick up a minerally nuance with air. Juicy raspberry and cherry-cola flavors tighten up in the mid-palate and show very good clarity. Finishes spicy and long, with silky tannins adding structure.” ST
This is the only listing in the USA today!
We offer 136 different bottlings of Oregon red wines (including Pinots!) available here now – see the full list on our web store!
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New Spectator & Vinous Scores!
Bergstrom Shea Vineyard Pinot Noir, Yamhill-Carlton District 2015 750ML ($69.95) $59 pre-arrival special, ETA Late July
Wine Spectator 93 points “Sleek and polished, with lovely raspberry and fresh violet aromas that open to harmonious dark cherry, stony mineral and black tea flavors. Drink now through 2022.”
This is the lowest listed price on the West Coast today!
Krug Grande Cuvee NV 750ML ($219.95) $159 special, 18 bottles available
Antonio Galloni 95 points “The NV Grand Cuvée 163 Edition is wonderfully open-knit and giving, qualities that make it a terrific choice for drinking now and over the next 30 or so years. Pastry, apricot, lemon confit, chamomile and white flowers, along with soft contours, give the wine its inviting, alluring personality. There is more than enough energy and overall freshness to support several decades of fine drinking. Even so, the 163 is virtually impossible to resist at this early stage.”
Staff Pick
Anne-Sophie Dubois
Andy:
The energy of young vignerons in France is hard to deny. These winemakers aren’t afraid to try new things, while still keeping a healthy respect for tradition. Anne-Sophie Dubois is among the vanguard in Beaujolais who takes tradition down new and interesting paths. The wines she’s producing have the hallmarks of classic Beaujolais, complex and beautiful aromatics, but have an elegance and lift to them that seemingly are hers alone. Her Fleurie holdings are highly granitic soils that have vines averaging 40 – 60 years of age: old enough to be in their prime, producing healthy fruit that requires no over-extraction. The wines are fermented in tanks and what oak is used is 4 to 7 years old, providing a natural space to age with minimal influence on the core flavor of the fruit.
The Alchemiste is a bottle of pure enjoyment, with layers of aromas that seem to keep revealing new scents every five minutes: raspberry, cherry, Indian spices, floral notes that range throughout the entire garden. It is a non-carbonic Beaujolais, so there is more depth and less pop to the aromas. That being said, there is buoyancy to her wines – in the glass, on the palate – that keeps you drinking more and more. Such vitality is a natural pair to excellent charcuterie, funky cheeses and roast chicken. Keep an extra bottle on hand – or grab a magnum – because you’ll run through the first in no time.
Here are the Anne-Sophie Dubois wines available today:
Anne-Sophie Dubois Fleurie l’Alchimiste, Beaujolais 2015 750ML ($29.95) $24 special, 19 bottles available
Anne-Sophie Dubois Fleurie l’Alchimiste, Beaujolais 2015 1.5L ($69.95) $59 special, 3 magnums available
VinopolNote: This is Dubois flagship wine, from a southwest-facing section of Fleurie on mostly granite soils. The wine is clearly a product of a Burgundy-style vinification (as opposed to carbonic maceration) but seems to channel the soul of Fleurie with dark and red fruits, foral notes and pretty spice flavors. Delicious.
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
Also available from Anne-Sophie Dubois:
Anne-Sophie Dubois Fleurie Clepsydre, Beaujolais 2015 750ML ($31.95) $28 special, 33 bottles available
Anne-Sophie Dubois Fleurie Clepsydre, Beaujolais 2015 1.5L ($79.95) $66 special, 5 magnums available
VinopolNote: Clepsydre is the French word for ‘water clock’ and denotes the most age-worthy of the wines that Dubois makes. It still has her trademark elegance but with more richness and power than her other wines. One to lay down or decant before opening, for sure.
This is the lowest listed price on the West Coast today!
Quench your thirst with some of the 41 different bottlings from Beaujolais we offer – browse the selection on our web store!
