Staff Picks - What to Drink this Week
Try these special, staff-selected libations!
2021 Teutonic Wine Company Bacalao Tannat - $34.99
When Barnaby and Olga visited the Basque Region of Spain and France and tasted some of the Tannat wine produced there, they were hooked and dead-set on making this wine. It's quite a departure from his usual cool climate Rieslings from Oregon. These grapes come from California and “Bacalao” means Salt Cod in Basque and is a traditional dish in the region. This wine is dense and velvety, revealing layers of purple fruit and with barrel fermentation the tannins are tamed. It is deep, unfiltered and quite frankly...divine.
-Angie
2022 Domaine de l'Agramante 'Marfisa' Rouge - $19.99
Sicilian Carlo La Rocca left his profession as an engineer in 2018 to make wine in the Southern Rhone in the town of Sabran. He focuses on organic farming and minimal intervention allowing for bright and nuanced wines. The Marifisa is a blend of predominantly Grenache with a dollop of Syrah that showcases the pretty red berry fruit of Grenache and the spice and structure of Syrah. The nose shows notes of mulberry fruit and licorice and the medium palate delivers rich red fruit balanced with acid. This is a throwback Rhone wine that is not like many of the modern heavy handed, higher alcohol reds that we have been seeing over the last decade. Try this quaffable red with shepherd's pie or smash burgers.
-Rob
Vignobles Feray Pet Nat - $24.99
There's always a good reason to celebrate when there's a sparkling wine like this to enjoy. Pétillant naturel wines get their bubbles from their own fermentation processes which allows for great variation in what they can be by the time of bottling. Popping the cork on these wines can be thought of like revealing if an oyster has produced a pearl or a pile of sand. This 100% Chenin Blanc pet nat from the Loire Valley in France is absolutely a pearl and drinks beautifully. There are evident flavors of apples with subtle notes of cheese rind accentuated by its naturality. This wine works as an aperitif on its own or accompanying rich dishes with truffles!
-Olivia
2019 Agricola Macatho 'Cana Dulce, Cinsault, Trehuaco Valle de Itata, Chile - $33.99
Chilean winemaker, Macarena del Rio, and Frenchman, Thomas Parayre, met on a grape harvest, fell in love, and started their own winery, Macatho, in 2016.
Together, they work with local growers in the Itata Valley of Southern Chile to farm vineyards organically and produce wines true to the region. Their Cana Dulce is 100% Cinsault from small parcels grown in granite and loam soils in the Trehuaco area of the Itata. The climate is warm, sunny, and dry with Pacific Ocean breezes cooling the vineyards. The Cinsault goes through Carbonic Maceration and native yeast fermentation, then 1 year resting on the lees in the same stainless steel tanks before bottling unfiltered and unfined. The result is a wine full of fresh cherry blossom and juicy flavors of plum compote, strawberry, black pepper, and earthy smooth tannins.
Salud!
-Patrick
Venn Brewing; Luna Obscura - $10.49
In case you don't want to pull up Google Translate, "luna obscura" means "dark moon" in English, which might be one of the most metal-sounding names for a beer I've heard in a while. I'm generally a huge fan of beers that are easy-drinking but also have a bit of dark roastiness to them, especially during fall. Luna Obscura is a Mexican dark lager from Venn that perfectly scratches that itch. If you've ever wanted a beer that floats in the region between a standard lager and a German dunkel, this is it. Luna Obscura is great for any fall occasion
-Nick N
