Return to Woodrose Winery

Woodrose WineryWinery 2012 Woodrose has been one of our favorite growing wineries over the past several years.  This year?s visit provided some unexpected pleasures.  The last time we visited at Woodrose they were just completing construction on their special events building.  This time we found the center was done and open for business.  Tastings were … Continue reading »

Source: http://thegrapesaroundtexas.com/2012/07/03/return-to-woodrose-winery/

Summer Altice Summer Glau Kate Moss Kate Walsh

Rue La La: $20 for $40 at Wine.com (ends this morning!)

UPDATE: This offer has expired.

Deal site Rue La La is running a $20 for $40 for Wine.com but you've got to act fast. The sale ends at 11:00 am EDT today (Sunday, May 13th 2012).

The usual restrictions apply to this offer - most meaningfully that the voucher can't be applied to the price of shipping.

If you're not yet a member of Rue La La sign up and get $10 off your first order, bringing the price down to $10:

http://ruelala.com/invite/winepress

Then head over to Wine.com to use your voucher. Check out the 2010 Belle Glos Meiomi Pinot Noir- always enjoyable and for my money the best $20 Pinot Noir on the market today.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there!


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/_ZQzm-G-Nx8/rue-la-la-20-for-40-at-winecom-ends.html

Sarah Silverman Sarah Wynter Scarlett Chorvat Scarlett Johansson

?Lafite is out, Conti is in.?

China pivots to Burgundy. Source: Theatlantic Via: The Atlantic Thankfully, the wine market’s sour turn could also just be a sign of changing tastes. Eighty-six of the 100 bottles Liv-ex tracks are Bordeaux, the traditional king of fine wine. But as the Financial Times wrote in May, recent auctions suggest that Hong Kong buyers, perhaps [...]

“Lafite is out, Conti is in.” originally appeared on Winecast. Licensed under Creative Commons.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Winecast/~3/fUtBR47grfE/

Shakara Ledard Shakira Shana Hiatt Shania Twain

Tasting Report: Usseglio mon Aieul Chateauneuf-du-Pape

One of the great joys of writing this blog is how it gives me justification, however bogus, for opening nicer bottles of wine. With 2010 Châteauneuf-du-Pape offers arriving in our inboxes on a daily basis (pronounced Chateau-noof-dew-pop) I thought it would be a good time to crack a highly regarded 2009: The Pierre Usselgio Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul. With an eye toward deciding whether to buy more of of this bottling in 2010 of course.

Resolving ones view on CdP pricing is tricky. On one hand it's a bargain compared to Bordeaux and Burgundy. On the other hand it's undeniably pricey. It's tough to find a bottle of Châteauneuf south of $30 to get excited about.

But no matter how you look at it, Châteauneuf-du-Pape is a fantastic category to check out if you prefer fruit forward domestic wines and you're interested in getting a little more exotic with a French import. Whereas affordable Bordeaux can be harsh and graphite-laden, and entry-level Burgundy can be thin and uninspiring, CdP tends to be boldly fruity and enjoyable even at more modest price points.

But it's also age-worthy. CdP has this unique thing where in its youth it's focused, fruity, and luscious. Then enters a dormant period. Then emerges after a period of 10 years or so as a complete wine. Unfortunately I rarely have the patience to wait nearly that long.

Against this backdrop the 2009 Usseglio mon Aïeul is about what I expected.

Priced in the low hundreds retail you can catch it for less if you look around. It seems to have a hard time supporting its $100 release price stateside - the CellarTracker Community Average of the '09 is just over $60. I'd place the mon Aïeul bottling just ahead of the La Craus, Pegaus, higher end St. Preferts, and Beaucastels of the world in terms of prestige.

But the 2007 mon Aïeul scored a perfect 100 points from Rober Parker. And early CellarTracker reviews of the 2010 are trending even higher than the 2007. Parker's barrel tasting score for the 2010 was "just" 94-96. But like Olympic gymnastics this stuff is all subjective so who cares about the scores, right?

2009 Pierre Usseglio Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée de mon Aïeul
1,000 Cases Produced
15% Alcohol
$111 Release Price

About 60% opaque and lighter in color and on the palate than I'd expect from a 15% abv bruiser. On the nose this was immediately ready to go and it only transformed slightly over the course of two hours in a decanter. On the nose I get nicely ripened blackberries, strawberries, and underlying signature meaty metallic CdP aromas. On the palate the wine is seamless. And a little plump. Or plush depending on how favorably you view round wines. There's a nice sweet spice note on the backend and undeniable heat. But it keeps it all together like a powerful quick linebacker.

93/100 WWP: Outstanding

Conclusion and Recommendations

I have to say I'm torn on whether to buy the 2010 Usseglio mon Aïeul after tasting this 2009. And even after tasting the 2010 at the Boston Wine Expo (more on that here including comparisons on CdP07 v. 09 v. 10). Both the '09 and '10 Usseglio mon Aieuls are outstanding wines no doubt. But how many pricey CdPs do I need clanging around here? At the same time how can the California Pinot Noirs vying for my attention, that weren't even around 10 years ago, rightly claim to be better wines?

I say buy a bottle or two, drink one in the near term and lay one down. Still a better buy than most every sub-$100 2009 or 2010 Bordeaux. Still, I'd rather have a 2010 Donjon CdP if I could find it at similar discount levels.

Question of the Day: Are you buying 2010 CdPs? Are you a buyer of the 2010 Usseglio mon Aï</i>eul?


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/5jder04JM6s/tasting-report-usseglio-mon-aieul.html

Kristy Swanson Kylie Bax Lacey Chabert Laetitia Casta

Social Media Quick Tip: Tag Your Favorite Wine Brands on Facebook

This is old news for some, but if you haven’t explored the status tagging feature (similar to photo tagging) on Facebook, take a few minutes and check it out. Status tagging can help your winery’s Facebook fan page to become more engaging and vibrant.  Facebook users can type the “@” symbol before a Facebook fan [...]

Source: http://familylovewine.wordpress.com/2010/01/14/social-media-quick-tip-tag-your-favorite-wine-brands-on-facebook/

Sara Spraker Sarah Gellman Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Mutch

Deveronvale Perfection ? Creates New Record in Sheep Auction Prices

If you are pondering over the idea what is the most expensive sheep of the world after the death of the most expensive sheep of the world Tophill Joe, priciest sheep of UK, then you will be happy to hear about the fact that the most expensive sheep of the world is sold. British farmer [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/vagablond/ysSN/~3/R_dpIIrN3c4/

Maria Sharapova Mariah Carey Mariah OBrien Marika Dominczyk

Gift Baskets

It seems that every year the gift basket business gets bigger and bigger. From corporate gift baskets to those of us who simply don’t know exactly what to buy for our loved one’s…..gift baskets offer a real alternative and the industry is growing as a result. While I can appreciate that every business (like every [...]

Source: http://winewithmark.info/archives/668

Sarah Gellman Sarah Michelle Gellar Sarah Mutch Sarah Polley

New Wines from South Africa

We?ve been fans of wines from South Africa for a couple of decades, but it?s been more than a year since we?ve tried anything new. Happily, our friends at Vineyard Brands took care of that again by sending us several samples for our consideration not long ago, and as is usually the case, we found [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/4ycAg6uutWM/new-wines-from-south-africa

Lucy Liu Luján Fernández Magdalena Wróbel Maggie Grace