PHOTO OF THE WEEK
Our friend Massimo Ponte sends this week's snapshot...Barbera vineyards in
Italy's Piemonte region.
The weather there has been rather favorable, as they did finally see some
rain.
But people living in Emilia-Romagna, for example, have suffered severe
flooding...they're maybe 180 miles east of Piemonte.
We've read 14 people have died and 36,000 are homeless.
And if that's not bad enough, add to the mix a bit of hail.
This can damage the vineyards, shredding the vegetation on the vines.
Hail has also been reported in Tuscany.
Vineyardists may tell you they are worried, early in the growing season, about
frosts.
It's generally believed that after the full moon in May the chance of frost is
minimal.
Some winemakers will often tell you they watch the moon cycle for bottling wine.
It's thought the best time to bottle wine is during a full moon period, while
they often avoid bottling during the new moon cycle.
We've also been told the moon phase can be helpful in deciding when to rack
wines in the cellar, moving them from tank to barrel or barrel to tank.
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We are seeing tremendous price increases from many wineries and distributors.
This past week we had to adjust the price of an Australian Shiraz...the last
vintage we had cost $90/bottle at the wholesale level, while the new one, just a
couple of vintages later, goes for $160.
Napa Cabernets had been retailing for around $50 and now these 'regular'
bottlings have $75-$100 price tags.
We re-stocked a current vintage of a Napa Cabernet...same vintage is now $100,
increasing by $15.
The price increases are dramatic and we wonder if consumers, suffering the
effects of inflation for household necessities, will pay today's new price or
will they, as they often do, remain in their comfortable budgetary situation.
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GERALD & THE CREW AT WEIMAX
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We'd like to find a full-time associate and a part-time team
member.
If you are interested, or know someone who might be a good candidate, please put
them in touch!
Thanks.
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Our Tasting Room is open...Monday through Saturday from mid-day until 6pm.
CLICK HERE TO HAVE A LOOK.
That's Gaby, by the way!
There are not many wines costing north of $200/bottle that we find to be
"good values," but this 2011 Castillo Ygay gets a big 'thumbs up' from
us.
We had fallen off the Marques de Murrieta bandwagon some years ago, as they
changed their barrel aging program and the wine was not as good, in our view, as
what we had come to love going back to the 1960s and 1970s.
It had been getting good reviews as some critics seem to judge some wines by
their price tags and not what's in the glass.
The 2011 we opened this two weeks ago was shockingly good and we've bought this
in to share with customers who are interested in such a damned good bottle,
despite its elevated price.
Compared to many Napa Cabernets and top Bordeaux, this is a deal.
Sale price is $199.99 (and check the Tasting Room page as we are offering this at $20/pour).
Ridge makes a fabulous Chardonnay and a few years ago they embarked on vinifying
Grenache Blanc.
The 2021 is dry and crisp with a bare hint of wood.
Sale price is $31.99.
Turley makes a bit of Cinsault from old vineyards in Lodi...a nice
alternative to their Zinfandels and it's well-priced at $29.99.
Mullineaux's Old Vines white is an interesting blend based on Chenin Blanc.
But it has Clairette, Viognier, Semillon, Grenache Blanc and some Verdelho, too.
$31.99
Beppe Ca'Viola is a highly-regarded winemaker all over the Italian
Peninsula. He hails from Piemonte and consults with dozens of wineries.
Ca' Viola makes a small quantity of wine from his own vineyards and we were
delighted to be able to source some bottles of his 2018 "Caviot"
bottling, not at $60 as intended, but for just $34.99.
In the world of "skin contact" white wines, often called "orange
wines," we've just brought in the 2022 Pinot Gris from the Union Sacré
winery in California's Central Coast region. The "white" grape
of Pinot Gris does have some pigment in its skins and leaving those with
the juice can produce a pinkish-colored wine.
This is a delight whether you consider it a Rosé, an "orange wine" or
simply a white wine...
