We’ve got some great wines for you this month. A beautiful Blanc de Blancs from Passy-sur-Marne, a vintage sparkler from California that is probably my favorite non-Champagne sparkler in the world, and certainly the best in the United States, and a delightful Alpine sparkler from Savoie.
There is one major change this month, which I ought to let you in on. The first is that I have gone back to including wine notes with each of the shipments. I found beautiful 100% post-consumer recycled paper, and I have been feeling like not having the notes in your shipment takes away some of the value. But don’t let the notes keep you from going to the website: there are pictures and links to more information and maps for each of the selections, a plethora of good stuff that you don’t want to miss. There is also an opportunity to comment on the wines and share your thoughts (though no one has done this yet. Your invitation code to register and leave comments on the site is “member01″.
Also, we have a very special tasting at Cellar46 on August 1st. I will be leading a tasting of the exceptional Burgundies from Lucien Le Moine. For more information, click here. reservations are required, but it’s well worth it: the wines are stunning!
To see the selections for this month click here
I hope you enjoy the wines.
Thank you,
Jake
Savoie, located on the French side of the Swiss border, and nestled in the Alps, is nearly as large as Bordeaux, yet produces only one-fiftieth as much wine. The majority of wine here is made from the Jacquère grape, and is crisp and refreshing.
tanks to capture the purity of fruit, and has increased his vineyard holding ten times over. He makes about 6,000 cases of Roussette de Savoie from just over 22 acres of vines. Eighty percent of his wines are sold within Savoie, and a further ten percent throughout the rest of France.
In 2003, while I was the wine director at Cascadia Restaurant, I had the pleasure of hosting a dinner at which Michel Salgues, the founding winemaker at 
This past April, at Pebble Beach Food & Wine, I had the pleasure of leading a team of sommeliers pouring for another complete vertical of L’Ermitage, only this time the discussion was led by the Michel’s successor, the brilliant Arnaud Weyrich. Once again, I was reminded that these wines were exceptional, and, in fact (here comes the blasphemy), better than 90% of the Champagne available on the market. The wines have the complexity, and intensity to age, and have a class unequaled outside of Champagne.
The blend in 2002 is 52% Chardonnay, 48% Pinot Noir.
The Vallée de la Marne is known mostly for its Pinot Meunier, and following that, for some very good Pinot Noir, which makes up about 27% of its plantings. In fact, only 10% of the vines in the Vallée de la Marne are planted to Chardonnay. But, luckily for us, some of that Chardonnay lies on the property of the 
The estate got its start in 1950. Mr. and Mrs. Pascal Serveaux run the Domaine with the help of their son. They now own 11 hectares (29 acres) mainly locat¬ed in Passy sur Marne. A large portion of the estate vineyards are located mid-slope, nicely nestled on the bank of the meandering Marne River, with a fully southern exposure. Because of their good exposure, the Serveaux parcels have better luck with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir than some of the other areas, as cooler spots in the Vallée de la Marne are prone to frost. All of the parcels lie on chalky soils typical of the region. The domain’s vines are spread over two terroirs, Passy and Barzy, and divided over 30 parcels. (