Almost a year to the date of our last Instagram Live session (which is completely by coincidence), tomorrow we’re welcoming back acclaimed Napa winemaker Steve Matthiasson to talk about the new vintages of Chardonnay, rosé, and Cabernet (the latter of which are two of the best I’ve ever tasted from him).
Join us @missionliquor at 4 PM tomorrow for the show!
-David Driscoll
I was lucky enough to sit down with Louise McGuane, half of the inspiration behind the new Kentucky Owl St. Paddy’s Day Edition, when she visited the store a few weeks back, so I think I’ll be able to give you all some intricate details about the make-up of the new expression that you won’t read elsewhere. For those of you who don’t know Louise, she’s an Irish whiskey bonder in Ireland, meaning she contracts whiskey from various distillers, but also sources her own barrels, then fills and ages them in her own warehouse to create her own unique expressions.
The project with Kentucky Owl came together when she was visiting Kentucky to obtain some ex-Bourbon barrels, and decided to work with the brand to create a marriage from the whiskies previously housed inside those casks. Using roughly a 40% base of 4.5 year old Bardstown Bourbon Company wheated Bourbon, the remainder of the blend consists of whiskies from Heaven Hill (the oldest component), Peerless, other Kentucky Owl stocks, and the standard Bardstown Bourbon Company rye Bourbon mashbill. Bottled at 100 proof, it’s an absolutely beautiful and balanced whiskey from front to back, loaded with plenty of mid-palate richness, rounded fruity notes, and plenty of spice. Definitely worth grabbing a bottle in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day this year if you prefer Bourbon over Irish whiskey.
-David Driscoll
On this beautiful morning in sunny Southern California, we do a quick introduction to our latest partner in Pasadena: Penny Pound Ice!
If you haven’t stopped by our cooler to grab some rocks for your next cocktail or whiskey drink, come on by and see what the fuss is about. Once you try it, you’ll never go back.
-David Driscoll
I remember the first time I went to Burgundy, almost exactly five years ago, because every house I visited had a cellar like the one above. I took the same photo just about everywhere I went because I wanted to show my customers what a real Burgundy collection looked like, and how romantic it could be.
My personal Burgundy collection sits in my pantry closet, consisting of roughly twenty-five bottles that I’ve picked out here and there over the last few years, but it will never look like the above cellar for two key reasons:
I wasn’t born into a Burgundian winemaking family.
I was also born in the wrong era for Burgundy collecting as the top wines are far too expensive now.
(See my article over at the Two-Nineteen blog for more thoughts on why today’s generations will never be able to appreciate wine the way older generations were)
However, the fact that I’ll never be a serious collector doesn’t mean that I don’t lust after good Burgundy, chasing the highs that I’ve experienced at various moments over my career. When you’ve tasted perfectly mature Burgundy at the dinner table with the right meal, you’re pretty much ruined for life. No other wine has as much romance and nuance, nor requires as much diligence, patience, and investment, which makes the reward that much sweeter.
I received a few emails about yesterday’s blog/email offer regarding the 2014 Jane et Sylvain Gevrey-Chambertin from people interested in trying a decent red Burgundy. They asked: What makes the wine special? Why was I excited about it? And so on.
Let me share this passage from Burgundy master Clive Coates to give you some perspective:
With Gevrey we arrive at the beginning of the finest sector of the Burgundian vineyard. Gevrey-Chambertin is the largest of the great communes of the Côte de Nuits and can boast nine of the twenty-four Côte de Nuits grand-cru vineyards. It therefore vies with Vosne for the title of most important commune of them all: the apogee of Burgundy, the pinnacle of the Pinot Noir.
Gevrey-Chambertin is a serious commune with serious wines, so you don’t see too many values these days, especially with age. That’s part of why I’m excited about the wine. But let’s pretend that you decided this week to get into Burgundy, and purchased Clive Coates’ fantastic book to learn more about the wines. You flip to the section about Gevrey-Chambertin and you look for the top-ranked producers. Armand Rousseau looks interesting. Maybe you should buy a bottle.
That’ll be $550 plus tax for one bottle. Oh, and you shouldn’t open it for about 15-20 years.
That’s no way to learn about Burgundy, trust me. Taking shots in the dark like that is no different than picking random stocks and hoping you become a millionaire. You’re far more likely to lose than win. But if the best wines are completely out of reach, and practically never available to taste or sample, how can you ever gain perspective as a newbie? The hard truth is this: it’s very, very difficult.
