2017 Melanie Pfister ‘Paar’
Alsace, FR
Regular Price $27.99
Sale price $21.99
The vineyard surface is six acres, essentially split between Pinot Blanc and Pinot Auxerrois. Some is reserved for the sparkling wine, but most goes into this still bottling. Pinot Blanc gives perfume and length; Auxerrois gives fat and spice. Most of the current crop of vines was planted in 1973 and ’74, with a small section dating from the late ’60s, and all grow in predominantly clay soils
2017 Normand Pouilly Fuissé
Burgundy, FR
Regular Price $37.99
Sale price $29.99
The Normand holdings in Solutré are divided among 15 parcels, and the wine for this, the classique, come from 30-40-year-old vines. Normally, the wine is made in tank, but in some years a few barrels are also used. Production averages 800 cases in a normal year. The famous Rock of Solutré dominates the skyline, and vineyards come off of its south-eastern flank to dip into a little valley and then climb back up the opposite side to face northeast. The highest and lowest vineyards are classed AOC Mâcon; the middle of the flanks are reserved for Pouilly-Fuissé.
2018 Famille Chasselay ‘Quatre Saisons’
Beaujolais, FR
Regular Price $23.99
Sale price $18.99
Fifteen acres, parsed among many parcels, are reserved for Quatre Saisons. Some parcels grow in limestone soils, others in granitic soils. Average vine age is 55 years old. Fermentation is normally all whole cluster to emphasize Beaujolais’s characteristic fruit. The wine is raised for roughly 4 months in huge, old wooden casks. 1,650 cases annually.
2015 Domaine les Hautes Cances Cotes du Rhone ‘Tradition’
Cairanne, FR
Regular Price $19.99
Sale price $15.99
Roughly 45% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 20% Cinsault, 10% Carignan, and 5% Mourvèdre. Vines average 50+ years of age. Wine aged in older Burgundy barrels. 1,000 cases annually.