Articles

5/21/20 - I remember when I first started developing a true appreciation of wine, and it coincides with the general time frame here at Chambers Street when our good friend and manager extraordinaire (back what... 10 years ago?), Sophie Barrett, was introducing our readers to the distinct and little-known wines of the Jura - a hilly, sleepy region in Eastern France.All the wines from...

5/18/20 - Roberto Santana, Alfonso Torrente, Laura Ramos, and José Martínez are the winemakers behind Envínate, one of the most exciting winemaking projects in Spain. The four friends, who met in oenology school, are making wine throughout Spain with a focus on regions influenced by Atlantic climates: in Ribeira Sacra, and Tenerife in the Canary Islands, but also a small project in Almansa, west...

5/10/20 - It's quite strange (and somewhat funny) to see the term "natural wine" becoming such a strong marketing slogan, even for products that are not related to wine at all. The appropriation of the term has far exceeded the tenets it once proposed, and has almost become a term for hipness, the new cool, and what looks good on Instagram or other social...

5/5/20 - (NOTE: Chambers Street Wines is extremely proud to present the third in a series of articles by our good friend and neighbor at Racines NY, Pascaline Lepeltier. In 2014, Pascaline passed the Master Sommelier Diploma, and in 2018, she won 2 more major titles in her homeland: she is now a laureate of “Un des Meilleurs Ouvriers de France - Sommellerie” and...

4/25/20 - (First published in View from the Cellar, April 29, 2020; apologies that John's excellent photos are missing from this version!) Learning From the Past Thirty Years Of Evolving Wine Serving Philosophy               While I have been drinking wine now for a bit longer than thirty-five years, it is only over the last three decades or so that I have really paid...

4/21/20 - We are in the midst of something entirely unprecedented. The view from New York right now is grim as we watch our friends and familys suffer not just from this inexplicable virus, but also widespread unemployment. The hospitality industry is an enormous part of the NYC economy and way of life, and the vast majority of bars and restaurants have had to...

4/15/20 - These wines need very little introduction: Lopez de Heredia has rightfully been recognized as one of the great producers of traditional Rioja. The wines on offer today come directly from the winery, where they've been aging until full maturity.  The wines on offer today come from three vineyards: The Viña Tondonia, a more than 100 hectare assemblage of vineyards acquired by the estate in...

3/28/20 - This is my love letter to Gamay; a grape that is so much more than just Beaujolais Nouveau (not that these can't be downright delightful!). When I began my quest for wine knowledge, one of the first wines I discovered to be punching far above its weight class was Cru Beaujolais. We all know how ethereal, earth-driven, and downright elusive Burgundy can...

3/20/20 - Alberto Nanclares was once an economist. It is our great luck that he decided to move from the Basque country to the Val do Salnes with his wife, and that, once there, he embarked on a viticultural journey. Beginning with a tiny number of conventionally farmed vines, he now organically farms two-and-a-half hectares of Albariño in the form of isolated plots around...

3/15/20 - It has become clear that the most effective way to combat the spread of coronavirus during this critical early period is to practice effective social distancing. With that goal in mind, and to better protect our customers and staff, CSW will close its doors to the public beginning today, Sunday, March 15th. The store will remain open for business, for delivery orders...

3/11/20 - I visited Oriol Artigas on August 31st, 2019, a hot and humid day in the middle of the harvest. The day before, the 30th, had been truly brutal: temperatures were around 32 degrees celsius in Alella, but the next day was set to be cooler, and picking would continue (in fact, he and his team went on to pick the La Bella...

3/7/20 - As our friend John Livingstone-Learmonth says in Drink Rhone about the somewhat difficult conditions in this vintage: "The top domaines have still turned out wines of abiding interest, structure and longevity, so 2017 will, in places, be a noble, impressive vintage."  This small offering includes some our favorite estates which turned out excellent wines in 2017. In Cornas, for example, nothing may...

3/6/20 - Goyo Garcia Viadero's wines were a revelation for me: deeply true to the soils, climate and tradition of Ribera del Duero, but elevated, complex and drinkable. Natural wines, for sure, farmed organically and vinified without additives but simultaneously approachable and classic in character. In particular, the single vineyard Peruco stands out as one of my favorite wines that I tasted this year,...

3/3/20 - As much as essense of Burgundy is terroir expression (location, location, location!), a countering and not nearly as prevalent narrative is grower over vintage (and sometimes vineyard). With a grape as sensitive to site and farming decisions as Pinot Noir, this is especially salient. And as articulately as the soil speaks through what's in the glass, the vigneron is the steward who...

2/25/20 - Under the leadership of established winegrower Alain Moueix (who is also in charge of Château Fonroque), Château Mazeyres has been practicing biodynamic since 2012, certified in 2018. The estate’s website explains their three different vineyard plots, consisting of varying degrees of clay, with some soils also including sand and gravel. The vineyards are mostly planted to Merlot, with the balance being Cabernet...