Pinhook Bourbon New Release Bohemian Bourbon High Proof First bourbon in half a century to be distilled, aged and bottled at the legendary Old Taylor Distillery (now Castle & Key) _____________________ $49.99 on sale Spirits Offers ONLY Valid for Pickup at the Restaurant Every year, Pinhook releases a new batch each of bourbon & rye; the whiskey in any given release intended to be the best expression of Pinhook’s barrels at that particular moment in time. Blends and proofs change batch to batch to best highlight that release’s unique attributes and can be thought of, quite appropriately, as a whiskey vintage. This limited release of 100 barrels is the inaugural expression of Pinhook Bourbon from its proprietary distillate, produced and aged more than 34 months at Castle & Key Distillery in Frankfort, KY. It was blended and proofed by Sean Josephs, Pinhook’s Co-Founder and Master Taster. Comprised of 75% Corn, 15% Malted Barley, and 10% Rye, this Kentucky Straight Bourbon expresses bright tangerine, preserved lemon, and brioche on the nose, leading to a lush palate of dried papaya, toffee, cocoa, and almonds. 57.25% ABV (Prices are per 750ml bottle. All orders subject to confirmation. Pick up at the restaurant only) Pinhooking is a term used to describe the practice of buying young, thoroughbred horses, overseeing their initial development, and then re-selling them as race-ready champions-in-training. The Pinhook brand pays tribute to this practice and the parallels between investing in a horse’s potential and that of a young whiskey. Optimism, patience, and vision are paramount when training a young horse for future victory and aging whiskey until its ready to blossom in-glass. We also have a limited number of bottles of Pinhook "Bourbon Empire" Straight Bourbon Whiskey - click here for details or to purchase. $199.99 per bottle. __________________________ __________________________
David Moreau Maranges 2015 Rated 89-91 Antonio Galloni "The 2015 Red Burgundies: You Are So Going To Want Them" Steven Tanzer, Vinous Media $29.99 on sale Pre-Sale Offer - Wine Arrives Next week Critic Steven Tanzer's great comment about the 2015 red Burgundies holds true even more so today, namely that "You are so going to want them," Problem is so many of these wines sold out long ago. Good news is we just got offered ten cases of this delicious 2015 Maranges at the same release price we paid as few years back, and are happy to pass this on to you! I first tasted this wine in the cellars of up and coming rock star winemaker David Moreau in the spring of 2016 and was bowled over by how good it was - especially at the price it was being offered! We bought in and offered it back in the fall of 2018 before quickly selling out. Now that it has spent another couple of years in the bottle it is drinking even better - a beautiful ripe and plush Maranges with its youthful edges smoothed out and showing the amazing character of the fantastic 2015 vintage. Tasting older vintages with David Moreau - back to 1969! My notes on tasting this delicious wine on that beautiful Burgundian spring morning are as follows: "Planted in 1943 and 1947 (!) Made from grapes grown in two blocks. One Village level, mainly sandstone, the other a declassified Premier Cru (Clos Roussots) mostly on limestone. More fruit here and overall quality and character (compared to the Bourgogne), lovely, pretty, and mouth filling, with crunchy red cherry fruit and moderate tannins that nicely frame it. Only about 20% whole cluster. Well worth the slight price difference between this and the Bourgogne Rouge - totally over delivers - buy this! " Chris Cree MW, Plucky Cellar Note 89-91 points, Vinous Media - "The 2015 Maranges is one of the more juicy, overt wines in the range. A dollop of whole clusters (around 20%) adds aromatic complexity and freshness to the creamy, layered fruit. Red cherry, stone fruit and floral notes all flesh out effortlessly. The Maranges is perhaps a bit less refined than some of the other wines in this range, but it is also flat-out delicious. The 2015 is a blend of two parcels, one of them Cheilly, a villages, and the second Clos Roussots, which is a declassified 1er Cru." David Moreau in his element When Steven Tanzer weighed in on the superb quality of the 2015 red Burgundy vintage his main comment was simply "You are