Sale price is $17.99 as these fellows don't sock it to you as do many artisan
vintners pricing their wines based more on scarcity than on quality.
Here's a delightful "declassified" Riesling from the esteemed Wegeler
stables.
Nicely aged and showing hints of the petrol fragrances of mature or maturing
Riesling...it has a touch of sweetness, but plenty of
acidity to balance.
$29.99.
Winemaker Peter Heitz does a great job with Chenin Blanc...Napa Valley Chenin
Blanc at that!
Dry and offering lots of apple and pear-like fruit. $29.99.
His Cabernet comes from Calistoga and the 2019 is delicious!
$64.99 for that.
From a tiny patch of vines in the French Alps comes this remarkable red made
of the Mondeuse grape.
Sometimes Mondeuse is reminiscent of Syrah, but this wine is unique, displaying
an almost grapefruit-like aroma and finish.
It's akin to a light Pinot Noir in terms of body.
$24.99
The small domaine of Anne & Marc Matthieu is located about 11 miles
northeast of Ribeauville in the small village of Blienschwiller (maybe 300
residents). We selected an outstanding 2019 Riesling from the Grand Cru
site of Frankstein.
This is quite dry and beautifully fragrant with hints of the petrol aromas one
finds in mature Riesling.
$34.99
Now available for tasting in our Tasting Room.
A young fellow named Julien Dreveton is cultivating some 40 year old Syrah
vineyards for his Domaine des Louis wines...both his grandfathers were named
Louis, by the way...
It's a dark-colored wine with black fruit aromas...we expect it will develop
handsomely with a few years of bottle aging, but it's terrific right now,
especially if you can decant it an hour ahead of dinner.
$34.99
The famous Rioja winery of Marques de Murrieta has a vineyard in western
Spain's Galicia region, farming some 12 hectares of Albariño.
We've been disappointed in so many weak and watery wines from Rias Baixas
lately, so this was a real delight...clearly someone is serious about making a
statement.
The wine sees a slow fermentation, followed by aging on the spent yeast for a
couple of months. A small fraction of the production is matured in Acacia
barrels, giving the wine extraordinary complexity.
Its $49.99 price tag is ambitious, but this wine is outstanding.
From the top of Spring Mountain in Napa comes this remarkable dry Riesling.
The Smith brothers don't rush this wine, allowing it to develop some petrol
fragrances which are the hallmark of aged Riesling.
2018 vintage...$32.99
We've enjoyed a few Geek white wines made of the Moschofilero grape, but
can't say we'd tasted anything quite like this!
The Troupis winery produces a "wild ferment" dry white giving the
juice some skin contact which results in a pinkish-hued wine.
The aromas are intensely fruity and the wine is quite dry and marvelously crisp.
Even better, it's just $19.99.
A few bottles of two different Peter Michael Chardonnays arrived this week.
These rarities go for $110/bottle.
Had this as one of my top two wines in a blind-tasting of well-priced California
Pinot Noirs.
This is a delight and it's specially priced at just $24.99.
Don't miss it.
Back in stock is the outstanding Clos Bartolomé wine from Spain's Priorat
region.
It's a blend of Grenache and Carignane and we like its balance and drinkability.
On top of that, it's only $25.99 and compares very favorably to the $50-$100
from this prestigious Spanish wine region, not far from Barcelona.
The dollar usually goes farther in Washington State than in California's Napa
Valley.
Kiona Vineyards and Winery mostly sells grapes to neighboring wineries, but they
make a smallish quantity for their own label.
Nicely oaked and with classic dark Cabernet fruit...$26.99.
We tasted a couple of wines from a tiny Slovenian estate with
organically-farmed vineyards.
Rizling, as you might guess, is Riesling.
Modra Frankinja is the grape we know more commonly as Blaufränkisch.
The Rizling is a dry version of a late-harvest Riesling and it's easy to peg
(and to drink).
The Modra Frankinja is exotically floral, reminding us of Pinot Noir with
perhaps a hint of rose petals.
$26.99 for the Rizling.
