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2022 Bieler Pere et Fils Sabine Coteaux d'Aix-en-Provence, Provence Rose

Winemaker Notes: The classic Provence Rosé profile is what every serious winemaker around the world attempts to mimic and for good reason. The winemaker's goal is to find the delicate balance between floral, herbal, wild red fruit (not overly ripe), stone fruit and acid. Enticing aromatics of peach, white cherry and wild raspberry that are balanced by summer flowers, white tea and Provence herbs. 32% Grenache, 23% Syrah, 17% Cinsault, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Rolle, 5% Grenache Blanc, 3% Counoise. $16 Our Price $6.25 (Available GT and VRW)

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On deck for wine tasting next week at VRW:

Wine Spectator 93 Points
Bosquet des Papes Châteauneuf-du-Pape Cuvée Tradition 2018

Solidly packed, with a lively black licorice frame around a core of lightly steeped plum and blackberry fruit. Light singed alder and garrigue notes play out through the finish, with the fruit keeping the upper hand. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Cinsault. Best from 2021 through 2033. 3,000 cases made, 500 cases imported. $50

Jeb Dunnuck 99 Points
2020 Jaffurs Syrah Upslope

Lastly, the 2020 Syrah Upslope is the flagship of the estate and comes from a cellar selection of the single vineyards. It was co-fermented with 98% Syrah and 2% Viognier and aged in 60% new French oak. Offering the purity of the Larner Vineyard as well as additional peppery, gamey nuances, its deep purple hue is followed by a smorgasbord-like array of red, blue, and black fruits as well as full-bodied, unctuous layers of peppercorns, gamey meats, iron, and bouquet garni. With just about off-the-charts purity, a deep, layered mid-palate, and perfect balance, this awesome Syrah can be enjoyed any time over the coming 15 years or so. $80

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Taste 2021 Cecchi Chianti Classico Storia di Famiglia, 2019 Castello di Bossi Chianti Classico Gran Selezione and 2020 TENUTA DELL'ORNELLAIA ORNELLAIA at Vintage Reserve Wine for $25 per person. (We will open one bottle of each of the following)
Tuesday, February 13th. Available 12:00 noon -5:45 PM

Wine Spectator 91 Points
Cecchi Chianti Classico Storia di Famiglia 2021

Laced with black cherry, black currant and violet aromas and flavors, this red is immediately appealing for its lush fruit. Balanced, fresh and long, with iron, wild herb and tobacco details. Sangiovese and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2028. 50,000 cases made, 10,000 cases imported. $26

Wine Spectator 96 Points
Castello di Bossi Chianti Classico Gran Selezione 2019

There’s purity to the cherry, strawberry, rose, mineral and herb aromas and flavors in this solidly built red, which shows excellent balance and length. The muscular finish begs for more time for the beautiful fruit to assimilate. Best from 2025 through 2042. 1,700 cases made, 800 cases imported. $42

James Suckling 98 Points
TENUTA DELL'ORNELLAIA, ORNELLAIA 2020

Alluring aromas of lead pencil and currants with crushed stone and iodine. Full-bodied with hemmed in tannins that are tight and focused. Very fresh and energetic with wonderful length and intensity for this vintage. Needs four or five years to come together. Better in 2028 and onwards. $300

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Taste 2022 Sauvignon Blanc: Gainey Santa Ynez, DRY CREEK Winery Dry Creek Valley and Cuvaison Estate Los Carneros at Vintage Reserve Wine (VRW) for $10 per person.
Wednesday, February 14th. Available 12:00 noon -5:45 PM

Wine Enthusiast 91 Points
2022 Gainey Santa Ynez Sauvignon Blanc

Light in the glass but exuberant on the nose, this bottling leaps out with aromas of passionfruit, lime sorbet and cut grass, blending tropical notes with a classical profile. The palate is more grassy and lime-driven, with a wet stone minerality adding depth. $18

Wine Spectator 92 Points
2022 DRY CREEK Sauvignon Blanc Dry Creek Valley

Fragrant, with notes of lemon basil and lemongrass up front, showing hints of celery seed that complement the generous core of pear, peach and lemon-lime flavors. Reveals hints of tropical fruit and fresh-grated ginger on the crisp finish, where the wine gains momentum. Drink now. —M.W. $16

