WELCOME!
Hi there! Thank you for visiting wine-sense online. We hope to be as interactive, passionate, and knowledgeable on this website as we are in person.
Our approach is simple. We keep the seasons in mind and pair to the foods we’re cooking with at each time of year. OK, so we might be over-thinking a bit. But that’s why you love us!
If you’ve shopped in the store, you know our wines move fast and the selection changes often. So be sure to check back frequently for latest finds, our new obsessions, and recently allocated bottles. We’ll also share upcoming events and sales so, you can grab them while they’re in stock. – Samanta
WS•Essentials
A jewel from Côtes de Beaune
Domaine FrançoisE & Denis Clair
The wines of Domaine Françoise & Denis Clair have garnered increasing attention in recent vintages for several reasons. Not the least of these is the quality of wines Jean-Baptiste Clair is producing in his late father’s honorable stead. Their plots in Santenay and St. Aubin, abutting Chassagne and Puligny-Montrachet on either side, represent some of the best positions their appellations in the Côtes de Beaune have to offer. A mere 15 total hectares of scattered holdings, it’s clear why supply cannot keep up with demand as the reverence for these wines builds.
The Hautes-Côtes de Beaune bottlings are as close as Jean-Baptiste gets to making entry level wines, though it would be reductive to refer to them as such. Vinified from grapes grown at the top of the golden slopes of Beaune, this is an opportunity to enjoy Pinot Noir and Chardonnay farmed a stone’s throw away from vaunted names like Volnay, Pommard, or Meursault. The elevation makes itself known as an airier, higher-toned character than one might expect from those famous communes, but the personality of the Côtes de Beaune is unmistakable.
The Santenay “Clos Genet” Rouge is another animal altogether. Made from vines grown on limestone and clay soils, this wine sings in more of a baritone range. Destemming is a major part of the process in the production here, so as not to extract stemmy bitterness or tannins. It is fermented in concrete tanks and then moved to barrels for ageing. Ruby in color with tones of black cherry, pomegranate, tobacco and warm spice and a lengthy, cerebral presence, “Clos Genet” is truly sophisticated for villages level Santenay.
On the white end of the spectrum, the range of Saint-Aubin bottlings land on the sharp, mineral-driven side of Chardonnay, but not without weight and resonance. Up front, these are Chablis-drinker’s Beaune: racy, lithe, and hard-edged with a crisp intensity and fruit tones ranging from tart apple and Meyer lemon to juicy orchard fruit and with even a slight touch of the tropical. On the mid-palate we find a certain golden-fruited succulence, a thread of commonality through each bottling, clearly indicative of the Côte d’Or.
Wine and Stuff
Red Bordeaux: Tasting 2024
Time to break out your shiny shoes again. Pietro is back, this time with a luxurious red Bordeaux lineup. Think holidays, think all the tasty, elaborate foods we can pair Bordeaux with. This tasting we’ll be offering hard-to-get older vintages of the following:
- Chateau Lagrange 2015 to 2019
- Chateau Meyney 2014-2015-2018
- Grand Corvine Despagbe 2016-2018-2020
- Chateau Gloria
France and Italy MGT 2024
When we held our Annual Grand Tasting in September, a few of you noticed that two of our favorite importers weren’t at the tables: Casey from Ideal Wines and James from Mucci Imports. So I’ve asked them to join us for an evening tasting to share their most mouthwatering lineup. Let’s call it an MGT (Mini Grand Tasting) featuring two importers with impeccable taste.
Discounts:
Same discounts as our Grand Tasting: 15% on a mixed case, 20% on all the same.
OCTOBER Club•WS | RED
We hope you’re ready for a tasty October wine club. For this month’s lineup, we’re focusing on reds to help you transition from the light and easy summer wines to more deep and complex bodies. We hope you’ll enjoy them! The Club is available for pickup as of Friday, October 4th.
We are going to all reds starting this month.
The Club is available for pickup as of Friday, October 4th.
Nero D’Avola
Originally formed in 1969…Mediterranean herbs and black pepper…to learn more, join our club!
Food Pairings: Classic roasted chicken. (see recipe included)
MERLOT
Grown on the hottest and driest soils of the Languedoc… Fresh bouquet with intense aromas of cassis, enhanced by…to learn more, join our club!
Food Pairings: Roasted vegetables… mushrooms!
ARGENTINIAN RED
Maipú, Argentina, one of the most traditional winemaking regions in the province of Mendoza…It is unctuous with good acidity and…to learn more, join our club!
Food Pairings: Lamb
CABERNET SAUVIGNON
“This domaine produces first-class wines at terrific prices.”…A good backbone of acidity suggests that this wine can…to learn more, join our club!
Food Pairings: Meat and mushroom ragú