Welcome 2011 - News!

2011 has started with a bang! Steve LeFebvre offered me a partnership in vino LeFebvre.

Here are our goals for this year; Grow, grow and grow more. with that, we also need to add more items to our portfolio.

First, we placed the order at Vina Chocalan in San Antonio Valley in Chile - remember, I went visiting down there last May and did some serious tasting with GM Aida Toro H. and wine maker Fernando Espina. Later in the year Carlos Briones (Sales Manager for USA) came to visit us in Ft.Wayne and wee tasted more of their beautiful wines. So we should introduce in our market here in Indiana the beautful wines of Vina Chocalan by the end of February. There will be delicious Sauvignon blanc, Malvilla chardonnay from there vineyard that is 4 km from the Pacific Coast, Viognier, Riesling, Carmenere and the Family Grand Reserve Blend.

The next news are:

visit of Terri and Sue Brandborg from Brandborg winery in Umpqua Valley, OR

Terri and sue are coming to Indianapolis, arriving around February 28th. We are planning a wonderful tasting with their wines at TASTINGS at the Conrad Hotel on Wednesday March 3, 2001.
Please join us for this tasting....Sue and Terri will sign their bottles.

The next news are:

more wines from Oregon at vINo Lefebvre. We just agreed with Phelps Creeks winery to distribute their wines in the State of Indiana. These are serious wines that come from Hood Valley, on the Oregon side of the Columbia Gorge. I drove so many time by there on my way up to Mt. Hood (always remembering Jack Nicholson in the "Shining" when he drove up to the Hotel (which was actually Timber-lake Lounge up on Mt. Hood).
We will receive several of their fantastic Pinot Noirs and also Gewuerztraminers and wines from their Mt. Defiance Division.

Please note that we are focusing on the other AVA's in Oregon: Hood Vally and Umpquay. We at vINo LeFebvre do want to be a bit different than other distributors in Indiana.








Last not least: I just returned from the Key West food & Wine Festival. It was the 2nd annual event this years. Grand Tasting at the Truman's Little White House and Saturdays event was"Duval Street Uncorked". I don't need to say that I had a wonderful time and just returned in time to prepare our self's for the major ice storm that is going to hit us.

Arrival of two new highly rated wines

Just in time for the holiday season we received two more wines from Europe. the come from Madiran - southwest France near Gascogne. Chateau Peyros (AOC Madiran) is affiliated with chateau Laubade - our producer of finest BAS Armagnac in France.
The first wine is the Chateau Peyros Tannat-Cabernet 2005. It caught me off guard, because it is actually 60% Tannat and 40% Cabernet Franc. In the wine there is a solid amount of wood, but also plenty of fruit. the tannins are dark, brooding in character, but they also support ripe and juice fruits. with it's dusty texture, this wine could certainly be aged for several years. It was rated 91 points by the Wine Enthusiast and ranks # 16 of the top 100 Best Buys.

The second wine is the Chateau Peyros Vielles Vignes 2005- Madiran - a blend of 80% Tannat and 20% Cabernet Franc. It is a delicious wine whose richness is matched by great texture and big, juicy fruits. it has plenty of tannins, but they meld easily into the rich ripe fruits, leaving a wine with a structure that offers considerable potential. the wine was rated 92 points by Wine enthusiast and became a TopShelf - Cellar Selection.

Look for these wines at R-Bistro and St.Elmo's very soon. They will be available in retail stores (Jonah's Market) next week - Price range between $14-$ 16 per Bottle

Baptise Cuvelier coming to town again

Bonjour....Baptiste Cuvelier is coming to town again. This time he is here to introduce his newest wine of the Cuvelier family to Indiana. His wine is called Cuve del Maule and is from the Cauquenes in the Maule area of Chile. Baptiste had worked with some friends of his on this project for a very long time.
The grapes a all grown organically and are "fair trade" . They are setting up long-term relationships with their grape suppliers. They were all selected because of their organic methods. no chemicals whatsoever were sprayed in their vineyards. They also are advising them on pruning and green works to maintain low yields and goo sanitary conditions.
The wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenere, Merlot, Chinsault and Pais it's called an Earthquake Blend - because the Earthquake in Chile almost destroyed the winery and they had to completely reorganize all the barrels in storage.

