Event

Each Thursday we open just one bottle of exceptional wine.

One that not only do we think is excellent, but that has received critical plaudits as well.

Usually rated in the 90's, we discount it by 20 - 40%.

A great wine at a great value.

It's what we do to be certain

Every day is a Special Occasion at The Wine Cabinet!!

Miguel Merino 

Mazuelo de la Quinta Cruz 

2010 

Rioja, Spain 

"...an unusual and flavorful single vineyard bottling made entirely of Mazuelo, which is known as Carignan in France and America.

There's a gentility and refinement to the wine that's not unlike the winemaker himself, and their complexity produces both pleasure and engages the intellect, again, much like spending time with Miguel." Richard Jennings Huffington Post 92 Points

Our Thoughts on this winemaker and his wines....

In a word - OUTSTANDING! We sell more of Miguel Merino's wines than anyone else in America for a reason - his absolute commitment to excellence and to providing the customer a memorable experience in wine. By the way, there is both Father and Son and while they are different people they are the same in their philosophies and their determination to "walk the talk". This is a wine that I keep in my cellar, as I do teh Rioja Riserva and the Rioja Jovenes (young vines). 

Do not miss this opportunity.

 Regularly $26.99

Special Sale Price Tonight Only 

$19.00  bottle

6 or more bottles

$16.00

Don’t want to miss the sale?
Can’t make it Thursday?
Click here or call us,

 first come first served!

703-668-WINE (9463)

Miguel's Thoughts on this wine.....

"...the first one hundred per cent Mazuelo produced in the high part of La Rioja. Because Mazuelo is a more productive variety than Tempranillo, we do quite a strong green hárvest to reduce the yield and obtain a high level of concentration. We age it for some five to eight months in 12 barrels, six of them american oak and six french, half of them new and half used previously for the same wine. > Nico and Romain, sommeliers at Mugaritz restaurant (rated among the top ten in the world), tell me that when they are trying to find a wine to match with some "nouvelle cuisine" dish, they often end up trying with our Mazuelo, and ...it always works.

Miguel's Story……

Since the beginning of my exporting career I have long dreamt of having my own small "bodega", where I could make a few bottles of wine of the best quality possible. Briones, in the heart of the Rioja Alta,  gathered all the conditions  I was looking for: old steep vineyards of Tempranillo grapes, chalky soil and a climate showing a marked Atlantic influence. Declared a town of historic and artistic merit, Briones is where we decided to site our bodega.

Twenty years ago, we restored an old 19th Century house on the outskirts of the town. On the adjoining land we built facilities for vinification, barrel and bottle ageing and planted a small experimental vineyard.

Now, as one of the smallest and youngest wineries in Spain —our first vintage was 1994— our wines are among the most prestigious in the country, and we are exporting them to over 30 markets. This encourages us to grow, not in quantity, but to constantly improve our style; how to get the best from each grape and each barrel. To continue to enjoy our wine-making.

It is easy to obtain an average wine from fantastic vines, but it is impossible to create a great wine out of bad grapes, and that explains our obsession for finding the small, old vineyards that nobody else wanted to work. Some planted so long ago that were designed to be tilled by horses, no tractors then. Vineyards whose grapes have the fruit, structure and intensity required to produce a grand wine. Using traditional methods which are Nature friendly we take care of eight vineyards in our town, Briones:

Mazuelo de la Quinta Cruz (1982). Mazuelo is a difficult grape, with a very long growth cycle which requires heat and time to ripe. That is why it is so unusual in Rioja Alta. However, when planted in the adequate soil and grown with care and patience it becomes a wonderful grape, able to give spicy, deep and unique wines of great colour and vibrant acidity..