Boise Coop Wine Shop

Weekend Wine Tasting: A Mixed Bag

• February 1, 2012
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Charles Ellner Brut Rosé, $59.00
The House of Ellner possesses more than 54 hectares (140 acres) of vineyards in 15 villages situated in the principal vinegrowing areas of Champagne. It is interesting to note that Charles Emile Ellner, the founder of the House, began acquiring small vineyards in Epernay while he was at the start of a career as a professional “riddler.” This marked the beginning of his adventure in the world of Champagne. From the start, he set up in business as a grower and producer. He was admirably assisted by his only son, Pierre, thanks to whose energy and foresight the House made remarkable headway. This non-vintage Rosé is made of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay. A rosé with a delicate rose petals color, a nose recalling rip red fruits, fresh and fruity on the palate and a well balanced wine of character with a long finish .

2009 Mirth Chardonnay, $9.99
Mirth means happiness and this wine is just that. 100% stainless steel fermented, this is a clean, vibrant Chardonnay. Flavors of golden delicious apples, Meyer lemon and just a hint of ripe tropical fruit marry together beautifully while a balanced acidity gives it a bright clean finish. Pair this refreshing Chardonnay with a chanterelle herb frittata, lemon roasted chicken, or a mango avocado and smoked salmon salad.

2004 Ch. La Caussade Sainte-Croix-du-Mont, 375 ml.,  $18.99
La Caussade is one of the oldest and most renowned estates of the Cotes de Bordeaux. For more than a century, the Armand family has worked in the vineyard of Sainte-Croix du Mont, adjacent to world famous estates such as Chateaux d’Yquem. The chalky soil deriving from fossilized oyster shells, is perfect for enhancing the flavors of Semillion and Sauvignon Blanc, particularly in late harvest and noble wine styles. For this reason they make an outstanding wine that competes with any Sauternes. Yves Armand has made the most of this estate and his wines have all the character of well-known chateau of the region.

2008 Villata Valpolicella Ripasso, $14.99
This Valpolicella is made use the unique “Ripasso” technique where the wine is passed over the semi-dried grapes used to produce Amarone, thereby inducing a secondary fermentation. Made from indigenous Italian grape varieties, the resulting wine is ripe and concentrated, wonderfully smooth and elegant with aromas of dark chocolate and roasted nuts. An excellent partner to roasted red meats, game, stew and full-flavored mature cheeses.

2007 Trisagio by Benvenuto de la Serna Red Blend, $23.00
Benvenuto de la Serna is located in premier wine region of Valle de Uco, Mendoza, where their single-estate Vista Flores vineyard stands 3400 feet above seal level, at the foothills of the Andes Mountains. This high elevation and exposure to hot desert sun, develops fruits with ripe, rich flavors and deep colors, yet maintains a balanced acidity. Their winemaker is renowned enologist Angel Mendoza (of Trapiche for 25 years). A blend of 34 percent Malbec, 33% Petit Verdo and 33% Tannnat, the Trisagio is a powerful wine that stands out for its elegance and finesse.

2006 Ch. Haute Selve Graves, $23.00
Chateau Haut Selve, located in the northern part of the Graves in a unique terroir consisting of three different soil types: deep stony, limestone stony and clay stony. The estate consists of some 80 acres and yields are kept low. This blend of 50 percent Cabernet and 50 percent Merlot spent 14 months in new oak. The result is a complex, well-balance wine with and elegant roundness, ripe fruit and nicely integrated tannins. Drinking great now, but will continue to improve with age.

Drop by the Wine Shop this Friday, February 3 between 4:30 and 6:30 pm, or Saturday, February 4 between 2:00 and 4:00 pm for a free taste of these six wines.

Beaujolais Nouveau est Arrivé

• November 17, 2011
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It’s the first wine from this year’s bounty, made from grapes that were hanging on the vine just a few weeks before. Think of it as a celebration of the new harvest, and a great way to kick-off your Turkey Day feast. We are talking Nouveau Beaujolais, of course, that fun and fruity quaff that’s always released on the third Thursday of November. This year that date comes on the 17th, and you’ll find three different bottlings available at your Boise Co-op Wine Shop (from Dubouef, Drouhin and Mommesin. We’ll be pouring samples of all three, all day, every day until Thanksgiving.

