Ring in the New Year with Grower Bubbles, Special Focus: Champagne Tarlant – Masters of Zero Dosage

Happy New Year! Stop by the shop for all your bubbly needs. We have sparkling wines from France, Spain, and Italy starting at $15.

As usual, we’ll have our elaborate selection of small-production sparkling wines, and grower Champagnes from Grand and Premier Cru vineyards. These are the work of passionate small producers and individual growers who are deeply connected to the particularities of each of their vine parcels and believe that wine is made in the vineyard first. They craft wines that express terroir by rigorous work in the vineyards, picking fruit at its peak, and employing minimal intervention in the cellar.

This year we went deep into the cellars of Champagne Tarlant to feature nearly their entire lineup of available Champagne and we even have a handful of their still wines (Coteaux Champenois).

The Tarlant family has tended vines in the Vallée de la Marne since 1687. They began producing their own wine in the 1870s. Such a long and rich history has allowed Benoît Tarlant, the latest family member to head the estate, to continue their reign as one of the region’s most distinguished growers. Benoît’s sister, Mélanie, works the business and marketing side of the operation.

Benoît’s ultimate goal is to make zero-dosage Champagne by means of harvesting his fruit when it reaches its “prettiest” maturity — full of flavor with the acidity in balance. But he is not an absolutist. He will adjust his philosophy when the wines call for it, although it is rare for him to produce a wine that receives more than 6g/L dosage (just a hair over Extra Brut).

Based in the village of Oeuilly, the estate totals 34 acres spread across 57 parcels, each vinified separately. The vines average around 30 years old. Benoit embraces the diversity of his many plots but finds it a challenge to cultivate so many distinct sites using one strict technique. Subsequently, he employs a range of methods depending on the site. Some parcels are managed with biodynamic techniques, some organic, and some with Benoît’s form of “herbal therapy,” where various beneficial herbs are planted among the vines.

$59 “Zero” Brut Nature (2010 Base)

“Zero” is one of Champagne’s best Brut Nature wines. There are decades of effort in perfecting the cuvée as Benoît’s father, Georges, has been making it since the early 1980s, long before it became trendy. The blend is roughly equal proportions of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, and Pinot Meunier. Ripe fruit based on the 2010 harvest, several vintages of reserve wine, and six years aging on the lees combine to produce a wine of beautiful depth. Layers of ripe yellow plum, peach, and citrus precede a honey-toasted richness. Disgorged February 2018.

375ml Half-size “Zero” Brut Nature (2012 Base)
~$31/bottle when purchased by the case

These half-size bottles are based on the 2012 harvest, several vintages of reserve wine, and four years aging on the lees. Disgorged November 2017, half bottles of this quality are rare.

$65 “Zero” Rosé Brut Nature (2013 Base)

A blend of 50% Chardonnay, 44% Pinot Noir, and 6% Pinot Meunier. “Zero” rosé is typically composed of 80% base vintage (currently 2013) with 20% barrel-aged reserve wine. The fruit is from estate parcels in four villages (Oeuilly, Boursault, St-Agnan, and Celles-lès-Condé) in the Vallée de la Marne. This bottling was disgorged in September 2018 and received no dosage. An inviting red berry and floral character reaches the nose before a sip offers notable richness, quite rare for a non-dosé Champagne.

$120 “L’Aérienne” Brut Nature (2004)
$140 “L’Aérienne” Rosé Brut Nature (2004)

The long maturation of the fruit in the 2004 vintage contributed to an intense aromatic expression and a superb balance to this wine, an almost aerial sensation — hence the name of the cuvée, L’Aérienne. The blend is 70% Chardonnay and 30% Pinot Noir from the lieux-dits L’Enclume, Les Marguiniers, Les Forgeottes, and Pierre de Bellevue, consisting of chalk and both friable and hard limestone. It was fermented with natural yeasts and aged in barrel before bottling in May 2005. Disgorgement was performed in 2017 and the wine was finished with zero dosage. The rosé version of this cuvée was disgorged in March of 2018.

