Friday, January 24th & Saturday, January 25th, 2020
1. Storm Cellar Colorado Rosé of Pinot Gris
Cooper’s Price $19.99
Founded in 2017 by Jayme Henderson and Steve Steese, The Storm Cellar is a boutique winery based at the historic Redstone Vineyard in Hotchkiss, Colorado, which produces high-quality, high-elevation, aromatic white and rosé wines farmed and crafted by the hands of these two sommeliers. The Storm Cellar aims to showcase the attributes of this extreme vineyard site within its wines, to help bring the West Elks AVA into the national wine spotlight.
Throughout history, grapevines have been planted in regions where other plants would not grow – arid deserts, rocky soils, steep slopes, and high mountains. Our intense UV exposure at over a mile above sea level forces our grapes to form extra thick skins to protect themselves, producing wines of extreme concentration and aromatic intensity. We moderate the tannins and bitterness that could arise by whole-cluster pressing all of our fruit, and we strive to preserve freshness through long, cold fermentations.
Our Rosé of Pinot Gris gets its vibrant color from a 24-hour cold soak prior to pressing, allowing us to produce a dramatic version of this noble grape, yielding aromas of flowers and ripe stone fruits, a luscious texture, and a mineral- driven finish.
2. Brutocao Hopland Ranches Mendocino Chardonnay
Cooper’s Price: $16.99
Brutocao Family Vineyards is a tale of two families who combined their passion and expertise to establish one of Mendocino County’s most notable wineries. In 1910, the Brutocao family brought with them a love for wine when they emigrated from Treviso, Italy (a small town near Venice). Len Brutocao met Martha Bliss while attending the University of California, Berkeley. Martha’s father, Irv, had been farming in Mendocino since 1943. After Len and Martha married, the families joined forces and continued to sell their grapes to well-known Sonoma and Napa wineries for many years before starting to make their own wine in 1980.
100% barrel fermented Chardonnay comes from estate vineyards, Bliss and Feliz. Aromas of pears, apricots, vanilla, and lemon evolve into a lush entry of tropical fruit, which carries through the mid-palate to a long velvety finish of vanilla bean and spice. Generously oaked but up to the challenge, this substantive and full-bodied wine matches lavish butter, toast and vanilla flavors with concentrated and ripe peach, pear and honey flavors. It has a rich, nicely viscous texture but good acidity underneath it for balance.
3. Castelfeder Glener Pinot Nero (Pinot Noir)
Cooper’s Price $26.99
To enter into the world of Castelfeder is to soar across an unspoken threshold into the lush valleys of the high Adige River, hence the regional name, Alto Adige. The generational devotion of the Giovanett family is deeply Italian–the winery is run by the third generation of grape growers, but only the second generation to be winemakers. Coming from the co-op model of Northern Italian winemaking, Gunther Giovanett started his tenure at Castelfeder selling their grapes to the local co-op but, over time, and particularly with the transfer of management to his son Ivan, the winery has moved toward their own wine production. During fermentation, the juice is kept in contact with the skins through circulation pumping. In this way, we achieve ideal results with the coloring from the skins and emphasize the fruitiness of the wine.
Deep ruby red color; fruity aromas with spicy and smoky notes. This wine is powerful and expressive on the palate with pleasant tannins; a noble pairing for moderately complicated dishes.
4. Viña Século Mencía – Bierzo, Spain
Cooper’s Price $15.99
A small winery with a laser-like focus on the Mencia grape. This is one of several they produce, much of which have earned critical praise.
The grape itself has a long history and thrives in the green northwest of Spain and Portugal (where it’s known as Jaen) It was (wrongly) believed to be the grandparent to Cabernet Sauvignon until DNA tests disproved that hypothesis. It’s an understandable enological mistake. It’s structure, flavors, and aromas can easily be mistaken for the eldest member of Cab’s family tree: Cabernet Franc.
While some Mencia bottles go toward structure and rusticity, this one goes for dark, round, and fun. Jammy fruit flavors and chocolate hit on the aroma and the palate. And there is plenty of oak-driven spices to tickle most people’s fancy. A soft note of juniper and sea smoke cool down into a delightful finish. This bottle absolutely crushes with Merguez-style grilled lamb sausages.
