A Mid-Summer Wine's Dream: Our Italian Newsletter

Though we may think of red-checkered tablecloths, spaghetti and meatballs, and wicker-basket Chianti when we think of Italian food, there is in fact a rich tradition of coastal cuisine based on seafood and dynamic, acid-driven whites. Italian Buyer Greg St. Clair has all that and more for you in these pages. From sparkling, dry, food-friendly Lambrusco to elegant and affordable Valpolicella from our new Direct Import producer, our maestro has the wine that’ll transport you to your own Italian daydream.

The Alluring Wines of the Loire Valley

Though the grapes and soils and wines of the Loire Valley are varied, there is one thread that unites them: the Loire River, an east-to-west-running thoroughfare that is home to some of the best Sauvignon Blanc and Cabernet Franc (not to mention Chenin Blanc, Melon de Bourgogne, Pinot d’Aunis, and Pinot Noir) on the planet. Today’s newsletter celebrates our current favorites from this riverfront region—all of which are perfectly suited for sipping your way through summertime.

Kate SotoJune 1, 2021K&L Wine Merchantsklwines, kl wine blog

Ridge Vineyards: History in a Bottle with a Beautiful Future

To celebrate the 45th anniversary of the Judgement of Paris, we’d like to pay tribute to one of our very favorite California wineries, one whose 1971 Monte Bello came in fifth place in 1976, and whose 1971 Monte Bello came in first place 30 years later at the rematch—Ridge Vineyards. Our Domestic Buyer, Kaj Stromer, recently attended a Zoom tasting of Ridge’s spring releases, and he left thoroughly impressed. Click for his recap.

New to K&L: Biodaynamic Rhône Producer Mas de Libian

When Rhône Buyer Keith Mabry and I first tasted the wines of Mas de Libian, we were so struck with their absolute vibrancy and aromatic beauty that we knew they should be part of K&L’s portfolio. They are biodynamically farmed, low-intervention, naturally made wines, but very clean and extremely well made. The complex aromas leap out of the glass, and the wines dance on the palate—these wines are the ballet dancers of the Rhône Valley.

Palate Shockers

In the thousands of wines we taste at K&L each year, it is often the most strange, wildly different wines that are the most talked about... Regardless of whether you think the wine tastes good or not, they are so radically different that they always tend to inspire heated discussions and end up stealing the spotlight. So I reached out to our buying staff to compile a list of wines that will shake up your palate. If you find yourself in need of a bottle to change up your wine routine, argue over, or just explore somewhere new, check out this list.

A Year in Champagne

2020 will be hard year to forget for many tough reasons that no one looks at our blog to be reminded of. Today I am flipping through last year’s wine notebooks and finding the good memories for my annual Champagne retrospective. I hope that you enjoy taking a look at these 10 memorable Champagne’s from 2020 as much as I have enjoyed remembering them!

New Brut Nature from Billecart

Champagne Billecart-Salmon has been making Champagne for over 200 years, and change comes slowly and incrementally to this great house. This year has been revolutionary for Billecart, as they have introduced not one, but two new cuvées, first the Les Rendezvous #1, and now the Billecart-Salmon "Brut Nature" Champagne. If you are a fan of truly dry Champagne or of pairing your bubbles with food, the Brut Nature is not to be missed!

Gentlemanly Claret from Moulis-en-Médoc

This past Friday night my wife, Cinnamon, treated me to a lovely steak and claret dinner at home. She prepared a prime top sirloin in the cast iron pan, her excellent empress rice, and also served some wok-fried green beans. I decanted the 1998 Haut-Franquet Moulis to go with it. I woke up inspired to write about it—it was a great experience…

Clyde's Corner: Carbonnieux Blanc

Carbonnieux is an estate with Medieval origins in Bordeaux, and 20th-century origins at K&L. We’ve been stocking them for a long time, and that’s because we’re epic fans. And we’re not the only ones—even noted oenophile Thomas Jefferson once made a visit to their cellars. They also continually provide Clyde with excellent Bordeaux Blanc, and this installment of Clyde’s corner is all about a few of his faves.

Ethereal 2008 From Henriot

Vintage Henriot and white truffles, oh my. Gary found a very special wine to go with his birthday truffle straight from Alba and handmade pasta. Though he’d intended to drink the 2008 Henriot as an aperitif, it paired so divinely with his meal that it became the star of the show.

All-Meunier One-Off from Billecart

I have received more calls for the Billecart-Salmon "Le Rendez-Vous" Pinot Meunier Extra Brut #1 Champagne than any other bottling this year. Yesterday, our small allocation of 180 bottles finally arrived. I didn’t waste time—I am just as excited as all of the customers who called and emailed—so I chilled one down and drank it last night. Cinnamon and I had the wine both as an aperitif, and with the excellent Taiwanese food of I-Dumpling here in Redwood City. It was a huge success both ways and “a small bottle”—our code at home for “we liked it so much that we drank it too fast.”

The Golden Age of West Coast Wines

There’s no doubt that the wines coming out of California, Oregon, and Washington State these days are better than ever. With an influx of new talent and well-honed skills from the veterans, the wines are not just a departure from the “go big or go home” model, they are in fact some of the most pure expressions of the specific and varied terroir that the West Coast has to offer.

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