It is so enjoyable to go collect my wine club selections each month at the Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan.  I know that every wine on the shelves has been personally curated by the owner and his staff, and once in a blue moon, I may even be asked my opinion about a wine, that will later be one of the selections.  It is always a joy to look forward to the wine club selections, because, as I have said they may not appear on my radar, for a wine that I am looking for at the moment.  The club selections have always offered one wine from the Old World and one from the New World.   Though the club also allows me to get case discounting, even if I stop to get a bottle or two, and there is always the possibility of an impromptu wine tasting as well.

The wine representing the Old World is Gitton Pere et Fils Coteaux du Giennois Rouge.  Marcel and Huguette Gitton established their winery in 1945 from half a hectare of vineyards and now have over thirty-three hectares around the Sancerre area.  They are now in the third generation of family for the estate.  Coteaux du Giennois, formerly Coteaux de Gien is the appellation for red, white and rosé wines from fourteen parishes around Gien, which is between Orleans and Sancerre in the Loire Valley.  White wines account for sixty percent of the output and it is from Sauvignon Blanc, the reds are mostly Gamay and some Pinot Noir.  The terroir of the region is limestone or silica-based soils.  The area produces about one-million bottles of wine a year very little of it is sold outside of France.  This wine is pure Pinot Noir, with the vines averaging about forty-five years of age.  Vignoble Gitton respects the nuance of each plot, and hence each cuvee is made into a separate wine.  I couldn’t find any production notes, but this red wine per reviews offers notes of stone fruit, white pepper, and forest mushrooms.  On the palate tones of morello cherry, tart cherry and cranberry with a velvety feel and a finish of cherry and terroir.

The New World is represented by Tortoise Creek Wines “The Revivalist” Merlot Clarksburg 2018 and part of Winesellers Limited.  Winesellers Limited was founded by Yale Sager in 1978 and began as a one-man operation selling wines in the Midwest and over the last forty years has become a recognized importer and marketer of family-owned wineries produced in both well known and unique regions of the world. The concept of Tortoise Creek is to work with small farmers who focus on sustainable farming in California.  The wine is predominately Merlot with Petite Sirah, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon mixed in.  Clarksburg is near Sacramento, and is very similar in climate to Carneros with sandy loams and alluvial clay soils.  The grapes are crushed into Stainless Steel vats for Initial Fermentation for ten days and pumped over three times a day to extract maximum flavors and color and then extended maceration on the skins for an additional week.  The wine goes through Malolactic Fermentation and aged for six months in French Oak.  The deep red wine is described as having notes of black cherries and plums, with herbs, spices and a smoky aroma.  On the palate tones of cherries, blackberries, blueberries in a medium bodied “jammy wine” with secondary tones of smoke, maple and brown sugar with soft  tannins.