If you’ve been following our social media, you might have noticed that one of our favorite women winemakers from France was out last week visiting California. Françoise Antech, the sixth-generation winemaker from her eponymous estate, was on a quick tour of California and managed to stop in all of our stores, holding three staff tastings and two public tastings. Her incredible energy and enthusiasm was absolutely infectious, and her knowledge and stories were a highlight of the week.
Read MoreThis weekend, Cinnamon and I had the chance to preview the soon to be released 2006 Krug Brut Champagne, and we were very impressed.
Read MoreWhat a weekend! Our annual, two-city Champagne Tent Event was another amazing success in both Los Angeles and San Francisco. The events drew sold-out crowds with a total of 300 guests attending each tasting. This year, we had approximately 20 producers pouring their wines, many of whom flew out directly from Champagne. The lineup of over 80 Champagnes was impressive, but the real draw of this event was the opportunity to meet and talk with these producers.
Read MoreLucie Pereyre de Nonancourt and Naomi Smith recently honored our Redwood City staff with a visit from the Grand Siècle division of Laurent-Perrier. Lucie is the newest member of the family to enter the business and is focusing primarily on the Grand Siècle side.
Read MorePrices have steadily climbed throughout the Burgundy regions that were once stalwarts of everyday drinking like St. Aubin, and the more high-rent areas like Chassagne-Montrachet and Puligny-Montrachet have priced themselves out of the daily drinker market. Burgundy-lovers have been left to find new villages that could offer that tell-tale Burgundian experience without emptying their wallets. The domaine of Jean et Gilles Lafouge is making some of the best values I have tasted in Burgundy from Auxey-Duresses, Pommard, and Meursault. Both William Kelley (Wine Advocate’s Burgundy Reviewer) and John Gillman have expressed their admiration for the immense quality of these wines. John Gillman went as far as to compare the wines to the style of Roulot’s whites.
Read MoreWe at K&L are pretty jazzed about our Direct Import Champagnes, which undeniably deliver the finest bubbles-to-price ratio we’ve ever seen. In this week’s newsletter, we’re thrilled to introduce a few new producers to our shelves and to celebrate some of the tried-and-true who have offered consistent quality and value for years. They’ll get you in the mood for our annual tent event this weekend! Let the Champagne jubilee begin!
Read MoreI have always held the opinion that there is nothing quite like visiting a place to gather a deeper understanding of the wines that come from there. The experience of walking the land; feeling how it moves; seeing the weather change throughout a day; and using the rest of the senses to take in the surroundings is one that cannot be completely recreated in any form. So the fact that, on a recent trip to Santa Barbara with the team, we had the chance to stay on site at a vineyard, offered an experience unlike any other, and left a lasting impact on my understanding of the wines that come from Bien Nacido vineyard.
Read MoreGermany, Austria, and Alsace might be three very separate places, but they share a fondness for hills, lederhosen, and, perhaps most importantly for our purposes, Riesling. They also, collectively, produce some of the most food-friendly wines on the planet.
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