Wine & Spirits Bargains at the PLCB (Part 3)

[Ian Mundell]

Host's note: this topic is continued from "Wine & Spirits Bargains at the PLCB (Part 2)"

 

 

 

The stores have Chateau de Tracy Pouilly Fume 04 at $14.99 at the moment (code 21700). Quite a lot of it. I picked up a couple of bottles some weeks ago and really enjoyed it.

They also seem to have a fair quantity of Chateau Haut Barrail Medoc 03 at $19.99 (code 20231). Has anyone tried this yet and wants to proffer a comment?

Cheers

Ian

Edited June 27, 2014 by Smithy (log)

[Capaneus]

The stores have Chateau de Tracy Pouilly Fume 04 at $14.99 at the moment (code 21700). Quite a lot of it. I picked up a couple of bottles some weeks ago and really enjoyed it.

They also seem to have a fair quantity of Chateau Haut Barrail Medoc 03 at $19.99 (code 20231). Has anyone tried this yet and wants to proffer a comment?

Cheers

Ian

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I'll second the rec on the Tracy - bought a half-case last time around and will now restock. The '05 - better regarded - is also in, but at $19.99 isn't quite as good a bargain.

Haven't tried the Haut Barrail, but the fact that it's nearly sold out at 1218 Chestnut tells me restaurants are seriously stocking up on it. Whatever that means about quality, it has in the past been the leading indicator that the wine in question will sell down very quickly throughout the city.

[mike volker]

Revisited the '99 Hanna Bismark Ranch Cab last night. We drank the first sixpack right after purchase and it was good. Its been two and a half years since we opened the last bottle--what a difference! This has matured into a very nice bordeauxlike cab, soft and silky, with mostly resolved tannins. What a great deal at $19.99.

Best,

Mike

[KatieLoeb]

PLCB Website

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[Kevin Porter]

PLCB Website

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Thanks for the heads-up! It's a shame that the inventory has been so stagnant....though I suppose that's an economic blessing.

Note that the great deals on stems and corkscrews that were highlighted earlier in this thread are available on the website.

Kevin

[Ian Mundell]

The stores have Chateau de Tracy Pouilly Fume 04 at $14.99 at the moment (code 21700). Quite a lot of it. I picked up a couple of bottles some weeks ago and really enjoyed it.

They also seem to have a fair quantity of Chateau Haut Barrail Medoc 03 at $19.99 (code 20231). Has anyone tried this yet and wants to proffer a comment?

Cheers

Ian

←

I'll second the rec on the Tracy - bought a half-case last time around and will now restock. The '05 - better regarded - is also in, but at $19.99 isn't quite as good a bargain.

Haven't tried the Haut Barrail, but the fact that it's nearly sold out at 1218 Chestnut tells me restaurants are seriously stocking up on it. Whatever that means about quality, it has in the past been the leading indicator that the wine in question will sell down very quickly throughout the city.

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We tried the Haut Barrail a few nights ago. Okay but not spectacular. Probably worth the sale price but not more. The Tracy is sold out at Collegeville and King of Prussia, so I'm planning on picking some up at Conshohocken this afternoon as I'm meeting my wife at the Ikea

[Capaneus]

Ch. Haut-Beyzac Grand Vin '03, Haut Medoc, is available in spots. Parker likes it, and it's easy to see why: thick, jammy fruit, incredible extraction, high alcohol. Firm tannins give it good structure, in spite of the vintages frequent overripeness problems. If you like this style of wine, this one is a good one, and at $24.99 I couldn't find a better price on Wine Searcher - lower prices that might pop up in your search are all for the Chateau's two other offerings, not the Grand Vin.

Having said that, not my kind of Bordeaux: no delineation, the great big rush of fruit is entirely monolithic, no layers, little charm to lighten up all that power. Extremely long finish, but hey: I can get that from a spoonful of berry preserves. To be fair, it isn't quite a dead ringer for Califonia Cabs in a similar style: it does not have that raisiny, cooked taste that can be the distinctive marker of so many of those.

Anyway, strokes and folks. I'm pretty sure that if you like this style of winemaking this one will please you.

Also your Master, Satan.

