Bubbly

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2015 Scarpetta Prosecco DOC, Veneto & Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy $19.98

 

As Scarpetta’s website proclaims, “You would be hard pressed to find two people more Friuli-obsessed than Bobby Stuckey MS and Chef Lachlan Patterson.” Owners of Frasca and Pizzeria Locale in Boulder as well as Scarpetta, a winery located in Friuli, Italy, Bobby and Lachlan have an enthusiasm for their craft that is infectious. This is no doubt reflected in the 2015 Scarpetta Prosecco, their latest addition to an already impressive and popular portfolio of wines. 

 

With a touch of lemon cream pie on the nose accompanied by a delicate floral presence, this dry prosecco is the perfect start to an exceptional dinner.  The palate is fresh and light with lively flavors of honeysuckle, white peach, green apple and hazelnut.

 

Rosé

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2015 Ingrid Groiss Sommerwein Rosé, Austria $32.98

 

Ingrid Groiss is a young, vivacious female winemaker, living in the Weinviertel, the oldest wine-growing district in Austria. Her relationship with the Weinviertel runs deep, as her parents and grandmother owned vineyards for many years, making wine for their local country wine tavern, traditionally known as a Heuriger. It took Ingrid some time before returning to her roots and taking on the life of a winemaker, whereby she had to blaze her own trail within the family business. Wines of expressive terroir have come to symbolize Ingrid’s craft technique, and deservedly, a dedicated following has ensued. The indigenous vineyard hare, gracing her labels, is symbolic of her dedication to harmony with nature and her connection to this delightful creature that flourishes in her gardens. 

 

The 2015 Sommerwein Rosé is a beautifully refined and delicate wine made of 100% Pinot Noir grapes. Aromas of woodland strawberries, wildflowers, white blossoms and hints of white pepper and spice give this wine a wispy femininity. The palate displays notes of tart cherry, orange and lime zest, watermelon, rose water and mineral undertones from start to finish.  This wine will make you savor the moment. 

 

White

 

2014 Domaine Bru-Bache Jurançon Sec, France $23.98

 

Like many smaller wine regions decimated by phylloxera from the late nineteenth to early twentieth century, Jurançon (although one of the first to receive A.O.C. status) has been very slow to recover its production. Located in the foothills of the Pyrenées in southwest France, Jurançon’s vineyards are tucked away in sunny hillsides, where the climate is a combination of oceanic, mountainous, and southern influences. Traditionally winemakers from this region produce two styles of white wine, Jurançon, a celebrated sweet wine and Jurançon Sec, a dry white. The Bru-Bache-Loustalot family has been making wine in the Pyrenées since the 1960’s, but it was not until 1973 that they first began to bottle under their own label. Claude Loustalot, nephew of the founder Georges Bru-Bache, took over the domaine in 1994 and implemented biodynamic practices receiving certification in 2009. He has created a completely interdependent ecosystem whereby sheep graze between vineyard rows, and blending herbal teas as natural remedies for the vines amongst other practices. 

 

Bru-Bache’s Jurançon Sec is made of an indigenous varietal, Gros Manseng, which is genetically linked to the Albariño of Spain. It produces a fragrant, dry, crisp white with high acidity and a note of tannin. Laden with apricot, quince, light citrus, stony minerals, spicy floral undertones and a fresh herbaceous character, this is a perfect wine for fresh summer produce and an evening outside. 

 

2015 Ryme Cellars ‘Hers’ Vermentino, Las Brisas Vineyard, Carneros, California $33.98

 

Ryme Cellars is collaboration between husband and wife, Ryan and Megan Glaab. The couple met and fell in love in Australia working as seasonal cellar hands at Torbreck Winery. Between the two, they have worked at wineries such as Pax Wine Cellars, Peay Vineyards, Sin Qua Non, and Marcassin. They started Ryme in 2007 with one ton of Aglianico and have continued to focus mostly on esoteric Italian varietals. The couple strives to make wines of distinctive character, tasting terrific on their own, however, truly shining with full expression when coupled with fresh cuisine. All of the grapes used to make Ryme’s wines come from conscientiously farmed organic and sustainable vineyards. Moreover within the winery itself, they use no cultured yeast, temperature control, or fining or filtering.

 

Vermentino is a delicious light bodied white wine most commonly produced on the island of Sardinia, northern Italy and areas around the Mediterranean. “Hers” Vermentino is Megan’s interpretation of Vermentino, pressed, settled and bottled early. Ryan likes to pick later, ferment on the skins and age longer. “Hers” is a fresh, zippy wine with aromas and flavors of pear, melon, lime, pink grapefruit, citrus zest, fresh green almond and rocky minerality. 

 

2013 Domaine Barou Condrieu, Rhone Valley, France $86.00

 

The concept of a self-sustaining existence at Domaine Barou since its inception is of utmost importance, an ethos shared by Cure Organic Farm, making this wine an appropriate and exciting pairing for this evening's festivities. The Barou family farm was established in 1928 in a remote area of Drôme in southeastern France. Their goal was to create a self-sustaining farm growing their own produce and raising animals. In later years they planted apricot and peach orchards, also beginning their pursuit of viticulture (the science, production, and study of grapes). In 1971, the farm was converted to organics and in 1997, third generation Emmanuel Barou, after studying viticulture and oenology in Orange and Avignon, shifted the family’s pursuits towards winemaking. 

