Dear Rene, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate has rated over one thousand wines from Spain from the 2006 vintage (1,080 to be exact). Guess how many of these wines earned a rating of 91 points or more and list a price under $11 per bottle? Zero. None. Zip. But today we've lowered the price of the 2006 Claraval from Bodegas y Vinedos Del Jalón to make it achieve this combination of price and quality criteria that not one other Spanish wine matched. And Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar has rated 774 Spanish wines from 2006. Guess how many list a price under $15 per bottle and a score of 92 points or higher? Exactly one. This one! Put another way, two of the most influential wine journals in the U.S. both rated this wine higher than ANY other Spanish wine from the vintage that can be purchased for $10.99 which is our special case price for phone orders on this wine! Don't wait though; highly rated wines tend to sell quickly. And they sell especially quickly when they're priced this low! Call Arrowine today to order. Perry has some very special items in his Tuesday Boucher at e-mail-only-prices. Please see below for details. Jim Cutts
 2006 "Claraval" from Bodegas y Vinedos Del Jalón, Calatayud, Spain Reg. $14.99 6 bottle sale price: $12.99 per bottle Case (12+ bottle) sale price: $10.99 per bottle Robert Parker's Wine Advocate wrote: "Bodegas y Vinedos del Jalon's current portfolio is first class from top to bottom." According to the Del Jalón website: "Bodegas y Viñedos del Jalón has 1000 hectares of vineyard, concentrated in the southern part of the Calatayud region. Our vineyards extend from the River Jalón to the north, deep into the Systema Ibérico mountain range to the south, and are centred on the river valleys of the Jiloca and the Perejiles. Our vineyards are situated at altitudes of between 600 and over 1000 metres (2000 - 3300 feet), with the higher sites dominated by Old-Vine Garnacha and the lower sites by Tempranillo. Of the more than 600 hectares of Garnacha that we have in production, more than half are Viñas Viejas, planted more than 40 years ago. These low yielding vineyards are our "jewel in the crown", providing consistently outstanding fruit, year after year, and forming the basis for many of our best wines." Here's what Robert Parker's Wine Advocate wrote about the 2006 Claraval: "The 2006 Claraval... was sourced from higher elevation vineyards. Opaque purple-colored, the wine coats the glass. It gives up an alluring aromatic array of wood smoke, mineral, scorched earth, black cherry, black raspberry, and violets. This leads to a medium to full-bodied, layered wine with loads of sweet, spicy dark fruit flavors, ripe tannin, good balance, and a long, pure finish. Give it 2-3 years to blossom and drink it through 2020. 91 points." Dr. Jay Miller, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (#175), February 2008. And here's what Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar had to say: "Deep, bright ruby-red. Sexy raspberry and blackberry preserve aromas are complicated by Asian spices, smoky minerals and fresh flowers. Suave and velvety, with deep, sweet flavors of red and dark berries, cherry-cola and candied rose. Supple tannins supply shape and gentle back-end grip. A very appealing wine: it would be no crime to drink this now. 92 points." Josh Raynolds, Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Sep./Oct. 2008 To order please call 703.525.0990. We need your Visa or MasterCard information including expiration date. Wine arrives tomorrow, January 26th. Thank you for reading. Jim Cutts | ||||
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
2006 "Claraval" from Bodegas y Vinedos Del Jalón, Calatayud, Spain
Friday, January 21, 2011
2009 Chateau Le Petit Courret, Bordeaux
Dear Rene, Imagine a nicely-balanced, deeply-flavored, 100% cabernet sauvignon Bordeaux with palate-saturating texture and a nice finish. It is an estate-bottled, Grand Vin de Bordeaux made from selected, hand-harvested grapes. Now imagine getting that for the same price that you would pay for a typical, generic wine. That's right, at only $7.99 per bottle by the case you can get the taste experience of real Bordeaux. This is such a crazy value we're sure once the word gets out we can expect a stampede! Just a little background for those of you who don't follow the ups and downs of Bordeaux vintages. Robert Parker, the Bordeaux guru himself, says "The finest vintage I have tasted in 32 years of covering Bordeaux!" Other critics have echoed his enthusiasm, and many are calling it THE Vintage of a Lifetime. The Wine Spectator proclaims this: "In France's most famous wine region, Bordeaux, some people are touting the 2009 vintage as the mother of great modern vintages." With this kind of hype it's no wonder the pricing on the classified growth futures have gone through the roof. But the good news is that just like in other great vintages (such as 2005), the small, so-called "Petite-Chateaux" perform way beyond expectation. These "Baby Bordeaux" are bottled earlier (with less oak aging) and are meant for early consumption (within their first 4 or 5 years of life), rather than for sitting in the cellar for decades. We will have a bottle open to sample, so come on by and give it a try. As a reminder, this is a "Door-Buster" Sale which means this special price is available only today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday), while supplies last. This sale price is for in-store sales only - no phone or email orders, and no combining with other offers. Graham Reid
 2009 Chateau Le Petit Courret, Bordeaux Regular: $9.99 Special Sale Price (by the case): $7.99 per bottle
This estate-grown and estate-bottled red, comes from cabernet sauvignon vineyards located in the Entre-Deux-Mers area of Bordeaux. The mature vines average 25 years of age and grow in loose, well-drained, gravelly soils. The winemaking is clean and hygienic. It gets a short stay in French oak barrels (20% new) to give it authentic Bordeaux texture. The 2009 vintage is ripe and fruit-forward with pleasant structure provided by fresh acidity and silky smooth tannins. This medium-bodied cabernet provides palate-coating flavors and the kind of textural dimension Bordeaux lovers look for. Here's how it tastes: In the glass, there is deep ruby color. The bouquet is a beautiful blend of red and black cherries, mulberries, and spring flowers after a rain. The palate-coating flavors bring to mind black cherries, black currants, and crushed herbs. There is good concentration, medium body, impressive texture, and a medium to long beautifully balanced finish. This is delicious today and will drink nicely for about 3 more years. It is absolutely delicious. It is ready to drink. It is substantial without being heavy so it will go with just about any kind of food. And best of all, it is a tiny fraction of the hundreds (or even thousands) of dollars per bottle that Bordeaux first growths will command in this historically great vintage. At ten bucks it's an overachieving, well-made wine of some substance and a character true to the classic Bordeaux model. At our special Door-Buster price it's the best wine at the cheapest price we can find! Reminder: this is a "Door-Buster" Sale which means this special price is available only today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday), while supplies last. This sale price is for in-store sales only - no phone or email orders, and no combining with other offers. Enjoy! Graham Reid | ||||
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