"After the Bottle is Opened"
https://www.capitalatplay.com/after-the-bottle-is-opened/

This is (also) What a Hero Looks Like

*** KUNO ***

Celebrate the bravery, commitment and courage of KUNO with a wine from a winery
that has been through some battles and maintained their commitment to their goal of quality.
de Lorimier, Preston Ranch, Alexander Valley, 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon.

** deLorimier is The Big RED of The Week **

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-53949310

deLorimier Winery, located in Alexander Valley, is part of the Wilson Artisan Wineries.
While deLorimier escaped, two of the other wineries in the group were destroyed in the California Fires. 
deLorimier Winery has been practicing sustainable farming techniques for many years.
Wilson Artisan Wineries works toward the goal toward continued  sustainability offering quality wines
along with a commitment to the environment for the benefit of future generations. Sustainable practices
are realized in many forms, but primarily through water conservation, recycling, use of organic growing practices including encouraging pest control through attracting raptors in our vineyards.
  
Deepest crimson like a rare red diamond, this wine shines with vitality.  The swirl releases faceted aromas
of black currant, light tobacco, toasted oak and hints of chocolate torte.  The firm acidity and strong tannins
fill the palate with a juiciness, while a pale violet compound soothes.  This perfect compound
of acidity and tannins blend for form this classic Alexander Valley Cabernet.  $27

New York Times Called it a FINAL on TV Listings
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/08/28/insider/TV-listings-ending.html

And Coupon clipping is Fading into the Past
https://www.wsj.com/articles/coupon-clipping-fades-
into-history-as-covid-19-accelerates-digital-shift-11598702400

Let's  mourn this paper passing with a wine that has been with us for centuries
and will be around for centuries more! Lasting. Dependable. Dessert. Indulgent!

This is an organic Ruby Port made in the traditional way. The house style is “meio-seco” (medium-dry)
so while this is definitely a sweet wine, its not syrupy or jammy. The Quinta has been owned
by the same family for over 100 years.The vineyards are steep and terraced. The port is estate bottled.
They usually blend 2 or 3 vintages to achieve the signature house style. Lots of plum and berry fruit
is balanced with nice structured acidity and tannins.  Pair with goat cheese or dark chocolate! $22.

The annual World Tango Championship is usually held in Buenos Aires,
but this year it took place online because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Instead of competing in crowded dance halls, couples submitted video footage
of them performing their intricate steps at home or in the street.

If you want IN, start practicing for The 2021 Competition!
Get in the mood. Your Dance the Night Away Wine: Catena 2015 Malbec
So many are going crazy for the new stuff, but much like Tango, Cantena is classic.
Always, balanced, structured, impressive, lush and SEXY!

 
Winemaker Says
Catena Malbec presents a deep violet color with purple reflections. This microclimate blend
of four unique vineyards offers intense aroma, soft texture and concentrated flavor.
Deep aromas of ripe red and dark fruits are joined by delicate violet and lavender notes,
with traces of vanilla and mocha. A rich, concentrated mouthfeel is highlighted by flavors of blueberries
and blackberries with a touch of leather and cinnamon. The wine has well-integrated tannins,
bright acidity and a flinty minerality that provides exceptional length to the finish. 

James Suckling Says 92 Points
Aromas of blackberry and walnut with hints of flowers. Medium body,
focused and bright with dried fruit and just a hint of mushroom in the aftertaste. Drink now.

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate Says 91 Points
The impressive 2015 Catena Malbec is subtle, balanced and elegant mixing fruit from many different zones.
This is a complex blend that showcases the typicity of Malbec in the province of Mendoza
with perfumed notes of violets and black cherries, and a touch of spices. The palate has great balance,
elegance and subtleness with very fine tannins. Great value for money.

WE SAY $22

Your Step Outside Your Comfort Zone Wine

This is a DRY, crisp and amazingly tasty version of this varietal.
Muller Thurgau has been winner of The Focus Group!

