Drinking Old Wine Many of our favorite wines have been old bottles. While the great majority of wines are made to be consumed within a couple of years of their production, the relatively few wines that are intended to age can offer absolutely magical tasting experiences.
We are pleased to offer older wines for
The Not-So-Simple Jacquère of Savoie: Domaine des Côtes Rousses and Blard & Fils It is so easy to put your nose into Jacquère from a recently opened bottle, or take a sip three seconds after you pull it from the fridge, and assume that the wine will be pleasant, but rather neutral for the entirety of its life. Lean and bracing, but not particularly complex. This isn't
2019-Freshness and Filigree from Florian Lauer 2019 is shaping up to be an extraordinary vintage in Germany, from both a quality and scarcity standpoint. The wines we've been fortunate enough to taste combine exquisite fruit, frank minerality and an airy, lifted character to the aromatics—what lovers of Riesling want. And Florian Lauer has deliv
Thierry Valette's Clos Puy Arnaud: Two Bottles, Two Soils in Castillon Clos Puy Arnaud is located near the town of Belvès-de-Castillon, which is perched along a large plateau of limestone - a geological formation similar to the neighboring long stretch of elevated limestone belonging to the St.-Emilion AOC. Thierry Valette purchased the estate in 1999 after
Spring and New Arrivals from Champagne After a long, dark, and anxious winter, spring is finally here! The days are longer, the tariffs have been suspended, and the air is sweet (though it's certainly hard to tell from behind our masks). And with spring we are finally seeing the arrival of a passel of new wines. And of the new arrivals,
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Featured Articles
Drinking Old Wine Many of our favorite wines have been old bottles. While the great majority of wines are made to be consumed within a couple of years of their production, the relatively few wines that are intended to age can offer absolutely magical tasting experiences.
We are pleased to offer older wines for
The Not-So-Simple Jacquère of Savoie: Domaine des Côtes Rousses and Blard & Fils It is so easy to put your nose into Jacquère from a recently opened bottle, or take a sip three seconds after you pull it from the fridge, and assume that the wine will be pleasant, but rather neutral for the entirety of its life. Lean and bracing, but not particularly complex. This isn't
2019-Freshness and Filigree from Florian Lauer 2019 is shaping up to be an extraordinary vintage in Germany, from both a quality and scarcity standpoint. The wines we've been fortunate enough to taste combine exquisite fruit, frank minerality and an airy, lifted character to the aromatics—what lovers of Riesling want. And Florian Lauer has deliv
Thierry Valette's Clos Puy Arnaud: Two Bottles, Two Soils in Castillon Clos Puy Arnaud is located near the town of Belvès-de-Castillon, which is perched along a large plateau of limestone - a geological formation similar to the neighboring long stretch of elevated limestone belonging to the St.-Emilion AOC. Thierry Valette purchased the estate in 1999 after
Spring and New Arrivals from Champagne After a long, dark, and anxious winter, spring is finally here! The days are longer, the tariffs have been suspended, and the air is sweet (though it's certainly hard to tell from behind our masks). And with spring we are finally seeing the arrival of a passel of new wines. And of the new arrivals,
2022 Baudry Chinon "les Granges" from gravel and sandy soils near the Vienne River in Cravant
The Super Delicious 2022 Baudry Chinon "Les Granges!" And More...
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One of the high points of our year is the annual tasting with the Baudry family at the winery in Cravant. Last winter's tasting was, of course, sensational, and one of the stars of the show was the beautiful 2022 Chinon "Les Granges!"
From 35 to 40 year-old vines on gravel and sandy soils with a bit of clay near the Vienne river in organic agriculture. Hand harvested, fermented with wild yeasts, ages for 8 to 10 months in cement vats, minimal addition of SO2 only prior to bottling. This "basic" cuvée from Bernard and Matthieu Baudry has gotten more and more "serious" as the vines age, giving a wine that is delightful to drink young, but that shows surprising complexity and mineral character as well. In the 2022 vintage, the wine is a sheer delight, certainly one of the best vintages ever for this lovely wine. It showed a beautiful bright red/black color with bright rim with vibrant, lush aromas of cassis, red currant and raspberry - perhaps prettier than the darker fruits in the 2018 - 2020 vintages? The palate is dense with deep, vibrant blackberry and raspberry fruit, with earth and minerals, bright and balanced given the roundness and ripeness of the vintage. This is a delicious Chinon to drink a bit cool over the next five to eight years. Quantities get smaller for this wine every year, so don't delay in trying this very special Super Delicious Cabernet Franc!
