This incredible bargain arrived to our floor
in the rush of the holiday season! We sold
mega-cases through an email offering but the
wine is so good, we've made it our wine of
the month. Our first 2007 southern Rhône is
a delicious amalgam of ripe plum, red
currant and black cherry fruit nuanced
nicely with hints of sage, tea, cardamom,
pomegranate and white pepper. Soft and
silky, the wine is incredibly generous, dare
we say “plump,” and represents one of the
most favorable price/value quotients
currently in the marker place. Given the
current sad shape of the American economy,
wines like this are an important necessity
to enable drinking well while drinking
affordably. Easily the best Cotes du Rhone
we can ever remember from Maison Delas!
ROBERT PARKER 90 POINTS - “The
amazing 2007 Côtes du Rhône St. Espirit (75%
Syrah and 25% Grenache) reveals a northern
Rhône orientation but it is loaded with
spice and black fruits and displays a
beautiful opulent texture as well as a
gorgeous finish with impressive purity. This
great northern Rhône negociant, spearheaded
by their brilliant oenologist and winemaker,
Jacques Grange, has consistently made
fabulous wines from the northern
appellations but only recently upgraded the
quality of their southern Rhône selections.
These are the finest southern Rhônes they
make and their Côtes du Rhône “St. Espirit”
ranks alongside offerings from Guigal and
Chapoutier.”
Wines for
Valentines! While
it may be cold, frozen or wet outside, as
February might just emulate January with
unexpected (or expected) weather patterns,
one thing should be for certain: the warmth
emanating from our hearts and hearths this
month as we celebrate love on St.
Valentine's Day. While classroom paper and
candy valentines are perhaps long behind us
(and how much we hoped to get one from the
cute little red-headed girl, a lá Charlie
Brown), the sentiment, colors and flavors
are still to be celebrated. And how better
to celebrate love? Why, with all the goodies
we have at Hi-Time! Not only the wondrous
wines, still and sparkling, to be found in
our cover feature (taking a global look at
love, as it were, through still/sparkling
wines of California, Italy, France and
Spain), but also in the gourmet chocolates
at the Hi-Time Chocolatier, cigars for cigar
fans vîs-a-vîs the Smoke Shack, specialty
brews, spirits and liqueurs, accessories to
make the enjoyment of adult beverages even
more enjoyable... help us help you make this
month, this Valentine's Day, special for you
and your love.
North America COSTA DE ORO 2008 SANTA BARBARA COUNTY PINOT
NOIR
The first vines were planted at the Costa De
Oro Vineyard in 1989. Shortly after, word
got around of the vineyard’s potential, and
it wasn’t long before the grapes were sold
to revered producers such as Au Bon Climat,
Hitching Post, and Foxen! While working at
Au Bon Climat in the 1990s, Gary Burk
crafted the first Costa De Oro wines. The
wines quickly sold out, and became a
cherished local “secret”. Well, the secret
is now out, and Gary is still creating
fantastic wine! The 2008 Santa Barbara
County Pinot Noir utilizes all the
time-proven techniques for quality wine;
smaller fermenters, hand punch downs twice
daily, and aging for 9 months in French oak.
The result is a wine of excellent purity and
elegance, with a vibrant nose of classic
strawberry and cherry, with a hint of white
pepper spice and loan. It is lively on the
palate, with a lovely ruby color, flavors of
cherry and strawberry, good texture, nicely
placed acidity, and a freshness you don’t
get from many Pinot Noirs at this price.
Gary, keep the good juice comin’!
France
This terrific value priced 2005
Bordeaux came to us a bit late in the game but we’re pleased
nonetheless. Once customers (and staff!) had the opportunity to
taste it, the wine flew out of the cellar. We called our
supplier and took the remaining cases post haste. Loudenne is
predominantly Cabernet and very classic in style with a core of
compact black cherry and black currant fruit, substantial but
well integrated tannins and noticeable overall polish and
finesse for Bordeaux at this price. This gem will definitely
improve with a bit of age but there’s plenty of up-front fruit
that allows for earlier consumption. Considering the cost of
great California Cabernet, Loudenne definitely over delivers!
Grill up a nice juicy steak with this one.