Located in the quiet little town of Kettenheim in the Rheinhessen, 
the Schloss Muhlenhof winery has been in the Michel family for over 150 years.                                           Bought by Johann Michel in 1846, he laid the foundations for its long history 
of winemaking that continues to this day with young Nicholas Michel. 
This Muller-Thurgau, a cross between Riesling and the grape Madeleine Royale, 
is ripe, aromatic, and zesty; with apricots and citrus on the nose, 
it has flavor notes of lime and green apple and a medium finish.

$16.99

Your Experience the Experience - Fun Wine:

La Sueca is a trip down memory lane. A journey back to carefree living.
The bottle takes us back to summers in campsites in the 60s and 70s,
the groovy parties of the time, and the family holidays in a car jam-packed
with the whole family. It is the memory of those wonderful summers
built into a colorful, cheery bottle with a wink to freedom.

This blend of Garnacha and Tempranillo presents a fresh and fruity
Spanish Sangria wine, macerated with natural extracts of orange juice,
lemon, cinnamon, peach, apricot, lime and other red fruits for several weeks.
Clean and bright with aromas of cinnamon, orange, peach and red fruits.
Pleasant, sweet and intensely fruity on the palate.

You would never know this Sangria is from a bottle. 
Just Ask Curate!

$16.99

The 2016 CRUSHER Tempranillo Blend

The Crusher Red Blend is a glossy red in the glass with vibrant aromas
of dark red raspberry, blueberry cobbler, fresh cranberry and sweet vanilla notes.
The aromas ring true on the palate where the core of ripe fruit flavors work well
with baking spice, vanilla and melted chocolate nuance. The 2016 harvest was
a very strong vintage with ripe, fruit forward wines of good depth and character.
The perfectly ripened Tempranillo in the blend, along with the judicious use of Malbec and Petite Sirah gives the overall wine a harmonious amount of spice, brambly fruit and rich texture that makes the final blend very easy to drink. Each varietal in this blend imparts something unique giving the wine an overall crowd-pleasing appeal. 

The Crusher Red Blend always presents
a high price to quality ratio. And 2016 is no exception.

*** $14.99 ***

"The Bellelli Family by Edgar Degas, 1858
https://www.wsj.com/articles/detonating-the-nuclear-family-11596832968

So this looks like your typical old world family.
But they are itching for a fight! So many hidden clues. NYT Art Writer
Judith Dobrzynski says witness: They (the family) are separated from Gennaro (the father) by a slightly jagged line, formed by the left edge of the mirror,
the mantel and the legs of the desk and chair creates different backgrounds
and suggests 2 different lives. While they look SOP, they are really
ready to smack each other silly!

Same with Wine. People say labels don't matter but study after study
shows they most certainly do - a lot. Wineries are paying artist to design intoxicating labels. But what of the plain spoken simple announcement
that belies a great bottle? Overwhelmed by wineshop label cacophony!

Blend of 50% Grenache, 20% Cinsault, 15% Syrah and 15% Tibouren.
Never heard of Tibouren? It is an indigenous varietal to Provence
and one that family patriarch, Andre Roux, believed in so strongly,
he replaced all his Mourvèdre vines with it. Tentations is in the Provencal flavor tradition with bright fruit, zesty acidity and great balance.

Clos Cibonne isn't your typical producer of Provençal pink wine.
They have a family heritage that dates back to 1797 when the Roux family
purchased the estate after the death of its original owner,
Jean-Baptiste de Cibon, a captain in King Louis XV's Royal navy.
Successive Roux generations have run the estate ever since.
Louis XV? Who knew from that label?

$21.50 at Wine Merchant in San Francisco
$19.99 @MetroWines

Your Sit and Chat, Discuss it Over Wine:

91 Points, Wine & Spirits
Composed mostly from older vines at Besson, near Gilroy, this is full and bright,
with scents of turf and strawberry and a bit of orange zest to brighten the edges.
The flavors are light and crunchy, coastal through and through. 
Drink solo or pair with almost any menu.