The wine has a powerful and complex nose of black currant, raspberry and blueberry enriched with tones of anis and white mint. In the mouth, tannins are soft and thin. You will also enjoy its structure, complexity, roundness, balance, and acidity which bring an amazing lengt h with a final note of spices and coffey.



Well Indy...we will be out and about with this new wine and are looking forward to meet with you.

JIGAR wines arrived in Indiana

JIGAR wines are produced by Jigar Patel an Alumni of Purdue University.

The 2009 Chardoanny from the Russian River Valley is very complex, boasting flavors of pineapple, lively acidity full mouth feel and a long, lingering finish. It should drink well now through the next 5-7 years. Enjoy this wine with smoked salmon, artisan cheeses or a fresh spinach salad.Aged in French Oak of which 25% was new.

The 2008 Zinfandel from Dry Creek Valley comes from the old "mother" clone and is full of big bold black fruit, clove, and earth, round juicy blackberry and currant palate, long mocha finish with ample tannin. It boasts a full 16 % Alcohol

2008 Cabernet Sauvignon from Dry Creek Valley has an aroma of Cherry and pepper nose, black cherry palate, long finish with hints of mocha and clove. Full, rich and round with excellent tannin. 14.7 % Alcohol

Jigar wines are currently available and Crown Wine & Spirits in Indianapolis IN

Giacomo Vico visiting Indiana

Our friend Giacomo Vico from Piedmont/Italy is visiting Indiana again.

During his visit there will be two events;
On October 5th Giacomo will host a wine dinner at Matteo's Ristorante in Nobelsville IN.
Cost is $ 65 per person (excl. tax & gratuity).
Please make reservation at 317-774-9771 - seating is limited.

On Wednesday Giacomo will present his wines at a wine tasting at the Ft.Wayne Country Club in Ft.Wayne IN in the early evening

New arrivals for fall

I am very happy to report that we received new wines to get ready for fall. From Cantina Parusso in Monforte d'Alba/Piemont we received 2006 Barolo DOCG as well as the Barolo Le Coste Mosconi - a wine that Parker gave 95 points. Here is what Mr. Parker said about this wine:
"Parusso's 2006 Barolo Lecoste-Mosconi is simply superb. the late harvest in 2006 yeilded a wine blessed with georgous, articulate aromatics, beautifully ripe fruit and finessed tannins, all of which add tons of class to what is essentially a full-throttle, fruit-driven Barolo. A vein of minerality runs through the wine from start to finish, adding a degree of freshness that is unusual for such a big Barolo. the textural richness and balance here are drop-dead gorgeous"

From France we received more wine from the Cuvelier Family. As you know we already have the Malbec's from Cuvelier los Andes and Baptiste's Cuvee de Colossus from Languedoc. this time she shipment came from the left-bank of Bordeaux where the Cuvelier family own chateau Leoville-Poyferre ( a 2nd growth Bordeaux). classified Bordeaux are not controlled and are usually sold as futures. however, we received from the "Pavillon de Poyferre 2005" and "Moulin-Riche 2006" - second and third lables from St.Julien. From St.Estephe we got their "Chateau LaCroix 06" and "Chateau LeCrock 06" - and for fun we added their "Gulliver AOC" 2008 Bordeaux to our portfolio.

