Join us at Just Grapes this Thursday (June 24) for our Grateful Palate Tasting with Chris Ringland of R Wines. For only $25, you’ll get to meet and taste with Chris, who will explain the exciting winemaking ideas that have made him one of the most respected names in the industry.

Chris is known in particular for his incredible Shiraz, so it’s not surprising that R Wines is a partnership with Dan Phillips of the Grateful Palate in Fairfield, California, where the bacon-centric edibles for sale pair perfectly with Ringland’s robust reds.

The tasting is from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m., but come in to Just Grapes before Thursday and pick up a bottle or two of Chris’s handiwork, taste it for yourself, then come back and surprise the winemaker with questions that only someone who’s “been there” can ask!

2007 Chris Ringland “CR” Shiraz, Barossa Valley, South Australia [$17.59]

93 pts – Robert Parker

Chris Ringland is one of the most talented winemakers in the world. I think Chris is just trying to show off with this wine. Incredibly rich, ripe dark berries and a long, smooth finish. When I drink this wine I can’t wait to break out the grill and let the smokiness of the wine marry with the smokiness of the pork steak I just made. Mmmm, pork and Shiraz. (Pete’s Staff Pick)

2008 R Wines “Southern Belle” Shiraz, McLaren Vale, South Australia [$15.99]

90 pts – Wine Advocate

The 2008 Southern Belle Shiraz was aged in seasoned oak including some ex-bourbon barrels. A glass-coating opaque purple, it displays a nearly room-filling nose of smoke, game, incense, and blueberry that leaps from the glass. Opulent and full-bodied on the palate, it lacks only complexity. Drink it over the next 6-8 years. It is an outstanding value. 

Time to start shopping for that awesome weekend bottle of vino, folks: Betty White is going to be on SNL! Oh, no, wait… It’s Mother’s Day! Eh. Tomato, to-mah-to, right? The effervescent Ms. White is like America’s favorite grandma anyway, so why not toast to her too?

Whether you are laughing along to Betty’s cutesy, foxy/folksy comedy stylings on SNL or taking your momma out to a pleasant brunch, these bottles have “I lurve you, mommy” written all over them.

NV Pommery Pop Pink Brut Rose, Champagne, France [$46.99] ON SALE! $23.50

Don’t let the incredibly pink bottle fool you: this Champagne is not a sweet fruit bomb but a delish salmon-colored bubbly with notes of young berry fruit and citrus. Have fun looking over baby photos or enjoy a long, leisurely brunch with Mom while luxuriating in Pop Pink’s soft bubbles.

2008 Domaine Montirius, Cotes du Rhone, France [$19.99]

Like Betty White, this Rhone blend has a spicy kick to it. Whether its the bouquet of violets and berries or the lush jamminess on the mouth, the Dom. Montirius is a gorgeous (and affordable) wine to pair with the incredible dinner you have planned for Mother’s Day. You did plan dinner, right? Thought so.

2007 Mitolo Jester Cabernet Sauvignon McLaren Vale, Barossa, Australia [$19.99]

Your Mom was the bread winner, your friend, the Judge and Executioner of your childhood home. She. Likes. Big. Wines. This Jester is no fool: Made with 20% air-dried grapes (producing an interesting Amarone note), it packs a nose of black currant, espresso and coffee. A full-bodied palate is structured and balanced, leaving you feel as if Mom just spanked your mouth. She may actually have: this wine is that good.

NV Heidsieck Blue 4 PK Case, Champagne,  France
Sparkling wine outdoors is practically a no-brainer. I mean, come on: it’s light, it’s refreshing, it’s bubbly. Who needs soda when you have a delicious citrus-and-toast Champagne? Enter Heidsieck & Co. Monopole Champagne. That’s right, Champagne. The good stuff, the gold standard, so on and so forth. There’re a lot of crisp fruit notes in this otherwise creamy bubbly. And get this: it comes in a cute four pack box complete with collapsible picnic cups, ready to tote to your favorite grassy spot in Millennium Park or Ravinia. Cheers indeed.

2009 Borsao Rose of Garnacha, Campo de Borja, Spain

In my Rockwell-ian picnic visions, I imagine delightful strawberries being shared by enamored sweethearts while watching local kids throw around frisbees. Short of all that 50s-esque rigmarole, there is the fruit-forward and lush Borsao rose, a blush Garnacha hailing from Campo de Borja, Spain. Balanced acidity with young, fresh fruit on the palate, there is an interesting spice note adding a refreshing complexity to an ideal red/white go between.

