The first of our Summer Sippers, this is our Chardonnay for a fun festive Summertime celebration.

Regularly:  $12.99
Sale Priced:  $9.99

Tempranillo from Rioja, Spain ($49.99)

“Slightly tighter and more complex than previous years, this single-vineyard wine delivers a ton of spice and herbs on a masculine bouquet and palate. Well-blended acids and tannins allow for it to be drunk now or over the next five to eight years.” Wine Enthusiast ~ 93 Points

 ”Refined and balanced, this elegant red delivers blackberry, espresso, tobacco and spice flavors in a dark but alluring package. Has intensity without heaviness, with a long, perfumed finish. Drink now through 2015.” Wine Spectator ~ 92 Points

 ”The 2004 San Vicente is 100% Tempranillo Peludo sourced from a single vineyard and aged for 20 months in new French and American oak. Deep crimson-colored, it offers an enticing bouquet of pain grille, pencil lead, black cherry, and black raspberry. This leads to an elegant Rioja with excellent balance, intense flavors, and 5-7 years of aging potential. It should be at its best between 2015 and 2025.” Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate ~ 91 Points

 ”Dark ruby. Intensely floral aromas of deep cherry and dark berries, violet and dried rose. Smooth in texture and sweet, with lush red fruit flavors, medium weight and no obvious tannins. Gains brightness on the finish, which offers impressive tangy persistence.” Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar ~ 91 Points

93 Points - Wine Spectator Magazine:
“Balanced and elegant, this lovely red exhibits fresh black fruit flavors that are supported by ripe tannins and lively acidity, with notes of mineral, licorice and tar adding complexity. This isn’t a blockbuster, but it’s complete. Drink now through 2015. 2,000 cases imported.” –TM (Jun 15, 2010)

93 Points - Stephen Tanzer’s International Wine Cellar
“Bright ruby. Sexy, oak-spiced aromas of cherry cola and black raspberry, with notes of coconut and baking spices that gain power with air. A fleshy, smooth texture combines with deep dark fruit flavors that show a surprisingly light touch. Packs a solid touch but comes off almost weightless, finishing with excellent clarity and sweet persistence. This drinks very well now but will age on its balance.” – Josh Raynolds (Nov/Dec 10)

$36.99

Where: Old Port Wine
Date:  May 15, 2013
Time: 4:00 – 7:00pm

-The Wine Advocate

Best of Argentina

Where: Old Port Wine
Date:  April 17, 2013
Time: 4:00 – 7:00pm

Join us as we celebrate the end of winter at our second annual Toast on the Coast with a sunset at Ocean Gateway as the backdrop for this lively and delicious occasion. Guests will enjoy our Grand and Private Wine Tastings, bid on a fabulous selection of silent auction items, all while sampling a succulent array of foods from Portland’s top restaurants.

This premier epicurean occasion is in support of Easter Seals programming that touches hundreds of our friends and neighbors with autism, developmental, physical and mental disabilities as well as our new initiative to support Maine’s veterans.

Tickets for the Private Wine Tasting are limited and priced at $75/person and provide access to the Grand Tasting as well. The Grand Tasting tickets are $50/person. Both tickets include all food and wine for this 21+ occasion. The event sold out last year so act now! There’s no better way to welcome spring and enjoy Portland’s famous food scene.

Purchase Your Tickets at: http://maine.easterseals.com/site/Calendar?view=Detail&id=40885

SOJOURN CELLARS

Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast 2010

Medium-deep ruby color; deep, earthy cherry and spice aromas; deep,  complex cherry flavors with many layers of spice, anise and earth notes; silky texture; great structure and balance; long finish. Complex and many-layered Pinot that is a testament to the fact that an appellation blend in the hands of the right winemaker can as good or better than a vineyard designate.

925 cases made Score: 95

 
SOJOURN CELLARS

Pinot Noir Rodgers Creek Vineyard 2010

Medium-deep ruby color; deep earthy, mushroom aromas;  complex, earthy cherry flavors with forest floor notes; good structure and  balance; long finish. Complex, earthy Pinot with great texture. Perfect match for anything with mushrooms.

375 cases made Score: 92

BY PUT THAT IN MY FACE ON MARCH 9, 2013

Since moving to Maine three years ago, there have been some lonely days. And there have been some really wonderful days. I think it’s inevitable to miss home. The places. The faces. The smells. There is something about Boston that just fills me up inside. Now that I visit Boston only on rare occasion, I have searched Portland for trinkets that make me feel like home. Small tokens that brighten up my day. Give me a little boost. A couple of years ago, I found a place that has yet to be topped in my list of favorite places: Old Port Wine & Cigar on Commercial St. It’s not even the beautiful shop or the fantastic selection that I marvel at, although they are pretty spectacular, it’s the gentleman who greets me that I can never seem to stop smiling at. He’s warm. He’s kind. He’s jolly. He’s got this magical energy that is undeniably charismatic. When he speaks of something he loves, his eyes light up and his body moves in such a way, that you want to experience whatever he is telling you about. He makes me feel something when I go in that is beyond replaceable. He makes me feel like home. It’s a strange thing really but his personality makes that shop one hundred percent. We have spoken about South Africa and he showed me his collection of photographs from his trip, we have laughed about driving in Italy and how it’s a near death experience and he has been generous with my children when they probably didn’t deserve it. (Being crazy kids in a wine shop and all) And as you probably have guessed I don’t actually know his name, I don’t think I have ever asked. I will make it a point next time. But he is the only one in there every time I go to visit.I usually browse the shop in a mere few moments. He knows when to leave me be and when to come and interact. He has shown me so many amazing wines that I can not stop drinking. And he’s basic about his attitude with wine: “It’s grape juice, just drink it.” I like that he has never sold me an out of reach expensive bottle but rather recommends casual drinking wines that are just delicious. He’s always willing to tell some anecdote about a wine that fascinates me or show my husband and I something really interesting. On my birthday last year he sold my husband a bottle of wine from Italy and he told him to keep it untill Emma gets married (she’s 7). That feels very special and sentimental to me. It makes me love that bottle of wine, gives me a reason to hold on to it and something to look forward to. His selection can not be beat. You could drop a grand in there if you wanted to or twenty bucks. I usually come out with 4-8 bottles and spend anywhere from $100 to $250. The bottles he recommends always come with a reason, “This wine is made my monks.” Ok, sounds pretty cool to me.

