Wine Blog from The International Wine of the Month Club

What to Look for in December 2022

December 2, 2022 by Don Lahey

In December, The International Wine of the Month Club’s Premier Series offers four special wines from four countries. The ripe and seductive 2020 La Posta Pizzella Mendoza Malbec is once again the critics’ choice and the recipient of high acclaim (92 Points – James Suckling). Bold in flavor, yet smooth and juicy, the 2020 La Posta Pizzella Malbec offers tantalizing aromas and flavors of freshly picked blackberries, currants, and raspberries, along with a delicate hint of wild violets that adds to its allure. In the mouth, the 2020 La Posta Pizzella Malbec graces the palate with a seductive blend of black and red fruits, all suffused with deft touches of sandalwood and exotic spices. Fine, ripe tannins complement the wine’s plush, fleshy mid-palate, assuring freshness and a delightfully long and satisfying finish. The 2020 La Posta Pizzella Malbec is neither brawny nor brazen; it is a balanced and complex Malbec that delivers its largesse with grace and purity. Enjoy!

Paired this month with the sensuous 2020 La Posta Pizzella Malbec is the 2021 Aia Vecchia Toscana Vermentino, a unique and sophisticated blend of 95% Vermentino and 5% Viognier, which offers a bright sun-splashed color that radiates from the glass like the Tuscan sun. Even more gratifying is the wine’s amplifying aromatics and explosive mouth-filling flavors, which suggest ripe peaches, tangy citrus, and haunting floral tones reminiscent of acacia and spring flowers – all of which are sprinkled with a welcome touch of sea spray from the nearby Tyrrhenian Sea for added freshness and precision. In the mouth, Aia Vecchia’s 2021 Toscana Vermentino dances across the tongue with a vivacity that leaves the mouth clean and the senses begging for more. The 2021 Aia Vecchia works its magic with precision, flavor, and genuine tactile appeal from the very first sip, and it truly had us all begging for more.

Next in this month’s line-up is the 2020 Taboadella Villae Dão Tinto, a splendid example of the Amorim family’s Midas touch with Portugal’s unique blend of indigenous red grape varieties. The suave 2020 Taboadella Villae Tinto sports a brilliant ruby robe, an entrancing aromatic profile, and plenty of savory fruit bolstered by bright acidity – all of which made us clamor for another glass. Cherry, plum, and ripe strawberry fruit flavors wrapped in smooth, silky tannins grace the palate. Lusty, yet bright and energetic, the 2020 Taboadella Villae Tinto brings its welcome from the first sip. Clean and generous to the finish, Taboadella’s Villae Tinto is an easy go-to red wine and much more. Enjoy!

Rounding out this month’s Premier Series is the much heralded 2017 Esterházy Leithaberg Burgenland Chardonnay (92 Points – Wine Enthusiast). This is an aristocratic Burgundian style of Chardonnay that demonstrates Esterházy’s preeminence with the world’s most treasured white grape. Blessed with a brilliant sun-struck color, intriguing aromatics, and excellent concentration, we were truly taken by this wine. An aroma replete with apple, pear, and beeswax emerges from the glass and continues to evolve as the wine opens and gradually sheds its initial chill. In the mouth, the wine’s concentration makes its appearance with a complex mélange of apple, apricot beeswax, and citrus along with a defined minerality born of Leithaberg’s (limestone) soil. Add just a touch of butter and a long, crisp, mineral-driven finish and the 2017 Esterházy Leithaberg Burgenland Chardonnay is one superb Chardonnay that is easily mistaken for an exceptional white Burgundy from France’s Côte d’Or. Enjoy!

The International Wine of the Month Club’s Collectors Series is proud to offer our members three very special wines this month. Our first December feature is the outstanding and highly acclaimed 2018 Aquitania Lazuli Cabernet Sauvignon (94 Points – Vinous). The 2018 Aquitania Lazuli Cabernet Sauvignon pays homage to the finest classified red wines of Bordeaux: it is elegant, sophisticated, and loaded with flavor. It also sports a brilliant purple color, seductive nose, and deep palate-pleasing flavors. Savory scents of blackberry, dark cherry, currant, and spice waft from the glass. In the mouth, silky, rich tannins carry the wine’s deep hedonistic berry flavors infused with aromatic cedar, deft touches of vanilla, and toasted oak to a long, climactic finish. With ripe, rich tannins with nary an edge, the 2018 Aquitania Lazuli Cabernet Sauvignon makes an ideal companion to drink now as well as a candidate for a decade of ageing, which will only augment this complex wine’s sophisticated flavors. Enjoy!