2008 Gomba “Galluccio” Dolcetto D’Alba, Piedmont, Italy

Watching the clouds go by has never sounded sweeter, unless of course you are sharing a bottle of Gomba Boschetti Dolcetto d’Alba. This Dolcetto’s rich bouquet of spice and berry fruit is rounded out by soft tannins and an easy finish. Non-cerebral in the truest sense, this wine is best paired with a sense of whimsy (“Is that cloud a rabbit or a sock?”) and a Sunday afternoon.

You’ve probably walked into a wine shop lately only to find an oddly-shaped, alien device on the merchandise shelf. In fact, you’ve probably seen a few incarnations: bulbous glass attachments the likes of which evoke Jerry Garcia; the ubiquitous Vinturi; UFO-looking doohickeys that purport to make your vino that much more delicious. Do they work? Are they worth the price?While the latter question is ultimately up to you to answer, the former is easy: Astonishingly, yes, these aerators (as they are formally called) do in fact work.

Recently, we at Just Grapes ran an informal experiment using two aerators we recently received (the aforementioned UFO-shaped SpinWine and the bulbous Soiree). The terms of the experiment involved the following:

A newly opened bottle (in this case, the 2007 Medalla Real Cabernet Sauvignon). Newly opened so the wine would not naturally aerate and open up; Medalla Real because it’s been our experience that straight from the bottle, this delicious cab proves to be a little tight, therefore a perfect candidate to aerate using “technology.”

In three glasses (clearly marked), we poured sans aerator, with the SpinWine and with the Soiree. Between the first two pours, there was a noticeable difference. It seems the SpinWine’s double-helix swirl introduced enough air to create a more pronounced fruit profile; the non-aerated wine was characteristically tight, with a greener palate.

With the surprisingly simplistic Soiree (it’s just a glass bulb thingy you attach to the bottle!), the Medalla Real was an entirely different beast: soft, smooth, rich, with an incredible finish. Clearly, this is what the winemakers wanted. The Soiree just moved the process along.

You may still be skeptical. That’s fair: this informal test was conducted by an oeno-geek neophyte, after all. But know that these impressions are legit. We don’t fool around here at JG.

In order to celebrate this momentus occasion, we’ve put together a few new, spectacular wines that will help you keep those extra pounds at bay.

If there is ever an appropriate time to drink bubbly—though, personally, every time is an appropriate time for bubbly—it’s New Year’s Eve! Here at Just Grapes, we’ve taken the guesswork out of choosing the perfect sparkling wine for the plans you’ve got going on for counting down that last few hours before 2010.

The Quiet, At-Home New Year’s Eve

A seriously underrated NYE option, the At-Home celebration is a wonderful alternative to the crowded bars and stuffy parties that seem far too frequent on New Year’s Eve. Why slip on four-inch, pinchy heels when you’ve got cozy slipper socks from the Mom-in-Law? And instead of a $70 cover for watered down drinks and stale appetizers at a crowded club, you’ve got your SO cooking you up a home-cooked meal (or Easy Mac, which is fine too. It’s the thought that counts). For this occasion, break out the good stuff, because you don’t have to share with your drunk friends and can still maintain a low-key celebratory vibe. Check out the Duval Leroy Champagne, a gorgeous, creamy, toasty bubbly with oh-so-subtle berries.

The Motley Crew of Friends

Sometimes, there’s nothing better than a non-cerebral night of 15-20 of your closest friends. Well, you may not know half of those people now, but come 3am when you’re all mumbling your 5th encore of Auld Lang Syne, the whole crowd will be thick as thieves. Now, before all that goes down, consider Varichon and Clerc, an absolutely delicious sparkling Chardonnay from Savoie. With pretty white flowers on the nose and toasty, delicate vanilla on the palate, this incredible value will be sure to earn you some friend (and at a price like this, earn more cred by stocking up so no one has to do a drink run in the middle of the festivities).

The Girls Only NYE

Sip on something pink, because girls love pink. From the candied Bitch Bubbly to the slightly off-dry Meinklang sparkling Pinot Noir, we have roses for every taste. Our newest addition to our pink sparkling is the Varnier-Fanniere, a delicately structured, toasty, traditional Champagne…until you get to those slight strawberries at the finish. If you closed your eyes, chances are you would barely perceive this as a rose, until those berries sneak up on the finish! So beautiful!

The Night of Party Hopping

When on a tight, party-hopping schedule, you can rest assured that there will be plenty of drinks at each pit stop. Word to the wise: Roll no more than three deep; taking a crowd and pillaging the booze supply at every stop will ensure you’re not on the guest list for NYE 2010. Bring a quality bubbly that everyone, everywhere will appreciate. The 2006 Raventos Cava, is a brut, clean and minerally sparkling that makes for a crisp and refreshing drink.

