Past featured wines
2004 Mustiguillo ‘Quincha Corral’
(lowest price on the planet!)
Last week many of you had the chance to secure some of the 2004 Mustiguillo ‘Finca Terrerazo’. It was probably the first encounter for many of you with the Bobal grape variety that grows exclusively in the Utiel-Requena region of Spain. When I tasted this wine, I also tasted the other two bottlings from Bodega Mustiguillo; the Mestizaje and the Quincha Corral. Not unlike Goldilocks, I chose the “middle bottling” Finca Terrerazo that day for its quality-for-value ratio and kept a bottle of the top level Quincha Corral open to taste the next day since it was so massive and muscular straight out of the bottle. For the price I had seen the Quincha being sold at elsewhere, I was a bit reluctant to pull the trigger on it but I knew that if I held out a bit that I could secure the entire allocation for Houston at a bargain price. That day has come:
The Quincha Corral has a higher concentration of the Bobal grape and is quite dense and extracted. Just imagine a more powerful version of the Terrerazo. It received a 91 and 92 rating from Wine Spectator and Robert Parker respectively, but this is probably due to the fact that it released at an $80 retail price:
‘Lavish oak gives plenty of cocoa and spice notes to this modern red. Blackberry fruit is accented with mineral and floral notes. Polished and flashy, yet with good structure and length. Drink now through 2012. 300 cases imported.’ – W.S.
‘The 2004 Quincha Corral is 96% Bobal and 4% Syrah aged for 20 months in French oak. The Bobal for this cuvee comes from 90+-year-old vines. Purple/black in color, its nose is more muted but reveals attractive pain grille, plum, and blueberry aromas. This is followed by a medium to full-bodied wine with ripe, spicy, layered flavors, excellent balance, and a lengthy finish. Drink this unique and satisfying wine over the next 8-10 years’- R.P.
I have twenty 6-packs of this wine at $59.99, but the price comes down to a ridiculous $50.99 on a 6-pack and $47.99 on 12 bottles or more. This is way below any retail price in the country. I personally love the style of this wine, and I had a bottle over two days and it drank perfectly. It became more complex as the wine had a longer time to aerate. I predict this wine can age for another 10 years (easily) and continue to improve.
Move quickly on this one, the Terrerazo was gone in a few days last week…..
2004 Mustiguillo ‘Quincha Corral’
Retail price: $59.99/btl.
6-pack price: $50.99/btl.
12 Bottles or more: $47.99/btl.
2004 Bodegas Mustiguillo Finca Terrerazo!
Week of February 4, 2008
Here is a full-bodied red that will surprise anyone who enjoys extracted, complex, black fruit-driven wines that linger on the palate for over a minute. I received only a few 6-packs of this wine, and it is drinking beautifully. The wine is from Valencia, Spain and is made predominantly with the Bobal grape variety and blended with some Tempranillo and Cabernet Sauvignon. The characteristic that strikes me immediately is the ripe, black cherry and chewy, fleshy blackberry fruit delivery in this wine. It has elements of powerful Australian Shiraz with the balance of a black currant-driven Sonoma Cabernet Sauvignon. The wine sees aging in New French oak for 16 months, giving it a creamy mid-palate of vanillin spice.
There were only 400 cases for the U.S. and it received 93 POINTS from the Wine Spectator:
"This rich, modern red is brooding and dense, with black fruit, black coffee and mineral notes and muscular tannins. Not giving much now, but the concentration is impressive and the balance promising" - WS
The price for this wine is $39.99 but comes down considerably with our Broker client discount of 15% on 6-packs ($33.99) and 20% on 12 btls or more ($31.99).
This wine drinks more like an $80 wine and makes for a very interesting conversation piece since there are probably only a couple of wines in the world made from this varietal.
It will go fast, so act fast.
2004 Bodegas Mustiguillo Finca Terrerazo
Retail price: $39.99/btl.
6-pack price: $33.99/btl.
12 Bottles or more: $31.99/btl.
2005 Alto Moncayo Garnacha for under $40!
Alto Moncayo Garnacha made its debut with the 2002 vintage. This hot, new Campo de Borja project includes Bodegas Borsao, importer Jorge Ordonez, Grateful Palate owner Dan Philips and Australian winemaker Chris Ringland. The 2002 Alto Moncayo Garnacha received an inaugural 93 rating from Wine Advocate, and the luxury cuvee, Aquilon, was rated a 96. The 2005 Alto Moncayo Garnacha is from a better selection of grapes, all from hillside Grenache vines ranging from 30 to 92 years of age. When Parker scores release on this wine, the price will inevitably go through the roof.
Alto Moncayo Garnacha is dense purple in color, with a nose of raspberries and black cherries and followed by chocolate, minerals and tar notes. It is big and full-bodied with intensely concentrated flavors and sweet tannins. The wine has been aged for over a year in French and American oak. The blockbuster finish is simply exceptional.
