Hop Fridge – Come Check it out

What’s the first rule of Beer Club?

Come for the flavor, stay for the people

Fun Events And News From Enoteca – Fine Wine & Beer

• Now On Tap: Laughing Dog Double Dry Hopped Alpha Dog
      1/2 Gallon Growler Fill: $12.99, Pint: $3.99
• Name Enoteca’s Wine Contest – Win some Wine!
• Leonetti Release Time – Order Yours Now – Tasting?
• Shipping Services Now Available
• Orphan Shelf: Discounts on Wine & Beer!
• What would be a great gift for someone who likes wine and/or beer?
• How is wine tasting at Enoteca different?

Name Enoteca’s Wine Contest: Time to Vote

(image is of Club Member Bob Stiger, Bin #98, in Florence, Italy, next to an authentic Italian “Enoteca”)

Wine maker Gordy Venneri from Walla Walla Vintners is working with us to put our own wine name on an incredible 100% Syrah made from Lewis Vineyard grapes that will be a Reserve Red wine club selection in an upcoming month. We were knocking about a few name ideas, and decided it would be fun to have a wine naming contest!

Here are the tasting notes for the wine itself:
Blackberry and violet on the nose with hints of rose petal and roasted game. Dense and chewy with flavors of pomegranate, currant and plum. Earth and spice highlight the long finish.

Here’s how the contest works:

1. Email us your wine name idea. We will be taking submissions for 1 week. If you have any last minute ideas you’ve been sitting on, hurry up and send them in!
2. Voting will be open on corkjoy.com for 1 week. Vote Here Vote Now
3. The winning candidate will get a free bottle of the wine, and the honor of choosing the name!

Fire up your creative juices, and send us your ideas!

Leonetti Release Time – Order Your Wine Now

Leonetti, the fabled Washington State winery typically on the top of anyone’s wish list. Recently while on vacation I stopped in a wine store and helped a guy weaned on Napa Cabernet’s get something out of the ordinary that would surely please his palate, and give him a good impression of Washington State wine. That wine was of course Leonetti Reserve.

Here’s the list of wine that is available, all of it in very small quantities. Available tasting notes are below.

• Leonetti Reserve Blend 2007 ………. [Retail: $164.99 / Member: $148.49]
• Leonetti Cabernet Sauvignon 2007 … [Retail: $103.99 / Member: $93.59]
• Leonetti Merlot 2008 …………………. [Retail: $85.99 / Member: $77.39]
• Leonetti Sangiovese 2007 …………. [Retail: $72.99 / Member: $65.69]
• Leonetti Cabernet Sauvignon 2006 … [Retail: $111.99 / Member: $100.79]
• Leonetti Merlot 2007 …………………. [Retail: $92.99 / Member: $83.69]
• Leonetti Sangiovese 2006 …………. [Retail: $79.99 / Member: $71.99]

To place an order, visit our ordering page here: http://www.corkjoy.com/buy

Be sure to specify vintage, varietal, and quantity requested. We will do our best to fill as much of your order as possible. Order the maximum amount you’d like, as this will be the only opportunity to order these wines this year. We will not be bringing in extras.

Interested in a Leonetti Wine Tasting? I want to gauge interest in a possible Leonetti line-up tasting. Cost would be $40 and would include 2 oz. each of all 4 wines available. We would need a minimum number of people for this tasting to work, question is, are there enough of you out there? Drop me a line and let me know if you’re interested, if it sounds good we’ll book it for an upcoming Thursday.

Gary Figgins’ first exposure to the world of wine came as a child when his maternal grandparents – immigrants from Italy who settled in the Walla Walla Valley – served him small portions of diluted wine produced by hand in their dirt floored cellar. Frank and Rose Leonetti never conceived that years after their deaths these first tastes of wine would inspire the birth of a winery that would place their name on bottles of world-class wines: Leonetti Cellar.

Leonetti Cellars Reserve Blend 2006
(Walla Walla Valley, Washington)
The best barrels from an entire vintage earn the right to become part of the Leonetti Reserve blend, which is simply our finest effort every year we produce it. This year all three of our estate vineyards had shining stars that contributed to the blend. For the first time, Malbec from Loess Vineyard makes an appearance. This year’s Reserve is once again just monumental. While still tight today (as you’d expect at this young age), the nose has a beautiful medley of plums and black fruits, blackberry puree, very ripe bloody bing cherries, dried rose petals, and a whiff of smoke and cedar. While being very big, dense, and long in the finish, the palate impression is perfectly balanced and plush, with an incredible glycerin mouthfeel. I’m terrifically proud of this wine, and confident you will agree it stands comfortably amongst the finest Bordeaux-varietal red wines in the world.

