Author: Thomas Wilcox

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5-Year-Old Red Burgundy from Michel Gros. $29

Vigneron over Terroir.  In Burgundy as in real estate, it’s said that location is everything. But while it may be the most important thing to know about a wine, it’s not the only thing: sometimes the winemaker can be just as important. We’ve had disappointing wines from some of the finest Grand Cru vineyards in the world.

But the corollary is also true, and often a highly skilled producer can create brilliant wines from lesser terroirs. A case in point is the Hautes-Côtes de Nuits rouge from Michel Gros. Gros is a world class winemaker who brings his remarkable talent to every vineyard he works, and his Hautes-Côtes wines are every bit as well made as his fanciest Vosne-Romanée.

We served the 2012 at a family party over the weekend, and it was more popular than the Châteauneuf-du-Pape open alongside. Even amid a field of richer wines, varied foods, and no small number of cocktails, the Gros charmed our guests late into the night.

 

“Among the Best…”  We can’t claim to be the only ones to recognize how good this wine is. Critic Allen Meadows (Burghound) was effusive about this 2012 Hautes-Côtes de Nuits rouge, including it in his regional list of the best values of the vintage. Citing a “beautifully well-layered nose of plum, cassis, and violets,” Meadows went on to call it “among the best that I have seen from him.”

Burghound penned that note two years ago, and we’re pleased to report that today it’s drinking better than ever. On Saturday the wine showed juicy wild cherry fruit, a pleasant cool earthiness, and a textured, delicious mouthfeel. It’s a great Burgundy to have around when you’re not feeling the need for Chambolle-Musigny, and it comes in at less than half the price.

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GROS Hautes-Côtes de Nuits rouge 2012
Ansonia Retail: $35
6+ bottle price : $29/bot

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AVAILABLE IN    6-   AND  12-   BOTTLE LOTS

 

 

Email Tom to place an order.
or call Tom: (617) 249-3657

 

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.

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Small-Batch Grower Champagne: Quietly Extraordinary

Glam.  Champagne is unlike any other region in France. For a century winemakers have built their product into a worldwide brand associated with celebration, wealth, and opulence. The glitz and glamour of Champagne is in stark contrast to regions like Burgundy, where winemakers often arrive for our tastings with mud on their boots and dirt on their hands.

All of which makes our Grower Champagne producer Pascal Bardoux seem out of place. On Wednesday Bardoux welcomed us into his cozy, dimly lit office, with shelves of old books and a dusty stone fireplace. None of the bottles we tasted had labels, just hand scrawled vintage numbers. But for the bubbles in the glass, it could have been a quaint country farmhouse in Burgundy.

Class.  Though Pascal’s personality may be out of place in Champagne, his wines are classic and delicious. They’re truly wines first and sparkling second, with as much complexity and elegance as the finest wines of Bordeaux and Burgundy. Pascal is as thoughtful about describing his wines as his about making them, and our visits average more than half an hour per wine.

Today we’re offering Bardoux’s Champagne Rosé – it’s as delicate and delicious as his other wines, with just a hint more fruit. The nose shows strawberries, crème brûlée, and apple pie; the mouth is crisp and dry but full of springy fruit. As you might guess, it’s a lovely glass to look at; but its pretty and carefree appearance belies a depth and complexity you’d expect to find in serious wine.

We can’t think of a better way to welcome your guests to a spring/summer dinner party this year – it’ll set a tone of both refinement and ease.

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BARDOUX Champagne Rosé NV
Ansonia Retail: $54
3+ bottle price : $45/bot

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AVAILABLE IN    3-    6-   AND  12-   BOTTLE LOTS

 

 

Email Tom to place an order.
or call Tom: (617) 249-3657

 

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.

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Mixed Case: Natural Wine Sampler

“Natural wine” is a popular buzzword these days, one with varied definitions and no lack of controversy. Whatever you take it to mean — biodynamic, no sulfites, organic, unfiltered — the goal is the same: to create wine with little intervention between grape and glass.

At their best, natural wines show vivacity and energy often lacking in conventional styles. These wines leap from the glass, full of exuberance and life, trading polish for gusto, neatness for verve. Here’s a mixed case — two whites and two reds — from four winemakers working in some interpretation of a natural style.

SAINT CLAIR Crozes-Hermitage 2015
This lively pure Syrah wine is the creation of Denis Basset, a passionate young winemaker in the Northern Rhône Valley. Look for notes of black pepper, cloves, blackberries, and violets.

FOULAQUIER Petit Duc 2014
Petit Duc is Foulaquier’s pure Grenache, grown and produced biodynamically in the Languedoc. Look for notes of wild cherries, rose petals, and garrigue with a silky, very fine mouthfeel.