[Kevin Porter]

Ch. Haut-Beyzac Grand Vin '03, Haut Medoc, is available in spots. Parker likes it, and it's easy to see why: thick, jammy fruit, incredible extraction, high alcohol. Firm tannins give it good structure, in spite of the vintages frequent overripeness problems. If you like this style of wine, this one is a good one, and at $24.99 I couldn't find a better price on Wine Searcher - lower prices that might pop up in your search are all for the Chateau's two other offerings, not the Grand Vin.

Having said that, not my kind of Bordeaux: no delineation, the great big rush of fruit is entirely monolithic, no layers, little charm to lighten up all that power. Extremely long finish, but hey: I can get that from a spoonful of berry preserves. To be fair, it isn't quite a dead ringer for Califonia Cabs in a similar style: it does not have that raisiny, cooked taste that can be the distinctive marker of so many of those.

Anyway, strokes and folks. I'm pretty sure that if you like this style of winemaking this one will please you.

Also your Master, Satan.

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Great TN! Don't tell me that we're going to have a 'terroirist vs pointilist' debate here.

A few interesting finds at Ardmore State store yesterday -

CA Pinot - They have Rochioli Estate and ROAR in the temp-controlled room. I'm surprised that ROAR is distributing through the PLCB, and I was surprised to see the Rochioli on the shelves (as was one of the clerks).

2005 Bourgogne, imported by.....PLCB!! I thought that the three tier system prohibits the importer ftom consumer sales??!!

[Dennis]

Since no one seems to have much to talk about lately....Here's a link to a conversation between Craig LaBan & David Moore;

http://www.philly.com/inquirer/food/Restau...raig_LaBan.html

[Dennis]

I tried the Fume Blanc from Bernard Griffin last weekend and loved it...especially at $7.99/btl. It sold out at the Flourtown store where I bought it but I was able to order a 1/2 case from another store.

My wife & I are leaving for our SF/SONOMA trip next week to celebrate our 33rd anniversary. 2 nights in SF, 2 in Sonoma, & 3 in Santa Rosa. So far we plan to eat at Gary Danko's, L'Osteria del Forno (my favorite from 3 years ago), and The Girl & The Fig. I checked out the wine menu for Gary Danko's and did not recognize many of the CA wines that they had listed. They have a $35/btl corkage fee, which is high, but I think I'll bring my own. If anybody out there can see a good buy on their wine menu...please let me know.

Cheers!

[mrbigjas]

funny you should bump this up, dennis, i was just about to post to this thread: i was over in jersey today, and picked up a bottle of my favorite bourbon (bulleit) at canal's. it was $24.99. this stuff is $22.99 at the state stores. and that's not on sale--right now it's on sale for $20.99. and canal's is supposed to be cheap!

of course the state stores also don't carry rittenhouse rye, which i also got a bottle of for $10.99. now that's nice cheap booze right there.

[mrbigjas]

so i just got a call from the dude who's putting together an order for the black maple hill rye (there's some kind of minimum order, so he was gathering names of people who would go in on an order with him). LCB cost for the 18-year: $103.99 plus tax, bringing it to $114 and change.

when i was over in jersey on sunday as i mentioned above, canal's had this same bottle for $95, and i briefly considered buying it, having forgotten that i had promised dude i was going to go in on this order. luckily my more frugal side prevailed and i didn't splurge, so i'm not sure what the cost would have been with tax, but i'm sure it was less than that.

so the moral of the story is: whiskey is good, but always comparison shop before making large purchases.

[Dennis]

I don't know much about rye whiskey but i do know that i appreciate the 5 bottles of wild turkey that i got for $15.99/btl! Next time I'm in delaware, i'll have to check out some of the other ones that were mentioned awhile back.

[mrbigjas]

wild turkey rye is good stuff. i love it. what's up with the fact that it was never available in PA except for special order, and then suddenly it was on closeout for $16, though?

[lancastermike]

wild turkey rye is good stuff.  i love it.  what's up with the fact that it was never available in PA except for special order, and then suddenly it was on closeout for $16, though?

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And I wondered the same. Would the distiller be trying to unload it? Whiskey is different than wine and Wild Turkey is Wild Turkey. I'm no expert, but perhaps there is stock the distiller needs to move out. It remains a mystery to me, but I certainly bought some.

[Dennis]

Don't know why they would want to unload it...it received a 90 - 95 in one of the reviews that I read.

