Domaine Raoul Gautherin Chablis, Burgundy 2018
Regular Price $28.99 – Cooper’s Price $24.99
Wine Education: Chablis is an historic wine-producing town and region in northern central France. It produces light, dry, white wines famed for their flinty minerality and crisp acidity. AOC Chablis wines are produced exclusively from the Chardonnay grape variety.
Chablis wines are made in a style rather different from those produced elsewhere in Burgundy. They are drier and fresher, rather than more weighty and richly flavored. Most basic Chablis wines are fermented and aged in stainless steel, with use of oak barrels more common in higher-level wines. Used larger barrels are more likely to be employed than new barriques, and wines will spend a shorter time in them than in the Côte d’Or.
Kevin’s Notes: This is a stunning entry level Chablis. It’s bright, lively and juicy with an awesome touch of minerality. Great with scallops, other shellfish or while you’re cooking. It’s awesome!
Domaine les Roches Bleues Brouilly, Beaujolais 2016
Regular Price $19.99 – Cooper’s Price $14.99
Wine Education: Beaujolais is an important wine region of Burgundy, France, famous for its vibrant, fruit driven, luscious, red wines made from Gamay. It is located immediately south of Burgundy, of which it is sometimes considered to be a part, despite being within the Rhone administrative region.
The widespread plantings of Gamay here make Beaujolais one of the few regions of the world to be so focused on a single grape variety. The region’s highest-quality wines are those of the ten Beaujolais ‘crus’ – vineyard areas long recognized as the finest in the region, and Brouilly is one such cru.
Brouilly: Brouilly is an appellation for red wines produced from vineyards in central-north Beaujolais. Relatively robust and full-bodied wines, they are more fruit-driven than many of the other Beaujolais cru wines; their plum and berry flavors outweighing Gamay’s traditional floral character.
Château Argadens, Bordeaux Supérieur 2016
Cooper’s Price $16.99
Wine Education: Bordeaux, in the southwest of France, needs little introduction as one of the world’s most famous, prestigious and prolific wine regions. Its three trump cards are diversity, quality and quantity.
The majority of Bordeaux wines (nearly 90 percent of production volume) are the dry, medium- and full-bodied red Bordeaux Blends that established its reputation. While Bordeaux is well regarded for wines produced within specific areas, most of its wines fall under other general appellations. These include AOC Bordeaux, and Bordeaux Supérieur.
Bordeaux Supérieur as the name implies, intended to be a slightly “superior” form of standard Bordeaux AOC wines. They therefore rely heavily on Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon with smaller amounts of Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Malbec.
Emmanuel Darnaud Bouches Crozes-Hermitage 2017
Cooper’s Price $26.99
Wine Education: Crozes-Hermitage is an appellation of the northern Rhone valley in France. It covers a relatively large area on the eastern bank of the Rhone River, to the north and south of Tain L’Hermitage town. Much larger than the prestigious Hermitage appellation which it surrounds.
The vast majority (around 90 percent) of Crozes-Hermitage wines are red, and made predominantly from Syrah. The remaining 10 percent are white Crozes-Hermitage Blanc wines made from Roussanne and Marsanne.
Since the very beginning, Emmanuel has made a point of separating out the production from each land parcel (specific vineyard sites) for winemaking to keep the emphasis on each terrain’s subtlety and live expression. His ideal is to strike a perfect balance, requiring the utmost care during the grape harvest. The grapes are picked manually and grouped by parcel.
Kevin’s Notes: This wine is 100% Syrah and it reminds me of why I love Northern Rhone Syrah. The color is a deep purple that even a color-blind guy like me can see. The nose is breathtaking with brambly purple fruit, white pepper, spice and a subtle funk. The flavors strongly resemble the nose with a touch of leather. The mouthfeel is rich and full-bodied with subtle tannins and long finish. It is a Crozes-Hermitage Syrah that stands above the rest.
