The Best Kept Secret in Southern France: REDblanc

We have located a biodynamically-produced sulfite-free Cotes du Rhone that is a real glory to behold. REDblanc Biodynamic Cotes du Rhone 2007 is 30% Syrah and 70% Grenache combine to create a Rhone classic. This wine is as clear of an example of terroir-driven typicity that you are likely to find at any price. It comes from a 400 year old winery in the Vinsobre AOC of France's Rhone Valley and is as pretty in the glass as it is on the palate.

REDblanc combines a meaty core of ripe berry fruit with tones that range from herbal to peppery in a package that tends to be medium bodied with good acidity and softer tannins. With age, the wines can gain lovely leathery and black olive notes that makes them a great match for savory and gamy dishes. REDblanc really is a fresh new taste that has blown in with the Mediterranean breezes of France. Its rich ripe berry flavors are completed with the acidic structure and a finish that lingers. It is the best kept secret of Southern France.

REDblanc proposes environmentally-friendly wines for the consumer motivated by ecological goals, guaranteed by the high standards of soil husbandry, bio-diversity and eco-system preservation of Ecocert Organic and by Demeter Biodynamic certification. REDblanc also brings a new dimension to the traditional taste of one of the most beautiful vine-growing regions of the world, and a new impulse towards its essence of perfection.

Have a Sweet Tooth?

Clifton Fadiman once said "Wine is poetry in a bottle." Organic Late Harvest Zinfandel is quite a sweet treat.

Picture this. An elegant dessert wine, possessing sweet and luscious jammy fruit flavors to savor with chocolate truffles or blueberry pie. Long, lingering fall days allowed these grapes to ripen to maximum sweetness late into the harvest, allowing once again make this rich, smooth wine. Enjoy with your favorite dessert or alone as your new favorite!

It's garnet blue violet color releases delicious aromas of sugared plum pie and peppery spice. A round, satiny entry leads to a fruity medium-to-full body of tangy plum and blackberry flavors. This organic wine finishes with a tart white pepper, mineral, and berry and tomato skin fade.

Oh...OKO! A Charismatic Organic Pinot Grigio

ÖKO Pinot Grigio boasts aromas of fresh fruit, bright flavors of citrus and crisp acidity. The eco-friendly ÖKO Pinot Grigio is produced from organically farmed vineyards in Veneto, Italy. The family who supplies the grapes has been farming for generations and followed a simple goal, guarantee quality. Through the benefits from using natural preventative measures such as cover crops, organic manure and natural predators, the family is able to eliminate the use of chemical fertilizers, pesticides, and herbicides. To ensure the organic quality of their vineyards, the vineyards are inspected by the Institute for Ethical and Environmental Certification, ICEA, one of the top organic certification bodies of Italy and Europe.The vineyards for ÖKO Pinot Grigio are located in-between the mountains and lowlands, with a continental climate of cold winters and mild summers. The vineyards are planted in gravelly soil of morainic origin consisting primarily of unstratified glacial drift of boulders, gravel, sand and clay. Both the climate and soil composition is ideally suited for white wine production, allowing for full development of flavors while maintaining the natural acidity, making for crisp refreshing white wines.Enjoy ÖKO Pinot Grigio with any white meat dish, salad, or cheese plate.

First UV Treated Wine to Be Available This Year

Pulled this off of Decanter Magazine online today:

"The first UV-treated wine is set to be released later this year following successful trials in South Africa. The wine, produced by L'Ormarins wine estate in Franschhoek, is treated by a UV (Ultra Violet) light machine that, according to the owners, kills unwanted microbes and yeasts. This, says cellar master Neil Patterson, reduces the need to add sulphites during the winemaking process. Some wine drinkers blame sulphites for allergic reactions as well as headaches and skin reddening following even the smallest sip of wine. The Surepure machine – roughly the size of two fridge freezers – has two 40ml pipes to carry wine in and out. The machine contains 40 'turbulators' which mix the liquid to ensure all of it is exposed to the UV lamps. It takes around 22 seconds for the wine to travel through the machine, which can process 4,000 litres in an hour. The UV rays zap unwanted microbes and yeasts. Winemakers can use the machine numerous times during the production process. 'You don't get that sulphury taste, just a more natural, full flavour,' said Patterson. He would not reveal which variety of wine would be sold using the new technique, saying it was still confidential."

Anything that reduces the amount of sulfites in wine while maintaining taste, stability and quality levels is a good thing, as far as we're concerned. Stay Tuned.

