Flashback to a recent visit from both Nicolas Potel (Roche de Bellene - Burgundy, Fra) and Cheryl Francis (Rex Hill / A to Z Wineworks - Willamette Valley, Oregon USA)  (with a special cameo of local wine hero, Norm Hardie. I4C2016)

Flashback to a recent visit from both Nicolas Potel (Roche de Bellene – Burgundy, Fra) and Cheryl Francis (Rex Hill / A to Z Wineworks – Willamette Valley, Oregon USA) (with a special cameo of local wine hero, Norm Hardie. I4C2016)

 
Nicholas Pearce Wines Inc is pleased to announce 4 new in-store releases in LCBO VINTAGES, highlighting back-vintages and great values from Burgundy and the Willamette Valley. 
Please visit us at www.nicholaspearcewines.com for more information.
Email us at np@npwines.com if you have any requests.
 
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Roche de Bellene Collection Bellenum Gevrey-Chambertin Villages 1999 – $86.50
—VINTAGES#: 518902   |   750 mL bottle
93 Points Winealign.com – Michael Godel
The vintage has been my go to, fan favourite and highest probability for cellar pulling success since purchasing some Girardin Premier Cru more than 15 years ago and exacting success each time one is opened. Nicolas Potel is both lucky and highly intelligent in his negotiating some 1999 from Gevrey-Chambertin. This here now is quite funky in its own right and that perfect example of older Burgundy walking the fine line of earth-fruit-volatility exactitude. This is a beautifully rich and red liqueur red though I can see how some would see it as showing some microbes to change the conversation. No matter though because tannin following structure is securely intact. Drink 2017-2022. Score – 93. (Michael Godel, winealign.com, June 7, 2017) 
“Strawberry, mulberry, violet, mignonette, and rose all help to make up their bouquet of spontaneous aromas. More maturity brings out liquorices, leather and fur, with gamey notes and hints of underbrush. On the palate, they impress by their firm structure, velvety tannins and delicate texture…”

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Rex Hill Seven Soils Chardonnay, Willamette Valley Oregon 2014 – $39.95
—VINTAGES#: 458158   |   750 mL bottle
93 Points Wine Enthusiast 
“Sophisticated, complex winemaking is on display here. Perfectly ripe yellow and green fruits are entwined with leesy, textural, mineral-drenched acids. There are gentle touches of citrus rind and a finishing pat of butter. All in all, an exceptional wine for the price.”

​… displays classic Chardonnay aromas full of fruit and floral notes. Lemon zest, lime peel, golden apple, acacia honey, magnolia flowers and white peaches greet followed by deeper notes of wet stone, sarsaparilla, vanilla, toasted hazelnut, and a hint of spicy oak. The wine is textured and complex on the palate with crisp minerality and a rich, layered body. Fresh and lively apple, peach and baked pear flavors emerge finishing with subtle hints of panna cotta, shortbread and malted milk. The 2015 REX HILL Willamette Valley Seven Soils Chardonnay is delicious with food or alone. This is a wine to enjoy now through 2020.


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Brella Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley 2014 – $24.95 

—VINTAGES#: 514786   |   750 mL bottle
The Willamette Valley is one of the world’s leading regions for elegant, refined, seductive Pinot Noir, and wines such as this 2014 from Brella Pinot Noir show exactly why that is. Well-structured and floral, with bright red cherry, spice, woodspice and savoury tones, this delivers on Willamette’s characteristic Burgundian flair. (Vintages panel, Feb. 2017)
“This elegant pinot noir offers subtle complexity over overtness. Harmonious, understated with notable purity and authenticity. Gentle and appealing with moderate length. Tasted October 2017” Sara D’Amato Winealign.com 
NPW Best Buy – Best Value – Willamette Valley Pinot 
The Willamette Valley is a huge and varied appellation that includes six sub appellations. Buffered from Pacific storms on the west by the Coast Range, the valley follows the Willamette River north to south for more than a hundred miles from the Columbia River near Portland to just south of Eugene. To the east, the Cascade Range draws the boundary between the Valley’s misty, cool climate & the drier, extreme climate of eastern Oregon.

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Roche de Bellène Cuvée Réserve Pinot Noir Bourgogne 2015 – $21.95 
VINTAGES#: 299859   |   750 mL bottle
90 Points Winealigne – Sara D’Amato
“A hugely complex pinot noir, medium-bodied offering an intricate and riveting array of flavours. A touch of peppery syrah character is unexpected but welcome. There is power to this pinot but it remains respectful of place and style. Just polished enough to let a little wild shine through. Notes of wildberry, dried thyme, black pepper, tomato leaf, black olive, new leather and both black and red cherry. Highly compelling. Excellent value. Tasted December 2016.”
This is a wine that, year in and year out, successfully delivers a definitively Burgundian experience at a tremendous price. As an introduction to the wines of Burgundy, this is a rock-solid starting point and very hard to beat. For fans of the region, it will deliver the elegance and refinement of Burgundy with the requisite cherry, beet and earth tones. A fine choice for beef stew.