Newsletter
January 15, 2016 – February 14, 2016
Haut Médoc
2012 Haut Médoc (Château du Hâ)
Sale Price $12.99 – $132.50 case of twelve
The Moreau family of Château du Hâ call their estate a Cru Artisan. With just 4 hectares this is an apt description. The property is located to the west of Pauillac and the vineyard is planted with Merlot (60%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (40%). The 2012 is a graceful Haut-Médoc with a savory, earthy dryness throughout. This will make a great match with a gratin of celery root and gruyère.
Cahors
2013 Cahors (Clos La Coutale)
Sale Price $14.99 – $152.90 case of twelve
Cahors is the original Malbec. On the limestone hillsides of the Lot River the Côt (the local name for Malbec) gives deep, dark wines with plush tannins and black cherry fruit. Clos la Coutale has long been a consistent value. They blend in some Merlot (20%) for a ripe, round mouth feel, but it is the Malbec that delivers the intense fruit and tannin. Have this with a mixed meat and white bean cassoulet. And then a ripe, stinky bleu d’auvergne.
Bourgueil
2012 Bourgueil ‘Cuvée Prestige’ (Lamé Delisle Boucard)
Sale Price $11.99 – $122.30 case of twelve
If you visit the Lamé Delisle Boucard cellar they can probably open a bottle of their Bourgueil from your birth year. But this should not stop you from opening their 2012 Cuvée Prestige. They have been a consistent, high quality producer for decades and their wine is more than reasonably priced. As usual this is Cabernet Franc that straddles the line between Bordeaux and Burgundy. It’s got structure like a Bordeaux and perfume like a Burgundy. The 2012 is a balanced, not-too-heavy red that will be a perfect match for seared salmon with lentils followed by a tangy chèvre.
Morgon
2013 Morgon ‘Côte de Py’ (Jean-Marc Burgaud)
Sale Price $17.99 – $183.50 case of twelve
The reputation of Beaujolais has been enhanced by a group of
vignerons centered around the Cru of Morgon. Yes, there are great vignerons in Fleurie and Julienas, but with names like Lapierre, Foillard, Des Vignes, Bouland, and Burgaud, you’ll never lack for an excellent Cru Morgon. Of these, the best values and some of the best wines come from Jean-Marc Burgaud. The 2013 Côte de Py is stellar Gamay with refined tannins, crisp minerality, and charming berry fruit. This is the kind of wine to serve with roast chicken and mashed potatoes along with peppery greens, followed by a ripe, runny Saint-Marcellin.
Vigneron de l’Année
2014 Rouge Frais Impérial (Domaine Comte Abbatucci)
Sale Price $24.99 – $254.90 case of twelve
Bourgogne
2010 Bourgogne Épineuil (Domaine Savary)
Sale Price $17.99 – $183.50 case of twelve
Domaine Savary makes a living producing Chablis, but also owns a .80-hectare plot of Pinot Noir. This red has a subtle raspberry fruit aroma that is enlivened by a wave of crushed sea shell flavor. We think that this intriguing red is better suited for fish than fowl.
Listed prices are honored through February 14th, 2016. We will not honor mistyped prices. Vol. 40, No. 1
Critics are calling the 2013 vintage in Northern California one of the best ever. In Napa Valley, where amazing Cabernet Sauvignons are produced and amazing prices are asked, the hype of the 2013 vintage is real. Lucky for us there is Buehler Vineyards, where forty years of winemaking experience yield monumental Cabernet at affordable prices. Their 2013 spent eighteen months in oak and has a lifting and softening dollop (9%) of Merlot. It has a silky, dark berry spectrum of fruit along with toasty oak, and firm but ripe tannins. Easy to enjoy now, it will easily age another ten years.
Newton is another longstanding producer of Napa wines. Their 2013 Chardonnay is a crisp, lively white with enough butter and oak to keep California Chardonnay drinkers happy. A delight with crab cakes.
