Shut the Front Door: A Vinsane, Pay-it-Forward, Drinks 4X the Price Wine Recommendation

The problem with sleuthing out good wine under $10 is the recommendations usually come with provisos like, “This is pretty good for the price,” or “This isn’t bad for the style of wine.”  Rare is the time that a wine recommendation for vino under $10 is just, “This is a fantastic wine.”

Who can blame the wine recommender for their caveats and written sleights of hand when they’re left to tout the middling amongst the insipid; the redemptive within the felonious?  It’s like the back-handed compliment from the parents of an axe murderer who note plaintively from the front stoop, “He has a good heart.”

Adding insult to this injury, it seems like nearly all domestic wines under $10 are manipulated to appeal to a demographic.  Far too often, they are oak chipped to a formula, softened, vortexed and plumped back up into a wine beverage complete with a label that screams, “Benignly vague and blandly appealing.  I am inoffensive to a large group of people.”

And, forget about pairing under $10 bottles of vino with food.  Do so only if your idea of wine pairing centers on condiments with artificial coloring and HFCS, so duotone are the wine flavor profiles.

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When it comes to what should be reliable international value wines, forget about it – most of them aren’t even has-beens, they never were.  France and Italy – I’m talking to you.  For a sawbuck, these are sad, middling, barely potable wines evocative of an athlete whose entire identity is wrapped up in jockdom, but for whom life’s fate never provided him acclaim beyond the local playground. The fact that these wines often taste like a sweaty gym sock may, in fact, be no small coincidence.

Harrumph. 

What I want is what most wine consumers want: A non-spoofulated wine with quality that stands on its own—a good wine at $9.99 that is a good wine, period.  No half-hearted caveats associated with it.  If the wine pairs with dinner, instead of being a digestif, all the better.  Tie me up, spank me and call me Shirley if this mystical and elusive under $10 wine also has any of the following characteristics: Organic, old vines, unfiltered, native yeast, judicious oak, and complexity whilst being food-friendly.

I’m pretty sure I won’t have to have any dalliances in the wine S&M dungeon save for one emerging country.

Recently, I started to see glimpses of where quality, inexpensive wines might be coming from in the future when I tasted through a sampling of wines from the Navarra region of Spain. One $5 bottle of wine was so screamingly good it defied the law of reason. 

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And, then, I received a recommendation for Masia de Bielsa’s 2009 Garnacha, a Spanish wine from the Campo de Borja area in the Aragon region of Spain, southeast of Navarre and La Rioja.  Adam Japko, a wino friend and author of Wine-Zag, and I did some horse-trading on bottles and he threw in a bottle of wine in a wine shipment to me and noted, “Curious what you think of this…”

What do I think?  I think I owe you favors to last a month of Sundays for turning me onto a beauty.

Of course, wine recommendations don’t happen in a vacuum and the Masia de Bielsa 2009 Garnacha is no different even if it follows a certain circuitous Internet-borne dynamic that seems unusual even in this day and age of “brand vs. land, there are no secret wine values anymore…” online battle.

Jose Pastor is a wunderkind (30 years old) wine importer with a fast growing reputation amongst wine insiders for his portfolio of Spanish wines that are typically natural in style – producers who farm organically when possible, emphasize terroir, use ambient yeasts, filter sparingly and use minimal oak.  In other words, his wines, and especially his inexpensive wine selections, are the anti-brand.  Or, should I say, “They’re the antidote to brand wines.”  The good stuff. 

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Jose’s wines won’t have an end-cap in stores with promotional materials, nor will they follow you on Twitter or ply you with faux-flattery for a “Like” on Facebook. Ditto that for Pastor playing the points scoring game.  He doesn’t do it. The wines and wineries in his portfolio simply represent something good and honest and rely on smart trade buyers who know good juice when they taste it and are interested in paying that forward to consumer’s one bottle at a time.

This formula isn’t a recipe for getting rich, but it is a recipe for long-term, slow-burning growth based on a purity of vision.

When Richard Schnitzlein, a longtime wine buyer in the greater Boston area, took over the wine section at Ferns Country store in Carlisle, MA in early 2011, he started to remake the selection of wines on offer and that meant much more diversity, spreading the selection from two distributors to 14 over a seven month period.

A part of that remaking was to engage Genuine Wine Selections, a wine distributor in Massachusetts, who carries the Jose Pastor portfolio.

When Genuine Wine Selections partner Dennis Quinn showed up at Ferns in the spring with samples to taste, the ’09 Bielsa was a part of the mix.

Enamored, Schnitzlein started stocking the wine.  “Initially (the Bielsa) was a hand sell, but (it) soon became a wine that people were asking for,” he noted.

