Around Our Table
Kobal Bajta Yellow Muscat Pet Nat Podravje, Slovenia
Yellow Muscat made into a petillant naturel from Slovenia might be a mouthful, but this might be the most perfect beach beverage we have found yet this year. Hand harvested and fermented with local fauna. This is an adult limeade with an incredibly refreshing finish. Pairing - Beach, Poolside Consumption
Vignerons du Pallet Muscadet Sèvre-et-Main Roches Blanches 2022 Loire Valley, France
Why oh why do we love Melon de Bourgogne (the grape that makes up all Muscadet wines) so much? Simple answer: it's low alcohol, saline driven and immensely easy to drink. This latest example has some tart citrus zest and a little bit of melon roundness. Muscadet is summer time white and that is right. Pairing - Oysters, An aperitif for all occasions
Francois Cazin Cheverny Blanc 2022 Loire Valley, France
The village of Cheverny is in the Eastern Loire Valley and is not a household name. That is too bad because the sauvignon blanc and chardonnay blends that hail from this village are delicious. Citrus, apricot, and white flowers balanced by fresh acidity mark this wine as a heavier and rounder alternative to Sancerre. Pairing - Classic would be chevre or Frisee salad with lardons
Jean Paul Brun Beaujolais Rosé 2022 Beaujolais, France
Every vintage of JPB's Rosé we love for very distinctive reasons. Made from 100% gamay with a very short maceration time, this wine is always a delight. Just landed to us here in CT, this vintage has a salted watermelon palate that is a tart refreshment. Distinctive raspberry and strawberry seeds are present in the finish for a zippier finish. Pairing - Seafood on the grill (have faith)
Poderi Cellario "Duzat" Langhe Dolcetto 2021 Piedmont, Italy
Dolcetto is often forgotten when it comes to easy drinking red wine. The style and producer are incredibly important though when talking about dolcetto. It can run the gambit easily from juicy to dark & brooding. This example from natural producer Poderi is spontaneously fermented and macerated for 8 days. Bottled with minimal sulfur this leans toward the juicy side of Dolcetto with dark fruit being the backbone. This can easily be chilled for a patio glou glou experience. Pairing - Cioppino
O Tinto Perfeito 2020 Portugal
The quality of what is being exported from Portugal has ratcheted up in the past decade. No longer the land of just Vinho Verde in screw cap bottles, the producers in Portugal have turned to making more serious wines that we just can't help but be enraptured by. Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tempranillo, and a little bit of the white grape, Malvasia Fina make up this blend. Medium bodied and peppery, this is a perfect sweet spot for late summer. Pairing - Braised meats, pizza, Piri Piri Chicken
Around The Estate
Alta Alella "MIRGIN" Brut Nature Cava 2008 Penedes, Spain
While Champagne and Pet-Nat may garner all the attention with high prestige, price tags and pretty labels, Cava just may be the unsung champion of the forever-shifting quality-to-price ratio. This particular example is estate grown on the Mediterranean vintaged, non-dosage, and naturally carbonated in the exact same way as Champagne-- in cold cellars over years many years. The result is a finely carbonated, chiseled and racy sparkling wine that is appropriate for anything from oysters to dessert.
Donnhoff Riesling Trocken 2022 Nahe, Germany
From the Nahe region of Germany, chock full soils made of, issues this estate-grown Riesling from a variety of terroirs based around the Donnhoff family estate. Hand harvesting and organic viticulture show the family's investment into keeping the quality of the wine, and the aging in a combination of stainless steel and oak maintains the purity of the terroir. Sleek, glossy, and mineral-tinged, this lower-alcohol dry wine is the perfect aperitif or appetizer wine, pairing especially well with the food of the region: grilled sausages, soft cheeses, and hearty rustic bread.
Marcel Lapierre "Raisins Gaulois" VdF 2022 Beaujolais, France
Kermit Lynch, in his heyday, was the first to import renegade Beaujolais producers who made their wine in a completely natural way. It took decades for the natural style to take hold stateside, but once America had tasted these wines, their appetite for them only grew. Eventually, the prices on these wines grew so high that demand for more accessibly-priced wines was evident. Enter Rainsins Gaulois, or "French Grapes" declassified to the lowly 'Vin de France' classification, but still grown using the strictest of biological methods. Bright, energetic, and chock-full of ripe berry fruits, this bottle is pair-able with everything from pizza to duck.