portfolio
Fortified
Fortifying a wine with alcohol before, during or after fermentation provides bacterial stability to a wine or aromatized wine, allowing the winemaker to conduct the rest of the production process without the wine spoiling. Fortifying a wine does not aid in aromatic stability, however, so a fortified wine does not of its own nature have a longer shelf life after opening.
Marsala
Ostinato Marsala Fine Ambra Secco
Italy ➜ Sicily ➜ Marsala DOC 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Delicious, balanced and refined, Ostinato Fine Ambra Secco is a dry Marsala that is produced according to traditional methods now rarely seen in the appellation, especially in Fine expressions. It begins with its ‘alto grado’ base wine, from late-harvest, low-yielding Grillo, Inzolia and Catarratto old vines. Its higher natural ABV means the wine is less reliant on fortification and is more expressive of Marsala’s indelible terroir. Extended aging beyond the minimum Fine requirements produce a Marsala that resonates with deep vinous character. Full details
Ostinato Marsala Fine Ambra Dolce
Italy ➜ Sicily ➜ Marsala DOC 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Delicious, balanced and refined, Ostinato Fine Ambra Dolce is a sweet Marsala that is produced according to traditional methods now rarely seen in the appellation, especially in Fine expressions. It begins with its ‘alto grado’ base wine, from late-harvest, low-yielding Grillo, Inzolia and Catarratto old vines. Its higher natural ABV means the wine is less reliant on fortification and is more expressive of Marsala’s indelible terroir. Extended aging beyond the minimum Fine requirements produce a Marsala that resonates with deep vinous character. Full details
Maury
Mas Peyre Maury Hors d’Age ‘La Rage du Soleil’ NV
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Maury AOP 17.0% ABV
17.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
First established in 2003, this singular Maury solera was augmented with small lots each year until 2008, then rested quietly in barrel until bottling in late 2016. 100% Grenache noir, the name ‘Rage du Soleil’ alludes to the heat of Roussillon and the enduring nature of its old vines. Oxidative, yet still primary, this deft wine boasts notes of cherry compote, spice cake and cocoa powder; tobacco leaf, bitter orange and rose pepper. With lightly drying tannins balancing the wine’s inherent richness, expect a continued graceful evolution in the bottle. Enjoy with creamy blue-veined cow’s milk cheeses, with nuts and dark chocolates. Serve slightly chilled or at cellar temperature. Full details
Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio 2008
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Maury AOP 15.5% ABV
15.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Produced only in exceptional vintages, the Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio is pure Grenache noir, selected from the estate’s oldest vines. Fermented in a 200-year-old concrete tank, the wine was aged in a 1,000-liter tonneau for eight years, then placed on the rooftop under glass and exposed to the elements for a final year prior to bottling. The resulting wine exhibits warming complexity and reverberative depth, its mellow rancio character embroidered on flavors of spiced cherry, caramelized orange, fruit cake, fig, walnut, coffee and cocoa. Full details
Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio 2007
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Maury AOP 15.5% ABV
15.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Produced only in exceptional vintages, the Domaine du Dernier Bastion Maury Rancio is pure Grenache noir, selected from the estate’s oldest vines. Fermented in a 200-year-old concrete tank, the wine was aged in a 1,000-liter tonneau for nine years, then placed on the rooftop under glass and exposed to the elements for a final year prior to bottling. The resulting wine exhibits warming complexity and reverberative depth, its mellow rancio character embroidered on flavors of spiced cherry, caramelized orange, fruit cake, fig, walnut, coffee and cocoa. Full details
Banyuls
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Banyuls AOP
17.5-18.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Domaine du Mas Blanc Banyuls Hors d’Age ‘Sostrera’
France ➜ Roussillon ➜ Banyuls AOP 17.5% ABV
17.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
‘Sostrera’ is the word for ‘solera’ in the local Catalan parlance of Banyuls. Dr. Gaston Parcé established the solera at Mas Blanc in 1925 with two layers of demi-muids (650-litre barrels) full of wine. The Domaine bottled the first wine from the solera in 1946. This commitment to extended aging within the Sostrera continues today. The wine is 100% Grenache noir (from cuttings brought from Château de Beaucastel), fortified in the usual manner of the estate. Full details
Garnatxa d’Empordà
Espodol Solera Garnatxa d’Empordà NV
Spain ➜ Catalunya ➜ Empordà DO 15.5% ABV
15.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Celler Espolla’s Solera Garnatxa d’Empordà is regarded as one of the finest and most prominent of its tradition in Catalunya. Late harvest Garnatxa blanca and rosat grapes are picked by hand and co-fermented with native yeasts in epoxy-lined concrete tank. The fermentation is arrested via mutage, and the wine begins a lengthy, oxidative odyssey through a four-tier solera that was inaugurated in 1950; small quantities are bottled a maximum of once per year. Dark amber, seamless and layered, it shows dried apricot and cherry, roasted hazelnut and sweet/smoky baking spices. Served at cellar temperature, it can be enjoyed with a wide variety of cheeses and desserts. Once opened, it will keep well for 8-12 weeks. Full details
Carcavelos
Villa Oeiras Carcavelos Tinto 10-Year Old
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Carcavelos DOC 19.0% ABV
19.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
The first ever Carcavelos Tinto imported to the US, this exhilarating wine comes from Portugal's smallest appellation, just west of Lisbon along the Tejo estuary as it opens out to the Atlantic. A terrific alternative to Tawny Port, it is produced from small, calcareous seaside vineyards highlighting local varieties Castelão and Trincadeira. Full details
Villa Oeiras Carcavelos 'Nacional' 12-Year Old
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Carcavelos DOC 18.5% ABV
18.5% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Villa Oerias Carcavelos 'Nactional' 12-Year Old is Carcavelos as it might have been when it was first produced by the Marquis do Pombal in the mid-18th century. Aged exclusively in Portuguese ('Nacional') oak, which lends a pleasingly rusticity and generosity of spirit, it is the first such expression of Carcavelos in more than half a century. Full details
Villa Oeiras Carcavelos 15-Year Old
Portugal ➜ Lisboa VR ➜ Carcavelos DOC 19.0% ABV
19.0% ABV • Fortified, Oxidative
Benchmark of the appellation, Portugal's most diminutive and one of the smallest in Europe, Villa Oeiras Carcavelos 15-Year Old was the first Carcavelos imported to the US in many decades. Full details
Madeira
Belem’s
Portugal ➜ Madeira DOC 17.0% ABV
Saveiro
Portugal ➜ Madeira DOC 19.0-20.0% ABV
Henriques & Henriques
Portugal ➜ Madeira DOC 19.0-20.0% ABV
