Summer-Aid: Explore 2018 Beaujolais with Two New Wine-Aid Packages (All Included and Delivered)

In a marriage of grapes and ground that the French regard as mystical, it’s in the sandy clay soils over granite of Beaujolais that the Gamay grape finds its truest expression, in the right hands producing red wines that are fresh, vivid, light and fruity, yet possessing a soulful depth and sense of place. It is a wine that is somehow simultaneously uncomplicated and consequential.

Introducing two newly assembled Wine-Aid packages that highlight the beauty and drinkability of Beaujolais. Each package is based on a significant producer from the region but altogether the packages include wines from five of Beaujolais’ ten Cru appellations — known for their extraordinary soils and microclimates and the capability of producing the most remarkable wines of the area. Prices include tax and delivery, as well as a deep discount. We will also honor a 10% discount on any bottles you might wish to add to the Wine-Aid package.

$225 The Wines of Daniel Bouland

A traditionalist based in Morgon, Daniel Bouland is considered one of the top producers in Beaujolais. He farms about 17 acres of old vines in the Douby, Côte de Py, and Delys lieux-dits of Morgon, plus some small parcels in Chiroubles and Côte de Brouilly. Bouland’s wines are notable in their ability to develop over time into wines as expressive as those from villages to the north in Burgundy. All fruit is hand-harvested and vinified with full clusters to extract the full depth of expression. The wines are bottled unfiltered.

Included in this Wine-Aid Package are two bottles each:

“Pré Jourdan Foudre No. 5” (Morgon 2018) Regular Price: $39
Pré Jourdan is a newly acquired lieu-dit located near Fleurie with 70-year-old vines. The entire batch aged in a five-year-old foudre was purchased by the US importer after the inaugural 2018 vintage, making this wine exclusive to the states.

“Cuve No. 11” (Chiroubles 2018) Regular Price: $39
A parcel in the lieu-dit of Chatenay that lies high on the hill of Chiroubles and less than a mile north of Corcelette.  The soil is friable sandstone, producing a wine with gorgeous aromatics and sappy dark fruit.

“Mélanie Cuve No 1”( Côte de Brouilly 2018) Regular Price: $39
Cuvée Mélanie comes from a parcel that lies within the lieu dit Tête Noire, high on the Côte de Brouilly, with volcanic blue schist soils similar to Morgon’s Côte de Py.  The elegance, structure, and crunchy minerality of Côte de Brouilly are on full display.

$165 The Wines of Pierre-Marie Chermette (Domaine du Vissoux)

Setting the benchmark in Beaujolais for five generations is the Chermette family, who have been instrumental in the implementation of the Beaujolais Crus and climats. Strict traditionalists, Pierre-Marie and his wife Martine were among the first in Beaujolais to use sustainable agricultural practices, shunning the use of chemicals in the vineyard and encouraging as much life in the soil as possible. The wines are made with minimal intervention: wild yeasts, minimal sulphur additions, and no filtering if possible. These are some of the most expressive wines in the region for the price.

Included in this Wine-Aid Package are two bottles each:

“Les Champs-Grillés” (Saint-Amour 2018) Regular Price: $34
“Les Champs-Grillés” is produced from fruit grown on a seven acre climat where vines of 50 years old or older grow in soils of decomposed granite. Fermentation takes place naturally in whole clusters in old foudres constructed by Pierre’s great-grandfather at the beginning of the 19th century.

“Poncié” (Fleurie 2018) Regular Price: $31
From an 11 acre lieu-dit on a south-east facing slope in the heights of Fleurie planted 35 years ago. The soil is made up of pink granite rich in mica and quartz with a crumbly surface. Silky tannins and a floral bouquet give this wine its particular finesse.

“Origine Vieilles Vignes” (Beaujolais 2018) Regular Price: $20
Crafted in the pure Beaujolais tradition, “Origine Vieilles Vignes” is a lively wine that allows the Gamay grape to express its full-frontal fruitiness. Concentration and freshness make this a Beaujolais with character.

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Posted on 2020.06.23 in France, Beaujolais, Wine-Aid Packages  |  Read more...

$210 “The Molly Bloom” Wine-Aid Package – 6 Bottles of Regional Burgundy (All Included and Delivered)

Introducing The Molly Bloom, a $210 Wine-Aid package that includes six bottles of Burgundy (four red, two white) from some of the top producers in France. Although these regional wines are just the first step in classification, they offer the highest-quality entry point into the world of Burgundy. The price includes tax and delivery, as well as a deep discount. We will also honor a 10% discount on any bottles you might wish to add to the Wine-Aid package. 

Molly Bloom is one of the three central characters in the fictional novel Ulysses by James Joyce. An opera singer, and the unfaithful wife of Leopold Bloom, Molly makes a derisively mocking parallel to Penelope, the faithful wife of Odysseus in Homer’s Odyssey. In Episode 18, the last section of the book, Molly (in bed with her husband) engages in a celebrated soliloquy, one of the most famous dramatic monologues in literature.