MERSIOL Auxerrois 2014
Grown in a charming hill town in Alsace, the Mersiol brothers farm their Auxerrois (a variation on Pinot Blanc) organically. Look for a soft, smooth mouthfeel with notes of spring flowers and lime.

MAILLET Pouilly-Fuissé 2014
This pure chardonnay shows the, rich, opulent side of the grape. Nicolas Maillet credits organic viticulture with this wine’s cool freshness, balancing notes of golden honey and straw.

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NATURAL WINE SAMPLER

3x   Saint Clair Crozes-Hermitage 2015:   $26
3x   Foulaquier Petit Duc 2014:   $34
3x   Mersiol Auxerrois 2015:   $18
3x   Maillet Pouilly-Fuissé 2014:   $40


Ansonia Retail: $360
offer price: $295/case

free East Coast shipping    |    save $65

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Email Tom to place an order.

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.

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The Pinnacle of Pinot Noir: Exquisite New Vosne-Romanée

Terroir.  People sometimes ask why we’re so drawn to Burgundy. Partly it’s nostalgia — we lived here for a year two decades ago, and have a fondness for the place and its people. But our goal at Ansonia is to find wines that reflect their origin, and no region does this better than Burgundy.

Burgundian winemakers use only two grapes — one white and one red — to find expressions of a singular plot of land. And because a wine is only as good as the earth from which it’s made, the finest Burgundies in any cellar are often from the hallowed town of Vosne-Romanée.

Centuries ago, a monk wrote that “there are no ordinary wines in Vosne;” this continues to be true. There’s a unique floral character to the best wines from Vosne, a blend of silky finesse with pure intensity. It is the pinnacle of Pinot elegance.

History.  Our winemaker in Vosne-Romanée is Michel Gros, a vigneron who has lived his entire life in the town. Michel’s family has made wine there for nearly 200 years, and for a long time his mother was the mayor. Today Michel’s domaine is world famous as a top source for red Burgundy, and the wines from Vosne are at the heart of his lineup.

We had lunch with Michel Gros and his family yesterday, and while in person he’s modest and shy, his wines are not. They are among the most consistently excellent red Burgundies in our cellar, year in and year out, and his 2014s represent another year of excellence.

The 2014 Vosne-Romanée is beautifully expressive in the nose, with violets and dried roses, redcurrants and a bit of spice. The mouth is young and lively, with silky ripe tannins in perfect balance with the dark pinot noir fruit. Drink one of these next weekend (decant up to an hour), one in a year, and one in five years — you’ll enjoy them all, but by the third we’re pretty sure you’ll wish you had more.

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MICHEL GROS Vosne-Romanée 2014
Ansonia Retail: $74
3+ bottle price : $65/bot

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AVAILABLE IN    3-    6-   AND  12-   BOTTLE LOTS

 

 

Email Tom to place an order.
or call Tom: (617) 249-3657

 

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.

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Advance Order: Grand Cru White Burgundy, 35% off

Weather. We spent yesterday morning in Chablis, where winemakers were just finishing a difficult week. After eight consecutive nights fighting damaging frosts, the Chablisiens were sleepy but tentatively optimistic that the worst was behind them.

It has been a tricky few years in Chablis. 2015’s challenge was the opposite of 2017 — plentiful sun and dry conditions produced grapes so ripe that some lacked acidity. But while some 2015 whites we’ve tasted have been flat or overripe, those from the best winemakers remain in balance.

Young winemaker Romain Collet has been at the helm of his family’s domaine for five or six years now, and he continues to hone his considerable winemaking talent. The Chablis from Collet seems to get better each year, and indeed the 2015s are some of his best. Most will appear in our July 2017 Futures Issue, but we’re advancing one wine in short supply to the May Futures (out next week).

Exceptional.  Grand Cru is the highest rung of Burgundy, reserved for the top 1.3% of wines from the region. Grand Cru white Burgundy readily soars past $100 a bottle, and the best-known can cost several times that. But Chablis remains a source of value in white Burgundy, even at the highest level.

Though wines like this usually need several years to reach their peak, the 2015 Chablis Grand Cru Valmur is delicious already. It’s an exceptionally powerful wine. The nose shows gardenia, pear, and baked lemon flavors, with a bright chalky stoniness that enhances the fruit. The mouth is packed with flavor — it’s rich and very long, with notes of mango and green tea, but vibrant and lively in texture.

In short, after tasting this wine yesterday, we can’t imagine the first half of the summer without it. If there is grilled fish, fruits de mer, sushi, or roast chicken in your future, we can’t recommend this enough. This isn’t a weeknight bottle, but after all that’s what the weekend is for.

