WINE INFORMATION

Mary Taylor is a wine importer with experience in many aspects of the wine trade, including retail, restaurants, distributing, and imports. A short time ago, she realized how difficult it was for people in their 20's on a limited budget to learn about wine and expand their tasting experience--there was good wine out there but much of it badly packaged. Mary used her wine connections to find small, under-the-radar family producers making wine that represented where it came from and its historical tradition. Then she had her selections bottled and packaged with a plain white label with simple black lettering. Today she imports 20 wines, 15 from France, 2 each from Portugal and Italy, and one from Spain. Not all come from well-known appellations; in fact, some of her biggest successes come from obscure parts of the wine world. These are true “gateway” bottles, offering a genuine introduction to the larger world of wine, while emphasizing geography and history over variety, made with minimal intervention by growers who farm conscientiously.

Anjou is a large AOC, with two different soil profiles. Anjou Blanc is in the west of the AOC, with chalky limestone soils that give a lighter, more energetic expression of Chenin Blanc.  Anjou Noir lies to the east, with dark volcanic schist soils that make for a richer, more full-bodied wine. Biotteau’s estate lies exactly on the border of these two subregions on the old Roman road from Angers to Poitiers.  Grapes for this wine come from sustainably farmed vines averaging 25 years of age. This fourth-generation vigneron ferments entirely in stainless steel, combining the fresh acidity of Anjou Blanc soils with the flinty, mouth-filling richness of Anjou Noir. The combination is a great composite of Anjou, with honeyed apricot and a tangy mineral finish.

Chicken/Turkey, Cream Sauce Pasta, Dessert (sweet), East Asian (Chinese/Japanese/Korean), Indian Food, Spicy Food, Thai or Vietnamese