It is with great pleasure that we welcome Clemens Busch to Crush this Thursday, March 11th.

Clemens is one of the Mosel's newest stars, making waves in the U.S. market with a unique stable of Rieslings that show uncommon depth, complexity and power.

These are awe-inspiring Rieslings and this Thursday we will be tasting a most impressive lineup. DO NOT MISS this tasting!

Clemens Busch commands the respect of just about everyone. In the formidably humid Mosel he farms organically, which is nothing short of a Herculean accomplishment. Clemens himself is a formidable figure, a strong man with a sort of Dagueneau "wild man" look going on. That said, he smiles a lot and is incredibly thoughtful. Forgive me for making this clichéd jump, but the winemaker and his wines are very similar indeed: Broad-shouldered with an obvious force and power. Yet don't let the dazzling weight of these wines fool you - they show incredible depth and a diversity of terroir with a sort of scary complexity. Utterly distinctive and unforgettable. For you Grosses Gewächs fans, do not miss the mammoth 2007 Marienburg.

And if that weren't enough, we'll also have good friends Lars Carlberg and Dan Melia in the store as well, pouring a selection of soulful dry Rieslings from Ulli Stein, including the "Crush Wine of the Year," the 2008 Stein Palmberg-Terrassen Spätlese Trocken.

See the full lineup below: All the wines are honest expressions of some of the Mosel's most intriguing sites. They deserve to be experienced...and then, to be supported!

We hope to see you on Thursday.

Stephen Bitterolf
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyers
Crush Wine & Spirits

Clemens Busch

- 2008 Kabinett trocken
- 2007 Pündericher Marienburg GG
- 2007 Pündericher Marienburg Erste Lage “Falkenlay”

Stein

- 2008 Aldegunder Palmberg-Terrassen Spatlese Trocken
- 2008 Blauschiefer Trocken

Today we offer two of the unquestionable gems of the 2008 Loire vintage, simply glorious Premier Tries from Huets greatest sites: Le Mont and Clos du Bourg.

These are two "must have" bottlings for any serious Loire collector. For everyone else, well, these are simply some of the most magnificent and ageworthy expressions of Chenin Blanc on earth, and today they can be had for a song.

The wine geek / wine scholar John Gilman has penned some extraordinary notes for both these wines (reproduced in full below) - both read like dripping love songs to Vouvray. We sympathize: While so many Vouvrays can be clumsy, oafish even, Noel Pinguet of Domain Huet fashions wines of simply dazzling, kaleidoscopic complexity with finesse - with obvious, unapologetic breed.

These two bottlings are the aristocrats of the Loire Valley in 2008 (visit the cellars of the big collectors and you can bet you'll see Huet, tucked alongside the First Growth Bordeaux, the Grand Cru Burgundy) and they rifle through an amazing list of scents and tastes with grace: grapefruit, honeycomb, apples, oranges and orange peel, lanolin, apple blossoms, bee pollen, complex floral notes, soil tones and minerals (lots and lots of minerals).

And that's just when they're young; revisit these wines at 40+ years of age and prepare for a tasting note that weighs down War and Peace.

Today we strongly encourage you to explore both sites, therefore we have specially priced our "2008 Huet Premiere Trie 4-Pack" - it's a perfect study in this domain's excellence. The Le Mont Vineyard is elegance and femininity; Clos du Bourg is power and concentration.

Both wines, with their "Premiere Trie" designation, represent the first-choice, best botrytis-affected grapes, and the superior concentration and richness show themselves off aromatically as well as texturally. While these are wines that have something (gorgeous) to say right now, to really appreciate moelleux Vouvray, we recommend cellaring as long as you possibly can.

Make no mistake, seasoned collectors as well as wine geeks have already made room in their cellars. At this pricing, it's silly not to. Quality here is seriously high, but quantity is correspondingly very low. All orders are subject to confirmation.

