Thanksgiving Edition 2008

This year think of TRW&S for your holiday gifting.
Use our expert staff to make a quality selection.
Then let us do the shipping.

Here are just a few examples of how affordable it can be.

Here are just a few examples of how
affordable it can be.

Miami ___Packaging ____FedEx
1 bottle ___4.20 _________6.30
2 bottle ___5.25 _________7.20
3 bottle ___7.35 _________7.85
6 bottle ___ 11.15 ________11.89

Chicago
1 bottle ____ 4.20 _______ 5.87
2 bottle ____5.25 ________6.74
3 bottle ____7.35 ________7.33
6 bottle ____11.15 ________9.41

San Diego
1 bottle ____4.20 ________7.04
2 bottle ____5.25 ________8.22
3 bottle ____7.35 ________9.74
6 bottle ____11.15 _______16.20

A few holiday scheduling notes need to be mentioned right up front.

First Brie & Bleu will be open Monday Tuesday & Wednesday to serve all of your cheese and gourmet needs. All of our stores will be closed on Thursday and will then be open Friday & Saturday as usual.

A great addition to any holiday table is Fine Chocolate.

We offer Handmade Chocolate from MoonStruck. These are the same chocolates that have been featured on Oprah and have choosen by the Academy Awards for their celebrity gift baskets.

The Angry Mob Speaks To Dave

Dave's Fave
The Monday Tasting 11.24.08

Terres Dorees Beaujolais l'Ancien 2007 $14
Thursday on Bank Street, the contagious cry went out: "Le Beaujolais est arrivee!!" Young and old joined hands and formed a dancing chain which encircled the town, filling the sunny autumn skies with song. No really, it was totally awesome.

That is, until some salty dog bellowed: "Sacre Bleu! Vintage 2007? What trickery is this? J'Accuse!!"
I climbed the massive stack of wine crates being loaded onto the pier and tried to calm the angry mob, now dangerously fueled on flagons of delicious Gamay.

"Good people of New London - fear not, the Beaujoulais Nouveau HAS arrived! And it's got a really cool orange label this year!" "Huzzah!" they roared back. "But THIS," I explained, "is Beaujolais Ancien, from very old vines, les vieilles vignes, painstakingly crafted by the winemaking genius Jean-Paul Brun, fermented with indigenous yeast, so that the glorious
Gamay grape, married to the terroir of the Beaujolais region, can truly express itself!"

The crowd, having been to our wine tastings, seemed to follow this argument agreeably and there was much rejoicing. Order Now

Thanksgiving Edition
The Friday Tasting - Please Join Us
Friday November 28 - 6 - 9 p.m. - No Charge

1 - Tenuta San Leone 'Le Ancienne'
Pinot Grigio 2006 $20

From the Della Venezie region of Italy, where they practically invented Pinot Grigio.

Hand harvested and soft pressed to create a wine of elegant character and flavor.

The wine is lush yet delicate with nuances of citrus, lemongrass and dry pear.




A big and bold Pinot Grigio, great with dinner, or as a
i-just-want-to-stand-around-and-eat-cheese wine.
Order Now

2 - Ramirez de la Piscina Rioja Reserva 2001 $21

Since the XI century, the name Ramirez is linked with descendants of Navarra Kings who fought in the first Crusade, and included amongst their ancestors is the famous Cid Campeador.

Their wine reflects this noble Spanish heritage. Aged in casks for 15 months, followed by a further 21 months in the bottle.

This is a lovely, rich, complex wine, showing maturity and a deep ruby-red color and a brickish rim. Powerful, with beautiful oaky fruity aromas intermingling with the Tempranillo.

Silky, with a good balance between oak, tannins and acidity, hints of vanilla and spices. Order Now

3 - Tres Picos Garnacha 2007 $18

For a limited time only.

Deep and sweet, Tres Picos Borsao is cherry red in colorwith a hint of purple tones. In the nose, there is a boundless bouquet of mature red fruits with traces of flowers that are typical of the best Granachas.

In the mouth, it is rich and well structured simultaneously conveying flavours of blackberries, strawberries, and tones of leather, vanilla, and plums. Perfectly combined with a sweet and pleasant tannin. Tres Picos Borsao leaves us with a long, silky and balanced finished.

The grapes come from vineyards that are between 35 and 40 years old. Located on uneven terrain at an altitude of 600 to 700 meters. These vineyards yield under four and a half tons per acre.
Order Now








4 - Cuvelier Los andes Grand Malbec 2005 $50

From the Cuvelier family, of Leoville-Poyferre fame, and ubiquitous winemaker and consultant Michel Roland.
This is Roland's first foursquare look at Malbec. Will it rank as one of the great expressions of Malbec and join the ranks of Trapiche and Tikal?
From the winemakers notes:
Appearance and nose:
very deep, dark purple-red colour. Excellent aromatic complexity, with red and black fruits predominating. We can distinguish pleasant notes of ripe prunes and spices.

Palate: a soft entry as expected of a Malbec, then it opens out to become full and smooth with well-textured tannins and a very pleasant and generous finish.

Order Now

Thanks very much for your support. Keeping your business local and supporting local merchants and events is especially important this season - We appreciate it.

We hope you all have a wonderful holiday with family and friends this week. And if time allows please join us on Friday. Please join us. It's fun, informal, and a great way to start your weekend.


Your suggestions and comments are also very important to us. Please take a minute and add them HERE

We look forward to hearing from you.

AAA.

Thanksgiving Edition - 2007 - Foreau Vouvray, L'Ecole no. 41, Tenuta San Leone Amarone , Buty Winery - Rediviva of the Stones

Greetings from all of us inNew London,
Thames River Wine & Spirits - 860-443-9463
Brie & Bleu - 860-437-2474
Thames River Greenery - 860-443-6817
IMPORT - 860-443-6817
City News - Coming Soon

www.ThamesRiver.com

This is the Thanksgiving Edition - and there is so much to prepare for this week - that we will mention just a few items of interest before the list of wine for Friday night.

