Wine Deal: 2007 Cigliuti Barbaresco

Friends of the WWP will remember my wine of the year last year - the 2005 Cigliuti Serraboella Barbaresco. It's amazing to see the notes pour in on CellarTracker for this wine. I think it's stunning and rated it 96 points but I'm actually on the low side of recent tasting notes. People are regularly reaching up between 97 and 99 points. Unprecedented for a wine just over $50 if you hunt around and interesting since there were no strong buy indicators from pros on the wine - WA 92, WS 89.

Since the 2005 came and went I've been looking for the 2007 vintage. Early reviews of 2007 Piedmont are very positive. The 2007 Cigliuti Serraboella Barbaresco has been slow to appear on Wine-Searcher but made an appearance on Lot18 Monday. Lot18 is a private invitation flash sale site offering up a limited assortment of wines at a discount.

They're offering a two-pack of Cigliuti's Barbareschi - one from the Serraboella vineyard ($72 release price) and another from Vigna Erte ($57). The Serraboella comes from older vines and is the premier wine from Cigliuti, but the Vigna Erte is outstanding as well. I rated the 2004 Vigna Erte vintage between 91 and 94 points across a couple bottles. Either of this wines present a compelling taste of outstanding Barbaresco.

They can't ship to MA but it's worth finagling a way to ship this one to friends in a neighboring state. Pro tip: If you want to hold shipment until the weather is cooler ping service@lot18.com with your request. 

Click here to check out the deal on Lot18


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/j9rZ2VH9aHA/wine-deal-2007-cigliuti-barbaresco.html

Paige Butcher Pamela Anderson Paris Hilton Patricia Velásquez

Value Alert: 2009 Balletto Russian River Valley Pinot Noir

The road to discovering new wine producers can take many directions. I usually have at least a dozen wines on my mental shopping list - a combination of recommendations from friends on Twitter, things I've read on blogs, tips from friends in real life, offers from retailers, and favorable ratings from wine publications. It typically takes months for me to hear a recommendation, seek a wine out, procure it, taste it, and write something up about. But I recently discovered a wine and completed the whole cycle in just a week.

To kick off Restaurant Week Boston we visited Sorellina. It was our first time there and I thought it was fantastic: Elegant & serene but with a lively atmosphere. Impeccable service. Outstanding food. 4.5/5 stars. Enjoyed it very much.

That said, the mark-up on the wine was pretty aggressive. The table next to us ordered a $140 bottle of Groth Cabernet that's readily available at retail for $39.99. I think I've even seen it for $34.99. $210 for a bottle of '07 Orenellia...too bad it was a half bottle.

But restaurants almost always use wine as a profit center - nothing new there. I chose to go the by-the-glass route. I probably should have gone with something from Italy (Sorelina is a modern Italian restaurant) but I just wanted to enjoy some wine with whatever I might order. I went for a glass of 2009 Balletto Pinot Noir for $14.

In the context of the tranquil environment, beautiful stemware, and ideal serving temperature I thoroughly enjoyed the wine. I took note of the producer and thought to check whether I could track it down at retail. I did a search on Wine-Searcher.com (the gold standard for finding wine online) and it turned up a retailer who said they had it for less than $20. That's the good news.

The bad news it was only available at Select Liquors - a retailer I've had bad luck with. I've tried ordering wines from them at least a couple other times and they've never fulfilled for one reason or another. However, after a couple days I received an email saying my wine was ready for pick-up.

Select Liquors is situated within Bazaar on Cambridge - a funky but evidently well-regarded (according to Yelp reviews) Russian grocery in Allston. I had a hard time finding someone who spoke English to direct me to where I could get my wine. I showed my ID at the register and that was that. I got my 2 bottles of Balletto and I was on my way.

Drinking it later that night during family pizza night (Old School this week for those keeping score) something occurred to me. The atmosphere in which I tasted the wine the first time couldn't have been much more different. And I have to say - although it was still outstanding the second time I did like it more the first.

In many ways a bottle of wine is a commodity. The effort that goes into preparing it in a restaurant pales in comparison to the Lobster Gnocchi we had at Sorelina (which was amazing by the way). But when you factor in the overall experience and the resulting discovery of great wines that can occur it's a bit easier to swallow the high markups we see in restaurants.

