Well, what do you think?
The newsletter get's a brand new look starting this week. We have been trying for sometime now to find a method that will allow us to share the information and news that we have each week that would also accommodate pictures and links to relevant items. We also needed a way that would allow all of our readers, friends, and customers to receive this information across all platforms of computers and email service providers. We think we have found it - it may take a little tweaking to get it just the way we like it, but we think we are on the right track.
Our new format also allows for better communication with you directly. There should be less likely a chance that your comments and suggestions are filtered out as "spam" - we hate when that happens - we need your input.
Also with this new format we hope to address one of the most frequent comments we get. Lots of people say that by the time they get to the wine store we have sold out of something that caught their eye in this newsletter. Starting this week, clicking on the image for any of the wines mentioned below will take you to a shopping area for that item. We will hold it at the store for you or deliver it right to your front door.
And we hope to introduce some of our new visitors to the other things that we do. We are celebrating 35 years in business and our small group of related companies compliment each other well. It all started with Thames River Greenery "The Mother Ship" as we sometimes say. And, over the years we have added products and services that we feel better serve our customers. It allows us to offer the best of all possible worlds when it comes to gift giving, special occasions or a little personal indulgence.
If you visit the TRG website simply click a category and look around. We are adding to the Wine & Spirits Section of the TRG web site on a regular basis - we have added a few favorites to get the ball rolling, but check back often, it will change frequently.
So, a new look, but the same award winning information. We have a great line up of wine for this Friday. The list is just below a few items of interest.
NEWS & UPCOMING EVENTS
· Our good friend and New London neighbor David Spon is featured in the new issue of Food & Wine Magazine. David designs and builds the kind of wine cellars that you see in the movies. Some of his clients are household names, and his cellars are works of art on their own.The article: "A Cellar Designer's Underground Secrets" can be read here: David Spon - Cellar Designer
· Just across the street from our store The Hygienic Art Gallery has a wonderful show that showcases the city of New London, it's called Urban Landscape: Hand-made City.
The show features the work of Gregory Bowerman, Jenn Collins, and Milton Moore.
Take a little time after our tasting to walk over and have a look - New London never looked so good. The exhibition runs from: March 22 - April 19, 2008 More Information
· Wednesday April 9 - 6 p.m. French Wine Dinner
Featuring flights of 2005 White Burgundy and Bordeaux.
The wines of Christian Moreau, Oliver Leflaive, Chateau De Pez, and Tourelles de Longueville will make it a night of indulgence not to be missed.
"Open Seating" format - The biggest names in Burgundy & Bordeaux - $100 plus tax & service.
· Wednesday April 16 - 6 p.m. Cult Wine Dinner Series - "Open Seating"
Each year the names "Clio" and "El Nido" sit at the top of the "Best Of" lists. They are very difficult to find and always scored by the big reviewers and magazine's high in the 90's.
The 2005 vintage is no exception. Robert Parker: "Clio 95 points, El Nido 98 points."
Join us for a dinner that will give you bragging rights, truly a night to remember.
$125 plus tax and service.
Those of you that have attended our "Cult Wine Dinner Series" in the past know that they are, with out a doubt, over the top. Seating is very limited because the availability of the wine is painfully scarce. We are one of the very few shops in the United States that receives an allocation of these wines.
Think about it this way: If the entire production of a particular wine is only 300 cases - and often that is a "six-pack" for the case - those 300 cases must be divvied up among all of their customers world wide. Perhaps only 100 cases make it to the USA. Now all of the big boys, fancy shops, and restaurants in all the right zip codes start waving their hands and shouting "Me, Me, Me!" Roughly that's just a couple of cases for each state. Think about all of the tony shops in Connecticut with hedge fund managers and movie stars as their regular customers, any one of them could take the entire allocation without a problem.
So how do we wind up with enough of these wines pour for you at a dinner? It's because of the incredible interest, support, and the impression that our friends & customers have made on the importers, distributors, and in some cases the winemaker when they have made a visit to the store. In this particular case we also made a trip to the vineyard in Spain and shared an entire day with the family that makes the wine. We had the great fortune of actually standing in the warm afternoon sun and sampling the grapes that made the wine we will be pouring at this dinner. The winemaker himself said "these are the best grapes I've tasted in ten years."