• First, we have gotten a lot of questions about our schedule for the holiday:
We will be open - Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 10 a.m. until 9 p.m. -
And we are on call for you to bring in your menus and recipe ideas so that we might match it with the perfect wine for each dish. We even have ideas for the perfect "welcome to our home" glass of wine. Of course we have great Kosher selections and a complete selection of beer and spirits too.

• There is no doubt that the Nouveau Beaujolais craze is alive and well - even though it has cooled a bit over the past year or so there are still plenty of us that wait for the new release with excitement and stock up accordingly. There is however something else you should know about. You need to know what the Italians have been drinking instead of Beaujolais for about five hundred years. Our own Dave Anderson has the Italian alternative to share with you this Monday starting at noon. It is a fabulous change of pace at a great price. This is a food wine that you can stock up on and pour with abandon.

Special Monday Tasting with Dave Anderson - Dave's Fave:
Cantine del Colle Novello di Primo Cielo 2007 $9

Dave Says:

"Monday, we're going after a seasonal tradition in our own quirky way - oui, oui "Le Nouveau est Arrivee," but we've also been charmed by Beaujolais Nouveau's Italian counterpart, NOVELLO... Yum out. Bright fruit flavors from this year's harvest in southern Italy. So when big uncle Bob blurts out over the Thanksgiving table, "We're sick of this old stuff, bring us some fresh wine!" BOOM - break out the Novello. We love it, stop by Monday afternoon for a taste!"

• On Wednesday afternoon we welcome our good friends from the Jonathan Edward's Winery in North Stonington. This is our yearly tradition. Our FOURTH annual Jonathan Edwards tasting right here in the store signals Thanksgiving in a big way. The folks at Jonathan Edwards do a fabulous job - we are very happy to continue the holiday tradition with them. Please join us - from 1 - 6 p.m. This year they will feature their Petit Sirah.

• MORE QUESTIONS & ANSWERS:

Q- Can I still book a private party or wine tasting or have a special menu made up for my Holiday or Office Party?

A- YES. We will accommodate you if at all possible - early, late - even on Monday when Brie & Bleu is normally closed. The easiest way to check the dates and your options is to call - 860-443-9463 - any day after 10a.m.

Q- Will you be offering gift baskets and gift wrapping again this year?
A- Yes. We will have a variety of gift basket ideas to choose from and the ability to combine different items from all of our stores into a single basket or gift delivery too. Wine, cheese, flowers, plants, decorative items you name it. You shop - we will dress it, wrap it, ship or deliver it - no fuss, no muss, no messy mop-up.

Please Join Us - Wine Tasting
Friday November 23 - 6-9 p.m. - No Charge

1 - Foreau Vouvray sec 2004 $32
Philippe Foreau is the third generation of the Foreau family to produce Vouvray from this fabled domaine which his grandfather purchased in 1923.
Wine Spectator - "400 cases imported Gorgeous nose of papaya, peach and cream. This fools you into thinking it's a lush wine, but it's really bone-dry, with nervy citrus peel, mineral and chamomile flower notes. Long, minerally finish is precise and resonant." This is amazingly dense and rich in the mouth, with a remarkable elegance and a nearly perfect balance of fruit and acidity. Please give it a whirl on Friday night.


2 - L'Ecole no. 41 Merlot 2004 $30
L'Ecole Nº 41 is known for producing superior quality wines that are rich, flavorful and full-bodied. Stephen Tanzer rated this 87 points
“Good full, deep red. Currant, game, tobacco, chocolate and nutty oak on the nose. Juicy, leanish and suave, with good lift to the currant and spice flavors. Not especially complex but shows good life in the mouth. Finishes with a light dusting of tannins.” ST. I had a bottle of this last night at Brie & Bleu. Our own Kristen Webbers selected it for me to go with the Braised Beef over noodles special - it was luscious. See if it works for you, this Friday night.

3 - Tenuta San Leone Amarone della Valpolicella 2003 $30
This is a deep ruby red with wonderful aromas of cherry, vanilla, and spice. It has a velvety feel with a great body - like a Super Model. This is for pouring into a large glass and serving with a fine roast. Also it would be an excellent companion for conversation - like a Super Model?

4 - Buty Winery - Rediviva of the Stones 2004 $50
This is their most popular and hard to get wine, very, very, very limited production of this vintage. This small Walla Walla winery (it's pronounced "beauty") is on the cutting edge of quality and innovation. Caleb Foster and Nina Buty Foster founded their family business in 2000, but Caleb's winemaking experience dates back a decade. His résumé includes eight years with Rick Small at Woodward Canyon, winemaking positions at Mount Baker Winery and Glen Fiona, and further experience working crush in New Zealand and South Africa. "We could make 10,000 cases tomorrow and sell all of it," says Caleb matter-of-factly. "The demand is there. But we have a new daughter, and we always wanted a very small winery." Then again, he muses, "every market wants more; and the fruit's there to get. So I struggle with that." While he struggles, I suggest you get a bottle or two of Buty, before someone beats you to it. Try something very special this Friday night - it will go quickly.

As always we take great pleasure in sharing the the great wines and spirits of the world with you. We open bottles that for the most part go to collectors, movie stars and diplomats. Why should they have all the fun? You are the stars of our show. Your support, comments and suggestions make us better everyday. Thank you, from all of us. And we hope that you enjoy the holiday with family and friends.

Please Join Us.
It's fun, informal, and a great way to start your weekend.


AAA.