So why bother at all? Because, like I said before, once you have that magic moment—that incredible instance where you taste a perfect Burgundy, time stops, and everything is illuminated—you’ll become addicted.
Burgundy isn’t like whiskey where you can trade samples with other collectors on social media, shipping 50ml minis across the country, building up your palate experience over time. The “rarity” of Bourbon is a pathetic joke compared to Burgundy. You can walk into almost any bodega in Los Angeles and find Pappy for $1000 or so, if you’re really that interested in trying a bottle. But $1000 won’t even get you a sip of the finest red Burgundy vintages.
A bottle of 2005 Richebourg will cost you $9,000…IF you can even find one. And you better hope it isn’t a fake, or that someone didn’t leave it in the sun for a few hours ten years ago. There are no guarantees, however. Unless it came straight from the domaine and into your cellar, anything could have happened to it between you and the vendor. Sound like fun?
So when I find little gems like a library edition 2014 Gevrey-Chambertin for $49.99 that has a few years of bottle age, drinks beautifully, and tastes like Gevrey-Chambertin is supposed to, I celebrate. In my middle class world, these are the little victories that make wine drinking more enjoyable. Having tasted my share of high-end Burgundy over the years, I can’t say I’d pay thousands of dollars to recreate the very best experience, but I would definitely pay $49.99 for this one.
-David Driscoll
For anyone who's ever wondered just how much better red Burgundy tastes after a few years in the cellar, but doesn't have the desire or the patience to build a collection, buy a few bottles of this 2014 Jane et Sylvain Gevrey-Chamberin for $49.99 and be wowed. You'll see what the big deal is.
Those of us who have long caught the Burgundy bug know how difficult it is to find a Pinot Noir from anywhere in the Côte de Nuits or Beaune—let alone Gevrey-Chambertain—that's ready-to-drink, of quality, and somewhat affordable. That's exactly why we did a double take when our friends from Jane et Sylvain offered us the last of their 2014 library edition village-level Gevrey-Chambertin for a price that seemed too good to be true.
Rest assured; we did our due diligence here. The reason so many people are intimidated by Burgundy is because it’s a TOTAL CRAPSHOOT. I don’t care how many tasting notes you read, how many bottles you open, or how many people have assured you of a wine’s quality. I’ve spent thousands over the years on bottles that were “supposed” to deliver, but fell short.
Burgundy is a low odds game, but we keep coming back to the roulette table, time and time again, because the highs are just that incredible. When you hit a winner, there’s no feeling like it.
This bottle is an absolute winner, so let’s break it down:
Ready-to-drink: Eight years of bottle age with perfectly-integrated tannins and a soft, silky texture that showcases crunchy red berries and subtle nuances of earth.
Of Quality: Jane et Sylvain is one is one of the smallest wineries in the village, with only 4 hectares of vines and a very small production, operating organically since 2003, never using chemical herbicides or pesticides.
Affordable: Most village-level wines of this quality from Gevrey-Chambertin sell for $60+ and still need another 5-10 years in the cellar before they're even approachable! Find us another wine with this provenance, with this much age, for $49.99.
Gevrey-Chambertin is known for pinot noir wines that are massive, yet velvet-smooth, with a tannic structure capable of long-term cellaring. It pairs wonderfully with meats and other earthy, gamey dishes. I can’t remember the last time I found a value with age from the village, let alone a wine I would go deep on.
I’m casing up. Don’t miss this.
-David Driscoll
I can clearly remember the first few weeks of my retail return at the start of 2021 because I was struck by what was—at that time—a rather odd lack of enthusiasm from a popular distillery as it pertained to marketing.
After three years away, I was blogging again, looking for stories to tell, and there was an exciting tale waiting to be told. After years of selling Indiana-distilled MGP Bourbon, one very popular distillery was crossing over into its own aged, in-house distillate.
“Let’s do a blog!” I texted the producer; “People are going to want to know about this because it’s a big deal.”
“Yeah, it’s definitely something we don’t do a good job explaining,” the producer responded. Two weeks later, he wasn’t responding to any of my texts or emails about writing the piece. It was baffling. Why wouldn’t a distiller want the public to know that his distillery was finally distilling its own juice, rather than selling the exact same MGP-distilled whiskey that literally hundreds and hundreds of other labels also sell?
But after more than a year of pandemic retail, I now know exactly why this distiller was shying away from that participating in that blog: today’s whiskey consumers are no longer interested in trying new whiskies. They want the old stuff; the whiskey they’re already familiar with. Even if it’s a new label, they want to know the whiskey was distilled somewhere familiar.