$140 “Cuvée Louis” (2002/2003 Base)

Cuvée Louis is named for Benoît’s great-great grandfather Louis, who was the first to bottle the family’s estate wines in 1928. The fruit is from the Tarlant’s original and chalkiest vineyard Les Crayons, named for the high chalk (craie) content of its soils. A blend of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from vines with an average age of 65 years, this is a radiant and monumental Champagne. The bottle spent 14 years with lees and was disgorged in March 2018 and finished with zero dosage.

$180 “La Vigne d’Or” Brut Nature (2004)

A “Blanc des Noirs” 100% Pinot Meunier from a single parcel called Pierre de Bellevue planted in 1947 by the Tarlants’ paternal grandfather. The particular clay-limestone soils there are specific to the Marne Valley and particularly suited for Pinot Meunier. The bottle spent 11 years with lees and was disgorged in October 2015 and finished with zero dosage. Miniscule yields resulted in a ripe and lively wine, with loads of peach and plum fruit balanced with plenty of the tension that is characteristic of the vintage.

$180 “BAM!” Brut Nature (2009 Base)

“BAM!” is produced from the far less common varieties of Pinot Blanc, Arbanne, Petit Meslier. The vines grow in limestone, sand, and silica-based soils of the Four à Chaux – les Sables lieu-dit in the Tarlant’s home village of Oeuilly. This bottling is a 2009 base (50%) plus 2007 & 2008 (50%). It was fermented with natural yeasts and aged in barrel before bottling in May 2010. Disgorgement was performed in April 2016 and the wine was finished with zero dosage. The result is a wine of great texture and harmony.

$190 “La Vigne Royale” Brut Nature (2003)

A “Blanc des Noirs” 100% Pinot Noir from a single parcel of vines called Mocque Tonneau planted in 1972 on a steep, chalky hillside in Celles-lès-Condé. The bottle spent 10 years with lees and was disgorged in October 2014 and finished with zero dosage. This is a rich and powerful Champagne, filled with ripe fruit and spices blanketing a fine core. Full-bodied and complex with impressive length, its name befits its regal character.

$270 “La Vigne d’Antan” Brut Nature (2002)

“La Vigne d’Antan” (The Vines of Yesteryear) is 100% Chardonnay from a single, ungrafted vineyard on sandy soils in Oeuilly. After nine months of aging in fourth-use oak barrels, the wine rested in bottle for over 11 years before disgorgement in May of 2014. Even after nearly two decades, there is still plenty of youthful lemon and apple fruit to go along with the mature layers of honey and brioche. Its flavor intensity is as equally profound as its resonant personality. This is a one of a kind Champagne.

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Posted on 2019.12.27 in France, Champagne  |  Read more...

Nothing Says Happy Holidays like a Giant Bottle of Wine

The holiday season is filled with dinners and togetherness. At 1.5 liters, a magnum is the equivalent of two standard wine bottles and makes an excellent choice for group imbibing as up to ten revelers can get a healthy glass of wine from one magnum. When you pop open a magnum, you send a message: It’s time to party.

Magnum bottles also make fantastic gifts for a wine collector. Although the bottle itself doubles in size, a magnum’s cork has generally the same area as a normal bottle’s cork.  This means less oxygen exposure which helps lengthen the maturing process and keeps wines in magnum fresher for a longer period of time.

Champagne is especially nice when bottled in magnum, both because of the extended freshness and because Champagne producers will often release magnums later than standard-sized bottles, allowing you to drink a wine that is more mature and complex without having to cellar it yourself.

We have all sorts of magnums to choose from, ranging in price from $59 Cru Beaujolais to splurge-worthy rare cult wines and a 100 point “Super Second Growth” Bordeaux. Here are some of our favorites:

$250 Château d’Issan (Margaux 2012)

Château d’Issan is a Third Growth Margaux property and one of the oldest Château in the region. It is known for its richly aromatic and silky-textured wines that are among the best of the appellation. Since 1945 the estate has been owned by the Cruse family, who had been established in the Médoc for more than 150 years prior to purchasing the property. Today Emmanuel Cruse runs the estate. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and beautifully concentrated, the 2012 Château d’Issan has a heady nose of flowers, dark berry fruit, and hints of spice and graphite. One of the superstars of the vintage. It will drink exceptionally well now and through the 20s.