New arrivals at Vino LeFebvre

Just in time for summer time Vino LeFebvre has received wonderful, refreshing wines from Brandborg Vineyards in Umpqua Valley Oregon. Sue and Terry Brandborg work hands-on at their vineyards near Elkton, OR.
Their 92 point (WE) Gewuerztraminer has been a real hit here in the Indianaq market, followed by their delicious, dry riesling, Pinot Gris as well as Benchland and Love Puppets Pinot Noirs. Look for the Gewuerztraminer and riesling at Vine and Table's pick 24 for the month of July and also at the Grapevine Cottage over at Zionsville, IN.

Also from France we received a delicious, refreshing Sparkling new wine from Chateau Moncontour in the Loire Valley, France: Cremant de Loire - a fantastic "spritzy" refreshing sparkling wine made from 90% Cabernet Franc and 10% Chenin Blanc - you will find this wine for a great price here in Indiana.

Last....and a first for us: We brought in Armagnac from south western France:
Chateau Labaude, an old traditional Armagnac house that produces first class Armagnacs. We currently have the VSOP (Very old special pale) and XO (extra old) as well as vintages 1980, 1970, 1952 and 1947.

From the same Company we also added more to our Uruguayan portfolio:
Monte de Luz, Tannat-Cabernet Sauvignon 2007, Reserva - a fantastic wine that is very nicely done in balance ....stayed on my palate forever. Just in time to drink because Uruguay made it to the last 8 teams in the world cup. So go ahead, get your self a bottle, open it and enjoy the game against Ghana.

Chile & Argentina Spring 2010 (337 photos), by Karl Mann

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Recent visit to Argentina

After a short flight from Santiago de Chile we arrived in Mendoza, Argentina I am always impressed by the wines the grow along the airport exit road in Mendoza. sunday afternoon we met up with my friend Marcello Pelleriti (Winemaker at Bodega Monteviejo) and his family (Gabriella, and his son Luca). Marcello showed us what an typical Argentinian Sunday afternoon is....a short drive up along the Rio de Mendoza into the foothills of the Andes. along the road I saw many families preparing their Asado's (campfires), grilling meats , drinking wine and having a great time.
Marcello showed me his new Argentinian Bi-Centennial blend of Monteviejo, a powerful blend of Malbec, Cabernet, Merlot and Syrah. This would be a wonderful addtition to our portfolio if we keep Monteviejo in our portfolio. The Bodega Monteviejo looks as majestic as on my first visit last year, except the colors had changed because now it was fall and the harvest was finished.
I took a different route down into Uco Valley this time than last year....we took the back road and past the wineries of Salenstein, Azul, Andeluna and many others - a beautiful drive along the foothills of the Andes in the high dessert.







After arriving at Clos des Siete we met with Mr. Adrian Mahon at cuvelier Los Andes winery. A beautiful winery - simply built for efficiency - 3 types of hangars (galpones) connected to a triangle (like a 3 point star) with a beautiful tranquil inner area, and the Andes behind it. There is a tank unit, a barrel unit, and a bottle unit with additional administrative offices, lab and living quarters where Adrian served us a wonderful Lunch. We had the opportunity to taste all of their 2007, 2008 and some of the 2009 vintages. Oh Indiana, wait until we receive their Grand Vin 2007! this is a blend to die for....Malbec, Cabernet and Merlot...no need to put in Syrah for this Vintage.

The tank room was very busy, wine being pumped over all the time.New barrels of French oak had just arrived from Europe and were still wrapped in plastic film Even so -- is was a quiet and magical place....amazing to see. Only 9 persons are working there. Of course they are hiring more local folks during harvest time (which they had just finished before our arrival)I am sure it will get very busy when Michel Rolland and Baptiste Cuvelier show up there to discuss the blend for the vintages.

The product of Cuvelier los Andes always amazes me considering that the wines were planted in 1999.
They still have 10 hectar's (about 30 acres) to be planted so it is clear that they aim to increase production and quality in the very near future.
Parker already gave them 91 for their 2007 Coleccion, 92+ for the Grand Vin and 95 for their 100% Grand Malbec - I wouldn't be surprised if the number go up if they re-taste those wines.