History says Sauvignon Blanc comes from the Loire and from Bordeaux in France. But the perfect storm of world economics brewing over the Atlantic is conspiring to make French classics little more than a memory for most of us. The Euro is king at $1.54! From California, this new release of Cartlidge & Browne single vineyard Sauvignon Blanc could be one of the great new discoveries for all your entertaining and white wine needs! Parker says: "89 points, The brilliant 2006 Sauvignon Blanc Dancing Crow is a medium-bodied white loaded with melony fruit notes, crisp acidity, freshness, and a true Sauvignon character. Drink it over the next year. These are all excellent values!" - Wine Advocate. Certified organic too!

 

CARTLIDGE & BROWNE "DANCING CROW VINEYARD" SAUVIGNON BLANC 2006, Lake County $11.97 (NORMALLY: $14.95)

If all Euro-currency wines are going through the roof just when we all need to economize, several producers from Spain have an answer. We've already told you how much we like the old-vine Garnacha, Tres Picos. Made by the Bodegas Borsao, it is one of the great wine values from any country at any price. But saving a little's not a bad idea, and Borsao has come up with another Garnacha wine from the Campo de Borja, and it's called Monte Oton. Way to stay ahead of the curve! This is the insider's bet, the smart buy this Spring!

 

MONTE OTON GARNACHA 2006, Spain $7.97 (NORMALLY: $9.95)

If one Rioja stands above all the rest, it is quite likely the proprietary blend made by Bodegas Muga, the Torre Muga. We see only a handful of bottles each year, and it gets the top scores from every review. The downsides? 1.) It's snapped up by collectors before all the reviews come out, and 2.) the weak dollar is making it inch up with each new release. We urge you to grab some of the just-released 2004 before it disappears. "96 points. The 2004 Torre Muga is 75% Tempranillo, 15% Mazuelo, and 10% Graciano. It is aged for 3 months in large wood vats before spending 18 months in new French oak. Inky purple-hued, it exhibits a superb nose of wood smoke, pencil lead, spice box, scorched earth, and blackberry. This leads to a layered, opulent wine with 5-7 years of aging potential. It has great balance and should drink at its best from 2015 to 2025." - Wine Advocate

 

TORRE MUGA 2004, CAP $89.97 (NORMALLY $109.95)

One bottle each of these extraordinary, collectible Chardonnays were delivered to us and we want to give you the first chance to nab one. "Brothers Bernard and Jean-Marie Raveneau produce a range of stellar Chablis from their 20-acre domaine. The wines are highly sought by collectors. '2005 is a great vintage in Chablis, one of the best in the last several years,' said Bernard. 'There's balance and harmony between the fruit, acid and mineral.'" - Wine Spectator Online

 

"89 pts. 2005 Domaine Francois Raveneau Chablis Foret Pale, green-tinged color. Aromas of lime, wet stone and menthol. Round and ripe, with appealing flavors of stone fruits and acacia flower. Fat and broad but dry and classic, with plenty of stuffing. Very good but a bit less pristine than the 2006 version." - Wine Enthusiast

 

"92 pts. 2005 Domaine Francois Raveneau Chablis Mont Mains Pale, bright yellow. Broad aromas of citrus fruits, butter, toasted bread and minerals. Rich, ripe and nicely concentrated, with sexy stone fruit flavors nicely framed by harmonious acidity. Full and pliant but not at all heavy thanks to its lingering aftertaste of dusty minerality. A superb showing today." - Wine Enthusiast

 

"93 pts. 2005 Domaine Francois Raveneau Chablis Vaillons Bright, pale yellow. Highly aromatic nose combines citrus peel, toast and hazelnut; more pristine than the Foret and Montmain. Fat, ripe, rich and dry, with superb breadth and chewiness to the white peach, citrus and mineral flavors. This really saturates the entire palate with flavor. Finishes quite full, long and strong, with exhilarating acidity giving it a light touch. Like the Montmain, this is even more impressive than it showed from barrel a year ago." - Wine Enthusiast

 

DOMAINE FRANCOIS RAVENEAU CHABLIS 1ER CRU "FORET" 2005, CAP $89.97 (NORMALLY $99.95)

DOMAINE FRANCOIS RAVENEAU CHABLIS 1ER CRU "MONT MAINS" 2005, CAP $89.97 (NORMALLY $99.95)

