Thursday, February 26th, 2015
Isole e Olena Vin Santo del Chianti Classico, Tuscany 2003 375ML ($59.95) Was $49, Now $39! 24+ half-bottles available
“High-toned nose, rich in dried fruit, marmalade and salted nut aromas. Utterly delicious; intense and crammed with flavour – raisins, figs, orange peel – but relatively light on its feet with cracking freshness.”–Decanter Magazine
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Isole e Olena Vin Santo del Chianti Classico, Tuscany 2004 375ML ($59.95) $49 special, 24+ half-bottles available
Stephen Tanzer 94 points “Deep amber-yellow. Sexy, kaleidoscopic nose combines exotic tropical fruits, chestnut honey, raisin, dried fig, caramel and a musky iodine note. Then sharply delineated and penetrating on the palate in spite of its honeyed sweetness, with superb acidity giving spine to the dried fruit and ripe citrus flavors. This wonderfully vibrant yet thick and rich Vin Santo coats the mouth on the long, smooth finish. Great stuff.” ST
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New Close Outs!
WASHINGTON
Charles Smith ‘Sixto’ Moxee Chardonnay, Washington State 2012 750ML ($79.95) $49 special, 35 bottles available
Wine Advocate 92-94 points “Coming from a warmer site and old vines (37-year-old) that are located northeast of Yakima city, the 2012 Chardonnay Moxee Vineyard (aged in 20% new French oak puncheons) gives up perfumed spice, lemon curd, toast and chamomile-like nuances to go with a medium-bodied, rounded, supple and yet fantastically pure and layered profile on the palate. I love the mid-palate here, and this is a rich, textured effort that’s geared for consuming over the coming 3 to 4 years.” WA
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Wine Advocate 93-95 points “The 2012 Chardonnay Roza Hills Vineyard comes from limestone soils that lie at an elevation of 1,300 feet outside the town of Zillah. Aged in 30% new French oak, it gives up impressive lemon and stone fruits, white flowers, warm spice and ample chalky minerality in its medium-bodied, layered, fabulously pure and rich profile. As with the other whites from this estate, it’s more than a little impressive.” WA
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Au Sommet Atlas Peak Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley 2009 750ML ($299.95) $129 special, 24+ bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 94 points “Very rich and opulent, in the Heidi Barrett style, this Cabernet is sweetly jammy but somewhat direct in blackberries, cherries and raspberries. The finish is extraordinarily long and spicy, an indication that it’s a wine for the cellar. Firm tannins and fine acidity confirm its ageability. Hold this flashy, decadent wine until 2016 and then try it again.” WE
Robert Parker 93 points “The 2009 Au Sommet is a bit lighter on its feet than the 2008. Sweet, silky tannins frame the fruit. Unlike the 2008, the 2009 is not particularly wild or exotic. Instead, it is a wine that stands out for its textural finesse and understated personality. This mid-weight, gracious Cabernet Sauvignon should be cellared for another year or two and enjoyed over the following decade. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2024” RP
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The next best price is $189/bottle
The average price is $202/bottle
Chateau Guiraud, Sauternes 2009 750ML ($99.95) $55 special, 24+ bottles available
Wine Spectator 96 points ‘Highly Recommended’ “This is a bird of a different feather, with an exotic, vibrant aroma of toasted coconut, followed by an almond cream note that gives way to the core of green fig, papaya, Cavaillon melon and honey. There’s stunning richness and mouthfeel, with the power to be one of the longer-lived wines of the vintage. Very impressive. Best from 2015 through 2040.”WS
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The average price is $71/bottle
Robert Parker 98 points “An exquisite jewel in Chantal and Gerard Perse’s Right Bank empire, Bellevue-Mondotte is a tiny, 5-acre parcel of 45-year-old vines planted on the limestone plateau above Pavie-Decesse and Pavie-Macquin. It is composed of 90% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. I tasted the 2003 on three separate occasions, one of which merited a three-digit rating. Sadly, there are only 4,000 bottles of this prodigious effort. Possessing relatively high alcohol (14.5%) for a Bordeaux, it is an amazing blend made from 15 hectoliters per hectare. A dense, viscous-looking purple color is accompanied by a sweet perfume of blackberries, espresso roast, fried lard, and pain grille. Full-bodied and massively rich with decent acidity and plenty of structure as well as tannin, this youthful 2003 should hit its stride in 3-5 years, and last for three decades. This may be what the great 1929s or 1947s tasted like at age three.”RP
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The average price is $236/bottle
Domaine Louis Carillon et Fils Les Combettes, Puligny-Montrachet Premier Cru 2011 750ML ($119.95) $79 special, 21 bottles available
Burghound 90-92 points “This is also relatively reduced and difficult to read. There is a wonderfully elegant mouth feel to the vibrant, intense and well-delineated medium-bodied flavors that exude a lovely mineral streak on the saline-infused finish. This is not especially dense but the complexity and overall sense of refinement make for a harmonious effort that is worth considering.”BH
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Winery note [translated] “This wine has a fruity and elegant nose. The palate is generous, fruity and spicy. Age for 2 to 3 years.”