so going to want them". This came as no surprise to me as several visits to Burgundy over the last couple of years, along with multiple tastings stateside, have confirmed its outstanding quality. Other than the weather vagaries of hail and frost that lowered yields - in some cases dramatically, it was overall a sunny, warm and dry year, with just enough rainfall in August to rejuvenate the vines and give them the energy they needed for the final push to harvest. The results are wines of ample ripeness, deep concentration, and plenty of richness and depth, and in most cases enough freshness and acidity to keep them balanced and bright. In years like this even the "little" wines over achieve, with simple village wines like this Maranges taking on depth and character well above their pedigree. Today's offer from up and coming star David Moreau is yet another 2015 Burgundy that offers incredible quality, drinks well above its pedigree, and as Lettie Teague put it in her Wall Street Journal article a couple years back "beats the Burgundy bubble" as far as price goes. While many of the 2015s are long gone, we still have a decent inventory - for a complete list of our 2015 Burgundies click here. Moreau's entire line-up in 2015 was captivating, and tasting with David in his ancient cellar on my trip in April of 2016 was one of the highlights of the trip. After spending some time with him and tasting through the wines, there is no doubt that this is a winemaker to keep an eye on. Talented and energetic, he spent his formative years learning under some of the region's greats including at Domaine Hubert Lamy, with Olivier Lamy and at none other than the famed Domaine de la Romaee Conti. When his Grandmother asked him if he’d like to come back and take over the estate as his grandfather was going to retire, the answer was an emphatic yes. Since then he has improved the winemaking and farming, moving to organic early on. The results are some of the prettiest and most expressive wines coming from the village of Santenay and its environs today. _____________________________ _____________________________ Domaine Ott Clos Mireille Côtes de Provence Rosé 2018 94 Points Wine & Spirits Magazine 93 Points International Wine Review 93 Points Decanter
Pre-Arrival Offer $38.99 On Sale Wine arrives late next week Always one of the most highly rated and sought after Rosé wines on the market, Domaine Ott has been crafting the finest expressions of Provence Rosé since it was founded in 1912 by Marcel Ott. Today we are offering their Clos Mireille Côtes de Provence Rosé 2018, a brilliant dry shimmering wine that captures the essence of its beautiful estate location on the Mediterranean. It is a blend of 70% Grenache, 14% Cinsault, 7% Syrah, and 9% Rolle grown in the Domaine's Clos Mireille vineyard. Purchased in 1935 by the Ott family, this site is influenced by its proximity to the sea, with the microclimate and sea spray creating a unique environment for the grapes. It is an ancient geology, composed of a combination of schists and clays, and by an absence of limestone. The wine is a pale salmon hue, with aromas of melon, peach and citrus. On the palate it is lively, crisp and focused, precise yet with lovely defined fruit and a faint hint of salinity that adds complexity and contrast, most likely a result of the site's proximity to the sea. It has amazing texture, and is dry, yet has beautiful fruit and a long finish. Limited availability, this is a pre-sale offer that will most likely sell out before it arrives in about a week, and should be in well before Memorial Day. At $38.99, it's about the same price you'd pay in a restaurant for a bottle of medicore no-name rosé! Stock up now, bring a little bit of the sunny south of France to your table, and celebrate the unofficial start to summer with a world class Provence Rosé! Chris Cree MW, PluckyWines.Com 94 Points Wine & Spirits Magazine - “Clos Mireille sits close to the sea, a patch of schist and clay in La Londe Les Maures. Planted to grenache, with some cinsault, rolle and syrah, and farmed organically, it produced a tight rosé in 2018, succulent and strong. It tastes vividly of sea spray, powered by Meyer lemon-like acidity, while herbal notes play at the edges, like an echo of the scrub that grows between the vines. For all its power, this is a quiet wine, a rosé that demands close attention over a leisurely fish dinner.” 