Black Friday Starts Early
Two Wine Spectator Top-Five Wines
2017 Vissoux: High Scoring, Great Value Beaujolais
Trending Wines for Thanksgiving
Grand Cru, Grander Gift – Ultimate Burgundy Presents
Matello
Black Friday Discount Starts Early!
Marcus Goodfellow’s labels have been mainstays at the shop for some time now—wines that we carry regardless of vintage, scores or overall hype. The wines are amongst the best in Oregon and consistently some of the most inspiring wines we taste. While he exclusively makes wine under the Goodfellow Family Cellars now, his original packaging all bore the “Matello” name. When you look at the Matello labels now, they seem a little campy in comparison and not a reflection of the Burgundy-influence winemaking and serious wines in the bottle. Perhaps that’s why he’s eager to move on and get rid of the last remaining stock of the Matello wines. Even if it’s not, we’re excited to offer you these great deals while they last.
Both wines are decidedly Goodfellow in style: lots of whole cluster and bright, fresh acidity. Of the two vintages, the 2013 is for those who like leaner, earthier and more delicate wines, while the 2014 has more power and richness. Marcus’ wines always benefit from a few years of bottle age (the 2010 version of these is fantastic right now) and both of these are entering a long, delicious drinking window. The wines arrive tomorrow and if you need any more inspiration, they’d be perfect for your Thanksgiving table.
Arriving Friday:
Matello Willamette Valley Pinot Noir, Oregon 2013 750ML ($24.95) $16 pre-arrival special
VinopolNote: 40%+ whole cluster, bright and fresh. This has Marcus Goodfellow’s signature touch from a cooler, more elegant vintage. If this said “Bourgogne” on the label it’d be twice as expensive.
The next best price is $22
VinopolNote: Lots of whole cluster to balance out the warmth and richness of the year. 2014 power and fruit marries with spice and structure to produce a beautifully integrated bottle of Pinot Noir.
“Vivid acidity is a hallmark of the 2008 vintage in Champagne, contributing to the decision by Richard Geoffroy, Dom Pérignon’s chef de cave from 1990 to the close of 2018, to release the 2009 last year, ahead of this year’s release of the 2008. Cool conditions prevailed in Champagne during most of the 2008 growing season, but September’s bright and sunny weather during harvest rapidly turned what would have been an average vintage into one of the decade’s best. The Legacy Edition label honors Geoffroy’s pending retirement, including his name and that of his successor, Vincent Chaperon, on the label. The identical cuvée will be sold with the regular Dom Pérignon label beginning in 2019.”-Wine Spectator
#5 Wine Of The Year – Wine Spectator Top 100 In 2018
Dom Perignon Brut Chef de Cave Legacy Edition, Champagne 2008 750ML ($249.95) $219 pre-arrival special
Antonio Galloni 98+ points “The 2008 Dom Pérignon is fabulous, but quite remarkably, it was even more open when I tasted it a year ago. Bright, focused and crystalline in its precision, the 2008 is going to need a number of years before it is at its best. Lemon peel, white flowers, mint and white pepper give the 2008 its chiseled, bright profile. Several recent bottles have all been magnificent. What I admire most about the 2008 is the way it shows all the focus, translucence and energy that is such a signature of the year, and yet it is also remarkably deep and vertical. In other words, the 2008 is a Champagne that plays in three dimensions.”
John Gilman 98 points “The 2008 vintage of Dom Pérignon is an absolute classic in the making and this is destined to be one of the great recent years for this iconic cuvée. It is far more classically structured out of the blocks than the relatively generous 2009 version, offering up a deep, complex and very youthful bouquet of menthol, green apple, a touch of tangerine, a very complex base of minerality and notes of dried flowers in the upper register. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and rock solid at the core, with precise mousse, brisk acids and stunning length and grip on the primary and laser-like finish. This will demand some cellaring to start to really stir and should prove to be an extremely long-lived vintage of DP. Stellar juice.”
James Suckling 98 points “The best Dom since 2002. A vintage with very restrained, powerful style that has been released non-sequentially after the 2009. This has a lighter stamp of highly curated, autolytic, toasty aromas than many recent releases. Instead, this delivers super fresh and intense aromas of lemons, grapefruit and blood-orange peel. Incredible freshness here. The palate has a very smoothly delivered, berry-pastry thread with light, sweet spices, stone fruit and fine citrus fruit. This really delivers. Drink now or hold.”
