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September 4, 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM Wine of the Month Selections - Two Value Wines
from Down Under
It is difficult to pick up any current
wine publication and not read about the increasing popularity of wines from
Australia and New Zealand. We have observed this phenomenon here at the store
as well. Why are these wines steadily increasing in popularity? Let me put
forth several reasons. One key reason is that most of these wines are
labeled by the name of the grape variety and not some weird European place
name that would be unfamiliar to most customers. No strange names like
Sancerre or Pouilly Fuisse down here! There is nothing wrong with wines
named for their place of origin, but local customers respond more
positively to grape varieties such as Merlot and Chardonnay. A second
reason for the rising popularity of Down Under wines is the fact that they
are often great values for the money. Australia and New Zealand have responded to the fact that there are not very
many people to drink the wines in their countries. There are more sheep in
those countries than there are people! In order to compete in the world
market they have to increase quality and production. They have used
skillful mechanized production methods to lower their cost so that many of these
wines are substantially less expensive that comparable California wines. Add to this the fact that the top Napa and Sonoma wines have prices that are constantly spiraling ever
higher and these wines from Australia and New Zealand come off looking like an even better deal. The third
reason is the style of these wines. While New Zealand often struggles with their reds, the Kiwis own
Sauvignon Blanc. The Marlborough region's cool climate and limestone soils are
virtually ideal for making this prolific varietal taste good. Sauvignon
Blanc vines tend to grow with a lot of vigor. While that sounds good, what
that means is that it tends to devote much of its metabolism to producing
vegetation in the form of leaves and stems. The result of this is vegetal
tasting wine. Marlborough's cooler climate slows down the vigorous growth
resulting in wines that are crisp, citrusy and clean. Additionally, Kiwi
winemakers eschew the use of oak and let the bright fruit flavors stand
out. Australia's reds are on fire with popularity right now. The
popularity of Shiraz is well documented, but we have found that they are
making progress with Merlot. Their reds showcase deep color, rich, sweet
fruit flavors and mild, well resolved tannins. We have found that most
customers perceive tannins as bitter, but these soft and fruity Aussie reds
hit their palate just right. We have found a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc
and an Australian Merlot that we think the wine of the month members will
respond to. We hope you enjoy this month's selections. -Gordon
Dusky Sound Sauvignon Blanc 2003 Marlborough, New Zealand John and Jennifer Joslin originally planned to spend
the rest of their lives sailing the seas in their custom built yacht,
"Dancing Wave". Little did they know that when they dropped
anchor in New Zealand that they would fall in love with Blenheim and the Marlborough region and build a winery there. The name of the
winery is Mud House after a unique mud block house that was built in the
vineyard. This mud block house offers luxury guest accommodations in front
of a babbling brook. The Dusky Sound label is named for the inlet where
British explorer Captain Cook dropped anchor to explore New Zealand. Today visitors to Dusky Sound can explore
shipwrecks, go scuba diving and observe numerous seals on the rocks. Mud
House winery must be doing something right because their sales have grown
from 300 cases to above 50,000 since 1996. Winemaker Matt Thompson utilizes
estate grapes along with grapes grown by neighboring friends to create
these exceptional wines. The Sauvignon Blanc is grown in limestone soil in
cool areas and harvested at optimum ripeness. After a gentle pressing away
from the skins, the juice is fermented in stainless steel tanks without any
exposure to oak. The idea is to maintain the crisp fresh character of the
fruit. The wine is crisp, light and fresh with aromas of grapefruit,
gooseberry and passion fruit. The palate has similar flavors delivered on a
clean and crisp frame. Serve this refreshing wine with boiled spiced shrimp
or Coquilles Saint Jacques. $11.95 WOM member price, $13.95 regular
price
Westend Estate Down Under Merlot 2003 In 1945, Italian immigrants Francesco and Elizabeth
Calabria purchased a five acre block of land in New South Wales, Australia. This piece of land was planted with grapes and the
winery constructed there was christened the Calabria winery. The reigns were passed on to son Bill in 1974
who changed the name to Westend estate. Bill also
played in a rock band and was a welterweight boxing champion in the area.
Bill has become a champion winemaker as well, considering that his wines
have won numerous medals and accolades in Australia. He uses traditional open fermenters for the reds and
then finishes them in a combination of new and previously used oak barrels.
The wines have dark color, rich fruit aromas and notes of vanilla and
chocolate. The Down Under Merlot shows smoky plum aromas and rich, sweet
silky fruit on the palate. The tannins on the finish are soft and non
aggressive. Serve this sensuous, luscious red with grilled meats or a rack
of lamb roasted with rosemary and garlic.$11.95 WOM member price, $13.95
regular price
The Three Thieves Have Struck Again Regular customers will remember the one liter jugs of
California Zinfandel and Cabernet we have featured in the past. The labels
feature outlaw-looking horsemen that promote themselves as,
"liberators of fine wine". Once again, they have come out with a
great value wine in an innovative and unusual package. The new one is
called Bandit Bianco and is a crisp clean white wine made from
Trebbiano grapes from Italy. The new and unusual package, known as a tetrapack,
is something of a box constructed of layers of cardboard, plastic and foil.
The whole affair is topped off with a screw cap type lid. The beauty of
this deal is that you get a liter of crisp, clean delicious white wine for
the incredibly low price of $6.95! This exciting new wine is not wine of
the month but we thought it would be fun to open it up and sample out this
Saturday. So come on down and try these three wines.$6.95
To become a Wine
of the Month member...
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