Molly is essentially Joyce’s equivalent of an earth goddess and these wines can certainly conjure a sense of connection to the land they come from. 

Included in The Molly Bloom Wine-Aid package are two bottles each:

Domaine Thibault Liger-Belair “Les Grands Chaillots” (Bourgogne Rouge 2016) Regular Price $46

Cousin to Vicomte Liger-Belair of La Romanée fame, in 2001 Thibault Liger-Belair took over storied family property in Nuits-Saint-Georges, reclaiming vineyards which had been contracted out to various sharecroppers and creating a new domaine under his own name. The properties include some of the most hallowed vineyards in Burgundy: The Grands Crus of Richebourg and Clos de Vougeot, as well as the Premier Cru of Les Saint-Georges that is one of the few vineyards in modern-era Burgundy to be considered for promotion to Grand Cru. “Les Grands Chaillots” is a well-structured Bourgogne from a plot in Nuits-Saint-Georges.

Domaine François Lamarche “Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits” (2014) Regular Price $35

Vineyard holdings don’t get much more impressive than the Grand Cru sliver of La Grande Rue that runs parallel to Romanée-Conti and La Romanée. Lamarche is the sole owner (monopole) and winemaker Nicole Lamarche turns it, and all of their vineyard production, into wines that are natural, elegant, and highly expressive of their terroir. “Bourgogne Hautes Côtes de Nuits” is matured In oak casks for between 16 and 20 months (between 60 and 100% new oak depending on the vintage). It is bottled without fining or filtering. On the palate it is silkyand pure, exporessing tart red cherry and strawberry fruit with a hint of spice toward the finish. 

Vincent Girardin “Cuvée Saint-Vincent” (Bourgogne Blanc 2017) Regular Price $26

The quality of the wines produced at Maison Vincent Girardin are upheld by its “Très Haute Couture” code of winegrowing practices. The fruit comes from vineyards managed according to the following principles: No herbicides or insecticides, deep ploughing, use of natural composts from farms in the Burgundy region, high trellising for better photosynthesis, and manual harvests with sorting in the vineyard and in the vat room. “Cuvée Saint-Vincent” is 100% Chardonnay. It is matured in French oak casks of 500 liters (10% of new oak) with indigenous yeasts for 11 months. A fresh and mineral wine with aromas of orchard fruit and flowers. 

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Posted on 2020.06.14 in France, Burgundy, Wine-Aid Packages  |  Read more...

$240 “The Leopold Bloom” Wine-Aid Package – 6 Bottles of Burgundy from Côte Chalonnaise (All Included and Delivered)

Introducing The Leopold Bloom, a $240 Wine-Aid package that includes six bottles of red Burgundy from some of the top producers in Côte Chalonnaise. Côte Chalonnaise continues as a regular chain of hills along the same lines as the Côte d’Or to its north. But the countryside is much less uniform and turns into a jumble of limestone slopes on which vineyards appear amongst orchards and pasture. These are some of the best value Pinot Noir-based wines in Burgundy. The price includes tax and delivery, as well as a deep discount. We will also honor a 10% discount on any bottles you might wish to add to the Wine-Aid package. 

Leopold Bloom is the fictional character whose wanderings through Dublin during one 24-hour period on June 16, 1904, form the central action of James Joyce’s novel Ulysses. Though he never leaves the streets of Dublin, Bloom is a wanderer like the Greek mythological hero Odysseus, to whom he is compared throughout the book. 

Bloom is introduced to the reader as a man of appetites and even drinks a glass of Burgundy on his odyssey. This Wine-Aid package will surely sate your own appetites for world-class Pinot Noir.  

Included in The Leopold Bloom Wine-Aid box are two bottles each:

Domaine François Lumpp “A Vigne Rouge” (Givry Premier Cru, 2015) Regular Price: $50

For close to 30 years François Lumpp and his wife Isabelle have been leaders in Givry, illustrating how meticulous attention to producing the highest quality fruit can create wines that rival some of the finest in the Côte de Beaune. Using cuttings of older bud wood (sélection massale) François developed his domaine around Givry’s best Premier Cru sites, emerging as a benchmark producer for this small region. “A Vigne Rouge” is from a six acre plot of Oxfordian superior Nantoux limestone benches separated by thin marl on an ideally exposed and well-drained mid-slope. Notably ripe yet extraordinarily fresh, a glass emanates aromas of crunchy cranberry, redcurrant, and an earthy spice.