Cheers, Buckley Wineholt

Let's All Go Wine Clubbing

Groucho Marx once said, "I don't care to belong to a club that accepts people like me as members.". The joy of joining a Wine Club is that there are no meetings to dress up for, you never have to meet other members and your anonymity is retained. There seem to be a gazillion Wine Clubs out there; every winery and online wine retailer offers them. As we here at Wines.com were setting up our Wine Clubs, we were determined to provide subscribers with exciting, over-delivering wines. What on earth does "over-delivering" mean? Most of our Wine Clubs deliver wines priced to our members in the teens. If you were to find these wines in stores, they would cost you much more. At their price-points, the wines deliver more than what you would expect, based on what you paid. We have hand-selected, through extensive tastings, a collection that is guaranteed to please. Wines representing a wide range of varietals from a vast array of wine growing region from around the globe. It's easy to recommend one particular Wines.com Wine Club. You will be pleased with our National Wildlife Federation Organic Wine Club. Great wines, from progressive, responsible wineries, benefitting a great organization, the NWF. Feel free to call us at (800)690-9463 x308 if you have any questions about the Wine Clubs or any of our wines. They make great gifts! Let's ALL Go Wine Clubbing!

Cheers, Buckley Wineholt

America's Greenest Winery

Nestled amongst the rolling hills of Mendocino County you'll find a true family success story, in the form of the Parducci Winery. Located in Ukiah, Parducci has certainly seen its ups and downs. But it's certainly riding the crest of a big "up" right now. My friend Tim Thornhill, a partner in the current operation, was determined to "reunite our extended family on several hundred acres of land where we could grow something". That was 2002. In a few short years the family turned around a winery that needed turning around, and today the Mendocino Wine Group, based at Parducci, produces nearly a quarter of a million cases of wine. Parducci purchases grapes from local family farms, who pride themselves on protecting the environment through certified farming practices; exercizing carbon neutrality (America's first) and extensively utilizing solar power, renewable energy, placing emphasis on re-use and recycling, using earth-friendly packaging- these are but a few of the reasons why Parducci was chosen by the team here at Wines.com to lead off our National Wildlife Federation Organic Wine Club. Plus, we love their wines & think that they are a steal at their modest price-points. Their Pinot Noir offers distinct Mendocino spicy mintiness, with ripe berry and chocolate undertones. The refreshing Sauvignon Blanc provides aromas of lemon and tropical fruits with zesty citrus and melon flavors. Bright flavors of juicy pear and ripe apple define their Chardonnay, wrapped lightly by a creamy oak accent. Tim views Mendocino County as a great, undiscovered land where history, agriculture, fresh air, natural beauty and warm-spirited people create a comfortable lifestyle. "I see Parducci as a way for our family to work together to benefit the community while improving things environmentally". Having recently been the guests of the winery, seeing and tasting the fruits of their efforts, I wholeheartedly agree. We here at Wines.com support their efforts, and invite you to do so by subscribing to Wines.com's National Wildlfe Federation Organic Wine Club, with some of the proceeds from each subscription going to support the NWF.

Cheers, Buckley Wineholt

Al Lageder Rocks

I had the great pleasure of meeting one of my "Wine Heroes" last week. Not just meeting Alois Lageder, famed Italian winemaker, but participating in a mentored tasting of a number of his single-vineyard biodynamically produced wines from Alto Adige. He makes over 20 different wines in the highlands of the Dolomites. He carefully chooses which grape will be planted at which particular site, reaching such decisions by considering the whole terroir, the complex and total array of all of the natural factors that determine the uniqueness of any given locale. He has been at the forefront of biodynamic agriculture for many years, with the long-term goal being to strengthen the vineyards' biological equilibrium. By increasing the vitality of the vines, their resistance to parasites and disease is enhanced. Allowing full ripening of the grapes, and utilizing gentle vinification processes (such as relying upon gravity vs. the use of pumps), Lageder is able to produce wines of singular typicity. These elegant wines truly taste of their origin. Two of my favorites from the tasting were the 2007 "Benefizium Porer" Pinot Grigio & the 2007 "Haberle"Pinot Bianco. The PG was a shining example of the often-flat varietal. Super-clean, stunning minerality, just enough acidity and some creaminess for balance. Just a hint of lime for the minimal fruit component. The Pinot Bianco, on the other hand, could not have packed more fruit onto the palate. This dry, fresh, vibrant fruit-bomb washed starfruit, green melon, grapefruit, and tart green apple over my beaming tastebuds. Chockfull of fruit flavors and fully supported by crisp minerality. This is the best Pinot Bianco I've ever tasted. This man is a genius, and I hope that he is able to create wines this good for many years to come. While the PG would be great with anything with flippers from the sea, the PB is a super "stand-alone" wine, simply calling for the good times to roll. We are very proud to be able to offer Alois Lageder's wines here at Wines.com, and we wish he and his family continued Great Success.

Cheers, Buckley Wineholt