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Burghound 87-89 points “Discreet wood spice adds breadth to the very fresh cool red cherry and earth suffused nose that is in keeping with the vibrant, detailed and impressively pure mineral-laden flavors. I like the sense of underlying tension and balance on the lingering finish.”BH
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Burghound 90 points “An overtly fruity yet solidly complex nose features notes of cassis, plum, violet and black raspberry. There is an appealing mineral streak to the delicious medium-bodied flavors that exude both floral and spice elements on the delicious, long and balanced finish. This too will drink well almost immediately yet there is good underlying material to suggest 3 to 5 years of upside development potential.”
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $57/bottle
As well as making this wine under his own label, Leclerc bottles some to be sold under the label of the vineyard owner, Domain des Chezeaux. Here is a review of the Chezeaux bottling from Burgundy report.com: “Medium, medium-plus colour. The nose is a fine advertisement for ‘Griotte’ with a very pretty core of shiny red fruit – more cranberry/redcurrant than cherry – relatively simple in its youthfulness, but lovely. A hint of cushioning to the texture and an understated lick of tannin too. The acidity, like the tannin, seems rather understated but bubbles through as the mid-palate intensity grows, and becomes more mouth-watering. Subtly long. This is a very pretty wine that is also very ‘young Griotte’ in terms of its beauty yet lack of complexity – a perfectly balanced wine to wait for.”
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Domaine Boisson Cotes du Rhone Villages Cairanne Cuvee L’Exigence, Rhone 2011 750ML ($27.95) $21.90 special, 17 bottles available
Josh Raynolds–Vinous 90 points “(70% grenache, 20% syrah and 10% mourvedre): Vivid ruby. Heady aromas of candied red fruits, lavender pastille and spicecake, plus a bright mineral overtone. Energetic and focused on the palate, offering sweet raspberry and cherry compote flavors that turn more smoky and tangy with air. Rich yet lively Cairanne with very good finishing power and supple tannins coming on late.” JR
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Wine Advocate 93 points “Tasted out of bottle and a smoking St.-Joseph that savvy readers need to seek out, the 2011 St.-Joseph (which was just bottled prior to this tasting) offers gorgeous richness and depth, especially in the vintage. Black currants, charcoal, mineral, bouquet garni and ample background meatiness all emerge from the glass, and this medium to full-bodied beauty has brilliant purity of fruit, a great texture and fine tannin that should allow it to evolve gracefully. It’s a fantastic value that should not be missed!” WA
Wine Spectator 94 points “Shows weight and depth, but maintains a distinctive purity as the core of plum, blackberry and anise flavors take center stage, backed by hints of violet, iron and graphite. The lingering sanguine echo on the finish has decpetive length. Should cellar very well. Comparable in quality to the 2010, this bottling continues to improve. Best from 2015 through 2022.”JM
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Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Moulin-a-Vent Les Trois Roches, Beaujolais 2012 750ML ($29.95) $21.90 special, 26 bottles available
Winery note “Nose – this is intense with red fruit scents that include raspberry, cherry, blackberry and blackcurrant, partnered by hints of violet and iris. On aeration, mineral, smoky and spicy notes come through. Palate – refined and racy with a full, rounded and fleshy juicy fruit attack. Mellow, creamy tannins give a suave, velvety texture. Great complexity of flavours made up of red and black cherry flesh, mineral and sweet spice (vanilla),finishing on smoky and toasted notes.”
