Free Italian and French wine tasting!

Come join us Friday, August 12th from 5-7pm. We are taking you to on a tour of Sicily, Sardinia, Veneto Italy, and the Cotes de Catalanes in the South of France.

We are going to start the tasting with the Terriero Trevisol prosecco from the Veneto region, a Macabeu from the Three Trees winery in Cotes de Catalanes, a Frapatto (Beaujolais Style) from the Tami winery in Sicily, and finish it off with a carignan from the Solino winery out of the Sardinia region.

Remember this event is FREE!

Don't forget to bring a glass or you may purchase a glass from us for $10. Otherwise, we will provide plastic cups.

We'll see you there!

Free Tasting Event for Tax Free Weekend!

Guess what? it's STATE TAX FREE weekend starting tomorrow.

We are pulling out all the works this Friday from 5-7pm. We are tasting California wines from the David Bruce and Schug winery, a chardonnay, two pinot noirs, and a cabernet sauvignon.

Then for beer we are tasting a Stoudts Brewery from Pennsylvania which is new to the Louisiana market, We are going to taste their American Pale Ale, E.S.B, "German style" Pilsner, and a Munich style gold lager. Then continue with Wasatch White Ale and Polygamy Porter, Shipyard quadruple IPA, and Jolly pumpkin.

It's not over yet, we are going to finish it off with Effen Cucumber Vodka and Don Q light and dark Rum.

Remember this event is FREE!

And Don't Forget to bring a glass or you may purchase a glass from us for $10. Otherwise, we will provide plastic cups.

Fabre Montmayou Malbec

Lets change it up this week from the high rated Spanish wines to an easy drinking Argentinian Malbec. This Malbec is from the heart of wine country in Argentina, the region of Mendoza. This winery uses 50+ years old vines. This winery makes very elegant wines which are true to style.

Fabre Montmayou Malbec 2009-

Bright-ruby red. Perfumed aromas of blackberry and Licorice lifted by violet. Suave, dry and lively in the mouth, with nicely delineated flavors of dark berries, licorice, and chocolate. builds nicely on the back half, finishing with serious broad tannins and noteworthy energy. Very sophisticated, varietally accurate Argentina Malbec for the price.

Rated 91 points by Philippe's Wine Cellar.

Free Spanish and Portuguese Wine Tasting

What is the best way to end a long week? A great Spanish and Portuguese wine tasting of course, this Friday evening from 5-7pm.

We are going to start with a Verdejo white wine from Naia, a rosé from Marques de Caceres, 100% monastrell by Wrongo Dongo, and Alandra a red blend from Portugal.

Remember this event is free.

Don't forget to bring your own glass or you can purchase a glass from us for $10. Otherwise, we have plastic cups you can taste out of.

Bodegas Borsao

Ladies and Gentlemen, Bodegas Borsao is still on a hot streak of coming out with great wines at a decent price. Tres Picos is one of many great wines they have come out with. It has had a minimum of 91 points ratings by Robert Parker and Stephen Tanzer since 2003 vintage. Tres Picos is made to drink now but can be aged 8-10 years.

Bodegas Borsao Tres Picos 2009-

Aged half in a stainless steel and half in French barriques glass-staining ruby. An explosive, flamboyantly perfumed bouquet exudes scents of blackberry, cherry cola, violet, and cracked pepper, plus a hint of smokiness. Deeply pitched flavors, of dark fruit and candied flowers reminds me of syrah, but red fruit notes emerge with air, confirming that this is a garnacha, not a syrah. Intense, focused and impressively persistent on the finish, which echoes the sweet red and dark fruit notes and leaves a subtle smoky quality.

Rated 92 points by Robert Parker

Philippe's everyday price $15.99 - Vintage service price $14.00/each or $13.50 for 6 or more bottles

Wines by David Sampedro

Today, we invite you to trust us and discover a new gem from the Rioja region in Spain.

Calma is made by up-and-coming winemaker David Sampedro from the Rioja Alta subregion for the Bodegas Don Sancho Londono. One of the most talented winemakers and coming from a renowned family, David Sampedro seems to be the man behind many of Rioja's highly-rated wines.

The man is also obsessed by the "forgotten grapes", as he calls them, these varietals that were pushed aside as Rioja became a global force. One of them is Graciano - which he uses in today's offer. Graciano is a fragrant black grape that used to be far more cultivated before Tempranillo took over. It fell by the wayside because of low yields and its being prone to downy mildew. However, it is a very worthy grape variety, rich in color, fragrant, with a nice bouquet and characterized by high acidity, complex aromas, and an inky color. By the way, David does make a 100% Graciano called Gra2 delivering a distinct and more subtle flavor than Tempranillo.

2008 Calma (90% Tempranillo, 10% Graciano)

Bright violet. Black cherry and bright violet scent are followed by cracked pepper. Tightly wound at first, it then opens up to offer chewy dark fruit flavors and a touch of mocha. Dusty tannins add grip to the finish, which leaves cassis and bitter cherry notes behind.

Philippe's Everyday Price: $16.99 - Vintage Price: $15.00 or $14.25 if you buy 6 bottles or more.

Also available, David Sampedro's 100% Graciano called Gra2

2008 Vinos Sin Ley Gra2 (100% Graciano)

Aged in stainless steel. Bright ruby with pungent aromas of cassis, raspberry, graphite, and potpourri. Fresh and spicy, with sweet red and dark berry flavors, and a strong mineral underpinning. Finishes with a strong jolt of candied flowers and lingering spiciness.

Philippe's Everyday Price: $14.99 - Vintage Price: $13.50 or $13.00 if bought in conjunction with Calma.

Interested in these wines? Please email christophe@philippeswinecellar.com.

Thank you.

Tasting this week - Au Bon Climat Winery

We are proud to welcome back Au Bon Climat winery to Philippe's weekly sampling event. Make sure you join us this Friday, June 3rd from 5pm to 7pm.

We will sample four wines, two reds and two whites. We will kick things off with their blend of Pinot Gris/Pinot Blanc and follow with their Chardonnay. We will then move on to Pinot Noir with two appellations from this renowned winery, the Santa Barbara County and the single vinyeyard "La Bauge Au-Dessus" from Santa Maria Valley.

Do not miss out on this event and experience the best that Central Coast has to offer.

The event is FREE.

We are looking forward to seeing you on Friday.