Decanter 96 points “Departing chef de caves Richard Geoffroy says that 2008 is his best DP vintage since 1990. The first half of the growing season was dull and sunless, but good weather returned in mid-September and led to one of the longest harvests, running into October. The summer provided ideal conditions for a classic, cool, maritime vintage of exceptional, subtle aromas with minerality and freshness. This has a vibrant but controlled acidity, and is above all a memorable symbiosis of mature fruit and salinity derived from top terroirs. The poised mouthfeel makes this a perfect gastronomic wine, strong enough for spicy Asian cuisine from the Pacific rim, but still compatible with classics such as roast turbot and lobster.””
Wine Spectator 96 points “There’s power to this graceful Champagne, with the vivid acidity swathed in a fine, creamy mousse and flavors of toasted brioche, kumquat, pastry cream, candied ginger and poached plum that dance across the palate. An underpinning of smoky mineral gains momentum on the lasting finish. Drink now through 2033.”
Arriving ETA March:
“Count Stephan von Neipperg looks the part of timeless royalty. But this energetic vintner is a modernist, pushing his family’s properties to organic growing practices long thought too difficult to achieve in the maritime climate of Bordeaux. Canon-La Gaffelière is von Neipperg’s flagship estate, situated on limestone and clay slopes below the plateau of St.-Emilion. The blend of 55 percent Merlot, 38 percent Cabernet Franc and 7 percent Cabernet Sauvignon is aged in less than two-thirds new oak, allowing its purity and freshness to shine. This 2015 matches the classic scores earned by the 2010 and 2009, while its price makes it a great value in ageworthy Bordeaux.” – Wine Spectator
#2 Wine Of The Year – Wine Spectator Top 100 In 2018
Chateau Canon la Gaffeliere, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru 2015 750ML ($149.95) $128 pre-arrival special
Wine Spectator 96 points “Still youthfully tight and backward, with a well-roasted frame of alder and juniper holding sway for now, but the core of cassis, blackberry and plum fruit waits in reserve, showing prodigious depth. When the toast and fruit melds, the backdrop of tobacco, singed iron and chalky minerality will get a turn to show. There’s a lot here. Built for the cellar. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Best from 2025 through 2040. 6,250 cases made.”
2017 Vissoux
High Scoring, Great Value Beaujolais
The Le Vissoux wines are a great value; the quality is uncompromised and the wine is joyful and vibrant. From their simplest bottlings through their top crus, the wine expresses Beaujolais terroir in spades. The fruit is deep and pure, but it doesn’t go beyond perfectly ripe. The top wines age beautifully over a 5-15 year period but always seem to drink well on release. We’ve never managed to avoid drinking the less expensive bottles to find out how they age. The wines are quite simply a near perfect reflection of what Beaujolais should be. Chermette killed it in 2017 and these wines are as good as have ever been produced by the estate.
Arriving November 23rd:
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux ‘Origine’ Vieilles Vignes, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($19.95) $16 pre-arrival special
William Kelley-Wine Advocate 91 points “A superb wine, the 2017 Beaujolais-Villages Origine unfurls in the glass with a classy bouquet of smoky cassis, plums and subtle notions of loamy soil. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, juicy and ample, with supple tannins, succulent acids and impressive concentration, concluding with a mouthwatering, flavorful finish”
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Coeur de Vendanges, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($24.95) $19 pre-arrival special
William Kelley-Wine Advocate 93 points “A wine that would embarrass many more expensive bottlings from Moulin-à-Vent or Fleurie, Chermette’s 2017 Beaujolais-Villages Coeur de Vendanges bursts with aromas of crushed cassis, raspberries, potpourri and rich soil tones. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, with melting tannins, a generous core of sappy fruit and a long, beautifully delineated finish. Intensely flavorful but refreshing, accessible but substantive, this is a fabulous wine that exemplifies the appeal of Beaujolais. Given its unabashed deliciousness and decidedly modest tariff, this wine must be one of French wine’s greatest values.”