$35.99 for the Frankinja (which is available in our Tasting Room presently.
Winemaker Marco Porello, a prominent vintner in the Roero region of Piemonte,
produces a well-priced, attractive Barolo from vineyards in Serralunga and
Novello.
The sale price of $29.99 makes this a nice value.
The new vintage of this remarkable French white just arrived...it's from the
Delaille brothers' winery in the Loire Valley.
Cheverny is based on Sauvignon Blanc, but unlike Sancerre, it can have a small
percentage of Chardonnay to give the wine a bit of texture on the palate.
You certainly don't detect this on the nose.
$19.99.
Prisma Sauvignon Blanc comes from Chile's Casablanca area. It's a blend
of two vineyard sites and it's remarkably showy and aromatic.
There's an exotic fragrance, reminiscent of citrus and passion-fruit.
It's only $13.99!
Chianti Classico producers now have a category of wine called "Gran
Selezione." This is sort of a reserve bottling that is said to be a
more prized wine than basic Chianti and Riserva bottlings.
We've thought many of these are simply an attempt to extract more money from
consumers and most are not worth the prices being asked.
The Querceto di Castellina 2018 "Gran Selezione" is an exception to
this notion. It's $49.99 for the 2018 but the wine, unlike so many of
these premium-priced bottlings is outstanding.
Silvio Jermann was one of the first winemakers in Italy making world-class white
wines.
In an era where most Italian whites were rustic or oxidized, this fellow
produced polished, flavorful bottles.
The 2022 Pinot Grigio is a far cry from the thin, watery wines were regularly
are presented, dressed up as premium Pinot Grigio.
They gave the juice a short bit of skin contact, resulting in a bit more
intensity.
Specially priced at $24.99.
The appellation of Bouzeron in France's Burgundy region is found on wines
made exclusively from the Aligoté grape,
not Chardonnay.
Dujardin's is fermented in neutral oak and we like its mildly toasty note with
some green apple fruit.
Dry, of course.
$27.99
From Italy's Alto Adige region we were thrilled to taste a benchmark bottling
of the Müller-Thurgau grape from the Tiefenbrunner winery.
It's called Feldmarschall Von Fenner, named after an heroic Austrian warrior who
defended what's now the Alto Adige (or Südtirol) in several battles. This
is grown at a high elevation site in somewhat salty soils, which winemaker
Christof Tiefenbrunner credits with intensifying the fruit and herb notes.
It's very expensive for Müller-Thurgau, but when you taste this it's not so
much the grape but the vineyard.
$74.99
From the Domaine Laboureau we found a terrific White Burgundy from the
Pernand-Vergelesses appellation, a somewhat overlooked region where consumers
don't have to pay for a prestigious name. The wine rivals far more costly
bottlings.
Nicely toasty with a touch of a smoky element...$49.99.
The 2018 Clos Apalta is something of a Chilean version of "Opus
One," except it's not $400/bottle.
This goes for $139.99 and it's a complex, delicious red made in a Bordeaux/Napa
style although it's predominantly Carmenere.
$14/taste today in the Tasting Room.
The Falvo family owned Tuscany's Avignonesi winery in Montepulciano some
decades ago.
They now run the Masseria Li Veli winery in Puglia and make some surprisingly
elegant and charming wines.
The Susumaniello grape is a rarity as there were but 13 hectares in 2006.
Today there are 400 hectares being cultivated in and around Salento.
The Li Veli bottling is medium bodied, showing an array of red fruits with mild
tannins.
$25.99...delicious!
This is currently available for sampling in our tasting room.
We've enjoyed numerous bottlings of various Scheurebe wines...this bottling
from the Weegmüller winery in Germany's Rheinpfalz is a delight, displaying
notes reminiscent of pineapple and oranges.
It's a "trocken" wine, meaning it's dry.
We're going to enjoy this with some dim sum this week.
$18.99
Quivira makes several Sauvignon Blancs, but the Fig Tree vineyard bottling in
the 2021 vintage is excellent.