Just fifteen years ago the vineyards of Sicily were being planted with international grape varieties like Chardonnay and Syrah, but today it is the unique, native grape varieties that are prized. First bottled as a varietal in 1995, the
Nerello Mascalese of Mount Etna has been one big wow after another ever since. Importer Marc de Grazia planted his flag on Etna a few years back and acquired some stupendously old vineyards. This, his entry-level Rosso, is a smoky, earthy Nerello Mascalese with a small amount of Nerello Capuccio blended in. Instead of a massive southern Italian red you get a graceful, aromatic red with fresh fruit and that unmistakable volcanic character. This is a lovely red for a simple meal of cheese, salumi, and salad.
Moscato is enjoying great popularity in its frizzante version, but there is also great appeal in its still incarnation. Moscato Giallo ‘Pfefferer’ from Colterenzio is a fascinating dry wine with a pronounced pepperiness. The 2014 should not be served too cold because you can lose its great aromatic character. Gorgeous lime-scented fruit, lovely fresh flowers, and peppery spice make this a complete delight with a kale and apple salad and a fresh chèvre.
The wines of Barolo and Barbaresco are truly impressive reds, but if you want to look into the clear-eyed soul of the great Nebbiolo grape get thee to Carema. Located in the north of Piedmont, with Monte Bianco/Mont Blanc looming overhead, the Carema vineyard is a steep 16-hectare amphitheater of vines propped up by granite posts so that every bit of sunlight can be transformed into vinous magic. The earthbound conveyance system for this is the Ferrando family whose Carema wines know no equal. They make a ‘white label’ for relatively near-term consumption (ten to thirty years) and an only-in-special-vintages ‘black label’ which really should be saved for later generations. The 2009 is lovely stuff. You can literally see right through it and the smell is penetrating, with rocky slate and alpine flowers. The palate is bright, with red fruits and a spicy, herbal zestiness. Have this with a steaming mound of polenta, Fontina Valle d’Aosta cheese, and a salad of bitter greens.
2014 Grüner Veltliner ‘Weinzierl’ (Winzer Krems)
Thanks to some unfortunate examples, Brachetto is too often dismissed as a fizzy and lightly sweet red you only drink on Valentine’s Day. But there are seriously interesting Brachettos such as this one from Borgo Maragliano, sourced from 50-year-old vines that yield a delicate frothy wine fragrant with geraniums and spices. With its low alcohol, this Brachetto can be drunk as an aperitif with fresh berries or for dessert with a dark chocolate cake.
The red Rioja wines of Viña Real are graceful agers. We have had forty-year-old wines that had wonderful aged aromas but were still fresh on the palate. There is no reason not to open this 2010 Reserva now, because it is full on delicious with wonderful structure, but if you put a few bottles away you will be rewarded with a deeper, richer wine. Today it is all about its dusty fruit and oaky tannins – which will make a fine pairing with a long-braised lamb and bean dish.
Those blessed with a memory may recall that we featured a Gavi around Thanksgiving. This new Gavi is very different in style thanks in part to its longer aging on yeast lees. La Raia, a biodynamic working farm with livestock, bees, and even a Waldorf school, ages their Riserva Gavi for six months on lees, twice as long as their non-Riserva. This treatment in addition to the quality of their 60- to 70-year-old Cortese vines, adds texture, intense aroma, and spicy depth. For a wine that is only 12.5% in alcohol, this Gavi is wonderfully creamy yet light in the mouth. Perfect for a lightly pan-seared salmon on a bed of couscous.
Earthy and robust, Alpha Tolman is a raw cow’s milk cheese from Jasper Hill Creamery in Greensboro, Vermont. In its youth this cheese is buttery with fruit and nut flavors. As it matures it acquires savory overtones of meat and caramelized onion. Inspired by alpine cheeses such as Appenzeller, it has the perfect texture for melting and pairs well with plummy red wines, robust ales, and onion jam.
‘Les Boudalles’ is an earthy and honest Southern Rhone blend packed with warmly scented spice along with plummy fruit. Great with a beef stew with root vegetables.
2014 Muscadet Sèvre et Maine ‘St. Vincent’ (Delhommeau)