Tales from the Jura

An Interview with Elian Da Ros

Soon after placing our order for these wines (see previous post A Wine Epiphany), Mike managed to reach M. Da Ros via email to answer some of our questions.  Thought you might all like to see what he as to say in his own words…

“Thank very much you for your interest in my work and wines.  I answered your questions writing “I”, but note that I am nothing without my team, the ladies who work hard in the vineyards all year long, the harvest team…  Regards, Elian

Read on for more…

A Wine Epiphany

Several months ago, the store heard whispers of a mysterious winemaker in the improbable southwestern French appellation of Marmandais named Elian Da Ros, whose wines rarely surfaced this side of the Atlantic.  With this tip and just a bit of research on the man and his wines, our curiosity boiled over, and we knew we must try these wines!  Andrew Bishop from Oz Wines brought in samples on the day his scant allocation arrived in his company’s warehouse, and we were absolutely floored! We were amazed by the idiosyncrasy of the wines, and stunned to find that we would, for the moment and to the best of our knowledge, be the only store in the country to have these wines available.  We’re sure you can sense the excitement about our most recent find, which should go down as one of the Bottega’s great wine revelations of the year.  The wine is a party, and you’re invited!  Read on for the wines…

Real Wine. Junk Food.

Wine writers are often suggesting that certain wines are best when paired with a particular delicacy, like roast duck, foie gras, kobe steak tartare. Really, how many times this year have you eaten rabbit?  Tonight we will navigate away from the three stars of Michelin, and wade through the depths of American gastronomy into the genre of culinary delights affectionately known as ‘junk food’.  We have unofficially partnered with some of the North End’s premier sources of our own guilty pleasures (White Hen Pantry and CVS) to procure a veritable feast, full with natural and artificial flavors and colors.  How will our favorite new Lambrusco fare when put to the test against the intensely satisfying, slightly alarming flavors in pizza-flavored Combos?  Let’s find out!

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The man. The myth. The legend. The Bea!

Psssst! Can you keep a secret?

Sherry was the best-kept secret in wine.  The curiously oxidized, briny, fortified wines of the southern coast of Spain are like catnip for wine geeks.  The newly-founded Secret Sherry Society is hoping to spread the words fino, manzanilla, amontillado, et cetera to the uninitiated millions.  The S.S.S. will host a midday repast on Tuesday the 18th, from noon until 2 p.m., at The Wine Bottega, featuring tapas from Taberna de Haro in Brookline.  Shh!  Don’t tell!  FREE!