We are celebrating Earth Day this week by pouring wine from some of our favorite organic producers.  All these vineyards are organically and sustainably farmed although they may not be certified.  These wine makers just do the right thing without making a big fuss about it.  Their wines however ARE worth making a fuss over.  They are fine examples from the Loire, Costieres de Nimes, Chianti, Zamora, & the Rhône.

2013 Thomas Sancerre La Crele $25
Sauvignon Blanc
The Thomas family has been growing grapes and making wine in Sancerre since 1670. The Thomas’  19 hectares  encompass all three soils types in the appellation: flinty soils, Kimmeridgian limestone, and gravelly slopes of caillottes.  It is not a lean Sancerre; rather, both their terroir and the house style make a wine of great amplitude and texture, with a long, lingering finish.

2015 Chateau d’Or et de Gueules, Rose “Les Cimels” $13
4% Cinsault, 33% Grenache, 33% Mourvèdre
A dry and elegantly full blend with flavors of Strawberry, mineral, and sweet herbs.

2013 Selvapiana  Chianti Rufina $17
95% Sangiovese, 5% Canaiolo
this opens with aromas of pressed rose, crushed violet, wild berry and a whiff of baking spice. The vibrant, focused palate delivers juicy red cherry, raspberry, white pepper, cinnamon and dried herb. It’s well-balanced with supple tannins and bright acidity.”

2008 Alejandro Fernández , Dehesia la Granja $19
Tempranillo
The third single vineyard estate from the makers of Pesquera. The wine is aged two years in American oak, and bottled unfiltered.  The wine is smoky with dark fruit, toasty oak and dark chocolate aromas on the nose.  It is full-bodied, smooth and brooding Spanish red.

2013 Beaucastel, Coudoulet Rouge $32
40% Grenache, 30% Mourvedre, 20% Syrah, 10% Cinsault
The vineyard for the Coudoulet lay just outside of the Châteauneuf du Pape appellation and the wine drinks much more like a Châteauneuf than a Cotes du Rhone.   The nose evokes aromas of red fruit, blackberries, black cherries and licorice. In the mouth one finds hints of wild thyme and a finely structured wine that shows very good length.

Madrona Wine Merchants offers free wine tastings featuring 4-5 selections on a theme every Saturday from 2 until the bottles run out and on Sunday we offer a mini-tasting of two wines all day from 11-5.