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Rock On!

Ruge
L’Essenziale 2021
Prosecco Col Fondo
Colli Trevigiani IGT
Glera
Old school natural re-fermentation in the bottle, hand harvested, unfiltered, member of ColFondo Agricolo
Valdobbiadene, Italy
The Ruggeri brothers (Ruggero and Andrea)

Yellow with green hints and lots of fine active bubbles. First up are creamy yeasty fresh baked scents followed by a pears & mellow apple blend, touch of lychee as it opens, and over time a teeny very light citrus tingle in the way back…it’s beautifully light & dainty. Sipping and all the scents & creaminess are right there…gentle, free and as it grows more full with a little more of a lemon/lime crisp tingle in a good way, and a crumble of sugar cookie with a pinch of salt. Just a dreamy, enchanting glass of bubble love that has enough edge can pair with some good ol’ rock n roll.

Pairs with Cheez-Its: Not tonight

Ruggero & Andrea have designated themselves as “guardians” for their land, and what a beautiful rich, green, sloping vision it is. As in their own words, “We have the duty to transfer a little of the wonderful landscape in which we live into the glasses.” L’ Essenziale completely transports you to their history (how it’s made & etc) and celebrates their native grape. It also links you to a group (ColFondo Agricola) unified under 10 winemaking commandments, secondary fermentation in the bottle, and the sparklers being able to pass a blind tasting & seal of approval before they can carry the project’s logo on the back label. Oh and it doesn’t hurt if you like a little head banging to AC/DC, to join this sparky band of vintners. 🎸🤘Rock on!

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #sparklingwine #prosecco #wineislove #winetime #worldbyglass #Valdobbiadene #RugeValdobbiadene #italy #organic #acdc #jandamorewines @colfondoagricolo @docwinebar @docwineshop

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“It’s A Kind Of Magic”

La Masera
Anima 2020
100% Erbaluce
Erbaluce di Caluso DOCG
Organic
Settimo Rottaro, Italy
Alessandro, Gian Carlo, Davide, Sergio and Marco

Just like that good old yellow green crayon but shining. Breathing in white flowers & blossoms, mix of green apples, a  little green grass, firm crisp pears, a little bubbling citrus spark with a savory herb bundle with sage, thyme, & more, and of course my old familiar of that mineral spring house. Oooh this is delicious! Tasting green apples, pears, light honeysuckle, a sprig of fresh cut grass, a salt rim, and that same herb & mineral hit again. This is gentle, delicate and adventurous at the same time, and as it opens in the heat of tonight it blooms & shows its beauty.

Pairs with Cheez-Its: it’s ok but better on its own

Once upon a time there were five boys/friends that watched their elders revel & devote themselves to the growth & creation of an elixir, “Erbaluce Passito”, and well…it stuck. They did grow up, find their place in the world, but their minds circled back to that happy reminder from their childhood, or as they say “with our project we try to replicate those ancient gestures to give new life to that wonder of taste and inner search that springs out of a Settimo Rottaro Erbaluce Passito glass …”  Oh, to have a chance to recapture the past, harness a dream and make it real. Just like their native jewel of a grape…it’s a kind of magic!

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #wineislove #winetime #worldbyglass #piedmont #italy #organic #queen #freddiemercury @lamasera.wine @omniwines @docwinebar @docwineshop

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A Can Of Many Colors

Prisma
Sauvignon Blanc 2022
100% Sauvignon Blanc
Belén & El Principal vineyards
Sustainable, hand harvested, unoaked
Lo Ovalle, Casablanca Valley, Chile
Winemaker: Ricardo Baettig

Crack the can and pour…very light yellow-green shimmer. Scents come running out immediately of a passionfruit/grapefruit/mango cocktail quickly followed by a citrus party blend, tomato leaf, some green pepper & a little pinch of cayenne, and a light river rock in the back, Sipping and so smooth and easy. All of the scents are in the tastes and the green pepper is a little bit amped with cayenne in a good way, now this may sound odd but it’s really good…it tastes like a green tomato plant/leaf smells, some honeysuckle, green pears, Golden Delicious apples, lemon & lime zest, and that musky mineral goodness keeps it all level.

Pairs with Cheez-It’s: NO

Prisma’s vibrant can art kind of spells out all the delight you find inside, and it’s also very portable & easily recyclable which is a huge plus for me. It all comes from a collaboration between Brazos Imports & Grupo Belén, which leads me to search for info on the vineyards. Turns out they have to be from Viña Morandé (one of the most awarded wineries in South America-Decanter 2023), established by Pablo Morandé who is also part of the same Grupo. Ricardo Baettig is also Morandé’s winemaker. So this all comes full circle and I can quit chasing my tail trying to see how all this fits together. Now, that is out of my system, going to just enjoy popping another can & kick back with the perfect music & video pairing for this wine of PRISMA’s “Andy”. If you like the Raveonettes, Vivian Girls, Strawberry Switchblade, PSB & Dave Gahan, etc…then you will love these two Danish sisters. Oh, and one more thing, don’t forget to recycle that can and leave the world a greener place.