To order, reply to this email or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Ian McFadden
Director of Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits

Special 4-Pack Price: $199.96 ($49.99/btl)
 2 x 2008 Huet Le Mont Moelleux 1er Trie
 2 x 2008 Huet Clos du Bourg Moelleux 1er Trie
No Compare at Pricing Available

2008 Huet Le Mont Moelleux 1er Trie: $55.78
No Compare at Pricing Available

2008 Huet Clos du Bourg Moelleux 1er Trie: $55.78
No Compare at Pricing Available

Huet Le Mont Moelleux 1er Trie
John Gilman, View from the Cellar: If the Le Haut Lieu Moelleux is defined by its dancing elegance in 2008, the Le Mont Moelleux Premier Trie is defined by its blazing purity, stunning intensity of flavor and laser-like presentation of its underlying terroir. The superb, vibrant bouquet roars from the glass in a blend of oranges, sweet grapefruit, a beautiful base of soil tones, orange peel, a gentle touch of lanolin, very discreet notes of honeycomb and a gently floral topnote. With all of its nascent aromatic complexity, the primary components on the nose here are its citrus fruit and its kaleidoscopic minerality. On the palate the wine shares the same full-bodied elegance as the Le Haut Lieu Moelleux, but with a firmer core, more striking soil inflection, and a nearly endless finish that builds and builds as the wine unfolds in the glass.

Huet Clos Du Bourg Moelleux 1er Trie
John Gilman, View from the Cellar: The Clos du Bourg Premier Trie offers up a magical bouquet of pink grapefruit, honeycomb, apples, utterly refined and complex soil tones, orange peel and a complex floral topnote that recalls both apple blossoms and bee pollen. On the palate the wine is deep, pure, complex and full-bodied, with a beautiful core of fruit, great focus and cut, bright acids and outstanding length and grip on the supremely elegant finish.

Huet is pre-arrival
NET | No further discount

He fashions the most epic, forceful and mineral-intense Meursaults on planet earth. There are few wines that make such a forceful impression, few wines are as rare...as collectible.

Today we highlight the chiseled 2004 vintage with a small jewel box of Coche's haunting 2004 Meursault "Les Rougeots."

Those who have had any Coche-Dury, let alone the super-saturated 2004s, will understand the addiction nearly every great cellar has to Coche-Dury. Those who have never tried a bottle might today take advantage of the deal on the table - keep in mind the only pricing in the U.S. is at $340 and $465.

We have only 18 bottles available at this price; this email goes out only to those of you who have supported our collectible Burgundy program.

To order, reply to this email or call the store at (212) 980-9463. Have a wonderful weekend!

Ian McFadden
Director of Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits

2004 Coche-Dury Meursault Les Rougeots

Special Bottle Price: $293.40
Compare at $340-$465

Burghound: "Moderate oak influence mixes with reserved white flower and notably ripe peach aromas that merge into elegant and very pure, rich, sweet and punchy flavors that are wonderfully deep and deliver first class intensity, all wrapped in an impeccably balanced finish. A striking wine by any measure but particularly so for a villages level wine - this will require patience."

Coche-Dury is in stock!
NET | No further discount

Today we offer a small parcel of Laurent Ponsot's crowning jewel, the Clos de la Roche, at the lowest price in the nation.

For the serious Burgundy collector, this is a hallowed bottle of wine. The 2007 will make purists very, very happy - it flaunts simply explosive aromatics, an expansive panorama of red berry, tea, spice, smoke, mineral and earth.

The Burghound's conclusion is as impressive as the wine's: "...a hugely long and explosive finish that completely coats the palate with extract." Yowzer.

Ponsot's Clos de la Roche is an incredible study of muscle matched to elegance - in fact the 2007 is especially fine, especially nuanced, as the Burghound points out. While there will certainly be more "collectible" Clos de la Roches, for purists, there may not be a more enjoyable one - especially when you consider today's price.

2007 was a complex vintage; while an early flowering led many to believe an early harvest would be necessary, relatively cool temperatures all summer allowed for a rather slow and sustained development on the vine. Ponsot, in fact, was one of the latest to harvest, with a relatively high ripeness. As Laurent himself states, 2007 was a vintage of "unexpected quality."

