In This Newsletter:
New Arrivals
Cecile-Tremblay & Cayuse
Staff Pick
Daniel-Etienne Defaix
Featured Cocktail
The Orleans Sbagliato
April RoséSale
Up to 10% off of our top Rose wines
Collector’s Corner
The Kings of Piedmont
New Arrivals
Cecile-Tremblay
Emerging onto the wine scene in 2003, the wines of Cecile-Tremblay have been exploding in popularity ever since. With family ties back to that of the legendary Henri Jayer, this family has been slowing reclaiming prized plots of the Cote de Nuits that we’re formerly leased as as sharecrops for other producers. These wines are special and now head for cult status like Fourrier and Dujac, so don’t expect great deals like those listed below for long!
Domaine Cecile Tremblay Les Feusselottes, Chambolle-Musigny Premier Cru 2019 750ml $999 special, 7 bottles availableWine Advocate 95 points “The 2019 Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Feusselottes has also turned out beautifully, wafting from the glass with a complex bouquet of raspberries and blackberries mingled with hints of orange rind, violets and exotic spices. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and enveloping, it’s deep and fleshy, with a layered core of fruit, lively acids and remarkable structural finesse for such a young, undeniably concentrated wine. This might well be the finest Feusselottes that Tremblay has produced to date.”
Domaine Cecile Tremblay Les Rouges du Dessus, Vosne-Romanee Premier Cru 2019 750ml $999 special, 3 bottles available
Wine Advocate 99 points “Is the 2019 Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru the finest wine that Cécile Tremblay has produced to date? I thought so when I tasted it in barrel, and that impression has only been confirmed on the two occasions I have tasted it from bottle. Offering up a deep bouquet of raspberries and cherries mingled with exotic spices, rose petals, raw cocoa and a beautifully integrated framing of new oak, it’s full-bodied, seamless and complete, with all the depth and power of a vintage such as 2015, combined with the suave elegance and charm of a more giving vintage such as 2017. Perfumed and expansive, this impeccably balanced red Burgundy is one of the wines of the vintage and worth every and any effort to taste!”
Domaine Cecile Tremblay Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru 2019 750ml $1999 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Advocate 99 points “Is the 2019 Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru the finest wine that Cécile Tremblay has produced to date? I thought so when I tasted it in barrel, and that impression has only been confirmed on the two occasions I have tasted it from bottle. Offering up a deep bouquet of raspberries and cherries mingled with exotic spices, rose petals, raw cocoa and a beautifully integrated framing of new oak, it’s full-bodied, seamless and complete, with all the depth and power of a vintage such as 2015, combined with the suave elegance and charm of a more giving vintage such as 2017. Perfumed and expansive, this impeccably balanced red Burgundy is one of the wines of the vintage and worth every and any effort to taste!”
Cayuse
This winery and these wines need no introduction for our newsletter customers. They are the highest quality bottlings coming out of Walla Walla from the highest quality producer!
Cayuse Vineyards Impulsivo Tempranillo, Walla Walla Valley 2020 750ml $133 special, 29 bottles availableSkurnik notes “100% Tempranillo. En Chamberlin Vineyard (Walla Walla Valley AVA). Planted in 1998. 10′ by 4′ planting density. 6.1 acres planted. 12-18” of silty loam and basalt cobblestone soils. 875 ft. elevation.” Cayuse Vineyards Flying Pig, Walla Walla Valley 2020 750ml $149 special, 2 bottles available
Cayuse Vineyards Armada Vineyard Syrah, Walla Walla Valley 2019 750ml $159 special, 2 bottles available
Jeb Dunnuck 98+ points “The 2019 Syrah Armada Vineyard comes from a higher density planting just beside the estate, and it’s always a more dense, backward wine. Darker, black fruits, smoked meat, ground pepper, iron, and just subtle bloody, meaty nuances emerge from this beauty, and it’s medium to full-bodied on the palate, with building, firm tannins, wonderfully integrated acidity, and a great finish that makes you salivate due to its sense of salinity and minerality. It needs plenty of air if drinking any time soon but is another tour de force in Rocks Syrah! It has 20-25 years of prime drinking ahead of it.”
Wine Advocate 97 points “Rich, juicy and lush with a ripe dark red and black-fruited core of fruit, the 2019 Syrah Armada Vineyard offers dusty purple flowers and savory elements with notions of smoked meat. Medium to full-bodied, the Syrah is firm, focused and refined while offering wonderful savory and umami essences as the generous wine gains in complexity. Still firm and with a taut mineral tension, the wine subsides with a spicy and lingering finish that will benefit from a couple more years of bottle aging to release its tight grip. Be patient and give it time.”
