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Pfiffengen Dry Riesling
Origin: Pfalz, Germany
Retail: $21.95 | Sale $19.75
Weingut Pfeffingen, idyllically located amidst its vineyards, is operated by oenologists Jan Eymael, his wife Karin and his mother Doris. All three of them are passionate wine-growers, whose unconditional endeavors to achieve top quality, even on a small scale, make this traditional Pfälzer family operation truly special. They strive to cultivate their 15 hectares (37 acres) of vines to yield unique wines that are rich in mineral, full of character, and have a fine fruitiness. The Eymael and Fuhrmann families tend their vines and grapes with great care. Various vineyard procedures require manual labor. In all, vineyard maintenance is as ecologically friendly as possible and low yields are a matter of course. The grapes are harvested by hand, by experienced pickers. Selected, high quality grapes form the foundation for our simple yet refreshing Riesling. Eco-friendly viticulture, restricted yields, selective hand harvest, and temperature-controlled fermentation are all employed to ensure that Weingut Pfeffingen wines show in top quality.
Notes of apricot, peach and a touch of yellow apple unfold on the nose, while juicy flavors and a racy minerality lend the wine a lovely and unexpected elegance.
100% Riesling
FITA da Fitapreta
Origin: Alentejano, Portugal
Retail: $15.95 | Sale: $14.35
FitaPreta is António Maçanita’s estate winery located outside the ancient Roman city of Evora, set among the sun-drenched hills of Alentejo. Founded in 2004 as a partnership between António and the British viticulturist David Booth, FitaPreta has since evolved into a benchmark estate for the New Portugal, frequently earning Antonio accolades like “Winemaker of the Year.” António works only with indigenous varieties and ambient yeast ferments, crafting wines that are keenly representative of Alentejo, but with a balance and freshness that few others in the region have been able to match. Painstaking vineyard work, nighttime harvests and entirely gravity-fed winemaking are elements of António’s process that yield wines that are “full of sun,” as he says, but with lift and elegance instead of cloying power and over-extracted fruit. António operates on the Portuguese idea of “Palpite,” or intuition, to communicate terroir, with a foot firmly planted in both camps of tradition and modernity. Hand-harvested from sustainably farmed 12-50 year old vines. Gentle gravity fed movement through winery to maintain integrity of aromatics and structure. Native yeast fermentation. Varietals vinified separately with 14 day skin contact. Aged in 50% stainless steel and 50% conditioned French Oak barrels for 10 months. Vegan.
Rivulets of violet compliment a deep ruby core. Floral and fruit aromatics of violets and black raspberries on the nose, with lilting notes of toast and spice. On the palate, lush and ripe, with abundant fresh black currant berries and brambleberry. The mid palate shows the minerality and a touch of smoke, with considerable length.
50% Aragonez. 30% Touriga Nacional, 20% Alicante Bouchet
Fot-Li Vermouth
Origin: Catalania, Spain
Retail: $18.95 | Sale: $17.05
Fot-Li is a vermouth made in Reus, the Catalonian town renowned for being one of the most important centers of spirits production (specially vermouths) in the 19th century. The town in Tarragona (Catalonia) is still a large producer of aperitifs and a popular destination sought-after for its bars and restaurants. Toni Omedes Alegre, the creator of Fot-Li is part of a family that has been making wines in Catalonia since the early 1900s. After generations of his family working in the wine industry, he now decided to create a classic Vermouth de Reus. The grapes are vinified organically on the skins and are then macerated with an infusion of orange peels, anise, cardamom, nutmeg, laurel, oregano, fennel, sage and vanilla. The vermouth then rests for a month in old French and American oak barrels.
The dark brown spirit smells of herbs with great hints of rosemary, and sage. In the palate it is soft, rich, with plenty of hazelnut flavors. Fot-li translates roughly as "go for it", and there's no better introduction to vermouth so just go for it.