Wine.com is out of stock. Just as well, it was $27.99!

41% Merlot, 14% Zinfandel, 13% Malbec, 11% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon,
4% Petit Sirah, 3% Pinot Noir, 3% Grenache, 3% Petit Verdot, 2% Mourvedre
and 1% Cabernet Franc Vineyards:  Napa Valley
The 2016 Barrel Blend offers loads of kirsch and blackberry fruits as well
as complex spice and tobacco characteristics.
The 2016 Barrel Blend is big with full of up-front appeal. Enjoy this wine now
in order to get the most out of the wine’s succulence and vibrant fruit but cellar
for a more traditional complex and balanced experience.

Alison Doran, Winemaker, 
http://www.hillfamilyestate.com

** White Wine of The Week **

Justin Sauvignon Blanc

If you missed the Justin Zoom with Sommelier Joe Spellman, he pointed out
that the winery is proud that this bottle of Sauvignon Blanc does not smack you
with greenery! Joe explained why some bottles of this varietal can taste
like eating a garden shop. "You must manage the yield. Too high a yield results
in an overly green taste." This is a medium bodied, generous and smooth wine.

"Our Sauvignon Blanc reflects the diversity of the climates and soils
in the Central Coast that range from the cool, limestone-laden Templeton Gap
area to the warmer, sandy, river-influenced eastern regions. We’ve combined sauvignon blanc grown in vineyards with diverse climates and soils to give our JUSTIN Sauvignon Blanc a full, textured palate with bright citrus and tropical fruit with a hint of fresh herbs balanced with a crisp, refreshing mineral structure."

The 2019 Justin Sauvignon Blanc is a clear, bright, pale straw color
with silver highlights. Aromatic with lemon, peach, pear, green apple, tropical fruit,                                           with subtle herbal notes and just a hint of white pepper. Medium bodied and crisp, with lemon,                       green apple, and peach on the entry and subtle green herb notes                                                                        with a pleasant mineral texture on the mid-palate. The finish is moderately long                                                 and refreshing with lingering citrus and herbal notes.

$17.99 shamelessly at wine.com
(The company is under fire from the Ohio Attorney General!) 
$16.99 @MetroWines. $14.44 with case discount!

Buy two bottles of Sauvignon Blanc or any two from Justin
and Justin will package in a Justin tote bag for 6!
(while supply lasts)

Personal Note: Think you don't like Sauvignon Blanc? I thought that too.
But it wasn't the grape, it was the style. This is a true, not overly GREEN,
expression of the grape. You really should try it.

** Deal of the Decade **

Chateau TOUR LE PIN Bordeaux 2014
70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc

Black-currant flavors are right up in the front of this wine.
With some youthful stalkiness, it also has the potential for a really juicy character that is bright, almost crisp. A touch of perfume gives wine a lift.
Was not ready in bottle until 2017.
At peak now. Enjoy over next nine months!

We are trying to help one of our distributors who bought big
before COVID and restaurants went dark. 
This is a chance to make Bordeaux your everyday table wine!

$5.87 for a Bottle

$4.99 per Bottle in a Case of Le Pin
or a mixed Case

*** Featured Wine ***

Big Salt from OVUM, Oregon

BIG SALT is a white wine, a Gruner based proprietary blend, that tries to capture a day at the beach in a bottle.Fresh, dry, breezy - the bright aromas of the wine are met with a dry, almost salty textured palate that’s well-suitedfor sitting in the sun and hanging with friends. Made from ancient volcanic decomposed seabeds,
the wine is sustainable and organic vineyards throughout Oregon are the building blocks for Big Salt.

" Drinking an OVUM wine should be like listening to AM Radio, in Stereo. " 
Co-owner and Winemaker Ksenija Kostic House

“It’s hard to imagine a better Oregon white at this price.” Wine Enthusiast

2019 (12.5%alc.) is $19.99

@MetroWines