Selection was of course critical, but those who sorted rigorously ended up producing the most impressive wines; red Burgundy that balances concentration and density with agility and finesse. Not a bad combination.

Today we have only a few cases to offer, and the fact that we bring together the name "Ponsot" with the description "Lowest Price in the Nation" essentially guarantees a sell out. The question is simply when.

All orders are subject to confirmation; to order, please reply to this email or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Ian McFadden
Director of Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits

Clos de la Roche Vieilles Vignes

Special Bottle Price: $212.95
Compare at $250-$300+

Special Magnum Price: $439.95
Compare at $460-$700

Burghound: "A magnificently complex nose offers up a mix of both high and medium-toned aromas of mostly red berries but with a panoply of background nuances including leather, tea, underbrush, spice hints, jerky and smoke, most of which transfer to the textured, intense and precise full-bodied flavors that are, somewhat surprisingly, not quite as dense as those of the Clos St. Denis but actually finer (normally it's the reverse), all wrapped in a hugely long and explosive finish that completely coats the palate with extract, indeed so much of it that this does not seem all that structured yet it will clearly need at least 15 years to be at its best. Note that there was a hair of backend dryness in evidence that I am attributing to the recent bottling."

Wine is pre-arrival
NET | No further discounts

With only 16 hectares planted in Carema, today's Black Label represents one of Italy's rarest treasures.

Carema is in the northern haunts of the Piedmont, quite literally in Mont Blanc's shadow. In this high-altitude region, Nebbiolo ripens only on the steepest and most backbreaking terraced vineyards. This is viticulture at its most heroic and least profitable.

However, when the stars align, the region is capable of producing wines of such unique beauty that one feels indebted to the growers. Today we present the region's masterpiece.

Ferrando's 2005 Carema Etichetta Nera, or Black Label, is the most intense expression of Carema. We offered a small parcel of the 2004 late last year and had an overwhelming response; this is a wine whose reputation has exploded in the last 3+ years.

Today we offer the 2005, a high-voltage Carema that is brisk, silken, redolent of roses, fresh sweet herbs, perfumed cherry fruits, pomegranate, tinges of smoke and crushed rock. Whereas the 2004 is inky, dark fruited with extraordinary brawn, the 2005 is finesse, silken textures and an intensity of flavor that recalls Musigny (Ferrando Carema as Mountain Musigny?)

This wine is a purist's delight; it screams from (and of) the mountaintop. As Neal Rosenthal put it: "The '05 vintage is an almost ideal expression of Carema... For me, a top-notch vintage."

There is a dynamism to this wine that is endlessly engaging. The sophisticated and satiny tannins make the wine surprisingly accessible. However, don't take the wine's gregariousness as a sign of a short life - indeed, exactly the opposite. Neal told us, "Don't be deceived by its approachability, however, since there is excellent concentration which, in similar years, has proven to carry these wines in a state of perpetual youthful vigor for two decades or more."

Ferrando's total production is minisucle, the majority being comprised of the White Label. We don't really know the exact numbers for the Black Label, but it has to be seriously small. If this wine is not inexpensive (and it isn't), still, given the quality, rarity and sheer labor involved, there is much value to be had here. Especially when you consider the wines of little merit that scurry easily through the marketplace for no other reason than their labels say "Barolo" and "Barbaresco" (don't forget their price tags often say $100+).

For collectors and those with the desire to track this wine over the next decade, we strongly encourage taking advantage of 4-pack pricing. These wines only gain in interest and complexity in the cellar. In his book, Reflections of a Wine Merchant, Rosenthal wrote of a 1964 Black Label that hit its apogee in 1998 - at 34 years of age.

Due to the small quantities available, all orders are subject to confirmation. To order, reply to this email or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits

Special Email Bottle Price: $65.62
Compare at $79.99

Special 4-Pack Price: $239.80 ($59.95/btl)

Net / No Further Discounts
Black Label Arrives Next Week

If you're reading this email now you might remember getting a similar offer last June on the 2004 Nikolaihof Riesling Steiner Hund Reserve. This is a wine that David Schildknecht called a "torrential force of nature."

