Get 10% off the purchase price with every order of 12 bottles or more of still wine not already on sale. The savings add up!
Candela Prol, highly experienced certified wine educator and friend of the shop, is available for tastings and training for private and corporate events. For rates and other inquiries, please contact her at candelaprol@gmail.com .
*Offsite events are contracted to and coordinated by a 3rd party, and are in no way affiliated with Chambers Street Wines.
We have to admit that we were surprised by the runaway success of the Hofgut Falkenstein 2011 Spätburgunder when we offered it in January. It's a light-as-a-feather red that breaks any and all preconceived notions of what German Pinot Noir can be; it makes for absolutely perfect summer drinking but somehow 10 cases flew out of the shop in a single weekend in the dead of winter! Things may even have gotten a bit ugly around here as staff members jealously fought over who got to buy the last few remaining bottles. When we found out that the estate had more to offer, we jumped at the chance and placed a big order. We're happy to say that it has landed and is ready to go! We asked the estate's proprietors, the genial Erich and Johannes Weber, to fill out the order with a healthy chunk of their razor-sharp 2012 Krettnacher Altenberg Spätlese Trocken, and now we (and hopefully you) plan to load up on this dry, bright, summer-quaffing Riesling.
Since we loved Weber's Spätburgunder so much we thought we'd sample some others and offer the most exciting, best values we could find. No surprises here, but they happen to be made by two masters of light, expressive Mosel Riesling, Stefan Steinmetz and Ulli Stein! Join us in saying no to new oak and yes to Mosel Spätburgunder! -jfr
P.S. Join us tomorrow, Saturday the 20th, from 4-7pm as we'll be opening these two wines from Falkenstein as well as everything we have in stock from the Nahe's rising star, Von Racknitz!
Falkenstein, Hofgut 2011 Saar Nieder. Herrenberg Spätburgunder Spät. Trock
Second Bottling! The following tasting note from the first bottling still rings true, but the longer time in old Mosel fuder has increased the wine's depth: There's quite a bit of bright cherry fruit here, but the wine is lean and the fruit is brilliantly cut through by the searing blade of Saar acid. This is a wild wine that couldn't be made anywhere is else in the world. It reflects its terroir, it's fresh, bright and eminently drinkable. This has already become an in-house staff favorite and really ought to be experienced. Calling all Gamay fans.....-jfr
Falkenstein, Hofgut 2012 Saar Krettnacher Altenberg Ries Spät Trocken
This is Weber's most-polarizing wine, and the one (outside of the Pinot) that inspires the most devoted frenzy among his fans. Old-school, very dry, very steely, very bracing. This vintage is just a bit more full and generous than the 2010, and it's a bit like yellow peaches that have marinated in lemon, lime and salt. Then the finish is terrific; slate, slate, slate. It's drenched in minerals and so much fun. -jfr
Stein, Ulli 2011 Mosel Spätburgunder
Stein's Pinot Noir comes from steep slate sites largely in the village of St. Aldegund. The wine is the earthiest of the three Pinots on offer (Stein, Steinmetz and Falkenstein), and the most structured. It's not quite as bright and quaffable as the others but it's still fresh, with plenty of dark-toned minerality. Slate and Pinot are a fascinating combination, and we're lucky to be able to compare all three bottlings from each site. Pinot did quite well in the relatively ripe vintage of 2011, one in which the Rieslings could often lack some definition, but this red, in particular, is singing. -jfr
Steinmetz, Günther 2010 Mulheimer Sonnenlay Pinot Noir
Stefan Steinmetz makes this in used Burgundy barrels, some of which make their way to him through our buddies in Baden, Enderle and Moll. The nose is a mixture of dark fruit, mocha and some surprisingly bright herbs and spices. Since this is from Germany's crazy high-acid 2010 vintage, there's plenty of cut to balance the dark fruit and the finish is fresh and invigorating. A bit more muscular than Falkenstein's Pinot, and more Burgundian in nature; but try to find a single-site Burgundy at this price that tastes this good! -jfr