[Cornell Wine] Cornell Wine This Week

[Michael Beard]

CORNELL WINE COMPANY
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November 16 – Wines for Thanksgiving
November 23 – Bordeaux
November 30 – Spain
December 07 – Annual Bubbly Tasting
December 14 – Cabernet Sauvignon

Special Events
Tuesday, November 13 – An Italian Evening with Don Oman
of Casa Bruno (reservations required, $25)

FRIDAY, November 9th
4:30 - 7:00pm

Wines of Piemonte

CHEESE PLATES
This week we offer a selection of Italian Cheeses to go with our  
Italian Wine!
Pecorino Toscano Fresco                         	 Sheep’s  
Milk                Tuscany
This is young cheese as opposed to the harder style more suitable for  
grating.
Fontal Fiave                                    		 Cow’s  
Milk                   Valle d’Aosta
This Alpine cheese, from the area in northwest Italy which borders on  
France and Switzerland, is related to France’s Raclette.
Cacio de Roma                                          Sheep’s  
Milk                Lazio
This cheese is bathed in sea salt for 24 hours and then aged on wood  
for 30 days.  It is somewhat similar to Pecorino Fresco.
All these cheeses are available from New Seasons
CHEESE SAMPLER PLATE $5.00

This week we were tempted to offer a white wine such as GAVI, but  
with outside temperatures going lower, we thought an all red tasting  
would be more popular.  However, to give you an incentive to buy  
great Italian white wines, this Friday we are offering the following  
discounts on all in-stock Italian white wines:

But three bottles:                                  	10% discount
Buy six or more bottles:                		15% discount

No other discounts apply.

1. For our tour of PIEMONTE we will start with the every day grape,  
DOLCETTO.  I’ve never known why the grape is called “the little sweet  
one” as most wines from this grape have a touch of bitterness on the  
finish.  My favorite area for this grape is DOGLIANI, and we will  
taste the MARZIANO ABBONA 2005 DOLCETTO di DOGLIANI “SA LUIGI”.  This  
wine offers ripe black fruit, balancing acidity, and just a touch of  
bitter almond on the long finish.  This is a wonderful example of  
what this grape can provide - $15.50

2. PIEMONTE is now producing a variety of irreverent blends, and a  
traditionalist like me used to get upset.  However once I tasted the  
PAOLO SCAVINO 2006 ROSSO, I became a convert.  This is from a great  
BARBARESCO producer and is a blend of 40% NEBBIOLO, 30% BARBERA, 20%  
DOLCETTO and 10% CABERNET SAUVIGNON.  It offers gobs of bright fruit,  
but has a good structure from the Nebbiolo - $16.50

3. VIETTI is one of the great producers in PIEMONTE, but the prices  
show that.  Current Barolos are about $120 on release.  The winery  
has always made good BARBERA, and I was lucky enough to taste 5  
different versions at a trade tasting last month.  The “entry level”  
wine, the BARBERA d’ASTI 2005 “TRE VIGNE”, stood out as a great  
bargain – the ALBA version is 50% more expensive!  The ASTI offers  
elegant sweet dark fruit coupled with a touch of minerals and oak.   
The current Wine Advocate says  “Best of all, this Barbera is one of  
the great values in Piedmont wines today.” - $17.00

4. We could not have a PIEMONTE tasting without a BARBARESCO in the  
basic flight.  MONTARIBALDI is a producer below most people’s radar  
screens and so the prices are reasonable.  Their 2004 PALAZZINA is a  
classic bottling, showing the structure you would expect from  
NEBBIOLO.  At the moment it is somewhat closed on the nose, but with  
time opens up to show aromas of dried roses and a touch of tar.  The  
palate and finish show bold fruit married to noticeable tannins.  The  
wine is good to drink now with game or a steak, but will benefit from  
a little cellar time  - $27.50

Note we have a few bottles of the more approachable, but less  
classic, 2003 in stock which we will offer on Friday at $25/bottle.

TRY THESE FOUR WINES FOR $10.00

For our PREMIUM POUR we offer what I think is the best NEBBIOLO value  
in Portland at the moment (many of you have already purchased cases).

The SEGHESIO 1999 BAROLO “LA VILLA” is wonderful single-vineyard  
BAROLO, approachable now, but will improve with age.  It was a “Tre  
Bichieri” winner in Gambero Rosso, and if they had a “four glass”  
category, I’d have given it to this wine.  It has a classic nose of  
rose petals, tar and earth – it is so aromatic now one almost does  
not want to drink it!  The palate is rich, and the tannins well- 
integrated, but the wine has the body to age for many years.  Gambero  
Rosso said “A seductive warm palate features well-integrated oak  
tannins, while the nose’s complex fruitiness returns to infuse a  
long, rich finish” - $43.50

This was a $60.00 wine, but because the Wine Spectator gave 100  
points to the 2000 vintage, wines from 1999 have been harder to sell,  
and several wineries have too much stock.  I’ve talked to several  
Piemontese wine makers and they all say 1999 is a much better vintage  
than 2000.  The Wine Advocate says the same thing – 2000 vintage has  
very approachable wines, but they will never be as complex as 1999s,  
or the 2001s.

TRY THIS WINE FOR $5.00/Taste or $9.00/4 ounces

We will also offer a SECOND PREMIUM POUR.  This is a BAROLO from  
2003, a vintage on the whole I consider like 2000, producing fruit  
forward, but not classic wines.  This wine changed my mind.  A recent  
import by CASA BRUNO, CAVALLOTTO is a new producer for me, and their  
2003 BRICCO BOSCHIS single-vineyard BAROLO is wonderful.   
Surprisingly for 2003, it needs time.  This is a monster wine with a  
wild, brooding, personality.  It is rated Outstanding in the current  
Wine Advocate which says “Cavallotto is one of the hidden gems of  
Piemonte…the 2003 Bricco Boschis offers masses of dark fruit and  
grilled herbs in a full-bodied, somewhat animalistic style…this  
Barolo improved markedly in the glass and is likely to offer much  
pleasure for those who can be patient”.  I’d drink it today with game  
such as venison - $55.00

TRY THIS WINE FOR $6.00/Taste or 11.00/4 ounces
(Try both for $10.00)

NB: All prices are subject to change without notice.  The above  
information is based on verbal information from distributors, and  
actual wine prices will depend on the price invoiced at delivery to  
Cornell Wine Company.

SATURDAY, November 3rd
Noon – 5:00PM
Free

We will have the November Selections for the Cornell Wine Club open  
for all to taste (see earlier email for full details):

CAPE MENTELLE 2005 CHARDONNAY, MARGARET RIVER, WESTERN AUSTRALIA -  
$24.00
SABLES d’AZURE 2006 CÔTES de PROVENCE ROSÉ, FRANCE - $9.75
OKANOGAN ESTATE 2003 MERLOT, WASHINGTON, USA - $14.00
DOMAINE de la RECTORIE 2003 COLLIOURE “LE SÉRIS”, ROUSSILLON, FRANCE  
- $24.00

Cheers,

Pauline & Mick
Cornell Wine Company
14740 NW Cornell Road, #90
Portland, OR 97229-5400
(503) 531-3981
mick at cornellwine.com
www.cornellwine.com
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