The Washington Post - USA (2021-10-27)

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 27 , 2021. THE WASHINGTON POST EZ EE E7

 Exceptional  Excellent  Very Good

More and more wines are being
made and labeled with no added
sulfites. This is controversial, as
sulfur is a natural preservative that
prevents wine from spoiling in the
bottle. No added sulfur has been a
mantra of the natural wine
movement, and more winemakers
are experimenting — essentially,
walking a tightrope without a net.
Fr om my unscientific observation, I
find the better ones tend to have a
little more energy on the palate.
This week’s great value is a Côtes
du Rhône with no added sulfur. We
also have two bubblies, a prosecco
from Italy and a cava rosé from
Spain to add sparkle to your fall
celebrations. And we round out the
week’s list with two outstanding
whites, from New York and Italy.
— D.M.

GREAT VALUE
La Résistance Côtes du Rhône
2019
 (Excellent)
Rhône Valley, France, $15
There’s a little extra lift to the wine,
a zip of freshness to the blend of
syrah, grenache and mourvèdre.
It’s lively and light-bodied, ideal for
casual meals. Made with organic
grapes. Alcohol by volume:
14.5 percent.

Imported and distributed by Baron Fr ancois:
Available in the District at A. Litteri,
Connecticut Avenue Wine & Liquor, Eye
Street Cellars, Good Ole Reliable Liquors,
Harry’s Reserve Fine Wine & Spirits,
Hayden’s Liquor, Imperial Wine & Spirits
(both locations), Rodman’s, Splash Liquor,
Town & Country Market, U Street Wine &
Beer, Van Ness Wines and Liquors, Wide
World of Wines. Available in Maryland at
Beers & Cheers, Downtown Crown Wine and
Beer in Germantown; Colesville Beer & Wine
in Silver Spring. Available in Virginia at
Norm’s Beer & Wine in Vienna.

Dr. Konstantin Frank Rkatsiteli
2020
 (Excellent/Extraordinary)
Finger Lakes, N. Y., $17
This bracing white wine is one of
my perennial favorites from the
Finger Lakes. Dr. Fr ank pioneered
European vinifera grape varieties in
the Eastern United States. Still
family-owned, the winery is now in
the hands of his grandson,
Frederic, and great-granddaughter,
Meaghan Fr ank. They specialize in
sparkling wines and riesling.
Rkatsiteli hails from Georgia and is
one of the oldest-known grape
varieties from the region where the
oldest archaeological evidence of
wine growing has been found.
Flavors of mango, apricot and
ginger highlight this beauty. ABV:
12.5 percent.

Distributed in the District and Maryland by
Breakthru, in Virginia by Virginia Imports:
Available in the District at A-1 Wines &
Liquors, Calvert Woodley, Harry’s Reserve
Fine Wines & Spirits, Michigan Liquors,
Rodman’s. Available in Maryland at Dunkirk
Wine & Spirits in Dunkirk; Rip’s Wine and
Spirit Shop in Bowie; State Line Liquors in
Elkton; Tr out Liquors in Frederick; Wine
World Beer & Spirits in Abingdon. Available
in Virginia at Crystal City Wine Shop, Green
Pig Bistro in Arlington.

Conca d’Oro d’O Prosecco Extra
Dry 2019
 (Excellent/Extraordinary)
Treviso, Italy, $18
Gently fizzy and with a hint of
sweetness, this lovely prosecco
refreshes with flavors of Granny
Smith apples and Asian pears.
Drink this by itself or with light
antipasti. ABV: 11.5 percent.

Imported and distributed by Elite Wines:
Available in the District at Bacchus Wine
Cellar, the Bottle Shop, Capitol
Supermarket, Cork & Fork, D’Vines, Little
Italy, Mayfair Liquors, Paul’s of Chevy Chase,
Prego Again, Radici, Rodman’s, Streets
Market (various locations), Young’s Deli and
Market. Available in Maryland at
Annebeth’s, the Italian Market in Annapolis;
Capital Beer & Wine in Bethesda; Dawson’s
Liquors in Severna Park; Edgewater Liquors
in Edgewater; Mela Market, Snider’s Super
Foods in Silver Spring; Old Line Fine Wine,
Spirits & Bistro in Beltsville; Wine Source in
Baltimore. Available in Virginia at Branch &
Vine, Lombardy Market in Richmond; the
Cheese Shop, Stop In Food in Williamsburg;
Department of Beer and Wine, Sisters Thai,
Unwined (Belleview), Wine Gallery 108 in
Alexandria; Fr ont Royal Wines in Fr ont Royal;
the Italian Store (Lyon Village, Westover), Le
Cafe Market, Streets Market in Arlington;
WineStyles in Dumfries.