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COLLET Chablis Grand Cru “Valmur” 2015
Ansonia Retail: $780/case
Futures Price : $495/case   ($41.25/bot)

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AVAILABLE BY THE CASE AND HALF CASE

 

NOTE: This is an advance order, part of our upcoming May Futures Issue — we expect it to arrive in mid-late June.

 

 

Email Tom to place an order.
or call Tom: (617) 249-3657

 

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.

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White Burgundy’s Best Kept Secret.

la Chance.  This week in France has been a reminder of the precarious livelihoods of winemakers. Overnight frosts devastated vineyards in several regions in France this week, and the vignerons aren’t out of the woods yet. As we drove through the Côte d’Or yesterday, winemakers were readying bales of hay in the vineyards, in preparation for the overnight bonfires to protect against the cold.

Weeks like this one make us appreciate the good years. The 2015 vintage provided both quantity and quality, and nearly every wine drinks better than its label — simple table wines drink like village-level Burgundies, and village wines resemble premier crus.

We’ve long found St-Aubin to be a source for exceptional value in white Burgundy. Indeed Jancis Robinson recently wrote that though long passed over in favor of its more famous neighbors Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny Montrachet, St-Aubin “should now be regarded as virtually their equal.” This statement particularly rings true in a year like 2015.

Value.  Though most wines in St-Aubin punch above their weight, we know of few more impressive than the 1er cru St. Aubin from Gérard Thomas. This wine comes from “Murgers des Dents de Chien,” a plot of vines high on a ridge from which one can see north and south along the golden slope.

The 2015 “Murgers” is refined and elegant. The fruits are ripe and rich, with mouthfilling intensity and subtle use of oak. The nose shows lemons and toast, with almonds and wild honey in the mouth. Whatever the occasion, when white Burgundy is called for, this is a delicious and affordable example.

The Burgundians are sanguine about the frost — having seen it all before, most winemakers shrug their shoulders, smile, and shake their head. “Qu’est-ce qu’on peut faire?” they ask, “what can you do?” The best thing we can think to do is to celebrate the fruits of one of Mother Nature’s friendlier moments.

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THOMAS St-Aubin 1er cru “Murgers” 2015
Ansonia Retail: $40
6+ bottle price : $34/bot

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AVAILABLE IN    6-   AND  12-   BOTTLE LOTS

 

 

Email Tom to place an order.
or call Tom: (617) 249-3657

 

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.

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2015 Old-Vine Crozes-Hermitage: “a Model of Balance and Finesse.”

This morning we visited our Northern Rhône producers, tasting wines from Crozes-Hermitage, Saint-Joseph, and Côte Rôtie. Winemakers here are basking in the glow of the 2015 vintage, said to be the best in 55 years. We don’t have quite that long a memory, but from this morning’s tastings we can confirm that this is an extraordinary vintage.

The finest Northern Rhône Syrahs are a study in finesse and subtlety. Their brilliance comes from their marriage of a dark, rich southern grape varietal with cooler northern climate. In 2015 in particular, the wines show an exquisite balance between an inky meatiness and a brisk fruitiness.

We’ve yet to have a bad 2015 Northern Rhône Syrah, but despite a crowded field, Denis Basset’s old-vine Crozes-Hermitage “Fleur Enchanté” is a favorite. The Guide Hachette calls Basset’s wines “a model of balance and finesse;” we call them dense, complex, and delicious.

etiquette_fleur

The 2015 Fleur Enchantée shows dark blackberry and cassis fruit in the nose, with violet and cloves alongside. The mouth is startlingly dense and fine, with a balanced mouthfeel and an extremely long finish that shows peppercorn, plum, and wild cherry jam. From nearly 50 year old syrah vines and aged carefully for a year and a half before bottling, this is an extraordinarily dense and mouthfilling Syrah.

It’d be an impressive wine at $40/bot, and no one would be disappointed. At $25, it has to be among the best buys in our lineup. If you’re a fan of Northern Rhône syrahs, you already know to expect great things from this wine. If you’re new to the region, 2015 is a great place to start — there might not be another chance like this for half a century.

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SAINT CLAIR Crozes-Hermitage “Fleur Enchanté” 2015
Ansonia Retail: $30
6+ bottle price : $25/bot

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AVAILABLE IN    6-   AND  12-   BOTTLE LOTS

 

 

Email Tom to place an order.
or call Tom: (617) 249-3657

 

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Terms of sale. Ansonia Wines MA sells wine to individual consumers who are 21 or more years of age, for personal consumption and not for resale.  All sales are completed and title passes to purchasers in Massachusetts.  Ansonia Wines MA arranges for shipping on behalf of its customers upon request and where applicable laws permit.