Domaine Ragot “Teppe des Cheneves” (Givry 2014) Regular Price: $40

Nicolas Ragot  manages a little over 22 acres that includes a fair share of 40+ year old vines. Cultivation is approached lutte raisonee, with a few acres farmed organically and plans to expand that across all their holdings in the future. All of the fruit is hand-harvested and only indigenous yeasts are used. A newish parcel, the vines at “Teppe des Cheneves” were planted in 2009 in a vineyard that lies along nearly two acres that had been previously covered by forest. After clearing the east-facing slope, the Ragots planted Pinot Noir in high density on clay and limestone soils between 950 and 1,050 feet altitude. Loads of luscious Pinot Noir fruit on a lithe frame make this wine a summer pleaser. 

Domaine Jean-Baptiste Ponsot “Molesme” (Rully Premier Cru 2014) Regular Price: $40

Third-generation winemaker Jean-Baptiste Ponsot farms a total 21 acres in the Rully appellation. With a deep respect for the land that his family has been fostering for decades, he focuses on the intrinsic health of the ecosystem and his vines, choosing to cultivate using organic methods. His goal is to produce wines of intensity and depth, wines that can be considered both taut and ripe. “Molesme” is aged 12 months in barrels (40% of new oak). The wine shows a mildly herbal perfume underneath ripe and juicy fruit. A sip is velvety yet focused. 

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Posted on in France, Burgundy, Wine-Aid Packages  |  Read more...

$270 “A Dozen Rosés” Wine-Aid Package — Crisp, Cool Climate Rosé + A Rosé Sparkler (All Included and Delivered)

“It is spring again. The earth is like a child that knows poems by heart.” — Rainer Maria Rilke

Whether you’re social-distancing with friends on the patio, grilling in the backyard, or just relaxing on a cozy chair with a good book and all the windows thrown open to the warm breeze and birdsong, this weather calls for a glass of fresh rosé by your side.

Introducing A Dozen Rosés, a $270 Wine-Aid package that includes twelve bottles of dry, pink wine mainly from the cool climate wine regions of France, plus a world-class sparkling rosé from a top producer in Spain. The price includes tax and delivery, as well as a deep discount. We will also honor a 10% discount on any bottles you might wish to add to the Wine-Aid package.

These are all fresh, current release wines, not close-outs of last year’s wine that has been languishing in warehouses. With this variety you’ll find everything from delicate wines redolent of flowers and early strawberries to rich and herbal wines big enough to pair with grilled meats and possibly even satisfy the most ardent red wine drinker.

We are committed to providing you with your wine needs in the safest way possible. We do encourage you to take advantage of our back door pick-up or free delivery. We can easily process the payment of your purchase over the phone and load you up without you needing to get out of the car. Or we can deliver it to your doorstep for free (within a reasonable distance of our shop) and leave it there for you to bring in at your convenience.

Included in A Dozen Rosés Wine-Aid Package are two bottles each:

Pascal & Nicolas Reverdy “Terre de Maimbray” (Sancerre 2019) Regular Price $32

Based in the tiny hamlet of Maimbray surrounded by chalk hills of the Loire Valley, Pascal Reverdy and his wife Sophie produce wines of place from almost pure “Terres Blanches” soils of fossilized Marne/Kimmeridigian limestone and clay. The Reverdys harvest exclusively by hand, and do not filter any of their wines. “Terre de Maimbray” is 100% Pinot Noir with vibrant, mineral accented strawberry and tangerine scents over sappy redcurrant and citrus fruit flavors.

Domaine Collotte Rosé (Marsannay 2019) Regular Price $24

Philippe Collotte and his daughter Isabelle produce some of Marsannay’s best values. They focus on sustainable viticultural practices and fruit yields well below the appellation’s allowances. All fermentations are done with indigenous yeasts only. This Pinot Noir-based rosé is made from 30 to 60 year-old vines growing on classic Burgundian clay and limestone soils. In the glass it exudes an exuberant floral and red cherry vibe. A richer rosé, the medium-body delivers ripe red fruit, herbs, and a hint of mineral funk.

Pierre-Marie Chermette “Griottes” (Beaujolais 2019) Regular Price $19

Strict traditionalists, Pierre-Marie and Martine Chermette were among the first in Beaujolais to use sustainable agricultural practices, shunning the use of chemicals in the vineyard and encouraging as much life in the soil as possible. The wines are made with minimal intervention: wild yeasts, minimal sulphur additions, and no filtering if possible. Their poundable, Gamay-based rosé is pale in color but deep in flavor. Fruit and flowers on the nose are enhanced by a hint of gravel.

Château de la Bonnelière “Rive Gauche” (Chinon 2019) Regular Price $18

Château de la Bonnelière is a certified organic domaine situated in the heart of Chinon. Marc Plouzeau has been running this small, 37 acre family domaine since 1999, taking over from his father who started renovation and replanting back in the 1970s. All of Marc’s wines are produced with minimal intervention. “Rive Gauche” comes from the gravel and sand-based alluvial soils on the left bank of the Vienne river. High-toned aromatics of raspberry and peach hover above a fresh and juicy glass of this Cabernet Franc rosé.