Enjoy Alto Moncayo over the next 8-10 years with roast lamb, flank steak, and rich vegetarian dishes.
Notes from International Wine Cellar - Stephen Tanzer
Opaque ruby. Ripe raspberry and cherry aromas are complicated by fresh rose, vanilla and mocha. Deeply concentrated and slow to open, offering deep, liqueur-like red and dark fruit character. Supple tannins add structure to this exotic, youthful fruit bomb, which finishes bright and clingy. Needs a couple years of bottle aging.
92 points
Get this for under $40/btl. when buying 6 or more . * Limited amount available
2005 Alto Moncayo Garnacha
Retail price: $45.99/btl.
6-pack price: $39.09/btl.
12 Bottles or more: $36.79/btl.
2003 Northstar Merlot - Columbia Valley, Washington -
Week of December 31, 2007
Those of you familiar with the richness and depth of high quality Merlot from Washington State might be familiar with Northstar wines. Located in Walla Walla Valley, Northstar concentrates on making Bordeaux-quality , Merlot-dominated wines .More importantly, this black fruit-dominated rendition offers huge value. Priced at over $40 and representing one of the truly consistent Merlot-producers out there, TTR Wine Brokers is featuring this wine as a last-minute New Year's Eve purchase at less than $35.
Notes from Wine Spectator:
Elegant, almost aristocratic, offering subtle layers of blackberry, cherry, tar and licorice aromas and flavors, finishing harmoniously. Tannins are firm but not intrusive. This one should develop beautifully in the cellar. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot.- 91 Points
Get this for under $30/btl. when buying 6 or more . * Limited amount of 6-packs available (in their original wooden case).
2003 Northstar Merlot
Retail price: $34.94/btl.
6-pack price: $29.70/btl.
Multiple 6-packs: $27.95/btl.
2005 Chateau Beaucastel Chateaneuf du Pape Rouge -
Week of December 17, 2007
Here’s a bit of a no-brainer for the wine collector. With all the huge points having been given out to a slew of CDP’s from this superb vintage, here’s a chance to scoop up a bottle or case of a consistent performer. In an appellation that prides itself on complex wines, Beaucastel is unmatched. Chateau Beaucastel is one of only three to plant and vinify all thirteen grape varieties permitted under Chateauneuf du Pape appellation regulations. This is very labor-intensive as all 13 varieties are vinified separately and then blended masterfully vintage after vintage. This ’05 is for the patient collector, who would like to share this bottle with their 5-year old son on his 21st birthday.
Notes from Wine Spectator – Dec 12th, 2007:
“Really dense and locked up now, this is packed with dark fig, currant and blackberry fruit shrouded by layers of tar, hot stone, bittersweet licorice and espresso. The long, dense finish has a great tug of iron buried within it. Best from 2011 through 2030.” - 96 Points
This wine recently arrived on U.S. soil. Take advantage of our TTR Wine Broker’s deal of the week before the prices go sky high. They are perfectly stored in their 6-pack original wooden cases. The perfect gift for the wine connoisseur in your family.
LIMIT 6 bottles per customer
2005 Chateau Beaucastel Chateuneuf du Pape Rouge
Retail price: $118.95/btl.
6-pack price: $101.10/btl.
2000 Vina Tarapaca ‘Zavala’ Red, Maipo, Chile - Week of December 10, 2007
Quite simply, when talking about old vines, it’s hard to compete with Chile. Considering that the majority of the vineyards in Chile are planted with vines not grafted onto American rootstock, there is a benefit of vines dug so deep into the soil, the sense of place is evident with one taste of the wine it yields. For this particular wine, winemaker Sergio Correa put together a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Syrah aged for 14 months in new French oak and another 12 in the bottle before release. It has a classic Bordeaux-like nose with a crisp backbone of acidity that gives this earthy medium-bodied blend a dry, tight finish that reminds me of classic Chianti. While definitely difficult to place when tasted blind, the experience of the winery, winemaker, and vines comes through this wine of pedigree that is drinking beautifully right now.
Notes from Wine Spectator:
“Nice concentration, with dark currant, espresso, loam and licorice notes. Shows cedar and a tangy sanguine edge on the finish. Traditional style, but with the guts to pull it off.”
This wine released at a price closer to $25, but take advantage of our TTR Wine Broker’s deal of the week; perfectly stored in their original wooden cases and ready for your holiday dinner party.
2000 Vina Tarapaca 'Zavala'
Retail price: $18.99/btl.
6-pack price: $16.14/btl.
Case price: $12.79/btl.
2004 Henry’s Drive Shiraz Reserve - Week of December 3, 2007
It feels like the great 1998 vintage of Australian wines was just hitting the market not that long ago. I remember trying a bottle of the 1998 Henry’s Drive Shiraz back in 2000 and being blown away by the huge blackberry fruit wrapped in a creamy vanilla finish that made me a fan with their first release.
