Join Us for Our Beaujolais Nouveau Tasting
This Thursday,
November 17, is the annual unveiling of the latest Beaujolais Nouveau
wine. We'll be providing a complimentary tasting at our store on Thursday
evening, from 5 - 8 pm.
Plan to join us
to taste the first red wine of the 2005 French harvest. Beaujolais
Nouveau is unique in how it's produced; the Gamay grapes go from vine to
bottle in about two months.
Recent
"Big" Winner - PBBS Selection
Our Prairie Big
Blue Stem program is a no-obligation opportunity to be notified about
high value, super quality wines, usually low-production runs and hard to
find. These wines aren't stocked in the store; they are sold
through our PBBS email notification and response process.
We're proud to
highlight a recent
selection, the 2004 Mitolo Shiraz GAM from McLaren Vale (South Australia).
A couple weeks after Jack picked this wine and ran it through the PBBS
system, the wine was rated a phenomenal 97 points by Robert Parker! Mr.
Parker states the wine is "an exceptional example of a precise yet
full-flavored, concentrated Shiraz. Its gorgeous perfume of blueberries,
blackberries, camphor, licorice and pain grille is followed by an
inky/blue/purple-colored wine offering superb purity, full-bodied
richness, and gorgeous depth as well as texture. This fabulous effort is
another example of Ben Glaetzer's brilliant talents. It should drink well
for 15 years."
If you enjoy
high quality, great value, spectacular wines and you aren't getting our
PBBS mailings, contact Jack Thew
to be added to the list. Again, there's never an obligation to
buy - just the opportunity to add stellar wines to your collection.
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Holiday Season
Store Hours
In this issue:
Feature: Tale of 3 Regions
Upcoming Events:
The View: Nov 29
Weekend Tastings
Ladies Night Out, Dec 5
Shop online!
Store Hours (new holiday hours)
Legal Notice on Ordering Wine
Looking for a New Wine Book?
If you want detail about vineyards around the world, check out a new book
being offered through
Patrick Fegan's website. The "Vineyard Handbook" presents
details on more than 130 wine-producing areas around the world, including
acreage, production statistics, varietals planted.
Mr. Fegan, a world-renowned wine scholar, teaches wine classes in the
Chicago area. Visit his website for a current schedule.
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Feature
A Tale of Three Regions
Back in May, our store was
selected to send a person on a 10-day tour of three wine regions: Jerez
(Spain), Alsace (France) and Rhone (France). The trip was sponsored
by the European Wine Bureau. Brad Mitchell was the fortunate one who
represented Wine Expressions on this trip. In addition to meeting
some of the leading winemakers from those regions, learning a ton of
background and tasting hundreds of incredible wines, Brad managed to have
a bit of fun, too. Following are reports from his tour. Let's
live vicariously through Brad for a few moments!
Jerez
We started our tour in Jerez, Spain, a town
steeped in tradition. For winemakers, Jerez means Sherry. In other parts
of the wine world, globalization has taken hold. The names of some of
Europe’s most esteemed winemakers grace the labels of wines from some
decidedly un-European places, hybrids borne of easy travel, instant
communication and an expanded world view.
In spite of
that trend, there remain a few wines whose names evoke a strong sense of
place: Port from Oporto, Portugal; Champagne from, well, Champagne. And in
the sun-baked corner of southwestern Spain known as Andalusia, the
winemakers of Jerez will defend to the death the concept that Sherry
belongs to Spain. More specifically, to a small triangular area cornered
by the towns of Jerez de la Frontera, Sanlucar de Barrameda, and Puerto de
Santa Maria, where the unrelenting sunshine reflecting off the chalk soil
is only slightly mitigated by the Atlantic’s ocean breezes.
The grape
of choice here is overwhelmingly Palomino, most notably Palomino Fino, the
basis for most Sherries. This combination of white grapes, white soil and
blazing sun lays the groundwork for true Spanish Sherry, but the
winemaking process assures a finished product unlike anything else in the
world.
(Continue...)
Rhone
Our second stop was the Rhone Valley, in
South Central France. The Cotes du Rhone is home to Syrah, Grenache,
Mourvedre and Cinsault, and a host of other grapes that make spicy and
flavorful blends. These are wines that cover a variety of foods with
panache, structure and strength, while avoiding being overbearingly
heavy. 90% of these wines are red [inspiring the marketing pitch “Think
Red, Think Rhone”]. The umbrella Cotes du Rhone appellation is
given to roughly 80% of the wine, with more specific AOCs of Cotes du
Rhone Village and Cote du Rhone Crus showing the requisite leaps in
quality (and price).
