Our Wine Wednesdays, include one *free sample from each of our hand selected fine wine features (up to four wines). New wines are chosen each week. All feature wines available by the glass or flight of four.

This week we will be opening over a half dozen fine wines!! Ryan Brazell, 3rd level Sommelier and owner of Rise Over Run Import/Distribution Co will be on hand to pour. Its always a treat when Ryan helms the tasting. Happy Holidaze y’all lets drink some seriously delicious juice!!

Domaine Rolet Pere et Fils Crémant du Jura
Domaine Rolet is run with astonishing meticulousness and care by the four Rolet siblings (Pierre and Elaine, plus winemaker Guy and vineyard manager Bernard). …it proves that family ownership at its best is unbeatable for creating the very highest levels of viticultural achievement. Fully ripe grapes, brilliantly judged use of wood, and delicate use, too, of controlled oxidation to create what Guy calls “une petite inflection noisette” (“a little hazelnut nose”) are all hallmarks of the domaine’s wines, the consistency of which is impressive for such a cool-climate vineyard region.” -Andrew Jefford, The New France It was Désiré Rolet who in 1942 began making wine in the small region of the Jura in eastern France. In 1958, his 4 children all decided to stay in the family business and took over from their father. Since that time the domaine has acquired prime old vine vineyards in Arbois, Côtes du Jura and L’Étoile. The domaine has always been committed to sustainable farming and hand harvesting, which in their steep-sloped vineyards can be quite difficult indeed. No chemical herbicides are ever used and the soils are constantly ploughed – creating beautiful, healthy vineyards. The Rolet’s commitment to quality viticulture extends into the cellar where they create balanced, mineral-driven wines that can only come from the Jura. The wines always exhibit a focused purity and intensity of flavor which maintain the cool climate typicity of this mountainous region. This Crémant du Jura is 70% Chardonnay and 30% mixed Poulsard and Pinot Noir. It undergoes a second fermentation in bottle for more than 21 months before disgorgement. Looking for Champagne, but not quite ready to shell out Champagne prices? This wine is for you!

Domaine aux Moines Savennières-Roche Aux Moines
How exciting is it to discover a great, under-the-radar producer, making superb wines in the present as well as a long track record of quality? And then to be able to display both the quality and longevity of the wines by finding an estate that also embraces a philosophy of holding back multiple old vintages and offering them for sale. Such is the case for Domaine aux Moines. The estate was founded in 1981, though there are records of vineyards planted in the region since the middle ages when the monks (“moines” in French) from the Abbaye de St Nicolas tended vines in the area. It is now run by the energetic mother and daughter team of Monique and Tessa Laroche. The estate comprises 9.6 Ha of Chenin Blanc and .8 Ha Cabernet Franc. The vineyards are all south and southwest facing hillsides and abut the famed Coulee de Serrant in the sub-appellation of “Roche Aux Moines”. Savennières is located on the Western edge of the Anjou region in the Loire valley, not far from the city of Angers. The vineyards are located on hillsides along the Loire river. The proximity to the river helps to temper the cold of the region as well as encourage ripeness and protect against springtime frosts. The soils in Savennières are predominantly schists with some sandstone and clay. They tend to produce a flinty, drier style Chenin Blanc that can age for a long time. The estate has always taken a natural approach in their vineyard work and cellar practices. Since the beginning, they practiced “lutte raisonnée” (sustainable agriculture), though are officially in conversion to Organic certification (Eco-cert) as of 2008. Yields are kept extremely low, which by law in “Roche Aux Moines” means under 30 h/h, and often less. All work is done by hand including the harvest which occurs slowly over a few weeks (5-6 “tries” or pickings). The wines are all fermented with indigenous yeasts, and aged in a combo of tank and cask (220 and 400-liter, mostly used), with usually 65-75% tank and the rest wood. Bottling is done around 9-10 months after harvest, though the winery stocks vintages for sale back almost 20 years! This is a dry white wine made from 100% Chenin Blanc, grown on clay shale soils. Very old vines and perfect terroir yield wines that age gracefully for decades.

