More wine!

Several new changes have been made to the wine list here at 1022:

New by the glass- Domaine Sainte Eugénie “Le Clos”. The Estate lies within the Corbierres AOC in the south of France, bordering on the Pyrénées to the south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the east. Le Clos is a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Carignane and Grenache. From their website:

“Attractive raspberry red color with hints of garnet. Lively, complex nose of red and black fruits. Refined, even exotic, oak fragrance with hints of incense, spices (nutmeg, clove, ginger) anise, autumn woods and tobacco. Soft in the mouth with fresh, tangy acidity. Wonderful balance. Well-structured yet elegant, with fine tannins. Subtle nuances of toast, vanilla and roasted coffee beans. Multiple layers of flavor. Striking silkiness. Truly sensual.”

That’s pretty fair. I found it remarkably rich for the price, and I hope you all do as well. $7/gl, $28/btl.

Delas Cotes-du-Rhone is back! We are now offering this wine by the bottle only. We found that for our purposes as purveyors of all things delicious, it just didn’t last very long on the back bar (read: the wine ‘turned’ quickly). But at $28 a bottle, it’s still a great deal, and one of our favorite Rhone producers. From Robert Parker:

“The amazing Cotes du Rhone St.-Esprit (75% Syrah and 25% Grenache) reveals a northern Rhone orientation, but it is loaded with spice and black fruits, and displays a beautiful opulent texture as well as a gorgeous finish with impressive purity… This great northern Rhone negociant, spearheaded by their brilliant oenologist and winemaker, Jacques Grange, has consistently made fabulous wines from the northern appellations, but only recently upgraded the quality of their southern Rhone selections. These are the finest southern Rhones they have made, and their Cotes du Rhone St.-Esprit ranks alongside the offerings from Guigal and Chapoutier.”

That’s remarkably high accolades for such a modestly priced bottle. Still half off, every Tuesday.

We also have a (very) few bottles of Ridge’s 2006 Lytton Springs Zinfandel (CA) for $59/btl. These guys are serious nerds about winemaking, and have been since the 1970s. Though zinfandel is the predominant grape, Ridge is known for blending with other varietals for depth and finesse. From the website:

“Lytton Springs is home to 100 plus-year-old zinfandel vines interplanted with petite sirah, carignane, a small amount of mataro (mourvèdre), and grenache. For more than three decades the field blend from this site has produced the quintessential example of Dry Creek Valley zinfandel. Lytton Springs is a prime example of Ridge's commitment to championing Heritage varietals - varietals planted more than a century ago, and surviving in numerous locations. We honor the individual character of these vines by fermenting each variety and each lot separately using natural yeast fermentation, letting the wines undergo natural malolactic, and employing minimal egg white fining.”

I think we’re down to four bottles right now, and once they’re gone, that’s it! The winery released a great discount on the 2006 wholesale price, and we’ve passed that savings right along.

Stay tuned for more from Italy, in June. We’ve got exclusive picks from Small Vineyards headed our way . . .

Santé, Corey