My Picks: Vintages On-Line Exclusives -- July 28

Here’s my shopping list for this week’s Vintages On-Line Exclusives Release.

Organic

TENUTA DI GHIZZANO VENEROSO 2006, IGT Toscana (Italy); #103218; 14% ABV; $28
A blend of Sangiovese (85%) and Merlot (15%). Harvested by hand, crushed by feet (!), fermented with natural yeasts, aged in oak. Located close by the coast, southeast of Pisa, where wines typically have a mineral tang. They use 50 percent of the land for vineyards, the rest for olives, cereals, and forests. Converted to organic vinification in 2003; certified by “Suolo e Salute”, they’ve been using Biodynamic practices since 2006.

Off the Beaten Track

LAURENZ V. CHARMING GRÜNER VELTLINER 2007, Kamptal (Austria); #180802; 13% ABV; $20
Laurenz Five is a group of five winemakers (including the fifth generation of the Laurenz Moser family) that makes only Gruner Veltliner, the signature grape of cool climate Austria. I like their focus! Not so much the cutesy names they give their five GVs: Charming, Silver Bullet, Friendly, Singing, and Sunny. Are these wines or dwarfs? They say that they selected these names to appeal to women. Uh, okay. Handpicked, temperature-controlled fermentation and aging in steel tanks. No oak. Don’t know GV? Check out their video. 

DOMAINE LA FOURMONE CEPS D'OR 2005, AC VACQUEYRAS (France); #182279; 14% ABV; $29
Old Vine Grenache with some Mourvèdre. Two sisters run Domaine la Fourmone, which has 20 ha in Vacqueyras. Mediterranean climate (hot, hot, hot in the summer; cool and rainy in the winter). A wine to put down for a winter dish like beef stew or braised game.

QUINTA DO VALLADO TOURIGA NACIONAL 2007, DOC Douro (Portugal); #137018; 12% ABV; $29
100% Touriga Nacional, one of the key grapes in making port, for which (historically) Douro is more famous than for its dry wines. That’s changing, and here’s an example of why. Made in a modern style: fermented in stainless steel, aged in new French oak. A sixth-generation winemaker. More of a winter wine; it will also work with grilled lamb.

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