Greetings from New London -
Thames River Wine & Spirits - 860-443-9463 - 84 Bank Street
Thames River Greenery - 860-443-6817 - 70 State Street
Brie & Bleu - 860-437-2474 - 84 Bank Street
We have a great line up for the Friday tasting - the list is highlighted in RED just below the news.
I am going to tell you about our Chateau d'Yquem tasting in just a minute - but I must tell you about our trip to Boston.
Last Monday we had the great pleasure of being invited to Boston by one of the largest and most prestigious wine importers in the business. Frederick Wildman & Sons. http://www.frederickwildman.com They import some of the finest & most sought after wines being produced.
Each year they host a "Grand Tour" for some of their winemakers and they organize a national multi-city tour that allows the winemakers to visit major markets and introduce new vintages and any other special projects that they might be working on.
Well, we set up our WineRadio studio in a private dining room at the Millennium Bostonian Hotel - and one by one we sat and had a conversation
with some of the great winemakers of the world. Keep in mind that part of their official schedule for the day was to meet with us. They were all very gracious and genuine - their candid and sometimes humorous remarks can he heard in their entirety on our show. The WineRadio site is just about to launch. It will be available at every major host from Yahoo and AOL to the iTunes music store - It has taken a bit longer to get all of our ducks in a row than we thought - but we think it will be worth the wait.
NOW onto the Chateau d'Yquem tasting last Saturday night.
Our group gathered in the President's Room of the Thames Club http://www.thamesclub.org/photos.html
It was a fitting backdrop for the evening. Brie & Bleu prepared a delicious combination of cheeses, fruits, foie gras, and delectable extras.
The full list of the wines is here - but I will try to answer the big question. What does a $900 - 100 point rated - bottle of wine taste like?
Close your eyes for a moment and take a deep cleansing breath - now think back to your first kiss - the first meaningful kiss that filled you with butterflies and tickled your soul. It was that good. In fact - it may be underpriced.
When the cork was finally pulled the room filled with music - and I could have sworn I saw a couple of laughing angels sitting up on the mantle of the great fireplace. Thank you to all that attended - it was a special night.
This is the full list of wines that we tasted - in order:
Lanson Noble Cuveé - $75
Corton-Charlemagne - $87
E. Guigal "La Doriane" - $65
Corton-Grancey - not available for sale
La Pousse D'or - $70
Chateau De Cazenove - $12
Chateau Damase - $12
Chateau Aney Haut Medoc - $21
Les Tourelles - not available for sale
Dis Zoko Tokaji Aszu "6" - $80
Chateau d'Yquem 2001 - $900
This week at Brie & Bleu:
Featured Cheese: Shropshire $18/lb - This cow's milk blue cheese from the United Kingdom is technically a cross between Stilton and Cheshire. The orange color comes from the addition of annatto, a natural food coloring. Shropshire, while generally creamier and less nutty than Stilton, is sometimes stronger. It is excellent on the cheese-board and is also very versatile in the kitchen; it makes fabulous soups and sauces. It is best accompanied by good English brown ale and/or a chardonnay
Thursday Night Beer Tasting - 5-8 p.m. - No Charge
George Whitehouse is the guardian of the brew - please join him in the cellar.
Friday April 7, 2006 - 6-9 p.m. - No Charge
A Salute to the 2003 Bordeaux's
The 2003 vintage has been getting a lot of attention -
Exceptional weather conditions have helped to produced some very exciting wines.
They are very rich and ripe and have superb structure. Please give these wines a try this Friday night.
Remember - the summer of 2003 in France was the hottest on record and it had a dramatic effect on the grapes.
1- Château Damase - Bordeaux Supérieur - $12
Deeply colored and scented with the fragrant smells of berries that have been infused with the subtle aroma of clean earth Château Damase embodies all the elegance and charm for which true Merlot and honest red Bordeaux Supérieur are justly famous. Smooth, elegant, and juicy, the Château Damase is charm personified. This uncomplicated wine slips down ever so easily, it begs for another sip, and then another, and then….well you get the picture. Consequently, you would be wise to have a second bottle on hand. Serve Château Damase at a cool room temperature and a little breathing time truly accentuates the charm as well as the flavor of this juicy claret. Enjoy!
2 - Chateau Cazenove - Bordeaux Superieur - $12
Awarded a Silver Medal from the "World Event" of Bruxelles, 2003. A beautiful deep ruby red wine, with fragrances of ripe black currents and raspberries. As of the first taste it asserts its fleshiness. In the second part of the tasting, the ripe and plump tannin really melts in the mouth. The aging in oak barrels during 12 months revealed the complexity of that vintage. The finish is long and round.
3 - Chateau Annereaux - $21
From Jean-Francois Narby's small estate next door to Pomerol. 70% Merlot and 30% Cabernet Franc aged in barrels - half of which are new each year - for between 12 and 18 months. The resulting wine is rich and rounded with generous berry fruit and oak flavors.
4 - Chateau Arney - $21
This will change the way that you think about Bordeaux in this price range. So rich, and so satisfying for the price that it is hard to imagine how it happened. And then you remember - Ahhhhh - it was the remarkable heat - the summer of "03". The daytime temperature at some of the Chateau's reached a staggering 120 degrees! Give this a try - you will be glad that you did - it is real bang for the dollar.
It has been a great week - lots of excitement and also a week of privilege.
Thank you for your support and for spreading the word.
We have been invited to participate in special events - like our trip to Boston - because you have made an impression on the professionals that visit our store. We constantly hear comments about the quality and interest of our customers. We appreciate it. And the best is yet to come.
Please join us. It's fun, informal and a great way to start your weekend.
AAA.
Monday, April 03, 2006
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