$250 Champagne Jacquesson “Cuvée No. 742” (Extra Brut)

Although technically a Champagne house, brothers Laurent and Jean-Hervé Chiquet operate Champagne Jacquesson much like a grower operation. Besides their own organic and sustainably farmed 69 acres of vineyard (severely pruned for low yields), they work closely with their neighbors to supplement from an additional 19 acres, all in Grand Cru and Premier Cru vineyards. Their 700-series was created to showcase the character of a particular vintage with the addition of a small amount of reserve wines designed to reinforce the complexity of the base wine. “Cuvée No. 742” is based on the 2014 vintage and blend of Pinot Noir and Meunier (from Aÿ, Dizy and Hautvillers) and Chardonnay (from Avize and Oiry). It is a rich and beautifully resonant Champagne.

$99 Guido Porro “Vigna Lazzairasco” (Barolo 2013)

Guido Porro is a fourth generation winemaker holding close to 20 acres on the western slopes of the Barolo commune Serralunga d’Alba. He is a man that sees no need for fanfares to establish his name as one of Langhe’s most respected vignerons. The cuvée “Lazzairasco” is named after the specific sub-zone of Lazzarito that contain the estates oldest vines (50 years) and is located on the lower slopes that receive more heat and therefore tend to produce some of the most powerful wines of the cru. With a vibrant fruit concentration, licorice vibe, and a lengthy mineral and cherry pit finish, it makes you wonder how Guido Porro is able to fit so much wine in a bottle.

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Posted on 2019.12.18 in France  |  Read more...

Give the Gift of Bordeaux + Stock up on an Inexpensive but Tasty Bordeaux for the Holidays

The Gift of Bordeaux

If you’re looking for the perfect gift for the wine lover in your life – even if that wine lover is you – look no further than our Gift Box of 2015 Vintage Château Quintus from the team that produces Château Haut-Brion. Not only does Château Quintus make great wine, they make some pretty attractive wood boxes.

In the summer of 2011, Domaine Clarence Dillon, owners of the renowned estates Château Haut-Brion and Château La Mission Haut-Brion, acquired the historic estate of Château Tertre Daugay in Saint-Émilion and renamed it Château Quintus. Since the mid 1800s, the classic reference work on Bordeaux wines, Cocks & Féret, has mentioned the property and its extraordinary terroir as a “First Growth” of Saint-Émilion.

Fast forward two years later to the autumn of 2013, when Château Quintus acquired the neighboring property, Château L’Arrosée. Today, the two great estates are united in order to produce one of the most exceptional wines in Bordeaux. With recently modernized cellars and the same team that produces Château Haut-Brion and Château La Mission Haut-Brion responsible for making the wines of Château Quintus, this “new” estate is already at the forefront of quality in Saint-Émilion.

$480 Gift Box of 2015 Vintage Château Quintus includes:

Château Quintus “MMXV” (Saint-Émilion Grand Cru) ONE BOTTLE
The First Wine of Château Quintus is easily one of the top wines in all of Bordeaux. The wine is a blend of 76% Merlot and 24% Cabernet Franc aged in 37% new French oak barrels from the estate’s best parcels. In the warm and dry 2015 vintage, Quintus’ limestone soils were prime real estate, with the soils acting like a fine-pored sponge slowly releasing water reserves and regulating the vines throughout the season. With a 94+ rating from Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate the wine delivers an expected potency on the palate with rich dark fruits balanced by ideal acidity and ripe, supple tannins. The Quintus bottle was modeled after an ancient bottle of Haut-Brion that was recently discovered from an old pirate’s lair.

Château Quintus ˝Le Dragon de Quintus˝ (Saint-Émilion Grand Cru) TWO BOTTLES
˝Le Dragon de Quintus˝ is the Second Wine from Château Quintus. 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. ˝Le Dragon” is a blend of 76% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in 33% new French oak barrels. Very low yields produce a wine of richness and intensity.

