Recipe – Salmon Moqueca

A couple of weeks ago, while chatting with a customer at the shop, the conversation, as it often does, turned to food and cooking. Aware of my background as a Chef, I was asked to share my favorite way to prepare salmon. Well, that’s pretty easy, I thought; not a lot beats simply grilled salmon.…

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Domaine Henri Latour et Fils
Saint Romain “Le Jarron” – Chardonnay
Auxey-Duresse Burgundy, France

Le Jarron is sourced from a Lieu-dit — a single named vineyard parcel — on the southern border of Saint Romain, a stone’s throw from Auxey-Duresses. Due to its comparatively higher altitude, this is a prime example of risk and reward in Burgundy. This higher altitude presents the perfect foil to global warming, resulting in an extraordinary freshness and lift. The downside is the increased danger of frost and the risk of losing part or all of the harvest.

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Mas Amiel Fortified Dessert Wine Vintage 2015 – Vin Doux Naturel 20 Ans D’Âge – Demi-John Aged 20 Year AOC Maury, France

Dessert wines from Maury are unique in a number of ways. The vineyards are planted on hills of schist and black marl, providing the wines with a distinct minerality and concentration seldom seen in fortified wines. The wines are also fermented and aged in unconventional ways. The Vintage 2015, after fortification, is aged in an oxygen-free environment, allowing the wine to develop optimum freshness and fruit intensity — very similar to young vintage port with smoother tannins.

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Domaine du Parandou Les Secrets du Grangeon
Sablet, France

Sablet is another one of those villages in the South of France that you instantly fall in love with — a place that invites you to slow down, relax, and enjoy a glass of wine at an outdoor café. Like its close neighbors Gigondas and Séguret, it’s a pleasure to stroll through the winding lanes up stone steps from one village square to another.

Just outside of the village, you’ll find close to 300 hectares of vineyards planted with Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault, and Mourvèdre. White wine is made here as well; however, it currently accounts for less than 10% of the production.

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Domaine Champeau
Pouilly Fumé
Saint-Andelain, Loire Valley, France

The eastern Loire River Valley is home to the world’s most famous and sought-after Sauvignon Blanc, and the villages of Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé are at the region’s epicenter.

The wines here are strikingly vibrant, with bracing acidity and mineral-driven depth that can rival Chablis. Chalk, flint, and limestone-gravel soils dominate the region, and the contributing minerality provides a perfect foil to the palate of citrus and gooseberry.

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