Charles Baur Brings the Best Value in Aromatic Whites from Alsace

K&L has been working with Charles Baur winery directly for over 20 years, and, as impossible as it seems, the wines get better every year. At the helm of Charles Baur winery is Arnaud Baur Jr., who has been in charge for 10+ years. With a history that dates back almost 100 years to 1930, Charles Baur winery is an icon in Alsace. What really separates Charles Bur from other Alsatian wineries is the value of their wines—at a fraction of the price that many other domaines charge, their wines stand toe-to-toe in terms of quality.

Rosé Season in Full Swing

You could make the case that any season is rosé season, especially in California, but there's no denying that the dog days of summer are when these pink gems really shine. Today's newsletter explores the category in depth, starting with Gary Westby's top picks in rosé Champagne. Keith Mabry offers up his favorite Provence performers, plus a pair of stellar artisan beauties from Greece and Lebanon. Finally, we'll take a look at how the category has gone from pedestrian to profound with a sampling of the world's finest collectible renditions.

Is Collectible Rosé Wine an Oxymoron?

Rosé has always been fun, but for long time it was pretty easily dismissed in most wine circles. Hardly ever made with quality grapes, it wasn’t taken very seriously in the U.S.; until a decade or so ago, you’d hardly ever find it on restaurant wine lists. But somewhere along the way, we got the memo! More serious domestic winemakers began making it; more importers began bringing in high-quality examples from abroad; celebrities even starting dipping their toes in the rosé game. It can be a stunningly complex wine in its own right when made with quality fruit and winemaking techniques. Rosé has long been the reigning queen of cheap and cheerful, but some versions are so well made and special that they merit a space in your cellar. Some rosé can develop in the bottle and develop additional depth and character with age. From rosé Champagne to cult-caliber Lebanese bottlings, rosé is—finally—getting its moment in the sun.

The Elegance of Rosé Champagne

No conversation about rosé wine would be complete without including the sublime and capricious wines of Champagne. For me, most of the best and all of the worst Champagnes that I have had have been rosé—and for good reason. This far north, it is very tricky to get the skins of the grapes perfect, and to introduce color to the wine, at least part of it has to be macerated with the skins. In the south of France, on the coasts of Provence, the sunny, dry weather is moderated by the cooling influence of the sea, but in Champagne, even the summers can be wet, leading to rot. Most producers in the area opt to farm one small plot like a garden, using a different selection or clone of grapes, often very old vines with different pruning and lots of extra work like green harvesting. From this plot they will make a dark red wine that is blended into a base of white wine to make rosé. All three of the Champagnes in this article share this technique, and the first even a little more!

The Krug Challenge 2024: Krug x Flowers

Every year, Krug announces an ingredient of the year to inspire the chefs of the world to create dishes to go with their spectacular champagne. Not wanting to be left out, Cinnamon and I make something for the home kitchen as well—it is an excellent excuse to drink Krug on a weeknight. This year, the ingredient is flowers, and luckily for us, nasturtiums grow wild in the Willows neighborhood of Menlo Park where we live. It only took a short walk to forage a little bag of these edible flowers—in June they practically pour out onto the sidewalk!

Champagne Buying Guide

Today's buying guide gets us (re)acquainted with the people and places that make our Champagne portfolio the best in the business. Fresh off a visit to the region, I've come back with a renewed appreciation for these treasured estates, a few of which I've worked with for going on two decades. Recent containers have just dropped a treasure trove of unbeatable direct-import buys on our shelves, so I invite you to explore below and take a deep dive into these beloved wines and producers.

Champagne Baron-Fuenté’s Esprit Is Now Quinconce!

No visit to Champagne would be complete without a drive out to Charly-sur-Marne in the westernmost part of the region to visit Sophie and Ignace Baron at Champagne Baron Fuenté. This year, they have gone through a big label change, with the entire Esprit range now renamed Quinconce. Don’t worry—the great quality and the prices have not changed, just the name.

Long-Aged Grower Champagne from Fallet-Dart in the Marne

All of the big houses say that this part of the Marne is just for Meunier and only good for the shortest-aged blends. Fallet-Dart proves them wrong. They grow great quality Chardonnay and Pinot Noir here as well as fantastic Meunier and offer the longest-aged current release Champagne that we stock at 19 years old. Everything that they make is grown on their own estate. I should not have been surprised by how well the wines showed given how long we have worked together, but wow, these are world class, and the value from top to bottom is simply amazing.

Thrilling Domestic Discoveries with Ryan Woodhouse

Domestic Buyer Ryan Woodhouse has been on a tear lately, unearthing one new fantastic discovery after another. This month's newsletter shines the spotlight on three exceptional finds from California, encompassing not only some of the best hidden-gem, hand-crafted Pinots and Cabs, but also a sparkling wine producer that's set to make a big splash on the scene. We'll also check in with a perennial favorite Oregon producer that's taking their game to a whole new level in the 2022 vintage.

Introducing the Stunning Sparkling Wines of BxT

I first tasted a bottle of BxT sparkling wine during a fantastic wine dinner at Heitz Cellars last Fall… I was immediately intrigued by the quality of the wine and the fact that I had never seen nor heard of the wines before. Then came the revelation that BxT is actually a small passion project from Tom Sherwood, who just so happens to be the husband of immensely talented Heitz winemaker Brittany Sherwood.

Roederer Collection 244 at the Residence de France

This past Thursday I was invited to the residence of the French Consul Général for a showcase of the Villa Albertine, a charity that the Roederer Foundation supports. There I met with Frédéric Rouzaud, the president of Champagne Louis Roederer, and he premiered his Louis Roederer "Collection 244" Brut Champagne, which should be coming to K&L soon.

Valentine's Day Wine Buying Guide

Our Valentine’s Day Buying Guide is here! Whether you want to gift a special bottle, or open a memorable wine for a dinner with your loved one, we have ideas galore.

K&L Wine Merchants

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