January 2021 newsletter

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

This month we hope to post tastings or our monthly specials and more on our YouTube channel:
                                  J. Emerson fine wine Richmond.

          NO OPEN BOTTLE IN STORE TASTINGS or CLASSES IN JANUARY
The Store will be open and maintain normal hours and we offer curbside and delivery service.
We seek a safe retail sales environment and see no way to facilitate an in-store tasting event that maintains safety for retail shoppers.

JANUARY SPECIAL OFFERS

The Les Voisins (The Neighbors) is selected from vineyard sites that reflect the deep end of Anderson Valley and express a sense of place in the tradition of the Village wines of Burgundy.
ON SALE: 2016 Copain Wines Les Voisins Pinot Noir, Anderson Valley, CA, USA-  “Pale to medium ruby, the 2016 Pinot Noir Les Voisins, aged 16 months in 10% new French oak, opens with aromas of stewed black tea leaves, crushed red cherries, fresh cranberries, orange peel, forest floor and damp earth. Light to medium-bodied, it’s bright and fresh in the mouth with a great balance of fresh fruit and earth character, framed with soft, grainy tannins and finishing long. 3,000 cases produced.” (WA 12/19)
$37.99, ON SALE IN JANUARY:$call for price (while supplies last)
ON SALE: 2015 Beltrame Tazzelenghe delle Venezie IGT Italy - And now for something completely different, Tazzelenghe (tongue cutting) an outlaw grape in Italy until 1978, was almost completely gone until changes in Italian regional law allowed it to once again be officially grown in Friuli’s vineyard although it remains one of the rarest of Friuli’s native grapes. The 2015 has moved to a great place and is drinking beautifully. Aromas of stewed black fruits, wild berries and dried cherries.  It is medium bodied and racy with good acidity and tannins that have become quite supple and refined.  $25.99 ON SALE IN JANUARY: $19.99 (while supplies last)

NEW ARRIVALS

2017 Arterberry Maresh Pinot Noir Old Vines, Dundee Hills AVA Willamette Valley, Oregon, US- “Glistening scarlet. A highly complex bouquet evokes red berry and cherry preserves, along with building Asian spice, rose oil and smoky mineral flourishes. Shows fine delineation and seamless texture, offering concentrated, spice-tinged Chambord, cherry, cola and spicecake flavors that pick up a strong rose pastille nuance with air. Finishes extremely long and pure, with fine-grained tannins providing framework and gentle grip to lingering red fruit, five-spice powder and savory herb notes. 70% of this fruit comes from the estate Maresh vineyard and the other 30% is from the neighboring Weber vineyard; the vast majority of the vines were planted in the late 1970s.” (Vinous 8/20) $42.99
Chateau Prieure-Lichine was my “aha moment” wine in 1979. This second label is a good value.
2015 Chateau Prieure-Lichine Confidences de Prieure-Lichine Margaux, France – “The 2015 Confidences de Prieuré-Lichine is a very pretty second wine. Pliant, supple and inviting, the Confidences is an excellent choice for drinking now and over the next few years. All of the signatures of the Grand Vin come through nicely, but, of course, in miniature. This is a strong showing.” (Vinous Antonio Galloni 2/18) $42.99
2018 Benito Ferrara Greco di Tufo Vigna Cicogna- Luminous straw-green. Inviting, lovely lemon-lime and white flower notes on the nose. Then very serious and almost austere in the mouth, displaying a stony personality to the orchard and tropical fruit flavors. Remarkably Fiano-like on the long, smooth, mineral finish – in fact, it “out-Fianos” Ferrara’s Fiano Sequenzha this year! A lovely wine that is still youthful and will likely develop well. $27.99
2017 Fleuriet Frères Renaissance La Côte de l’Epée Sancerre, France - Brothers Mathieu and Benoit took over the control of Fleuriet from their father Bernard who is a well-regarded grower   in the area.  Renaissance is farmed organically and sourced from the lieu-dit Côte de l’Épée (hillside of the sword), located in the village of Amigny. This terroir is incredibly unique in Sancerre due to its 40-degree incline. This combined with south/southeast exposure and limestone soils makes for crisp, balanced Sancerre (100% Sauvignon Blanc) with a nutty character and good acidity.  $36.99

NEW ARRVALS

Interesting, mindful WINES

2020 Donkey and Goat New Glou, red wine blend California, USA - This is a sort of California Beaujolais Nouveau. Dry and only 11.2% ABV it is an easy drinking friendly wine. Grapes are sourced from sustainably farmed vineyards, fermented with wild yeast and bottled un-fined and unfiltered. From the winery: A mouthwatering pinkish wine made from very little maceration and mostly direct press juice from the Lightner and Fenaughty Vineyards in El Dorado. The backbone is a co-fermentation of Grenache, Syrah & Mourvèdre where only 1/3 was destemmed with skins and 2/3 was direct press and then joined the crushed fruit in concrete for less than a week. We pressed atop Vermentino Marc and later finessed our blend with additions of Marsanne and a red Grenache. $29.99
2019 Domaine Bobinet Saumur-Champigny Hanami Loire, France – Named after a springtime Cherry blossom festival this is an unfiltered, un-fined wine with minimum Sulphur from plots farmed organically, though not certified. From the winery: Hanami is our “vin de soif,” a wine to drink in its youth, to enjoy its fruity and fragrant character. Made from several parcels of Cabernet Franc, we vinify this wine with the goal of preserving the aromas of fresh grape juice. The texture is rather light, the aromatics direct and frank. It’s our spring wine! Ideal as an aperitif with simple food. Can be consumed slightly chilled. $26.99

The GREEN Spot

As you shop in the store you may see some wines displaying a green price sticker. This is our way of letting you know that the wine is organic, biodynamic, sustainable or natural. This is an ongoing process as we research each and every wine in the shop. Verbiage on the bottle may tell you more or you may ask us for further clarification. We are organized by place, not attribute, but as the wine world has made a healthy move toward better farming practices we needed to find a quick way to identify organic, biodynamic, sustainable and natural wines.

USE YOUR 6 BOTTLE WINE BAGS FROM OTHER STORES AND SAVE 10% (on six bottles).

We want to remind our customers to use wine bags that other stores continue to push on you every time you shop. We do not care where they are from or who they advertise, we just want you to use them! Remember, they are made from oil,  and you must use each of those bags 9 times before it equals one paper bag!

MONTHLY SPECIALS