93 Points International Wine Review - “Pale gold-tinted pink. Perfumed nose of flowers, minerals and melon. A first impression of delicacy is deceptive as the palate reveal an impressive density of citrus, red berries and blood orange zest that lingers forever on the finish. Predominantly Grenache blended with Cinsault and Syrah.” 93 Points Decanter - “This wine has an almost creamy-white colour with abundant creamy white peach fruit flavours supported by a firm, mineral structure with an almost saline austerity reflecting the vineyard’s proximity to the sea and the local schist soil. Despite coming from one of the hottest regions, it has long, fresh acidity.” The Domaine was founded in 1912 by Marcel Ott, an agricultural engineer from Alsace who escaped the cool north of France to establish a great wine estate near the sunny Mediterranean. Weather and winemaking dreams set aside, it was a pretty good time to head south as WWI loomed on the horizon and Alsace was arguably a worse place to be during the war than the south of France. Today there are three unique estates in the Bandol and Côtes de Provence appellations: Château Romassan, Clos Mireille and Château de Selle. The wineries are now owned and managed by Champagne Louis Roederer, however Christian Ott & Jean-François are co-directors, and are founder Marcel Ott’s great-grandchildren. The Clos Mireille which is on offer today was acquired by the Ott family in 1935. The estate’s picturesque seafront location is known for its mix of shale and clay soils; the schistous soil dates back some 340 million years. The microclimate and the sea spray provide highly favorable conditions for both the rosé and the white wines. _________________________ Château La Lagune Haut-Médoc 2010 3ème Cru Classé Pre Sale Offer 96 James Suckling 94 Robert Parker 94 Decanter Magazine $74.99 on sale Wine arrives Friday May 8th Looking for a ready to drink classic Claret from one of the best Bordeaux Vintages ever? Look no further than today's offer of Château La Lagune 2010, an exceptional, elegant Haut Médoc wine that is often closer in style to a Margaux, (which lies just to its north), than the rest of its Haut Médoc cousins. A classified Third Growth in 1855, it is the only Haut Médoc Third Growth and one of only six Haut Médoc Châteaux that rank Fifth Growth or higher. Owned by the Frey family since 1999, who also owns Paul Jaboulet in the Rhône and a part of Billecart Salmon, this property has benefitted under the care and passion the Frey family brings to all of their wine endeavours. The vineyard is planted to 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 10% Petit Verdot, and the wine roughly follows this proportion with modest changes from vintage to vintage. Soils are mainly gravel on the hillsides and higher elevations, with more sand lower down. Since 2004 they have been moving towards organic farming, attaining certification in 2016. The wine is aged for about 18 months in about 50% new oak. Recently arrived from Bordeaux, this wine has been stored in excellent conditions and is just entering its prime window for drinking. Less than a couple of dozen cases are available, arriving just in time for the weekend. Drink now and over the next decade and more - Cheers! Chris Cree MW, PluckyWines.Com 96 Points, James Suckling - "This shows an enchanting nose of roses, violets and other flowers. It's also fruity but very subtle. A full-body, super-structured red with an excellent backbone of ripe yet firm tannins. Goes on for minutes. Don’t touch for five or six years. Try in 2019." 94 Points, Jane Anson, Decanter Magazine - "This is showcasing La Lagune at the level of the best 3rd growths, with plenty in common with the aromatic complexity of Margaux that lies just over the border from Haut-Médoc. Deeply textured brambly fruits, beautifully balanced with tons of menthol crushed mint leaf notes and fine tannins. This is aromatic elegance and juiciness, but with grip and character. A yield of 30hl/ha.50% new oak. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042" 94 Points, Robert Parker - "Another great success from proprietress Caroline Frey, the 2010 La Lagune provides an essential drinking experience, with notes of Asian plum sauce, mulberries, kirsch liqueur and black currants. The wine also exhibits a savory, rich smokiness and subtle lead pencil shaving notes. Full-bodied and pure, combining both elegance and power, this is a brilliant, very approachable effort that should hit its stride in 5-7 years and last for at least two decades. Think of it as a hypothetical blend of the 2005 and 2009. Kudos!" ______________________ ______________________ Carl Roy East Side Cuvée Stags Leap District 2018 Incredible Value from one of Napa's Top AVAs $24.99 on sale Wine Arrives Wednesday May 6th "Dark and solid, with deep plum and cassis notes, perfectly balanced by a hint of oak and supported by ample but plush tannins that form the framework of this incredible value-priced wine from Carl Roy. Made from Cabernet Franc grapes sourced from a well-known winery in the iconic Stag's leap District (which shall remain anonymous), it captures the essence, style and quality that made this region famous. The core of this wine (and the secret to it's bargain price) is that it's made up of beautifully balanced, ripe and rich Cabernet Franc grown in superb volcanic/gravel/loam soils with an east-west exposition, complimented by a shot of deep, dark, succulent Petit Verdot from a southwest facing site. Bunches were destemmed and fermented in steel tanks with 3 daily pumpovers before spending 20 months in combination of French and Hungarian oak, about 20% new." These days looking for value in Napa Cabernet Sauvignon is somewhat akin to looking for a needle in a haystack. The cost of vineyard land and grapes has skyrocketed, and the demand for Napa fruit is strong. Value priced wines from the Stag's Leap District is an even more impossible task. Its reputation for producing some of the most iconic wines in the Valley, its relatively small surface area (only 800 acres out of 9,800 for all of Napa), and tiny number of wineries only amplifying the upward trend in prices. The region's history also plays a role in its high priced reputation, with the first grapes planted here in the mid 1800's when the Silverado trail was a quiet horse path. Cabernet Sauvignon arrived in the 1960s, planted here by Nathan Fay (think Heitz Fay Vineyard, another iconic wine). But it was the Paris Competition of 1976, the "shot heard 'round the world", that jump-started the AVAs reputation when a 1973 Stag's Leap Cabernet Sauvignon beat out the very best Classified First Growths of Bordeaux in a stunning upset. The wines that put the region on the map from historic wineries such as Shafer (Hillside Select), Stag's Leap (Cask 23), and relative newcomers Cliff Lede (Poetry) and Odette (Estate Reserve Cabernet) will set you back hundreds of dollars. But what unites them all is the region's special terroir and location of the southeastern side of the valley on either side of the Silverado Trail, just under the rocky outcroppings that give it its name. It was the first appellation to earn its AVA based on the unique terroir characteristics of its soils, mainly composed of loam and clay sediments from the Napa River and volcanic soil deposits left over from erosion of the Vaca Mountains. These poor volcanic soils are very well drained, stressing the vines and creating deeply flavored, low yields of highly concentrated grapes with a perfect combination of power and focus, yet maintaining a plushness and roundness as well. The term "iron fist in a silk glove" has been used to describe the style of Stag's Leap Cabernet Sauvignon, and that truly is the standard for wines from this region. Enter into that equation this stunning Cabernet Franc on offer today, made from a grape known for its role as a blending partner in Bordeaux, and for being the sole varietal in many of the red wines of the Loire Valley. It can range widely in style, in cooler climes it can be brighter, crisper and fresh, almost Pinot Noir like, in warmer terroirs or vintages it can be deep, dark and concentrated, more akin to Cabernet Sauvignon. In the best sites such as Clos Rougeard in Saumur-Champigny or in top tier Grand Cru Classé Saint Emilion such as Cheval Blanc or Château Ausone, where it is a substantial part of the blend, it makes some of the most expensive and sought after wines in the world. In Italy it plays a role in Giuseppe Quintarelli's amazing Alzero, a wine that sells for over $300 per bottle. In California it seems