Cayuse Vineyards Bionic Frog Syrah, Walla Walla Valley 2020 750ml $299 special, 3 bottles available
Do not wait to snatch up this exclusive allocation!Cayuse Vineyards Bionic Frog Syrah, Walla Walla Valley 2012 750ml $399 special, 1 bottles available
Do not wait to snatch up this exclusive allocation!
Featured Cocktail
The Orleans Sbagliato The Sbagliato, a twist on the classic Negroni utilzing prosecco instead of gin took the internet by storm last summer and for good reason! This is a drink that’s as refreshing as a classic Spritz, with the added depth of a serious cocktail. When substituting Orleans Bitter for campari the cidery fruit notes of the prosecco mingle well with the fresh almost minty bitter of gentian in the Orleans and the Vermouth adds a lively herbal complexity.
For this cocktail you will need:
Eden Ciders Orleans Bitter 750ml $9 special, 27 bottles available
Dolin Vermouth De Chambery Rouge 750ml $16 special, 11 bottles available
Nino Franco Prosecco NV 750ml $16.50 special, 10 bottles available
One Wine or Rocks Glass
To make the cocktail:
-Pour .5 oz of Orleans Bitter (a little goes a long way!) and 1.5oz of Dolin Rouge over a large ice cube
-Fill to the brim with Nino Franco Prosecco.
-Finish with an apple slice.
Staff Pick
Not all of us can afford Raveneau. Hell, not many of us can even find it if we wanted to! But that doesn’t mean we have to compromise, because savvy drinkers like us are well informed on the delicacy of Defaix’s Chablis. Daniel-Etienne Defaix has vineyard holdings in some of the top premier cru sites across the region and his wines are utterly unique in the fact that he ages them in bottle until they’ve reached total perfection. Aged chablis is like nothing else you’ve tasted before and Defaix’s are the purest expression of Chardonnay without the masking influence of oak. We’ve got 2 bottlings available today that are worth gobbling up!
Domaine Daniel-Etienne Defaix Les Lys, Chablis Premier Cru 2006 750ml $51.90 special, 24 bottles available
Wine advocate 94 points “The 2006 Chablis 1er Cru Les Lys is showing beautifully, offering up inviting aromas of pear, honeycomb, mandarin oil, warm bread and oyster shell. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and incisive, with an enveloping core of fruit, racy acids and a long, saline finish, it’s fleshy but controlled, with more texture than the Côte de Léchet and more structure than the Vaillons.”
Domaine Daniel-Etienne Defaix Vaillon, Chablis Premier Cru 2008 750ml $59 special, 19 bottles available
Wine advocate 94 points “The 2008 Chablis 1er Cru Vaillon is a brilliant wine from Defaix. Unwinding in the glass with scents of citrus oil, drawn butter, clear honey and oyster shell, it’s medium to full-bodied, racy and chiseled, with a deep core of fruit, tangy acids and a long, saline finish. It’s already sold out at the domaine, but readers may be able to find bottles circulating on the marketplace.”
-Mark
April Rosé Sale
Stock Up for the Sunny weather NOW!!
We’re having a huge month long sale ending April 30th at 6pm.
5% off 6-11 bottles of Rosé
10% off 12 or more bottles of Rosé
Each 1.5L (Magnum) bottle will be counted as 2 bottles when applied to the discount.
Each 3.0L bottle of rose will be the equivalent of 4 bottles.
6.0L bottles will be counted as 8 bottles.Champagnes are not included in this sale.
Discount will not display online, we will adjust your invoice before charging your card.
Discount does not apply to pre-arrival wines or to case discounts.
This is first come / first served and limited to stock on hand.
Luigi Giordano Nebbiolo Rosato DOC 2020 750ml $21.90 special, 4 bottles available
Importer’s Note “100% Nebbiolo from family parcels inside Barbaresco crus of Ovello, Ronchi & Cars. Hand-picked in September. Soft pressing followed by 3-hour maceration. 2,400-bottle production.”
Burlotto Elatis Rosato 2021 750ml $24 special, 36+ bottles available
Vinous 91 Points “The nose shows ripe honeydew and crushed yellow apple with sweet herbs and smoky minerals. On the palate, the 2019 Burlotto Elatis Rosato coasts with ease. It is cool-toned and riding a core of vibrant acids, minerals, and citrus-tinged fruit.”
Bodegas Bleda Castillo De Jumilla Rosado 2020 750ml $10.90 special, 17 bottles available
Vinoplnote “…this Monastrell rosé displays an intense array of strawberry and rose notes, woven between a harmony of crisp, blood-orange acidity and a giving, mineral texture. Fresh, tasty and well balanced. Good acidic structure.”
Mourat Ovni Rose 2021 750ml $17.70 special, 23 bottles available
Vinoplnote: 100% Grolleau Gris– this wine will appeals to fans of pinot gris rosés and other skin contact orange wines.