It's also a wine that you bought.

Today we've secured a few cases of the 2005 Steiner Hund Reserve and offer it only to those of you who supported last year's bottling - the price is the lowest in the nation.

How long was it aged? Well, the 2005 is the current release.

In this way Nikolaihof's Steiner Hunds are like baby "Vinotheks," Nikolaihof's super-rare, super-late release. The current vintage of the "Vinothek" is 1993!

Describing the style at Nikolaihof is hard to do; the wines are rich and often show creamy notes that suggest minerals, flowers and earth simultaneously. There is always something mysterious, something fascinating at the core of a great Nikolaihof bottling.

If we're a bit short on clear, logical, easy-to-digest explanations for Nikolaihof, not to mention this wine, that should be taken as part and parcel of Nikolaihof, which has to be one of the quirkiest estates in the Wachau if not all of Austria. The Saahs family famously farms both organically and biodynamically, and assertively so. You can't spend too much time at the estate without being told about the physical, ethical, moral and spiritual advantages of farming, eating and living according to the precepts of biodynamics. If this pseudo-proselytizing is a bit much to take sometimes, the truth is in the bottle and its clear that their vineyard and winery practices are working.

We have only a few cases to offer - so please give us your maximum order and we will allocate as best we can. All orders subject to confirmation.

To order, click below, email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Stephen Bitterolf
Joe Salamone
Wine Buyers
Crush Wine & Spirits

Special Email Price: $69.95
Compare at up to $90

Wine arrives next week!
Net / No further Discount

Delicious, isn't it?

Even more delicious: Today's extreme mountain-wine value, sourced from vineyards planted at 4,000 feet and scattered with pre-phylloxera vines. This is a white wine that showcases all the gorgeous sensations present at altitude: delicate alpine flowers, brushy mountain herbs, flinty rocks and a crisp acidity seemingly etched from mountain boulders.

Skip the ubiquitous Pinot Grigio, push beyond the limits so often defined by Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, and even Grüner, Muscadet, Vouvray... there is value in the esoteric.

The 2008 Vini Estremi is crafted from 100% Prie Blanc (aka Bernarde in Switzerland's Valais region) from vines that *average* 60 years old, while the old-timers are centenarians and beyond. Prie Blanc was almost lost to obscurity in the late 1970s, until today's hero, the cooperative La Cave du Vin Blanc de Morgex et de La Salle, organized over 90 independent growers, most cultivating a mere row or two of vines, and saved this region and its viticultural history and traditions.

While this is a cooperative, the winemaking here is ultra-traditionalist. Ask them if they practice organic viticulture, they'll look at you as if you asked: "Is it beautiful here?"

Grapes for the "Vini Estremi" come from the most extreme ("estremo") areas of the vineyards, which are among the highest altitude vineyards in all of Europe. And due to the traditional "pergola bassa" method of training vines in close-to-the-ground arbors (which protect against harsh winds and winter snowfall), harvesters must kneel and often lie on their backs to pick the golden grapes.

"Estremo" indeed, for a song.

Like the people of this region, the wine is chipper yet roundly welcoming and easy to converse with. Though this is natural winemaking at its core, the Vini Estremi steers clear of any "uber-funk," by warmly offering up scents of white peach, white melon, crispy apple and pear energized by that signature, taut acidity and saline minerality that's unique to mountain wines.

We recommend one for a simple dinner this week, one to have on hand to slug with friends over antipasti and one set aside for this season's first risotto with morels and asparagus... Come to think of it, this "mountain getaway" paired with summertime's grilled fish and a stonefruit salsa sounds perfect too.

That said, we have only 104 bottles to offer. The importer put this on special and we bought *everything* we could, but this was all that was left. Because quantities are so limited, this goes out only to those of you who have supported our Geek white wine program.

Today, the best way to order is to click the "Buy Button" and order through the website - we're testing a new system here!

If you have any problems, of course you can also email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call us at (212) 980-9463.

Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits

Special Email Bottle Price: $15.50
Normal Retail $17.99
Not to be confused with regular Prie Blanc bottling

Vini Estremi is in Stock!
NET | No further discounts

We are hardly the first to take serious notice of these unique Champagnes: Richard Juhlin has called Vouette et Sorbée, "The only 4-star property outside Marne." Even since last July, when we first emailed about these wines, the reputation of Vouette et Sorbée has simply exploded.

If too much Champagne is more about style than substance, the sparklers of Vouette et Sorbée are a profound reminder that Champagne is wine, that it comes from grapes that come from vines planted in soil.

There is an uncommon rigor at Vouette et Sorbée: Gautherot has famously been farming his vineyards both organically and biodynamically since 1998. Yields are miniscule, none of the wines receive any dosage and they are bottled unfiltered under lower pressure than most Champagnes.

While the limited production (around 1,200 cases) has already become fiercely sought out by the wine avant-garde, we encourage all curious palates to try one of each of the three bottlings on offer today.

Few Champagnes articulate such a nuanced and honest expression of site. Chablis is the obvious comparison, the expression of mineral, salt and stone in these wines is revelatory. (Indeed, Gauthard's vineyards feature both Kimmeridgian and Portlandian limestones and Chablis is only 60 kilometers away while Reims over 160!)

The other reference point, especially for the "wild one" - the Saignée de Sorbée - is red Burgundy and even the red wines of the Jura: This unique bubbly can be savory and spicy, with rich red fruit and even gamey notes.

We've included tasting notes from both Richard Juhlin and Peter Liem below.

All the Vouette et Sorbée Champagnes benefit from air - decanting is strongly recommended. Better than Champagne flutes, white wine glasses allow the wines to express themselves more fully and even more than most Champagnes (which are, contrary to popular opinion, superb with food) these Champagnes absolutely excel with a wide array of dishes.

The ascendancy of Vouette et Sorbée has been quick: Gautherot released his first vintage in 2004. It took only a matter of months to achieve cult status at home and abroad. Make no mistake, at the moment these are among the most difficult grower Champagnes to find. Only a handful of stores in the U.S. see even a few bottles and prices start at $85 and break the $100-barrier. As stated above, his entire annual production comes down to about 15,000 bottles.

Today we are thrilled to offer out a recently acquired parcel which includes the entire range of wines. While our collection is small, given the rarity of the wines it has to be considered a windfall. Please give us your maximum order and we will do our best to allocate - all orders are subject to confirmation.

As prices on grower Champagnes steadily creep up, we have negotiated strongly - you will note these prices are easily the lowest in the nation, and by a good amount. To order, email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

Joe Salamone
Wine Buyer
Crush Wine & Spirits

Special Email Price: $58.50
Net / No further discount
The Fidele is 100% Pinot Noir sourced from the Kimmeridgian soils of the Vouette vineyard along with earlier-picked grapes from the upper section of the Portlandian soils of the Sorbée vineyard. Got that?

Peter Liem: “Fidèle is a fine introduction to the style of the estate, showing the vibrant fruit and vinous, soil-driven intensity that characterizes Vouette et Sorbée’s champagnes. Of Gautherot’s three cuvées, this is the one that shows the most overt influence of wood when it’s first released, and personally, I prefer to put it in my cellar and wait until at least a year after disgorgement before drinking it, in order to allow the fruit to evolve and integrate itself.”

Special Email Price: $71.73
Compare at $92
Net /  No Further Discount
100% Chardonnay from Biaunes, a Kimmeridgian vineyard (perfect for Chardonnay) planted in 2000. In a vintage known for high yields, Argile’s were a paltry 15hl/ha!

Richard Juhlin: ”A speciality of a wine made from cuttings from Selosse's vineyards at Avize and Valmur in Chablis. Richly influenced by Chablis but perhaps even more inspired by Selosse with an aroma of dwarf banana, dried fruit, straw, Brazil nuts and oak. Intensive and exciting."