to be attracting more attention, with winemakers like Andy Erikson incorporating it into the Dalla Valle Maya red blend which sells for $300 and more, as well as it being a big component of his Favia Cerro Sur and Magdelena wines, both of which will cost your over $150 per bottle. While this wine isn't Maya, today's offer from Carl Roy is that needle in the haystack, an incredibly well-crafted wine from top vineyards in one of the top AVAs in Napa - all at a ridiculously low price! Wine arrives Wednesday - it has just been released so there is reasonably good supply for the time being. Cheers! Chris Cree MW, PluckyWines.Com. _____________________________ Bruno Dangin Crémant de Bourgogne "Blanche" 90 Points - Jamie Goode Hands Down Our Best Value in Sparkling Wine Perfect for Mother's Day! Plus Billecart Salmon Brut Rosé On Sale $24.99 per bottle on sale $13.99 half bottle on sale Lowest online price in the country* Aside from the usual New Year's resolutions that are typically forgotten before Super Bowl Weekend, there is one I have kept to this year: Drink more Champagne! The only issue here is the price, as a decent Champers will set you back starting somewhere in the $40's at least. So when our importer gave us the inside track that he was able to secure a little more of Domaine Dangin's deliciously affordable Crémant de Bourgogne, we grabbed all we could. We'd been trying to get our hands on this value priced Champagne look-alike for several years, but the minuscule amount that was imported each year was essentially the by-the-glass exclusive of a multi-starred Michelin restaurant in NYC - sadly that's not happening now. Today we are offering both 750ml bottles (good supply) and half bottles (limited supply) at the lowest prices anywhere, at just around half the price of a good Champagne! So just why is this little sparkler so good? First, the winery and vineyards are located in the Department of the Côte d'Or, just a couple of miles south of the Aube region of Champagne where the cool climate lends itself to making world class bubbly. The grapes are planted in Argilo-Calcaire from the Jurassique Supérieur era, lending a fine minerality and Champagne like crispness and racy focus to the wines, with beautiful apple tinged fresh fruit and a hint of brioche giving it an unmistakable Champagne character. Second, Bruno spares absolutely nothing in terms of doing it right. Farming is organic - ECOCERT Bio certified - and all done by hand, the vines are an average of 30 years old, and it is made from 100% Pinot Noir.
Third, the winemaking process exceeds even the minimum aging required in Champagne, and goes far beyond what is required by law for Crémant de Bourgogne, with the wines spending 30 months on the lees gaining finesse, elegance and a fine mousse typically only experienced on wines costing 2-3 times more. The bottom line here is this is a beautiful bubbly that will keep true Champagne lovers smiling without breaking the bank, and I can keep my New Year's resolution by enjoying this delicious Champagne ringer at an incredible bargain price! And with the option to buy half bottles for under $15, the diet may stand half a chance as well! *Wine Searcher May 3rd, 2020 _________________________ Billecart Salmon Brut Rosé Half Bottles Very Limited Offer Just 36 Half Bottles Bottles! $39.99 per 375ml bottle 750ml Bottles also available and in good supply! $69.99, click here to order! ______________________________ Billecart Salmon Brut Rosé is one of our favorite Rosés year in and year out, and half bottles are just enough for a pre-dinner aperitif for two. Makes a great gift for Mom (if yhour nice she might even share!), and they're the perfect way to kick off your Mother's Day Festivities. Only problem is there are just 36 bottles available, arriving Wednesday, and rumor has it Billecart hasn't even bottled the next release so we are looking at fall at least before half bottles are back in play. Don't delay, these will go fast! First come, first served. The 750's are in good supply and also arrive Wednesday - Cheers! Chris Cree Mw, PluckyWines.Com Rated 92 Points, Vinous Media - (45% Chardonnay, 30% Pinot Noir and 25% Pinot Meunier; 8 g/l dosage; L206454 17741): Pale orange. High-pitched red berry, orange zest and jasmine aromas, with suave mineral and smoky lees notes adding