|
Rogers & Company Presents:
The Pine Cone Family
|
Greetings!
The Pine Cone family? Is this a new winery? Or has someone lost their mind and tried to make wine from pine cones? Or is Rogers & Company selling Retsina? Not likely.
Pinot, as in Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Chardonnay (an historic name of that most popular white) actually means pine cone. It's in reference to the shape of the bunches of these grapes, which if you let your mind wander, are the shape of pine cones. Pinots Noir, Gris and Blanc are genetic mutations of the same grape vine and Chardonnay is a cross between the historic lineage "Pinot" and "Gouais blanc" two grapes widely planted together in France during the middle ages, providing them ample opportunity to "mix their genes". Consider it a half-sibling.
This shape is the main reason why Pinot Noir is so difficult to grow. The bunches trap water inside and because Pinot Noir's (in particular) skins are so thin, the bunches are susceptible to rot and mildew. Combine this with the fact that Pinot Noir and Chardonnay thrive in cooler, usually continental or coastal climates, and you have a recipe for disaster. But to quote JFK, "Those who dare to fail miserably can achieve greatly", and when the vintage co-operates, these wines can be profound.
So, here is a fun selection of some of our "Pinot family" wines, from all over the world. Prices are per bottle, tax in, not including bottle deposit. We sell only by the unmixed case and do offer delivery.
Please visit our website, we have a new one going live next week. We will have a daily blog which we'll be posting our tasting notes to. Check in to see if any of the wines you've bought from us and are cellaring are drinking well. We'll also be writing about upcoming events and new releases. Our new catalogue is also available at our website, and updated daily.
If you have any friends or colleagues who you know love wine as well, please feel free to forward this to them.
Sincerely,
Chris.
|
|
Tiefenbrunner "Cuvée Anna" Pinot Grigio/Pinot Bianco 2009
$26.95 [750ml/6 per case]
 From our favourite Pinot Grigio producer, Tiefenbrunner, comes the last vintage of a wonderful wine. Two-thousand-nine is the curtain call for Cuvée Anna, from the 2010 on, this will be called "Anna" and will be 100% Pinot Bianco (Blanc). The winery feels that their Pinot Bianco vines have come to a point of maturity that they should stand on their own.
So while you can, I recommend grabbing a six-bottle case of this wine and enjoying it over the next 2-3 years. In its youth the wine does taste like both varietals, but with time, they harmonize and the profile of Cuvée Anna appears - a rich, shimmery wine, almost crystalline in its elegant and spicy, green-fruited flavours and aromas.
|
Maison Alex Gambal Bourgogne Chardonnay 2009
$34.95 [750ml/6 per case]
 The sources of Alex Gambal's fruit for his entry-level Chardonnay is anything but entry-level. Savigny and Meursault 1er Cru vineyards provide the grapes and Alex's hands-off, traditional approach to winemaking (indigineous yeasts, hand harvesting, gravity-flow production, and deft blending practices) retains all the character and terroir of these famed villages.
"(a blend of Savigny and Meursault fruit with about 5% pinot beurot, (regional term for Pinot Gris) raised in oak of which 5% was new). A pungent and fresh nose of straw, citrus and floral notes leads to rich, generous and supple flavours that possess good volume and verve for its level. This could be enjoyed immediately. Drink now+"
85 points, burghound.com, February 2011
|
Maison Alex Gambal Meursault 1er Cru "Les Genevrieres" 2009
$106.95 [750ml/6 per case]
 The 1er Cru vineyard "Les Genevrieres" stands out as an important vineyard from this key appellation. The 40 acre vineyard is made of alternating layers of clay and limestone, but is topped by a thick layer of calcareous gravel, providing excellent drainage to the limestone, which slowly releases water and nutrients throughout the growing season. Spanning the border of Meursault and Puligny-Montrachet, it produces silky, smokey, minerally wines with a good track record for ageing.
"Generous oak influence that will likely moderate with a year or two in bottle presently fights somewhat with the spicy white peach and lemon rind-infused aromas that are followed by sappy and relatively powerful medium weight flavours that possess plenty of mid-palate fat before delivering a beautifully complex, balanced and long finish. As I noted, this is on the oakier side at the moment but there is sufficient underlying material to suggest that the wood will be successfully absorbed in due time."
90-93 points, burghound.com, July 2011 |
Blue Mountain Pinot Gris 2010 $24.95
[750ml/12 per case]
 In the late afternoon, the shimmering granite cliffs of the Okanagan Valley give this historic property it's name.
