This evening I went to a special wine tasting at the Lower Falls Wine Co.. Eileen Wright, of Il Capriccio and Adonna Imports, was there presenting wines from an all-organic winery, Case Corini. As I have mentioned before, I am a big fan of Adonna Imports. They sell mainly Italian wines, and they are usually very good. They concentrate on small Italian producers and find many excellent producers.
Case Corini is owned by Lorenzo Corino who make organically farmed Barbera d'Asti in the town of Costigliole in Italy's Piedmont region. He is the fifth generation that has lived amongst the vineyards. Lorenzo is a soil scientist and is concerned about the health of the ecosystem in his vineyards. He believes that much of the wine is made in the vineyard so he does not subject his wines to lots of technical manipulation.
The wines at the tasting included:
2001 Monferrato Rosso "Achille" ($65)
2003 Barbera d'Asti "La Barla" ($75)
2001 Barbera d'Asti "Bricco" ($65)
2001 Barbera d'Asti "La Villa" ($75)
They also provided some good cheese and bread with the wines. Overall, these were excellent wines. They were Old World style, well balanced and had lengthy finishes. They would be fine on their own, or paired with food. They probably could be paired with many different foods as well, from Italian food to game like duck or even venison. Though I could also just sit and drink these wines on their own, savoring their flavors.
2001 Monferrato Rosso "Achille": This wine was a blend of Nebbiolo and Barbera. A very smooth and easy drinking wine. Lots of nice fruit flavors.
2003 Barbera d'Asti "La Barla": My favorite of the four wines. This is 100% Barbera from old vines. Great structure, complex and just a silky pleasure. Nice concentration and a very lengthy finish.
2001 Barbera d'Asti "Bricco": This is 100% Barbera, with a mix of old and young vines. This was a fruitier wine that felt a bit less complex but still was an excellent tasting wine.
2001 Barbera d'Asti "La Villa": This is also 100% Barbera, with a mix of old and young vines. This wine seemed to be somewhere in the middle between the La Barla and the Bricco. It certainly shows how the same varietal can create several different style wines.
Adonna Imports certainly found another top notch group of wines! They are not every day wines, but they certainly would impress. For a special occasion, you won't go wrong with any of these wines.
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Lower Falls Wine Co.
I visited the Lower Falls Wine Co. this evening to attend a special wine tasting. I don't get the opportunity to visit this wine store enough. I have mentioned this store before but have not really gone into full detail before so let me correct that now.
Lower Falls Wine Co. is easily accessible from Rt.128 and has its own parking lot. It is a small wine store that has primarily wine though it does stock some beers and spirits as well. Because of its smaller size, it must be selective about what wines it stocks. And they choose their wines quite well.
Their wines are probably more expensive on average than many other wine stores. They do carry some wines that are $10 and less but they concentrate on more expensive wines. They do have a fair selection of wines from $15-25. The prices for their wines are average but there are often special discount too. In addition, they give you a 10% discount if you buy a mixed case of wine. They do have a special section for their most expensive wines, including some top notch Bordeaux.
One of the reasons this wine store is well worth the visit is their choice of wines. They choose very interesting, high quality wines. I often find wines here that I have never seen elsewhere. Yes, they may be a bit more expensive, but they are usually well worth the price. They are good values. And you probably won't find these wines for a cheaper price elsewhere. They do not choose their wines because they are more expensive. They choose them because they are good wines. Their stock of wines indicates a true passion for wine.
A second reason why this wine store is well worth the visit is their staff. Their staff are very knowledgeable, helpful, personable and passionate. If you ask them a question, they will gladly try to help you and usually know the answer. And listening to them talk, you can feel their passion for wine, including the wines they stock. They don't push any wines on you. They just try to make you a more informed consumer.
They hold complimentary wine tastings every Saturday from 12pm-4pm. They also have additional free tastings on a sporadic schedule. You can find out about these special tastings if you are on their email list, which I highly recommend you sign up for. These special tastings are often very interesting, sometimes held with the winemakers. And they sometimes taste some very exceptional wines, which you may never get another chance to taste.
