On Thursday, February 25, we will close our store at 6:45 pm, so that we can set up for a charity event. We apologize for any inconvenience. We will resume our normal business hours on Friday.
Dec 312009
Just a quick note, before we head off for the night. We’re tasting Champagne tomorrow, real Champagne. We’re not sure which ones, but it’ll be a special treat for New Year’s Eve. So come by between noon and 5 pm and we’ll pour you some tastes of the bubbly!
We’re not much for panic here at Weygandt Wines, but it seems we’re not the only ones who think this is a pretty serious winter storm. From NBC4, “NBC4 meteorologist Tom Kierein said the storm has the potential to be the worst December snowstorm for the D.C. area in at least the past 25 years. And NBC chief meteorologist Bob Ryan describes the impending storm as ‘crippling.’” That being said, Weygandt Wines will be closed on Saturday, December 19, due to the massive amount of snow we can all witness by taking a peek outside. We’ll be open again on Monday at our regular hours, so any holiday shopping can be taken care of starting then. There’s not much else for us to say other than break out your sleds, get back home safely, dry off and open a bottle of wine in front of the fire.
Dec 182009
While we can plan the perfect tasting of delectable morsels of chocolate goodness alongside our elegant wines, we can do nothing to convince Mother Nature to postpone the impending storm. With that in mind, we are the ones that are going to have to make adjustments. So, the Wine and Chocolate Tasting/Pairing that we were so looking forward to bringing to you on Saturday, December 18, will have to be postponed until further notice. Fret not, Bailey Kasten has agreed to come back at a later date. And as soon as we figure out the best time for her to come in, we’ll let you know. We apologize for any inconvenience and stay tuned for when we can put this event back on the books!
Back by popular demand, we welcome Bailey Kasten. Double Premium Confections is a new artisan chocolate shop in Washington, DC, offering fresh, natural and homemade chocolates, caramels and other treats. All the chocolates are made in small batches with the best chocolate and the best ingredients – real fruit, fresh spices, real ingredients – not flavors. They are made with absolutely nothing that is artificial, and chocolates are sold within days, not weeks, of being made.
To go along with her treats, we have three unique wines – two from France and one from California.The first two, from France, are fortified wines:
Domaine des Soulanes Maury Hors d’Age,$41.99/btl - A tawny port-like wine made in the traditional style of Southern France. Nutty, with notes of winter spice and fruitcake.
Domaine Grain Nicolet Vin Doux Naturel Rasteau, $29.99/btl – A nose of kirsch, chocolate and spice with cherry compote flavors to round it out.
And the one from California is a surprisingly old world Zinfandel. We almost gave up on California producing such a thing…:
Henderlong Nalle Henderlong Ranch Dry Creek Valley Zinfandel 2006, $39.99/btl – An elegant, very balanced wine with an amazingly low 13.9% abv considering the varietal and the place where this is made.
Dec 042009
Certainly the reputation of 2007 vintage in Chateauneuf du Pape is well known. But 2006 produced a bevy of delicious wines, that received excellent critical review, and which are drinking extremely well right now.
For this weekend, these wines are offered at a discounted price.