Located on Vaseaux Lake, Blue Mountain is one of the oldest vineyards in the Okanagan. Founded by the Mavety family in 1971, who grew and sold premium fruit to Okanagan wineries until they went into production starting with the 1991 vintage. But then why doesn't the bottle say VQA on it, is the fruit from somewhere else? Absolutely not. VQA is a membership that acts to promote wine regions as a group, assures shelf space for members in Provincial liquor stores, confirms fruit sources and sets quality standards. When it was established, Blue Mountain was already, and still is, an all-estate fruit winery of very high quality and didn't sell to the BC liquor board. So, there's been no need to join the VQA.
The 2010 Pinot Gris has a citrus and tangerine nose with rich, dense tangerine/lemon flavours across the palate and notes of orange peel and spice. The structure of the wine will allow it to age beautifully for 4-6 years.
|
Chateau de Maligny Chablis "Vau de Vey" 1er Cru
2010 [750ml/12 per case] $39.50 2010 [375ml/12 per case] $22.95
 The wines of Chablis have more in common with Champagne than with Burgundy. Located just south east of Paris, Chablis vineyards share the same Kimmeridgean clay soils as Champagne and face the same vintage conditions - cloudy days, cool weather, and a short season. The chalk white soil, made of fossilized seashells produces wines with austere fruitiness but lots of minerality. That's what Champagne producers look for since most flavours are a product of the bottle fermentation, and Chablis producers look for to showcase minerality over fruit flavour.
Proprietor Jean Durup has made it his life's mission to acquire parcel by parcel the land once owned by his grandfather in the 1800's. Pre-phylloxera Vau de Vey was considered a top vineyard, but afterwards, the vineyard was left untended for years because the land is far steeper than other Chablis vineyards and is more difficult to farm. When Jean Durup's father bought most of it he was considered a lunatic. Looking back, it was the right decision (to say the least).
Today Jean Durup owns 480 acres, making Chateau de Maligny the largest land owner in Chablis as well the whole of Burgundy. |
Flowers Sonoma Coast Chardonnay 2009 $67.95
[750ml/6 per case]
 "Long time readers of this magazine will not be surprised that I love
this wine. When it comes to Chardonnay, Flower's Sonoma Coast bottling consistently delivers a fresh, fragrant, silken, mouthwatering wine. The freshness in the 2009 tastes real, the tension of the acidity captures the briskness of the far coast (70 percent of the blend in this vintage). The texture and flavour are woven together into a soft cushion of white raspberry, tart lime, white flowers, silk and down. Designed to drink rather than to impress, there's nothing challenging about it." 94 points, "Year's Best Chardonnay", Wine & Spirits, October 2011
"Flowers' larger-production bottling uses its own Camp Meeting Ridge site and a handful of other far-west coastal properties, fermented mostly in older French oak. Wonderfully opulent, with Cavaillon melon, lime zest, honey and vanilla curd, plus a stony twinge. Its power comes from that density of fruit more than evident oak (25 percent new)."
"Recommended Sonoma Coast Chardonnays", San Francisco Chronicle, April 3, 2011 |
Domaine Bernard Moreau
Bourgogne Chardonnay 2010 [750ml/12 per case] $23.35 Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2009 [750ml/12 per case] $23.95
 Bernard Moreau tends his small 20 acre farm in Mancey by hand. He is an esthete and a perfectionist. The soils are built organically, via time tested techniques of tilling, cover cropping, green harvesting and mulching.
Twenty acres takes a lot of mulch, but that prevents soils erosion, traps microbes in the soils and produces a heterogeneous soil ecosystem. From healthy soils comes healthy grapes, which means a clean fermentation, vibrant flavours and a finished wine that could come from nowhere else but Burgundy.
We're very proud to have recently added Bernard Moreau to the Rogers & Company catalogue, as we feel these are honest wines that offer true value for the Burgundy enthusiast. |
Maison Alex Gambal Vosne-Romanée Vieilles Vignes 2009
$82.95 [750ml/6 per case]
 "Smokey aromas introduce a wine that is structured and concentrated, with intense fruit and acidity. Firm tannins, a subtle touch of wood and fine richness all combine mellifluously (smoothly and sweetly)."