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Brouilly Pierreux, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($27.95) $21.90 pre-arrival special
William Kelley-Wine Advocate 90+ points “Notes of crushed cassis, ripe plums and dried flowers introduce the 2017 Brouilly Pierreux, a crunchy, medium to full-bodied wine with good depth at the core, juicy balancing acids and a somewhat rustic chassis of structuring tannin. I’d be inclined to forget it in the cellar for a year or two and drink it over the following five.”
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Fleurie les Garants, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($31.95) $27 pre-arrival special
William Kelley-Wine Advocate 93 points “The 2017 Fleurie Garants is a warmer, southwest-facing site, and its bouquet is correspondingly richer and more sun-kissed than that of Chermette’s Poncié, exhibiting notes of ripe, plummy fruit, rich spices and subtle hints of loamy soil. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, ample and expansive, with a generous core of fruit, framed by fine tannins.”
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Fleurie Poncie, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($31.95) $27 pre-arrival special
William Kelley-Wine Advocate 93 points “The 2017 Fleurie Poncié hails from a southeast-facing, higher-altitude site that’s typically quite cool, and that’s reflected in its bright, perfumed bouquet of raspberries, rose petals and Griotte cherries, with suggestions of darker fruits emerging with air. On the palate, the wine is medium to full-bodied, pure and nicely concentrated, with fine tannins, a bright line of acidity and good length on the finish.”
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Moulin-a-Vent Les Trois Roches, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($34.95) $29 pre-arrival special
William Kelley-Wine Advocate 95 points “The 2017 Moulin-à-Vent Les Trois Roches is superb—and likely the king of the cellar chez Chermette this year—wafting from the glass with a beautiful bouquet of raspberries, potpourri, orange rind and rose petal. On the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, layered and supple, with the most depth and amplitude of any wine in the portfolio and the most held in reserve, too. This is a fantastic expression of Moulin-à-Vent from one of Beaujolais’s greatest winemakers, and it comes warmly recommended.”
Pierre-Marie Chermette Domaine du Vissoux Saint Amour, Beaujolais 2017 750ML ($27.95) $24 pre-arrival special
Nick Stock-Jamessuckling.Com 93 points “Rich aromas of poached strawberries and pastries, as well as pomegranate and blood oranges. Really fresh. The palate has a very plush and lively strawberry core. Raspberries, too. Juicy, sapid appeal. Drink now or hold.”
Trending Wines for Thanksgiving
Plouzeau Chinon Rive Gauche Rose, Loire 2017 750ML ($17.95) $11.90 special
Rose super sale !!
Josh Raynolds 90 points “Light, bright orange. Vibrant, mineral-accented aromas of fresh red berries, orange pith and rose oil on the tightly focused nose. Dry and nervy in the mouth, offering lively strawberry, cherry and citrus zest flavors that show very good clarity and minerally cut. Closes brisk and long, with resonating floral and red fruit notes and a hint of succulent herbs.”
Weingut A.J. Adam Dhroner Hofberg Riesling Kabinett, Mosel 2016 750ML ($31.95) $26 special
Stephan Reinhardt-Wine Advocate 93 points “The 2016 Dhroner Hofberg Riesling Kabinett shows an open, smoky, herbal-laced bouquet of ripe Riesling. Lush, piquant and terribly stimulating on the vital and crystalline palate, this is a gorgeous Kabinett bottled with 8% alcohol and lots of tension, grip and salty minerals that carry the wine into a long, dangerously stimulating finish. This is just beautiful and lovely to drink even today and surely over the next 20 to 25+ years. Tasted April 2018.”
Mosel Fine Wines 92+ points “The Dhroner Hofberg Kabinett was harvested at 83-84° Oechsle from 40 year-old vines. It offers a gorgeously inviting nose of grapefruit and other citrusy fruits. The wine is nicely crisp and intense on the palate and leaves a mouth-watering feel in the long and delicately Spätlese-styled finish. It is still slightly backward and will benefit from a little bit of aging before developing its full potential. There is quite some upside here if it manages to keep its current sense of focus. 2026-2041.”
David Schildknecht – Vinous 91+ points “Adam didn’t vinify a village-level dry Piesporter this vintage, but luckily we have this luscious Kabinett. Faintly dusty and fermentative notes veil the nose, but behind those come prickly notes of nettle and cassis leaf along with intimations of the lemon and grapefruit that dominate on a delicate, generously juicy palate. The long-lingering, animatingly bright finish is transparent to stony, alkaline and pungently herbal nuances. This needs some time for the aromas to clarify. And there’s no question that its flavors are the least ripe among the three Adam 2016 vintage Kabinetts, which presumably reflects the fact that to achieve Kabinett levity it’s necessary to harvest sooner in Goldtröpfchen than in other nearby sites.”