Château Quintus ˝Saint-Émilion de Quintus˝ (Saint-Émilion) THREE BOTTLES
˝Saint-Émilion de Quintus˝ is the Third Wine from Château Quintus. It is grown on the same soil and terroirs as Château Quintus and Le Dragon de Quintus and receives the same care in growing and winemaking. A blend of 45% Merlot, 32% Cabernet Franc, and 23% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in 15% new French oak barrels, it is a full-bodied wine with generous fruit and excellent length.

According to the producers of Château Quintus, 2015 was an epic vintage: “A long heat wave and dry period allowed to achieve excellent flowering conditions until the arrival, in August, of miraculous rains.This rain enabled the vines to maintain the necessary water reserves and to provide requisite nourishment for perfect ripeness. The harvest began in September under a clear blue sky. Thanks to this ideal weather, we were able to wait for optimum ripeness for each grape variety. All the conditions are there to allow 2015 to join the greatest vintages of Bordeaux.”

Stock up on an Inexpensive but Tasty Bordeaux for the Holidays

~$22 Château Peyrabon (Haut-Médoc 2015) OUT OF STOCK
Special price based on purchase of 6-pack

2015 Château Peyrabon is a wine that has all the sophistication of a classic Bordeaux without the sophisticated price. A blend of around half Cabernet Sauvignon with the remainder split between Merlot and Cabernet Franc, the wine is laden with scents of blackberry, raspberry, and cold wet stone. A medium-bodied palate with tensile tannin and a fine freshness makes this a versatile red for all of your holiday events. And with a reasonable alcohol level, it will satisfy the Bordeaux urge without becoming tiresome.

Château Peyrabon is a Cru Bourgeois property owned by Patrick Bernard, who is related to Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier. It is somewhat of an unusual estate due to having vineyards in both Pauillac and Haut Médoc. Since its purchase in 1998, Peyrabon has both increased in size and improved in quality. Some of the improvements include the replanting of vines, a new drainage system, and modernization of the cellars. The result is a Bordeaux estate that is now a Cru Bourgeois standard.

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Posted on 2019.12.12 in Bordeaux, Saturday Sips Wines, France  |  Read more...

Another Rising Star and Another Gem of a Red Wine from Southern France

The River Hérault rises out of the Cévennes mountain range, carving a path through limestone before flowing south across the fertile plain west of Montpellier and finally emptying into the Mediterranean. It cuts through the heart of the winemaking region of Terrasses du Larzac, past the communes of Puéchabon, Aniane, St Jean de Fos, and St Saturnin de Lucian, where young Frédéric Pourtalié of Domaine Montcalmès cultivates about 54 acres of vines to produce a single red wine that is truly a testament to the terroir of this region — easily one of France’s most exciting at present.

Newly minted with appellation status in 2014, Terrasses du Larzac is distinguished for its unique climate that benefits from both the warm Mediterranean sea and the cool air that blows down from the Cévennes, creating wines that are fresh, yet delicate, with silky tannins, and the earthy garrigue aromas characteristic of the Languedoc. It’s a region that can be described as something like a marriage of the ripeness of Southern Rhône with the energy of Northern Rhône.

Until 1998, this family-owned domaine sold all its fruit to a local cooperative. That year Frédéric, and his father Jean-Marie, decided to create their own cellar. In 1999 Frédéric and his sister Muriel took the helm of Domaine Montcalmès, and for the first time produced and bottled wine from their own vineyards, a little over 400 cases.

But Frédéric was not just a farmer determined to make his own wines. He had already cut his teeth working with legends like Alain Graillot, the Alary family at L’Oratoire St. Martin, and his neighbor, Laurent Vaillé at La Grange des Pères. Today, Domaine Montcalmès is a leading producer in the south of France. In 2012, they started converting the entire estate to organic cultivation. From the 2015 vintage, all production is certified organic.