Japko was turned onto the Bielsa from Schnitzlein and mentioned the Bielsa on his site in June.  A September Ferns promotion dropped the price on the Bielsa from $11.99 to 9.95 and that yielded 15 cases of the Bielsa moving through the door for Ferns including a stock-up from Japko.

Within a week of receiving my bottle from Japko, I had taken to the Internet to find this wine and I bought a ½ case online from Marketview Liquor in New York state who sells it for $7.99 a bottle.

I’ve gifted a bottle to a friend at work, and, well, I’m writing extensively about this vino, too – my own pay-it-forward juju for having been tipped off to this wine.

The moral of this story?  Finding a gem of a wine for $10 or under isn’t a hopeless process, but you do have to sift a lot of muck to find the gold nugget.  In my opinion, you’re more likely to find a gem by keeping your ears open for word of mouth recommendations from wine-inclined friends or a local wine shop then to take to the wine aisles of your supermarket wine section playing brand roulette.  Here, the internet and Wine-searcher.com is your friend, as well.  In addition, Spain is a country that is producing some excellent wines across all price tiers, and my very recent and very anecdotal track record at the lower-end has been very good.  And, finally, it pays to know people.  It pays to know what Jose Pastor is all about, and it pays to know the Richard Schnitzlein’s and Adam Japko’s of the world who freely share where to find the good stuff, even if finding the good stuff requires an Importer in California, a wine buyer in Massachusetts, a generous friend and internet ecommerce.

2009 Bielsa Vinas Viejas Garnacha

Huge, pure nose with mulberry juice, black cherry, orange peel, earth and a meaty savory quality that gives way to an expressive palate with plum, black cherry, spice and fresh squeezed orange juice.  The finish lingers with plum, pepper and earthiness.  This is a varietally correct, gorgeous, natural, unfiltered wine that screams for food and would be a bargain at 4X the price.  Highly recommended.  At under $10 a bottle, you’d be foolhardy not to find this wine.

Source: http://goodgrape.com/index.php/site/shut_the_front_door_a_vinsane_pay-it-forward_drinks_4x_the_price_wine_recom/

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Who Needs a Sale When You Have Empire Wine?

Editor's Note: This site recently reached 700 subscribers! Thanks so much for following along - it means so much to me that so many of you find this kind of wine info useful. If you're not subscribed with an RSS Reader -or- signed up for email notifications of new posts you can sign up here.

I stopped and visited New York Retailer Empire Wine last summer on our way to vacation in Michigan. What an operation. Located within a large strip mall, I never would have thought to stop in if I wasn't aware of their reputation online. I couldn't believe the volume of wine they were pushing through their registers on a summery Friday afternoon.

One thing I want this site to be about is helping friends find better wine values. Part of that is finding outstanding retailers who sell wine on razor thin margins. As I'm writing this I'm imagining co-workers and cousins looking for specific retailers to order from, and specific wines to get started with. I think 6 or 12 of the wines below would make a great stash of wines for the holiday season.

With deals swirling around this weekend I thought it would be a good opportunity to peruse their selection and make a few recommendations:

  1. Cakebread Cellars Zinfandel 2010 $23.95
    $23 for what's sure to be a delicious red from Cakebread? Sold.
  2. Failla 'Sonoma Coast' Pinot Noir 2011 $31.95
    Great producer. Love the ~$30 price point for high quality California Pinot Noir.
  3. Snowden 'The Ranch' Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $37.95
    Not the prettiest label in the world but this one over delivers for its price point.
  4. O'Shaughnessy 'Howell Mtn.' Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $74.95
    Bumps the price up a bit over the Cakebread/Caymus/Silver Oak ~$60 level, but it's worth the splurge.
  5. Beaurenard 'Boisrenard' Chateauneuf du Pape 2010 $69.95
    97WS, great vintage. Getting harder to find these 2010s.
  6. Soter 'North Valley' Pinot Noir 2009 $24.95
    Soter's a great producer and I'm looking to try more 2009 Oregon Pinots before they disappear.
  7. Marcel Lapierre Morgon 2011 $23.95
    People love this producer and I'm hearing good things this 2011 Cru Beaujolais.
  8. Belle Glos 'Meiomi' Pinot Noir 2011 $15.93
    Stunningly low price, even when shipping costs are included.
  9. Educated Guess Cabernet Sauvignon 2010 $16.95
    Tasty fruit forward Napa Cab at a great price.
  10. Ridge Vineyards 'Estate' Cabernet Sauvignon 2009 $34.95
    Hard to go wrong with Ridge and priced in the mid-$30s this is a nice value.
  11. Bodegas Volver 'Tarima Hill' Monastrell 2009 $8.95
    I always like including a bargain Spanish Monastrell to round out a case. Original referral on this one came from The Capital Grille. Big and bold.
  12. Bodegas Borsao Tinto 2011 $5.95
    Robert Parker called this "Possibly the single greatest dry red wine value in the world" and rated it 90 points. Plug this into the WWP QPR Calculator (what's that?) and you get 3.36: Very Good Value. I've enjoyed other Borsao wines before and I'd bet this one is good too. What do you have to lose at this price point?
Wine Retailers: Do you have an e-commerce site I can peruse and build up a similar list? Drop me an email and let me know.