Domaine de Ferrand, $39.99/bottle on sale. “Bravay has also turned in a beautiful 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape displaying the classic, complex aromatic profile that he seems to achieve routinely. Aromas of black fruits, scorched earth, incense, licorice, pepper, and roasted Provencal herbs are followed by a full-bodied, rich, deep, long, concentrated wine with impressive layers of black cherries and black currants. Drink it over the next 10-15 years.” – WA 92 points
Clos Saint Jean Vieilles Vignes, $39.99/bottle on sale. “The 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes’ dark opaque color is accompanied by a gorgeous nose of incense, licorice, spice box, creme de cassis, cherries, and smoked meats. Notions of soy and fig are also apparent in this full-bodied, concentrated, sexy wine. Enjoy it over the next 12-15+ years.” – WA93 points
Domaine Rayond Usseglio & Fils Cuvee Girard, $29.99/bottle on sale. “Between the two traditional cuvees, the Weygandt imported cuvee, the 2006 Girard, is just richer, deeper, with more meat, lavender, and licorice, but both are very fine wines. The Girard gets the edge in points because tasting proves there is more there.” – WA 90 points
Domaine Charvin, $39.99/bottle on sale.“Charvin’s 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape has turned out to be one of the vintage’s top efforts. Lovely sweet notes of glove leather, roasted meats, spice box, ground pepper, kirsch, and raspberries are present in this deep, full-bodied 2006. More evolved than the 2007, with copious concentration, elegance, and a Burgundy grand cru-like complexity as well as freshness, it should be enjoyed over the next 12-15+ years.” – WA 93 points
Our 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape tasting is free, on Friday from 4PM until 7PM, and on Saturday from 12PM until 4PM.
Dec 042009
Apologies for the inaction on our blog, but we’ve been focusing on getting our website up and running. Which it is. So now, as soon as we work out all the kinks, we’ll be back to normal speed getting you up to date on what’s going on in the Weygandt Wines world.
Nov 132009
We have a ton of things to go over in the upcoming weeks leading up to Thanksgiving, so we’re going to get a head start on next week by posting mid-week. We’ve heard that a couple of the businesses in the Park and Shop are no longer validating for the parking lot, but don’t despair, you still get an hour on us. So, without further ado, let’s get down to business:
1. We have two great Chateauneuf du Pape producers that we are selling for a terrific deal at $39.99 and one at $49.99, while supplies last. All three are from the 2006 vintage that, while not reviewed as well as the ’07 vintage, scored 92 or 93 points in the Wine Advocate. The lineup is as follows:
Clos Saint-Jean Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes 2006 – $39.99 – “The 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes’ dark opaque color is accompanied by a gorgeous nose of incense, licorice, spice box, creme de cassis, cherries, and smoked meats. Notions of soy and fig are also apparent in this full-bodied, concentrated, sexy wine. Enjoy it over the next 12-15+ years.” – WA 93 pts
Domaine Gerard Charvin Chateauneuf du Pape 2006 – $49.99 – “Charvin’s 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape has turned out to be one of the vintage’s top efforts. Lovely sweet notes of glove leather, roasted meats, spice box, ground pepper, kirsch, and raspberries are present in this deep, full-bodied 2006. More evolved than the 2007, with copious concentration, elegance, and a Burgundy grand cru-like complexity as well as freshness, it should be enjoyed over the next 12-15+ years.” – WA 93 pts
Domaine de Ferrand Chateauneuf du Pape 2006 – $39.99 – “Bravay has also turned in a beautiful 2006 Chateauneuf du Pape displaying the classic, complex aromatic profile that he seems to achieve routinely. Aromas of black fruits, scorched earth, incense, licorice, pepper, and roasted Provencal herbs are followed by a full-bodied, rich, deep, long, concentrated wine with impressive layers of black cherries and black currants. Drink it over the next 10-15 years.” – WA 92 pts
This is a very good opportunity to try three of the bigger names from the Southern Rhone for a very, very reasonable price.
2. With Thanksgiving looming, please come in next week and taste some of our holiday selections. We’re still filling out our lineup card, but we’ll have a few sparklers, some alsatian whites, some Cru Beajolais, maybe a Bourgogne Rouge and a couple of dessert wines available to taste. In addition, try our Domaine du Vissoux Kir Royale. Made from their Cremant de Bourgogne and Creme de Cassis, it’s a delicious cocktail that’s perfect for the upcoming holidays.
3. Speaking of Thanksgiving, the much anticipated and highly touted 2009 Beaujolais Nouveaus will be arriving next week and we are offering Domaine du Vissoux for $12.99 a bottle. Regularly $18.49, another great deal for those that love Beaujolais Nouveau or those who were turned off previously by poorly crafted wines. This is the Beaujolis Nouveau that will be featured at Willi’s Wine Bar in Paris and it is one of number of wines that we think pair perfectly with turkey.