Hiyu Wine Farm Smockshop Band Oak Ridge Pinot Noir
The intensity of a place’s geography corresponds to the evocative power of its wine. The Columbia Gorge is a potential paradise for wine production. The wonderful things in nature are intimately situated together. This expresses itself on a scale that is both majestic, as in the connection between the two great mountains and the Columbia and in the wonderfully small and intricate. Some terroirs speak in gradations of nuance. Burgundy is like this. A small swale or windbreak is capable of inducing maddeningly subtle provocations. The gorge is the opposite. As one races from sea level to alpine heights and moves from rainforest to desert the change is dramatic. Nearly any expression of wine is possible. The Hood River Valley is eerily similar to the Napa Valley of 70 years ago, cooler, and filled with orchards before the vineyards came. It’s easy to mistake the rocky woodland scrub of Mosier for some of the wild terroirs of Southern France, and Underwood is the only place in the US where one can indulge in cool climate, steep slope, big river winemaking in the style of the Wachau or Rheingau. On volcanic islands such as Sicilia’s Etna or Mt. Tiede in the Canaries one can move from sea level to the solitary volcanic peaks in a very short distance. Hiyu is located at 600ft and a bird can reach the summit of Mt. Hood at 11,242 feet in just 20 miles. The wines express similar alpine and volcanic essences. The comparisons go on and on; with Central Otago, or Alto-Adige, etc., etc. Its one thing to note that all of this is possible in the state of California, but quite another to experience it in an AVA that is less than 5000 acres. This was our first year working with fruit from this Biodynamically farmed vineyard in the hills above Husum. It’s the Northernmost vineyard in the Columbia Gorge AVA and is farmed with monastic dedication by Thomas and Marlene Woodward. The Alpine setting allows us to create an exceptionally delicate Pinot. The wine is seamless and without edges with a texture resembling gossamer thread.

Amplify Carignane
We are Cameron and Marlen Porter, a husband and wife team born and raised in Santa Barbara County. The exploration, and elevation, of our growing region has been our life’s work. We first bonded over a shared love for wine and music, and Amplify is a natural extension of this marriage between our two greatest passions. As winemakers, we seek to amplify the voice of site and enhance the most singular characteristics of a given vineyard, marrying a sense of place with a sense of style. We believe in: native yeast fermentations; neutral vessels for fermentation and aging; no additions of any kind except for minimum effective sulfur dioxide; and farming that seeks to establish a healthy ecosystem, enhancing and supporting the natural characteristics of a given place. We embrace the happy accident, letting intuition guide our hand, with our creative spirit and palates as our primary tools. Thank you for joining us on our winemaking journey.– Cameron, Marlen, and Miles Porter. The grape that started it all for us, Carignane holds a special place in our hearts. We fell in love with its wild iterations in the Roussillon, though the way we choose to interpret it is inspired equally by Poulsard from the Jura. As a result, Amplify Carignane is a delicate, lithe, limpid red wine with just a hint of the savage.

Idiots Grace Cabernet Franc
Shaped by cataclysmic, ice age floods and relentless winds, the Columbia Gorge Appellation is more than a visual treasure. It is a collection of microclimates with rich volcanic and sedimentary soils, capable of growing a mind-numbing array of grape varieties — producing well-balanced, structured wines, that are blessed with bright acidity. The McCormick Family: A Father and Son, supported by other family members, all on a quest to uncover the true potential of this young AVA. We farm our five vineyards and influence every step of the winemaking miracle. Celebrating what Cab Franc is; balanced, modest, cerebral. This is a wine destined to launch a thousand conversations. Organically farmed at Idiot’s Grace Vineyard in Mosier, this vintage marks the debut of a new label that honors its origin. Farmed organically on a windswept, agate-strewn bench overlooking the Columbia River. Loam over cemented flood gravels and fractured basalt.

Carden Cabernet Sauvignon
After moving to Oregon in the early 80’s…To study at the University of Oregon and pursue a promising track career, James Carney fell in love with Oregon; from the Mount Hood backdrop, to the beautiful Manzanita coastline, to a very special, elegant yet fruit-forward Pinot Noir particular to the region. Rich in color, with hints of blackberry, plum, toasted sesame, and brown sugar on the nose. The palate is packed with intense blackberry, red cherry, coffee, cocoa, and cedar on the finish.

Carpinus Late Harvest Tokaji 375mL
The name of our winery, Carpinus (Latin for hornbeam, the English translation of the Hungarian name), is after Gyertyános, our largest current vineyard. During our lives we have had the opportunity to work and gain experience at leading wineries in and outside Hungary which we can put to good use in our family winery. It is our goal for Carpinus Winery to be an example of a Tokaj winery that with top quality work and family cooperation, without compromise, can run sustainably and build a stable position in the world wine market. Continuing local values established by families from the wine region is of particular importance to us. Our vineyards are located in the Tokaj Wine Region: Gyertyános, Lapis, Deák, Budaházy, Poklos, Veresek és Dereszla vineyards. Our vineyards were classed first and second growths according to the historical classifications. We work with Autochthonous varieties and place the greatest emphasis on Furmint. We also grow Hárslevelű, Sárga Muskotály and Sauvignon Blanc. The grapes harvested from Lapis vineyard in Bodrogkeresztúr. The liveliness in the wine is determined by the carefull viticultural works, the fermentation in stainless steel tanks and the vintage. An easy drinking, elegant wine which is rich in taste with lively acidity and 95 g/l residual sugar content. In the finish the acidity with the residual sugar content serves with a splendid balance.