deVine Thoughts

March 27, 2011

Top Drops Series: The P’s of Bordeaux

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 1:07 am

conseillanteAuthor: Dirk Chan

There are many who consider Bordeaux the single most precious wine producing region in the world. With its illustrious history and a track record second to none for aging wines, it is no wonder why the prices are among the highest in the world. In the second in a three part Top Drops on Bordeaux for 2011, deVine will feature the P’s of Bordeaux on Saturday, April 9 at 7pm, focusing on three of the most sought after regions: Pauillac, Pomerol and Pessac-Leognan.

Pauillac is the most famous and prestigious left bank appellation – it is home of three of the five First Growths from the 1855 Classification. Generally, the Cabernet Sauvignon based reds result in a style that is full-bodied, tannic (hence ageworthy), creme de cassis, cedar and blackcurrants.

Pomerol is a tiny appellation by size but it is the king of the right bank. Some of the best Merlots grown in the world is from here. A robust wine, with an exclusive smooth quality akin to liquid velvet. Pomerols are expensive wines because of the relatively small amount of wines made (we’re talking a few thousand cases compared to tens of thousands from left bank wineries).

Pessac-Leognan is further south of Pauillac and the blend here is roughly 50-50 Cab and Merlot. The unmistakable quality of Pessacs are their powerful bouquet with cigar box, tobacco leaf and minerals quite noticeable and enthralling.

As usual with our Top Drops series of tastings, we’ll taste a young, mid-term and an older bottling from each of these three regions. It promises to be a thrilling tasting where we’ll talk appellation characteristics, Bordeaux futures, storage, great vintages and all things Bordeaux. Serious tasting of course given the $125 price tag but sure-to-be fun and informative as well. There are only 6 spots left for this sit-down event so book your spot now to avoid disappointment. Click here to register now..

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March 21, 2011

Al Fresco in Italy

Filed under: deVine's Daily Blog Article — Dirk @ 11:11 am

AlFresco2011Author: Dirk Chan

The much anticipated 3rd Annual Al Fresco block party on 104th Street is scheduled for Saturday, June 11th. It will be the biggest and best one yet with numerous new ideas and special events being planned. Look for our online auction webpage coming very shortly with both a wide array of desirable and collectible items for your consideration. For the second year in a row, our fundraising will be in support of the E4C School Lunch Program.

As everyone knows, setting up a large event such as this requires lots of volunteers, hours and money. We will be doing a few events leading up to Al Fresco to generate some needed funds to make this event a success, the first of which is the Al Fresco in Italy tasting on Saturday, March 26 at 7pm at the store. This is a stand-up mingle festival style event with 15 wines from the Italian portfolio of Jennifer Klinck of Vendemmia International Wines being showcased. There will be some Southern Italian munchies provided by Daniel Costa and his new restaurant Corso 32 that will pair with the wines beautifully.

Tickets are selling very fast so register quickly to avoid disappointment. Unlike our other festival style tastings, there is no drop-in for this event due to the food component of this tasting. You can pre-register by clicking here..

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