We live in a world where everyone turns a blind eye. Money is a driving force. In this shop, it’s about the experience. They nurture the customer in such a pleasant way that you don’t want to buy from anywhere else. My last time in the shop was six months ago and this man recognizes me and says “It’s been a long time.” How amazing is that? But here is the thing, I haven’t bought wine from anyone else in that quantity. It may have been a long time but this is my place. This is where I feel good. And I’m going back there when I need to re-stock, when I feel like I just want some more wine, when I just want to leave with a smile. There is no where else that will get my money. Every business should take a page from this shop’s book.

I advise you all to go there and experience the magic for yourselves. You certainly won’t regret it.

Old Port Wine & Cigar

223 Commercial St.

Portland, ME

(207) 772-WINE

On of the Greatest White Wines in the History of the Grape

“A South African legend that does not disappoint.”

“A scintillating bouquet that is beautifully defined with mandarin, wild honey, lavender and Seville orange marmalade vying for attention on the nose. The palate displays more race and better acidity than the Barsac with crystalline honeyed fruits and immense freshness and poise on the finish. Brilliant wine making here.”

One of the finest Private Reserves made over the last two decades, this phenomenal wine is obviously still an infant in terms of development, but it exhibits a dense purple color as well as an extraordinary nose of blackberries, white chocolate, licorice, tobacco leaf, smoky barbecue, charcoal and a burning ember-like note reminiscent of a Graves from Bordeaux. A dense, luscious, full-bodied, opulent style, with sweet tannin, this locked and loaded, intense, full throttle Private Reserve should be accessible in 5-6 years and last for 25-30.”

97 Points ~ The Wine Advocate

 2009 John Duval “Entity” Shiraz Barossa Valley

“Crimson-purple; the perfumed bouquet proclaims the class of the wine, its array of blackberry, plum and spice fruit duly delivered on the medium-bodied palate; silky tannins and quality oak complete the picture.

96 points ~ James Halliday

“Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2009 Entity Shiraz displays vibrant aromas of warm cassis, crushed blackberries and black cherries over a spicy undercurrent of nutmeg, cloves, vanilla and anise. Full bodied and rich in the mouth, it is nicely poised with a medium level of very finely grained tannins and refreshing acid, finishing long with plenty of dark fruit and spice layers. Approachable now, it should drink best 2013 to 2023+.

94 points ~ Wine Advocate

 2009 John Duval “Plexus” Grenache-Shiraz-Mourvèdre Barossa Valley

The crimson-purple hue puts the often insipid colour of Barossa Valley SGMs to shame; the fragrant bouquet and vibrant black cherry and plum fruit of the palate likewise; quality French oak has been used to maximum advantage. (8/ 2011)

96 points ~ James Halliday

Deep garnet colored with a hint of purple, the 2009 Plexus Shiraz Grenache gives notes of warm mulberries, kirsch and black tea with hints of Indian spices, fenugreek, cumin seed and dusty earth. Full bodied with a great concentration of opulent fruit, it has a medium level of silky tannins and lively acid to support, finishing long and harmonious. Delicious now, it should cellar to 2019+. (2/ 2012)

93 points ~ Wine Advocate

Polished, round and plush, but not over the top, offering a mouthful of ripe blueberry, blackberry, cream and spice flavors that merge seamlessly and persist through the long, refined finish. Shiraz, Grenache and Mourvèdre. Drink now through 2020.

93 points ~ Wine Spectator

 Bordeaux Tasting, Available, Affordable and Only at Old Port Wine Merchants

Where: Old Port Wine
Date:  March 20th, 2013
Time: 4:00 – 7:00pm

94% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Malbec

Ca’ del Solo is the frontier outpost, Biodynamic® Estate vineyard of Bonny Doon Vineyard, dedicated to producing wines with a particular emphasis on the expression of terroir, or unique sense of place.

Packed with stone fruits, black and raspberry flavors, this is balanced with the pungent earthy tones one comes to expect when meandering through the Italian countryside. This Dolcetto is charming and seductive, yet can take on all manner of foods and flavors at the table. We recommend decanting before serving.

Regular Price: $20.99
Sale Price: $9.99

Fuego it’s On Fire and Better Than Ever @ $8.99

“The 2011 Garnacha de Fuego, a 100% Grenache cuvee, was aged in both stainless steel and neutral French oak. This amazing wine boasts a dark ruby/purple color along with a sweet kiss of jammy black cherries intertwined with crushed rock notes that give the wine an undeniable minerality. As it hits the palate, a full-bodied, voluptuous texture takes hold and the flavor profile moves towards blacker fruits (ripe raspberries and black currants) intermixed with camphor and forest floor. This full-bodied, rich, glycerin-filled effort should drink well for 4-5 years, perhaps longer.”