4. A reminder that next Friday, November 20, we are hosting a not-to-be-missed 2007 Horizontal Burgundy Tasting with Domaine des Lambrays, Domaine Christian Serafin, Domaine Remi Jobard and Domaine Dugat-Py. Four of the best in the business and wines we do not usually open, so be here between 4-7 pm to taste a real treat.
Thanks, and be sure to ask us what wine will go with whatever you’re cooking for dinner. With a couple of former chefs in the shop and the co-proprietor, Todd Ross, who knows all of our wines, inside and out, we’re sure to be able to suggest a perfect wine pairing for you.
The following is a report from Peter Weygandt on the 2009 vintage from Burgundy:
On September 15, I arrived in the Cote de Nuits. Domaine des Lambrays had already finished the day before, having started the 9th. Bernard Dugat finished the evening I arrived, have started the 10th. The lowest degree sugar/alcohol for Dugat and Lambrays was 13.0, with the Champeaux of Dugat coming in at 14.3% natural and the Mazoyeres 14%. The Grand Cru at Lambrays was 13.5% natural. The following were the results for Philippe Collotte in Marsannay:
Bourgogne Noble Souche—13.8%
Marsannay Champsalamon—14.4%
Marsannay Vieilles Vignes—14.1%
Marsannay Clos de Jeu – 13.9%
Fixin Crais de Chene –14% etc.At Christian Serafin, with whom we have the privilege to begin working commencing with his beautiful 2007s, Christian stated to me that the Morey 1er Cru Millandes and the Gevrey 1er Cru Corbeaux were both 14.5% natural at harvest, and all his parcels came in near or over 14%. Cecile Tremblay’s lowest degree was for a parcel of Bourgogne, at 12.5%. Everything else was over 13%, with Chapelle over 14%.
Even more amazing than these levels of ripeness, were the pHs in combination with this sugar: Bernard Dugat had a pH of 3.08 as a low to 3.33 as his highest reading, and all others I visited reported levels to me between 3.2 and 3.4. I think it is safe to say that this combination of ripeness and potential acidity has not been seen in a long, long time. Growers had to go back to their grandfathers to find anything similar – maybe 1959; maybe 1947 or 1949. Maybe never before.
It is not, however, all roses (or rather perfect Pinots). There was an enormous amount of rain in mid-July (and hail). Only growers who worked quickly and non-stop in mid to late July accomplished something great. For others there was mildew, and even worse, oidium. One could see parcels so attacked by oidium that there were no ripe grapes. After that that “battle” in July the weather turned perfect – nothing but sunshine and heat, sometimes very high, from mid-July to September 19 (when there was only a light shower). Thus even those who harvested late (but harvested healthy grapes) will make superb wines.
I picked grapes a couple days (by then harvest was almost over) and what I saw was indeed truly amazing. The proof of this all, though, was in the juice – never have I tasted unfermented juice so perfect – already one could taste, with the juice from each separately vinified parcel, beautiful ripe rich fruit, distinctive terroir already expressed from each lieu, and the whole sensation wrapped in a silky smooth envelope on the palate. It is the same sensation that I recall when tasting the 2007 Chateauneufs for the first time. – Peter Weygandt – October 3, 2009
Oct 222009
Thanks to everyone who came by and/or wished us well on our grand opening. It was a lot of fun for us to meet so many that came from near and far and were so excited for our new store. Keep in mind, we’re still open five other days of the week, so don’t be shy. Drop by for a taste of something new and interesting (2005 Wengut Buchegger Blauer Zweigelt–say that ten times, real fast), a Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc with a beautiful honeysuckle nose (2006 Chateau de La Bonneliere Touraine) and a deliciously smokey 100% Syrah from the Northern Rhone (2007 Jean Michel Gerin Saint Joseph). If we’ve stopped pouring those, we’ll have plenty of others to try!