DOMAINE FRANCOIS RAVENEAU CHABLIS 1ER CRU "VAILLONS" 2005, CAP $89.97 (NORMALLY $99.95)

Ever notice how difficult it is these days to find a value from France or Italy? That's because our dollar is really weak right now in comparison to the Euro. However, there is a solution: "Euro-busters", wines from other parts of the world that offer an excellent price/quality ratio and compare favorably to the more famous Old World Wines. Join us in the store on Thursday, March 27, for a class on discovering some of these "Euro-busters" as we taste white and red wines we think you should know about from Chile, Argentina, New Zealand as well as a few other countries, including the good ol' USA.

 

The class will begin at 6:30 that evening and will cost $30 per person. The class will be taught by wine writer/educator Tom Hyland, a former Schaefer's employee. Payment in advance is required and class size is limited, so seats will be filled on a first-come, first-served basis. To ensure your seat in this class, please enroll by March 22. We hope to see you on March 27 for some great values from around the world!

 

3/27 - 6:30-7:45, $30 per person. Contact Tom Hyland at (773) 293-6790 or by email to register. Please do not contact Schaefer's directly.

Continuing our extremely fun series of Third Thursday Wine Classes focusing on individual grapes, this month we'll look at Cabernets. I will be leading this one and I've picked out some terrific wines from around the world to make it well worth your while. The food department will, of course, offer some appropriate snacks - please remember, if you would prefer a vegetarian sampler plate, let us know when you register. As always, reservations in advance are required so call or e-mail right now because space is limited.

 

03/20 THU - 6:30 to 7:45 p.m., $20 for CAP members (and you will become a CAP member). Contact Schaefer's at 847-677-WINE (9463) or by email to sign up.

Columela Sherry Vinegars are of the highest quality produced in Jerez, famous for the production of, well, Sherry. Columela vinegar is aged in barrels of American oak, following the traditional system of soleras and criaderas, just like Sherry. The solera that gave birth to this beautiful vinegar was established in 1946. Columela has created from their delicious vinegar a unique Sherry Vinegar Glaze. It is slightly sweet, silky and luscious. It tastes of Spain. The glaze is perfect for use with meats, especially pork, fish, seafood, cheese, vegetables, rice, pasta, salads, fruits and ice cream. Just a few drops are enough to give a special touch to your special dishes. Sterling says he used this last weekend for a tapas ribs glaze and it was the hit of the party! (mary)

 

COLUMELA SHERRY GLAZE $12.97 / 17 ounce bottle (NORMALLY $14.99)

Operated by the Sisters of Mercy, Misericordia has been providing services for persons in need since 1921. Misericordia is proud to support 550 children and adults with mild to profound developmental disabilities. Some of the residents work in Misericordia's terrific bakery. Since 1992, dedicated residents who scoop the cookies and package the breads daily have found a livelihood in Misericordia's Hearts & Flour Bakery. The key ingredient in Misericordia's Bakery is their mission to provide challenging job opportunities for adults with developmental disabilities.

 

Over the years, Misericordia's Hearts & Flour Bakery has perfected the art of tasty treats. As a special treat for St. Patrick's Day, Misericordia is making Petite Irish Soda Breads. This soda bread is the real thing. It is really, really good. Also, though a little late for St. Valentine's day, we just couldn't resist Misericordia's decadently chocolate, heart shaped brownies.

 

PETITE IRISH SODA BREAD $3.29

CHOCOLATE HEART BROWNIES $2.99

From beautiful Portland, Maine, we've just started handling the Peak Amber Ale. Drier than many ambers, this is one of the best of its type.

PEAK ORGANIC AMBER ALE $9.49 / SIX-PACK

We've got everything planned for your St. Pat's party. One of our most popular Saturday tastings, we'll have a range of Irish products to tempt you out of a winter's hibernation. Yes, this includes a good selection of wines to sample. Sean's Irish Cream samples, too! Free. Stop in and enjoy!

That's all for this week. If we may be of any further service, please stop by our store at 9965 Gross Point Road in Skokie (for directions, click here), visit our website at http://www.schaefers.com, give us a call at 847-677-WINE (9463), 800-833-WINE (9463), or click here to contact us.