Domaine La Bérangeraie “Malbec Rosé” (IGP Côtes du Lot 2019) Regular Price $14

The 86 acre Domaine La Bérangeraie began in 1971 when André Berenger came to Cahors from Provence with his wife Sylvie and planted their vineyard on the red clay and iron stone soil near the small village of Grézels in the Lot department in south-western France. 100% Malbec, ripe strawberry and raspberry aromas and flavors are complemented by a hint of spice. A core of juicy acidity balances a silky fruit profile and a pinch of residual sugar adds to the body.

Raventós i Blanc “de Nit” (cru Conca del Riu Anoia 2017) Regular Price $30

Biodynamically farmed and rivaling many a grower Champagne in quality terms, “de Nit” is a blend of Macabeo, Xarel-lo and Parellada with the addition of a small amount of red Monastrell for complexity and to give the wine its pale pink color. Aged for at least 18 months on the lees before release this is a wine of balance, with subtle minerality. Creamy, with aromatics of flowers, orchard fruits, and almonds, we suggest drinking this sparkling wine from a white wine glass to experience everything it has to offer.

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Posted on 2020.06.08 in France, Beaujolais, Spain DO, Burgundy, Wine-Aid Packages, Loire, Cava, South West  |  Read more...

$210 “The Ausonius” Wine-Aid Package — 6 Bottles Saint-Émilion Grand Cru Second Wines (All Included and Delivered)

“What colour are they now, thy quiet waters?
The evening star has brought the evening light,
And filled the river with the green hillside;
The hill-tops waver in the rippling water,
Trembles the absent vine and swells the grape
In thy clear crystal.”

— Decimus Magnus Ausonius from Mosella

Introducing The Ausonius, a $210 Wine-Aid package that includes six bottles of wine from some of the finest producers in Saint-Émilion. The price includes tax and delivery, as well as a deep discount. We will also honor a 10% discount on any bottles you might wish to add to the Wine-Aid package. 

Along with its neighbor, Pomerol, Saint-Émilion is one of the world’s benchmark appellations for Merlot-based wine. It is one of the oldest active wine producing appellations in the Bordeaux region with a history that dates back to ancient Romans. It was the home of the famous Roman poet and wine lover, Decimus Magnus Ausonius, who served as the inspiration for the name of the now famous Château Ausone. 

Not merely leftovers, Second Wines have always offered incredible value, but as the selection process for the First Wine or “Grand Vin” of these distinguished estates has gotten stricter, today the best Second Wines offer an even greater value than in the past. It’s important to note that Second Wines are always produced by the same winemaking team that produces the First Wine. Generally, the biggest differences are that Second wines see less new oak during maturation and are meant to be enjoyed closer to release than the First Wine.

Included in The Ausonius Wine-Aid Package are two bottles each:

Château Valandraud “3 de Valandraud” (Saint-Émilion Grand Cru 2016) Regular Price $44

This estate led by Jean-Luc Thunevin is recognized as giving birth to the “Garage Wine” movement. Their debut vintage produced a scant 100 cases of wine and was vinified in a borrowed space. Today they own their cellars and cultivate almost 25 acres of vineyards using a combination of traditional and modern technique. “3 de Valandraud” is produced from declassified fruit from Valandraud and Virginie de Valandraud. The wine is very representative of Thunevin’s signature style: lush and opulent fruit, with a silken, smooth tannic structure.

Château Rol Valentin “Les Valentines” (Saint-Émilion Grand Cru 2016) Regular Price $37

About 40% of Château Rol Valentin’s vines are placed on sandy soils, north of Château La Gomerie on the way to Château Cheval Blanc. The remaining 60% are planted in the cooler, clay and limestone soils near Château Faugères. Most of the vines on this 18 acre estate are older, averaging close to 43 years of age. The vineyard is managed using sustainable farming techniques. The 2016 vintage of “Les Valentines” shows good balance with dark red fruit on the nose and palate and a touch of chocolate on the finish.

Château Monbousquet “Angélique de Monbousquet” (Saint-Émilion Grand Cru 2015) Regular Price $29

Château Monbousquet traces its history all the way back to 1540 but its modern era began with a jump in quality in 1993 when it was purchased by Gérard Perse of Château Pavie fame. The entire 79 acre vineyard was analyzed and drained and the winemaking facilities rebuilt. Today, the 40 year old vines see less water during prolonged wet spells. Perse gets the most he can out of sand, clay and gravel soils. Blackberries, earth, and herbs rise above a medium-bodied sip of sappy and fresh fruit. 

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Posted on 2020.05.31 in France, Bordeaux, Wine-Aid Packages  |  Read more...

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