Whatever your plans, be sure to stop in and pick up some bubbly for the occasion. We’ll also pour six awesome Champagnes and sparkling wines from 4 to 8 pm today for you sample and see which is the best fit for you! Happy New Year!

Photo by Larry and Renee

Holiday shopping got you down? Just can’t find the perfect gift for those people on your list? Just Grapes has the answer! We’re truly a one-stop shop for everyone on your shopping list (even the little ones–our never-expiring tasting cards will still be valid once they turn 21!). To make it even easier, we’ve put together a guide for all those hard-to-shop-for loved ones.

For your BFF Since Like, Grade School:

She’s seen you at your best, dolled up to the nines in your Christian Louboutin knock-offs, and at your worst, with your head in the toilet of some dive (and she even held your hair back). Show her how much you care with Bitch Bubbly. This sparkling Shiraz/Grenache blend is just fruity enough with its candied raspberry-cherry-ripe strawberryness. It’s saucy and sweet with just a little bit of an edge, just like your bestie.

For your Hipster Friend Who Really Likes Wes Anderson:

2008 Mod: A cheeky, technicolor Vespa label and a cool, crisp white on the inside? Sounds perfect! This Alsatian-esque Pinot Gris actually comes from Victoria, Australia. Light, crisp and nuanced, this lemony-limey white will have your hipster friend sweeping his bangs out of his face to get a whiff of that white-flowery nose; he won’t believe his beard! After a thank you in the form of a fist-pound, he’ll nestle this in his messenger bag, right next to his aviators and a cd of a band you’ve never heard of.

For The One:

The One needs no introduction; you just know The One. Same goes for The Wine. Robert Parker gave this 2004 Shiraz 99 points, which means to him, this is about as close to perfect as it gets. This Wine is so deeply complex with its smoky, woody, black-and-blueberry notes right off the bat–and that’s barely scratching the surface! The Wine continues with licorice, spice and chocolate, and a bunch of other notes my tiny mortal mind can barely comprehend. If infinite ecstasy had a flavor, it would taste like The Wine. Gift it wisely.

For the Friend-You-Wish-Were-More-Than-a-Friend:

The story usually goes something like this: boy meets girl, girl likes boy, boy likes girl, but they just stay friends. Why? Quit asking so many questions! Regardless, 2003 The Fight has enough game for both of you. Sure, there’s two sweaty dudes duking it out on label, but think of it as metaphor for yourself boxing your own insecurities…or something to that effect. Round and juicy, this incredible Shiraz has hints of earth and licorice, which also happens to be a recipe for love. Just make sure she opens this big Shiraz with you over dinner, and not with some other guy.

For the College Kid Who Just Turned 21:

He’s lean, he’s mean, he’s a beer-chugging machine. He’s also almost out of college, and someone needs to let him know that doing keg stands of Natty Light shirtless just doesn’t cut it in the real world. Do him a favor with the 2007 Sineann; a Cab so lush, so approachable, so bursting with blackberry jamminess that it just might blow his precious little mind. Full-bodied enough to make him feel like Big Man on Campus, yet silky and fruit-forward enough for a kid just dipping his toes into a good wine. You’re welcome, little guy.

For the Person You Just Really Want to Impress:

Sometimes, we just need a gift that will render the receiver utterly speechless. For this occasion especially, the  2005 Anamorphosis Shiraz was conceived. With perhaps the most epic packaging in Wine History, the mirrored Anamorphosis sits in the center of a poster by Hungarian artist Istvan Orosz, and a mystical image appears in the reflection (to me, it looks like either William Shakespeare or a mustachioed Jeremy Irons)!  Our second 99-pointer on the list (could it be Mr. Parker is getting a little loose with those double nines? Nah–it’s just that Just Grapes has got all the good stuff), this fruit behemoth can be enjoyed now, or put to bed for 20+ years.

That’s it for now! Check back soon when we tackle the people who are really hard to shop for, like Mom and Dad, Joined-at-the-Hip-Couple, and Wine-Geek-You’re-Afraid-to-Buy-Wine-For!

While very few welcome winter with open arms, there is something undeniably charming about softly falling snow, the tiny white lights glittering from trees lining the streets, and the general warm fuzziness of family and friends around the holidays. In Chicago especially, there are tons of wintry events going on to keep the holiday cheer at full throttle, and we at Just Grapes have wines that go with winter goings-on of all kinds, from shopping to skating to snowball-throwing.