It's a mix of a few clones of Sauvignon Blanc, including the aromatic "Musqué"
clone. They use some barrels in making this, including Acacia barrels
along with neutral French oak.
It's a citrusy delight with the wood lurking in the background.
$26.99
A Premier Cru bottling of white Burgundy from the Givry appellation made the
cut this past week, with some toasty,
leesy notes on the nose and palate. Dry, of course.
Good value, too, at just $29.99.
From Italy's Alto Adige...a delightfully aromatic dry white made of the
obscure Kerner grape.
Köfererhof's 2021 Kerner is intensely fragrant...a good candidate for Asian
cuisine or picnic fare.
$26.99.
Viore is a new dry white wine from Spain's Rueda region.
It's made of the Verdejo grape and resembles Sauvignon Blanc to some degree.
$18.99
Schola Sarmenti's Primitivo from Puglia has often "made the cut"
here at Weimax.
The new vintage is a delight, being medium-full bodied and
berryish...softer/smoother, too.
$17.99
The 2020 Nebbiolo from Italy's Valtellina region called Botonero is made by
the Mamete Prevostini winery.
It's unusually charming and quite enjoyable despite it being so young.
$18.99 on sale!
From France's Jura region in the Alps comes this delicious, dry sparkling
wine that will easily be confused with a bottle of good $50 Champagne.
It's made entirely of Chardonnay, biodynamically cultivated and the wine spends
about two years maturing on the spent yeast.
Dry, mildly toasty and lightly chalky...$29.99.
La Coeur de la Reine is a beautifully aromatic, fresh, dry Sauvignon Blanc from
France's Loire Valley.
You won't believe how good this is...$17.99.
The 2020 Fenocchio Barbera d'Alba is a winner!
Dark in color and beautifully aromatic with blackberry fruit notes...it's dry
and smooth, a perfect partner for pizza, sausages, tomato-sauced pastas, pork,
red meats, etc.
$25.99
Here's an obscure, fizzy red. If you're a fan of good Lambrusco from
Emilia-Romagna, here's a southern Italian vino frizzante from the coast
of Campania. It's from a region just a few miles south of Pompei in the
town of Gragnano and it's made mostly of Piedirosso with Aglianico and a bit of
Sciacinoso. Mildly fizzy and dry, it's a great red to pair with pizza.
$19.99
We visited this domaine in 2016, having appreciated their various Chablis
wines.
Denis and Isabelle Pommier have a new importer in the Bay Area and we're
delighted to have them back in the shop.
$35.99 for 750mls and half-bottles are $26.99.
Back in stock and available for tasting presently...damned good, classic, stony
Chablis!
From a small, father & son team in France's Jura, situated between Burgundy
and Switzerland in the mountains, comes this terrific, bottle-fermented
Chardonnay. It's quite dry and even displays some toasty, bready elements
we love in Champagnes.
$29.99.
Oh! Biodynamically farmed, too.
The 2022 Greywacke Sauvignon Blanc just landed...it's mildly citrusy with a
hint of Jalapeño pepper spice.
Sale price is $21.99.
We've been fans of this Napa Valley "trophy" and it easily compares to
the top "cult Cabernets" found on many restaurant wine lists.
Production is small and the price is high...but less than $300 anyway.
A new enterprise from a fellow who's long been a Weimax customer, Tomaq is a
word for "fog" in the language of the Kashaya people who inhabited the
lands near Fort Ross, California.
We found a delightful Pinot Noir which, while light on the palate (and it's not
a high alcohol wine, by the way) is remarkably aromatic and complex on the nose.
He also made an unusually complex Rosé that's dry...
$33.99 for the Pinot Noir...$22.99 for the Rosé.
La Rioja Alta makes traditionally-styled wines of the highest quality, in our
view.
California vintners have difficulty challenging these guys for value, as this
Tempranillo is matured in some new American oak and then given several years in
bottle, released when it's complex and beautifully drinkable.