Since then, it seems like a new producer sprouts up in Australia every day, all with an over-oaked fruit bomb to sell at $100, (or close to it). The thing is, I’ve noticed that even one year after some of these wines are released, they become disjointed and only a shell of what they were at release. By no means am I referring to the Australia that brought us Grange, Elderton, or Mount Langi; wines that have already proven their pedigree over time, built to develop and become pictures of elegance and restraint. Having re-tasted that same 1998 version of the Henry’s Drive recently, I can assure you that these wines belong in the same class, packages built to last well over a decade.
A bit on Henry’s Drive Wines:
Henry's Drive is situated in the Padthaway district of South Australia, around 180 miles south east of Adelaide. It is naturally cooler than the more northerly Barossa Valley or McLaren Vale but warmer and more consistent than Coonawarra, some 50 miles south, with which it shares a similar, former sea-bed, geology. The property is owned by the Longbottom family,who have been farmers in Padthaway since the 1940s. Their first vintage was in 1998.
From a cooler climate sector of Padthaway, the 2004 Shiraz Reserve is an elegant, soft, complex effort revealing Southern Rhone-like aromas of garrigue, ground pepper, and spice box interwoven with blackberries, cassis, sweet cherries, and herbal undertones. This wild, rich, heady Shiraz tips the scales at 16% alcohol. Drink this provocative, undeniably pleasurable 2004 over the next 7-8 years – Robert Parker - 93 Points
Just for the record, here’s a producer, who despite receiving huge reviews from the usual publications since day one, has never raised their release prices more than a couple of dollars every couple of vintages. Go ahead and get 2 or even 3 of these for the price of one of those Aussie bombs:
2004 Henry’s Drive Shiraz Reserve, Padthaway, Australia
Retail price: $43.99/btl.
6-pack price: $39.59/btl.
Case price: $35.19/btl.
2004 Verget Chassagne Montrachet "Pimont" - Week of November 26, 2007
While many of us scramble to get our hands on the highly-regarded 2005 wines from Burgundy, we all forget how excellent of a vintage 2004 was. Below are comments from the iconoclastic Jean-Marie Guffens, owner of the negociant firm Verget:
“Whereas 2003 was about richness, delicious excess and fat, the 2004 vintage is about freshness, finesse and the unmistakable, unforgettable character of Burgundy Côte d’Or terroir. It is because of this beautiful balance that La Review du Vin de France calls 2004 a “classic” vintage. And what better way to rediscover the white wines of Burgundy by exploring a vintage that allows each unique terroir to shine through? “
This is a single vineyard Chardonnay, crafted to display balance, elegance, and minerality that lingers on the palate for over a minute. Also, this is an example of old-vine Chardonnay that is generous in it’s youth, showing layers of complexity and integrated acidity that penetrates your palate all at once.
“Produced from a rarely seen vineyard that is located over Chassagne’s quarry, the cream-scented 2004 Chassagne-Montrachet Pimont is satin-textured and light to medium-bodied. Its tangy personality is awash in pure citrus fruit and mineral flavors. Drink it over the next 3 years.” — The Wine Advocate
2004 Verget Chassagne Montrachet "Pimont"
Retail price: $59.99/btl.
6-pack price: $53.99/btl.
Case price: $47.99/btl.
2001 Oriel Barolo 'Etereo' - Week of November 19, 2007
There are approximately 300 cases of the 2001 Oriel Barolo 'Etereo' produced for the world. Oriel is a concept based on using the best winemakers in the world to produce wines under one brand name, and to emphasize excellence in winemaking and specificity of micro regions. This 100% Nebbiolo is from the highly regarded Monforte d' Alba sub-region and is incredibly accessible for a young Barolo. It presently is showing no hard edges and possesses a bright black cherry chunkiness that quickly evolves into a sophisticated and lengthy finish that exudes elegance.
**There are only a few cases available. TTR Wine Brokers has the only allocation of this wine in Houston (other than a couple of bottles at choice restaurants)**
Retail price: $99.99
1991 Pommery - Week of November 12, 2007
The 1991 Pommery Brut Vintage Champagne – Here we have a special offer for Vintage Champagne for the price of most Non Vintage bottlings. This wine possesses a distinctive style that emphasizes many of the secondary flavors we don’t see in Champagne until after a good amount of bottle age. The flavours of mineral-laden citrus notes and assertive toastiness make for a complex mouth-filling character that create a consistent delicate mousse in your mouth. A wine to sip and reflect upon, this is a great example of the potential of fine Champagne when it is given time to develop and stretch its legs a bit.
Here’s Stephen Tanzer’s (from IWC) take on the ’91 Pommery Brut:
“Pungent, perfumed aromas of chalk, quinine, pear, quince and beurre blanc Concentrated, ripe and fresh, with intense, crunchy flavors of apple, quince and pear. Quite dry on the palate. A stylish wine that snappy and persistent on the finish.”
1991 Pommery
Retail price: $47.99/btl.