Now is the ideal time to grab someone you don’t mind falling over in front of and partaking in the free ice skating at Millennium Park, where you can lace up your skates and practice your triple axles in the center of the ice to the awe and admiration of a rink full of onlookers (or, more likely, clinging desperately to the wall at the edges like I do). Either way, good times are had, and they’re made exponentially better by warming up with a post-skate bottle of the toasty 2004 Laurel Glen Cabernet Sauvignon. This big, dense Cab is like chocolate, cherry and black jelly beans rolled into one deeply complex and delicious wine. It even displays notes of coffee and something that reminds me of dried leaves. Bottom line, this yummy Cab is sure to bring some warmth after a day at the rink.

What’s December without cookies? Pretty lame, I say. Whether it’s gingerbread men, meringues or just plain ol’ sugar cookies, decorating those babies with everything from traditional sugary snowflakes to (my favorite) icing caricatures of your best friends make sweet-and-silly gifts. And what goes perfect with gingerbread? Tempranillo, of course! The ripe, red berries of our 2005 Solabal will compliment the gingery cookie, while the notes of baking spices in this gorgeous Rioja with underscore the spiciness of the confection. Que delicioso!

Physically, mentally and emotionally, holiday shopping is on par with running a marathon. In heels. As a Sumo wrestler. The stress of picking out the perfect gift for a listful of loved ones, wrestling the savage crowds at department stores, and coming to terms with the fact that your credit card has melted into a warm, pliable version of itself before your very eyes is enough to drive anyone insane. So after a long, hard day of mall-hopping, why not crack open a bottle of 2008 Andrian Pinot Bianco? This crisp white with its peachy, apple, and honeyed pear notes will leave you refreshed and ready to tackle the 6AM Best Buy lines.

Cooking for a family of five is work enough, but when aunts, uncles, cousins, in-laws, and everyone’s boyfriend or girlfriend comes along, preparing a holiday feast can be downright laborious. Our lovely 2009 Maquis Calcu rose is sure to ease some of that tension. With touches of strawberry and ripe berries, along with a little bit of spice, this crisp and citrusy rose is just enough to take the edge off without mixing up the salt and the sugar.

The Chicago Loop Alliance’s Winter Wonderloop is sponsoring the Merry Mistletoe Gallery. Holiday elves will be roaming the Loop for the month of December dangling sprigs of mistletoe over unsuspecting Loop-goers. Their resulting smooch will be displayed on their online gallery for all of Chicago to see. Grab some of our Rosenblum Desiree dessert wine to make your kisses that much sweeter. This chocolately Zinfandel blend is jam-packed with vanilla, cherry and a smidge of coconut. Surprisingly light-bodied, this dessert wine is a perfect way to end an evening.

There’s tons to do around the city during the holidays, and Just Grapes has the perfect wine to go with it! Stop in the shop to see the other wintry wines we have in stock.

Are you one of the many confused wine drinkers that doesn’t understand why some wines are labeled Shiraz yet some are labeled Syrah? Lets do some myth busting and work this out!

Syrah and Shiraz are the same grape, just different styles. Syrah has been around for…let’s just say forever; and then comes this Shiraz character, first appearing in the early Nineties. It was a new, exciting and cool-sounding grape type that burst onto the scene, and people have been talking about it ever since.

Let’s look at Syrah first. Syrah traditionally comes from the Rhone Valley in France (due south of Burgundy). The Northern Rhone Valley in France is where Syrah has it’s spiritual home. You may not know it, but when you pick up a bottle of Cotes-du-Rhone, Cotes-du-Rhone Villages or up the dollar amount and get a Saint-Joseph or Hermitage, these wines are made from of the Syrah grape (not traditionally 100%, but most wines aren’t–they just don’t say it on most labels). These names are all regions in the Northern Rhone in France. Just like most places in the old world (France, Italy, Germany, Spain), the Rhone Valley names their wines after the area it comes from; the grape type is not as important as the wine’s origin.

If you pick up a bottle of Cotes-du-Rhone or Villages (typically ranges from $15-$25), you can most likely expect a medium-bodied Syrah with mainly red fruit characteristics with a smoky, black peppery spice. It’s a great every day drinking wine and goes great with lamb dishes. If you decide to pick up a bottle of the more expensive and rare Hermitage or Cote-Rotie, then you will experience something completely different. These regions are known for the best Syrahs in the world–and have the price to match. The Hermitage region produces Syrah that is probably the most “manly” wine of France. These are a much deeper, darker, leathery, gamey, earthy, tannic Syrah with a spice box in between all that goodness. These wines should be aged to get the most out of your purchase, or decant them for a couple of hours before you drink them to calm them down. Think teenager with a brand new Corvette–all over the place and pretty wild. Decanting will turn this teenager into a more refined adult that knows how to express themselves with much more direction. Syrah also is wonderful when grown in the Central Coast, California region and in Washington State. A different expression, of course, but Paso Robles or Santa Barbara are probably the closest you can get to those earthy meaty Syrahs of the Northern Rhone.

