What to Drink this Holiday Season: Fancy Wine Edition

Special occaisions call for special wines. We are happy to present this grouping of wines meant to be shared with people you love. These are some of the most special bottles we have and are worth savoring and enjoying!

If you joined us at Savor Cinema for the showing of “Living Wine” you’ve heard from Gideon Beinstock himself about why and how he does what he does!

Way up in the northern reaches of the Sierra Foothills, Gideon Beinstock and his wife, Saron Rice, produce small batches of wines that are unlike anything else coming out of California. Using traditional techniques and strict organic methods both in the vineyard and the cellar, they make tiny amounts of Pinot Noir from their two-and-one-fifth-acre home vineyard as well as a variety of unique blends from five and a half acres of nearby leased vineyards that they farm as well.

Clos Saron Taken From Granite is Gideon’s reclamation of his previous work at Renaissance Vineyard. A stunning Cabernet Sauvignon from 1997. A middle finger to those who say natural wines cannot age.

The “Taken From Granite” series includes wines released commercially by Renaissance but now taken over by Clos Saron in an effort to make them available to the public while they are at their peak of drinkability and before enclosures fail (use Ah-So or the Durand style opener and caution when opening). The 1997 “Village” was one of the “reserve level” bottlings of Cabernet Sauvignon.

About Domaine de L’Octavin

Alice Bouvot is the proud proprietor of 5 hectares of vines in the Arbois region of the Jura. Alice started her domaine in 2005 with just 2 hectares L’Octavin is Demeter biodynamic certified. Wild grasses, weeds, insects, and animals all have a place with vines creating a true ecosystem that gives a deeper meaning to each glass of Alice Bouvot’s wine. Since 2009 all L’Octavin wines are “pur jus”, with no additives whatsoever. 

About Claus Preisinger

A surfer at heart, Claus Preisinger makes wine on the north shore of Lake Neusiedl in the Burgenland town of Gols since 2002. He converted the vineyards and winery to biodynamic production in 2006 and is Respekt Biodyn certified. Claus vinifies mostly domestic grape varieties such as Blaufränkisch, Zweigelt, Grüner Veltliner, and St. Laurent, supplemented by Pinot Noir and Pinot Blanc from both the west and east sides of Lake Neusiedl. Claus does not use any cultivated yeast and only very slight or no dosing of sulfur dioxide. He ages many of his wines in amphora rather than wooden barrels, which he views as a conscious step back, a reduction to the essential – the grape and the soil. Reduction, minimalism, and a free spirit are the guiding themes of Claus Preisinger.

About Julien Altaber

Julien Altaber was born a farmer. He grew up in Auvergne and when he was 16 participated in his first wine harvest and fell in love. Today, he has a winery and cellar in St. Aubin, as well as half a hectare of his own vines.nHis is a project steeped in unrivaled passion and exuberance. He’s become a staple of “natural” winemaking in the region, always pushing courageously towards the unheimlich, verboten, and unique. Julien’s wines can taste like St Aubin from Mars or from a fairy tale vintage here on Earth.

About Château Cos d’Estournel

Cos d’Estournel is situated at the heart of an undulating landscape in the northern Médoc. A near miracle in geographic and geologic terms, Cos d’Estournel benefits from a combination of soils and exposures. This wealth of natural variations expresses itself in their wines, which are among the world’s most highly reputed. Nestled among the vines are certain very precious specimens, guardians of the vineyard’s heritage. Some of the oldest vine plants date back to the early 20th century. These grapes bring depth and structure to the wines of Cos d’Estournel. The grapes from these mature plants are blended with the fruit of their younger counterparts to produce the Grand Vin of Cos d’Estournel. The average age of vine plants whose grapes are used in the estate’s first wine is 55 years old.