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  • January 21, 2020

    Chateau La Roque Pic Saint Loup!

    By Santo Roman
    January 25th at 3pm
    The one region in the shop that I'm always trying to improve on is Languedoc-Roussillon. I only have a few wines from the region and for some reason I never seem to get tasted on wines from that region as much as I'd like so when I found out that there was a collection of wines in stock from Chateau La Roque, I jumped on the wagon. Fun fact...La Roque has been around since 1259! Since that time the estate has changed ownership several times.

    Thirty-two of the Château’s eighty hectares are consecrated to terraced vineyard land with south-southeast sun exposure, on clay and limestone soils. This is unique terroir. Garrigue, the aromatic scrub brush that dominates the landscapes of the South, asserts its presence among these vines. Syrah, Grenache, and Mourvèdre, the noble varietals that Jack Boutin planted here years ago, make up the reds. The whites include Viognier, Rolle, Grenache Blanc, Roussane and Marsanne. In the wise words of KLWM salesperson and legend, Michael Butler, “Lay down a few cases of history.”

    Here are the wines we'll be diving into...

    2017 Chateau La Roque Coteaux du Languedoc Blanc
    2016 Chateau La Roque Pic Saint Loup Cuvee de Mourvedre
    2018 Chateau La Roque Pic Saint Loup Rose
    2017 Chateau La Roque Pic Saint Loup Rouge
    NV Chateau La Roque Vin de Pays Cuvee de Mourvedre

    I love producers that make white wines that can age!!
  • January 21, 2020

    Andre et Michel Quenard of Savoie w/ Morgan

    By Santo Roman
    January 24th at 4pm
    André & Michel Quenard started producing wine in one of the best years possible...my birth year, 1976. The awesome thing about Quenard is that most of you have never heard of them and most of you have never tried any of their wines. Located in Savoie which is so close to the Swiss Alps. Well that's pretty much all you get. No, but really...Quenard are growing grapes like Jacquère, Altesse, Roussanne, Pinot Noir, Gamay and 70 year old Mondeuse grapes.

    Despite the domaine’s proximity to the Alps, the vineyards enjoy a surprisingly warm microclimate with southern sun exposure. Fig and olive trees are also found among the vines, unusual for such a snowy region. There are sixteen crus in the Vin de Savoie designation, and each commune is known for a different grape varietal. Michel’s vineyards are planted to some of the region’s best known: Bergeron, Jacquère, Mondeuse, Altesse, and Pinot Noir. Michel bottles eight different cuvées, seven of which are still, and the other a sparkling Vin de Savoie Brut, which is made in the méthode champenoise. The minerality of Michel’s vineyards expresses an alpine freshness and liveliness in his wines. His cuvées go beyond the simple “eclectic” that categorizes wines from the region; whether they are quaffed or savored, they are all unique revelations that reflect the complexity of their terroir and the fine artistry of this master vigneron.

    Here's what Morgan will be dazzling us with...

    2018 Quenard Savoie Blanc Les Abymes
    2018 Quenard Savoie Chignin Gamay
    2018 Quenard Savoie Chignin Mondeuse Vielles Vignes
    2017 Quenard Savoie Chignin Blanc Vielles Vignes
    NV Quenard Savoie Chignin-Bergeron

    As you can see...Morgan is gonna make you and your palate think a bit.
  • January 21, 2020

    Maison Trimbach w/ Anne Trimbach

    By Santo Roman
    February 6th at 4pm (Thursday)
    We have a very special tasting lined up on an off-tasting day. We'll be having our first producer of the year on Thursday the 6th. Anne Trimbach will be in the shop pouring wines, answering questions and blowing our minds with her families wines. The Trimbach family has been producing wines in the Alsace region since 1626, needless to say...they know what they are doing.

    We once hosted Anne for a very early tasting one morning before the shop even opened up and man was I tired that morning but the wines were showing great and it was a pleasure to see Anne again. This time we'll have a few hours to relax a bit and open up a gaggle of wines.

    Here's what Anne will be teasing us with.

    2018 Trimbach Pinot Blanc
    2017 Trimbach Riesling
    2011 Trimbach Riesling "Cuvée Fréderic Emile"
    2011 Trimbach Gewurztraminer "Cuvée des Seigneurs de Ribeaupierre"
    2016 Trimbach Pinot Noir "Reserve"

    This will be our first producer of the year and I can't think of a better way to kick off 2020!
  • January 13, 2020

    Benanti from Etna with Andrew Ruggles

    By Santo Roman
    January 17th at 4pm
    It's been a few years since we held a full-blown Etna tasting in the shop. I did go to one in Portland last year while on vacation and it got me thinking....Etna wines are pretty amazing. Then the holidays came along, we got busy... yet were selling lots of Benanti.

    Now, I'm not one who follows the wine rags since I believe most of them are like the news media...pushing their own narrative about wine so I'd rather just hear it from someone, taste it and buy it.

    It's time for Andrew Ruggles of Cru Selections to taste you all on the wines of Etna from Benanti. Here are the wines that will be poured...

    2018 Benanti Etna Bianco
    2017 Contrada Cavaliere Bianco
    2017 Etna Rosso
    2017 Contrada Cavaliere Rosso
    2017 Contrada Monte Serra Rosso
  • January 13, 2020

    Cantine Elvio Tintero w/ Morgan

    By Santo Roman
    January 18th at 3pm
    In 1900 a Frenchman named Pierre Tintero set out for Piedmont in search of work. He found an opportunity to do odd jobs at a small estate where widow Rosina Cortese was struggling to handle all the work herself. Pierre, called “Pietrin” by the locals, quickly became a vital part of the estate and also fell in love with the widow, whom he married two years later. The couple continued to work the vines together and bottled their own Dolcetto for the first time just as war fell in 1914. Years later their grandson would find a stash of this vintage hidden within the walls of the cellar, certainly a precaution against ransacking troops who passed through the area.

    Pietrin and Rosina’s two sons, Giovanni and Carlo, eventually took over the estate and expanded it by purchasing adjacent vineyard plots. Moscato was just a tiny part of their production since it is only practical to produce it in large quantities, but after the Second World War giants Cinzano and Martini began producing the wine, so the brothers planted more of the variety to sell to these negociants while they continued bottling their still wines themselves. It was not until the 1980s that Carlo’s son Elvio began experimenting with the challenging process of frizzante wine production, allowing the family to take advantage of the grape’s special affinity to the local terroir. Elvio has now handed the reins over to the next generation, but he continues to help his son Marco and daughter-in-law Cinzia run the estate.

    Saturday Morgan will be here to pour these amazing wines for you all. Tintero is one of those producers you have to seek out. Although they producer around 41K cases per year, they are still well under the radar even by people who love Kermit Lynch. Most still do not know that KL imports them. When it comes to prices vs quality....this is your high-end fruit on a daily drinker budget! This is why I love the wines so much!!! This is what Morgan will be pouring for us.

    Elvio Tintero Vino Bianco
    Elvio Tintero Vino Rosato Nv
    Elvio Tintero Langhe Nebbiolo 2016
    Elvio Tintero Barbaresco 2014
    Elvio Tintero Moscato D'asti Sori Gramella 2017

    Get ready people...time to stock up your cellar with some solid daily drinkers.
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