Cabernet Sauvignon 75%, Petit Verdot 12%, Malbec 11%, Merlot 2%

Leonetti Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2006
(Walla Walla Valley, Washington)
Dense, saturated color. The initial nose is blueberry compote, blackberries, and a whiff of pine resin and sawdust behind the classic cabernet note of cassis. As I taste an open bottle over several days, the wine changes dramatically, with additional layers of aromas, including tobacco, more black fruits, and vanilla revealing themselves. I’m always pleased when a wine does this, as it’s a wonderful harbinger that it will continue to gain complexity in bottle for years to come. The palate of this cab is just gorgeous, with a lush, mouth-coating texture. The tannin content is high but the tannins are very ripe, fine-grained, and long. The wine finishes with an endless glycerin sweetness for which Leonetti wines are known.

Cabernet Sauvignon 79%, Merlot 14%, Cabernet Franc 4%, Malbec 3%

Leonetti Cellars Merlot 2007
(Walla Walla Valley, Washington)
One of the most complex aromas I’ve ever seen on any Merlot. Exploding out of the glass are ripe red fruits, candle wax, violet and other floral aromas, caramel, graham crackers, and a puree of bramble fruits. On the second day a beautiful note of chocolate and coffee appear, along with a fantastic note of sweet earth and dust. The acid of the wine is very refreshing and balances the long, lush, soft mouthfeel. The wine has laser precision and is quite structured for Merlot—and while drinking great now, will reward a few years of aging.

Merlot 93%, Petit Verdot 7%

Leonetti Cellars Sangiovese 2006
(Walla Walla Valley, Washington)
The opening nose of this wine is textbook Sangiovese. Strawberries and strawberry preserves dominate the fruit profile backed up by some beautiful floral notes and aromatics you would expect of an old-world Brunello or Chianti such as saddle leather and earth. On first taste, the palate reveals the wine’s youth. It is a big, tannic youngster. This gives way to impressive length, some chalky oak, with a fantastic cutting acidity, focus, and a burst of fruit that makes this wine’s profile just explode with food. We’re very proud to have this wine in the Leonetti stable, as it is so entirely different from our Bordeaux variety wines and yet so entirely attractive in those differences. We are also tremendously happy with our decision to add an extra six months of bottle age, further improving our Sangiovese program, already critically noted as the finest in the US, if not the New World!

Sangiovese 85%, Merlot 12.5%, Syrah 2.5%

To place an order, visit our ordering page here: http://www.corkjoy.com/buy

To express interest in a Leonetti tasting event: Drop me a line and let me know

March Wine & Beer Club is in!

The wine and beer for this month’s Club has arrived and will be in your Bin on Friday, March 5th! If you’re not a Club Member yet, learn about the Wine & Beer Club?

Wine & Beer Club is rolling out this Friday, and tasting is from 4-7 Friday. We will be tasting Saturday from 12-7 as well, which is a great time to taste wine to beat the rush. The cost is $10 per flight (3 oz. each of 3 wines – red or white).


The lineup for Club and Tasting:

Vintage Club

Amizetta Rock n Red Take 3 2005
(Napa Valley, California)

The color of the wine is a rich garnet and the nose offers up aromas of crushed raspberries, currants and dried wood. When you take a sip it has a forward sense of tannins that fades quickly. After, comes a nice, juicy pop of fruit that lingers. This wine is ready to drink now and will age nicely for a few more years. Compliments Steak, Roastbeef and Hearty Beef dishes.

Only 500 cases produced. Wine makers: Spencer Clark & Bob Egelhoff (famed wine maker for: Pahlmeyer, Harlan, Merryvale)

60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot

Domaine de Nizas Les Mas Blanc
(Languedoc, France)

Le Mas, meaning small farm, is a range of approachable, food-friendly Estate wines, blending Atlantic and Mediterranean influences. This range offers great aromatic intensity, a supple and rounded palate for an immediate pleasure. A perfect introduction to the Domaine de Nizas wines, to accompany both gourmet and every day meals.