2022 Cuvaison Estate Los Carneros Sauvignon Blanc

Winemaker Notes: Our 2022 Estate Sauvignon Blanc exhibits a playful combination of lemon verbena, lychee, and fresh grapefruit on the nose. On the palate, the wine shimmers with bright acidity, buoyed by lime, white peach, and lemongrass with a mineral finish. Our Sauvignon Blanc is 100% fermented in stainless steel to focus the primary fruit, and mineral notes. While the wine is aged on its lees, we gently stir them to enhance the weight and richness of the mouthfeel. $28

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Taste 2021 Pinot Noir: The Calling Monterey County, Hartford Court Russian River and Pisoni Estate Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir at Vintage Reserve Wine (VRW) for $15 per person.
Thursday, February 15th. Available 12:00 noon -5:45 PM

2021 The Calling Monterey County Pinot Noir

Winemaker Notes: Rich with hints of tart cherry, rhubarb, dried red plum, cranberry and earthy aromatics on the nose. The palate consists of strawberry and rhubarb pie, dried cranberry, muddled cherry and red plum with juicy acidity. $32

Jeb Dunnuck 92 Points
2021 Hartford Court Russian River Pinot

A youthful and saturated ruby hue, the 2021 Pinot Noir Russian River Valley is ripe and spicy, with aromas of fresh pine, cherry liqueur, and fresh wildflowers. Medium to full-bodied, with ample richness on the palate, it reveals notes of ripe berries, turned forest floor, and toasted baking spice, and it has a classic feel, with good structure and a long finish. Drink it over the next few years. 15,000 cases were produced. $42

Jeb Dunnuck 96+ Points
2021 Pisoni Estate Pinot Noir

The 2021 Pinot Noir comes entirely from the Pisoni Vineyard in the southern portion of the Santa Lucia Highlands. It was only partially destemmed and was raised in 68% new French oak. It's a truly gorgeous effort offering serious aromatics of cassis, darker raspberries, spicy oak, graphite, and crushed stone. Incredibly pure, vibrant, and precise aromatically, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a stacked mid-palate, lots of building tannins, and a great finish. This concentrated, focused, age-worthy beauty needs at least 2-3 years to integrate its structure and tannins and will evolve brilliantly over the following decade. Bravo! $110

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Jeb Dunnuck 93 Points
2021 Jaffurs Petite Sirah Thompson Vineyard

The 2021 Petite Sirah Thompson Vineyard is a perennial winner. Coming all from the Thompson Vineyard in the Alisos Canyon region of Santa Barbara County and brought up in 18% new American oak, its deep purple hue is followed by a beautiful array of red, black, and blue fruits interwoven with cedarwood, flowery incense, and peppery herbs. It's rich and full-bodied, with beautiful fruit and fine tannins. This is one incredibly classy Petite Sirah that has plenty of up-front appeal yet, I suspect, the balance and structure to evolve for well over a decade. $45 Our Price $40.99 (Arrives GT 2/14/24)

2018 Domaine Lafond Cotes du Rhone Roc-Epine

Winemaker Notes: Very tasty with aromas of ripe fruit, cherry, blackcurrant and undergrowth. Soft in the mouth with good concentration. A very round and charming wine. Blend: 70% Grenache, 30% Syrah. $18 Our Price $15.29 (Arrives GT 2/21/24)

Wine Advocate 96+ Points
2018 Rudd Estate Cabernet Sauvignon Samantha's

Made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Samantha's was aged for 22 months in French oak barrels, 68% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it slips slowly out of the glass with captivating scents of black raspberries, Morello cherries, black currant pastilles and rose oil, followed by suggestions of cedar chest, pencil lead and black olives. The full-bodied palate is charged with amazing energy, featuring vivacious red and black berry layers and a firm backbone of grainy tannins, lifted by refreshing acidity and bags of crunchy fruit on the long finish. 617 cases were made. $195

Jeb Dunnuck 99 Points
2019 Lail J. Daniel Cuvee Cabernet Sauvignon

The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon J. Daniel Cuvee is just about pure perfection and another example of Napa Valley magic. All Cabernet Sauvignon brought up in 80% new French oak, it offers an incredible bouquet of pure cassis and blackberry fruits as well as textbook Pauillac-like notes of graphite, tobacco, toasted spices, and chalky minerality. Rich, full-bodied, and powerful, it’s one of those wines that somehow marries incredible intensity and richness with no sensation of weight or heaviness, perfect balance, and a layered, multi-dimensional style that’s hard to describe. It shows more tannins and chocolaty oak with air and needs to be forgotten for 4-6 years, and it will be a 40+-year wine. It’s heavenly juice. $290

