Sunday, Mark will be pouring some lovely fresh Italian wines to wind up our Italian Weekend — all day from 11 to 5. Stop on in.

2012 Camene Terre Siciliane Bianco    ($9)
Grecanico and Insolia
A fragrant and inviting wine with fleshy melony roundness and almond toffee notes held together with a grapeskin grippiness with white pepper on the finish.
13% alcohol by volume

2010 Talamonti ModA’    ($10)
100% Montepulciano d’Abruzzo
A full, dark and chewy Montelpuciano. Lots of fruit and a little brooding herbaciousness.13% alcohol by volume

Italy never ceases to amaze us with its endless quality and variety.  This Saturday we’ve assembled yet another collection of rich, unique and delicious Italian wines.  Come have a taste and find some new favorites.  

2012 Tenuta di Corte Giacobbe, Soave  $13
Garganega
The Dal Cero family has been producing wine for over three generations, with vineyards in the Veneto and Tuscany regions.  Their Soave has delicate scents of flowers & fruits and strong pear and apple notes.  The body is rich with white fruit flavors and almond notes on the finish and a long, persistent aftertaste.
 
2009 Montenidoli Vinbrusco  $14
65% Trebbiano Gentile, 35% Malvasia Bianca
Montenidoli (mountain of the little nests) was abandoned and overgrown when Sergio Muratori and Elisabetta Fagiuoli arrived with their 9 children in 1965. Today, their 24 hectare estate of vineyards located in San Gimignano focuses on indigenous varietals using organic farming methods.  The vinbrusco is free run juice from the Trebbiano and Malvasia grapes.  It ferments in steel and ages on the lees to acquire body and softness.  It’s full round fruit and big mouthfeel set the white apart.  Was $20 Now $14

2011 Palazzo Malgara, Nerello Mascalese  $13
Nerello Mascalese is indigenous to the slopes of the Mount Etna in the northeastern part of the Sicily. Extremely aromatic Palazzo’s Mascalese has aromas of violets along with wild strawberry and raspberry flavors and dry and very elegant tannins.
 
2009 Azienda Agricola Nottola, Rosso di Montepulciano  $15
80% Prugnolo Gentile (Sangiovese) 15% Cannaiolo, 5% Mammolo
Located in the picturesque countryside of Montepulciano, Nottola was founded in 1992 and started making the traditional wines of the region at a great value.  Their Rosso has aromas of dark berry fruits with hints of violet and a smooth body with notes of dark fruits harmoniously balanced with soft tannin.

2009 Pelassa, San Pancrazio, Barbera d’Alba Superiore $20
Located in Montà d’ Alba, in the Roero area of Piedmont, Pelassa owns 12 hectares vineyards focusing on Arneis, Nebbiolo & Barbera. The San Pancrazio is a cru Barbera with an intense bouquet, delicate with hints of ripe forest fruits & dark black berries.  It is full-bodied & harmonious, balanced with tannins well blended in a generous and persistent body.  Dark, concentrated fruits linger through the finish.  The wine received 4 stars from Decanter.

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. No matter what day you stop by we always have something open to sample.

Fall has arrived with startling mix of weather changing moment to moment.  And with it comes a new container of wine from France carrying fantastic Rhône Reds from the 2012 vintage.  We’ll be pouring them Saturday starting at 2pm.  Grab the umbrella and come check them out.

Sunday, Mark will be pouring two more wines from the motherland. 

2011 Ravier, Chignin Bereran  $12
This full bodied Roussanne from the Savoie, is rich with a bit of herbaceousness.

2011 Château Bellegrave, Medoc  $13
35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 60% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc & 3% Petit Verdot
A new vintage of an old favorite,  the Bellegrave has aromas of licorice, coffee, and strawberry and cherry fruit.  Medium bodied with smooth tannins and tasty fruit.

They’ll be open all day,  11 to 5.

The 2012 vintage of Rhône reds are hitting our shores and shelves.  It is a big and forward vintage with some of the lesser Village wines flexing as much muscle as Châteaunuef and Gigondas.  It is a good year to find big wines at great value.  This Saturday we’ll be pouring a few of them.  Come taste for yourself.
 
2013 Le Perles, Vin d’Pays d’Oc Viognier$10
Before we dive in to the Rhône reds we are going to pour this crisp, value Viognier from the Languedoc.   Its ripe fruit is balanced by herbal aromatics.
 
2013 Domaine J. P. Lafond Tavel Rosé  $21
Grenache 60%, Cinsault 10%, Syrah 10%, Carigna 5% and with Clairette, Picpoul, Bourboulenc, Mourvèdre.
Pascal Lafond’s 65-hectare family-run estate is located in the rosé-only appellation of Tavel.  His Rosé is top of its class. “The predominating aromas are complex: red and white fruit associated with floral notes. With time, these fruity aromas will evolve toward more mellow notes with a touch of spice and stone fruits, and the color will take on amber tints. As of its first year, it disposes of all the necessary aromas to be appreciated, but it also has an exceptional ageing potential.”
 