Le Mas (or little farm) is an original blend mixing Atlantic and Mediterranean influences. The robe is pale straw colour with green undertones. While the Sauvignon brings its freshness and minerality, the Viognier makes the bouquet even more intense and complex adding its notes of apricot and exotic fruits. A touch of oak (3% of the final blend) gently brings its toasted lavours to the complexity. With a round, well balanced and lively palate, it’s a very fine and elegant aromatic white wine.

This is loaded up with melon and kiwi flavors, with some herbal notes. Shows touches of richness to the vanilla and apricot notes, which linger on the finish.

This distinctive wine will perfectly accompany seafood or grilled fish and goat’s cheese or it can also be a perfect aperitif wine.

90% Sauvignon Blanc, 10% Viognier

Reserve Club

Bricco Mondalino Barbera del Monferrato Superiore 2007
(Piedmont, Italy)

From 85% Barbera and 15% Freisa (another native red grape, characterized by enticing raspberry aromas and freshness), aged in Slavonian oak for 6 to 8 months previous to a further year in the bottle. Dark ruby and garnet in color, with gobs of sweet plum and black cherry fruit, mellow and opulent. Nose of raspberries, accents of vanilla and toast.

Here’s the winery’s suggested recipe with this bottle:

“GAUCHO” STEAKS
(Suggested by Bricco Mondalino)

Ingredients for 4 servings:

2 steaks
½ cup olive oil
½ cup rum
red chilli pepper
garlic
marjoram or thyme
Tabasco sauce

Prepare marinade: mix all ingredients. Put steaks in marinade for two hours. Remove steaks from marinade and place them on grill. Let them cook to taste.

85% Barbera, 15% Freisa

Bergstrom Old Stones Chardonnay 2008
(Willamette Valley, Oregon)

Recent press on the 2007 vintage: Portland Monthly Magazine recently listed this wine as the 2nd best value wine for Oregon! “One of the best chardonnays ever made in Oregon, this is truly a top value. Quite long, intense pear flavors, with a judicious use of oak barrels.”



100% Chardonnay

Premier Club

Trust Cellars Walla Walla Valley Syrah 2007
(Walla Walla Valley, Washington)

This syrah is comprised of higher elevation vineyard blocks (Les Collines) mated with valley floor grapes (VaPiano) to make a wine with a wonderful round mouthfeel. The addition of 11% Cabernet Sauvignon from Lewis Vineyard in Prosser brings the acid up a notch helping the wine pair even better with dinner.

Winery is Sold Out

89% Syrah, 11% Cabernet Sauvignon

Alma Terra Coeo Viognier 2007
(Stillwater Vineyard, Columbia Valley, California)

This 2007 AlmaTerra Coéo Viognier is a blend of three single-vineyard Viognier wines: 44% from the Yakima Valley AVA’s Upland Vineyard (now within the state’s newest AVA, the Snipes Mountain AVA), 39% is from Coyote Canyon Vineyard in the Horse Heaven Hills AVA and 17% is from Chukar Ridge Vineyard in the Columbia Gorge area of the Columbia Valley AVA. Enjoy the harmony and beauty of our assembláge of terroir-inspired Viognier wines. What you taste in each of these wines is our Coéo of vineyard terroirs…manifestations of the magic, mystery and spirit of the Earth.

This intriguing blend of three distinct vineyards captures deep floral, citrus, and lemon zest aromas, while 12 months sur lees barrel aging in 3rd-fill and neutral 100% Sirugue barrels leads to a round, full-bodied richness with hints of vanilla, caramel, and bright acidity.

100% Viognier

Anniversary Club Red

Slight of Hand Cellars “The Illusionist” 2007
(Columbia Valley, Washington)

The final blend of The Illusionist is 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Petit Verdot, 16% Malbec, 16% Cabernet Franc, 8% Syrah, and 5% Merlot. The wine was aged for 22 months in 30% new French oak, the remainder in 1 and 2 year old French oak barrels. The wine is rich and lush, full of dark fruits including plums and black cherries, and with a beautiful spice component to complement the fine tannin structure. To add to the rich dimension of the wine, there is some minerality as well. This wine will gain in complexity as it ages, and should be ready to drink in about 3-5 years, but will easily age for the next 12-15 or so. Maybe longer! This wine is a treasure that will present you with the classic dilemmas, drink now or hold for later; drink alone or share with friends. Enjoy!

