2009 Domaine Galévan "Paroles de Femme" Côtes du Rhône

Dear Rene,

This is a terrific Côtes du Rhône with sumptuous texture-- more velvety than many Châteauneufs--and it's as low as $11.99. The first time Robert Parker (the world's most influential wine critic and founder of The Wine Advocate) tasted the Domaine Galévan Côtes du Rhône "Paroles de Femmes" was the 2007 vintage. He wrote "Both of Domaine Galévan's 2007 Côtes du Rhônes are tremendous sleepers of the vintage. Both are broad, deeply flavored, full-bodied efforts offering loads of black cherries, raspberries, and darker currants. Velvety-textured and voluptuous, they are about as good as Côtes du Rhônes can be."

Now there's the great 2009 vintage and Parker wrote: "Her 2009s are even better than what she did in 2007. As I have written before, two of her best buys are her Côtes du Rhônes." The listed price at which today's feature wine, the Parole de Femme ("Words of a Woman") Côtes du Rhône is a "best buy" and "even better" than "about as good as Côtes du Rhônes can be" is $20 per bottle. Well, if it's a "best buy" at $20, don't hesitate to load up at as little as $11.99. Call soon!
Also, be sure to keep reading to see the outstanding selections in Perry's "Tuesday Boucher" feature.

Jim Cutts

	2009 Domaine Galévan "Paroles de Femme" Côtes du Rhône

2009 Domaine Galévan "Paroles de Femme" Côtes du Rhône
Compare at: $19.99
Sale: $15.99
6 bottle sale price: $13.99 per bottle
Case (12+ bottles) sale price: $11.99 per bottle
Domaine Galévan is an emerging star in the Rhône valley. Their production is small and their wines are selling out briskly around the world. Coralie Goumarre is the ninth generation of her family to grow vines in the Courthézon section of Châteauneuf du Pape (home of Janasse, Clavel, and Pierre Andre and Beaucastel).

Previous generations sold their grapes, but Coralie recognized the potential of her family's old vines (averaging 55 years old) and perfect soils and transformed the estate by lowering yields, converting to sustainable organic viticulture (the estate is certified organic as of 2011), improving harvesting to be much more selective, and taking over the winemaking.

Galévan's "Paroles de Femme" Côtes du Rhône is a wonderfully aromatic, flavorful and textured blend of grenache (60%), mourvedre (20%), cinsault (10%), and carignan (10%).

Here's what Parker said about this estate and the 2009 wines produced here: "The owner and winemaker of Domaine Galévan is another strong-minded and impressively talented woman, Coralie Goumarre. Her 2009s are even better than what she did in 2007. As I have written before, two of her best buys are her Côtes du Rhônes." Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate #191 (October 2010)

And here's what he said about this wine, the 2009 "Paroles de Femme" Côtes du Rhône: "More elegant (than the other Galévan Côtes du Rhône), with raspberry and cherry notes intermixed with cedar and tobacco leaf is the 2009 Côtes du Rhône-Villages Paroles de Femme (translated literally to mean "The Words of A Woman"). This wine is well-balanced, with supple tannins and a very attractive finish. Drink it over the next 1-2 years." Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate #191 (October 2010)

The supple velvety texture of this wine is remarkable, as well as the floral and spicy aromas and the flavorful-but-not-heavy blend of red fruit, dark fruit, and wild herb on the palate. This is great today and promises to keep for at least 1-2 more years. It really is "about as good as Côtes du Rhônes can be." Don't hesitate to get plenty at a price over 40% below than the list price of $20.

To order please call 703-525-0990. We need your Visa or MasterCard information including expiration date. Wine arrives tomorrow, Wednesday February 1st.

Jim Cutts 

2010 Domaine Coston "Terrasses du Larzac"

Dear Rene,

It's happened-- the Wine Advocate's reviewer visited the excellent Domaine Coston in France's Languedoc region and reported on how great the wines are. This one, the value-priced 2010 Terrasses du Larzac, earned a 91 point rating. Now this tiny and brilliant organic estate is bordering on "cult" status. For the record, you heard about how good Domaine Coston is from Arrowine first!