The Southern Rhone
is centered around the famous region of Chateauneuf du Pape (known for
allowing up to 13 varieties and consistent appellation quality), with the
town of Avignon at its base, and contains villages-rated appellations such
as: Vacqueyras, Gigondas, Lirac and Tavel, Cairanne and others.
Avignon, home of the
Palais des Papes (Pope’s Palace) and the famous bridge over Avignon, which
has never been reconstructed following the wars, is shown here in a view
from the river. The palace at Avignon was home to a century of French
Popes, starting with Clement V in 1309. (Continue...)
Alsace
Wow! Third stop on our tour of
great wine regions. If the Rhone valley is home to great reds, then we
can associate Alsace with great whites – or in their terms “le Grand
Blancs.” In fact, 91% of the wine produced in this region is white. And
“grand” they are. These wines show off the varietal fruit flavors, and
highlight the local terroir in a way that makes people want to change
their habits to drink more whites.
They tend to show us
new, drier, food-friendly styles of some grape varieties we already know –
Riesling, Muscat, Pinot Gris, Gewürztraminer, and the lone red standout:
Pinot Noir, among others. Fresh in their youth, many of these whites
can live and be pleasing for 30 or more years in the bottle! If you have
yet to experience these wines, it’s likely because over 75% of these
marvels stay right at home to be consumed in France.
Alsace itself is a
beautiful region at the far northeast corner of France. Stretching just
90 miles, and at only one to ten miles wide, it is easily navigable as a
tourist destination. The vineyard area starts at the southern end with the
towns of Mulhouse and Thann, and ends just a bit north of the largest
city, Strassbourg (center of town pictured at right), which you’ll find on
the Rhine river at the French/German border.
(Continue...) |
Store Location
We are located in downtown Lisle at the southwest corner of Burlington
Ave. & Main St.
Extra parking is available behind our building.
Hours of Operation
Mon - Sat 10 am - 8 pm
Open Sundays from Nov 27 through Dec 18, 1 - 5 pm.
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This unique barrel shows the Sherry fermenting. There's a yeast cap on
the top that keeps air off the wine; sherry is tapped from the bottom.
The Palais des Papes (Pope's Palace) is picturesque
on the river at Avignon.
A look at downtown Strassbourg. The style reflects
its German heritage, even though the town is now part of France. |
Schedule
of Events
Prairie Sampling:
Friday, Nov 18 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, Nov 19 1 - 6:30: Thanksgiving Wines
Friday, Nov 25 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, Nov 26 1 - 6:30: BEER - Christmas Ales
Friday, Dec 2 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, Dec 3 1 - 6:30: Global Cabernets
Friday, Dec 9 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, Dec 10 1 - 6:30: Napa Valley Treasures
Also on Saturday - Riedel demonstration, Cuvee Prestige
Friday, Dec 16 4 - 6:30 &
Saturday, Dec 17 1 - 6:30: Wines to Brighten Your Holidays
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Nov 29
Tasting at The View: A Wine Lover's Tour of Spain
Our regular tasting series at The View restaurant in Lisle highlights a
different area of the world, or type of wine, each month. In November, we
feature wines from Spain. The evening includes a tasting of six wines,
paired to small-plate food portions, and an educational presentation.
Join us on Tuesday, November 29, and experience some of the best wine
values in the world. The View is located in Lisle, at the Riverbend Golf Course, 5900 Hwy 53.
Our tasting begins at 7 pm. Cost is $25 per person. Call The
View to register, 630-968-1920. (back to top)
Ladies Night Out: Dec 5
- De-Stress December
For our December Ladies Night Out event, we offer a break from what can be
a hectic time of year. Guest presenter Barbara Stewart, LMT, will give a
brief presentation on keeping your balance and your sanity through the
holiday season.
As always, our event includes a fabulous selection of wines for tasting,
paired with hors d'oeuvres.
Cost is $25 per person. Please register by Thursday, December 1.
Ladies Night Out: De-Stress December
Monday, Dec. 5, 7:30 pm
$25 per person
Call for Reservations: 630.435.9463
or 888.656.9463
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About
Our Mailing List
The mailing list for this newsletter was gleaned from the personal email
archives of Wine Expressions' owners and from direct requests received
from our customers.
We hope you enjoy the newsletter and decide to remain on our distribution
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By the way, we never share your email or address information with anyone
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Legal Notice
on Ordering Wine
You must be 21 years of age or older to order any alcoholic beverage.
By law, we are allowed to ship wine to the following
states: Arkansas, District of Columbia, California,
Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Iowa, Louisiana, Minnesota,
Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, North Dakota,
Oregon, South Carolina, Texas, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin and
Wyoming.
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