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #wineislove #winetime #worldbyglass #CasablancaValley #Chile #sustainable #goodvibes #prismawines #wineinacan #cannedwine @prisma.theband @cheezit @brazoswine @docwinebar @docwineshop

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Nothing Can Be So Beautiful

Vini Conestabile della Staffa
Rustico 2020
Umbria Rosso IGT
100% Sangiovese
Organic
Monte Melino, Italy
Winegrower & maker: Danilo Marcucci

Ruby…think deep stained glass like Mary’s Immaculate Heart. Breathing in scents of cherry, plum, a dash of good funk then violets, mini roses, a slight vanilla touch, and a mix of blueberries, strawberries, blackberries, raspberries, and as it says a rustic vibe. Tasting and it starts off tart & alive with cherries & plums, oil cured olive pits, dried crushed herb blend maybe tarragon & thyme, smoke, black & white pepper, juicy blackberries, red currants, tart & fresh green & pink strawberries, and a wood shaving from my grandfather’s shop.

Pairs with Cheez-Its: deliciously smooth

Y’all know how much I love wine, but it’s also the tales, the history, and what draws people to work the vines. Reading about Danilo Marcucci on SelectioNaturel’s site and they write he’s the first to say this is his wife’s land and “he is merely a guest, married to the vines and his wife Alessandra’s noble lineage” (dating back to the Middle Ages w an arranged marriage in the 1700s sealing the families’ deal). He just rebooted everything, and was lucky that chemicals were never used on the land, since he’s been called “Italy’s Lord of Natural Wine”. He learned from old school masters after being introduced to a glass of nature, and his philosophy is “No chemistry in the vineyard, no technology in the cellar.” Sometimes keeping it all about nothing can make everything oh so beautiful.

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #wineislove #winetime #worldbyglass  #organic #sustainable #Umbria #Italy #viniconestabile #selectionaturel @viniconestabile @selectionaturel @docwinebar @docwineshop

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A Gentle Caress Of Peace & Love

Anne Pichon Wines
“Sauvage”
Gris Montagne 2022
Ventoux AOP
Grenache 50%, Cinsault 30%, Syrah 10%, Carignan 10%
Organic, biodynamic, sustainable, indigenous yeast
Ventoux, Rhône, France
Winemakers & nature lovers: Anne Pichon & Véronique

Very light orange pinky rose. Nothing is overpowering in the scents. It’s fresh yet a little creamy with cherries, plums, some mellow melon, and sea breeze & wet stones. Sip and it’s delicate yet vibrant at the same time, plums (red & yellow with the fruit, skins & all), cherries, pomegranate, that touch of cream feel, a strawberry/raspberry blend with salt & lick of rock, and a lemon zing slides in toward the end.

Pairs with Cheez-Its: absolutely delicious

Every bottle of Anne Pichon’s wines that I’ve had fill me with different emotions. Some have been passion, others pure joy, and this one a gentle caress of peace, love & and a dreamy slow moving time in the countryside. Now back to how this wine came about. Anne & Marc (her husband, who sadly passed away) Pichon found a perfect place to make wine in an already organic yet left behind domaine that came with quite a romantic name in my bee & bug loving book, “Mur-Mur-Ium” (the buzzing song of bees). Aptly named since they even have a beekeeper that’s placed his hives in the vines, which is a sheer delight for me. As I’ve babbled about before, my great-grandfather was a beekeeper & these beneficial creatures fascinate me. There’s a video “The T Edward Morning Show with Véronique of Anne Pichon” & her description of her brother Marc as a nature lover full of passion & a free spirit was so beautiful; how they as a family decided to continue with the winery even after his death is so touching. After listening to Véronique’s words, their “Sauvage” wines seem to me to be like a love letter to nature, it’s complexity, strength & beauty. ❤️🐝

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #wineislove #winetime #worldbyglass #Rhone #France #organic #sustainable #annepichon  #annepichonsauvage @tedward_ws @docwinebar @docwineshop

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Get The Party Started

Catch & Release Wines
Block Party 2022
Pinot Gris 50%, Riesling 30%, Gewürztraminer 20%
Organic, native yeasts
McFadden Farm
Mendocino, CA
Beno Stewart & Monica Varriale

Rose tinted orange sunset with unfiltered goodness. Scents of a papaya/mango/orange-citrus cocktail blend with a little Creamsicle, some heady blossoms, a bit of musky IPA tangerine, and a salty slate breeze with a teeny bit of natural good funk in the way back. All of the scents are there in the taste and also a bit more natural sweet like honeysuckle, touches of fresh squeezed Valencia oranges, cantaloupe, a lime pop, and a smidge more of that salty slate. So delightful and easy to enjoy so don’t overthink this smile in a bottle, just grin and wink right back at it.