Peter Liem: “The Blanc d’Argile is a rich, powerfully vinous wine, needing decanting to open up its flavors and bring the components into balance. It’s full and ample in body yet it also feels energetic and tense, as if coiled and ready to pounce at any moment."

Special Email  Price: $88.98
Compare at $107
Net / No further discount
Made with the absolute ripest Pinot Noir grapes from the lower portion of the 1 hectare, single-parcel Sorbée vineyard - a site rich with Portlandian limestone soils. Gautherot feels that Portlandian is ideal for Pinot Noir. Made with carbonic maceration and generally described as the most ‘wine-like’ of the three bottlings. Think of  a far-out blend of Chambolle, Savigny, and Poulsard!

Richard Juhlin: “A gorgeously intensive and great rosé with Selosse-like overtones and Burgundy-like depth. Only a little downswing in the aftertaste lets on that we are not in a Grand cru area.”

Peter Liem: “Its vinosity and depth of fruit make it feel almost like a red wine, and it can exhibit flavors that are distinctly unusual for champagne, with savory, spicy, peppery and even gamy notes under the concentrated red fruit aromas. It’s a wine that you either love or you don’t.”

Vouette et Sorbée parcel arrives late spring 2010
Net / No further discount

No region in the world is more confounding than Burgundy. Vintages like 2005, where you can throw a dart and hit a masterful wine, are very rare.

In nearly every other year, to find the great wines, the wild values, some sleuthing is necessary. You have to talk to your neighbor about that hail in Vosne. You have to ask about that new upstart in Gevrey - what exactly was that gleaming stainless steal machine they brought down into the cellar?

Today we announce one of our great discoveries for the vintage: Bouchard's 2007 Le Corton, on offer at the lowest price in the nation. This is a Grand Cru value we strongly recommend you take advantage of.

While Bouchard's 2007 Le Corton has a massive structure (as Le Corton should), what is shocking is the fineness of the nose, the gleaming transparency of the fruit that is perfumed, energetic, detailed. The Burghound refers to "big bodied flavors that culminate in a peacock's tail of a finish that really fans out." Exactly right Mr. Burghound.

Bouchard remains well under the radar for the general public (read: value!), in spite of the massive investments in the vineyard and cellar which have brought this historical estate to a new high. While their white wines seem to have already lit a fire among the top-tier collectors (our Corton-Charlemagne offer from last week had an incredible response), the top reds from Bouchard should not be overlooked. You heard it here first - this will be the next chapter as this estate gains more and more momentum.

The 2007 Le Corton was stunning last Monday night at a small tasting held at the store with Luc Bouchard (pictured at right). In fact, we were all shocked by the wine's concentration of pure, slightly sauvage red fruit that rested effortlessly on the palate, giving the wine tremendous lift and freshness. The transparency of the beautiful reds that can be produced in the south of Burgundy, especially in a vintage like 2007, is on impressive display in this wine.

While the 2007 vintage will certainly produce earlier drinking wines than behemoth years such as 2002 and 2005, this Le Corton, while deceptively lovely at the tasting, is still a wine for the patient. This will develop in the cellar for quite a while - those who have the space for the four-pack are strongly encouraged to do so.

Our parcel of Bouchard's 2007 Le Corton is small, priced very sharply and only being offered to those that have supported Bouchard and Burgundy, so we'll keep it short today. To order, email us at offers@crushwineco.com or call the store at (212) 980-9463.

And enjoy the snow!

Ian McFadden
Director of Fine & Rare Wine
Crush Wine & Spirits

2007 Le Corton Rouge
Special Email Bottle Price: $79.95
Compare at $90

Special Email 4-Pack Price: $307.20 ($76.80/btl)

Burghound: "A truly magnificently complex nose that is layered, dense and broad with a mix of red berry fruits, earth, spice, smoke, meat and leather with a distinct animale character that leads to very rich, full and powerful big-bodied flavors that culminate in a peacock's tail of a finish as this really fans out. The tannins are dense but fine and the length seems to go on and on. Impressive and built like it."
 

Bouchard is pre-arrival
NET | No further discount