The September Notebook
Our latest in a series of monthly publications featuring recipes, stories, wines back on sale, customer recommendations, discounted mixed cases, and more.
Sangiovese: Dark Chocolate and Roasted Cherries.
There’s hardly a food with a greater distance between in-season and off-season quality than the tomato. We’ve enjoyed a tomato-filled summer — in salads, dressed simply with olive oil, or cooked down into sauce for fresh pasta or homemade pizza. When they’re sweet and crisp and soft, there’s nothing better.
Futures: the September Issue
The September Futures Issue features seven produces from three regions. Five of the winemakers in this issue are from Burgundy, where we visit sources in Meursault, Morey-St-Denis, Gevrey-Chambertin, and Chablis. Other wines inlcluded come from Chinon and Châteauneuf-du-Pape.
$20 White Burgundy: a Safe Investment
After watching a rough day on Wall Street, we’re in the mood for something safe. While sure bets are as rare in the wine world as they are in the equity markets, this wine is about as close as it gets. (We’re thankful Burgundy isn’t listed on the commodity exchanges.)
Rosé Sale this Saturday: Newton Depot
Mix and Match on All Rosés. 15% off any 6, 25% off 12 or more bottles
Value in Saint-Emilion: 2010 Chateau Montlisse
Prices in Bordeaux have never been higher, fed by increasing global demand, particularly from China. We’re always looking for value in Bordeaux, and we often find it in second wines of famous vineyards, or secondary properties from famous winemakers. These wines command much more reasonable prices, but are still the products of masterful winemakers and excellent terroir.
A Delicious Experiment in the Rhône. $25
There’s a sense of ancient history in the south of France. Roman-era towns and crumbling ruins dot the countryside — even the modern highways follow the ancient “Via Agrippa” of the Romans. Winemaking here is just as old, and archeologists have found presses dating back to 400 BC.
Violets and Cinnamon: Grand Cru Burgundy
Of the four vineyard levels in Burgundy, “Grand Cru” is the highest. Reserved for the top 1.3% of vineyards, the classification represents the finest Burgundy has to offer. The town of Gevrey-Chambertin is known for deep and powerful wines, owing their richness to the high level of clay in the soil. The Grand Crus of Chambertin are some of the darkest and longest lived wines in Burgundy.
Pure, Unoaked Chardonnay: Chablis 1er Cru
Chablis is a singular place. Its combination of deep stony soils and cool climate exists nowhere else on earth. These factors produce a similarly singular wine — mineral and crisp, pure and clean. Our goal as importers is to find wines that reflect the place from which they come, and there is no better place to find them than Chablis.
New Cabernet Sauvignon. $15.95
Cabernet Sauvignon is the world’s most widely planted grape. It’s grown everywhere — from Bordeaux to Brazil to British Columbia — and comes in a wide variety of textures and expressions. Cabernet Sauvignon is a cross, likely spontaneous, between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon blanc — a gift from the winemaking gods.
Puligny-Montrachet: Rich, Elegant, and Rare.
Burgundy is a small place. The town of Puligny-Montrachet, which Clive Coates calls “the greatest white wine commune on earth,” covers less than a single square mile. And yet the wines from this town have been prized for over a thousand years.
Introducing: the Ansonia Notebook
We’re pleased to announce the latest publication from Ansonia Wines. The Ansonia Notebook is a monthly collection of recipes, stories, discounted wines, and customer recommendations. The August Notebook has just been released.
2002 St. Emilion Grand Cru
The effect of time on wine is one of the culinary world’s great magic tricks. Timing and conditions are crucial, and with patience and cellar space in short supply, well-aged wines are increasingly rare. Older French wines in the US have often been stored poorly, or have changed hands so many times they include layers upon layers of markups.
Pure Old-Vine Grenache.
Grenache is France’s second most planted grape. Found mostly in the South, as the primary grape in most Chateauneuf-du-Pape and Côtes du Rhône, grenache vines can also live well past their 100th birthday. With age comes lower yields and higher quality.
A Sparkling Blend of Grapes and Cultures.
Alsace is one of our favorite places to visit. Wedged between France and Germany, this remarkably beautiful region has changed hands four times since the 1930s. Its inhabitants identify as Alsatian more than either French or German, and today Alsace incorporates the best traditions – cultural, culinary, oenological – of both nations.