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Biondi Santi Tenuta Greppo Annata, Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2007 750ML ($189.95) $119 special, 11 bottles available
Antonio Galloni 94 points “The 2007 Brunello di Montalcino is gorgeous. The estate’s preference for picking on the early side is one of the factors that help balance some of the fleshiness of the vintage. This is an especially silky, supple Brunello from Biondi-Santi. The overt personality of the year comes through, but not at the expense of the house’s style. Floral notes reappear to frame the elegant, expressive finish.” AG
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The average price is $186/bottle
Antonio Galloni 92 points “The 2008 Brunello di Montalcino Annata is quite pretty in this vintage. It displays a classic profile of underbrush, tobacco, smoke, licorice and black cherries. The tannins are firm but nicely balanced. I expect the 2008 will drink well with minimum cellaring. It is one of the more open Brunellos I can remember tasting here. Still, there is plenty of Biondi Santi kick in the wine’s acidity and tannin profile.” AG
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $188/bottle
Antonio Galloni 94 points “The 2006 Brunello di Montalcino is remarkably harmonious at this young stage, quite a departure at Biondi-Santi. The 2006 shows dazzling richness and integrity in its powerful fruit in a totally captivating, sensual style. This is a beautifully centered, complete Brunello with a bright future ahead of it. The Brunello was fermented in cement and aged for three years in cask.” AG
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The next best price is $169/bottle
Castello di Neive Santo Stefano Albesani, Barbaresco DOCG 2009 750ML ($59.95) $39 special, 28 bottles available
Wine Advocate 92 points “The 2009 Barbaresco Albesani Santo Stefano unfurls on the palate with layers of highly expressive dark fruit. Hints of menthol, smoke, incense, leather and tobacco appear later, adding considerable depth and complexity. A plush, open finish rounds things out in style. Though fresher than the straight bottling, the Santo Stefano is also remarkably open today. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2024.” WA
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The average price is $55/bottle
Wine Spectator 95 points “There’s wonderful perfumes in this young Barbaresco, with flowers and ripe berries, as well as strawberry. Full-bodied, chewy and long. Massive on the finish. A superb wine.” WS
Wine Advocate 94+ points “The 2005 Barbaresco Rabaja is the densest and richest of these 2005 Barbarescos. Because it is aged in a slightly smaller cask, the wine shows an explosive personality along with some oak nuances that require bottle age to settle down. This muscular Barbaresco resonates on the palate with layers of spiced, mentholated dark cherries, minerals and licorice. It remains a dense, structured and primary wine in need of serious bottle age for the firm tannins to melt away. This, too, is a sublime wine from Bruno Giacosa. Anticipated maturity: 2013-2025.” WA
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The average price is $183/bottle
Wine Advocate 90 points “The 2004 Barolo Vigna Croera reveals pretty aromatics and notes of smoke, tar, roses, herbs and the small red fruits that are characteristic of the wines of La Morra. Made in a medium-bodied delicate style it possesses a graceful, feminine personality and finessed tannins.”WA
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Bodegas Campillo Reserva Selecta, Rioja DOCa 2001 750ML ($27.95) $24 special, 24+ bottles available
Wine Advocate 91+ points “The 2001 Reserva Selecta is 100% Tempranillo also aged for 24 months in oak. It offers a similar personality but with more succulent fruit. Give it another 3-4 years of cellaring and drink it from 2013 to 2026.” WA
Stephen Tanzer 90 points “Deep red. Smoky cherry-vanilla and candied dark berry aromas are underscored by baking spices and cured tobacco. Fleshy and sweet, with the cherry and vanilla flavors repeating. The supple tannins gain strength on the finish but the fruit seems capable of keeping pace. This is concentrated enough to suggest some ageability, but it’s pretty seductive right now.” JR
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Stephen Tanzer 93 points “(100% mouraton, a rare native variety): Bright violet color. Aromatic, high-pitched nose evokes fresh blackberry, lavender and Asian spices. Sweet and sharply focused, offering energetic flavors of black raspberry, spicecake and floral pastille, all lifted by a mineral element. Finishes spicy and very long, with impressive cling and clarity.” ST
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The next best price is $54.99/bottle
Stephen Tanzer 93 points “(a blend of 85% mencia and 15% brancellao): Vivid red. More deeply pitched than the Lalama, offering fresh cherry and black raspberry scents with hints of smoky minerals, violet and licorice. Zesty mineral and peppery spice notes add bite to sweet dark fruit flavors, which pick up a blood orange nuance with air. Closes sappy, spicy and long, leaving a sexy floral note behind.” ST
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The next best price is $66.99/bottle
Selbach-Oster J & H Selbach Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling Spatlese 2011 750ML ($24.95) $11.90 special, 36+ bottles available
“This wine is refreshing with slightly fruity character and bright crisp palate that lingers in the finish.” -Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
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Terry Theise “This is a full-bore classic Justen wine, a rich fruit blanket over a discreet skeleton of slate. Has some redsoil Prälat maple juju and a pêche-de-vigne finish.”