Of course we have to add more great wines from the Baudrys - Bernard & Henriette, Matthieu & Hélène and team... (and don't forget the 10% mixed case discount!)
And speaking of great Cabernet Franc, some of the wines in our recent offer from Domaine de la Chevalerie sold out quickly,but are now back in stock, don't miss them!
good friends
Wines arrive Tuesday 6/27 10% case/mixed case discount applies
Le Clos Guillot is a beautiful south-east facing vineyard, just east of the town of Chinon, above the Clos de l'Olive and adjacent to Le Chêne Vert. The upper slope of the parcel is clay over limestone (the lower part has sand and gravel over the rock, which permitted a tiny separate production from franc de pied vines, now mostly deceased) and the vines are young, planted from 1993 to 2000. Fermentation in wooden cuves, 12 months of aging in three to ten year-old barriques, 9 additional months in unlined cement vats. We have been buying this wine since it's first production in 2000 – it's one of the most elegant and Burgundian of Chinons. It's become increasingly difficult to write superlatives about this wine, as each vintage since 2014 has been superb in it's own way. And now 2020, a vintage the Baudrys describe as having old fashioned aromas and freshness typical of Chinon in years past, with firm acidity permitting long-term aging. The wine shows subtle, pretty aromas of raspberry, strawberry, earth, violet and citrus with hints of meat and bitter chocolate, bright and high-toned. The palate is medium-bodied and earthy with a chalky texture and firm acidity. The berry fruits have nice density, light but persistent, merging with mineral flavors in the long and very food friendly finish. This is a beautiful wine for those who appreciate subtlety and earthiness in their Chinons, reminding me of 2012 and 2014. Serve now with monkfish or halibut, roast chicken and white meats. This will be a lovely, light-bodied mature wine in 10 to 20 years. David Lillie
The brand new Domaine de la Chevalerie "Bulle de Fort" is a direct press rosé Petillant Naturel, 100% Cabernet Franc and just incredibly delicious!! Warning, this is not a wimpy pale pink rosé - it shows a deep cherry-red color and a ripe full-bodied palate with beautiful deep red currant/raspberry fruit, a real wine of terroir with bubbles! Really quite sensational, can't wait to bring some home...
The Chevalerie Bourgueil Diptyque is from vines located on 1 to 2 meters deep sand and gravel intermixed with clay soils on an old alluvial terrace close to the Loire, at the foot of the coteau. This terroir gives supple, fruit driven Cabernet without being green or too simple thanks to the Biodynamic farming of the domain. If you don’t believe cabernet franc can be delicious, juicy, savoury yet fruity, just try this wine! The 2019 Diptyque shows a deep black/red color with aromas of forest floor, black cherry liqueur, black raspberry, bitter chocolate and licorice with bright hints of herbs and citrus peel. The palate is bright, sapid and supple wth dense flavors of earth, black fruits , anise, cocoa and chalky minerals - very similar to the very ripe 2018 version, but a bit less forward. Even if it is the vin de soif, you can drink it over a couple of days - it will only get better! Keep it up to 5 years - serve with charcuterie, pork chops or roast chicken and be happy!
The Chevalerie "Galichets" vineyard is on mid-slope Turonian limestone with clay and alluvial sand and gravel topsoil, rich in silex; the vines average about 60 years of age - similar to the "Chevalerie" parcel but a bit lower on the slope, giving a wine that is more open and easy for early drinking. The 2015 vintage is excellent, with a bit more ripeness and lower acidity than 2014, while retaining the core of minerals and acidity always found in the Chevalerie wines. The aromas of black raspberry and blackberry fruit are ripe and floral. The palate is dense and silky, very mineral with ripe red and black fruits and a clean vibrant finish. Still quite youthful, but drinking beautifully now. David Lillie
Bretêche (Domaine de la Chevalerie is the only estate claiming this vineyard name) is the easternmost vineyard, a rented plot on the border of Ingrandes-de-Touraine. On the southwestern exposed upper part of the mid-slope, the vines are planted on a meter-deep heavier clay with high mica content above the Turonian yellow tuffeau. The vines, biodynamically farmed, are between 25 to 55 years old. More powerful than Busardières with broader tannins, the wine maintains a great freshness. Hand-harvested and destemmed, the grapes are macerated for up to 20 days and aged in large used barrels in the magnificent underground cave dug into the yellow tuffeau for roughly 8 to 10 moths. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered. 2014 is considered a great classic vintage in the Loire for Cabernet Franc, and it is indeed very good at Domaine de la Chevalerie, with fruit a little darker than the 2015 (this opposite to a lot of other estates in the region). Ruby purple in the glass this cuvée as usual has more freshness, tension and a little austerity - 2014 enhances these typical quality of the wine! More open than the 2015, the nose has distinctive black cherry, elderberry notes, Chinese badiane and spearmint. The palate is still deliciously youthful barely showing any evolution, with lean and brilliant acidity, and oolong-like tannins. It is already very-well structured and poised, not angular at all. Decant it 2 hours and serve it in Bordeaux glasses, or keep it 20 years or so - I would say it will reach another plateau by 2025. Enjoy it with a duck magret, the juice reduced with a touch of raspberry vinegar, or sweetbreads in a madeira sauce. 100% Cabernet Franc. Pascaline Lepeltier
From 35 to 40 year-old vines on gravel and sandy soils with a bit of clay near the Vienne river in organic agriculture. Hand harvested, fermented with wild yeasts, ages for 8 to 10 months in cement vats, minimal addition of SO2 only prior to bottling. This "basic" cuvée from Bernard and Matthieu Baudry has gotten more and more "serious" as the vines age, giving a wine that is delightful to drink young, but that shows surprising complexity and mineral character as well. In the 2022 vintage, the wine is a sheer delight, certainly one of the best vintages ever for this lovely wine. It showed a beautiful bright red/black color with bright rim with vibrant, lush aromas of cassis, red currant and raspberry - perhaps prettier than the darker fruits in the 2018 - 2020 vintages? The palate is dense with deep, vibrant blackberry and raspberry fruit, with earth and minerals, bright and balanced given the roundness and ripeness of the vintage. This is a delicious Chinon to drink a bit cool over the next five to eight years. Quantities get smaller for this wine every year, so don't delay in trying this very special Super Delicious Cabernet Franc!
(Arrives 6/13) Tasted at the winery in January, the 2022 "Le Rosé" showed subtle, fresh aromas of raspberry, wild strawberry and citrus, with a silky, beautifully balanced palate with red currant and berry fruit and a long, crisp, almost bitter finish with firm acidity and saline minerals. We found a great combination of ripeness and freshness in the wine - "but with less alcohol" said Matthieu, "and not as heavy as 2018 or 2019" making this an excellent vintage for "Le Rosé."
Back in stock, not much left! The Baudry Chinon "Domaine" is always one of our favorite reds from the Loire Valley and it's a sensational value as well. All Cabernet Franc of course, a blend of 75% from a parcel in St. Louans, where the thin clay over limestone soils give earthy well-structured wines, with 25% from gravel soils near Cravant, giving supple fruit and freshness. Organic farming, wild-yeast fermentation, aging in 5 to 10 year-old wooden vats and cement with almost no added SO2. The 2020 shows a pretty red/black color with bright rim. The aromas are quite floral and bright, a pretty melange of boysenberry, black raspberry and tart cherry, very pure with hints of earth and pepper. The palate is supple, sapid and ripe and the tannins are firm. At 13% alcohol, the balance seems perfect. Firm acidity and mineral flavors are mostly hidden under the beautiful melange of ripe red and black fruits. This is a beautiful "Cuvée Domaine" that is sensational now, served slightly cool, and that will cellar ten years and more due to the firm acidity. We loved the rather brawny 2019 which needs a few more years to drink at its best - drink the 2020 while you wait but put some away as well. Very highly recommended, and thanks to the Baudrys for producing such honest and soulful wines. David Lillie
Peu Muleau is located on the upper part of the hill, above the Domaine de la Chevalerie and just below the forest of chestnut, acacia, oak, pine and birch, on Cenozoic eolian sands with iron, clay and altered tuffeau. The vines are around 35 years old, and farmed biodynamically. The maceration last less than 20 days. Aging is done in a mix of tank and large used barrels with less and less oak. This is the earliest drinking single-vineyard cuvée, always on the raspberry and wild violet with very supple tannins, but you can keep it up to 10 years without a problem. 2014 Loire reds are really great wines, despite a tricky vintage for the producers. Yet with the best the wines are delicious, in a classic ligérien style. It means the Peu Muleau from the Caslot in just a winner, a terrific value and such a great Bourgueil to enjoy now! The wine has a unique chalky minerality, subtle and earthy on the palate - the nose explodes with raspberry and cherry blossom, coriander seeds and Sichuan pepper. The ripe, salivating acidity is driving the palate, with supple tannins, and a lingering saltiness. It is ready to drink now, but cellared for 4-5 years you will gain some nice earthy secondary tones. Pair it with a beautiful pâté en croûte, duck rillette or a summer porcini risotto. 100% Cabernet Franc. PL/DL