Affordable bubbles that are delicious? Yes and yes.
Thierry Triolet Brut, Champagne NV 750ML ($44.95) $33 special
Josh Raynolds–Vinous 90 points “(90% Chardonnay and 10% Pinot Noir; 10 g/l dosage): Light yellow. Vibrant, mineral-accented aromas of fresh citrus and orchard fruits, with suave floral and candied ginger notes adding complexity. Fleshy and broad on entry, then tighter in the mid-palate, offering juicy green apple and orange zest flavors and a touch of white pepper. Closes silky and smoky, with good clarity and length.”
Domaine de la Janasse Cotes du Rhone Rose, Rhone 2016 750ML ($19.95) $11.90 special
Rose super sale !!
Jeb Dunnuck 90 points “Made in a more Tavel than Côtes du Rhône style, the raspberry colored 2016 Côtes du Rhône Rose offers lots of strawberry fruit, medium-bodied richness, a supple, textured style and clean finish. It too has the freshness and purity to handle a summer day, but will also shine on the dinner table.”
Importer notes “The Côtes-du-Rhône Rosé from Domaine de la Janasse is made by bleeding the tanks and vats of the Côtes-du-Rhône Rouge. It is a blend of mainly Grenache, with Cinsault, Syrah and Counoise. After the wine is bled, it finished fermentation and aging in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks.”
Varner El Camino Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Barbara County 2015 750ML ($24.95) $21.90 special
Case-12 Varner El Camino Vineyard Chardonnay, Santa Barbara County 2015 750ML ($299.95) $236 special (that’s only $19.67/bottle!)
Wine Advocate 93 points “The 2015 Chardonnay El Camino Vineyard from the Varner brothers is lovely, wafting from the glass with an expressive bouquet of honeycomb, ripe peaches and fresh apricot. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, pure and textural—displaying a touch more mid-palate ripeness than the 2014 rendition—and concludes with a long, saline finish. This is a characterful Chardonnay that represents terrific value.”
A top, up and coming grower in Morgon, Godard’s wines are special.
Domaine Mee Godard Morgon Cote de Py, Beaujolais 2014 750ML ($37.95) $29 special
Josh Raynolds-Vinous 93 points “Bright ruby-red. Heady, mineral-accented aromas of ripe cherry and red berries, with a peppery nuance adding vivacity. At once concentrated and lively, offering intense raspberry and bitter cherry flavors and a sneaky suggestion of spicecake. Picks up a sexy lavender pastille quality on the incisive, sharply focused finish, which hangs on with outstanding tenacity and building minerality.”
Ultimate Burgundy Gifts for the Holidays
Arriving This Month:
Only one bottle available
Hudelot-Noellat Romanee-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits 2005 750ML ($899.95) $799 pre-arrival special
Burghound 95 points “A very densely fruited nose is composed mostly from the black side of the fruit spectrum along with notes of menthol, spice and Asian tea nuances. There is excellent concentration to the intense and attractively well-detailed middle weight flavors that possess a suave and highly seductive mouth feel before terminating in a mouth coating, complex and hugely long finish. This is an unusually powerful RSV that is less elegant than usual yet one that is still very much on the way up, indeed I would suggest allowing it at least another 5 to 7 years of celar time as it’s very much still a baby.”
Stephen Tanzer 94+ points “Good deep red. Knockout perfume of strawberry, violet and cocoa powder, complemented by sweet oak. Sappy, spicy and deep, with a compelling sweetness leavened by firm minerality. Wonderfully silky in texture and graceful. Highly complex flavors of raspberry, leather, smoke and mineral stain the back end with subtle perfume. This struck me as like a more pliant version of the Beaumonts but with the powerful mineral and tannic spine for a 20-year-evolution in bottle.”