I'd love it if you subscribed to The Wellesley Wine Press to receive email notifications of new posts. I'm working on some great stuff in the coming weeks.


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/WKnuBPmFcbM/who-needs-sale-when-you-have-empire-wine.html

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Four 2010 Chateauneufs that have a very real chance of slipping away

I'd estimate there's a 60% chance a 2010 Rhone is named Wine Spectator's Wine of the Year this year. And a 40% chance that wine will come from the Southern Rhone - specifically Chateauneuf.

If that happens to any of the 4 wines listed below there is no chance you'll be able to buy them for less than $100/bottle so it might make sense to buy some now before the opportunity gets away.

One thing that's nice about being on the buy side of the wine game is that you can be selective about how you buy wine. You only have to swing at the perfect pitch.

Here are 4 2010 Chateauneufs Wine Spectator rated 95+ points, have a release price of $100 or less, with 1,000 or more cases produced. They're good buys and they're good picks for Scoop the Spectator. One of these hasn't been guessed yet!

DOMAINE ST.-PRÉFERT Châteauneuf-du-Pape Auguste Favier Réserve
97WS/$58/1,665 Cases Produced

St. Prefert seemed to crush it across the board this year. All of their wines scored well relative to their production levels and price points but this one seems to hit the sweet spot.

I caught a bottle of this at $48.95. Best price I see now is $69.99:

Recommendation: I think the ship has largely sailed on this one. Check out their entry level bottling if you're looking to get a feel for this producer. I thought the 2009 St. Prefert Giraud bottling at $55, especially given that the 2010 Prefert Giraud is completely sold out in the US after raking in a 99 point rating from Spectator (and was it a potential perfect score from Parker?)

LE VIEUX DONJON Châteauneuf-du-Pape
96WS/$66/8,000 Cases Produced

I like the way Donjon produces a single bottling rather than fracturing up their offerings in a confusing manner. But beware that this 2010 isn't as approachable in its youth as the gregarious 2007. That said, I've adored their brambly style across several vintages and this is my favorite play in Chateauneuf.

Although this carries a $66 release price, it's available for around $50 if you look around. But it's drying up quickly.

Recommendation: Buy now from a favored retailer. Even if it doesn't win the top spot it's a great buy at $50. Give it the time it needs and enjoy it over the coming decade. While it's aging consider buying some of the amazing 2007 - you can still find some if you look around.

http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/donjon+chateauneuf/2010/usa?Xlist_format=&Xbottle_size=Bottle&Xprice_set=CUR&Xprice_min=&Xprice_max=

DOMAINE DU VIEUX TÉLÉGRAPHE Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Crau

96WS/$78/4,200 Cases Produced

I put this wine on par with Donjon in terms of prestige. It's fantastic. But it's also a little pricier. I've often seen off vintages of this wine in the mid $50s at Costco but better vintages don't seem to make it there.

Recommendation: Buy selectively in the low $60s. Even if this one wins and it escalates into the $150+ range, it's not like $60 is an affordable wine.


DOMAINE GIRAUD Châteauneuf-du-Pape Tradition
95WS/$54/1,300 Cases Produced

I have no experience with this producer but I love the metrics. Parker rated it 92-94 points so it's not like Spectator's 95 is an anomaly. Nobody has guessed this one in Scoop the Spectator yet!

Recommendation: Give it a try. A $40, 95 WS 2010 CdP? Sold.

They even have it on Wine.com icon

If you haven't gotten your entry in for Scoop the Spectator 2012 you still have time. We're playing for a $200 Amazon gift card so it's worth taking a moment to see if you can find an angle:

http://www.wellesleywinepress.com/2012/10/starts-now-scoop-spectator-2012.html


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/MiB1W702Yas/four-2010-chateauneufs-that-have-very.html

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3 Sub-$10 Spanish Monastrell that offer Silly Value

At The Capital Grille's Generous Pour event last year, I discovered a Monastrell that sent me off on a value hunt. The category has had an exceptional batting average for me since so I'm pleased to present three particularly outstanding, mind-bending values for your consideration. But first, here's The Capital Grille's Master Sommelier George Miliotes' thoughts on Monastrell:

Wellesley Wine Press: You have a knack for finding wines that appeal to wine enthusiasts interested in discovering delicious new wines without stretching too far out of their comfort zone. In a nutshell, what?s your philosophy for choosing wines by the glass for The Capital Grille or for events like this one?

