STEPHEN VINCENT 2008 PINOT NOIR
$9.99 [#276064]
Long-time readers of our newsletter might
recall the Stephen Vincent Cabernet
Sauvignon we ran on the front cover eons
ago. It was a huge success! Serendipity has
brought to us (and you!) another phenomenal
bargain from the folks at Stephen Vincent.
In the midst our annual “Thanksgiving
Derby,” one of our visiting salesmen noticed
we were running Pinot and grabbed a bottle
out of his wine sack and quietly asked us if
he could enter the tournament. Turns out it
was the Stephen Vincent and it ran away with
the race! Pure luck, right place at the
right time, whatever you want to call it;
don’t look this gift horse in the mouth!
It’s an outstanding bottle of juice that
delivers a lot for a little!
The wine leads off with an enticing nose of
violets and framboise followed by a creamy
smooth, layered palate of black raspberry
and black cherry fruit nuanced nicely with
hints of carob, cardamom and cinnamon stick.
The wine’s velvety texture is a real turn-on
while its long, even-keeled finish provides
additional flavorful hints of milk
chocolate, raspberry coulis and crème de
cassis! The fruit purity at play here is
simply amazing! So, too, is the wine’s
superb length and depth of flavor
complexity. This is simply a delightful
Pinot Noir for the price! In fact, it’s a
Pinot Noir that we’re positive will satisfy
all of your November holiday needs! Happy
Thanksgiving!
CHEESE of the Month
Grafton Village
Cheese Co.
“Sage Cheddar”
Hand-crafted in small
batches from the milk of Jersey cows that
graze on several Vermont family farms,
Grafton cheddar is
one of Vermont’s, and the country’s, finest
artisanal cheeses. Grafton cheddar has no
chemical additives, synthetic growth
hormones or preservatives. The milk is
delicately handled and made into cheese by
artisan cheesemakers within 10-13 hours
of having been delivered fresh from the
farm. The natural aging of the cheese, which
takes from one to four years, and the
high protein and butterfat of Vermont Jersey
milk, give Grafton cheeses an exceptionally
creamy and robust flavor.
Yes, it’s true….this was last year's “Cheese
of the Month” for November. The fact is, it
went over so well we decided to do it
again this year. The Sage flavor is a
natural for Thanksgiving foods and
wine-friendly as well. I personally used it
grated in
my stuffing and it got rave reviews!
It is, in all
honesty, a privilege to have Rombauer
Vineyards as our cover feature for the
November newsletter!!! The Rombauers are
one of the most well-respected families in
the Napa Valley. Just like Hi-Time’s
Hanson family, the Rombauers have worked
hard for decades knowing that you reap
what you sow, and founders Koerner and
Joan Rombauer taught their children to
take pride in a worthwhile day’s work!
Founded in 1982, the winery sits on a
tree-covered knoll overlooking the Napa
Valley and features caves that extend for
over a mile into the hillside, providing
constant temperature and humidity for
optimal aging of the wines.
Koerner’s ancestors made wine in Germany
and his great aunt, Irma Rombauer, wrote
the book The Joy of Cooking; so it should
come as no surprise that Rombauer puts a
lot of hard work into making exciting
wines that take the “snobby mystique” out
of enjoying them while still retaining
compatibility with great food! Aiding them
in this task is winemaker Richie Allen
(pictured above), who fell in love with
California wines while “on holiday” rock
climbing in the Unites States. Richie
studied at The University of Adelaide, the
Australian equivalent of U.C. Davis.
Things just keep getting better, because
live and in the flesh, KR Rombauer and
California Wholesale Director James
Heinemann (two of the nicest guys you will
ever meet) will be pouring our entire
lineup of Rombauer wines at the wine bar
on Saturday, November 7th, from 3pm-7pm!
So come and be part of the joy!!!
Wines for
Thanksgiving! It's
time for our annual take on wines that go
with 'the bird' and all the goodies that
accompany it. We've split it up into
two categories: our normal "Turkey Trot" and
a more selective focus in our "Pinot Patch."