91 points, Wine Enthusiast, September 2011 A town of only 500 people lays claim to the best Pinot Noir vineyards in the world. Vosne-Romanée is the epicentre of Pinot Noir legend, the home of the most famed vineyards and some of the most expensive wines made anywhere. Rarely are these wines affordable, but as a negociant Alex Gambal avoids the costs associated with owning vineyards and growing, and that reflects in the bottle cost, not the quality. Having recently enjoyed this wine at a fabulous dinner with a number of very mature high-end Napa Cabs and some newer trophy-Cabs, this was undeniably my wine of the night. Extremely silky and sexy, the aromas became more and more detailed throughout the night. This is captivating Pinot Noir and a very affordable example of Vosne-Romanée. |
Capiaux "Pisoni" Pinot Noir 2009 Santa Lucia Highlands
$67.95 [750ml/12 per case]
Gary Pisoni's vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands produces some of the most sought after fruit in all of California. Ever the stickler for who gets his intense fruit and how the wines are made, in the great 2009 vintage Pisoni Pinot Noirs were made by Capiaux, Kosta Brown, Patz & Hall, Peter Michael, Siduri, Tantara, Bernardus, Paul Lato, Pisoni and Roar (Pisoni's other label). Now that's an impressive collective of Pinot producers!
Wine Advocate has tasted, but has not yet published their reviews for the 2009 Pisoni, of which only 347 cases were made, but last vintage Robert Parker wrote, "Sean Capiaux, who is also the winemaker for O'Shaughnessy's Napa Valley wines, has his own project and as the following tasting notes indicate, he demonstrates a Midas touch with Pinot Noir."
Wine Advocate, February 2011
"Deep ruby-red. Wild, slightly reduced aromas of brambly blackberry, strawberry, black cherry, black pepper and wild mint. Large-scaled, rich and sweet but with firm acidity and rather powerful pinot tannins calling for at least a couple years of additional time in bottle. A bit youthfully aggressive but given lift by an element of ginger root." 91 (+?) points, International Wine Cellar, May/June 2011 |
Flowers Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir 2009 $67.95
[750ml/6 per case]
 "This is consistently one of the most restrained and delicate Pinots
you'll find in California. A blend of far-coast sites, in 2009 this is 30% from Flower's Sea View Ranch, plus fruit from the DZ and Peterson vineyards and other western Sonoma sites in the Sebastopol and Occidental areas. It's long on strawberry- and cranberry-scented fruit, layered with the complexity that far-coast Pinot can attain, a complexity that seems to be tied to the acidic, ridge top soils where conifers once thrived. The structure leaves room for food, like grilled fennel sausage." 93 points and "Best Buy", Wine & Spirits, October 2011 |
Peay "Ama" Pinot Noir 2009 Sonoma Coast $57.95
[750ml/6 per case]
 "Ama" means "our land" and 2009 represents the first vintage of this wine, a blend of the Peay estate vineyard. What differentiates this from Peay's "Sonoma Coast" bottling is that no purchased fruit is used, so it is truly a snapshot of the Peay vineyard in a fantastic year.
"Vibrant red. Pungent, sexy aromas of black raspberry, cherry pit, cocoa powder and incense. More serious, even masculine, compared to the Pomarium. Fresh and gripping, with impressive sappiness and extract to its dark berry and bitter cherry flavors. Finishes vibrant and very long, with palate-dusting floral, mineral and spice nuances. This is the inaugural vintage for this wine, which is sourced from a section of the Peay vineyard that's planted to a suitcase clone and Dijon clone 828"
93 points, International Wine Cellar, May/June 2011
"The 2009 Ama Estate Pinot noir has emerged as a complete, unique expression of Pinot noir from our vineyard. The nose is quite seductive with dark, brandied cherry notes framed by brown spices including cinnamon, nutmeg and clove. These are not simply overt oak influenced notes but part of the spiciness of the clones that make up this cuveé. The fruit aromas on the palate are held together by brass and dried blood flavors and a lead or graphite (mineral) quality that gives the wine ballast. The mid-palate texture is broad and silky with excellent power and concentration brought into focus by notable acidity on the finish. As it is our inaugural vintage we wanted to be sure to price this wine so you would be willing to give it a try; we by no means, however, are sure it is inferior to our other estate cuveés and are interested to hear what you think. Drink now with a decant or hold for 3-10+ years." winemaker, Vanessa Wong |
|
|
|
Chris McLean
416 961 2294 x 29 |
|
|
|
|