2009 Michel Magnien

• September 3, 2011
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Our 2009 wines from Michel Magnien have just arrived. Michel Magnien owns 27 acres, including vineyards within the grand cru plots of Clos de la Roche, Clos St. Denis and Charmes-Chambertin, as well as premier cru sites and village parcels in Gevrey-Chambertin, Morey-St.-Denis and Chambolle-Musigny. Magnien sold a majority of his crop until 1992, when Domaine Michel Magnien began to bottle much of the family’s harvest. Soon after joining the family business, Frédéric encouraged his father to vinify his entire crop, starting with the 1994 vintage. While his son takes care of the cellar, Michel still works in the fields, pruning mercilessly and maintaining low yields. Fred proudly calls his father Michel “the finest vineyard worker I have.”

“The wines are always fresh and youthful when released, but they age very slowly and gracefully. Fred says his fathers wines always show young because of the work he does in the vineyard. All I know is that I have had older wines from 2001 back to 1978 and they have been superb in every case. We selected wines for price and quality, if you are interested in other vineyards we can get other wines including Grand Cru’s.” -Wine Shop Burgmeister Divit Cardoza

2009 Pinot Noir Grand Ordinaire, $22
This entry level Pinot Noir is made from estate fruit and is meant to be drunk in the first year or two. A soft, easy style of Pinot Noir.

2009 Bourgogne Pinot Noir, $28 (all estate fruit)
Tasting note: A discreet touch of wood sets off fresh and ripe red and blue pinot fruit aromas that are in keeping with the attractively vibrant, rich and round flavors that are at once delicious yet serious. A good Bourgogne. Score: 85-89, Burghound

2009 Gevrey Chambertin Seuvrees, $59
Tasting note: A slightly riper nose is the essence of a red pinot fruit liqueur nuanced with subtle earth and smoke aromas that precede very round and mouth coating middle weight flavors that brim with ample amounts of dry extract, all wrapped in a firm finish that mixes youthful austerity with a trace of natural sweetness. A high-quality villages that is worth considering.
Tasted: Jan 01, 2011 Score: 89-91 Drink: 2017+
- Comments: Outstanding, Burghound

2009 Chambolle Musigny Fremieres, $59
Tasting note: As one would reasonably expect, this delivers a completely different aromatic profile of cool and airy high-toned raspberry and cranberry aromas that are very Chambolle in character as the limestone influence is quite prominent and it continues onto the detailed, refined and admirably pure flavors that possess a dusty and mouth coating finish that is both firm and mildly austere. This is a mineral-driven wine par excellence.
Tasted: Jan 01, 2011 Score: 89-91 Drink: 2016+
- Comments: Outstanding, Burghound

2009 Morey St. Denis Chaffots, $89
-from a parcel that sits between Clos de La Roche and Clos St. Denis
Tasting note: A restrained and quite cool nose of spice and earth hints that add good breadth to the red pinot fruit that introduces rich and generous but well-focused middle weight plus flavors that possess fine mid-palate concentration which helps to buffer the very firm finish. This is a relatively big wine and clearly built to age.
Tasted: Jan 01, 2011 Score: 90-92 Drink: 2021+
- Comments: Outstanding, Burghound

Barolo New Arrivals

• July 20, 2011
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While some wine writers are claiming that 2006 is the greatest Brunello vintage in history, we are also excited by the 2007s from Piedmont. They have the style and balance of the wonderful 2001s. We have more wines on the way but these just arrived. Quantities are limited as always.