Now, the Aussies! Sure they have been growing “Shiraz” since the early 1800’s, but we never really saw any of their wine in the U.S. till the late Eighties. There are a couple myths on how the name Shiraz came about; one is from the ancient city of Shiraz in Persia, where the famous Shirazi wine was produced; but Shiraz as we know it today cannot actually be traced to this. There are documents of other countries calling the grape “Shiraz,” but it was the Aussies that made it famous. Australia, being a much hotter climate then the Northern Rhone and even the Californian Central Coast, creates a much different style of this grape type. It is commonplace now to call your wine Syrah or Shiraz, to let the consumer know what style of wine you are getting. Australian Shiraz is a very diferent animal then what is described above. It’s a much more jammy, rounder, plumper, blackberry-filled, plummy, chocolatey–but still peppery–style of wine. So when you are shopping around town, pay attention to what the winery labels the Syrah/Shiraz you are about to purchase; they are giving you hints to what style of Syrah/Shiraz is in the bottle.

This week, lets start with Burgundy. If you can remember back to your childhood, you may have seen your parents drinking red wine out of a jug labeled Burgundy. Before there were laws protecting the names of these wine growing regions in France, producers such as Ernest and Julio Gallo created and marketed a cheap red wine and named it “Burgundy.” This has nothing to do with actual Burgundy region in France, and presented a negative connotation to actual French Burgundy wine. If you are in the Burgundy section of your local wine shop or on your restaurant wine list, the easiest thing to know about this region is that if it’s red Burgundy, it’s Pinot Noir, and if it’s white, then it’s Chardonnay. This is the only thing that is easy about Burgundy. It’s the most studied and difficult region to decipher so we’ll take a generalized look at this region to gain some understanding.

Pinot Noir is one of the most delicate, sexy, silky, mysterious wines in the world. It’s known for it’s subtly and its layers and layers of aromatics. Pinot Noir flavors truly whisper to you, and the varietal keeps you guessing, only revealing itself after you’ve courted it for a long while. It has been revered by wine connoisseurs since the beginning of time and has now come to the masses, thanks in large part to the movie Sideways. Burgundy, France is hands down the benchmark for Pinot Noir world wide. It’s where it shows itself off best and is what Pinot makers all over the world try and emulate.

The Chardonnays of Burgundy can bring out the same sensations (such as our Pouilly-Fuisse). It’s nothing like the oaky, buttery, tropical Chardonnay grown in California. It’s again a much more subtle style of Chardonnay with a core of stony minerality showing off more of a soft, creme fraiche-like texture. The aromas are reminiscent of baked apple pie, with toasted almonds sitting on your neighbor’s windowsill, and you can only catch glimpses of those aromas when the wind blows your way.

The entry-level Burgundy (known as Bourgogne in France) will say just this on the label. The place where the grapes are grown, not the producer, is the most prominent information on the label. When your wine says Bourgogne on the label, this means the wine producer is getting their grapes from the entire region–it’s equivalent to saying “I live in Cook County.” When you start going up in price and quality, the label will state a village (such as Gevrey-Chambertin or Pommard). This is specifying your grapes came from a certain village in Burgundy–now you’re narrowing down that you live in Chicago. Now each village has it’s own special “flavor,” and part of the fun of buying these wines is discovering how greatly grapes can differ from one another, even when grown just down the road from another village.

The next step up from village is Premier Cru or also known as “1er Cru” on the label. This means that it comes from a specific vineyard within the village name on the label–now you’ve narrowed down your place to a neighborhood in Chicago, such as Bucktown. These Premier Cru wines are recognized by the French government as being of superior quality and worthy of superior price. Narrowing down the place where your grapes are grown will give you a more focused, intense and complex wine worth its price.

The next step up is Grand Cru Burgundy, which are known as the best and most expensive Pinot and Chardonnay in the world and only needs to list the name of the Grand Cru vineyard it comes from, the vineyard name says it all! If you can afford to buy Grand Cru, put it away for at least 10-15 years to get the most out of your investment.

Hopefully this is has demystified your Burgundy label and region a bit. If you want to know more about the flavor profiles and structures of each village then let us know and we can break it down even more for you on another article–this is just a starter course!