Desert Wines and Spirits

Saturday, December 29, 2007

4 to 6 pm

$5.00 per person

Home of: ExecutiveGiftService.com

611 S. Palm Canyon Drive, Suite #1, Palm Springs, 92264, 327-7701

Party holidays like New Years require good tasting wines that can be bought in volume at reasonable prices. Among the new arrivals to our store are a few that deserve our attention. The quality level is up and the pricing level is down…and there will be funds left over in the budget to buy food.

We will be closed only on New Year’s Day and will revert to our usual schedule in January, closing each Sunday and holidays. During the period in January that Zola and I are on vacation, Richard Duran will attend to your needs. The Saturday wine events will continue with a different wine industry representative performing the duties as host, each week.

If you cannot make it in this Saturday, let me wish you here a Happy and Prosperous New Year!

n.v. Grandial Blanc de Blancs Sparkling Wine,
$7.99

We have established relationships with some small importers that search out good wines of exceptional value. Sparklers like this are a good case in point. It comes from Landiras, a commune south of the Gironde (which contains Bordeaux) and just south of Bergerac. A wonderful little sparkling wine is produced here from 100% Ugni Blanc that is surprisingly clean, refreshing and totally dry.

n.v. Taltarni Brut Taché Sparkling Wine, Australia
$14.95

Clos du Val Winery of Napa Valley imports this sparkling rosé that is a blend of Chardonnay (52%), Pinot Noir (41%) and Pinot Meunier (7%). “Taché” is the French word for stained and refers to the red wine that is added to the dosage after disgorgement, thereby staining the resulting sparkler a light pink. This is a traditional “Méthode Champenoise” wine fermented in the bottle and matured for a minimum of 18 months. It shows refinement and personality in its lovely color, abundant fruit and mouth filling flavor.

2006 Four Vines Naked Chardonnay, Santa Barbara
$9.99

This wine was entirely fermented in stainless steel and has not seen any oak. This is crisp, concentrated Chardonnay with all its natural acid, for it was not allowed to undergo malolactic fermentation. The resulting wine exhibits flavors of apple, white peach, and pear, finishing long with hints of citrus and minerals.

2005 Epiphany Grenache Rosé, Santa Barbara
$10.95

The grapes for this rosé come from Fess Parker Estates in Santa Ynez Valley. 30% of the wine was produced in stainless steel tanks and the other 70% was barrel fermented. The beautiful aromatics segue to crisp fruit flavors of strawberry, cherry and watermelon.

2005 Louis Martini Cabernet Sauvignon, Sonoma
$9.99

Grapes from several Sonoma County vineyards contributed to the final blend of this well balanced Cabernet Sauvignon. Don’t let the low price fool you into thinking of this as low quality Cabernet. It is a fine bargain, projecting fresh ripe flavors of cassis, black cherry and oaky spice.

2005 Klinker Brick Zinfandel, Old Vine, Lodi
$17.95

As vineyards age, they tend to have fewer clusters of grapes which are of smaller berry size, yielding more intense sugars, color and concentration of flavors, and producing wines that are generally better balanced with more body and structure. The grapes came from eleven different vineyard blocks, ranging in age from 35 to 110 years old, the latter yielding less than one ton per acre. The resulting wine explodes with full, juicy flavors of cherries and plums coupled with the perfect balance of oak and spice. There is a nuance of mint and clove on the nose and a lingering, elegant finish.

This entry was posted on Thursday, December 27th, 2007 at 9:38 pm and is filed under New Year, wine party. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.