Grand Cru Wine and Spirits

This is the first vintage of Sameiras that has ever been exported. Produced from an intriguing blend of 60% Treixadura, 22% Albarino, 8% Godello, 8% Lado, and 2% Loureiro, this medium gold-colored tank-aged wine offers a complex nose of minerals, honey, melon and citrus. Medium-bodied, it has a smooth texture, excellent underlying acidity, and a pure, long finish. It will match well with a variety of seafoods and roast chicken. Drink this excellent value over the next 12-18 months. - RP

2005 Bodegas Alto Almanzora Este Valle del Almanzora, Spain $10.99	The 2005 Alto Almanzora “Este” is a blend of 60% Monastrell, 10% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha with the balance three other varieties. The wine was aged for 6 months in French and American oak. Opaque purple-colored, the wine exhibits a surprisingly complex array of mineral, mushroom, black cherry and blackberry aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied with gobs of ripe fruit, this easy drinking wine has a firm, lengthy finish. At the asking price, this is an awesome value. Drink it over the next 2 years (although the adventurous might want to cellar a case or two for a couple of years and be pleasantly surprised by its evolution). - RP
2005 Bodegas Sameiras Sameiras Ribeiro, Spain $18.99	This is the first vintage of Sameiras that has ever been exported. Produced from an intriguing blend of 60% Treixadura, 22% Albarino, 8% Godello, 8% Lado, and 2% Loureiro, this medium gold-colored tank-aged wine offers a complex nose of minerals, honey, melon and citrus. Medium-bodied, it has a smooth texture, excellent underlying acidity, and a pure, long finish. It will match well with a variety of seafoods and roast chicken. Drink this excellent value over the next 12-18 months. - RP
2005 Bodegas Victoria Pardina Carinena, Aragon, Spain $13.99	This is the first vintage for this pair of wines from Bodegas Victoria, a project of Juan Manuel Segura, the winery proprietor, and Miguel Angel de Gregorio, owner-winemaker of the highly regarded Rioja estate, Finca Allende. The 2005 Pardina is 90% Tempranillo and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon aged for 6 months in French oak. Purple-colored, it offers an attractive perfume of spice box, smoke, black currant and blackberry liqueur. Ripe and supple on the palate, it has enough structure to evolve for several years. This excellent value has a pure, 30 second finish. Drink it over the next 4-6 years. - RP
Belle Vallée Pinot Gris Oregon $15.99	An Oregon Version of an Alsace Pinot Gris, a dry wine with riper more scented fruit. Melon and honey with creamy mouth filling texture. Lingering mineral and pear finish. Picnic wine and a back porch sipper for sure.
2005 Hendry Rosé Napa $15.99	The 2005 Rose is the result of a saignée of both Primitivo and Zinfandel. Cool fermentation resulted in refreshing and bright flavors and aromas of strawberry and stoned fruit, accented with plum and candied orange. Dry, it is a nice, simple wine for a warm afternoons or with a meal with slightly spicy foods.
Vaucluse Vin de Table White Rhone, France $12.99	Viognier provides the background while other southern Rhone varietals add texture and minerality. Honeysuckle and peachy-pear with an easy drinking finish.