Greetings!

 

Two tastings this weekend!  Friday, we welcome Esprit du Vin, sampling fantastic French wines from their portfolio.  The highlight of the night will be the 2001 Trimbach Gewurztraminer Vendage Tardive, a dessert wine of exceptional quality and vintage.

Saturday Three Little Pigs will have its one year anniversary and we will be hosting an organic wine tasting as they celebrate with a customer-voted "all-star" menu!  MORE INFO The lists of wines to be tasted are listed below as usual.  Come wish Raymond a happy one year and get your grub on!  

These emails are archived on the website; they can be accessed through the "current and past newsletters" link at www.eastendwinesatx.com. The weekly wine update is also tweeted, so if you are interested, you can follow us through the link below.  

Cheers,

Matt and Sam

Friday Night Tasting Lineup  

2007 Trimbach Pinot Blanc 

The Trimbachs have a purist vision. Across 12 generations, the family has always produced wines that are structured, long-lived, fruity, elegant and balanced: the celebrated Trimbach style. Bottles remain in the cellar for several years before reaching the marketplace, ensuring the wines are both ready to drink upon release but also hold great aging potential. Juicy, clean white grape. Mineral. Nice richness, broad, tasty. 70% Auxerrois. In Alsace, there are two different grape varities to produce Pinot Blanc. Auxerrois is very juicy and always ripe. It brings fruitiness and volume to the wine. Pinot Blanc, drier and more acidic, brings freshness and backbone to the blend. Trimbach is the standard-bearer in the region for tightly wound, focused and truly dry wines. Rich and concentrated aromas, with white flower and apricot notes. Smooth, medium-bodied with good fruit acidity.

Our Price: 15.57

2010 Lamarque Grande Cabanes Rosé  

Costières de Nîmes AOC. 50% Syrah, 50% Grenache. Complex black currant and raspberry aromas. Dry, refreshing and nicely balanced. This rosé is obtained by "saignée" or bleeding of the red varieties, Syrah and Grenache, with 6 to 12 hours of skin contact to extract color. Complex with black currant and raspberry aromas. Dry, refreshing and nicely balanced. Perfect as an aperitif thanks to its fruit and freshness. This rosé is not only a "sipping" rosé but can go perfectly with salads, pork and grilled meat. Dry, with bright & juicy acids, great berry fruit.

Our Price: 14.97

2009 Ch. De la Chaize Brouilly 

Château de la Chaize is located in the Brouilly appellation, the largest of the Beaujolais Crus and where the predominant grape planted is Gamay. The granitic ochre sand of the Brouilly hills allows perfect drainage. At La Chaize, 50% of the vineyard is older than 50 years, some plants even reaching 75-years old. Aromas of fresh strawberries and raspberries. The palate has silky red fruits balanced by lively acidity.

Our Price: 15.97

2008 Lamargue Syrah Les Grand Cabanes 

Costières de Nîmes AOC. The low hills of the Costières de Nimes have a specific soil called grès - a stony gravel with large pebbles that were carried down from the Alps by the Rhone River. The estate, owned by Campari since 2001, boasts a showcase winery equipped with the most advanced winemaking technology. Bright ruby color with intense and fruit-forward nose, with notes of licorice, red berries and black currant. Fresh, vibrant, and concentrated with soft tannins and a smooth, round finish.  

Our Price: 14.97

2001 Trimbach Gewurztraminer Vendage Tardives 

Gewurztraminer Vendanges Tardives wines are exceptional wines produced under strict French AOC regulation. Grapes for Vendanges Tardives (late harvest) wines are left to hang on the vine until they begin to dehydrate, allowing the sugars and phenolics compounds to concentrate. Fruit for Trimbach Vendanges Tardives are sourced from Grand Cru Osterberg in Ribeauvillé and very old vines planted at the site Muelforst in Hunawihr. The well-drained vineyards, facing south, contain argilo-cacaire soils over a deep limestone base, excellent for growing Gewürztraminer. Average yield is only 25 hl/ha. Aromas of quince preserves, caramelized Mirabelle and lychee. Sweet, succulent, full-bodied and elegant.

Our Price: 25.57 

Saturday Night Lineup

(Prices and more info available at the event) 

2011 Torrontes 

Expansive and fresh aromas of peach, cantaloupe and pineapple, with a hint of lime. Fresh and lively, with medium weight, nice acidity, and an enjoyable floral finish. The perfect pour for many cheeses, spicy foods and seafood dishes. Originally from Galicia in northwest Spain. This organic Torrontes is made with organically-grown grapes from the picturesque village of Cafayate, Argentina's heartland for this varietal. Cafayate Valley has some of the world's highest-elevation vineyards, typically at 5,500 feet. Such an elevation guarantees diurnal temperature extremes, where afternoon temperatures plummet at night, typically from the mid-80s during the day to the mid-50s at night. The valley sees little rain (three to six inches a year) and tremendous sunshine. Surrounded by the Andes Mountains, the vineyards are irrigated thanks to ample water from mountain snowpacks. Because the Cafayate Valley is so dry, it lends itself easily to organic vineyard practices.

2009 Rosé  

Effusive aromas of ripe strawberries, tangerines and melons. Medium body, with fine acidity and a long mineral laden finish. Pairs well with summer salads, fresh seafood, and simple preparations of chicken and duck. Grapes grown in Spain's famed Alicante region benefit from a continental climate softened by Mediterranean Sea breezes, with low rainfall and plenty of sunshine. The vineyard is situated approximately 2,000 feet above sea level, where the "gobelet" (víña en vaso) system is used to ensure proper airing of the vines. The mineral-rich soil, combined with the warm, dry climate, yields fresh and fruity wines. Monastrell and Syrah grapes are harvested by hand at the end of August. After crushing, the must is macerated for 10 hours before decanting. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel. Crisp and dry, a great choice for the warmer months.

2009 Monastrell 

Powerful aromas of blackberries, anise, olives and plums. A full bodied red, with firm tannins, and an opulently plummy finish. Works well with grilled meats and other hearty dishes. Created as a DO in 1966, Jumilla has undergone a revolution in the past few decades. The new generation of wines from forward thinking wineries have caused the region to explode in popularity.  Jumilla itself is situated in Southeast Spain between La Mancha and the Mediterranean Sea, creating a good grape growing climate. Monastrell, known as Mourvedre in France, is the main varietal in Jumilla, taking up over 80% of the vineyard land.  Monastrell shines in the warm, dry weather and rocky soils of the region.  The red wines from Jumilla are full-bodied wines with flavors of black fruits and plums.

2009 Sangiovese - Merlot 

An organic Italian red that comes from Tuscany. Sourced from vineyards around the Chianti Classico region. You can still expect all the high-toned fruit and balanced acidity. Aged in a combination of large botti and small barrique barrels. Made for immediate access, with no rough edges and impressive brightness and succulence. Offers up plenty of strawberries and crushed flowers in a medium-bodied, vinous style best suited to near-term drinking. There is an attractive freshness that carries through to the caressing finish. But the secret to its value is the grapes that come from vineyards right next to the Chianti Classico region! They get all the benefit of care from the family and gorgeous Tuscan growing conditions, without that ritzy classification (or high price tag.)

10% off of 4 bottles of wine

15% off of 12 bottles or more of wine

Friday Tastings are 4pm - 8pm

Our hours are:

Monday - Wednesday 10am - 7pm

Thursday - Saturday 10am - 8pm

Sunday - closed

Website:

www.eastendwinesatx.com