Newsletter Archive

The CoWineCo Comprehensive Stimulus Package

     You may or may not know that cowineco employs a crack team of economists to deal with situations just like the one we find ourselves in right now.  As news of our economic health took another turn for the worse this week, we put our team on the task of creating our own stimulus package.  Unfortunately, they got drunk on our stock while coming up with the proposal and just suggested more wine for a lower price.  So here you go: 

     A jug of Sonoma red and a liter of Austrian gruner veltliner -- that is what we're betting the farm on.  First, Sherman & Hooker's Shebang Red for $19.99/jug coming to us from the Bedrock Wine Company.  In winemaker Morgan Peterson's own words:

I have called it Sherman and Hooker’s Shebang! to give nod to the founding people of our own vineyard in Sonoma (and many others as their land-grant was 500 acres or so) General William “Tecumsah” Sherman and ‘Fightin Joe” Hooker who planted grapes in Sonoma Valley in 1854.

The wine is made up of old vine Zin from our vineyard that did not make it into the Bedrock Heirloom Wine, along with some old vine Zin and Petite Sirah from nearby Abbastanza Vineyard, and some wonderful Syrah from the mouth of the valley.  The wine, a mix of 2006 and 2007, was aged in 35% new French oak from Ermitage, Dargaud-Jaegle, and Baron.  If I were making wines to a lower level, almost all of these would be vineyard designates.  Rather, I have decided to make an exceptionally good wine available to just about anyone.  I, frankly, hate, elitism and over-priced schlonk.  Here is to hearty and healthy wine!

Here, here!  Down with schlonk! 

And secondly, the liter of Gruner Veltliner from award-winning winemaker Ebner Ebenauer for $10.99....Yes....$10.99.  So Marion Ebner makes a 92 pt (WS) gruner called Melusine Gruner Veltliner Lyra for $89/btl that many consider to be the top gruner coming out of Austria today and then she makes the $10.99 GRUNER liter bottle for the rest of us.  Again, we've learned to not ask questions when the deals seem to good to be true.  This is classic light gruner with an acidic snap and hints of white pepper.  It's light, it's crisp, it's great, it's cheap, it's going to save our economy.

And to further help your wallets, we are pouring both of these wines in our Friday Night Tasting on the 6th from 5:30-8:30.  Turn off the news and come sip our rescue package.

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   Points Go Up, Price Goes Down?

      It's like we're buying wine in opposite world these last couple of weeks.  The latest deal that we're passing on to you comes from one of our favorite operations, Eric Kent.  The Eric Kent Kalen's Big Boy Syrah out of Sonoma receives a 94pts from Wine Spectator and the price gets dropped $5 to $35.99/btl!  The kind folks at Eric Kent just told us the wine is selling a little bit slower during the recession and they need to make room.  And the Eric Kent Drystack Syrah from Bennett Valley received a 90pts and dropped to $32.99/btl.  If this sounds good, get 'yer bottle sooner rather than later...they don't make much of this elixir.

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Thanks to the infamous Kogi BBQ truck and everyone who attended the tasting last week! 

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Regular Wine Tasting Schedule

*** We hold tastings twice a week on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons , and on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays the bar is open for wines by the glass . Please see our calendar for details on any given day: www.cowineco.com/calendar ***

Wine Tasting: C.C.S.P.

Friday, March 6th

5:30-8:30pm

(wines by the glass also available from 4:00 to 11pm)

$15/person

5 wines and gourmet cheeses from Auntie Em's Marketplace

Please RSVP to: info@cowineco.com or (323) 478-1985

Tonight friends, we offer you the CoWineCo Comprehensive Stimulus Package.  5 wines for $15, cheese, friends, and a reason to avoid the rain.  2 of tonight's wines are 'large format' or 'not actual size' or 'neato' -- we hope you enjoy their taste and intimidating size as much as we do.

wines

GRUNER Gruner Veltliner 2007, Austria

Blacksmith Cellars Monterey Chenin Blanc 2006, California

Feiler-Artinger Blaufrankisch Rose 2007, Austria

Coppertino Riserva Negro Amaro 2001, Puglia, Italy

Sherman & Hooker's Shebang! Red, Sonoma, California

Lazy Sunday Tasting

Sunday, March 8th

1-4pm

$12/person

4 wines and gourmet cheeses from Auntie Em's Marketplace

No RSVP necessary

wines

(call for other selections)

Wine Cellar Wednesdays

Every Wednesday

4-9pm

No corkage fee on any bottles in the store!

Grab anything off the shelf for the price of the bottle, ask the nice bartender for some glasses, sit, and enjoy

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I Would Shop At Your Store But I'm On A Budget

     We hear the above line often when we bum rush potential customers in the wine aisle of Trader Joe's.  Oh, soooo young....sooo naive.  Let us show you the way....

Wisteria Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, California - $6.99/btl

Crucillon Tinto 2007, Campo de Borja, Spain - $7.99/btl

Hey Mambo Red 2007, California - $8.99/btl

LaPlaya Sauvignon Blanc 2008, Colchagua Valley, Chile - $6.99/btl

Gazela Vinho Verde, Portugal - $6.99/btl

Wisteria Cellars Chardonnay 2006, California - $6.99/btl

Butterfield Station Chardonnay 2007, California - $5.99/btl

Baroncini Pinot Grigio 2007, Italy - $7.99/btl

Round Hill Chardonnay 2007, California - $8.99/btl

See?  There's nothing to be afraid of.  Go to the light, Carol Anne.... Go to the liiiiiiight...

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When The Next Wave Wipes Out

     So this is recession related and Eagle Rock related, but only tangentially wine related.  In case you missed it, the NYTimes did a piece last week on the struggling businesses in Eagle Rock and it has caused quite a ruckus amongst Eagle Rock natives and newbies alike.  The writer and everyone interviewed for this article are either customers, friends or both, and Jennifer and I were both interviewed a handful of times, but were ultimately edited out of the final piece. 

     While there are very respectable arguments for and against the opinions in this piece, there is no doubt that it struck a chord.  I'll just throw one opinion into the mix on the whole idea of gentrification/de-gentrification/ hipsterville/ the next silverlake this-and-that.... As much as any neighborhood in Los Angeles, the Eagle Rock commercial corridor is full of first-time entrepeneurs making a very conscious decision to bet their dreams and livelihoods on this neighborhood -- it's diverse, it's open, it's wacky as all hell (that's a good thing) and it's a great place to raise a family.  If the idea were to make a quick buck, all these businesses would have sprung up elsewhere in LA.  Eagle Rock is not going to be the next anything, it's Eagle Rock and that's a unique and wonderful thing in a city where neighborhoods are becoming bland cubby holes for big chain stores.  And to those that are wishing for the 'new' businesses of Eagle Rock to go out of business or go away?  Sorry, Charlie....aint gonna happen.  Please GO TO OUR BLOG to comment.

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See You Soon,

John and Jen

"Wine makes daily living easier, less hurried, with fewer tensions and more tolerance."

~ Benjamin Franklin