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We recently added two new bubbles to the Wine Shop line up and both are from the famed house of Louis Roederer. With a little twist we decided to feature their California house that is a drop dead ringer for champagne but at half the price.

Roederer Estate Brut is the first California sparkling wine to be produced by Champagne Louis Roederer, Roederer's unique winemaking style is based on two elements: complete ownership of its vineyards and the addition of oak-aged reserve wines to each year's blend or cuvée.

The Roederer winemaking philosophy has guided the development of Roederer Estate, located 125 miles north of San Francisco near the Mendocino Coast. Since 1982, Roederer Estate winery has been quietly developing its own vineyards and crafting fine wines from the Anderson Valley. Roederer Estate's Anderson Valley Brut debuted in October 1988 followed by the winery's first vintage cuvée, L'Ermitage, in 1993.

The Anderson Valley offered the cool climate and well-drained soils that are ideally suited to the Roederer winemaking style. This premium grape growing region's proximity to the ocean gives rise to a gentle cycle of warm days and cool nights, allowing grapes to mature slowly on the vine and develop full varietal character. To achieve an optimum balance of acids and sugars in the estate's grapes, Rouzaud introduced an "open lyre" trellis system for training the vines on moveable wires, providing more exposure to sunlight than traditional trellising methods.

Tasting notes: The Roederer Estate Brut is crisp and elegant with complex pear, spice and hazelnut flavors. It is fresh and lightly fruity with great finesse and depth of flavour.

Enjoy!

This month’s offering is an expose of six regional wines from Spain that illustrate the incredible diversity of this nation.

Grapes have been cultivated in Spain since 4000 B.C. and commercial grape growing was started by the Phoenicians around 1100 B.C. Spain is one of the largest grape growing nations and has an extensive history that saw little change until the recent generation started to modernize winery operations and vinification practices.

Spanish wines offer some of the best values in the market while bringing us unique varieties that show regional expression and terroir.

We hope you enjoy this month’s offering and the featured recipes.

Enjoy!

Alison & James

Suprise Case Sketches of Spain Web Version

Alpha is the first letter of the greek alphabet. The choice of this name came from theinitial letter of Amyndeon, the geographical location of the estate’s vineyards and additionally declares a quality term in the greek argo. Alpha Estate represents the "new beginning", the "birth" of a new era in the world of Greek wine. Makis Mavridis, the grapegrower, and Angelos Iatridis, the winemaker, planted a 33 ha vineyard in Amyndeon region in the late 1990’s.

Tasting Notes: This wine is a blend of Syrah grape and the Greco Xinomavro (Ksee no' ma vro). The syrah we have come to know from the Rhone and Australia. Surprisingly the syrah in this wine is very similar to syrah grown in Washington State with blueberry and bacon fat on the nose. The Xinomavro brings an earthy component to the wine with dried herbs and olives. The Wine Advocate writes; "the good acidity mingles nicely with the oak to create a sunny wine that has an earthy character with hints of sour blueberry and bacon fat that is attributed to the syrah component asserting itself and mingling with the acidity ." 88 points

Food + Wine Pairing: Medium and hard cheeses, grilled meats, BBQ, Beef, Lamb. Consider Lamb Burgers on the BBQ.

Alpha is the first letter of the greek alphabet. The choice of this name came from the initial letter of Amyndeon, the geographical location of the estate’s vineyards and additionally declares a quality term in the greek argo. Alpha Estate represents the "new beginning", the "birth" of a new era in the world of Greek wine. Makis Mavridis, the grapegrower, and Angelos Iatridis, the winemaker, planted a 33 ha vineyard in Amyndeon region in the late 1990’s.

Tasting Notes: This wine is made from the white grape "Malagouzia" and the wine displays incredible aromatics. This is a medium bodied white wine that shows wonderful pitted fruits of apricot and nectarine and a touch of pear. The wine is rich with great acidity and a creaminess that counters the acid (think creamsicle from Dicky-Dees). The wine is quite lively and is an exciting wine.

Food + Wine Pairing: Creamy cheeses, light seafood, shellfish, chicken. Consider this Chicken Gyros recipe

Columbia Valley, Washington State

The 2010 Gilbert Cellars Chardonnay comes from the same area and vineyard as the Red Left Bank offering. The Columbia Valley is equally as good for producing a variety of white grapes as it is red and Chardonnay grows ideally with the cool nights that help develop some mouth puckering acidity.

The fruit for the 2010 Chardonnay is sourced from the Doc Steward vineyard which is a designated AVA called Whaluke Slope. This Chardonnay from the Doc Stewart Vineyard was aged for 10 months sur lie in 100% French oak, of which only 15% was new. Every two weeks winemaker Justin Neufeld stirred the lees in the traditional process known as battonage, which adds soft texture to the palate.

Tasting notes: Bright aromas of lemongrass, vanilla, sweet melon and lilac lead into fresh, concentrated flavors of Bosc pear, Braeburn apple and rosewater followed by a light yet lingering lemon cake finish.

Food + Wine Pairing: creamy cow milk cheeses such as Camembert or Brie. White fish or rich shellfish such as crab or scallops. Consider Poached Halibut with Tomato and Fennel

Enjoy!