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Multiple Cases of Vinsanity
It’s Catching…
Case-12 Domaine des Cassagnoles Gros Manseng Selection, IGP Cotes de Gascogne 2015 750ML ($149.95) Was $119, Now $99, 6 cases available (that’s only $8.25/bottle!)
Domaine des Cassagnoles Gros Manseng Selection, IGP Cotes de Gascogne 15 750ML ($14.95) Was $11.90, Now $9, 36+ bottles available
Winery Notes–“The Gros Manseng produces fleshier, more ample wines with fruity apricot and pear aromas. It is a lively wine, but not to excess, with a persistent final. It may be kept for several years and should be drunk chilled, at a temperature of 50-53°”
Case-12 Allegrini Valpolicella, Veneto 2015 750ML ($159.95) $126 special, 6 cases available (that’s only $10.50/bottle!)
Allegrini Valpolicella, Veneto 2015 750ML ($14.95) $11.90 special, 36+ bottles available
Jancis Robinson 16.5/20 “Mid garnet. Pale rim. Pure, whistle-clean Corvina fruit on the nose – so direct! What’s not to like? Such a rarity, a pure, well balanced local expression of Veneto red with very light bitter cherry notes on the end but without a hint of a dried grape. Made for the table – cheese? Something white and creamy?”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $15
Case-12 Lavau Gigondas, Rhone 2012 750ML ($299.95) $199 special, 6 cases available (that’s only $16.58/bottle!)
Lavau Gigondas, Rhone 2012 750ML ($24.95) $18 special, 30 bottles available
Wine Spectator 90 points “Features a dark profile, with steeped plum, black licorice and graphite notes framed by Lapsang souchong tea and carrying through the fleshy, well-defined finish. Very solid.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The next best price is $24.99
Case-12 Domaine Boisson Cotes du Rhone Villages Massif d’Uchaux Clos de la Brussiere, Rhone 2009 750ML ($299.95) $199 special, 6 cases available (that’s only $16.58/bottle!)
Domaine Boisson Cotes du Rhone Villages Massif d’Uchaux Clos de la Brussiere, Rhone 2009 750ML ($24.95) $18 special, 26 bottles available
Robert Parker 91 points “Even better is the 2009 Cairanne Clos de la Brussiere from the Massif d’Uchaux, the newest Cotes du Rhone-Villages appellation. A dark ruby/purple color is followed by deliciously ripe fruit in this seriously stacked and packed effort. Revealing lots of kirsch liqueur, loamy soil, garrigue and lavender notes, this full-bodied, richly fruity, pure, well-balanced 2009 should drink well for 4-5 years.”
This is the only listing in the USA today!
Case-12 Peter Lauer ‘Barrel X’ Saar Riesling, Mosel 2015 750ML ($279.95) $219 special, 3 cases available (that’s only $18.25/bottle!)
Peter Lauer ‘Barrel X’ Saar Riesling, Mosel 2015 750ML ($24.95) $19 special, 25 bottles available
Importer note “You all know by now the stratospheric work Florian is doing in the Saar. This has always been the ambassador wine from the winery but this vintage elevates to Senior levels of complexity.”
Eric Asimov 20 Wines under 20 Pick for Fall 2016 ““Barrel X” is the entry-level riesling of Peter Lauer, which has become something of a cult producer. Its wines are precise and jewel-like, and this one is no different, rocky on the palate with an almost razor-like focus and just the most tender touch of residual sugar.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $22
Case-12 Maitia ‘Aupa Pipeno’, Maule Valley, Chile 2016 750ML ($149.95) $128 special, 9 cases available (that’s only $10.67/bottle!)