complexity. Spicy and precise on the palate, showing very good punch to its strawberry and bitter cherry flavors. Opens up smoothly with air and picks up a bitter rhubarb quality that lingers onto the long, tightly focused finish. This bottling showed more brawny character than many past renditions of this cuvée, but with no lack of vivacity. ________________ Olga Raffault Chinon Rosé 2019 Arrives Wednesday! GREAT MOTHER'S DAY GIFT! Give a Dozen Rosés! Click for all of our Rosés in stock $16.99 on sale Today it seems like spring has finally arrived and what better way to celebrate than with an offer on one of my personal favorite rosé wines every year! We sent this out in February and many of you purchased then, wise to the fact that this wine has always sold out before it even leaves France. But this year, with things such as they are, we were able to get an additional allocation! If you have had it in the past you know how deliciously refreshing this wine is - restock while it's here! If you haven't had it you owe to yourself to try this incredible Rosé, always one of the tops of the year. But rather than selling in the high $20s and $30s like its competitors at the top of the rosé game, it comes in at an amazing $16.99. Wine arrives Wednesday - Happy Spring! This is 100% Cabernet Franc, a direct-press rosé from Raffault's estate vines grown in sandy, gravelly soils along the Vienne River, a tributary of the Loire. Fermented with native yeasts and aged in stainless steel with no Malolactic fermentation, it stays light, focused and crisp yet with lovely persistence. Pale salmon hue, snappy, fresh, and clean with beautiful acidity and bright red fruits, yet it's nimble and fine on the palate....like springtime in a bottle!
About the Domaine "Domaine Olga Raffault is unquestionably one of the long-time reference points for top-quality, traditional Chinon wines. Its history is intriguing. Olga and her husband Pierre operated the estate together until he died unexpectedly just before harvest in 1947. Alone with two small children, Olga was left to run the business but was ably assisted for the vintage by employee Ernest Zenninger, a German prisoner who had found refuge and work at Raffault at the end of the war. Ernest stayed on, becoming the winemaker and working closely with Olga’s son Jean Raffault. The two of them ran the estate as a team for decades, under Olga’s watchful eye, until Jean’s daughter Sylvie and her husband Eric de la Vigerie took over about 10 years ago. Raffault is in the Véron, a wedge-shaped strip of land where the Vienne River intersects with the much larger Loire. Véron is temperate, humid and low-lying, with some small hills, and two main types of soil, one gravel-based and the other clay-limestone-based. Raffault farms parcels totaling 24 hectares of vines--23 planted to Cabernet Franc and 1 to Chenin Blanc—with vines averaging about 30 years. Their flagship Cabernet Franc comes from the renowned lieu-dit Les Picasses, on a south-facing, limestone-rich slope on the highest hill in the area; this is the most structured, powerful and age-worthy of their reds. Added to the line-up later in the estate’s life were Les Peuilles, a nearby plateau with southern exposure and clay-silica soils, and Les Barnabés, on a plain of sandy gravel soils near the Loire. The scarce bit of Chenin comes from 50-year-old vines planted in the heavy clay-limestone soils of the monopole called Champs Chenin. The farming is certified organic and harvest is manual. This minimalist approach in the vineyard extends to the cellar. The fruit is destemmed, with the whole berries going uncrushed into tank for fermentation with native yeasts. Les Picasses is aged the longest before release: a minimum of four years, mainly in old foudres, some of chestnut as well oak. This wine lives for decades, and the family has always maintained a deep library of back vintages, released periodically in minute quantities. The less brawny, younger-drinking Les Peuilles spends only 6-12 months in wood, and the earliest-release Les Barnabés sees no wood at all. Through the generations, the winemaking has remained traditional, allowing the superiority and expression of Raffault’s sites to shine through." David Bowler Wines _________________________ Click below to see our recent email offers! *Some offers may be sold out |