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Taste 2021 THE HESS COLLECTION Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Allomi, 2021 Coho Headwaters Proprietary Red and 2019 Beaulieu Vineyard Tapestry Reserve Napa Valley at Vintage Reserve Wine (VRW) for $15 per person.
Friday, February 16th. Available 12:00 noon -5:45 PM

Wine Spectator 93 Points
THE HESS COLLECTION Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Allomi 2021

Boysenberry and açaí berry fruit gives this a slightly exotic profile, but it's finely stitched with apple wood, sassafras and singed anise notes to keep it honest. The polished finish lets a chaparral note chime through the flashy fruit. This should have fans for sure. Drink now through 2036. 66,186 cases made.—James Molesworth. $40

2021 Coho Headwaters Proprietary Red

Winemaker Notes: The 2021 COHO Headwaters Napa Valley Red Wine boasts rich red and black fruit flavors of Bing cherries and black plums accompanied by hints of mocha and subtle graphite characters. This approachable yet complex wine shows a vitality from its natural acidity supported by a supple tannin profile that promises enjoyment for years to come. $45

Wine Spectator 92 Points
Beaulieu Vineyard Tapestry Reserve Napa Valley 2019

A nice, plush style, with cassis and cherry compote notes rolling through, laced with singed vanilla and licorice. Reveals good underlying freshness, with an echo of violet through the finish as the fruit plays out. Cabernet Sauvignon, Malbec, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2032. 20,877 cases made. $65

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Taste 2018 Riverbench Brut Rosé Santa Maria Valley, Taittinger Brut Champagne Prélude Grands Crus and 2014 Franck Bonville Les Belles Voyes Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne at Vintage Reserve Wine (VRW) for $20 per person.
Saturday, February 17th. Available 12:00 noon -3:45 PM

Wine Enthusiast 93 Points
2018 Riverbench Brut Rosé Santa Maria Valley

Sparkling A slightly rusty shade of pink in the glass, this is a dynamic rosé bubbly. It starts with aromas of fermented watermelon, tangerine peel and rose hips, with a lingering sense of herb. The palate combines pink-fruit flavors with orange rind, proving easy-to-enjoy yet thought-provoking all at once. — Matt Kettmann $48

James Suckling 93 Points
Taittinger Brut Champagne Prélude Grands Crus NV

This has attractive notes of hazelnuts, pastries, honey, figs and apple tart. Lots of flavor with a medium body and fine bubbles. Deliciously layered. I like the praline and honeycomb notes. 50% chardonnay and 50% pinot noir from Grand Cru vineyards, with at least 5 years on the lees. Drink now. $90

2014 Franck Bonville Les Belles Voyes Blanc de Blancs Brut Champagne

Importer Notes: The crown jewel of Bonville’s holdings is a 0.8-hectare parcel of 1960-planted Chardonnay in “Les Belles Voyes,” a hilltop vineyard in the grand cru Oger situated at the border of the grand cru Le Mesnil sur Oger. This cuvée—Bonville’s only wine which sees oak—spends eight months aging in used barrels before being bottled for its secondary fermentation. The chalk layer at this high point on the hillside is three to four meters deep (compared to around one meter in Avize), and this—along with the texture-enhancing barrel regimen—imparts a strikingly gripping, driving, billowing character to the palate. This release spent nearly eight years on the lees and was given a dosage of 6.7 grams per liter. $135

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Vintage Reserve Wine (VRW)

1552 E. Champlain Drive, Ste 109 Fresno, CA 93720
Via Montana Center (NE Corner Shepherd and Champlain-Two doors south of Big 5) www.vintagereserve.biz 559-878-3953
Tuesday-Friday 12:00 Noon-6:00 PM
Saturday 12 Noon-4:00 PM

The Grape Tray (GT)

6023 N. Palm Avenue Fresno, CA 93704 

Opus One Center (NW Corner Bullard and Palm)
www.grapetray.com 559-226-6828
Tuesday-Friday 10:30 AM-5:30 PM
Saturday 10:30 AM-4:00 PM