Our customers have been enjoying this outstanding Languedoc red since the 2003 vintage when we were the first in the U.S. to offer it. Even then, we predicted fame and glory for this tiny estate-- one taste and you could tell the wine is special and our customers' comments over the years have confirmed this. The 2010 is great and at as little as $13.99 per bottle (the lowest price in the U.S.A. and unchanged previous vintages) this is going to fly.

It's wines like this that are the reason you should pay attention to the Languedoc. It's grown right, made right, and priced right. They have old vines (many 50+ years of age) with extremely deep roots that yield grapes with extremely concentrated flavor. They have tiny yields... much of the Languedoc has yields over 100 hl/ha, most of the top AOC areas are around 50 hl/ha, the terrific Terrasses du Larzac zone allows 45 hl/ha, but Coston picks at under 30 hl/ha. There is no other way to get this combination of concentration, purity, and texture. This estate's grapes are entirely grown by labor-intensive but higher-quality organic vineyard practices and their wines are certified organic by Ecocert. At as little as $13.99 per bottle, you'll be getting more flavor, texture, purity, persistence and quality than you'd ever expect.
Also, be sure to keep reading to see the outstanding selections in Perry's "Tuesday Boucher" feature.

Doug Rosen

	2010 Domaine Coston "Terrasses du Larzac"
2010 Domaine Coston "Terrasses du Larzac" (Languedoc, France)

Reg. $17.99
Sale: Buy 6 bottles at just $15.99 per bottle
Case Sale: Buy 12 or more bottles at just $13.99 per bottle
We first offered this estate-bottled red wine with the 2003 vintage and our customers loved it though nobody else in the country had heard of this estate. The 2010 is even better and now it's been acclaimed in the Wine Advocate with a 91 point review and people all around the country are looking for it. Our best sale price, though, has not changed one cent from the 2003 vintage.


This comes from the famous "Terrasses du Larzac" zone in the best part of the Languedoc. North and west of Montpellier, this is the sub-region where many of the giant Languedoc region's best, highest scoring, and most expensive wines are grown. Some of Domaine Coston's vines can be seen in the movie "Mondovino" in the scene where Robert Mondavi is trying to purchase an exceptional and remote parcel of land in the Languedoc that he coveted (a French government agricultural agency blocked the sale). This top quality parcel is now part of Domaine Coston and is planted to syrah and grenache.


Domaine Coston's vineyards are so well cared for, healthy and clean that they don't require any chemicals and have been certified organic by Ecocert. Each parcel and grape variety is picked by hand (so only perfect clusters can be selected) and vinified separately by Philippe Coston, who made wine for two vintages at the famous Domaine Brusset in the Rhone.

The 2010 "Terrasses du Larzac" is a blend of 30% grenache, 30% syrah, 30% carignan, and 10% mourvèdre, all from old vines. The wonderfully ripe and concentrated grapes were vinified entirely in stainless steel tanks with both pump-overs and punch-downs to gently extract the deep color, full flavor, and fragrant aromas of the grapes. The result is an impressive wine and a remarkable bargain.

Here's more on this wine and this producer from the Wine Advocate, including the tasting note from reviewer David Schildknect:

"From 30% each of Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan, with 10% Mourvedre; entirely tank-raised; and assembled at the end of the winter after having been fermented parcel-by-parcel, Coston's 2010 Coteaux du Languedoc Terrasses du Larzac had just been bottled when I tasted it, but showed no signs of shock, only of offering shockingly good value (given that its price is scarcely likely to differ dramatically from that of its 2008 and 2009 predecessors). A winsome nose of cassis, black raspberry, cherry, heliotrope, and iris leads to a polished, juicy palate whose fresh fruit intensity is underlain and complimented by dark chocolate and roasted red meat pan drippings. Black tea smokiness, piquancy of cherry pit, and mouthwatering salinity add to the stimulation of a long, vibrant finish. I suspect this will continue to perform impressively for another 4-5 years. 91 points. Outstanding."