Naveran Cava Rosé 2019
 (Excellent/Extraordinary)
Penedes, S pain, $18
Strawberry and melon flavors
feature in this juicy rosé, but of

course, it’s the bubbles that make

it sparkle. Made with organic

grapes. ABV: 12 percent.

Imported by Ole & Obrigado, distributed in

the District and Maryland by Bacchus, in

Virginia by Salveto: Available in the District

at Anju, Barcelona Wine Bar (14th Street

NW, Cathedral Heights), the Bottle House,

Calvert Woodley, Joselito, Grand Cata (La

Cosecha, Shaw), Grape Intentions, Hop

Cask & Barrel, Lyle, Mi Casa, Modern

Liquors, MXDC, Oyamel, Pappe, Paul’s of

Chevy Chase, Toro Toro. Available in

Maryland at Artisan Wine Co. in

Westminster; Beards Hill Plaza Liquors in

Aberdeen; Bin 201 Wine Sellers in

Annapolis; Bin 604 Wine Sellers in

Baltimore; Fenwick Beer & Wine in Silver

Spring; Fishpaws Marketplace in Arnold;

Grapes & Grains Beverage Store in

Lutherville-Timonium; Hop N Grape in North

Bethesda; Kent Towne Liquors in Chester;

Patuxent Wine & Spirits in Lusby; Wine

World Beer & Spirits in Abingdon. Available

in Virginia at Barcelona Wine Bar in Reston;

Bear Branch Tavern in Vienna; Cafe Fr ank in

Charlottesville; Crystal City Wine Shop,

Ragtime, SER in Arlington; Department of

Beer and Wine, Planet Wine & Gourmet,

Unwined (Belleview, King Street) in

Alexandria; Dominion Wine and Beer in Falls

Church; Puck’s Market in Henrico; Union

Market in Richmond; Vienna Vintner in

Vienna; Wine Guild of Charlottesville in

Charlottesville; the Wine Outlet (McLean,

Vienna).

Roccolo Grassi Broia Soave

2017

 (Extraordinary)

Italy, $20

We value freshness in white wines,

which leads us to drink them young

— too young, as many whites do

improve with a few years in bottle.

Roccolo Grassi is a small winery

near Verona in northern Italy that

ages its wines so we don’t have to

wait. The 2017 is the current

release, and the time in the winery

cellar has given it full body and a

fleshy mouthfeel over flavors of

green apples and pears. And

freshness — it still has plenty. ABV:

12.5 percent.

Imported and distributed by Le Storie:

Available in the District at Ace Beverage,

Primrose, Wardman Wines. Available in

Virginia at Beer Run in Charlottesville; the

Brew Shop, Osteria da Nino in Arlington;

Dominion Wine and Beer in Falls Church;

Grape + Bean in Alexandria; Locke Store in

Millwood; Vino Market in Midlothian.

Availability information is based on

distributor records. Wines might not

be in stock at every listed store and

might be sold at additional stores.

Prices are approximate. Check

Winesearcher.com to verify

availability, or ask a favorite wine

store to order through a distributor.

RECOMMENDATIONS

SCOTT SUCHMAN FOR THE WASHINGTON POST

From left, La Résistance Côtes du Rhône2019, Dr. Konstantin
Frank Rkatsiteli 2020, Conca d’Oro d’O Prosecco Extra Dry 2019,
Naveran Cava Rosé 2019, Roccolo Grassi Broia Soave 20 17.

us consumers? Both Michas and

Givry agree: If you have a

favorite champagne, buy it now

for the holidays if you can find

it. It might not be available in

December. Much will depend on

local distributors’ inventories.

This may be a good opportunity

to try champagne from a

smaller, less-known producer.

There are other bubblies, of

course. Spanish cava and Italian

prosecco are suffering the same

supply chain issues, but not the

production problems of

champagne. And don’t forget

domestic — even local —

bubbles. These may not depend

so much on container shipping,

but they are enjoying high

demand.

“We carry Iron Horse,” Michas

says, referring to a top California

producer of sparkling wine. “We

can’t keep it in stock.”

[email protected]

McIntyre blogs at dmwineline.com.

On Twitter: @dmwine.

Pérignon, Louis Roederer’s

Cristal and Taittinger ’s Comte de

Champagne were increasing in

price by as much as 9 percent.

Even champagne that’s not

quite in that stratosphere is

feeling the effects. Laurent

Givry, co-owner of Elite Wines, a

Lort on, Va.-based importer, says

he has sold through his annual

allocation of Billecart-Salmon, a

popular label, and won’t be able

to get any more before next

spring.

