bostonzest

Tag: city liquors

  • Pinot Meunier Lands Lead Role in Champagne Laherte Frères!

    Consider this your invitation to November’s opening of Champagne Laherte Frères Ultradition Brut. We’ve saved you a choice seat for this sparkling performance that has charmed critics around the globe.

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    Our BostonZest reviewers have nothing but praise for the delightful lead role so skillfully delivered by Pinot Meunier – usually offering a talented, but limited, supporting role in many a Champagne blend. 

    Here, the Laherte Frères Ultradition Brut blend is:

            60% Pinot Meunier

            30% Chardonnay

            10% Pinot Noir

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    We were impressed by:

    • A toasty, chalky nose
    • A big pop of flavor as soon as the wine hits your palate
    • You might think it was a Rosé with that first burst of fruit – it was the Pinot Meunier taking a bow!
    • Good acidity and tiny bubbles
    • A lovely Champagne with a personality all its own
    • This wine could develop a cult following
    • We liked its flavor profile best when served at about 55º F

    The winemaker points to, “… a subtle blend of our three varieties and the diversity of our Terroirs: a fine and complex blending with fruitiness and delicacy.” 

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    Other applause from well-known reviewers:

    – Wine Spectator, “Well-spiced and mouthwatering, offers a finely detailed bead and expressive flavors of black raspberry, dried apricot, orange blossom, fleur de sel and crystallized honey, minerally on the finish. 92 / 100.

    – Antonio Galloni – Vinous: 90 /100

    – Jancis Robinson: rating 16 / 20

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    It should also be said that this sparkler is imported by Oz Wine Company in Haverhill, MA. To us, seeing the Oz name on a bottle always means quality and that we’re likely to enjoy his selection.

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    We purchased our bottle of Champagne Laherte Frères Ultradition Brut at City Liquors in Cambridge for $45. Penny was told it has become a favorite of sommeliers in Europe.

    Here’s to the very important month of November! Santé! 

    Related Posts:

    Our Sparkling Resolution is covered in this post: Join Us as We Toast …

    A Few of Our Favorite Gifts for Wine Lovers

    Here are all the wines we've covered. Since this is a category, this post may appear at the top. Just scroll down for more.

    Want to learn more about wine? Remember to click over to Amazon from here to support this site! Here are three of our favorite wine books.

    The Food Lover's Guide to Wine

    The New Wine Lover's Companion

    The Wine Bible

       

    Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photography: © 2016 Penny & Ed Cherubino  

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  • Our October Sparkler Is Patrice Colin Les Perles Grises!

    Another month means another wine to keep Our Sparkling Resolution to enjoy a glass of bubbles on the first of every month. This time Patrice Colin Les Perles Grises (Perles Grises = Grey Pearls) offered us both a winemaker and a grape we had never tried.

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    This food friendly rosé from France's Loire Valley is made from 100% Pineau d’Aunis. (This grape is also known as Chenin Noir but bears no resemblance to Chenin Blanc.) The production is biodynamic and the vineyard has been in the same family since the 1800s.

    Here are a few comments about this sparkler that we found in our tasting research:

    Carolyn Joy wrote, "Perles Grises is perfect on its own or with food. Its mid-bodied structure and balanced acidity allows for pairing with light white meats, seafood and shellfish as well as appetizers and desserts."

    Palate Press says, "Very light, almost clear, copper color. The nose is interesting, a bouquet of white flowers and pencil shavings. On the palate it has huge flavors of pencil shavings with flint, rose water, pepper, and red currants. Smoke lingers on the finish. Pair with a fruit tart dessert."

    Europa Wine Merchant wrote, "This bubbly made with the Pineau d’Aunis grape this has the varietal’s tell tale peppery quality along with scents of rose blossom, lilac, white raspberry, mirabelle plum and lanolin, firm, mineral, stony palate presence with pretty notes of small red berries, fresh herbs and a peppery finish all in Colin’s elegant style."

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    We sampled a bottle of this wine with friends and a table full of delicious seafood. The comments were positive and at the $15 price point it is certainly one we'll buy again. 

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    Finding new wines to toast each new month keeps us on a constant treasure hunt. We seldom pass a wine shop without stopping in to explore its offerings. This wine came from City Liquors on one of our favorite blocks of Cambridge Street in Cambridge. (map)

    12491850_948552668548364_5815234730730087674_o

    Penny was pleased with both the selection and service when she stopped in while making routine visits to Mayflower Poultry, Petsi Pies, and New Deal Fish Market. It looks like she'll pack an extra quarter for the parking meter in future visits to this food and wine lovers block. 

    What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

    Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photos: ©2016 Penny & Ed Cherubino, City Liquors photos from own site.

    Related articles
    Loving that Landaff Cheese: Welsh Style Flavor from New Hampshire
    A Busy Season Resource: Our Poached Chicken Links
    Michael Serpa Selects Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée 736 as Our Sparkler for June 2015

  • Our October Sparkler Is Patrice Colin Les Perles Grises!

    Another month means another wine to keep Our Sparkling Resolution to enjoy a glass of bubbles on the first of every month. This time Patrice Colin Les Perles Grises (Perles Grises = Grey Pearls) offered us both a winemaker and a grape we had never tried.

    IMG_2962

    This food friendly rosé from France's Loire Valley is made from 100% Pineau d’Aunis. (This grape is also known as Chenin Noir but bears no resemblance to Chenin Blanc.) The production is biodynamic and the vineyard has been in the same family since the 1800s.

    Here are a few comments about this sparkler that we found in our tasting research:

    Carolyn Joy wrote, "Perles Grises is perfect on its own or with food. Its mid-bodied structure and balanced acidity allows for pairing with light white meats, seafood and shellfish as well as appetizers and desserts."

    Palate Press says, "Very light, almost clear, copper color. The nose is interesting, a bouquet of white flowers and pencil shavings. On the palate it has huge flavors of pencil shavings with flint, rose water, pepper, and red currants. Smoke lingers on the finish. Pair with a fruit tart dessert."

    Europa Wine Merchant wrote, "This bubbly made with the Pineau d’Aunis grape this has the varietal’s tell tale peppery quality along with scents of rose blossom, lilac, white raspberry, mirabelle plum and lanolin, firm, mineral, stony palate presence with pretty notes of small red berries, fresh herbs and a peppery finish all in Colin’s elegant style."

    IMG_2103

    We sampled a bottle of this wine with friends and a table full of delicious seafood. The comments were positive and at the $15 price point it is certainly one we'll buy again. 

    12377539_948546018549029_2464496194576862981_o

    Finding new wines to toast each new month keeps us on a constant treasure hunt. We seldom pass a wine shop without stopping in to explore its offerings. This wine came from City Liquors on one of our favorite blocks of Cambridge Street in Cambridge. (map)

    12491850_948552668548364_5815234730730087674_o

    Penny was pleased with both the selection and service when she stopped in while making routine visits to Mayflower Poultry, Petsi Pies, and New Deal Fish Market. It looks like she'll pack an extra quarter for the parking meter in future visits to this food and wine lovers block. 

    What's on your Food Lover's Shopping List?

    Details:

    Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
    Photos: ©2016 Penny & Ed Cherubino, City Liquors photos from own site.

    Related articles
    Loving that Landaff Cheese: Welsh Style Flavor from New Hampshire
    A Busy Season Resource: Our Poached Chicken Links
    Michael Serpa Selects Champagne Jacquesson Cuvée 736 as Our Sparkler for June 2015