Event

Every weekend we have free tastings of wine and beer that give you a chance to explore the wide world!
Come in this weekend and visit with us!

Saturday afternoon, a time for chores and yard work and running to do all the things that have waited all week! Take a break!
Come by the shop and sample new wines and microbrews that will be certain to bring a smile to your face.
Just relax with friends and neighbors.

The Wines!

Domaine de Martinolles "Le Berceau" Blanquette de Limoux $13.99

The Limoux wine region is at the western most point of the Languedoc and is located just south of the medieval city of Carcassonne. It has a unique geoclimate, a situation due to the dual influences of the Atlantic which brings cool and wet weather and the Mediterranean which delivers hot and dry conditions.

The Vergnes family has owned the Domaine de Martinolles since 1926. The estate which has been enlarged over the generations lies on the same hillsides that the monks of St. Hilaire cultivated in 1531 when they produced the world’s first sparkling wine.

The vines, which are planted in chalky soils at elevations ranging from 200 to 600 meters, are worked traditionally without herbicides or fertilizers. Domaine de Martinolles is a member of Terra Vitis, an organization that certifies the practice of sustainable agriculture.

Domaine de Martinolles, Blanquette de Limoux

The Vergnes limit their yields in the vineyard to 40 hectoliters per hectare. Harvesting is done by hand and the Blanquette de Limoux is kept for a minimum of nine months on the lees before being disgorged. The “Le Berceau” which translates to “cradle” a reference to the birthplace of sparkling wine, is produced from the Mauzac grape, a traditional grape of this region. It is produced using the Methode Traditionnelle (Champenoise).

Marcel Giraudon Bourgogne Aligote, Chitry $12.99

Chitry-Le-Fort, as the name suggests, was once a fortified town and in the Middle Ages the main road, La Grande Rue, formed the boundary between the lands of the Count of Tonnerre in Champagne and the Count of Auxerre in Burgundy. In the 19^th century wines of Chitry were sold under the name of Chablis and more recently in 1929 the wines were accorded the name of Bourgogne des Environs de Chablis. Today Chitry is one of four viticultural communes of the Auxerrois and wines are labeled as Bourgogne or Bourgogne Chitry.

The Giraudon family has been farming and making wine in Chitry for centuries, and the current proprietor, Marcel Giraudon, follows very traditional methods in his work. Their vineyards are on hillsides of Kimmeridgian chalky marl as one finds in Grand Cru Chablis. Yields in the vineyard are kept modest and harvesting is done by hand. For the white wines, fermentation is carried out in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks and for the pinot noir mainly fiberglass vats are used with a “drapeau d’eau” for temperature control.

The terroir at Chitry is particularly well suited for the Aligoté grape which makes up 40 percent of the vines planted in the area. Marcel Giraudon has six of his 18.5 hectares planted to Aligoté. The wine goes through a malo-lactic fermentation which adds a lovely middle palate to its vibrant fruity and mineral qualities.

Domaine Bruno Dufeu Bourgeil Cabernet Franc $15.99

François and Marie-Therèse Subrin farm 5 hectares of land in the village of Sarcy, a village situated on a high plateau tucked between the Monts Beaujolais and the Monts Lyonnais in the southwest corner of the Beaujolais appellation. The Subrin’s vineyard is planted on granite soils with significant deposits of quartz and feldspar. On average, the vines are 40 years old. François and Marie-Therèse farm organically and utilize principles of biodynamic agriculture. To insure maximum health and ripeness for their grapes, they severely limit the yields (for the vintage 2010, yields were 32hl/h) and they are willing to harvest late into the growing season (as was the case with 2012, when they harvested between September 21 and October 03).

Beaujolais

Vinification follows standard semi-carbonic practices while adhering to a “natural” approach. Indigenous yeasts are used, there is no heating of the vats and no sulfur is used during the entire process until just before bottling when the dose of 15mg/L is introduced.

Domaine du Crêt de Bine challenges the hierarchal supposition that a wine from southern Beaujolais cannot achieve the same intensity and complexity as wines from the Crus Beaujolais.

Domaine Les Ondine Vacqueyras Rouge $17.99

Domaine Les Ondines is situated in the village of Sarrians in the heart of the Vacqueyras appellation. The Ondes own 6 hectares in Côtes du Rhône, 18 hectares in Vacqueyras, and 12 hectares in Côtes du Rhône Villages “Le Plan Dieu” which they farm “en fermage”. The family has grown grapes for many generations but Jérémy is the first generation to make and bottle the wine at the estate. Starting in 2008, Jérémy has farmed his vineyards in accordance with the principles of organic farming and he is awaiting certification.

Yields are kept exceptionally low and the emphasis is on keeping the purity of the fruit in the wines. In the summer of 2006 Barbara and I went to the Vacqueyras festival and I met Jeremy behind his stand. His wine was my favorite of the festival. In 2007 we went to visit him at his winery where we retasted the Vacqueyras and tasted the CDR and the Plan de Dieu. We were very impressed by the straightforwardness of his wines, the quality of fruit that he brings out and the overall balance of the wines.

Vacqueyras Rouge

The Vacqueyras is a blend of 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah and 10% Cinsault. The Cinsault vines are over 50 years old. The vineyard is situated in the “plateau des Garrigues” which is an alluvial plateau filled with gravel and pebbles. The three varieties are fermented separately in stainless steel vats. The syrah is matured in barrels, not new, for at least nine months after which a blend is made from the different components.