Orders are available for pick-up at Restaurant Nicholas at 160 Route 35 South Red Bank, NJ 07701 during the following times:
Monday: 9:30-3:30; Tuesday – Friday: 9:15am – 9:00pm; Saturday: 11:00am – 9:00pm; Sunday: Closed
$28.00 $21.00
One of California’s few wineries with German ownership is Schug Carneros Estate in Southern California. At least ‘Schug’ sounds more German than ‘Harary’. They recently celebrated their 40th anniversary – started by German businessman, Walter Schug. While most people were experimenting if California could grow PN and Chard on par with Burgundy, Walter was seeing if Pinot Noir grown in the Sonoma Coast could mirror the great Pinots of the Rheingau.
He set his winery up in the cool marine climate of Carneros where the climate and terroir set up perfectly for highly concentrated, low-yielding wines. The estate is perfectly situated where it gets hit with morning fog from the Pacific and then the afternoon winds that come busting through the famous Petaluma Gap. This keeps the acid levels high and allows for extended maturation on the vine until the sugar levels catch up – making it super easy for the winemaking team to know when it’s time to pick.
Perhaps Walter Schug will always best be known as the founding winemaker at Joseph Phelps and the creator of Insignia (one of Napa’s first cult wines), but the Schug Estate churns out some incredibly high scoring top values as well, like today’s 2021 Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir.
Out of stock
92 Points, Wine Enthusiast
This moody, dusky, flavorful wine offers rich black tea, forest duff and black-cherry notes on a full body framed by light tannins. Complexity without noticeable oak, length and a supple mouthfeel make it especially enjoyable.
92 Points, Tasting Panel
Red cherry and shaved cocoa are heady scents. The flavors of tobacco, cinnamon, pomegranate pith, and sandalwood form a charming parade. This is a juicy red, with unearthed raspberries and a spiced cedar finish.
91 Points, James Suckling
An attractive nose of red cherry, sliced strawberry and hibiscus. Medium-bodied with gentle tannins. The palate has more wet mineral and wild berry notes than the nose lets on, giving it more width and depth through the juicy finish.
90 Points, Wine Enthusiast – 90 Points, Decanter
Arguably their best quality to price wine is the Chianti Classico. It’s a bold and incredibly expressive Sangiovese that blends together a number of different parcels from around the estate. It’s got a beautiful silky smooth center with bright red fruits and even a tad of rusticity. A wine like this was just made to be enjoyed at the dinner table. With already a 90-point review from both Decanter and Wine Enthusiast, I’m assuming Antonio Galloni and company will come in with similar high praise, but I couldn’t wait around.
The second year of this elegant, silky smooth Willamette Valley Pinot Noir crafted by Bertrand de Villane of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti fame. Again it comes from the gorgeous Winter’s Hill Estate about 700 feet above sea level in the Dundee Hills. All indications are that the 2019 is going to be one of the best for Pinot Noir since 1991. A flawless summer that benefited from very little rain mixed with cool, breezy summer nights. With a round, supple mouthfeel and a sturdy backbone this will age gracefully for a decade plus. Bertrand’s wines just have a signature stamp that is unmistakably his. This is phenomenal.
Now some of the best Pinot Noir in the world comes from the Yamhill-Carlton District (this small neck of the woods has earned its own AVA) and specifically from Shea Vineyards. Big name wineries clamor for fruit: Antica Terra, Beaux Freres, Bergstrom, Penner-Ash, & Sine Qua Non, to name a few. This Pinot is lights out and even given the pedigree, drinks several echelons higher. Blueberry, Blackberry, Blue Cheese (?!?), chanterelle mushrooms, lavender, mint – I could go on. It’s literally got it all, but I won’t spoil it for you.
Fresh off its feature as one of Wine Spectator’s ‘Exciting California Values Under $25’, winemaker Matt Cline looks to stay hot with his release of the 2019 Contra Costa Zinfandel. This one is a beauty crafted off old-vines that are now between 110-140 years in age. There’s a ton of darker fruits that drive this one with a dusting of baking spice. The fruit is pure, fresh and long making it both delicious on its own or terrific with a burger, BBQ ribs, or grilled leg of lamb. Crazy cheap for what is in the bottle, load up!
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