~$43 Domaine Montcalmès Terrasses du Larzac (2015) RED
Special price based on purchase of 6-pack

A blend of 60% Syrah, 20% Grenache, and 20% Mourvèdre from low-yielding vines aged 30 years on average. The Syrah and Grenache vines are planted on slopes in Puéchabon that are oriented to the north, on a plateau of lacustrine limestone deposits (sedimentary rock formations which formed in the bottom of ancient lakes). The Mourvèdre comes from plots facing south and north-west near Aniane and filled with round stones (galets) much like Châteauneuf-du-Pape. All grape varieties are vinified separately and on indigenous yeasts. Aging takes place in a mix of once, twice used, and older barrels for 24 months.

The result is a full-bodied wine of great concentration and polish. Heady aromatics of dark and juicy fruits intermingle with spicy garrigue and leather. On the palate, plump fruit gives way to soft and velvety tannins. It’s perfect for any holiday gathering where red meat is involved.

Also available are small amounts of previous vintages:

$47 Domaine Montcalmès Terrasses du Larzac (2012) RED
$49 Domaine Montcalmès Terrasses du Larzac (2013) RED
$50 Domaine Montcalmès Terrasses du Larzac (2014) RED

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Posted on 2019.12.05 in France, Saturday Sips Wines, Languedoc-Roussillon  |  Read more...

The Champagne Society December 2019 Selection: Castell d’Encus

Castell d’Encus “Taïka” (Costers del Segre 2013)
Price for The Champagne Society members: $84 (regular price $99)

Castell d’Encus cuvée Taïka is a groundbreaking “Methode Ancestrale” sparkling wine from the cool heights of the Catalonian Pyrenees. A unique sparkling blend of around half Sauvignon Blanc and half Semillon, only around 2,500 bottles of this gorgeous and elegant wine are produced, making this a rare and special treat.

“Methode Ancestrale” is a much more difficult process than modern methods of producing sparkling wines. Fermentation is stopped when the wine has the appropriate residual sugar to generate enough CO2 when it is transferred to the bottle so there is no need to add any additional sugars to achieve bottle fermentation, all the sugar comes from the grapes themselves. Winemaker Raül Bobet believes this method allows him to preserve the nuances of terroir in “Taïka,” which is his sole sparkling wine.

Raül Bobet has a long list of achievements: He has a masters degree in chemical engineering and a doctorate in oenology. He has 18 years of experience at Bodegas Torres, Spain’s largest producer of DO wines under its own label, where he served as chief oenologist. He is currently proprietor and chief oenologist at both Castell d’Encús in Costers del Segre and Ferrer Bobet in Priorat. There is no question that Raül Bobet knows how to make wine.

But he doesn’t merely make wine. With a Zen-like belief in the unity of art and science, he makes world-class, soulful wines with massive aromatics, wines that express a purity of fruit and concentrated intensity balanced by fresh acidity and elegance. He believes that by growing and vinifying international grape varieties he can take the work and the knowledge that has been accumulated through time and build upon them in a way that offers insight into the particulars of his own terroir.

The vineyards of Castell d’Encús lie in the northwest Spanish DO of Costers del Segre, at the high altitude sub-zone of Pallars Jussà around 3,000 feet in the sub-Pyrenees. Raül believes that this corner of Costers del Segre has the ideal climate for producing the type of wines that he wants to make. Wines with “…freshness, wines which can last, wines that aren’t explosive, more reflexive, with a more feminine and sensitive feel and less alcohol.”

Raül discovered the property of overgrown terraces and believed that it provided the ideal conditions to suit his vision. He soon learned that this piece of land had once been cultivated by Hospitalier monks between the 12th and 18th centuries for the purpose of making wine. A further revelation was the existence of many old fermentation pools (lagares) that were carved out of stone centuries ago. He rehabilitated seven of these lagares and uses them today.

Raül likes to say that Castell d’Encús is less a winery and more of an experimental project. However you define it, it’s an estate as dynamic and exciting as you’ll find from any winemaking region in the world.

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Posted on 2019.12.01 in Spain DO, The Champagne Society, Costers del Segre  |  Read more...

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