Lower Falls recently updated their website and made it much more user friendly and informative. Definitely check it out and sign up for their e-newsletter.
I have previously bought many excellent wines here. This evening I bought a case of wine, nearly all of them wines I had never had before. I bought a couple wines from Sutton Cellars, their Syrah and Carignane. They looked interesting to me and were recommended by one of the staff. I do have faith in their staff recommendations. If you can find a wine store where you trust the staff, then you have found an excellent store. I also picked up some Spanish wines, a couple wines that I had never seen before elsewhere.
Overall, I highly recommend this wine store. Don't go there to find a bottle of Yellow Tail. Do go there to find some unique and interesting wines. Ask the staff for their recommendations. Maybe you will find some new favorites!
Lower Falls Wine Co.
2366 Washington Street (Rt. 16)
Newton Lower Falls, MA
Phone: (617) 332-3000
Lower Falls Wine Co. is easily accessible from Rt.128 and has its own parking lot. It is a small wine store that has primarily wine though it does stock some beers and spirits as well. Because of its smaller size, it must be selective about what wines it stocks. And they choose their wines quite well.
Their wines are probably more expensive on average than many other wine stores. They do carry some wines that are $10 and less but they concentrate on more expensive wines. They do have a fair selection of wines from $15-25. The prices for their wines are average but there are often special discount too. In addition, they give you a 10% discount if you buy a mixed case of wine. They do have a special section for their most expensive wines, including some top notch Bordeaux.
One of the reasons this wine store is well worth the visit is their choice of wines. They choose very interesting, high quality wines. I often find wines here that I have never seen elsewhere. Yes, they may be a bit more expensive, but they are usually well worth the price. They are good values. And you probably won't find these wines for a cheaper price elsewhere. They do not choose their wines because they are more expensive. They choose them because they are good wines. Their stock of wines indicates a true passion for wine.
A second reason why this wine store is well worth the visit is their staff. Their staff are very knowledgeable, helpful, personable and passionate. If you ask them a question, they will gladly try to help you and usually know the answer. And listening to them talk, you can feel their passion for wine, including the wines they stock. They don't push any wines on you. They just try to make you a more informed consumer.
They hold complimentary wine tastings every Saturday from 12pm-4pm. They also have additional free tastings on a sporadic schedule. You can find out about these special tastings if you are on their email list, which I highly recommend you sign up for. These special tastings are often very interesting, sometimes held with the winemakers. And they sometimes taste some very exceptional wines, which you may never get another chance to taste.
Lower Falls recently updated their website and made it much more user friendly and informative. Definitely check it out and sign up for their e-newsletter.
I have previously bought many excellent wines here. This evening I bought a case of wine, nearly all of them wines I had never had before. I bought a couple wines from Sutton Cellars, their Syrah and Carignane. They looked interesting to me and were recommended by one of the staff. I do have faith in their staff recommendations. If you can find a wine store where you trust the staff, then you have found an excellent store. I also picked up some Spanish wines, a couple wines that I had never seen before elsewhere.
Overall, I highly recommend this wine store. Don't go there to find a bottle of Yellow Tail. Do go there to find some unique and interesting wines. Ask the staff for their recommendations. Maybe you will find some new favorites!
Lower Falls Wine Co.
2366 Washington Street (Rt. 16)
Newton Lower Falls, MA
Phone: (617) 332-3000
Winecellar of Silene
Today I made a trek out to a special wine tasting and first made a stop at the Winecellar of Silene in Waltham.
Located in a small strip of stores, the Winecellar of Silene is located just off Rt.128. The wine store has a number of parking spots in front of the store that are only for the wine store. As the parking lot can be quite crowded at times, especially during the holiday season, these parking spots can be quite an advantage.