Hudelot-Noellat Romanee-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits 2009 750ML ($1099.95) $899 pre-arrival special
Burghound 95 points “This also sports discreet wood influence on the intensely floral and kaleidoscopically spicy nose of blue berry and black cherry aromas that introduce rich, intense and naturally sweet middle weight flavors that are lacy, pure and almost delicate before culminating in a suave, explosive and magnificently long finish. This is just terrific and the balance is impeccable. Note however that like the 2010 version, the ultra-fine tannins are also quite dense and this will also require 15 years or so of cellar time before it will be ready for prime time.”
Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits 2006 750ML ($419.95) $359 pre-arrival special
Stephen Tanzer 93+ points “Bright, deep red. Lovely lift and medicinal reserve to the aromas of black cherry, smoke and minerals. Wonderfully vibrant in the mouth, with a penetrating minerality giving energy and perfume to the dark fruit flavors. Less floral than, say, the example from Anne Gros but dense, sappy and fine-grained. Finishes very long, with the tannins dusting the gums.”
Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Echezeaux Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits 2005 750ML ($699.95) $599 pre-arrival special
Stephen Tanzer 92+ points “Bright deep red. Pungent spices, redcurrant and tobacco on the very ripe nose. Lush and sweet in the middle but with no excess weight. This really spreads out to saturate the palate, offering excellent depth of flavor. Finishes with big but ripe tannins that will require patience.”
Domaine Georges Mugneret-Gibourg Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits 2002 750ML ($799.95) $699 pre-arrival special
Stephen Tanzer 93 points “This was made solely from the estate’s old vines; the recently replanted portion of the Mugnerets’ holding will not go into this cuvee for at least a few more years): Medium red. Knockout nose combines red berries, smoke, game and red licorice. Silky-sweet and seductive, with lovely subtle intensity of flavor. Velvety but not at all weighty, in the manner of the best Burgundies. Finishes with superb building sweetness and wonderfully subtle, persistent soil tones.”
Domaine Armand Rousseau Pere et Fils Chambertin Grand Cru, Cote de Nuits 2008 750ML ($1799.95) $1599 pre-arrival special
Burghound 96 points “A still mildly toasty nose features remarkably dense yet elegant aromas of deeply pitched yet extremely cool and restrained red and blue fruit aromas that are nuanced by a broad range of earth, game and underbrush hints. There is an utterly beguiling purity to the relatively refined but muscular medium full-bodied plus flavors that are strikingly complex, vibrant and perfectly balanced before culminating in a gorgeously long finish. This is brimming with upside development potential and while it too will require plenty of patience, its class and grace are such that it can be enjoyed now though I would strongly counsel waiting. In a word, magnificent. Tasted thrice recently with consistent notes.”
Antonio Galloni 95+ points “The 2008 Chambertin is rather delicate and almost ethereal in its seductive personality. This is another surprisingly open, expressive 2008. The tannins are elegant, while the wine’s balance is simply terrific.”
Neal Martin-Wine Advocate 96 points “The 2007 Chambertin Clos-de-Beze Grand Cru is drinking beautifully at the moment. It has a pixilated bouquet that is utterly entrancing – red currant, bergamot, hints of pomegranate seeds and an underlying mineralite that is divine. The palate is perfectly balanced with extremely fine tannins. There is something regal and self-assured about this Clos-de-Beze, with a sense of weightlessness in the mouth that is bewitching. This both satisfies the senses and flirts with profundity. Dare I suggest this is too exquisite to cellar? Damn – I’ve just gone and done it. Drink now-2020.”
Stephen Tanzer-Vinous 95 points “Dark red-ruby. Exotic, in-your-face aromas of dark raspberry, dried rose petal, violet, licorice and minerals. Wonderfully silky on entry, then lush and sweet in the middle, offering a magical combination of fine-grained texture, sharp definition and underlying minerality. As sexy as this is today-and it’s much more expressive now than it was from barrel a year ago-its long, echoing, spreading finish and captivating palate-saturating sweetness suggest it will gain in complexity for a decade or two.”
Burghound 95 points “This too displays an almost invisible touch of oak influence that highlights stunningly complex and layered aromas that are positively kaleidoscopic in their sheer breadth with textured, cool and intensely mineral suffused big-bodied flavors that for all the focused muscularity sacrifice none of the fine detail this wine is known for, all wrapped in an almost painfully intense and explosively long and mouth coating finish. This is not a massive Bèze but it’s a real knockout.”