Please reserve early - 8 6 0 - 4 4 3 - 9 4 6 3
Dave's Fave Special Monday Tasting
Sella & Mosca Cannonau di Sardegna Riserva 2004 $14
Dave Says: "I had a what the heck was I thinking moment last week when I tasted this for the first time at the Italian dinner last week. I knew this was a cult favorite, and it's been staring me in the face for years, but I nonchalantly ignored it. Why, I don't know, I guess I assumed it was some super-hot fruit bomb from the Mediterranean. What I found instead was a truly elegant, detailed, lighter-bodied gem that I could have been bringing home all this time! From the island of Sardinia, the grape Cannonau is an ancient local version of Grenache, earthy and spicy, and the Reserva sees oak cask aging for at least two years. And it's still just $14, the same price it's been for my long, empty years of ignorance... Let me redeem myself by pouring it for you on Monday!"
Wine Tasting Please Join Us Friday March 28 - 6-9 p.m. - No Charge
1 - San Sole Chardonnay 2007 $11
The San Sole wines, both Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay, are some of our best selling wines for one simple reason. The wines under promise and over deliver. You've probably seen the wines in the store with their very plain labels and thought how good can it be? The answer is really good, surprisingly good. And while you don't usually associate Italy with Chardonnay, the Veneto region of Italy makes some of the greatest white wine in the world, so why not Chardonnay? The wine receives no oak, combine that with the mild climate of Veneto and you have a Chardonnay that is lighter, more aromatic and more food friendly then the Chardonnay of Chile and Argentina. And a better value than anything coming out of California. Inexpensive and versatile, this wine is a real daily drinker.
2 - Vale do Bomfim Douro Reserva 2005 $14
One of my personal favorites, having had the opportunity to stay at the quinta or farm where this wine is produced. This wine hails from the geologically delimited region of the upper Douro. That simply means that the region is determined not by political boundaries but by the geology that produces the soil that creates the wine. The soil is a mineral rich silt like clay with pieces of schist that have been deposited by the Douro river for millenia. This is essentially unfortified Port, using the same port varietals such as Touriga Franca, Tinta Roriza, Touriga Nacional, and Tinta Barroca. The Symington family, of Warres and Grahams port, has been producing this wine for generations for their own consumption at the Port lodge, but have only recently begun exporting it to the American market. Interestingly, when I first tasted the wine, I was overwhelmed by the strong floral notes of Cabernet Franc. I occurred to me that perhaps Touriga Franc was Portuguese for Cab Franc. Although Dominic Symington insists that the two grapes are different varietals, I am reminded of the saying; if it walks like Cab Franc and smells like Cab Franc..., but I'll let you be the judge. Either way it is exciting for us to find inexpensive wines of such high quality that come from a family with such a heritage of wine making, produced the same way they were 400 years ago when the Symingtons began winemaking in the Douro.
Dominick Symington was a guest on our WineRadio Show. Shot on location at the family estate in Portugal, our own Jim Morrison spoke candidly with Dominick and it gives us wonderful insight and a backstage look into one of the greatest names in the business.
3 - Steltzner Claret 2005 $18
Claret is an English word that refers to Bordeaux style blends, in this case from the Stag's Leap district of Napa Valley California. Classically, this is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The winery is family owned and they use all estate fruit, Alison Stelzner even comes to visit us in New London every year with the new vintage. Year after year Stelzner Claret proves itself to be a tremendous California wine under $20, a rare thing these days. If you've been drinking Malbec, maybe it's time to revisit Napa, and if you've been spending $25 or $30 for Napa Cab, it is definitely time to try Stelzner Claret.
4 - Il Tarocco Chianti Classico Riserva 2001 $32
100% Sangiovese from the Chianti Classico region in Tuscany. The winery describes itself as having " new equipment and modern technologies on ancient land ". The combination produces a wine that is lush and structured, yet transparent , allowing us to taste into the wine, and through the wine and into the poor stoney soil of Chianti. The owner-winemaker Paolo Osti uses lengthy macerations for heft and intensity of flavor, and prolonged aging in barrique and tonneau to create roundness and opulence. Fruit, and structure, minerality and
acidity, this is one of our best examples of Chianti.
Thanks very much for your support we appreciate it. And it is important that you know how much we value your comments and suggestions - we are listening. We try to implement your ideas as often as possible. Some take longer than others to introduce but we like to hear all of them.
In the coming weeks you can look forward to more special guests, new menu items, and one of a kind events. All based on your input.
We hope to see you this week. Please join us. It's fun, informal, and a great way to start your weekend.
AAA.
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