[KatieLoeb]

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The Wine Enthusiast 89 points: "Probably not what you'd expect from this wine. It's a fair amount gamy, with caramel, warm earth and some bacon on the nose. There's sweet berry fruit and licorice notes, but also a dry, peppery, woody character. Shows a young, willing attitude, but it's not the best Guado of the past few vintages." QUOTED AT $80.00 PLCB Price $60.49

Code 23120 Antinori Solaia 2001 750ml Now $116.49

The Wine Spectator 93 points: "Masses of coffee and blackberry character in this youthful wine. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins, loads of fruit and excellent wood. Big and juicy, with a long, long finish. A fine wine. Needs time. Best after 2007." QUOTED AT $180.00 PLCB Price $116.49

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

These are a little out of my budget, but might be worth looking at if you've got room to hold them for a little while.

[cjtst11]

I got one of the last two bottles of the Wild Turkey Rye at the Chestnut street store yesterday. I tried some last night. It is nice, a little hot, a little sweet but nicely spicy with some good menthol notes on it. I don't like it as much as the Michter's 10 year but for $15 it is hard to beat.

[mike volker]

My wife brought home a bottle of the '01 Schweiger Spring Mountain Napa Cab. I'll be going back tomorrow for a case. This is a steal at $20.

Best,

Mike

[mike volker]

Not a chairman's selection, but I just picked up some '03 ESJ "Wylie-Fenaughty" syrah $15 in the collegeville store. Check around, but there is supposed to be some "Shell $ Bone" and "Bassetti Vineyard" in the system. I think this is the first time for ESJ in Pa.

Best,

Mike

[doviakw]

Not a chairman's selection, but I just picked up some '03 ESJ "Wylie-Fenaughty" syrah $15 in the collegeville store. Check around, but there is supposed to be some "Shell $ Bone" and "Bassetti Vineyard" in the system. I think this is the first time for ESJ in Pa.

Best,

Mike

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I will be picking up some of these. They seem to be scattered about various stores (Swedesford Rd, Devon, W. Chester, Gulph Rd).

Here is a thread that I started in the Wine forum.

[cjtst11]

I've not yet had the Bassetti but the Wylie-Fenaughty is excellent and reminds me of a nice Crozes-Hermitage. At $15 a bottle they are a good deal and I bought some to put away.

The Tablas Creek Roussane is not as good a deal but still worth trying. It could probably use a few years as well but is drinking decently right now.

[Dennis]

My vacation to San Francisco & Sonoma was fantastic. It's a hard to say but I think I liked it better than Napa. In fact the one day I went to Napa to visit Provenance for a tasting, I couldn't wait to get back to Sonoma...the traffic was incredible for a weekday. Come to think of it, that's one of the things I liked best about Sonoma. You had to drive off of the main drag to get to a lot of the vineyards, so there never seemed to be any traffic to contend with. I couldn't believe how many of the tastings were free (always a good thing) as compared to Napa. At most of the vineyards, the hosts were always shocked when I told how much we pay for Chairman Selects and in particular when it was one of their wines. Hanna seemed to be the most surprised. In fact, I kind of got the impression that they felt like they were taken advantage of? We ate at the "Girl & the Fig" as recommended by one of you and it was as good as you suggested. However, the highlight of the trip was not the wine but a happenstance visit to "Goat Rock State Park". We decided to follow the Russian River thru some redwoods and before we knew it, we were at the Pacific Ocean. So we followed the road and it took us down to the park and it was a short walk to the spot where the river meets the Ocean. At this point the river was very narrow and the opposite bank was filled with seals. Evidently, they mate there every year be tween May & July. I can't recommend it enough whether you go to Napa or Sonoma...you've got to see it. I brought back a few bottles that can't be had here, one was from Ledson & the other from ThumbPrint...and they were both Syrahs. I also bought a bottle of Silver Oak (Alexander Valley) for friends of ours who always have it on their anniversary.

Well, time for some wine & cheese....

[matthewj]

I lived in Sonoma for a brief period, I definitely like the atmosphere better. PA really sticks it to the consumer when selling wines. that are called "chairman selects". It should be called Chairman's over stock and wine glut.

[Jeff L]

I also bought a bottle of Silver Oak (Alexander Valley) for friends of ours who always have it on their anniversary.

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Hey listen, my anniversary is coming up and I like Silver Oak too, whadda ya say?