Yes, there are still plenty of new whiskies coming to market, but the enthusiasm for those products is less and less each time. New distillates are for sampling at a bar or at a friend’s house, not for purchasing an entire 750ml bottle. If consumers are going to spend their hard-earned dollars on a full size container, it’s going to be from a tried and true whiskey source.
Whiskey drinkers aren’t alone in this phenomenon, either.
Ted Gioia wrote a highly-interesting article for The Atlantic last month about how old music now outsells new music. Three key data points from the piece:
The best-selling physical format in music is the vinyl LP, which is more than 70 years old. I’ve seen no signs that the record labels are investing in a newer, better alternative—because, here too, old is viewed as superior to new.
Record labels—once a source of innovation in consumer products—don’t spend any money on research and development to revitalize their business, although every other industry looks to innovation for growth and consumer excitement.
Record stores are caught up in the same time warp. In an earlier era, they aggressively marketed new music, but now they make more money from vinyl reissues and used LPs.
Sounds a lot like the booze business where…
The best-selling whiskey brands are the most rustic and old fashioned.
Global drinks companies are happy to put the same whiskey into a different cask each year and call it “innovation”
Retailers simply wait around for private barrels and limited, allocated releases to make their money, rather than actually market new and interesting brands.
The one line that really hit home, however, was this:
Never before in history have new tracks attained hit status while generating so little cultural impact. Success was always short-lived in the music business, but now even new songs that become bona fide hits can pass unnoticed by much of the population.
It’s no different with whiskey. You can have a hugely-successful whiskey today by selling thousands and thousands of whiskey drinkers one bottle each. However, when it comes time to sell them the second bottle, the moment has already passed. Fewer and fewer consumers are buying new whiskies more than once, just like fewer and fewer people are listening to new songs on repeat.
New songs are for streaming in the background on Spotify; you only spend money on the old records you already know.
Ask a whiskey drinker why they’re not interested in new whiskey and they’ll tell you: “The new stuff isn’t as good as the old stuff.”
Music fans say the same thing.
Gioia writes:
I can understand the frustrations of music lovers who get no satisfaction from current mainstream songs, though they try and they try. I also lament the lack of imagination on many modern hits. But I disagree with my Boomer friends’ larger verdict. I listen to two to three hours of new music every day, and I know that plenty of exceptional young musicians are out there trying to make it. They exist. But the music industry has lost its ability to discover and nurture their talents.
We’re experiencing a similar situation in the wine and spirits industry. With so many new products hitting the market, and the endless expansion of brand spinoffs and label re-issues, the system has lost its capacity to successfully nurture new brands. As a result, most retailers have lost their willingness (and their effectiveness) to work towards building those brands. It’s easier to invite a celebrity into the store to sign bottles of their latest venture than it is to excite customers about quality booze.
It’s hard to believe that just a few years ago customers were still jazzed about discovering a new micro-distillery and being on the cutting edge of what’s new. Back then, MGP-distilled Bourbon was about the most boring thing you could sell. Yet, today, it’s one of the most popular distillates on the market.
So why spend hours and hours trying to convince those customers that a local new distillery is making a great whiskey, when you can make thousands and thousands of dollars in seconds with an email about a new MGP single barrel?
It’s a pickle. Or rather, a vicious circle.
-David Driscoll
Since everyone was so fired up about all the new Italian wines from Oliver McCrum this past month, I've got another ten new wines this week that absolutely knocked my socks off. I've just locked in my own personal purchases and now I'm letting you all know about your must-have wines for this weekend.
2020 Pra Soave Classico Otto $17.99 - A very clean and precise expression from one of the top producers in the Soave. No malolactic fermentation is done, compared to other producers, so the wine is crisp and refreshing; it spends just a few weeks aging on the lees for richness. The Garganega is grown in true volcanic soils on southeast facing hillsides. Pra is looking to re-establish Soave as a serious player for Italian wine. The vines were planted between 1957 - 1987, all old vine, and this is just the entry level wine ! Certified organic. This wine is vivid, lively, full of zip and zest.
2019 Weingut Niklas Kerner $19.99 - Kerner is a crossing of Riesling and Schiava, which creates an aromatic white with lovely acidity, and nice herbaceous notes in the mid-palate. Dieter Sölva is the winemaker at Niklas, and his father helped originally bring Kerner to the Alto Adige, so his vines are the oldest vines in the region. In cooler vintages, it’s more aromatic like Riesling, but in warmer vintages it’s more like Schiava, giving Dieter different ways to play with the expression. 2019 was a cooler vintage, so the aromatics are on full display. Drink this with practically anything!
