The Rare Wines Tasting
Saturday, June 22, 2024 @ 1 - 4 p.m.
All the wines for this tasting are rare, limited, and a true expression of fine artistry and a deep care for craftsmanship.
These selections are entertaining and bring something new and different, while keeping consideration for higher summer temperatures and cuisine to match.
Bodegas Conde Valdemar 2023 Blanco – Rioja, Spain
Talk about rare… Tempranillo is a red grape and makes red wine. Several years back the folks at Valdemar found green grapes growing on some of their Tempranillo vines due to a mutation. So, they made wine out of these grapes, found it to be delicious, something different, and they now cultivate these vines to make what they call Tempranillo Blanco. This wine is low in acid, aged 4 months on the lees in tank, no oak - floral and pretty on the nose, and full of tropical tones on the palate. Versatile, pairs with any lighter fair, and sips great by itself on the patio draped in a summer evening!
te Pā 2022 Sauvignon Blanc – Marlborough, New Zealand
Most of the fruit comes from the Wairau area carved out 14,000 years ago by a glacier. It is a combination of large deposits of gravel, rocks, and silt. Makes for good drainage, and being by the seaside gets high exposure to sunshine. Take all the best attributes of the Loire Valley and Bordeaux area of France and put it in New Zealand. The indigenous Māori Polynesian people have lived in and cultivated this land for the last 800 years. Today, this family cultivates mostly Sauvignon Blanc and pinot Gris. This wine is 100% Sauvignon Blanc and comes off like no other with vibrant lime, lemon grass, herbs, limestone, minerals – finishing bright and crisp with a long finish! Perfect with anything that lives in water. I swear it tastes better the hotter summer gets. Enjoy this rare estate, we do not see wines from Wairau very often.Super Marfil – Barcelona, Spain
This wine is a complete one off, and only 1,500 bottles a year are made. This was the wild idea of several wine makers in and around Barcelona wondering… what if? Made from 70% Pansa Blanca – also known as Xarello, and 30% Garnacha Blanca – the green Garnacha grape. Yes, it sees time in oak, however, it is using the solera method with old sherry barrels. The base was a 1976 barrel, this bottling is a blend of 2018, 2019, 2020, and 2021 vintages. As for what is in the bottle, it’s a white wine with a hint of an amber tone. If you like dry sherry and wish it was made into an everyday wine, this is it! Sort of difficult to describe, each wine drinker with have their own individual experience… I get subtle tones of baked almonds, lemon, orange rind, tiny hint of butterscotch, and punchy oak. It would be great with strong cheese, fruit, tapas, aged meats, and anything your imagination can think-up! Rest assured, if you like this, nothing else compares, and with only 1,500 bottles made a year, not too many will know its secret.2020 Coteaux Bourguignons - Bourgogne, France
Bourgogne, France is known for superior Pinot Noir and Chardonnay wines, typically coming from specific regions within the larger area. In 2011 the new designation of Coteaux Bourguignons gave wine makers the ability to still make quality wine in Bourgogne, but with more artistic expression and creativity. For instance, red Bourgogne is typically all or almost all Pinot Noir. This wine happens to be 80% Gamay & 20% Pinot Noir. Yes, there is some Gamay grown in Bourgogne - borrowing from their Beaujolais neighbor to the south. What all this means… you get a red blend with Bourgogne flair and complexity in a light-weight package and perfect for summer! It is a strawberry and raspberry bomb with subtle undertones of cinnamon spice, forest floor, and smooth tannins! Try it with a little chill!Bodegas Costers Del Sió 2021 Cau del Gat – Costers del Segre, Spain
Being 70% Garnacha, 20% Tempranillo, 10% Syrah, this blend is strikingly like the great Chateauneuf-du-Pape wines from France’s southern Rhône Valley. This blend is from northwest of Barcelona, not too far from the Pyrenees Mountains. Due to a Continental climate the growing season is hot and very dry. These conditions put a great deal of energy into the grapes. Every bit of that sundrenched heat can be felt as the wine bursts forth from glass to palate. Though brawny and rich, there is elegance with the back-n-forth play between big fruit, tight tannins, and just the right amount to oak aging – 9 months to be exact. Steeped red fruits, blueberries, spice, earth, and a hint of smokey bacon fat shine prominently in this amazing and limited blend! Yes, as the label states, this is a limited-edition wine. Even more tempting is the price, selling for about a third to half what Chateauneuf-du-Pape goes for these days!