Cellar Door Price $36.95

Navarra, Spain

The 2008 Castillo Crianza is produced in the Aragon Region of Northern Spain and comes from the Navarra Appellation. Crianza refers to the quality designation and length of aging for the wine. Crianza wines are aged a minimum of six months in barrels and are released in their third year from vintage. The Navarra DO (Denominación de Origen) is an important wine-producing region located north of Rioja with vineyards located on the rolling lower slopes of the Pyrenees. A number of different climatic conditions affect Navarra's vines. The region's proximity to the Atlantic Ocean in the north-west helps to moderate temperatures created by the effects of the Mediterranean and the continental climate.

The 2008 Vega del Castillo is a blend of Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The Tempranillo brings acidity to the wine while the Cabernet adds structure and the merlot gives round and juicy fruit.

Tasting notes: A medium bodied red that shows a mix of red licorice, wild strawberry and blackberry fruit. The wine finishes with light tannins and a tea-tinged finish.

Food + Wine Pairing: slow cooked meat and game in the crock pot would be delicious and you could consider a cassoulet 

Enjoy!

Cellar Door Price $21.95

Over the past week we have had some fun opening some unlikely suspects at the tasting bar in the shop. We were even successful in converting some die hard red wine drinkers to give a nod to lighter aromatic wines to have before dinner. As we escape the doldrums of January and complete our post New Years cleanses we all start to think about entertaining, dinner parties, Valentines day and upcoming bridal showers as the wedding season kicks off after Valentines Day.

The three recent wines tasted and recommended this week cover some unique varieties that are often overlooked and are worthy contenders for your next soiree or pre dinner sip.

First up is a lovely effervescent Moscato from Gomba Boschetti. Muscat has gotten a bad rap in the past and, no pun intended, started making a comeback last year as the Hip Hop scene started rhyming about this light bubble and made it a go to fizz. When done right, Muscat is an incredibly aromatic and floral wine with very low alcohol. The Moscato grape is grown all over the world and goes by a variety of names and clones. The Italian version is mostly known as Moscato d'Asti, which is generally a sweet and soft, low-alcohol, sparkling wine with typical aromas of peach and apricot.

The 2010 Gomba Boschetti Moscato (Italy, $17.95)shows a light effervescence in the glass and the initial nose is dominated by a punch of honey and apricot, then aromas of lemon meringue and soap candy push through. On the palate the wine has a sweet attack but finishes dry with a balanced acidity and lingering citrus notes. This Gomba Moscato could easily be served pre or post dinner, with lighter goat cheeses or dessert such as sweet Italian biscuits and ice cream.

Second up, and just in time for Valentine's Day, is the 2009 Zorzal Malbec Rose (Argentina, $15.95). Pouring this version of Malbec this past week was a bit of a shock to some who were expecting a full bodied Red from Mendozza but any red variety can be made in to Rose with just a tiny amount of skin contact in the initial wine making process. The Zorzal Rose starts with a touch of cranberry then opens to a fuller aroma of strawberry. The wine has a touch of residual sugar but finishes dry with balanced acidity. What we really liked about this wine was the spicy character. A great starter wine in the winter if you are serving some charcuterie and cheese for an opening appetizer (think Manchego cheese and mild chorizo sausages) or would be great with some Provencal inspired bouillabaisse.

The last wine in today's post that we served this week is a wonderful rendition of the ubiquitous Malvar Grape from Spain. You probably wouldn't think to try a wine called Malvar that comes in an orange hued bottle but the 2010 Zestos Malvar (Spain, $15.95) is an incredible value will make you a convert to this lovely brand and varietal. The 2010 Zestos is a bit of a contradiction on the palate and we think our friend, and Calgary Wine Blogger, Peter Vetsch, describes it best: "a creamy textured white with contrasting racy acidity. Citrus and tropical Fruit with hints of coconut, pineapple, grapefruit and mango on the nose that carry through on the palate." The wine also has a wonderful finish with some pretty racy acidity that might woo you away from considering sauvignon blanc for you choice. The Zestos is a great match with less sweet Thai Food, prawns / shellfish and would be fantastic with the Calamari from Crazy Weed Kitchen. Who's hungry now?

All wines are available in the shop and if we run out of stock will arrive back the following week.

Vancouver Island, B.C.

In a unique twist this week we have sourced some Pinot Gris from the Cowichan Valley on Vancouver Island. Normally we associate British Columbia wines with the Okanagan but grapes are also grown on the lower mainland, the Saanich Peninsula and Cowichan Valley. The Cowichan Valley lies approximately 50 km north of Victoria and is actually a very warm growing region. "Cowichan" means the "warm land" and is generally 5-8 degrees hotter than Victoria.

 Averill Creek Winery was founded by Andy and Wendy Johnston who are from Edmonton but relocated to the coast to establish a 40 acre vineyard and vertical flow winery on the slopes of Mount Prevost just north of Duncan. Since their first release the winery has acheived critical acclaim and specializes in Pinot Noir and Pinot Gris.

The 2008 Pinot Gris was barrel fermented in neutral French Oak. The wine is golden in color, with an aromatic nose of clover honey, spice and citrus. The wine has forward acidity and is a great food pairing wine. A wonderful food match would be West Coast smoked salmon with some mascarpone cream cheese with lemon zest!

Enjoy!

Cellar Door Price $19.95