October Wine Club
Mersel Wine – Bekaa Valley 'Lebnani Abyad' 2022
The vibe: If I asked you where the oldest winemaking region in the world was, where would you guess? Greece? Georgia? Egypt? No one really knows the exact birthplace of wine, but these countries are all early players. Know who else is up there? Lebanon. Wine has existed in Lebanon since 7000 BC or so. Phoenicians were making wine in Lebanon thousands of years ago and even exported a large amount of it to other civilizations like Egypt. The Temple of Bacchus (Bacchus being the Roman God of wine) still stands in Lebanon and is testament to the region’s affinity for the good juice. It’s also the highest elevation wine growing region in the northern hemisphere, with a ton of microclimates and massive diurnal temperature swings similar to Mendoza, Argentina. French Jesuits arrived in the 19th century and brought with them French varietals, which display a unique expression given the area’s terroir and long ripening season. This wine is a skin contact blend of both the indigenous varietal Merwah (a cousin of Semillon) and the well known Sauvignon Blanc. It’s structured and broad on the palate, with tart, savory, and mineral notes converging beautifully, plus a hit of tropical and banana on the nose and finish. A truly beautiful bottle and label, from a beautiful region.
The winemaker: Eddie Chami is an Australian-Lebanese wine pioneer. He holds a degree in winemaking from UC Davis and after graduation moved to Lebanon and reestablished his grandparents vineyards by 2011. Seeing the Lebanese wine scene evolving to mimic the French scene, and inspired by Greek winemaking which focuses on local varietals, he embraced several native varietals and lets them express themselves based on each individual vineyard site. The resulting wines are both entirely eccentric and effortlessly approachable. He and his wife, Michelle, cofounder of Heya Wines, are in the middle of harvest and winemaking as the region’s conflict rages on. We continue to support these incredible humans through their wines and periodically donate to Red Cross Lebanon and Beit el Baraka, two charities recommended to us by Eddie. If you are able, please consider donating what you can.
The geeky details: Sauvignon Blanc (60%), Merwah (40%). Indigenous Merwah vines, over 150 year old. Merwah is harvested in the first week of October, it goes a slow ferment on skins for three weeks. It is then pressed and blended with the Sauvignon Blanc. The wines go through MLF naturally, they are racked twice before being bottled in late spring. Sauvignon Blanc picked first week of August, partially destemmed, partially pressed, free-run juice added back on skins in stainless tanks. Punch down occurs twice daily. It ferments for three weeks at 17 degrees celsius. An additional two weeks of maceration is done.
Serve: With a chill.
Food pairing: Spicy food! Salty/savory food! Since this has a little more structure it would also go amazing with heartier chicken-based dishes, lamb, roasted veggies, porkchops, even fall stew!
Album pairing: Toufic Farroukh - Villes Invisibles
Damien Menut - ‘Sonnemot’ 2021
The vibe: Grolleauuuuuu. I love you Grolleau. Do you pronounce the double-L as a Y? Who cares! One thing everyone agrees on is it’s delicious. This grape is typically seen as a blending varietal, similar to Pineau d’Aunis. It shines as a single varietal though, with big ol’ red fruit notes, some lighter stone fruit notes, and a slightly stemmy and spicy finish with a hit of olive brine. This producer is new to the Seattle market and they’ve embrace lighter expressions of regional varietals, similar to how wine of yesteryear would’ve been made before climate change warmed everything up. This bottle in particular is super crushable, being only 10.8% ABV. For being so quaffable and light, it’s surprisingly tranquil and elegant if you want to read into it. It’s the only wine bearing its vineyard name, as it packs some serious fruit from vines over 60 years old. It’s just so pretty. Chill it down and enjoy.
The winemaker: Damien Menut was working at a wine shop in Paris in 2010 and helped out at a harvest, which inevitably led him down the road of acquainting himself with winemaking and taking organic viticulture classes. He finally scored an apprenticeship with legendary natural wine grower Bruno Allen in Thésée, and embraced the vigneron life in 2016 when Bruno retired. His operation is all DIY - hand-harvesting, hand-destemming and hand-pressing, followed by bottling, corking and labeling by hand. No sulfites are used at any stage for any of his wines. As a Breton (native of Brittany), he channels his heritage through the Celtic symbols on his labels.
The geeky details: 100% Grolleau. Whole cluster fermentation followed by 15 months in old barrels. No sulfur added. 1,100 bottles made total.
Serve: With a light chill.
Food pairing: Man, this wine is so light and crunchy with a hit of acid, it would make an AMAZING pizza wine, obviously. It would also go so well with spicy asian dishes and would cut right through any heat you throw at it.