Our next special Collectors Series offering this month is Lhuillier Brut Tradition Champagne. This lovely non-vintage champagne was fermented in the bottle on its lees for a full 36 months, is deliciously dry, and comports itself as a classic champagne. Displaying a pale golden color and a delicate mousse of tiny bubbles, the Lhuillier Brut Tradition attracts the eye and beguiles the nose from the first sip. In the mouth, the wine’s mousse reveals delicate apricot and peach flavors along with hints of brioche and a welcome minerality, all of which leave the palate both refreshed and begging for more. For optimal enjoyment, all champagne should be well chilled prior to opening (35°-38° F) before being allowed to slowly reach a more ambient temperature in the glass. Enjoy!

Rounding out this month’s Collectors Series is the highly acclaimed 2019 Mendel Unus (93 Points – Wine Advocate), an exquisite blend of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot. Harvested from the finest grapes from the estate’s 1928 vineyard and matured in French oak barrels for 16 months, the 2019 Mendel Unus pays tribute to Mendel’s founder as well as winemaker Robert de la Mota’s acumen in the cellar. Big, balanced, and sporting a deep purple color, the 2019 Unus also demonstrates that it’s a lot more than just show with an aroma redolent with dark cherries, plums, cacao, and toasty vanilla. It’s equally adept in the mouth. Full-bodied and laden with layers of ripe gorgeous fruit mingled with hints of dark chocolate, wild herbs, and wood smoke, the 2019 Mendel Unus dazzles the palate. Rich, ripe tannins add vigor and verve, a long satisfying finish, and the promise of great drinking now and for the next decade, but why wait? Enjoy!

20 DIY Wine Cork Christmas Ornaments

November 24, 2022 by International Wine of the Month Club

With the holidays in full swing, we here at The International Wine of the Month Club™ decided to pull out our stash of wine corks (we tend to have quite a few by the end of the year) and make some Christmas tree ornaments. With a little imagination, some crafting supplies, and help from some of our kids, we were able to make quite a few fun and unique tree ornaments!

Here are our 20 favorite Christmas tree wine cork ornaments, as well as a few that the kids made for us:

A big thank you to our helpers Lizzy and Emily!

Grenache: A Prestigious and Prolific Crowd Pleaser

November 21, 2022 by Don Lahey

Grenache, whose origin points to Aragon in northern Spain, is the most widely cultivated red varietal throughout the world. The wine’s propensity for vigor, drought resistance, high alcohol, and inherent ability to yield powerful, spicy, complex wines has made it a favorite in warm climates around the world. When judiciously pruned, Grenache yields wines of extraordinary quality, not only in Spain’s Priorat where it is known as Garnacha, and in neighboring France (including the Languedoc and the Rhône Valley where it shines in all the greatest wines of Gigondas, Côtes de Rhône villages, and Châteauneuf-du-Pape, which includes Château Beaucastel, the southern Rhône’s most iconic wine), but also in Australia. It is the most cultivated red grape in Australia where the country’s very old bush vines, many of which are in excess of 100 years of age, furnish some of South Australia’s most extraordinary reds. Thistledown is currently Australia’s leading purveyor of old bush vine Grenache, and Thistledown’s wines should not be missed. Every one of Thistledown’s Grenache offerings constitute the benchmarks by which others are judged. Grenache also forms the basis for Australia’s signature GSM blend, perhaps the world’s most recognizable blend. California enjoys a long history with Grenache, too, where it increasingly plays a supporting role in the state’s finest Syrah offerings. It is high time that we pay homage to the planet’s most prolific red grape variety and the extraordinary, crowd pleasing wines it yields.

Bordeaux: More Great Wines from Beside the Waters

October 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

Bordeaux is the world’s largest fine wine producing region, encompassing nearly 300,000 acres, 60 individual appellations, and more than 7,300 châteaux. The Bordeaux appellations of Margaux, Pauillac, Saint Julien, Saint Émilion, and Pomerol are legendary, as are the scores of age-worthy collectible red wines that flow from those Bordeaux communes’ hallowed vineyards.