2007 Barolo

Conterno Fantino Barolo Sori Ginestra $75 The 2007 Barolo Sori Ginestra comes across as less aromatically intriguing and more fruit-driven than is typically the case. The wine’s full-bodied, powerful personality is on full display, and it  is a hugely enjoyable Barolo that impresses for its textural richness and full-throttle personality. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2027. A. Galloni 94 points

Elio Altare Barolo $79 The 2007 Barolo is simply breathtaking. A bouquet that recalls Pinot Noir melds into pure Nebbiolo fruit as this captivating, sensual Barolo reveals off its pedigree. This shows remarkable detail, nuance and sheer clarity, with gorgeous depth and a radiant, totally engaging personality. Most of the attention here is generally focused on the single-vineyard wines, but readers should not look past the straight Barolo, a wine that has built an extraordinary track record for developing beautifully in bottle. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2027. A. Galloni 94 pts

Luigi Einaudi Barolo Costa Grimaldi $65 The 2007 Barolo Costa Grimaldi is fabulously rich, dense and well-balanced in this vintage. The Costa Grimaldi is made from a parcel of the Via Nuova vineyard in Barolo at 350 meters above sea level with a sheltered south-east exposure that provides respite in warmer years. This shows tons of vintage character in its racy, elegant fruit and silky tannins, along with superb depth and intensity, all of which have been achieved in a fairly restrained style. This is a fabulous effort . Anticipated maturity: 2017-2027. A. Galloni 94 pts

Marcarini Barolo Brunate $52 The estate’s 2007 Barolo Brunate sweeps across the palate with endless layers of expansive fruit. The Brunate shows fabulous intensity and depth in an uncharacteristically rich, opulent style for Marcarini. Despite the wine’s richness there is plenty of Brunate character, particularly on the finish, where menthol, pine, resin, spices and a host of other balsamic notes speak with great eloquence. Marcarini harvested Brunate on September 24 and 25. The wine saw 15 days of fermentation, followed by another 42 days of contact with the skins. The wine then spent two years in large, neutral casks prior to being racked into steel to rest before being bottled. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2027. A. Galloni 94 points

2006 Brunello

2006 Conti Costtanti Brunello $59 The 2006 Brunello di Montalcino is a dazzling wine. The aromatics alone are haunting. Sweet red cherries, rosemary, sage, tobacco and cedar are woven into a fabric of nearly indescribable elegance. Costanti’s straight Brunello can sometimes lack a little depth in its fruit, but not in 2006. This totally complete, harmonious Brunello is shaping up to be one of the wines of the vintage. It is a stunner. As delicious as the wine is now, it really needs at least a handful of years for the firm tannins to start melting away. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2031.  A Galloni 95+ points

2006 Mate Brunello $55 An opulent, fruit-driven style, yet fresh, with cherry, raspberry and blackberry up front and tar and licorice lurking behind. The richness is mouthcoating, and there are dense tannins hanging out on the finish. This has immediate appeal, yet should age well too. Best from 2014 through 2027. 1,200 cases made. –BS  Wine Spectator 95 pts

2009 Pousse d’Or Offering

• May 18, 2011
• 1 Comment

The word is out: Best Pousse d’Or since 2005. Very high scores and prices to match. We cannot deny loving these wines. They will be shipped in October, but we have to put in our order asap, so let us know if you are interested. (Scores by Burghound almost every wine got a heart!)

Santenay Clos Tavannes $65 (90pts)
Volnay Caillerets $98 (92 pts)
Volnay Audignac $109 (92 pts)
Volnay Clos de la Bousse d’Or $109 (93 pts)
Volnay 60 Ouvrees $116 (94pts)
Pommard Jaroillieres $102 (93 pts)
Chambolle Musigny Les Amoureusses $239 Mag $485 (94 pts)
Chambolle Musigny Les Charmes $139 (93 pts)
Chambolle Musigny Feusselottes $129 (92 pts)
Chambolle Musigny Grosseilles $119 (91 pts)
Chambolle Musigny Village $89 (89 pts)
Corton Bressandes $125/ mag $259 (94 pts)
Corton Clos du Roi $125/ Mag $259 (95 pts)
Bonnes Mares $205/ Mag $419 (95 pts)

Quantities are limited, so it’s first come, first serve. 10 % discount on six or more bottles mixed.
You can email us at wineguys@boisecoop.com, or call the Wine Shop at 208-472-4519.