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750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$38.40
Opens with aromas of honey, papaya and mango. Layered fla-vors on the palate of white pepper, balsamic, and ample...
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle:
$34.20
Soft and clean aromas of tropical fruit and eucalyptus on the nose. Fresh sugar cane on the palate with notes of of...
375ml
Bottle:
$44.40
12 bottles:
$42.18
Floral nose. Waxy (candlewax, crayons), then spicy, fruity notes emerge, in particular raisin and plum, becomes more...
750ml
Bottle:
$57.01
6 bottles:
$42.86
This luscious cachaça is aged up to two years in barrels made from a rare Brazilian wood called amburana, hence the...
750ml
Bottle:
$19.20
12 bottles:
$15.44
Ruby color. Elegant, with fresh fig and ripe red berry aromas (black cherry, wild strawberry), as well as delicate...
750ml
Bottle:
$14.95
12 bottles:
$14.65
The Beau! Beaujolais comes from a forty year-old high-density vineyard. Fermentation is traditional, 100%...
750ml
Bottle:
$28.94
12 bottles:
$28.36
If there is a red grape more expressive in its youth than Valdiguié, we've yet to meet it. It's so many vibrant,...
750ml
Bottle:
$15.94
12 bottles:
$15.62
Brouilly is one of the Cru Beaujolais, which are known for producing excellent, food friendly, underrated wines at a...
700ml
Bottle:
$36.79
6 bottles:
$36.00
The nose is fragrant, delicate and harmonious. On the palate, this grappa is intense and complex, but with a smooth...
750ml
Bottle:
$82.39
4 bottles:
$81.60
Complex profile with multiple nuances attributable to spicy and fruity notes with hints of vanilla, morello cherry...
700ml
Bottle:
$40.08
6 bottles:
$31.60
Bold and bright on the nose, hints of fresh fennel and black licorice dominate the nose, with slight touches of Meyer...
700ml - Case of 4
Bottle:
$82.50
Sweet oak and cereal on the nose. Enjoyably elegant on the palate, with rich nutty and floral notes. Richly textured...
![Caffo Grappa Vecchia [Barrique] 750ml](https://www.saratogawine.com/files/images/cached_thumbs/27/27b3f764d9c6078ff71534c6397be9ef.jpg)
750ml
Bottle:
$26.40
12 bottles:
$22.80
Aged in oak for 12 months, this golden grappa edges close to aged brandy territory—although one sip and that grappa...
750ml
Bottle:
$27.60
12 bottles:
$24.51
CANAVIAIS, meaning “sugarcane fields” in Portuguese, is a verdant, cocktail-friendly cachaça produced from some...
750ml
Bottle:
$15.99
12 bottles:
$15.67
Savory undertones of grilled thyme, fresh earth and smoky mineral flank the steeped cherry and raspberry fruit...
750ml
Bottle:
$22.90
12 bottles:
$20.90
The Fleurie wine-making is traditional - whole clusters are kept, which leads to a semi-carbonic maceration as the...
750ml
Bottle:
$16.94
$17.50
12 bottles:
$16.63
The effusive violet and blackcurrant-pastille aromas draw you into this elegant and silky, mid-weight Brouilly with...
Cachaca Gamay Grappa Robola
The French wines of Beaujolais are widely regarded as some of the finest table wines in the world. This is due in part to the qualities of the Gamay grape, from which they are made. Gamay produces beautifully, juicy, rounded and gulpable red wines, usually drank young and full of their natural fruit character. However, it would be a mistake to say that Gamay is limited to easy-drinking, soft wines - it’s a highly flexible and versatile grape, capable of producing aged wines of serious complexity and structure, full of expression and fascinating characteristics.
The majority of Gamay wines from France are labeled under Beaujolais Villages or Beaujolais, and these are the standard table wines we’re used to seeing in French restaurants, at bistros, and at our local wine store. Usually great value for money, these are the light, slightly acidic examples of what the grape can do. Far more interesting are those Gamay wines from the 10 cru villages, just north of Beaujolais, where generations of expertise and a unique soil type made up of granitic schist result in far more unique, complicated wines. The best examples of Gamay feature intense aromatics, all black fruit and forest fare, and are worth cellaring for a few years.
Like so many of the great spirits of Europe, Grappa was born from a need to make resources go that little bit further, to eke out the last drop of flavor and potential from the crops of winemakers. Indeed, Italian vintners invented Grappa as a way to make use of the pomace - leftover grape skins, stems, pulp and seeds - which remained after the juice was extracted from the fruit needed to make wine. Over the centuries, the process was refined, and the distillation of Grappa became an art in itself. Today, top Grappa producers use a range of state of the art equipment, from continuous stills to pot stills, to manufacture a wide variety of Grappas, each with their own distinct characteristics.
Most of us know Grappa from our local Italian restaurants, where it is commonly served as a digestif. However, in the twenty first century, there is a high interest in unique, boutique Grappas, which showcase the talent of the distillers through a range of interesting qualities. Grappa can be aged in oak, in which case it takes on a beautiful golden color, quite different from the clear Grappas we are most familiar with. The high end Grappas are a world away from the harsh spirit many of us have encountered, and have a smooth, gentle quality which can be nothing short of a revelation.
In the mountains of Cephalonia, the mineral rich soils assist in the growing of one of the finest of Greece's white grape varietals – the Robola grape. These noble yellowish grapes are notable for the wines they produce, which generally contain summer fruits, peach and citrus aromas, coupled with flavors which extend beyond the usual range of white wines, revealing smoky and mineral notes, and a lengthy, lemony after-taste. These fine characteristics helped the regions it is grown in gain AOC status, and wine-makers in this area have many generations of practice in bringing out the elegant and subtle characteristics of this grape.
Robola, and the other wines of Cephalonia have a long and illustrious history, being mentioned even in ancient epic poems such as Homer's Iliad. However, it was the Venetians who first recognized the great potential of Robola grapes, which quickly became the focus for the areas wine-makers and tradesmen. Nowadays, Robola wines act as an excellent example of a refined Greek dry white wine, which can be either drank as a light and refreshing summer aperitif, or alongside grilled white meats, salads, or white fish. Robola wines, as a rule, do not age particularly well, and it is highly recommended that bottles are drunk young, within two years of bottling. By doing so, you can enjoy the unique characteristics of this remarkable wine, complete with the balanced combination of chalky, smoky citrus flavors and delicate peach aromas which typify the finest examples of Robola varietal wines.
Additional Information on Greek Wines
Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?