George Milotes: "For me, it is all about wines that are well-made and taste good. As solid winemaking practices have spread around the globe, there is a greater pool of diverse and tasty wines to choose from. We love to find areas or wines that are overlooked or underappreciated. Hence, the Tarima Hill Monastrell is part of The Generous Pour Wine Event this year. Monastrell is the greatest underappreciated red in the world today from a growing area (Alicante) that is barely known in Spain, let alone here in the US. We feel privileged to introduce the wine to the U.S. while showing our guests something new and delicious.

Here are three winners I've enjoyed. The price points are unreal and the wines are outstanding.


  • 2011 Bodegas Castaño Monastrell Yecla - Spain, Murcia, Yecla (11/7/2012)

  • Medium bodied visually, this wine is ready to go as soon as its screw cap is opened. Quite nice on the nose with flinty raspberries wrapped around an herbal and floral infused rope. Light on its feet but utterly satisfying with chalky tannins and desirable flavors that convey on the finish. (91 points)

    $7.99 at The Wine Cellar of Stoneham (or 4 for $25 - $6.25/btl)

    Bonus: Rated 90 points by Steve Tanzer's IWC (Josh Raynolds)


  • 2010 Bodegas Juan Gil Jumilla Wrongo Dongo - Spain, Murcia, Jumilla (1/14/2012)

  • A tremendous eye opening wine that'll have me hunting more Monastrell from Spain. It's all here and I can't believe the price point. Paid $8.99 in MA without any case discount. Ample clean fruit, some earth, tremendous balance. Wow. Fire up the QPR alert! (90 points)

    $8.99 (before case discount) at Burlington Wine & Spirits


  • 2009 Bodegas Volver Monastrell Tarima Hill - Spain, Valencia, Alicante (4/26/2012)

  • A blockbuster of a wine offering a tremendous amount of tasty fruit and earthy supporting components. Gets a little fakey grapey at times, and the 15% abv shows itself at points. But my goodness - can you complain in the $8-$9 range? Silly value here. Silly. (89 points)

    Purchased from The Spirit Shoppe

    Posted from CellarTracker


    Related:
    • The Capital Grille has redesigned their website. Have a look if you haven't visited recently.
    • Scoop the Spectator ends Friday! Get your entry in if you haven't already.
    Question of the Day: What are some of your favorite Monastrell?


    Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/1w0s_EdDKh4/3-sub-10-spanish-monastrell-that-offer.html

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    Black Friday in the Carneros Wine Country

    Forget about spending the day after Thanksgiving at your local shopping mall. Give yourself and your family a chance to unwind by taking in the sights and sounds of the Carneros wine country. From San Francisco, Oakland, the Peninsula or … Continue reading

    The post Black Friday in the Carneros Wine Country appeared first on Napa Valley Wine Blog.

    Source: http://www.winecountrygetaways.com/napablog/black-friday-in-the-carneros-wine-country/

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    3rd Annual Detroit Holiday Food Bazaar

    Save the date for the 3rd Annual Detroit Holiday Food Bazaar.  The Gang of Pour will be there again this year selling its Orleans method fermented wine vinegars. This year’s Bazaar will be held in a very cool space, the Jam Handy in Detroit.  There will be many great indie food vendors and probably a [...]

    Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/jVoRyNsm46E/3rd-annual-detroit-holiday-food-bazaar

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    Robert Mondavi 2012 Blessing of the Grapes

    The introductions were made by Margrit Mondavi, a gracious lady, so caring and gregarious. Winemaker Genevieve Janssens spoke about the outlook for this year's harvest. After two previous difficult harvests, she is thankful that 2012 promises to be an outstanding vintage. Continue reading

    The post Robert Mondavi 2012 Blessing of the Grapes appeared first on Napa Valley Wine Blog.

    Source: http://www.winecountrygetaways.com/napablog/robert-mondavi-2012-blessing-of-the-grapes/

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    WBW 74: Value Sparkling Wine

    Sparkling wine is thought of by most American’s as a luxury to be consumed on special occasions like weddings, graduations and New Year’s eve parties. And that’s a shame since sparkling wine is so versatile at the table, pairing with a wide variety of food, made all over the world and available at every price point. Perhaps [...]

    WBW 74: Value Sparkling Wine originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.

    Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Winecast/~3/K33rkIVgVPY/

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