Maitia ‘Aupa Pipeno’, Maule Valley, Chile 2016 750ML ($14.95) $11.90 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 92 points “The super-tasty and gulpable 2016 Aupa Pipeño is a blend of País with some 30% Carignan (and whatever is found in the old vineyards) from a slightly cooler year. It keeps the style of previous vintages with the bright red fruit and the freshness of short macerations. In the dry-farming part of Maule they only saw 30 to 50 millimeters of rain when in the central valley they got 200! These grapes were harvested before the rain anyway, but the wine retains the freshness of a cooler year, fresher than 2015, more in line with the 2014 and 2013.”
Case-12 Zorzal Eggo Franco Cabernet Franc, Tupungato, Argentina 2015 750ML ($319.95) $249 special, 3 cases available (that’s only $20.75/bottle and the lowest listed price in the USA today!)
Zorzal Eggo Franco Cabernet Franc, Tupungato, Argentina 2015 750ML ($29.95) $24 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 93 points “The second vintage I tasted from this Cabernet Franc, the 2015 Eggo Franco is produced, like many of their wines, with grapes from Tupungato Winelands in Gualtallary. It fermented in cement eggs with some stems and with 50% of the wine kept in contact with skins for some three to four months, then pressed and put back in the eggs to complete its élevage, which lasted some nine months. It shows a mixture of herbal and candied berry aromas, hints of beef blood and iron. The absence of oak shows the naked tannins and provides an earthy side, which to me is very much the wild character of Gualtallary. 6,000 bottles were filled in December 2015 (it was harvested in March).”
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ABCDEFGHIJ
K!
Two Killer Deals – In Stock Now!
Charles Smith K Vintners ‘M.C.K. Motor City Kitty’ Syrah, Washington 2014 750ML ($39.95) $36 special, only 12 bottles available!
Case-12 Charles Smith K Vintners ‘M.C.K. Motor City Kitty’ Syrah, Washington 2014 750ML ($479.95) $399 special (that’s only $33.25/bottle!), only 3 cases available!
Wine Advocate 95 points “Named after a cat owned by Charles when he was living in Walla Walla, the 2014 M C K Syrah sports a deep purple color as well as ripe, decadent notes of black fruits, plums, graphite, crushed rock and licorice. Big, sexy, seamless and pure, with present, yet ripe tannin, drink it through 2024. It’s worth noting that this comes completely from the River Rock vineyard in this vintage. As usual, it’s a crazy value.”
Wine Enthusiast 93 points –Editors’ Choice–“This aromatically brooding wine brings aromas of brown stems, scorched earth, smoked meat, iron, violets, orange peel and blue and black fruit. The flavors coat the palate from end to end with silky soft, unabashedly appealing fruit and savory notes. It hits the delicious gong hard, with an enduring finish.”
Charles Smith K Vintners The Creator Cabernet – Syrah, Walla Walla Valley 2014 750ML ($69.95) $59 special, only 26 bottles available
Wine Advocate 96 points “An 80/20 Cabernet Sauvignon Syrah blend from the Powerline Vineyard, the 2014 The Creator is killer stuff. Cassis, black olive, crushed rock, dusty earth and graphite characteristics emerge from this wild, gamey, full-bodied and impeccably balanced red. It stays lightly textured and graceful, with fine tannin, but it’s a big, rich wine that’s going to benefit from short term cellaring and keep for 15-20 years.”
Don’t miss six additional bottlings from K Vintners available here now!
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New Grapelive Review
Mouzon-Leroux L’Atavique Grand Cru Extra Brut, Champagne NV 750ML ($69.95) $59 special, 12 bottles available
Grapelive 94 points “This is an exciting new-to-me grower producer that does a biodynamic Extra Brut from estate vines. [It’s a blend of] 55% Pinot Noir and 45% Chardonnay from Verzy, and it’s a thrilling and dry style Grand Cru bubbly. Interestingly it is from mostly 2012 vintage, about 65%, with the rest a blend of leesy reserve wine from 2009 to 2011 with very low dosage, hence the Extra Brut. It was native yeast or natural fermented with the lots going through full Malo, so that very little sulfur had to be used. This Champagne is extremely brisk and vividly vibrant, but with complex layers and ever expanding depth on the palate. It has zingy citrus, orange blossom, apple, white cherry, fig and hazelnut leading the way with a steely core and lemon zest along with wet stones, before opening to brioche, a hint of smoke, chalky spice and quince. The mousse is remarkably fine and caressing, allowing lovely texture and mouth feel in such a taut Champagne. It’s not a crowd pleaser really, but a jewel for the enthusiast. The Mouzon-Leroux cuvee L’atavique is a special Champagne for grower fizz fans, imported by The Source (California) is certainly a great effort to search out! Happy Bastille Day, Viva La France!”