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Stephen Tanzer 90 points
“Classic Mosel Auslese, very elegant”-Importer notes
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Wine Advocate 94 points “The block-picked, lightly-botrytized Selbach 2011 Zeltinger Himmelreich Riesling Anrecht leads with a gorgeous though subtle amalgam of apple blossom, chamomile, sweet lime, pear nectar, and quince preserves, all of which reconvene on a silken-textured, subtly creamy and oily yet admirably juicy and utterly transparent palate, through which shimmer stony, smoky and saline notes. Allying a Kabinett-like sense of levity, primary juiciness and mineral interaction with the richness of flavor typical for a great Auslese – at just 7.5% alcohol yet not dominated by its sheer sweetness! – this perfectly illustrates precisely the point of block picking that captures all of the sorts of ripeness that are out there and layers them on the palate to render a masterpiece of counterpoint and harmony. Expect this to be worth following for a quarter century, though who can really tell, absent any recent track record for such a wine.” WA
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Wine Advocate 91+ points “Carob and toasted nuts inflect baked apple and vanilla on the nose of Selbachs’ block-picked 2011 Zeltinger Sonnenuhr Rotlay, which comes to the palate expansive, creamy, and buoyant (at 8.5% alcohol), its apple joined by almost overripe Persian melon. Hints of pip and botrytis bitterness add interest, but there is not the subtle interaction of flavors or the layer of primary juiciness that rendered the corresponding Anrecht bottling so memorable, but instead a more dominantly honeyed, soothingly rich personality. This long-finishing beauty may well – as its author suggests – just need some time to reveal its multiple layers.”
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Weinbau Jutta Ambrositsch Gemischter Satz Glockenturm, Vienna 2012 750ML ($39.95) $28 special, 3 bottles available
Winery note “The mixed batch Glockenturm is somewhat of a mixed batch in progress. Jutta Ambrositsch acquired the vineyard that runs from Mukenthalerweg eastbound to the Schreiberbach in 2011. At that time the yard that was first cultivated in 1972 consisted mainly of Gruener Veltliner, Neuburger and Gruener Sylvaner. Ambrositsch planted the numerous gaps of the old, but viral vineyard with a colorful mixture of Burgundy, Riesling as well as diverse Traminer and got acquainted with it in her careful, cultivating manner. The wine that leaned rather toward a somewhat muscularity, has since then become more diversified from year to year.”Weinbau Jutta Ambrositsch Gemischter Satz Sleveringer Ringelspiel 2012 750ML ($39.95) $28 special, 2 bottles available
Winery Note “The Sieveringer Ringelspiel is a Cuvée from two ancient mixed batches that are very typical for their individual locations: one is to be found in the reed Reissern directly along the Agnesgasse and contains, besides the Gruener Veltliner, Neuburger, Riesling, and Traminer as also Gutedel and Gruener Sylvaner, two grape varieties that were typical at one time but that have, however, lost their importance in the last decades; the other one originates from the year 1948 and is found only 200 meters away in the Neustifter top location of the reed Mitterbergen and consists mainly of Gruener Veltliner, Neuburger and a colorful mixture of other varieties. This mixed batch is always the most delicate, most feminine and this year shows a scent of cedarwood and Virginia tobacco underlined by a subtle, spicy note of tannin.”
Winery Note “The mixed batch of the reed Sommeregg can no doubt be understood to be the archtype of the actual mixed batch philosophy, an age-old vineyard of 1955, with approximately twenty different vine varieties and with no compromises, in contrast to that what is now permitted by the legislative for the winepressing of mixed batch wines. Jutta Ambrositsch cultivates this Methusalem vineyard, the Sommeregg reed directly above the Grinzinger village center, known since the middle ages – since 2005, planted the numerous gaps continuously, naturally with age-old vine sorts. The yard seems, however, to defend itself against the rejuvenation. The harvest from this approximately 0.6 hectare steep slope with its rather picturesque view upon the City of Vienna, unfortunately, becomes less from year to year. However, that amount that the ancient vineyard produces is a mixed batch of the rarest quality: lots of earthiness, wine foliage, underwood, sheer muscle, endless complexity and lingering finish. Exactly 0.75 Liters of identity can be found in a bottle of mixed batch Sommeregg.”