35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Petit Verdot, 16% Malbec, 16% Cabernet Franc, 8% Syrah, and 5% Merlot

Beer Club

Beer Club members receive 2 bottles of beer this month! Beer Club selections are not open for the tasting event, but a few bottles are available for purchase.

Midnight Sun Berserker Imperial Stout
(Anchorage, Alaska)

This insane beer is a hot topic among the fine beer drinking public. Rare and special. Here’s info from the brewery:

Vicious and viscous, this menacing brew pours opaque black with a creamy maduro-colored head. Its aroma offers seductive whiskey, chewy red wine, dark fruit and lavish tobacco. Berserker Imperial Stout invades your taste buds with in-your-face flavor. Weighing in at almost 13% alcohol by volume, Berserker is completely out-of-control. Give it a good fight.

This version of Berserker Imperial Stout was aged in both red wine and whiskey barrels. The entire batch was brought back together before being packaged.

12.7% ABV, 30 IBUs, 22oz bottle

Laughing Dog Dogfather Bourbon Barrel Aged
(Sandpoint, Idaho)

One of the rarer hoppy varieties of an Imperial Stout, brewmaster Fred Colby tagged some of the Dogfather cases beer with a special sticker: Bourbon BBL. In an odd choice, the bottle labels are identical to the ones that haven’t been aged on a Bourbon Barrel, but the product inside has a distinctly different character, as evidenced at our latest Laughing Dog beer tasting event.

“I’ve got a brew You Cant Refuse” The Dogfather is one of the biggest brews we have made. Weighing in at a hefty 11% percent, the Dogfather has 7 malts and 4 different hops giving it a complex flavor profile.


11% ABV, 22oz bottle

Remember the Orphan Shelf – 20% Off Yummy Wine & Beer

What is the Orphan Shelf? It’s our fun way of closing out wine & beer to make way for the new stuff. It’s located right at the checkout counter, and we offer a 20% discount on these products to our Wine & Beer of the Month Club Members.

Why are products orphaned? Well, basically they are forgotten. Selling great one week and yesterdays news the next. Forgotten greats that need a home. Maybe the label isn’t show stopping or it’s from an area people are not familiar with so it just sits quietly, patently waiting to be adopted. Open your heat and mind these are really great wines!

The orphan shelf has had some recent admittants. Several bottles of wine were discovered that have been waiting for a home, and some beer has even migrated to the orphan shelf. Club members receive a 20% discount whenever they adopt an orphan. Find it in your heart.

A wide range of very delicious bottles are currently up for adoption. Come peer into the glassed-over eyeballs of these little fellas and see if one of them doesn’t tug at your heart. Pleeeze sir, can I have some more?

Enoteca Fun Tasting Events Calendar

Mark your calendars for tastings at Enoteca – Fine Wine & Beer. Some are classroom format, which means we all sit down at the same time and can interact with the presenter with questions and whatnot. Our Friday & Saturday wine tastings are drop-in format, which means you can stop in any time during the tasting hours and try some excellent wine. We price our tastings to just break even on the quantity we pour for you, and our pours are quite a bit more than a typical winery tasting room experience. Join us for these excellent tasting events!

Symington Port Tasting with Christina Solga Bradburn
Thursday, March 11th – 7 pm [$10 flight, classroom]

Christina knows more about port than just about anyone, and will be sharing an amazing selection with us on March 11th. Included will be 2 dry red Portuguese wines, and just about every style of authentic port possible, all the genuine article from Porto, Portugal. Examples of what we’ll be tasting include: Graham’s 20 Year Tawny, Smith Woodhouse Colheita Porto, a Vintage Port, and a Late Bottle Vintage Port! All in all, there will be 7 wines tasted, this is a huge value in tasting. Space is limited, so get your tickets early.

$10 per person, reserve your tickets early!


Slight of Hand Wine Tasting
Friday, March 12th – 4-7 pm [$10 flight, drop-in]
Saturday, March 13th – 12-7 pm [$10 flight, drop-in]

Here’s what they say about themselves:

Sleight of Hand Cellars, a tiny “garagiste” winery located in the rolling hills of Walla Walla, Washington, is the brainchild of winemaker Trey Busch and his partners, Sandy and Jerry Solomon. Born from a love of great wines and a passion for excellence, not to mention also having fun, Sleight of Hand Cellars is dedicated to producing extraordinary wines of place. Washington State is that place, and we believe that it is here that some of the greatest wines in the world are being made. Our wines are the results of intense practices in the vineyard including microscopic yields and, of course, hand harvesting. In the winery, we tend to allow the wines to evolve without much intervention. Our Bordeaux style blends see 20 to 24 months in barrel, and our syrah will see 11 to 15 months in oak. We think that you will agree, that these are “Simply Magical Wines”!

