Friday Grab Bag

We made it to Friday, meaning it's time for our weekly round-up of news, events, and new products. The big news is that we will soon be rolling out an all-new web site. Still located at www.jcanals.com, the web site will have a fresh, sleek and modern look, with easier navigation and more features.

Events

Lawrenceville: We have our regularly scheduled wine tastings this weekend. Please stop in for the free tasting on Friday, from 4-6pm, or Saturday, from 2-4pm. The tasting menu is here.

Woodbridge: We're also on our regular wine tasting schedule for this weekend. Please join us on Friday, 4-6pm, or Saturday, 1-3pm.

Tonight, we also have our final Founders specialty tapping of the month. We'll tap a keg of Curmudgeon Old Ale at 6pm, right after the wine tasting ends.

Looking ahead one week, we have a special Cutty Sark "Cutty Back" tasting next Saturday, August 2, from 1-4pm. The Cutty Back is Cutty Sark Scotch whisky with PBR, and it's also known as the Hipster Grenade.

Save the Date! We're busy setting the details, but we're having a Scotch dinner, featuring The Macallan, on Thursday, October 2.

What's New

We've received 9 new (or new vintages) Bordeaux wines. At one end of the price scale (but still high on the quality scale), we have the 2010 Château Le Grand Moulin Grande Réserve Blaye Côtes de Bordeaux.

It's Merlot (70%) with supplementary Cabernet Franc (25%) and Malbec (5%,) offering this wine a ruby ​​color and a nose of red fruit which is backed by the wooded roasted notes. A smooth entry follows a well structured palate, with silky tannins marked by wooded persistent finish. Pairs nicely with grilled beef or cheese.

Scored at 90 points by Wine Enthusiast. Available for only $9.96 in the Bottle Club®.

Looking at the more age-worthy Bordeaux, we have the 2010 Chateau Malartic Lagraviere Pessac-Leognan. This wine rated 93 points from Wine Spectator, 94 from both Wine Advocate and Wine Enthusiast, and 95 from James Suckling. From the James Suckling review: "Impressive nose with leather, dark polished fruit and flowers. Wonderful mouthfeel with soft silky tannins and beautiful texture. Really well put together. Powerful and rich with loads of fruit and ripe tannins. Very ripe."

We think this is a wonderful value, at only $69.99 in the Bottle Club®.

Among our domestic wines, the Ménage à Trois brand has been a top-seller. Red or white, single varietal or blend, Ménage à Trois hits the intersection of quality, price and value just about perfectly. New to Joe Canal's is Ménage à Trois Midnight.

From Ménage à Trois: "Midnight represents the dark side of Ménage à Trois—it’s our most intense expression yet, a passionate blend bursting with dusky aromas, an extraordinarily deep color, and rich, ripe black fruit. Don’t be shy—turn out the lights and savor the pleasures of the dark."

"For this special wine, our winemakers wanted to create a truly uninhibited blend— something deeper, darker, and bolder than ever before. In true Ménage à Trois style, they decided that ‘more is more,’ and crafted a blend of not three—but four—grapes! Merlot adds a plush, velvety texture, Cabernet Sauvignon offers elegance and power, Petite Sirah lends inky intensity and Petit Verdot imparts a deep violet color and concentrated fruit. To round out the flavors the wine is aged on French and American oak. The result is a wine that leaves an indelible impression. It’s mysterious and dark, soft and sensual—just like Midnight."

Tasting notes: A gorgeous garnet color in the glass, this luxurious blend wraps you up in a velvety embrace. Voluptuous blackberry and plush spiced plum flavors seduce your palate, while hints of mocha and exotic spice linger on your lips like a stolen kiss. Silky and smooth with a long, powerful finish, you’ll wish Midnight could last forever.

Only $9.99 in the Bottle Club®.

After those wine reviews, we'll close out this section with a new craft Bourbon, from New York. Joe Canal's is introducing Widow Jane Bourbon.

Widow Jane produces the finest Bourbons and whiskeys, sparing no expenses, cutting no corners, making no compromises, using no genetically modified corns, grains, yeasts, or enzymes.

As great whiskey distillers throughout the world — from Kentucky to Scotland — have long known, it takes sweet water from tough rock to make great whiskey. And, that’s what Widow Jane Whiskey, distilled in the Red Hook neighborhood of Brooklyn, is all about.

This 7 year whiskey is aged to perfection. It drinks like a 20 year bourbon with its deep cherry notes and light tannic finish.

Aroma: Butter, Cream, Toffee
Front: Cherry Wood, Olive Oil
Mid: Orange
Finish: Burnt Orange and Spice

Priced at $34.99 per 375ML bottle.

Have a great weekend!