Newsletter Archive

*** HAPPY 4TH OF JULY WEEKEND!  WE'RE OPEN OUR NORMAL HOURS ALL WEEKEND ***

The Island of Dr. Merlot

How much is that doggy in the win..AHHHHHHH!  In this newsletter we begin with a terrifying ceramic hot dog with a wine bottle for a thorax (I know thorax is misused, but what a great word).  No, we don't sell this item and aren't planning on it because then we'd have to stare at this vivisected monstrosity and throw up in our mouths every morning we open the store.  He looks really sad about his wine bottle tummy, doesn't he?  Well, he should.

This is the first installment of what we hope will become a new series --  

"WINE PARAPHERNALIA THAT MAKES US UNCOMFORTABLE AND/OR SCARED"

or W.P.T.M.U.U.A.O.S. for short.

***

Westbrook Wine Farm Peterson Family Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, Lodi, California - $25.99/btl

     You know, it's enough that their logo, as one of our customers pointed out, looks dangerously close to Van Halen's logo (which I drew in my sketchbook way too may times as kid...right next to Iron Maiden's "Eddie" of course), but Westbrook Wine Farm's Lodi Cab is also ridiculously yummy and you can only buy it at 2 retailers in the U.S. of A.  Yes, we're retailer #2 thanks to our friends and customers who brought us a bottle of his fine, fine juice a few weeks ago. 

     So, haven't heard of Cabernet from Lodi, CA? This year Lodi made some ripples in the wine world as a Lodi Cabernet Sauvignon from Michael-David Winery won the Gold in the San Francisco Chronicle's 2009 Wine Competition in the $45-and-over category, defeating such recognizable names as Cakebread and Stag's Leap.  So enter Westbrook...a family winery run by Ray and Tammy Krause focusing on Bordeaux-style reds and sustainable farming techniques in the Sierra Foothills / Lodi areas.  What does this mean for you?  A $25.99 Cabernet that is dense, deep and dark, with a balance of tannin that signifies a true ability to age over the next 5 to 10 years.  We get complex notes of tobacco and clove tempered by bright plummy fruit and easily polished off a bottle with some Provencal lambchops during an episode of Breaking Bad.  That's probably too much information, but great tasting experiences tend to stick indelibly in your brain.

***

Quack-Head

So, it is our opinion that in the sea of Zinfandel, you encounter a lot of bottom-feeders.  Plonk.  Grape jam that is more suited to a cola flavor than a wine.  But when we find a good one we remember why we have trouble keeping them on our shelves.  This year there are two Zinfandels that have really caught our attention; 1) Saldo Zinfandel from Orin Swift which sold out rather quickly, and 2) this little puppy at $18.99/btl.  CLICK HERE to read on... 

***

New Arrivals!

CA - Red

Justin Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, Paso Robles - $24.99/btl

Westbrook Wine Farm Peterson Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 2006, Lodi - $25.99/btl

Quackenbush Zinfandel 2006, Lake County - $18.99/btl

DISCOUNTED! Holus Bolus Syrah 2007, Santa Ynez - $24.99/btl

CA - White

Bandit Pinot Grigio - $7.99/Liter Box

Palmina Pinot Grigio 2008, Santa Barbara County - $15.99/btl

OREGON - Red

Domaine Serene Yamhill Cuvee Pinot Noir

SPAIN - Red

Yotuel Ribera del Duero 2007 - $14.99/btl

SPAIN - White

Doniene Bizkaiko Txakolina 2006 - $19.99/btl

Vina Clavidor Verdejo 2008 - $11.99/btl

ITALY - White/Bubbly

Rocca Bernarda Tocai Friuliano 2006, Friuli - $17.99/btl

Sciarpa Prosecco, Valdobbiadenne - $14.99/btl

FRANCE - Red

Chave Saint-Joseph 2006, Rhone - $25.99/btl

Domaine Les Aulieres Cotes du Rhone - $9.99/btl

***

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: (In)Dependence Day

Friday, June 26th

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 we tip glasses celebrating our country's independence and our hedonistic dependence on wine to level out the bad days, toast the good days, and add a little color to the days in between.

Today is also the anniversary of Shirley Jackson's The Lottery being published in the The New Yorker in 1948.  Haven't read it?  Don't worry about it.  At the wine tasting everyone will be given little folded slips of paper and if yours has a black dot on it...you get....a BIG surprise.  A MAJOR award. 

wines

Gazela Vinho Verde, Portugal

Pomelo Sauvignon Blanc 2008, California

A to Z Pinot Noir 2007, Oregon

Zolo Bonarda 2007, Argentina

Melipal Malbec 2006, Mendoza, Argentina

All 'Merican Lazy Sunday Tasting

Sunday, June 28th

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

4-11pm

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

***

Can't....hold...on....MUST.....sausages

This link has zero to do with wine except that he might consider having a nice Tannat with his grilled sausages next time.  Thanks to www.geekologie.com for this very, very important cultural story.

***

See You Soon,

John and Jen

God invented whiskey to keep the Irish from ruling the world.

~ Ed McMahon, r.i.p.