2009 Balletto Vineyards Russian River Valley Pinot Noir
13.9% Alcohol
4,004 Cases Produced
Release Price: $24

Rich but not overripe. Black cherry and cola notes. A little rough around the edges (mildly astringent, which may improve with time) but there's so much right here it's hard not to love. Really nice wine.

90/100 WWP: Outstanding

Winery Website
CellarTracker
Wine-Searcher

Question of the Day: 
What's your strategy for dealing with overpriced wine in restaurants?


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/_tneskKBcm4/value-alert-2009-balletto-russian-river.html

Rachel McAdams Rachel Nichols Rachel Perry Rachel Weisz

Alan Kerr?s Vintage?s July 9 Release ? Tasting Notes

It?s that time of the year again when the LCBO boffins come out full tilt with the critically acclaimed big boys, otherwise known as the ?Top Marks 90+ Wines?. Vintages has assembled a few liquid treats from around the wine world that have been blessed and highly touted by some of the most influential wine [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/gangofpour/uncZ/~3/GA__kRW4IYw/alan-kerr%e2%80%99s-vintage%e2%80%99s-july-9-release-%e2%80%93-tasting-notes

Michelle Rodriguez Michelle Trachtenberg Mila Kunis Milla Jovovich

Deal Alert: $35 for $70 from Wine.com

Quick one for you today:
Eversave is offering $70 worth of wine from Wine.com for $35 

Note that as with previous offers they've run, the voucher cannot be applied towards shipping nor tax. On the positive side of things, wine.com can ship to Massachusetts -and- we don't have tax on alcohol here.

To amortize the cost of shipping across more purchases I bought their Steward Ship program last year. It's kind of like Amazon Prime where you pay once for all your shipping for the year. They ran a special on it for $25 last year and the shipping can be extended to gifts as well.

Hit the comments below to share some tips on the best deals they have right now. I went for 2 bottles of the 2008 Belle Glos Las Alturas Pinot Noir for $34.99/btl. More on that wine in this California v. Oregon Pinot Noir showdown.

Offer ends Friday June 17th, 2011.


Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/WellesleyWinePress/~3/Ci7_ObYAa0Q/deal-alert-35-for-70-from-winecom.html

Paz Vega Penélope Cruz Pink Piper Perabo

Fake Wine Reviews: Do They Matter?

Can we trust that the reviews and ratings on the various wine reviewing peer sites are authentic and not paid for? This question stuck with me over the past few days after reading the New York Times front page story,...

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/FermentationTheDailyWineBlog/~3/jXXQZF1O8sQ/fake-wine-reviews-do-they-matter.html

Melania Trump Melissa George Melissa Howard Melissa Joan Hart

A Little Competition Never Hurts!

That’s right – it’s time. The Los Angeles International Wine & Spirits Competition begins tomorrow. Nearly 100 international judges, more than 3,000 international wines. Who will take the gold? Keep coming back to find out more information about the 3-day event and watch for judges to be blogging and twittering in between judging!

Source: http://blogs.fairplex.com/blog/wine/?p=60

Sanaa Lathan Sara Foster Sara Spraker Sarah Gellman

Drops of God, Lafite declines, Gerard gets pissy ? sipped & spit

SIPPED: English “Drops of God,” a serial comic book from Japan that is purportedly addictive and moves the Asian wine markets, will finally be published in English next month. (Backgrounder) SIPPED: horreur! Lafite actually declined eight percent since April. [Liv-Ex] SIPPED: getting pissy Gerard Depardieu, vineyard owner, makes air travel fun for everyone. [NYPost] SPIT: [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/blogspot/GuSC/~3/A_FSGJU2Ijk/

Samantha Mathis Samantha Morton Samantha Mumba Sanaa Lathan

Dirty Little Secret Exposed in Sonoma Wine Country

The California Department of Alcohol Beverage Control has finally brought to light the dirty little secret behind underage drinking in Sonoma Valley: SONOMA VALLEY MINORS ARE USING THE HIGH-END WINERY TASTING ROOMS TO GET THEIR DRINK ON. A recent decoy...

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/FermentationTheDailyWineBlog/~3/EZEnubMSf14/dirty-little-secret-exposed-in-sonoma-wine-country.html

Lokelani McMichael Lori Heuring Lorri Bagley Lucy Liu