CHATEAU
LOUDENNE 2005 MEDOC
WINE
SPECTATOR 90 POINTS
- "Delivers
blackberry and pretty,
toasty oak, with flowers.
Full-bodied, with silky
tannins and a long, long
finish of ripe fruit,
espresso and a hint of
licorice. Balanced and
refined. Best after 2011.
16,665 cases made"
Champagne CHARLES GARDET BRUT SELECTED RESERVE
Situated in the Montagne de Reims hamlet of
Chigny-les-Roses near J. Lassalle, Gardet is
a small (5,000 cases per year), family-run
firm that produces a range of wonderfully
expressive Champagnes at prices that are way
under the market. Their offerings are so
remarkable that we included two in this
year’s “best of” roster. This Brut’s
full-tilt Edwardian style is as nostalgic as
the bottle’s retro label. It is a golden,
broad-shouldered Champagne that has an
almost chewy texture along with heaps of
toasty baguette, honey and baked apple
flavors. This rich mouthfeel and complexity
is the result of a costly eight-year aging
regime and enables this modesty priced Brut
to outsize, if not outclass, Bollinger’s
Special Cuvée.
World Wines - Spain Bodegas El Nido “Clio” 2007,
Jumilla
A big part of the success of the Juan Gil winery
and the families many projects is the talented
partners they work with across Spain. El Nido
is a project the Gil family put together with
their dynamic and creative American importer,
Jorge Ordonez. The Gil Family and Jorge Ordonez
extended the partnership to include one of
Australia’s most talented winemakers, Chris
Ringland. “Clio” is a Jumilla with a twist as
the blend includes 30% Cabernet Sauvignon in
addition to the core of Monastrell at heart of
the other Jumilla wines. The 2007 is the 4th
vintage-- the previous three scored very highly
in the Wine Advocate: 97pts for 2004, 95pts for
2005, and 95pts again for the 2006. All we can
say is get the 2007 while it lasts.
World Wines - Italy
(plus one from Montenegro) GIULIANO CORINO 2005
BAROLO “GIACHINI”
Giuliano Corino ranks among our favorite of the
more modern style winemakers in Barolo as he
manages to produce Barolos with a combination of
rich, up-front fruit and personality,
exceptional balance and thoughtful use of French
oak. Additionally, his wines have become huge
customer favorites here at Hi-Time and we were
reminded of this at the recent Italian tasting
at our wine bar. A number of customer oohs
and ahhs compelled us to include this
wonderful wine in our February lineup.
WINE SPECTATOR 96 POINTS
- "A wine with very attractive aromas
of ripe blackberry, fresh forest mushroom and
raspberry. Full-bodied, with amazing fruit
concentration and powerful tannins. The power
and richness of this wine are superb. A
fantastic effort for the vintage. Best after
2014. 560 cases made."
Spirits LUXARDO
AMARETTO
Luxardo Amaretto di Saschira is amazing.
This wonderful nectar is flavored using only
almonds (from Avola which is considered to
be the best almonds in the Mediterranean).
While other amarettos use apricot pits,
essences or even artificial flavors, Luxardo
insists on only the highest quality natural
ingredients-- and it shows. On the nose is
almond confect, marzipan and luscious
flowers with the flavors following suit and
delivering elegant almond goodness from
silky beginning to toasty, clean end. Try
this in coffee, tea or cocktails and on ice
cream, pastry or fruit… any way you can
imagine. Regularly priced $24.99.
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.
Ommegang introduced their Chocolate Indulgence
Stout to the world back in 2007, at their
Brewery Tenth Anniversary Party (Waffles and
Puppets). Chocolate Indulgence comes with a
thick tan head of foam resting on top of the
rich onyx-colored liquid. The aroma immediately
speaks of dark chocolate and dark malts. The
gentle herbal nose of Perle hops compliments the
darker notes, making the beer savory to the
senses.
The taste continues with the
intense Belgian dark chocolate gliding across
the tongue; starting sweet up front but giving
way to rich cocoa flavors at the back. Through
it all, a subtle fruitiness from our special
Belgian yeast gives the beer brightness
otherwise foreign to a beer style normally
associated with gray foggy skies.
LUXARDO
AMARETTO