2012 Domaine Olivier Hillaire Côtes-du-Rhône Vieilles Vignes  $18
80% Grenache and 20% Syrah
A rock-solid effort, the 2012 Cotes du Rhone Vieilles by Olivier Hillaire screams Southern Rhone on the nose, with plenty of spice, saddle leather and garrigue.  It has exceptional polish and grace to complement its bright red fruit flavors.  Its length and density belies its lowly appellation. Drink now-2018
 
2012 Domaine Boisson Côtes-du-Rhône Villages Cairanne $23
70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre
The grapes for Boisson’s Cairanne come from a blend of 20 years old vines and some astonishing 110 years old vines. The result is a complex wine that marries freshness (from the younger, higher-cropping vines) with awesome concentration from the venerable old plants that produce just a tiny volume of extremely high-quality juice.  “Warm, inviting aromas combine with a fleshy, unctuous palate of mellow licorice, black pepper, star anise and prune to give a sinfully-good, memorable drinking experience. Luscious and satisfying.”
 
2012 Domaine Pierre Usseglio & Fils Côtes-du-Rhône $25
70%Grenache, 20% Mourvedre, 10% Cinsault
Usseglio’s Châteaunuef scored 95pts in 2012, but so far his Côtes-du-Rhône is under the radar.  Not for long we think.  The wine has predominate dark cherry notes with dried herbs, charcoal, pepper nose; tasty, dried herbs, charcoal, pepper, mineral palate; and a good finish.

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. No matter what day you stop by we always have something open to sample.

Sunday, Mark will be pouring some lovely fresh Spanish wines all day from 11 to 5. Stop on in.

2013 Honoro Vera     ($9)
Monastrell
Jumilla
A full-bodied Spanish Monastrell. Lots of dark fruit. NEW VINTAGE! Same great taste, lower price.
Organic

2005 Leza Garcia Rioja Alta Reserva     ($20)
Tempranillo
An incredible price on this quality Reserva. The wine is aged for 24 months in a combination of American and French oak barrels followed by an additional 5 years of bottle. It has a rich and elegant nose. On the palate it is complex with well-rounded ripe red fruit flavors, and has a lingering deeply fruity finish.

If you love trying new varietals of wine (like we do) Saturday will be a Special Treat.  We’ll be pouring a new line up of indigenous grapes from the Cappadocia & Anatolia regions of Turkey and a big red blend from Macedonia.  Not only are they unique, they are quite tasty as well.  Come give them a try and watch us grapple with the pronunciation.

2013 Turasan, Emir (eh-MEER)   $15
The Emir grape only grows in one place in the world – Cappadocia, Turkey where it has been grown and made into wine since the Hittite era (1700 BC).   Emir thrives in Cappadocia’s volcanic soils and benefits from its unique micro climate: high altitude, hot days and cool nights. The wine has notes of citrus peel and white flowers along with pears and fennel pollen. It is bright and lively with refreshing floral and Meyer lemon flavors ending with a mineral note that is rounded out from the sur-lies aging.

2013 Turasan, Kalecik Karasi, (Kah-le-djic-car-ah-ser)  $15
Kalecik Karasi is a blue-black grape indigenous to Turkey that produces fruity wines with low to medium tannins and bright acidity. Red fruit, raspberry, red currant and cherry predominate with vanilla and cocoa undercurrents.. Cappadocia is located on high altitude with limited water supply  allowing the grapes to take longer in reaching maturity thereby making the aromas all the more intense and vibrant.

2012 Diren, Öküzgözü (Oh-cooz-goe-zue)  $14
85% Öküzgözü, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon
Diren Winery is located in the northern part of Turkey in Anatolia.  Their Oküzgözü highlights this native grape.  The wine is medium-bodied wines with ripe fruit and spice flavors and plenty of lively acidity.  In 2012, a hot summer was followed by a cool, dry harvest allowing for long hang-times producing excellent structure, and aromatics.

2011 Diren Karmena Red  $13
20% Öküzgözü, 20% Bogazkere, 20% Syrah, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot
Karmena Red is a blend of 5 grapes (indigenous and international). Okuzgozu grape lays a framework of luscious red fruits in the wine, with Bogazkere providing tannin and backbone.   To these are added Cabernet Sauvignon for its body, Syrah for its spiciness and Merlot for its supple character.

2011 Tikves, Barovo  $20
50% Vranec, 50% Kratosija
We have loved Tikves 100% Vranac for quite some time, so we’re excited to pour this unique blend from the Macedonian winemaker.  The grapes were harvested from 40+ year old vines planted in volcanic soils at 600 meters elevation. The wine was aged for eight months in a mixture of new and used oak. It has rich flavors of black berry and cocoa, and cedar, as well as plenty of extract and a strong structure.

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. No matter what day you stop by we always have something open to sample.