Pairs with Cheez-Its: NOPE

Catch and release used to be what I did at my grandparents’ pond except the day I was using my kid’s reel and a giant catfish swallowed my plastic toy hook. Let’s just say my great-grandmother “Nana” had to come over and make some of the best batter fried catfish I ever had. Actually this wine would have been great with it but at the time was paired with Pepsi. Now let’s get back to the present and this wine. Beno & Monica sum up their objectives best, “We make wines we like to drink, in partnership with growers who lead from the front of regenerative farming. We champion simplicity, prioritize delicacy, and crave acidity at every turn.” What better reason than to make yourself, others and the earth happy. I say raise another glass to them, and “Get The Party Started”!

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #wineislove #winetime #worldbyglass #Mendocino #california #organic #sustainable #goodvibes #getthepartystarted #shirleybassey @catchandreleasewines @docwinebar @docwineshop

 

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What A Wonderful World

Cantine Benvenuto
Zibibbo 2021
100% Zibibbo di Pizzo
Calabria Bianco IGP
Organic, sustainable, hand harvested, native yeasts
Francavilla Angitola, Italy
Giovanni Benvenuto

Yellow green shining light. Sniffing and wow! There’s melons (honeydew with a bit of cantaloupe & more), pears, peaches, lemon soda & citrus blend with a touch of tangelo, a whole bed of flowers including a heady bit of wisteria & magnolia, dusting of vanilla/Oreo cream filling, and a lovely lush & lingering memory of a night filled with amore. All of those scents are there in the taste but a bit more festive & floral with a musky melon, a cream feel evened out with that citrus lemony lime-arita zing with a salty rim, and a gentle touch of our old cool spring house (sans salamanders). Just so good!

Pairs with Cheez-It’s: crisps it all up so depends on your mood

Zibibbo di Pizzo has one passionate champion and protector in Giovanni Benvenuto. After his studies in agronomy, he returned to his grandfather’s land and treated it (and still does) in the natural reverent way it deserved…going organic and sustainable. He’s also joined in his/their cause with a few other growers/winemakers (aka “I vignaioli dell’Angitola”) to resurrect, rebirth & keep this ancient grape (Zibibbo) flourishing. Honestly if there was a fan club for this grape, I’d be more than happy to join because this wine is flirtatious, romantic, just makes me so happy, and reminds me that beautiful experiences like this show me that we do live in “What A Wonderful World”.

#wine #vin #vino #vinho #wein #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #wineislove #winetime #organic #sustainable #worldbyglass  #Italy #whatawonderfulworld #NickCave #ShaneMacGowan #Calabria #Zibibbo #jandamorewines @cantinebenvenuto @docwinebar @docwineshop

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Modena Magic

Torre Tusini
Petnè
Lambrusco
Sparkling wine
Modena, Emilia-Romagna, Italy

Rosy berry orange magenta dappled sunset (sailor’s delight!) with teeny white bubbles. Floating upward to my nose at first is a beautiful creaminess, raspberries, strawberries, boysenberry, blueberries, heck…all the ripe berries! Also a splash of cherry & plum, that Easter morning scent of a bag of jelly beans being popped open (Hoppity, hoppity down that trail) and some fresh cut really ripe red watermelon. Those same scents are right there in the taste with a bite of lemon spitz, with a lick of watermelon Jolly Rancher on the exhale, and all that fruit flows in the taste yet crisp & dry at the same time. Best of both worlds and this is a really good bottle on this steamy night.

Pairs with Cheez-It’s: delightful and sparky

As I’ve said before, Modena, what a city of magic. Is it something in their water (or maybe the famous Balsamic vinegar) that births great artists in multiple fields, such as Luciano Pavarotti, Enzo Ferrari, and Massimo Bottura? Now from this label I’ve learned of another, Ernesto Maranesi and “his writings… ‘Il Piccolo Vocabolario del Dialetto Modenese’ is a work of great historical and cultural value…he guides us to discover the expressions and idioms of the local dialect, providing a valuable testimony of the richness of the language spoken by ordinary people in the Modena area.” ❤️ the play of the name “Petnè” which led me to think of pét-nat, but as I found in the small type from Maranessi’s dialectology studies tucked down the side of this bottle, “Petnèr – Pettinare. Ravviare i capelli. -Petnerès Pettinarsi. Fig. Accapigliarsi, accapellarsi, acciuffarsi. Pigliarsi a capelli.” it’s more about styling or combing hair and maybe even getting caught up in it. Now I wonder which “do” would I rather get tangled up in while sipping this glass…Mohawk, Beehive or Flapper? What’s your vote?

