Rainy Day Tasting

Domaine de la Pepiere Muscadet "La Pepie" 2022, Loire France $18.99

The first commercial vintage of Domaine de le Pépière was in 1985. Marc Ollivier, who retired in 2019) founded the domaine, which quickly became highly sought after for producing organically-farmed, single-vineyard, and single-cru bottlings before anyone had even heard of such things. Rémi Branger, his trusted former apprentice, now helps farm the vineyards and make the wine. 

La Pepie is 100% Melon de Bourgogne grown on granite. The core of the fruit is from the 10-hectare heart of the Pépière estate, which is part of the Clisson cru, with fruit from the cru Château Thébaud as well. They also purchased some fruit from a local organic farmer.  

The clusters are direct-pressed and fermented in stainless steel tanks with natural yeasts; the wine ages on its lees in large, underground, glass-lined cement tanks for up to a year. The first bottling is from wine with about 4 months on the lees; subsequent bottlings have spent up to 8 months on the lees. Minimal S02. 

Here it is on our site. 

Domaine Brana Irouleguy Blanc Ilori “les jonquilles” 2021, French Basque, $29.99

This is a white French Basque blend of Gros Manseng, & Petit Courbu, Petit Manseng. Dried flower and herbs (chamomile and tarragon), citrus fruits (grapefruit, lemon, bergamot) and and exotic fruit. The note on this wine is long, but starts like this:

The pastoral appellation of Irouléguy stretches along a small band of hillside vineyards in the Pyrenees, in the extreme south-west of France, within the French Pays Basque. The region sits at more than 400 m/1,300 ft above sea level, with the west strongly influenced by the Atlantic. The vines are protected from northern winds and receive more sunshine than most French wine regions. The vineyards face south and are protected from the wet weather coming off the ocean by the surrounding mountain peaks. The cool and wet springs are balanced by warm and dry conditions into early fall that allow for the full ripening of grapes into October.

Best to click here for the rest. 

Sfera Litro Oltrepò Pavese Rosso $25.99

It's a liter. It's tasty. It's a blend of Uva Rara, Barbera, Croatina, Pinot Nero, & Riesling Renano co-fermented for 8 days on the skins. Cranberries, crisp red apples, blackberries. Finish is earthy and dry with saline minerality, and brisk, mouthwatering acidity.

Also a long note...here it is. 

Assiduous Merlot Santa Cruz Mountains, CA 2020 $34.99

Organically farmed, single vineyard. 10 days carbonic maceration, then de-stemmed & fermented on skins another 4 days; aged in neutral french oak for 10 months. Soft & smooth with strawberry/rhubarb, anise, lavender. Slightly chill for a classy summer red but you can happily sip this one no matter the season.

Click here for the producer's note.