Album pairing: KOKOROKO - EP
Madson - Gamay Noir 2023
The vibe: Another new-to-market producer, this time from the Sta. Rita Hills in California! Gamay Noir is the perfect early fall varietal (it’s also unofficially the ultimate Thanksgiving wine) as it’s light enough to ease you into reds gracefully, but has enough character and subtle minerality to not leave you wanting more. It’s got substance AND finesse. Being from California, this is a somewhat unique expression as Gamay typically prefers cooler climates, but this vintage saw a particularly cold and wet winter followed by an overcast growing season, difficult conditions but which result in a longer hang time on the vines, creating beautifully rich and developed tannins, the perfect combination. It offers a structured palate with hints of cracked black pepper and pomegranate, dried herbs, and wet stone.
The winemaker: Winemaker and founder Cole Thomas worked as an organic vegetable farmer, edible landscaper, and manager of the Demeter Seed Library prior to his career in wine. He discovered natural winemaking techniques while working in New Zealand for Prophet’s Rock and Amisfield Winery in 2017. He returned to the Santa Cruz Mountains to launch Madison Wines in Spring 2018 and continues to follow natural winemaking techniques to make California wines that express terroir with poise and concentration.
The geeky details: 100% Gamay Noir, from the Sta. Rita Hills, sandy loam and chalky soils, whole cluster fermentation, carbonic maceration, aged in stainless and neutral oak barrels.
Serve: With a light chill.
Food pairing: Being a little more structured, this should be right at home next to any dishes you’d pair with a medium-bodied red like saucy pastas, meaty mains, and roasts. Or pair it with candles and boardgames.
Album pairing: Skinshape - Another Side of Skinshape
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WHAT THE FUNK?!
Les 2 Fauves - ‘Continuum’ 2023
The vibe: My tasting notes on this wine run the gamut from “citrus” to “acid!” to “aliiiive”. And honestly throw “funky” right in there too. This bottle embraces the wild side of natural wines in the best way. It’s electric yet direct. It has tension but doesn’t get frazzled. It performs best under stress. And it shines like a diamond. Ugni Blanc and Villard Blanc, two varietals native to Ardèche and south-central France, come together in a skin-contact blend for 3 days in fiberglass. It’s a light maceration, but just enough to extract some additional complexity and skinsy goodness. Chill it down and drink it quick, it’s best on day one.
The winemaker: Charles-Henri and Laura Soldan exemplify a true paysan lifestyle and we’re over the moon to represent them. The couple lives here with their young children and Laura’s cousin. They grow a small vegetable garden just by the winery, overlooking the terraced vineyards and the forested hills above a small river (Rivière d’Alune) cutting through the valley. The vineyards slowly descend the slope on larger terraces in a strikingly beautiful part of the Ardèche, close to Le Pont d’Arc on the Ardèche river. They farm 3 hectares on the slopes near their house and winery, with an additional 3 hectares closer to town in the valley.
The geeky details: 50% Ugni Blanc & 50% Villard Blanc (hybrid). 3 day maceration after crushing with aging in fiberglass tank.
Serve: With a chill.
Food pairing: This is wacky one, try it with a spicy dish like curry and see how it goes! Broad-shouldered whites from this region also generally go well with shellfish, grilled fish, and lighter veggie-based dishes and cheeses.
Album pairing: Voilaaa - C’est Tout
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EASYYY
Josmeyer -‘Fleur de Lotus’ NV
The vibe: This is a beautifully serene, lightly aromatic expression of a blend of 35-year old grapes from Alsace in Northern France. Balancing fruit and terroir, it eschews regional stereotypes of overly sweet white wines in favor of embracing natural aromatics over residual sugar. Located between Wintzenheim and Turckheim are flat alluvial deposits of the Fecht, rich in clay, sand, silt and pebbles. That earth translates into the glass, leaving rocky deposits on the palate. Despite its refinement it is seriously easy to quaff and at 12.5% ABV you don’t have to feel guilty!
The winemaker: Domaine Josmeyer has been making wine in Alsace over five generations dating back to 1854. Today, sisters Céline and Isabelle Meyer run the Domaine and have been practicing biodynamics since 2000. The hand-picked grapes are crushed slowly and left to rest in century-old wooden casks where the wines ferment naturally at their own rhythm. The wines are kept on their lees for several months during winter until they’re ready to be bottled and served on your table!
The geeky details: A blend of biodynamically-grown Auxerrois, Gewürztraminer, Muscat, and Riesling. They are harvested by hand and pressed whole using the pneumatic technique (for 5-8 hours), and naturally transfer all their aromas to the must. They are left to ferment spontaneously with no addition of enzymes or yeasts, and without chaptalisation. After a fermentation period which varies from one to four months, they are matured either in hundred-year-old oak barrels or in stainless steel vats, depending on each case.
Serve: With a chill.
Food pairing: The aromatics and mineral texture here will match the creaminess of rice-based dishes, and will also complement asian sauces with sugar, tamarind, or honey.
Album pairing: Feng Suave - EP