“Champagne is exploding,”

Givry says, adding that this was

his best year for champagne

sales. “I’m already making plans

for 2022, and I don’t know if I’ll

be able to buy enough,” he told

me. He called the supply chain

issues coupled with reduced

harvests and soaring demand “a

perfect storm.”

Givry quoted a maxim from

his grandmother: “She always

said that when the economy is

poor, luxury goods do well.”

So what does all this mean for

anticipation of higher tariffs

threatened by the Trump

administration. When the

pandemic hit and the economy

went into a tailspin, sales

plummeted initially, Alex

Michas, the company’s

president, told me.

“Then everything came back

in June and July,” he said. Sales

boomed through fall and winter,

and stocks ran out in some parts

of the country. By April of this

year, “Bollinger told us our

orders were off the charts and

we had to place some limits,” he

said.

Econ 101: High demand plus

lower supply equals even higher

prices.

“Champagne prices [are]

rising fast on fine wine market,”

Decanter warned in mid-

October. The leading British

wine publication quoted the

head of investment at the

Bordeaux Index (g etting

whiplash yet?) saying top

vintage cuvées such as Dom

The holidays are

approaching, so

you know what

that means: talk

of a champagne

shortage and

skyrock eting

prices.

There may be

something to it,

unlike 1999, when the wine

world was in a tizzy, fearing

demand for millennium

celebrations would create a

worldwide bubbly shortage. (It

didn’t.) T here are several factors

at play that confuse the picture,

and it is unclear how we

consumers may feel the impact.

The most obvious pressure is

the shipping crisis roiling the

global economy as a result of the

coronavirus pandemic. This

problem has been going on for

months, forcing importers and

distributors to juggle inventory

and place orders several months

in advance. With the wide

variety of wines available on the

retail market, consumers may

not have noticed this disruption

much.

And with champagne, at least,

there’s low supply. The region

has seen reduced yields the past

few years, mostly because of

vintage conditions. At harvest

time, the Comité Champagne,

the regional trade body, sets a

limit on how much champagne

can be produced per acre. (The

rest goes mostly into vinegar or

distillation.) Producers are

required to hold a portion of

each harvest back as reserve

wine to be blended in with

future harvests to create multi-

vintage blends. This is a historic

hedge against poor vintages in a

northern wine region. It’s also a

way to manage prices.

Last year, with a good but

modest harvest, the Comité

Champagne set levels even

lower, at a l ittle more than half

the usual limit for an ample

year, and about 25 percent less

than 2019. The Comité’

Champagne president told

Meininger ’s Wine Business

International the region was

facing its worst crisis since

World War II. Demand for

champagne had plummeted in

the initial months of the

pandemic, even though wine

sales in the United States, at

least, grew overall. But then

came 2021, with 12 nights of

frost in early April reducing the

region’s crop by 30 percent.

Another 30 percent was lost to

persistent spring rains and

mildew. Then there was hail.

Severely reduced production

in 2020 and 2021 will be felt

most acutely in the market in

2023 or 2024, because most

champagne houses age their

wines two to four years in bottle.

But we (or at least, champagne

houses) are already beginning to

feel the effects of reduced

harvests the past few years. So

the acute shortage now is an

incentive to hold on to stocks to

assure they have product to sell

in coming years.

And now let’s look at demand

from an importer’s perspective.

In late 2019 and early 2020,

Vintus, a N ew York-based

importer, stocked up on

Bollinger champagne in

Wine

DAVE

MCINTYRE

Shortages mean it’s time to stock up for holiday toasts

ISTOCK

Supply chain issues and dif ficult harvests have resulted in low supply and high demand for champagne.

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Liquor

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★ 1.75 Liter Sale ★

Yellow Tail

7.88

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25.99

Glenlivet

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97.99

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• Glenfiddich12 Yr


• Cragganmore 12 Yr
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  Antinori“Villa Antinori 2018”... 91 VN ...17.99
  Arceno Chianti Classico 2018.....90 WA .....17.99
  Avignonesi Rosso di Montep. 2018. ..13.99
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  Bindi Sergardi “La Boncia” Chianti 2019. ..13.99
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  Lucignano Chianti 2019. .90 VN. ...10.99
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  Querciabella “Mongrana” Maremma 2018. ..90 VN.......18.69
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Belletoile 70% (France) 9.99 lb.

Iberico (Spain) 12.99 lb.

Old Amsterdam Ag. 24 Mos(Holland) 13.99 lb.

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From. d'Affinois w/ Pumpkin Seeds (Fr.) 12.99 lb.

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