Club Little House - December

Lambrusco Frizzante “Salamino di S. Croce” – Vigneto Saetti (2014)

Grape Variety(s): Salamino di Santa Croce
Style: Sparkling
Region: DOC Lambrusco
Winemaker: Luciano Saetti
Soil: Limestone/Clay
Age of Vines: 40 yrs

Luciano bought his vineyards and house in 1988, after a successful first career as an egg distributor in the city of Modena. He made a good amount of money and originally planned on buying a nice apartment in the city, but the reality of spending the rest of his life there quickly lost its appeal.

Luciano organically farms about seven acres on clay/limestone soils in the sub region of Lambrusco Salamino di Santa Croce within Emilia-Romagna, located in alongside Tuscany in north-central Italy.  The grape variety used here is also called Salamino, which earns its name due to the grape clusters resemblance to a sausage of salami.  

After harvest, Luciano allows a natural yeast fermentation takes place in steel tanks at a uniform temperature of 21° degrees Celsius. Maceration (skin contact with the juice) lasts three days and Fermentation occurs in bottle by spring.  Luciano uses zero sulphur additions (or anything else) in his wines. 

We thought this would be the perfect time of year to introduce another sparkling wine.  We get notes of fresh black cherry fruit and bitter dark chocolate with this wine and would recommend it as an excellent compliment to any foods traditionally eaten in the Emilia-Romagna region (Prosciutto, Parmesan, Bread/Oil, Pizza, etc).  Cheers!

Les Grimaudes – Domaine Marc Kreydenweiss (2014) 

Grape Variety(s): Carignan, Syrah, Grenache
Style: Dry Red
Region: AOC Costieres du Nimes, Rhone, France
Winemaker: Marc and Emmanuelle Kreydenweiss
Soil: Clay/Limestone
Age of Vines: 50+ yrs
Marc and Emmanuelle Kreydenweiss had built a solid reputation making biodynamic white wines in the Alsace region of France before turning over that operation to their son and setting out on a new adventure in the Rhone Valley.  In 1999, they purchased a property in the region of Nimes, which with its climate, soil, and terrior, quickly emerged as the ideal place to satisfy their passion for red wines.
 
They take particular interest in the three grape varieties in this wine: Carignan, Syrah, and Grenache, especially given the fact that Carignan, a wonderful grape, has become on the verge of extinction. 
 
This wine is medium body with notes of cherry, barnyard, and fennel and a wonderful pairing with braised meats and other hearty dishes.  Certified biodynamic.