This is the lowest listed price on the West Coast today!
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The End is Nigh!
These opportunities are almost gone – don’t miss yours!
Louis M. Martini Monte Rosso Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma Valley 2012 750ML ($69.95) $59 special, only 18 bottles available!
James Suckling 95 points “I am always a fan of this wine with its dusty, red-tile and rust character, which underlines the fruit and ripe tannins. Full-bodied, powerful and tannic, all the way up to the flavorful finish. Give it three or four years to soften.”
Robert Parker 93+ points “A 15- to 20-year wine in terms of its aging potential is the 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Monte Rosso Vineyard. A blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Petit Verdot, aged 27 months in a combination of French and American oak, the wine is dense, full-bodied, with notes of dusty, loamy soil interwoven with crème de cassis, blackberry, toasty oak and hints of chocolate and espresso. This is another full-throttle effort (15.2% natural alcohol), richly layered, with moderate tannin. It is accessible now but capable of lasting 25 or more years.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $67
Maggy Hawk Afleet Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley 2009 750ML ($69.95) $49 special, only 12 bottles available!
Stephen Tanzer – Vinous 92 points “Bright ruby. Aromas of fresh red berries and candied rose are complicated by notes of sassafras, vanilla and allspice. Juicy and sharply focused, offering intense raspberry and cherry flavors that put on weight with air. Shows impressive clarity on the finish, which lingers with suave floral and spice qualities.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The next best price is $54.99
The average price is $71
Perrier Jouet Belle Epoque Brut Millesime Rose, Champagne 2005 750ML ($349.95) $149 special, only 8 bottles available!
Wine Enthusiast 95 points “The palest of rosés, this crisp, bright and fruity wine is full of tight acidity, freshly picked raspberries and steely acidity. It could age a few more years to bring out a toastier character.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
That’s even lower than auction opening prices!
The next best price is $250
The average price is $328
(Yes, it’s the one with the flowers painted on the bottle)
G. B. Burlotto Barolo DOCG, Piedmont 2013 750ML ($59.95) $44 special, only 22 bottles available!
Antonio Galloni 92 points “Burlotto’s 2013 Barolo is one of the very best wines in its price range and class. Orange peel, bright red stone fruit, mint, licorice and star anise give the 2013 its exotic aromatic profile. The tannins are incisive and piercing, but also very fine grained. Best of all, the 2013 will drink well with minimal cellaring while giving readers a terrific look at the vibrancy, energy and polish. There is so much to like here. Breri, which is a vineyard close to Monvigliero, is the core of the Barolo, while Rocco dell’ Olmo and Neirane round out the blend. The 2013 is as good or better than many vineyard designate Barolos in this vintage. Don’t miss it.”
This is the lowest listed price on the West Coast today!