In any case, we've got your Thanksgiving
wine needs covered!
If Merlot has "dropped out of favor," why
the heck do we sell so much of this? It’s
because you can’t stop a good-- make that
great-- thing! Crafted from cool-climate
grapes with a warm climate personality, this
wine bursts with cherry, ripe plum and spice
aromas. The soft tannins are deftly
interwoven through a core of plum, with
layers of dark berries shaded with hints of
cocoa. The wine lingers on the palate with
fruit and moderate tannins. It drinks well
now, but it will improve further with age.
France WINE-OF-THE-MONTH 2 MACON-LUGNY 2007 “GENIEVRES” LOUIS LATOUR
In another lifetime, we once ran this staple
from the Louis Latour portfolio as a
“Wine-of-the-Month” and it was a huge
success! We sold hundreds of cases! The wine
has been reincarnated in 2007 in such
stunning fashion that it was a natural
choice as our November WOM 2! While the
Thanksgiving feast is normally the dominant
event in terms of wine purchasing this time
of year, November is a long month with ample
opportunity for white wines as well. We
think this Chardonnay from France will hit
the sweet spot!
The wine leads off with a classic,
mineral-tinged Chardonnay nose capturing
hints of marzipan and slivered almond
followed by a deceivingly complex palate
that combines sundry vectors of such dried
orchard fruits as white peach, pear and
apricot with subtle nuances of guava, apple
butter and clove. All of this adds up to a
wonderfully satisfying Chardonnay experience
that captures all of the steely, stoniness
for which great Macon wines are known. That
all of this is available to you at a $10
price point should not go unnoticed!
Those who love to linger and romance their
wines a bit will surely appreciate this
production’s proclivity to slowly evolve
wonderfully in the glass! This is
traditionally-styled white Burgundy from
France and those who appreciate it will not
want to miss it! Like we said, great price,
too!
France - Champagne of
the Month
A sumptuous Champagne for a
song! CLAUDE CARRé 1999 BLANC DE
BLANCS “CUVéE PASSION”
In our long-standing
championing of
grower-Champagnes we have
probably over-stressed the
importance of the ranking (echelle
classification) of the
Champagne villages (i.e.
crus). In truth, Grand Cru
and Premier Cru status is
much less precise in
Champagne than it is in
Burgundy. For example the
famous Côtes des Blancs
Grand Cru Village of Le
Mesnil-sur-Oger includes
significant vineyard acreage
with northerly expositions
that are not at all worthy
of Grand Cru status.
Similarly there are many
vineyard sites in Premier
Cru villages that are of
Grand Cru caliber. The
vineyards of Claude Carré
are a great example of this
under-rating. All
twenty-eight acres of his
fully mature Chardonnay
plots are located in the
Premier Cru village of
Trepail, yet all his
plantings are ideally
situated with mid-slope
elevation and enjoy
beneficial southern and
southeastern exposures.
Trepail is located in
eastern edge of the Montagne
de Reims (an area dominated
by Pinot Noir) where deeper
top soils produce Chardonnay
Champagnes with more texture
and weight than that grown
in the chalk-bound Côte des
Blancs.
As its name suggests, “Cuvée
Passion” is crafted in
seductive, hedonistic style.
To this end malo-lactic
fermentation was not blocked
and the base wine was
neither pumped nor filtered.
Furthermore, this bottling
was aged on its lees for
seven full years, a costly
practice that one associates
with luxury Champagnes. The
nose and flavors of this
beauty are generous and
well-developed exhibiting
notes of baked golden
delicious apples, nutmeg,
white chocolate and carob.
All of its lush fruit is
beautifully enhanced by
bright acidity as well as a
pleasing undercurrent of
chalk. We featured the 1997
“Cuvee Passion” a few years
ago sold it briskly for
fifty dollars. This ’99 is
every bit as good, and is a
veritable steal at our
Special Purchase Sale Price.