Both the red and white wines of Bordeaux (both the region and its wines are referred to as Bordeaux) are some of the finest and most expensive wines on earth. Moreover, this renowned viticultural region has become synonymous with full-bodied red wine. Bordeaux is also the traditional home of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc, the three musketeers of almost all red Bordeaux and the basis for Meritage blends around the world. And what eludes many wine consumers is that Bordeaux is also one of the planet’s largest and greatest sources of white wine, principally from Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon.

Bordeaux, meaning beside the waters, refers to the region’s proximity to the Atlantic Ocean and the broad estuary, the Gironde, for which the entire viticultural department (the equivalent of a county or state in the United States) is named. Bordeaux, the region as well as the department’s leading city, lie at the center of the confluence of the Dordogne and Garonne Rivers, which flow into the Gironde and nearby Atlantic Ocean, which redoubles Bordeaux’s effort to live up to its name. It is Bordeaux’s proximity to the sea that provides moderate climate, which is favorable to the production of fine wine. Bordeaux’s marriage to the sea has also provided the historical highway by which Bordeaux wines have traveled the world, gaining esteem and recognition long before most other landlocked wine regions could safely transport their wines overland to eager markets.

Since the first century BCE, when the Romans established themselves in Bordeaux and referred to the area as Biturigiaca, this ancient viticultural paradise has been a constant source of fine wine. Known to the emperors of Rome, popes, and poets (most notably Pliny and Ausonius), Bordeaux has enjoyed the envy of the wine producing world longer than any other wine region on earth. From Pliny to the most contemporary wine critics, including Robert Parker Jr., Bordeaux wines have never gone out of favor. And with a string of outstanding vintages (2015-2020), the wines of Bordeaux have never been better. Moreover, few other wine regions can claim three millennia of continuous production and millions of satisfied customers.

Exceptional Red and White Portuguese Wines: Still in Need of Discovery

September 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

Despite centuries of producing some of the world’s most sought after wines, most notably Port and Madeira, the trove of excellent unfortified Portuguese red and white wines remains relatively undiscovered on this side of the Atlantic. True, Portuguese rosés enjoyed a good run in the late 1960s and 1970s, and the present penchant for Vinho Verde seems to have established some credibility as a fun summertime wine, but neither rosé nor Vinho Verde truly represent the breadth of fine red and white Portuguese wines. Affordable, food friendly, and full of flavor, there is much to discover in this new age of oenological exploration, beginning in the north of Portugal in the valley of the Douro and extending south to Dão, Alentejo, Lisboa, and the Algarve. All produce many contemporary and traditional red and white wines of quality and individuality.

The Douro may be best known for producing Port, but fine unfortified reds and elegant world-class white wines also emanate from the Douro. Quinta do Noval and Quinta Nova de Nossa Senhora do Carmo are two splendid Port producers who also make superb unfortified red and white wines. Quinta Nova’s Pomares line are especially gratifying and provide worthy companions to any well prepared meal. Val Moreira is another exceptional Douro property and winery.

Moving south one discovers a plethora of small estates in Portugal’s Dão that continue to push the envelope in terms of quality and style with traditional Portuguese grape varieties: Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Jaen, and Encruzado to name a few. Taboadella’s red wines are smooth and flavorful, while the estate’s Encruzado Reserva is a white wine that is every bit the equal of fine white Burgundy. Owned by the Amorim family who gained fame as cork purveyors, Taboadella is an ancient property that has emerged as a cutting edge producer in all respects.

The wine country around Lisbon is enjoying a renaissance, too, with such purveyors as San Sebastião turning out a wealth of tasty and affordable wines from traditional and international grape varieties. Moving further down the Iberian Peninsula, Alentejo, deep in the heart of Portugal and off the beaten tourist track, is home to the highly acclaimed Herdade Aldeia de Cima estate among others. And then there is the Algarve, home to a growing number of little viticultural jewels as well as fabulous beaches, caves, and nightlife. Isn’t it time to discover the splendid wines of sunny Portugal? Enjoy!

