We will travel “south of Rome” to Campania, Puglia, and Sicily to taste some new additions to our Italian section that are exceptional values. Come discover the wonderful world of wines from indigenous Italian grape varietals from Catarratto on the white side to Aglianico on the red side!
White Wines:
2012 Picco del Sole Falanghina, Beneventano, Campania
Reg. Price: $11.99/Mills Club: $10.79/ Case Price: $9.59
2012 Castellucci Miano Catarratto “Miano”, Sicily
From a fairly new winery, this wine made from 100% organically grown Catarratto, a white wine grape indigenous to Sicily, is our new favorite Italian white wine. This wine has delicious stone fruit flavors and good acidity to accompany a variety of food or to serve as an aperitif.
Reg. Price: $19.99/Mills Club $17.99/Case Price: $15.99
Red Wines:
2011 Picco del Sole Aglianico, Beneventano, Campania
Reg. Price: $11.99/Mills Club: $10.79/Case Price: $9.59
2010 Masseria Li Veli Primonero, Salento, Puglia
A deep, dark red blend of 85% Negroamaro and 15% Primitivo that has nice dark fruit flavors and some black pepper notes.
Reg. Price: $13.99/Mills Club: $12.59/Case Price: $11.19
2010 Duca Carlo Guarini Primitivo “Vigne Vecchie,” Puglia
Reg. Price: $22.99/Mills Club: $20.69/Case Price: $18.39
LIST OF SATURDAY TASTING WINES
White Wines
Red Wines
Dante Robino migrated to Mendoza, Argentina, in 1920 after selling his vineyards on Italy. Ninety-three years later his Mendoza vineyards continue to produce excellent wines like this medium-bodied Bonarda red with rich red fruit flavors and also a soft finesse–if you never tasted an Argentine Bonarda wine, this Dante Robino is the one to try! While the Bonarda grape is native to the Piedmont region of Italy (very little is still grown there), the grape migrated to Argentina where it is now the second most widely planted red wine grape after Malbec.
Taste the staff favorites for the month of November!
Sparkling:
NV Gerard Bertrand “Code Rouge” Cremant de Limoux, France (Robert)
An excellent brut Blanc de Blancs packaged in a cool red-tinted bottle from Limoux, the birthplace of sparkling wine. Serve with sushi, seafood, butternut squash soup, cream based dishes.
Regularly: $26.99
Mills Club: $24.29
Case Price: $21.59
White Wines:
2012 Meyer-Fonne Vielle Vignes Pinot Blanc, Alsace, France (Mary)
“I love this dry Alsace white from 100% old vine Pinot Blanc, a grape native to France, any time of the year but especially with Thanksgiving appetizers and turkey. This medium-bodied wine with a mix of pear, apricot, and apple flavors and some minerality is so versatile for food pairings. The French often pair this one with pork, ham, chicken, and fish dishes.”
Regularly: $19.99
Mills Club: $17.99
Case Price: $15.99
2012 Picco Del Sole Falanghina, Italy (Amy)
A delicious dry white wine from Italy. Pair with roasted tomato soup and crusty bread, or poached chicken atop a salad of greens, dried cranberries, cheese and balsamic vinegrate.
Regular Price: $11.99
Mills Club: $10.79
Case Price: $9.59
Red Wines:
2011 Fairview Pinotage, South Africa (Mary)
“Pinotage is a South African grape developed in the early 1900s by crossing Pinot Noir with Cinsault. This Fairview is one of my favorite Pinotages with a great balance of dark fruit and spice that lingers on the finish. It is a great red wine to discover this time of the year as it pairs well with both white and red meat dishes.” Regular Price: $15.99
Mills Club: $14.39
Case Price: $12.79
2011 Line 39 Petite Sirah, Central Coast, California (Amy)
This wine is an incredible value from our $10 wine program. Lots of delicious ripe red and black fruits, smooth finish and nice body. Great everyday dinner wine!