"The Puechabon-based domaine of Joseph and Marie-Therese Coston revealed itself on the occasion of my April visit to be one of this justly-renowned sector's most exciting if as yet largely unheralded source of excellence as well as of exceptional value. The fifth generation took over this estate in 1999 and immediately commenced a conversion to organic (eventually biodynamic) viticulture; a radical update of their cellar; and gradual expansion, of which the most significant - nearly 60 unplanted acres around Aniane (including some of those on which Robert Mondavi once famously had designs) - came only last year, so that in multiple respects one can safely predict that the best from Domaine Coston is yet to come. A Thomas Calder Selection."

Though this is priced like many generic Cotes du Rhones, it has far greater purity, concentration, complexity, and elegance. It is seriously under-priced, a situation that virtually guarantees it will sell out and many of us will be left wishing we had more. Order soon and be sure you get enough to last until the 2011 is released!

To order please call 703.525.0990. We need your Visa or MasterCard information including expiration date. Wine arrives tomorrow, Wednesday January 18th.

Thank you for reading.

Jim Cutts

2010 Grand Veneur "Réserve" Côtes du Rhône

Dear Rene,
This may be the best Rhône wine deal of the last nine years. That's right, in the last nine vintages of Rhône Valley reds, 2002-2010, the Wine Advocate has reviewed well over 500 Rhone reds that scored an "outstanding" 91 points or higher. Not a single one listed a price as low as our best price ($11.99) on the wine Robert Parker called "amazing" and "sensational", the 91 point red Côtes-du-Rhône Réserve from Alain Jaume's Domaine Grand Veneur! Or, looking at it differently, the Wine Advocate has reviewed 191 different "bargain" Rhône wines with a price tag of $12 or less from the 2002-2010 vintage. Not a single one scored above 90 points. This scored 91 points, and the review and rating came from Robert Parker himself (entire review is below).

This is a great deal, but it won't last long. Order yours soon, before it joins our list of sold-out wines. It is in stock now!
Also, we are low on space in our back room. If you have orders here, we'd be very grateful if you could make plans to pick them up soon. Thank you!
It's that time of year again....for our annual and famous (or is it infamous?) Port Tasting on Saturday! Of course we'll still have our regular wine and beer tastings Friday evening. See below for all details.
Be on the look out for Perry's delicious December Cheese and Charcuterie Newsletter coming later today!
Jim Cutts

	2010 Grand Veneur "Réserve" Côtes du Rhône

2010 Grand Veneur "Réserve" Côtes du Rhône
(Rhone Valley Red Wine)
Reg. $14.99
SALE:
6- bottle price: $12.99 per bottle
Case (12+ bottles) price: $11.99 per bottle

The fruit-filled, concentrated, complex red wines of the Rhone Valley are considered by many to be among the most delicious red wines in the world. A recent string of great vintages in the southern Rhône Valley has made these wines extremely popular throughout the world. Despite this popularity, there are still some wonderful values to be found. There are lots of great-value red wines from the Rhône, but there hasn't been one with this high a score and this low a price since the 2001 vintage. Here's what Robert Parker said about this wine...

"As for their other values, the 2010 Grand Veneur Cotes du Rhone Reserve (70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Cinsault) displays loads of ripe flavors. It is very concentrated for a Cotes du Rhone, and is actually an amazing wine. Classic garrigue, black cherry liqueur, lavender, licorice and spice box are all present in this full-bodied, intense, and rich Cotes du Rhone that sells for a song ($15). This is a sensational effort to drink over the next 4-5 years, although it might last even longer. 91 Points." -Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate #195 (June 2011).