| JANUARY 2008 |
 |
WINE UNDER $20
A Red to Savor With Lasagna
Jeff Hock, owner of Winesby.com, says many one-bottle buyers of 2005 Mirabile red return soon for 12-bottle cases.
This simple, rustic $16 Sicilian wine, from the dark and rich nero d’Avola grape, defeats winter. Its rose-petal aroma and herbal notes bring to mind Rhône syrah and Australian shiraz. It enhances beef stew, and Mr. Hock finds it “a perfect lasagna wine.”
The Winesby.com boutique is at 23 Jones Street (Bleecker Street).
.
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| FEBRUARY 2007 |
|
WINE UNDER $20
Zweigelt is the most popular everyday red in Austria, which consumes 75 percent of its wine production. Weingut Hopler's matured 2002 version, from Burgenland, south of Vienna, is a standout.
The bouquet and flavor have hints of cherry. The body is delicately spicy and earthy, a slight tartness whets your appetite and the finish is long. In winter, sip it with tafelspitz-boiled beef.
Hopler's zweigelt costs $19 at Winesby.com, 23 Jones Street (Bleecker Street).
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| JANUARY 2006 |
|
WINE UNDER $20
A Rare Bargain From Bourgogne
White Burgundy for $17 is rare. That's why 2004 Le Meurger is a bargain at Winesby.com, 23 Jones Street (Bleecker Street), Greenwich Village. This chardonnay qualified to be labeled Meursault, which is pricey, but French marketers declassified it to lower-costing Bourgogne.
Jeff Hock, the shop's owner, calls this everyday wine a "poor man's Meursault." It has a zippy citrus-and-mineral character and a long finish. Consider buying a half-case; then think of your corkscrew as a faucet handle.
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| APRIL
2005 |
|
WINE UNDER $20
Bordeaux Blanc With Zip
The 2004 Château Lamonthe de Haux
is a delicious introduction to dry Bordeaux blanc, an underappreciated
genre. This herbal white, given zip by vinyard limestone, is
a harmonious blend of sauvignon blanc, sémillon, muscadelle and
rare sauvignon gris grapes. The gris adds a delicate aroma, says
Fabrice Neel, a proprietor. He recommends the wine with steamed
mussels, clams, grilled halibut and sea bass. Winesby.com,
23 Jones Street (Bleecker Street) in Greenwich Billage, charges
a bargain $12.
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| FEBRUARY
2004 |
|
WINE UNDER $20
A French Red, Bearing Fruit
Earthy, raisiny, exuding layers of fruit,
the 1998 Domaine Marquise de Mures, "Les Sagnes," a
$15 old-vines red from small St. Chinian and Laguedoc,
is at home in Winesby.com. This boutique for schmoozers carries
60 wines - 50 at $20 or less, mostly for immediate drinking -
at 23 Jones Street (Bleecker Street) in Greenwich Village. Ask
owner, Jeff Hock, to suggest a suitable dish.
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| APRIL
2003 |
|
WINE UNDER $20
Under the Sun, Rosé and Thou
In spring sunlight, Samiano Calo's 2001
Rosa del Golfo, a dry, salmon-colored rosato (rosé) from
Puglia, Italy, is radiant. Its vivid, full-bodied flavor is profoundly
refreshing. The flavor, from negromaro and malvasia nera grapes,
is unusual.
Winesby.com asks $12. This Greenwich Village shop sells
only 60 wines - 50 at $20 or less - nearly all for drinking now,
at 23 Jones Street (Bleecker Street).
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| OCTOBER
2002 |
|
WINE
UNDER $20
Alluring And Austrian
Austria's national grape, the grüner veltline,
and its dry wines are increasingly luring young sommeliers. The
producer Nigl's brilliant 2001 grüner veltliner, from the Kremser
Freiheit vineyard in the Kremstal region, is a tapestry of subtle
tropical fruit flavors, herbs, minerals and saltiness. It's a
$16 giveaway at Winesby.com, 23 Jones Street (near Bleecker Street),
Greenwich Village.
-Howard G. Goldberg |
| 2002 |
|
WINE UNDER $20
Selective and Online
Winesby.com,
a tiny Greenwich Village shop selling 60 wines intended for immediate
drinking - 50 under $20 - is a find. Jeff Hock, its Woodstockian
owner (everything's "awesome"), delivers in Manhattan. An exotic, beautiful
$14 Greek white, the 2001 Mantinia Tselepos from the moschofilero
grape, shows his selectivity. -Howard
G. Goldberg |
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