Saturday Wine Tasting 2-4!
Delicious Natural Wines from Jenny & Francois Imports!
Jenny & Francois Wine Tasting
Le Petit Bijou
Saturday, Jan 21st 2-4pm
$20 Per Person (Wine Tasting Only)
Reservations Requested. Call 256-964-7980
Presented by special guest,
Ricardo Ponce of Alternative Wines
“We present the wines of small vineyards in this competitive worldwide market, in order to defend an endangered species — winemakers who work like artisans, crafting a different wine each year. They do not impose a preconceived taste on their wines, but look to be surprised by what nature gives them — natural wines.”
2020 Where's Linus Sauvignon Blanc, California $19.99
The grapes were pressed one day after harvest, with a small addition of SO2. After the slow spontaneous fermentation in tanks, the wine aged in stainless steel and neutral French oak and acacia barrels, to give it a bit of an aromatic lift and texture enhancement elements.
Sauvignon Blanc with great notes of gooseberry and citrus, without being as overly grapefruity as New Zealand examples. Nice touches of green and tropical brightness, solid Sauvignon. Certified sustainable farming for the grapes, native yeast fermentation, no fining agents used and no additives has a small amount of sulfites.
2020 Domaine Oudin Chablis, Burgundy, France $35.99
Pale yellow in the glass with shimmering silver highlights. The nose is bright with citrus, brine and flakey limestone notes. The palate shows elegant citrus fruit backed by lovely limestone driven minerality. This is a crisp, elegant wine that is never austere.
In 1988 Jean-Claude Oudin and his wife, Christiane relocated from the suburbs to Christiane’s father’s two-hectare vineyard located near the tiny village of Chichée, just south of Chablis. They have recently retired from making wine and their daughters Nathalie and Isabelle have taken over the winemaking reins. The Oudin sisters now farm 10 hectares of vines, where most of the vines have a south and southwest exposure and are located on the hilltops which surround the village of Chichée, including two premiers crus.
2018 Pirouettes Pinot Noir D'Hubert et Christian, Alsace, France $34.99
Les Vins Pirouttes is a project from Alsace’s leading natural winemaker, Christian Binner. Each Pirouettes cuvee is a partnership between Christian and a young Alsatian winemaker, who provide the grapes and the winery, while Christian teaches and helps them how to make world-class, low-intervention wines. Like this gorgeous, bright, cherry-spicy Pinot Noir, which nothing added, including so2.
40+ year-old vines on gneiss soils; Grapes are hand harvested with a triage performed at the vines. Whole cluster fermentation for about 2 weeks, followed by manual pigeage. Elevage on the lees for one year and bottled, Unfined and unfiltered, with zero added sulfur;
2020 Dufaitre Brouilly, Beaujolais, France $32.99
Rémi and Laurence (his former wife) Dufaitre began purchasing vines in and around the Brouilly and Cote de Brouilly crus in 2006, he began to work the land organically, and started harvesting the grapes. When Jean Foillard tasted Rémi’s wine, he immediately sought him out, recognizing the obvious talent that must be behind the wine. Jean has since taken Rémi under his wing, introducing him to his vast and diverse list of Parisian clients. Remi’s wines currently have a very avid following in the bustling Paris natural wine scene as a result of this.
As Jean Foillard's understudy, he is a member of the next generation of winemakers carrying the torch for the Gang of four. He produces classic Cru Beaujolais with all the joie de vivre we love out of these styles.
This Brouilly is bursting with flowers, and while the wine is more muscular than his others, it is one of the most finesse-ful and light Brouilly we have ever tasted.
2020 Where's Linus Red, California $19.99
Grapes: 69% Petite Sirah, 31% Zinfandel
Vineyard: Venturi Vineyards in Calpella, Mendocino County. CCOF Organically Grown and Dry Farmed
Making of: The Zinfandel portion of the wine was harvested mid-September with the next picks of Petite Sirah added to it a few days later. Both varieties de-stemmed and kept as whole berries. The Zinfandel first began fermentation spontaneously and was well active by the time the Petite Sirah was added to it. The wine was then pressed after a few days and finished fermentation in tanks. No fining, no filter, no sulfur added.
Personality: “With color ranging between Phoenician purple and Vantablack, this wine is darker than dark, due to the high proportion of Petite Sirah. When it comes to the structure, however, it is not the brooding giant that your eyes would lead you to believe. Maximizing the mouthfeel and minimizing the tannins was the name of the game when it came to making this wine. The wine is laced with proper acidity to focus the blueberry jam flavors and give it great aging potential without the need for a sulfur addition…Drink now through 2030-something,” the winemaker says.
2019 Inédito Rioja, Spain $21.99
Inédito (Spanish for “previously unseen, unpublished”). Owner & Winemaker: Luis Arnedo, consulted by Olivier Rivière. The Chuggable Side of Rioja.Luis represents the fifth generation of a winegrowing family based in the Rioja Baja part of the Denominación de Origen Calificada (the local appellation)
All his wines come from their own vineyards that Luis, his father and grandfather have planted from the 1960s onwards. His ancestors were growing grapes for sale, but Luis decided to turn the family business into a full winery and sell wines under their own label, which is how Bodegas Lacus started in 2007.
The winery’s name comes from an old stone tank built in the fields by ancient Romans.
The wines are quite fruit-driven and easy-going, differing from the usual Rioja image of intensely oaked wines.
2018 Clos Siguer Cahors, France $19.99
Gilles Bley knows the history of Cahors and can trace his winegrowing roots in the AOC back many generations. His intimate understanding of the Malbec (Côt) and Tannat vines on his 15-hectare estate led to a desire to create wine that highlights this storied region’s unheard potential for delicacy. Cahors is divided into two distinct terroirs — this appellation is traditionally known for its heavy and brooding black wines that take years to reveal any fruit. These dark tannic wines come from the heavy soil down by the Lot River. Gilles Bley’s vines, by contrast, are on the lesser-known, better-drained terroir, up on the flat terraces above. His wines express the lighter and brighter side of Cahors. He produces wines that are surprisingly bright and fruit-driven with depth of red and black fruit, subtle terroir and silken tannins. Clos Siguier produces wines that are at once readily accessible, but also age-worthy. Drink now or put down for a few years. All grapes are handpicked.