Cavallotto Langhe Nebbiolo 2018 $39.99 - Up there with Oddero in terms of the iconic Piedmonte producers imported by Oliver McCrum, 100% of the grapes are from Barolo proper, from Cavallotto's top family estate vineyards. Referenced in every Barolo reference available, Cavallotto was one of the first small bottlers in the region back in 1948. You're basically Getting baby Barolo for less money, as the Lange Nebbiolo is aged 18 months in Solvenian oak, 6 months in bottle before release, unfiltered. Fine, chewy tannins, loads of violet and classic earthy Barolo flavor, but far more approachable. This is absolutely superb. DO NOT MISS.
Pra Valpolicella Morandina 2019 $24.99 - A traditional blend of corvina, corvinone, rondinella, certified organic, glacial volcanic soil, 20 hectoliter barrel maturation for 3-6 months. This for all intents and purposes, a 100% natural wine, but you’d never know it. It's ridiculously good: jamming with dark berries, black pepper, but light and juicy on the palate with so much freshness. You could even put a chill on this.
2020 Cincinnato Malvasia Puntinata $12.99 - Cincinnato is a co-op in Lazio founded in 1947, featuring newer producers that bring serious value for the dollar. Certified organic, made up of 126 growers who farm within 250 hectares southeast of Rome. Ancient volcanic clay soils give this Malvasia a different texture than say Malvasio from Fruili. 100% Stainless steel. Creamier on the palate, but with nice crisp stone fruit flavors that remain balanced against the acidity.
2010 Perillo Taurasi $59.99 - Perillo is a very special producer in the Taurasi DOC, sitting on the highest Aglianico vineyard in the region at 5000 feet above sea level. The high elevation helps preserve the freshness of the grapes, which balances out what is a highly tannic, often extracted varietal. This wine saw an incredibly long 35 day maceration, but all that concentration is in total balance. After 12 years in the bottle, there is SO MUCH going on! Highly aromatic on the nose: savory, meaty, rustic, umami, iron, cedar, and dark plum. BOOM! So incredible! This Taurasi is for adventurous drinkers, on the hunt for their next great bottle. Pair with an herb-marinated medium rare steak.
2018 Biondi Etna Bianco Outis $24.99 - Made from 90% Caricante and 10% Sicilian field blend (cataratto, minnella), from vineyards grown in a crater in Etna roughly 640 meters above sea level. The vines are east-facing planted in true volcanic sand. There's a nuttiness on the nose almost like fino sherry, but with a fruity, herbaceous lift on the palate. This is delicious!
2019 Le Fraghe Garganega $19.99 - Le Fraghe is a one woman show in the Venato region, making clean natural wines that are unfiltered, organic, and made with extended skin contact. The Bianco is 100% Garganega from a cru vineyard site called “Camperengo”, vinified in cement. Delicious and refreshing, no signs of any funkiness whatsoever. This is clean natural wine!
2020 Le Fraghe Bardolino $16.99 - The Bardolino is made with 80% corvina, 20% rondinella, blending varietals typically in Amarone. 10-15 day skins maceration, cement, indiginous yeast. Located between Lake Garda and Valpolicella. This is a juicy, full-fruited, light-bodied Italian red that can pair with just about anything, and that tastes great at room temperature, or with a slight chill!
-David Driscoll
With the craft gin world about 1000x as big as it was a decade ago, it’s easy to forget how important Hendrick’s was in sparking the gin movement that launched a classic cocktail revival around the world.
Made by the William Grant company in Scotland (Glenfiddich, Balvenie, etc.) and master distiller Leslie Gracie, many of us (me included) tend to lump Hendrick’s into the big brand gin category, instead of the world class craft gin genre that it spearheaded all those years ago.
Knowing this to be the case, I believe Hendrick’s takes extreme pleasure in dropping a sublime limited edition release every now and again, just to remind us who’s truly the vanguard of the gin world. As if to say: Did you forget who started this whole thing?
The new Neptunia gin from the Cabinet of Curiosities is an exquisite, deeply beautiful, and delicately complex gin that uses coastal botanicals from Scotland’s Ayreshire Coast to create a maritime profile with a haunting salinity that dances lithely over the palate, finishing with a touch of citrus and pepper. The texture of the gin itself is soft and creamy, making it an easy choice for a straight Martini, but boy does it play well with tonic water, too. No matter how you mix it, you’re going to be reminded of the sea.
You’re going to want a bottle of this. Maybe two.
Hendrick’s Neptunia Gin $38.99
-David Driscoll