The average price nationally is $52
Familie Saahs Nikolaihof Vinothek Riesling, Wachau, Austria 1997 750ML ($219.95) $149 special, 17 bottles available
Wine Advocate 97 points “Aged for 17 years in a domestic 3,500-liter cask before it was bottled in August 2014, the 1997 Riesling Vinothek is the best part of the regular 1997 Riesling Smaragd Im Weingebirge, which was bottled and marketed in late 1998. The aged Vinothek version offers a fascinatingly clear, bright, deep and multi-layered nose with iodine and ripe as well as intense white-fleshed fruit aromas. Full-bodied, full of finesse and elegant, this dry, transparent and mineral Riesling develops a great intensity, complexity and power on the palate, but never leaves its silky road of purity, finesse and transparency. There is a lot of Spiel and tension here, but the most exciting characteristic trait is the intense and very mineral, almost endless finish. How youthful this wine is! And its further aging potential is still terrific. The wine reminds me of certain sherries, white Riojas and Jura wines, although it is not less oxidative. But it spent a long time in cask and has the freshness, complexity and thrilling taste of those. It’s a great, unique and stimulating wine that was bottled with 12.8% of alcohol, 6 grams of residual sugar and 6.5 grams of acidity.”
David Schildknecht–Vinous 97 points “This successor to the almost supernaturally ethereal and haunting 1995 also has to live up to the reputation of a vintage-of-the-half-century. It manages, though! The bouquet is unearthly in its complex amalgam of bittersweetly floral (iris, gentian, buddleia), pungently nutty, subtly smoky (black tea) and elusively mineral (sea breeze, wet stone, faint fusel oil) components. Considering the secondary development signaled on the nose, a surprising intensity of pure white peach, apple and grapefruit emerges sumptuously on the silky palate. The buoyant finish, more tightly clinging and less ethereal than that of the 1995, represents a long, harmoniously undulating interaction of liquid floral perfume, diverse minerality and succulent fresh fruits. I tasted this shortly before its mid-2014 bottling (a rare exception to the Nikolaihof rule against unveiling wines from cask) and did not review that note before tasting seven months later. My first spontaneous word each time was “unearthly.” And happily, my impressions that followed demonstrated that this wine’s amazing personality, including its aromas and textural allure, had made it to bottle scarcely altered. The source vineyard here, incidentally, is the Im Weingebirge whereas the 1995 was from Vom Stein.”
This is the lowest listed price on the West Coast today for the direct cellar-release!
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Arriving Friday, July 21st
Phenominus Dominus
Dominus Estate Christian Moueix, Napa Valley 2013 375ML ($179.95) $159 pre-arrival special
Case-12 Dominus Estate Christian Moueix, Napa Valley 2013 375ML ($1,899.95) $1,699 pre-arrival special (that’s only $141.58/half-bottle!)
Robert Parker 100 points “The 2013 Dominus is, to my way of thinking, one of the most profound wines Christian Moueix has yet made in his rather brilliant winemaking history, both in France and in Napa Valley. This wine, with very low yields of only 3,500 cases and a final blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petit Verdot and 4% Cabernet Franc, offers up notes of cedar wood, forest floor, loamy soil and oodles of blackberry and blackcurrant fruit. Very opaque purple in color, super-pure and intense, this wine has low acidity, but ripe, noticeable tannins. This is a 30- to 40-year wine and a profound effort from this famous vineyard in Yountville. Drink it over the next 40+ years.”
Antonio Galloni 100 points “The 2013 Dominus overwhelms all the senses with its magnificent overall balance and towering intensity. Deep and nearly impenetrable in the glass, the 2013 boasts off the charts dry extract and overall power. Violets, smoke, black cherries, menthol, incense, crème de cassis and dark spices are some of the many signatures that take shape in the glass. Even better in bottle than it was in barrel, the 2013 is utterly magnificent. This is a remarkably vivid, nuanced wine considering its sheer size.”
James Suckling 100 points “The aromas to this are multidimensional and fascinating with black truffles, bark, cloves, black currants and citrus – even ginseng. Full-bodied, yet reserved, even austere, with chewy and powerful tannins that remain polished and refined. The flavors are more umami and savory. Then there’s forest fruits and red orange undertones. It lasts for minutes. A wine to age for a lifetime. It’s an experience to taste this. A new classic showing its history and tradition as a source of the greatest wines ever from Napa. A wine to always enjoy.”
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Thank you for reading!