Check out these labels, fantastic artwork, combined with fantastic art inside the bottle, make for an excellent tasting experience. Come taste these wines of intrigue!

DaMa Wine Tasting
Friday, March 19th – 4-7 pm [$10 flight, drop-in]
Saturday, March 20th – 12-7 pm [$10 flight, drop-in]

Here’s what they say about themselves:

DaMa, a joining of the winemakers’ first names, is also the Spanish word for lady, defined as refined and well-spoken, which describes DaMa Wines. The vision of two of Walla Walla’s premiere female winemakers, Dawn Kammer and Mary Tuuri Derby, DaMa wines are the balanced, graceful expression of world class terroir that are not of fad or fashion. After all, “fashion fades, only style remains the same” (Yves Saint Laurent). DaMa’s commitment to using only small lots of premium wine and blending impeccably result in wines that are approachable, true to the varietal and affordable.

Come taste these fine wines, and saddle up for Cowgirl Cabernet! This will definitely be a fun tasting!

3rd Friday Post Falls Art Gallery and Wine Tasting at the Jacklin Arts and Cultural Center
Friday, March 19th – 5:30-7 pm [$TBD flight, drop-in]

Post Falls’ Arts and Cultural Center is kicking off a 3rd Friday event with an art gallery showing and wine tasting at The Old Church, Jacklin Arts and Cultural Center this March 19th! As we get more information, we’ll let you know!

Full Sail Beer Tasting with Joe Neese
Thursday, March 25th – 5 & 7 pm [$10 flight, classroom]

Joe Neese is coming back to Enoteca – Fine Wine & Beer for a Full Sail beer tasting. Full Sail of Hood River makes a fantastic set of Reserve Line beers and we’ve been stashing some here and there to fill out a great tasting lineup. Joe is excited to hold his 2nd tasting at Enoteca, and this will be one fun event! After tasting a bunch of beers, you get to take home a glass from the brewery. We’ll be holding 2 tastings, one at 5 and one at 7 pm. $10 per person, reserve your tickets early! (be sure to specify 5 or 7 pm)


Dumas Station Wine Tasting with wine maker Jay Dewitt
Friday, March 26th – 4-7 pm [$10 flight, drop-in]
Saturday, March 27th – 12-7 pm [$10 flight, drop-in]

Here’s what they say about themselves:

We founded Dumas Station Wines in 2003 to focus on Bordeaux style red wines made from estate grown Walla Walla grapes. We produce limited amounts of wine strictly through our own labor and a little help from our friends. We have over 60 years of combined experience seeking out the worlds best Cabernets, and have concluded that Walla Walla Cabs belong in that category. Our goal is to make wine that meets this standard and enjoy it along with our friends and customers.

~Jay DeWitt       ~Doug Harvey

We’ve heard a lot of positive feedback on the Cowcatcher Red from December’s Wine Club. This is the winery and wine maker that brought that delicious treat to you, so come try the line up of what they make!

Deschutes Tax Relief Beer Tasting with Scott Pearson
Thursday, April 15th – 7 pm [$10 flight, classroom]

Scott Pearson is coming back to Enoteca – Fine Wine & Beer for a new Deschutes beer tasting. We’ll be focusing on Reserve Series beers, maybe throw in some Bond Street for good measure. This is a tasting not to be missed! After tasting a bunch of beers, you get to take home a glass from the brewery. We’ll be holding only 1 tasting at 7 pm. It will fill up quickly. $10 per person, reserve your tickets early!


You can keep yourself in the loop on Enoteca events! Subscribe to the Enoteca Google Calendar to keep up-to-date on the latest happenings!


Thank you for your support of our local family business.

Salute’

Russell and Sarah

Enoteca – Fine Wine and Beer
208-457-9885
Email us here

Enoteca is open:
Tuesday-Saturday: 11-7


Directions, hours, and more about Enoteca: www.corkjoy.com

We’re always looking for feedback! If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to let us know. Did you like a certain wine or beer? We’re here to serve you so let us know how we can help: http://www.corkjoy.com/contact-us/