Ste Magdeleine Provence Rose 2020 750ml $23.50 special, 25 bottles available
Importer’s Note The Cassis rosé gets the award for vines with the best view. Situated in Provence, perched on a limestone promontory that reaches right out into the blue Mediterranean, the vineyard gives us an aromatic, supple, dry rosé. Serve it with a bowl of black olives for the blend of flavors and colors.
Domaine Ott by Ott Provence Rose 2021 750ml $24 special, 36+ bottles available
Wine Advocate “the 2021 Cotes de Provence Rose Chateau de Selle remains one of the region’s top wines. Scents of tangerine, peach, crushed stone and lime zest mark the nose, while the medium-bodied palate is plump and juicy, finishing long and layered.”
Peyrassol Le Close Rose 2018 1.5L $69 special, 7 bottles available
Peyrassol Le Close Rose 2019 1.5L $79 special, 4 bottles available
Wine Advocate “… [the 2019] offers up scents of crushed stone, garrigue, white peach and lime, all tinged with tart red berries. It’s medium-bodied on the palate, with a silky-wet stone feel and a lingering finish that seems to build in red fruit intensity while remaining citrusy and refreshing at the same time. One of the best wines in this year’s tasting… “
Don’t miss shopping for Rosé wines on our website from Oregon
and…
Collector’s Corner
Kings of Piedmont: The Best of Barolo and Barbarsesco
Gaja and Conterno, from Barbaresco and Barolo respectively are a study in contrast. Gaja, deeply rooted in the area since the 1850’s, is an innovator with tinkerer’s spirit. They were among the pioneers use of french oak in the region focusing pon the terroir of their estate with single vineyard bottlings. Conterno on the other hand began in the 1960’s, with a committment to traditional winemaking methods such as slow maceration and the use of large barriques for again.
Whatever their methods or philosophies, they are undisputed as two of the great masters in Italian wine. Year after year, these wines are lauded by critics and prized by top wine collectors.
Here are our most exclusive wines from the Kings of Piedmont:
Gaja
Since its debut in 1967, Gaja’s Sorì San Lorenzo has established itself as one of the truly iconic wines in Piedmont and Italy. Sorì San Lorenzo is the most powerful, structured and masculine of Gaja’s three single vineyard wines from Barbaresco. Here the wines are intense, brooding, and exceptionally long-lived, with a level of intensity that could almost pass for Barolo.
Gaja Sori San Lorenzo Barberesco 2017 750ml $599 special, 3 bottles available
Wine Spectator 96 Points “This tightly wound red is dense with black cherry, black currant, plum, tar and iron flavors as well as tannins. Shows a lot of power and persistence, with all the components in the right proportion, ending with a long, resonant aftertaste. Needs time. Best from 2024 through 2048. 300 cases imported.”
Wine Advocate 95+ Points “The 2017 growing season saw a couple of violent hail events in the Barbaresco appellation, and this celebrated vineyard suffered some damage during a storm that hit on July 19th. Yields were reduced, but the wine holds its own thanks to the careful fruit selection process put in place by the Gaja family. Their 2017 Barbaresco Sorì San Lorenzo is a shade richer in terms of flavor concentration, as is always the case with fruit from this slightly warmer growing site. However, like the other two single-vineyard Barbaresco expressions, this wine reveals a thin, sharp and nervous personality that is driven in large part by tannic firmness and acidity. Sorì San Lorenzo adds lots of dark mineral definition to cassis, wild cherry, rose and Provence herbs. Like the other wines, it needs extra cellar aging time.”
Decanter 95 Points “This is generally the most austere of the three Gaja single-vineyard wines, and it has also been described as ‘wilder’. In this vintage the nose does seem to have more weight than Sori Tildin, with rich raspberry and cherry aromas. It’s sumptuous, full-bodied and concentrated, with considerable density and weight. Despite its youthful chewiness, it’s still polished and balanced, with a very long finish. Drinking Window 2021 – 2042.”
Aldo Conterno
The most acclaimed and precious wine that Aldo Conterno produces, the Granbussia Barolo derives from the best Bussia vineyards, in Monforte d’Alba, the heart of Barolo. Aged for over thirty months in oak casks and refined for a further six years, the Granbussia represents the purest essence of three different historical Bussia cru: the Romirasco, Cicala, Colonnello vineyards.
Aldo Conterno Barolo Granbussia 2012 750ml $889 special, 6 bottles available
Wine Spectator95 Points “The earthy, woodsy aromas show some evolution in this red, with just a hint of white truffle, yet there’s still a hefty dose of spicy oak to be resolved. Rich and sumptuous midpalate, showing plum, cherry, tar and tobacco flavors shaded by vanilla and toasty spices, with firm, dusty tannins laying a grip on the long finish. Give this another year or two in the cellar. Best from 2024 through 2042. From Italy.”