Regular Price: $10.00
Mills Club: $9.00
Case Price: $8.00
2010 Bogle Phantom, California (Jen & Jerry)
Seasonally appropriate with its brooding, dark label, but the contents delight with full fruit flavor and a lovely but not overwhelming level of spiciness. A blend of 51% Zinfandel, 47% Petite Sirah, 2% Mourvedre, consider this a great pairing with your roast beef, stews or steak, or as the perfect gift to bring when you are a guest to autumn dinner.
Regular Price: $25.99
Mills Club: $23.39
Case Price: $20.79
White Wines:
2011 Montenidoli Vernaccia di San Gimignano Tradizionale, Italy (Pat)
One of three Vernaccias produced by Montendidoli’s (Montedoli=”Mountain of Little Nests”) winemaker Elisabetta Fagioli, the Tradizionale stays longer on the lees, and thus is a richer and more concentrated effort. “Sono Montenidoli” indicates the grapes are solely from the estate. A lovely blossom aroma precedes full lemony fruit and mineral acidity with a slight undertone of pepperiness. This would be a great pairing with fettucini alfredo, pork tenderloin, minestrone, or a delicious white meat chili.
Regular Price: $19.99
Mills Club: $17.99
Case Price: $15.99
2011 J.M. Boillot Montagny 1er Cru, Burgundy, France (Mike)
One of our favorites and yours (a top seller at Mills), this Chardonnay from the Burgundy region of France shows apple, lemon, grapefruit and butter, pleasant minerality, medium body and a long finish. Try with scallops, poached salmon, lobster, or braised chicken thighs.
Regular Price: $29.99
Mills Club: $26.99
Case Price: $23.99
2012 Clos Fussay Reuilly, Loire Valley, France (Jen & Jerry)
A very dry but delicious Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley. We love the acidity, and the citrus, limestone and mineral flavors in this wine. We enjoyed this with Maine mussels and crusty bready the other night. I used the wine in cooking the mussels as well and the dipping juice was amazing!
Regular Price: $16.99
Mills Club: $15.29
Case Price: $13.59
2011 Joh Jos Prum Riesling Kabinett, Germany (Robert)
Rated 90 Points Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, “From a mixture of Bernkastel and Graach sites plus a bit of Wehlen, the generic Prum 2011 Riesling Kabinett displays aromas already way above its station in complexity, featuring penetrating and metaphorically cooling scents of spearmint, apple blossom, fresh apple, cherry and lime, all of which – along with lusciously-dripping honeydew melon – then figure on a delicately refreshing, subtly spritzy palate that finishes with mouthwatering juiciness and impeccably-integrated, entirely discreet residual sugar. This fine value – whose May bottling, incidentally, was the estate’s first – will deliver delightful satisfaction for at least a dozen years.” April 2013
Try with seafood or some Thai food!
Regular Price: $28.99
Mills Club: $26.09
Case Price: $23.19
Red Wines:
2006 Terre de Trinci Montefalco Sagrantino, Italy (Pat)
This powerful red from the region of Umbria is a luscious, vibrant alternative to a brunello: amazing depth, complexity, and longevity are hallmarks of these wines. Aged for 30 months (one year in oak) before they are even released, these bottles can be cellared for years and should be decanted for a couple hours before enjoying. Full berry fruit, complex, firm tannins would complement a roasted beef dish perfectly- an amazing powerhouse Italian red value at this price point!
Regular Price: $25.99
Mills Club: $23.39
Case Price: $20.79
2012 Domaine Manoir du Carra Beaujolais-Villages, France (Mike)
Try this 100% Gamay grape from old vines in the Beaujolais region of Burgundy, France. This is an elegant red with a nice long finish, and would pair very well with Thanksgiving Turkey, pork, lamb chops, and meatloaf.
Regular Price: $12.99
Mills Club: $11.69
Case Price: $10.39