ARGENTINA
Achaval Ferrer Finca Mirador Malbec, Maipu 2011 750ML ($119.95) $79 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Spectator 96 points “This pure, racy red exhibits a dark side, with layers of spice, graphite and maduro tobacco to the crushed raspberry, blackberry and concentrated cassis fruit. Needs time in the cellar. Best from 2015 through 2022.” WS
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The average price is $122/bottle
Achaval Ferrer Finca Bella Vista Malbec, Perdriel 2010 750ML ($119.95) $79 special, 9 bottles available
Wine Spectator 95 points #10 Top 100 2012 “Dark and powerful, yet elegant, with a delicious core of crushed raspberry, blackberry and damson plum notes tightly woven with silky tannins. The minerally finish lingers on with layered flavors of wildflowers, melted licorice and spice box. Drink now through 2020.”WS
This is the lowest listed price in the USA today!
The average price is $122/bottle
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Arriving March 14th
In the region of Piedmonte, Nebbiolo has sustained the reputation of being the ‘king grape’ of this Northwest part of Italy. It has two main characters; the dark, slightly rugged and very tannic wines of Barolo, and the elegant, less structured and softer wines of Barbaresco. Lighter in color, and more approachable when young, Barbaresco’s have really beautiful red fruit components and tend to show more floral notes, along with great spice, earth and leather characteristics.
Paitin estate history goes back to 1796, when Benedetto Elia (Paitin) purchased a vineyard of about 5 acres in the Neive region of Piedmonte. About 30 years later, Elia bought roughly 5 more acres of Nebbiolo and Barbera vineyards with a house and cellar, and the first Barbaresco wine was bottled in 1893. Following historic tradition, Paitin estate has remained within the family, and since 1965 (7 generations later), Secondo Pasquero Elia has taken over the winery and now runs the estate with his sons, Silvano and Giovanni.
Paitin is now currently one of the highly acclaimed wineries in Piedmonte, for Barbaresco. Giancarlo passionately works with the fruit, dependent upon the soil patterns of the slopes, the microclimates of each parcel and the differentiations between the multiple layers of schist soils throughout the vineyards. This is an incredible value for this Barbaresco, in which you rarely see price tags under the $40-$50 range for such high quality, and certainly nowhere near Barolo prices. Paitin’s Serra tends to have notes of both dark and tart bing cherry fruit, beautiful peppery spice, followed by soft, fine-grained tannins. Enjoy with Italian cured meats, or with a lovely Bolognese dish. Cheers!
Paitin Barbaresco Arriving March 14th
Paitin di Pasquero-Elia ‘Serra’, Barbaresco DOCG 2011 750ML ($41.95) $36 pre-arrival special
Wine Spectator 94 points “Rich and velvety, yet also vibrant and complex, this red boasts floral, berry, anise, leather and mineral flavors. Harmonious, this turns slightly chewy in texture on the lingering finish. Best from 2017 through 2027. 1,000 cases made.” WS
Antonio Galloni 93 points “Crushed flowers, sweet red berries, spices and mint race across the palate in the 2011 Barbaresco Serra. This is one of the most intense, tannic 2011 Barbarescos readers will come across. Far from an easygoing wine, the 2011 is going to need considerable patience. Hints of sweet tobacco, mint and anise add nuance on the layered, super-expressive finish. The 2011 Serra spent two years in 50-hectoliter casks.” AG
Can’t Wait? The stellar 2010 is on sale and available here now:
Paitin di Pasquero-Elia ‘Serra’, Barbaresco DOCG 2010 750ML ($39.95) Was $30.90, now $29, 24+ bottles available
Antonio Galloni 93 points “Dark cherries, menthol, tobacco, licorice and tar all emerge from the glass in the 2010 Barbaresco Serra. This is a decidedly dark, powerful, brooding vintage for the Serra. Readers will find a powerful, structured Barbaresco that will require considerable cellaring. The broad-shouldered, brooding style typical of this part of the Barbaresco zone comes through in spades. The Serra spent 18 months in cask.” AG
Thank you for reading!