The Winecellar is a large wine store with a diverse selection of wines from all over the world, including lesser known wines from countries like Israel and Hungary. There are plenty of inexpensive wines plus a couple cases of very high end wines. They also have a fair amount of half bottles available. They also carry many different beers and spirits.
They put out a monthly newsletter and you can get it emailed to you if you send an email request to orders@silenewine.com
Free wine tastings are held every Saturday from 1-5pm. The newsletter gives you the theme for each upcoming tasting.
If you are in the Waltham area, check out this store.
Winecellar of Silene
475 Winter St.
Waltham, MA
Phone: (781) 890-2121
Located in a small strip of stores, the Winecellar of Silene is located just off Rt.128. The wine store has a number of parking spots in front of the store that are only for the wine store. As the parking lot can be quite crowded at times, especially during the holiday season, these parking spots can be quite an advantage.
The Winecellar is a large wine store with a diverse selection of wines from all over the world, including lesser known wines from countries like Israel and Hungary. There are plenty of inexpensive wines plus a couple cases of very high end wines. They also have a fair amount of half bottles available. They also carry many different beers and spirits.
They put out a monthly newsletter and you can get it emailed to you if you send an email request to orders@silenewine.com
Free wine tastings are held every Saturday from 1-5pm. The newsletter gives you the theme for each upcoming tasting.
If you are in the Waltham area, check out this store.
Winecellar of Silene
475 Winter St.
Waltham, MA
Phone: (781) 890-2121
2004 Hard Core
I now come to the finale of my tasting of some of the wines from the Core Winery. I began with the 2005 Turchi Syrah, which I enjoyed very much. But then I was disappointed with the 2004 Core Red 163. Now, on to the 2004 Hard Core ($38). Would it be a pleasure or a dud?
The 2004 Hard Core is a blend of 43% Grenache, 32% Mourvedre, and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon. Only 285 cases were made of this wine. This was a powerful wine, a dark and complex wine. There are dark berry flavors combined with an earthy taste and some black pepper and maybe even a bit of cinnamon. It had a very long finish. All of the flavors are well balanced and it is a very pleasurable wine. It actually paired well with a BBQ chicken pizza. This wine would stand up well to BBQ, game meats or even a nice steak.
I was very impressed with this wine and its price is reasonable for the high quality of this wine. A definite Drink & Buy.
Wine Class: Aug.4--Sign Up Now!
Just a another reminder about an upcoming event.
On Saturday, August 4, at 3:00pm, there will be a Wine Education class at the OurGlass wine Store in Saugus. I am collaborating with OurGlass on this fun and informative event. The class will be about "Off The Beaten Track" Whites. Many are familiar with Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio and Riesling. We shall try wines you may not know, such as Albarino, Godello, Torrentes, Vernaccia, Vermentino, just to name a few. Cost is $25 per person, which will include cheese and breads as well as special Tasting discounts.
This is a great opportunity to taste some new and different wines and meet other local wine lovers in the area. You must call OurGlass to book your reservation. Please do so as soon as possible as space is limited.
OurGlass Wine Co.
124A Broadway (Rt. 1 N)
Saugus, MA
Phone: 781-941-8068
On Saturday, August 4, at 3:00pm, there will be a Wine Education class at the OurGlass wine Store in Saugus. I am collaborating with OurGlass on this fun and informative event. The class will be about "Off The Beaten Track" Whites. Many are familiar with Chardonnay, Pinot Grigio and Riesling. We shall try wines you may not know, such as Albarino, Godello, Torrentes, Vernaccia, Vermentino, just to name a few. Cost is $25 per person, which will include cheese and breads as well as special Tasting discounts.
This is a great opportunity to taste some new and different wines and meet other local wine lovers in the area. You must call OurGlass to book your reservation. Please do so as soon as possible as space is limited.
OurGlass Wine Co.
124A Broadway (Rt. 1 N)
Saugus, MA
Phone: 781-941-8068
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