World Wines CAPCANES MAS
DONIS 2008 ROSAT The Capçanes Mas Donís Rosat
will definitely brighten up your
Thanksgiving feast-- and not just because of
the vivid red color. This blend of 80%
Grenache, 10% Syrah and 10% Merlot comes
from vineyards aged between 10-40 years; the
soil in the lower vineyards is alluvial
while the higher vineyards and all terraces
and slopes are on poor, mineral, stony soil
based with some granite. These vines have to
work to produce and the proof is in the
flavor! Huge, complex, full-bodied flavors
of strawberry and raspberry will uplift all
the complexities of a holiday meal and end
with a ripe, fresh, long fruity finish. This
rosé is made in the traditional “saignée”
method, bleeding off the juice from the
vats.
“This
is clearly a great vintage, I rate 2007 overall
better than 1977 or 1955… I love the power and
finesse in these young blackstrap fortified
wines. ”
- James Suckling, May 2009
The 2007 Vintage Ports were not a product of
sweltering heat, as is the norm these days, but
of an unusually cool summer growing season that
was capped off by dry, virtually perfect weather
during the October harvest. Though the 2007s
certainly have enough grip to make “old bones,”
they are (unlike the beefy 2003s) already
remarkably drinkable. As Jay Miller, in the Wine
Advocate Forum notes: “…the 2007s have an
unerring sensuality to them, silky and seamless,
Ports that I am reluctant to say will be
approachable when young. If you like hedonistic
young Ports then feel free to drink them over
the next five to six years to revel in their
sweet nubile fruit.” With respect to quantity,
the yields were extremely small. As Richard
Mayson pointed out in the August issue of
Decanter Magazine, the entire production the
2007 Vintage Ports would equate to that of about
four Medoc cru classe estates.
Spirits ROOT ORGANIC LIQUEuR
‘Art in The Age’ ROOT is based on old Root
Tea medicinal infusions that date back to
the 1700s where settlers learned of the
value of these North American herbs from
the Native Americans (talk about
Thanksgiving!). Because of the purifying
and preservative power of alcohol, it was
added to the herbs and then finally... a
spoonful of sugar to make the medicine go
down. 100% organic neutral grain spirit
mixed with roots, herbs, spices, citrus
and pure cane sugar-- this stuff is
delicious! The nose is sweet with birch,
mint, oily spices and sugarcane honey.
Flavors move on your palate bouncing, it
seems, from the Wintergreen; and then with
delicate finesse, birch, vanilla, citrus,
clove and allspice flavors in a bed of
clean sweet taste reveal themselves. On
the finish everything resolves and finally
the smoked tea shines clearest here as
does the nutmeg. A masterful achievement
and a joy to drink--terrific neat and even
better with ice, also amazing used in a
great cocktail.
Gift Baskets SILVER
OAK Basket
20005
Silver Oak Alexander Valley Cabernet, wine
country crakers, cabernet & roasted garlic
marinade, dark chocolate drops pairs with
cabernet, & nunes farm almonds.
Summer is
at it's end and the Marzens have arrived!
Oktoberfest beer that is. Kostritzer is
rejoining the autumn celebration, having not
made this style in a number of years. The
staple brands in place as usual, Spaten and
Paulaner continue to produce this Marzen style year
round.
Erdinger
has a different spice on their brew as with
all they make it's a wheat beer. It is a bit
nuttier than the others because of the wheat
malt that is used.
Hofbrau is
in the house too, and we are expecting
Hacker Pschoor by the first of October.
Check and see what else has come in to drink
with your favorite oompah band.
Winery
of the Month
It's
time for our annual take on wines that go
with 'the bird' and all the goodies that
accompany it. We've split it up into
two categories: our normal "Turkey Trot" and
a more selective focus in our "Pinot Patch."
In any case, we've got your Thanksgiving
wine needs covered!