 

The domaine’s farming is exemplary, using their own compost, plowing as little as possible, and planting cover crops to maintain healthy well-balanced soil. The one hectare vineyard in Condrieu is on a steep south-facing granite slope with clay soil.

 

The wine is made entirely of Viognier showcasing aromatically complex and beautiful citrus and exotic fruits with spicy floral notes. The palate is perfectly balanced, with lovely ripeness and gripping acidity. Unlike many Condrieu that have a dominating oak profile, this wine, elevage for 9 months, 30% new, whispers of its time spent in barrel. Instead lies a wine with honeyed perfume of peaches, tangerine, honeysuckle, jasmine and a velvety spice that lingers on the tongue. 

 

Red

 

2014 Castelfeder Pinot Nero, Glener Vineyard, Alto Adige, Italy $29.98

 

Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir) is a varietal with which many are familiar, however, not so often in its Italian form. The varietal has been growing in the northeastern Italian region of Alto Adige since the middle of the nineteenth century and thrives in its cool climate. Pinot Nero from this region yields fragrant, well structured and elegant wines with a rich smooth finish.

 

Castelfeder is a fourth generation, family-run winery founded in 1970 by the Giovanett family. They have focused on Pinot Nero since the winery’s inception, along with indigenous varietals, Lagrein & Schiava. 

 

The single vineyard, Glener, rests on clay soils and sits underneath a bridge constructed by Russian POWs in WWI. It displays a delicate, alpine aroma and fresh red fruit bouquet with a trace of spicy smokiness. Reminiscent of Burgundy from the Côte de Beaune accompanied by an Italian zip of acidity, the wine spends twelve months in barrel and barrique, 15% new. Powerful and expressive on the palate with a pleasant and elegant tannic backbone, this wine is a delicious pairing to a variety of foods.  

 

2014 Cruse Wine Co., Valdiguié, Rancho Chimiles Vineyard, Napa Valley, California $41.98

 

Cruse Wine Co. is a small winery in Petaluma, California thoughtfully crafting wines from unique vineyards throughout the state’s wine country. With an undergraduate degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology, emphasizing Biochemistry, from UC Berkeley, Michael Cruse was well on his way to obtaining a PhD prior to taking the path of winemaker. He has been quoted as saying “What I love about academia is that no one is ever telling you that isn’t how you should be spending your time. People are always studying, writing, researching, working on something. I had a lot of kinship with that kind of work.” Diligently researching and working in labs post undergrad, Cruse had a shift in perspective and began to wonder how else he could apply his love of science and lab work in another field. This led him to winemaking. Cruse is one of only a few small production winemakers to utilize his own lab within his winery to analyze his wines through fermentation and elevage. Subsequently he has developed a dedicated cult following almost overnight. A natural winemaker, he avoids additives, doesn’t cold stabilize, and minimizes or avoids sulfur when the wine will remain stable. In addition, upon transitioning into winemaking, he embarked on extensive research of old methods of making sparkling wine without the use of machinery and is now at the forefront of California sparkling wine production. 

 

Valdiguié (formerly called Napa Gamay) was originally thought to be Gamay, the grape of Beaujolais, because it displayed similar aromatics and flavors. The Rancho Chimiles Vineyard, from which fruit is sourced to make this wine, has 40 year old organically farmed Valdiguié vines. 

 

Cruse’s Valdiguié is fermented in concrete fermentation tanks, spending 12 days on its skins and then transferred to old French oak barrels. It is an exceptional expression of the varietal. The wine is light to medium bodied, overflowing with dark red fruits, blueberry and under-ripe blackberry with the perfect combination of acidity and tannin. It displays a leafy herbal freshness with intense floral notes of violets and rose, cinnamon stick and graphite. 

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2012 COS Cerasuolo di Vittoria Classico DOCG, Sicily $62.49 

 

COS Winery (Cilia-Occhipinti-Strano: last names of the founding members) was founded by three friends who in 1980 became the youngest winemakers in Italy when they bought an old family winery. Located in the historic town of Bastonaca in the southeastern corner of Sicily, the vineyard measured just over a mere three hectares.  Over the years, the estate’s holdings expanded, and in their quest to understand and showcase the unique terroir of Vittoria, they decided to adopt biodynamic principles.  In addition, in September 2000, intrigued by ancient cellar practices, COS decided to implement amphoras (clay jars that were used by ancient Greeks) as a vessel for fermentation. COS is now synonymous with this practice. 2005 marked a significant year for COS with the purchase of more land that included an extraordinary wine cellar dating back to the nineteenth century, and Cerasuolo di Vittoria was awarded the DOCG designation, the only region permitted to have this designation in Sicily. 

 

A blend of 60% Frappato and 40% Nero d’Avola, the 2012 COS Cerasuolo di Vittoria Classico is a remarkable wine made from relatively young vines (averaging 20 years old) grown on sandy soils composed of limestone and silica, layered with clay and calcareous tufa and aged in large Slovenian oak casks.  This wine is elegant and lively with invigorating acidity. Frappato and Nero d’Avola, indigenous varietals to Sicily, each bring something to the table, bracing floral freshness from the former and earthy strength from the latter. Aromas of dark plum, black cherry, licorice, rosemary, tobacco and violet are coupled with a juicy palate offering notes of ripe blackberry, orange peel and clove.