#wine #vin #vino #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #winetime #worldbyglass  #petnat #torrretusini #modena #Italy  #usawineimports @torre.tusini @docwinebar @docwineshop

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Powers Of The Sun, Moon & Stars

Domaine Apostolidi
Assyrtiko Agia Triada 2021
100% Assyrtiko
PGI Kavala
Biodynamic & organic certified, indigenous yeasts
Kavala, Greece
Efthymios and Vasiliki Apostolidi (brother & sister)

Light twinkling golden starlight. Breathing in a gentle lemon/lime/citrus blend along with a smidge of peeled tart apple, and wet cool granite. Taking a sip and there’s lemon & old school Lemonhead candy, zingy lime, a honeysuckle drop & fresh clean honey (no comb), crabapples, good shake of salt with a lick of conglomerate rock, a smidge of ginger, and on the exhale a friendly herbal blend of thyme, oregano, basil & more.

Pairs with Cheez-It’s: more rich and very delicious

Each generation of Apostolidi have worked to move their winery forward. Their starting point was back in 1958, when the first vines & vineyard took root and by 1981, the 2nd generation (Ioannis) began their expansion. 3 hectares (2003) then grew to 10 and a new winery (2007) filled with ambition. Now the 3rd generation (Efthymios & Vasiliki) are up to 13 ha and a new outlook where fresh ideas mingle with the past. After their wine studies in Germany, both returned to add their own push further forward with going certified biodynamic & organic (which has had a delicious outcome). Their words sum it up best, “We consider a vineyard to be a living organism. Behind it is a complex ecosystem, in which the microcosm is related to the macrocosm. By taking into account the rhythms and cycles of nature, that is, cosmic influences such as those of the sun, moon or stars, we use their powers, for us. In this way we work with and not against nature and work for a successful agriculture. In the 21st century, we humans have forgotten how to understand and use the knowledge our ancestors taught us from thousands of years of observation to accomplish our work.” ☀️🌙✨

#wine #vin #vino #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #winetime #worldbyglass #organic #biodynamic  #naturalwine #Kavala #Greece #demeter #greekwine @domaine_apostolidi @eklektikon @docwinebar @docwineshop

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“Get On Your Bikes And Ride”

Tenuta San Marcello
Movimento 2021
Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi DOC Classico
100% Verdicchio
Organic, sustainable, and indigenous yeasts
Marche, San Marcello, Ancona, Italy
Winemaker: Massimo Palmieri

Golden spun hay. Breathing in pears, pineapple, mango, citrus oomph (like a good IPA), a little hey, hey, hay & cool wet slate, and a little mace with a smidge of crushed coriander. Sipping and here comes ripe fat bottomed pears, mango, pineapple splash, on the exhale a little fresh oregano, then next up are yellow ripe plums & a little twang that the skins give (just enough not overpowering), and after time a sliver of starfruit. Fresh, easy going, and I could sip this all afternoon swaying in a hammock under a tree.

Pairs with Cheez-Its: goes musky and loses the finesse & beauty

Tenuta San Marcello’s wines have always been a delight. I’ve written before about how Massimo & Pascale Palmieri left the city for a country, natural lifestyle. Massimo did have a lot of wine studying to do, and reached out to a specialist in soil and crops and also an oenologist. Trial, error and reflection on his grandfather’s love of making wine for family and friends, spurred him on to his beautiful bottles filled with heart and emotion. You can also get a chance to experience this life/dream they’ve built through their “Agriturismo e Cantina con Cucina”. Stay a while, learn the organic/sustainable ways, have some traditional meals, and of course enjoy the wines or as they call it, “Magic potion that transforms people in more attractive ones and stupid ideas in brilliant ideas”. I love that quote. You also might even meet the donkeys, and if catch sight of the one on the label, please send me a pic, join in and “Get on your bikes and ride”!

#wine #vin #vino #葡萄酒 #ワイン #winestagram #instawine #pairswithcheezits #cheezit #winelover #winetasting #winetime #worldbyglass #donkey #organic #Agriturismo #naturalwine #Marche #SanMarcello #Ancona #Italy @cheezit @steephillwine @tenutasanmarcello @docwineshop @docwinebar