Shiraz (shee-raz)

August 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

Shiraz is the name given to the Syrah grape in Australia and South Africa and likely a bastardization of either Heraz, a river and region of ancient Persia (present day Iran), or Herat, a former Persian city now in Afghanistan, where Shiraz was once thought to have originated. However, recent DNA testing indicates southern France, always considered to be Syrah’s spiritual home, to be the true origin of the grape. Shiraz/Syrah remains immensely popular in Provence and along the steep banks of the swift-moving Rhône River, where it is responsible in all or part for many of the greatest red wines of France – Hermitage and Châteauneuf-du-Pape specifically.

Most of the Shiraz vines planted in Australia, where Shiraz is one of the most planted red wine grapes, trace their ancestry back to France, though some evidence suggests that Syrah arrived in Australia from France via South Africa. Such a circuitous route points to the likelihood that the dark skinned Syrah grape variety departed France before the twin plagues of oidium and phylloxera that occurred in the last half of the 19th century and that the Syrah vines that arrived in Australia stem from older clones of the varietal than those found presently throughout most of southern France and California. Furthermore, as France recovered from the devastation, new clones of old favorite grape varieties such as Syrah were often replanted in the vineyards. For these reasons some consider Shiraz to be a distinct clone of the Syrah varietal and entitled to its own name. However, for all intents and purposes, the two names and grapes are synonymous.

Both Australia and South Africa produce many of the planet’s greatest Shiraz wines. Tried and true Australian and South African purveyors such as Chapel Hill, DeMorgenzon, Nugan, Penfolds, Reyneke, Tait, and others continuously fashion world-class Shiraz and at prices many of us can still afford.

Summertime Wines

July 15, 2022 by Don Lahey

“What’s a great summertime wine”? The answer really depends on many factors, but in an ideal world it would be the wine in your glass and mine. That’s at least the way it should be, but how to find the best summertime wines rests on personal preference, accompaniments, companions, and of course the temperature at which the wine is consumed, to mention just a few variables.

For summertime wines, white wine and rosé come to most people’s minds by default, with Chardonnay still front and center simply because it remains the planet’s most ubiquitous white varietal, but there are so many other great summertime wines from which to choose. Sauvignon Blanc with its crisp herbal edge and refreshing acidity gets two thumbs up, and there is a lot more to Sauvignon Blanc than New Zealand’s grapefruit bombs. Chile and South Africa turn out splendid Sauvignon Blancs in a myriad of styles. France, the home of Sauvignon Blanc, also fashions wonderful white wines. Sancerre and the Loire Valley are notable for their Sauvignon Blancs, while Bordeaux offers a dizzying array of pleasurable summertime drinking with white wines, from 100% Sauvignon Blanc to blends containing Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc, Sauvignon Gris and Muscadelle. Chenin Blanc also deserves serious consideration as a summertime favorite. Vouvray Sec, the quintessential dry Chenin Blanc from France’s Loire Valley, makes a wonderful warm weather companion. Racauderie Gautier and Vigneau-Chevreau are two reliable high quality Vouvray producers, though South Africa also fashions first rate Chenin Blanc. All are delicious with a moderate chill.

Increasingly, my go to summertime wines include beautiful crisp Italian white wines such as the 3 V’s: Verdicchio, Vermentino, and Vernaccia di San Gimignano. Colpaola’s Verdicchio di Matelica, Le Colonne’s Vermentino Costa Toscana, and Fontaleoni’s Vernaccia di San Gimignano will all be in my glass this summer because there is no smoke and mirrors, only fresh natural flavors that quench the thirst, please the palate, and refresh the soul. And what would summer be like without an invigorating glass of Provençal rosé? Not a very good summer at all I think, so I will pour myself a glass of the 2021 Le Provençal Cotes de Provence Rosé while I fire up the grill. It will then be time to open a good red, cooled to about 60° F. California Zinfandel, Italian Primitivo, and a host of Mediterranean reds, cooled to 58-60° F, also make great summertime wines with almost anything that comes from the grill. Sequum’s Napa Valley Zinfandel from California and Masserie Pizari’s Salento Rosso Primitivo from Southern Italy will certainly be on my summertime wine list. What’s on your summertime wine list? Enjoy!

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