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We will be closing at 4:30 on Thursday, December 24th. We will be closed Christmas Day. And, we are always closed December 26th - "Boxing Day" as Rich likes to call it - I think because he and his siblings would fight over presents. As fate would have it, then we are closed regularly Sunday and Monday. So the gang gets a real Christmas break. I think they've earned it. So fair warning... come load up this week so you can make it through the break! Now, I've got three wines to offer you... you can click on the header to jump to the wine...  Tolaini Legit Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Regularly $45 (which is also the best US Price on wine-searcher.com)
Sale $29.99 - save 33% - Beats Best US Price Online
Buy 6 or more and pay $26.99 per bottle - save 40% - Beats Best US Price by $5 per bottle
94 pts Wine Spectator - #26 Wine of the Year 2019
I've explained the label many times... the importers love Thelonius Monk, and developed a friendship with his family. “We are proud to offer this wine as a tribute to the timelessness of Monk's music. Pulitzer Prize winner, respected composer (his single "Round Midnight" is the most recorded Jazz single to date) AND who today is still referred to as the epitome of Jazz, Thelonious Monk has and will always set the bar for all things LEGIT!”
Rich actually texted me the first time he tasted this. “How can we NOT offer this? It is as the name implies!”
Which is to say, it is everything a Cabernet from Tuscany, Italy can and should be. Full of rich, ripe blackberry and cherry fruit, along with hints of anise and minerals, along with just the perfect hint of sour cherry that seems to define all great Tuscan reds. Fine, dusty tannins hold up the finish, completing the package. It’s drinking like a dream right now, but has another 10+ years in it for sure. Wine Spectator says another 17.
“This is broad and incisive, delivering black currant, plum, leather, earth and wild herb flavors. Dense and beefy, yet with ample fruit for balance, driven by vibrant acidity. This is starting to mellow but still has years of life ahead. Drink now through 2036.” WS
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Or reply. The wine is available today in Chapel Hill. Wednesday in Hillsborough.
It's Back! And possibly better than ever... 2019 is quite a vintage for Burgundy, with severe frost greatly reducing yields, followed by a warm, dry summer has led to a small harvest of concentrated, hedonistic wines. While that is a mixed bag for fans of the Cotes de Nuits and Beaune, for fans of the Macon, and their slightly more opulent wines, it is a dream vintage! I have 40 cases hitting this week. Likely gone by next and then we wait for the next boat to arrive...
 Domaine des Granges Macon Fuisse 2019
(label for illustrative purposes)
- Buy 6 or more pay $14.99
- All Else Sale $16.99
The secret to this incredible value? This wine comes from the heart of the Pouilly-Fuisse appellation but from higher altitude vineyards which were never classified as Pouilly-Fuisse. To be blunt, the soil is the soil… and Pouilly-Fuisse has some great soil! And routinely fetches $40 and up. But in decades past, the altitude of this vineyard meant the vines only ripened in exceptional vintages. Enter Global Warming… obviously, not a great thing, but a reality that we find ourselves dealing with. In this case it means these higher altitude vineyards are now in the “sweet spot”, ripening fruit to perfection year after year, while offering vibrant acidity that comes from the altitude and more severe day/night temperature swings.
This gem is 100% stainless steel fermentation and aging. Naked, as it were. Scandalous! Owner Yannick Paquet is relentlessly meticulous in his vineyards, so he wants for you to taste nothing but the fruit and the terroir. This gem offers a brilliant, juicy nose of flowers, tropical fruits and a stony minerality (think water from a running stream). The flavors are ultra expressive this year, as yields were down thanks to the aforementioned frosts. The result is intense flavors - the wine explodes across your tongue offering juicy peach, tropical fruit and citrus flavors all with a touch of raw honey on the clean finish. Sign me up! This wine’s clarity and vibrancy make it a wonderful aperitif, or for pairing with fish and shellfish of all manner. Focus on simple flavors to allow the wine to dance and shine!
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or reply. The wine is available today in Chapel Hill. Wednesday in Hillsborough.
How 'Bout a Nip of Port?  Quinta do Noval “Black” Port
Sale $19.99 – Beats Best NC Price Online
90 pts Wine Advocate / 91 pts Wine & Spirits
I “discovered” this baby a over the holidays last year while out to dinner with my beautiful bride. The restaurant was featuring cocktails made with Noval Black … and I, being a professional drinker, said “Why not?” I had a Manhattan, with the Noval Black as the replacement for sweet vermouth. Wow! T’was delicious! My beautiful bride had some sort of holiday punch… also fabulous! Then, when dinner was over, with a little chocolate mousse cake for dessert, we indulged in a glass, straight. Honestly, I cannot decide which was my favorite iteration! Although Port and chocolate is pretty hard to beat. Especially this XMas, when the temps are dipping into the 20’s!
.jpg) So what is this gem like? It is a “ruby” port, as opposed to “tawny”, meaning the emphasis is on the fruit. As a young port, aged for just a few years in a combination of barrels and stainless steel tanks, it is actually quite “wine-like”. I’ve known some unscrupulous fellows who have snuck it into Zinfandel tastings as a “ringer!” Dark blackberry and cherry flavors play nicely with hints of spice and chocolate before a fine, long finish. Serve just a little below room temperature to emphasize the fruit flavors! Trust me…
“Laced with an invigorating eucalyptus/cistus aromatic, it is always elegant in the mid-palate yet somehow still solid, something I find Noval does very well. It was one of the relatively few in this report that actually seemed better two days later (and most of the others were unfiltered). There is plenty of finesse and lift to the fruit. It is pointed, ripe and chock full of flavor while still showing off some power and structure. This was, in fact, a bit tight on opening. One of the more distinctive Reserves (in part, thanks to the aromatics), this is very well done at a good price point. It became one of my favorites. It is lovely and exceeds expectations, so I'm leaning up on this a bit. It should still be drunk young, as it won't reward aging. “WA
“Black replaces LB, Noval’s former entry in this range, and uses top-quality fruit to create a soft, accommodating texture. The aromas are purple-black while the flavors are pure black cherry. Acidity spices it up and adds to the juiciness of the finish. It’s plump in the middle and supple all the way through, ending on fruit-skin tannin and a touch of chocolate from oak. At the level of many of the region’s best LBVs, this wine may become a staple for a new generation of Port drinkers.” W&S
Or reply.The wine will be available Wednesday in both stores, as ordered.
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