Sale price is $21.99.
One of our favorite Champagnes is that of Pierre Moncuit, a small family
enterprise in the "Grand Cru" town of Le Mesnil where Chardonnay is
king.
Bone dry as they cater to a discriminating connoisseur, not the mass-market
palate aimed at by the largest Champagne wineries.
It's entirely Chardonnay, mildly toasty and perfect for launching a holiday
season fest.
Sale price is $49.99.
The Von Winning team is clearly appreciative of top French Champagne and
their Extra Brut, made entirely of Riesling has some Champagne-like toasty notes
with the aromatics and flavors of Riesling.
This is an Extra Brut bottling...bone dry.
$29.99!
Smith Woodhouse is a famous producer of Late-Bottled Vintage Port.
While the expensive Vintage Ports now hit the market for $100+ a bottle upon
release, Smith Woodhouse matures this for 4 years in vats and bottles it without
filtration as is common for Vintage Ports.
But then they give it ample bottle aging and release it when it's in its early
stages of drinkability.
Most Late Bottled Vintage Port is filtered and this robs the wine of a measure
of character and its ability to develop with bottle aging.
If you'd like to experience a really good Port this holiday season and don't
mind not spending $100-$300/bottle, come grab a bottle of this.
Sale price is $39.99.
It's best to stand the bottle upright to allow the sediment to settle and then
decant it.
Miroslav Tcholakov's day job is as winemaker for the Trentadue family winery
in Geyserville.
He has his own label and these wines are routinely spot-on.
We have his blend of Grenache, Syrah, Petite Sirah and Zinfandel called Cuvée
Sasha.
$22.99.
Miro's Petite Sirah is another winner...$29.99 for that.
La Rioja Alta makes traditionally-styled wines of the highest quality, in our
view.
California vintners have difficulty challenging these guys for value, as this
Tempranillo is matured in some new American oak and then given several years in
bottle, released when it's complex and beautifully drinkable.
Sale price is $21.99.
From one of the founding partners of the Patz & Hall winery, which still
makes good wines, comes this small production Sonoma Pinot Noir which is an
ideal holiday season red wine.
Lots of black cherry fruit and you'll find fragrant French oak scents wafting
from the glass...
A number of customers have been coming in this past week, having purchased a
bottle on our recommendation...they're coming back for more bottles!
$54.99
A spendy Etna Bianco, but we felt this wine is actually worthy of its $59.99
price tag.
Primarily Carricante with some Minnella...it's a remarkably soulful, dry white
which tips its cap in the direction
of Burgundy (in our view).
It sees a bit of aging in tonneaux, large, seasoned wood barrels.
Special.
CLICK
HERE TO SEE SOME PREVIOUS
SELECTIONS
Likely Still Available
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A Weimax shopper and parent of a Roosevelt Elementary School student sent us
a screenshot of an online
"Teddy Talk" where a student was explaining the importance of
supporting community businesses and "shopping local."
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From the local paper at the end of 2021...CLICK
HERE to read that story.
Ellen
had her picture on the front page of the New Year's weekend Daily Journal, a local
newspaper here in San Mateo County.
They did a story about holiday sales of wines and liquors, so we were mentioned
(and quoted) in that.
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The store is fully stocked...lots of good value bottlings and numerous
"fancy" wines, too.
Stop by and we can give you a little tour...
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Happy Halloween!
A Coat-de-Bouteille!
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This car is "corked"!!!
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GIFT CARDS AVAILABLE...
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Had a nice mention in the Wall
Street Journal's 2016 story about wine store signage:
CLICK
HERE
The Most recent mention, September of 2017, is this one...Things Wine Shop
Owners Detest...
CLICK
HERE
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Australian Wine Writer Jim McMahon wrote
a nice article published on the web site of the New South Wales Teachers
Federation.
CLICK
HERE
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Did you see the article in the local newspaper, by the way?
CLICK
HERE.
It was printed
just before New Year's Eve...
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"Quality first" is our mantra.
