Splurging today on the excellent Kukeri Lakeville Vineyard Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir. Just 5 barrels were produced. Save over $20 a bottle.
We love a giant discount and today we have just that on a wine that has an SRP of $48.
Of course even with our significant savings, this single vineyard Pinot Noir from Kukeri still ends up over $20 but that's pretty much par for the course for Pinot Noir with a perfect 10 Taste Rating.
That holds doubly true when you are talking about something of this caliber from the cool-climate Petaluma Gap known for its excellent Pinot Noir. (In fact, you'll be hard pressed to find any Pinot Noir at all from this region under $35.)
A quick look at the Petaluma Gap, one of Sonoma's newest AVAs, helps explain why. Interestingly, the region was defined not by existing geographic boundaries but by wind speed. Wine-searcher explains:
The zone is limited to those areas where the winds from the Pacific Ocean blowing through the Petaluma gap have a regular minimum speed of eight miles per hour.
The significance of this wind speed figure is that it is sufficient to make the stomata (pores) of vine leaves shut down. Because the metabolism of malic acid relies on respiration through the vine leaves, it is considered that the grapes from these windy areas reach a level of acidity not seen in more sheltered neighboring zones. This acidity helps increase the age-worthiness of the area's wines. Some experts also link windy conditions to thicker grape skins and smaller grape clusters. This changes skin/juice ratios and results in more intensity.
The unique climate of the Petaluma Gap also includes average daily temperature changes of 40 to 50°F, which is great for growing flavorful grapes, especially Pinot Noir. Fittingly, 75% of the vineyard acreage is planted to this variety (with the rest mostly split between Chardonnay and Syrah).
All this is to say that this is a really special place for Pinot. And today we have a stellar example from Kukeri, whose single vineyard wines are often priced near $100 a bottle.
The 2018 Kukeri Lakeville Vineyard Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir we are offering today also received 95 points from the Toast of the Coast International Wine Competition and 94 points from Wine Review Online.
Today's Insider Deal gets you 3 bottles of the 2018 Kukeri Lakeville Vineyard Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir for just $79.99, or $26.66 a bottle.
That's a discount of over 44% on the wine which goes up to almost 50% after factoring in the additional savings from our $5 shipping.
This 3-pack deal is available to ship to the following states: AZ, CA, CO, CT, DC, FL, GA, IA, ID, IN, KS, LA, MA, MD, ME, MN, MO, MT, NC, ND, NE, NJ, NM, NV, NY, OH, OK, OR, PA, RI, SC, SD, TN, TX, VA, VT, WA, WV, WI and WY. (These states are dependent on the individual licenses of the offering winery. Future deals may have more or less states available.)
This is a limited time, winery direct offer facilitated by our friends at Wine Country Connect. Sale ends Tuesday 5/4 at noon (PT) unless it sells out sooner. Shipping is a flat $5 per order no matter how many 3-packs you buy.
Clicking on the buy button above will take you to the site winedealmaker.com for checkout. If you don't see the embedded buy box click here to order. Once there you can also adjust the quantity of 3-packs in your order by using the "Click To Update Cart" link at the top of the screen.
The wine is made from 100% Martini Clone Pinot Noir from the Lakeville Vineyard in the Petaluma Gap of Sonoma. It is aged 12 months in 100% French oak barrels with 40% new oak. Just 5 barrels (150 cases) were produced.
The 2018 Kukeri Lakeville Vineyard Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir begins with a very inviting, succulent aroma of cherry and a little cranberry plus lovely baking spice, sandalwood and vanilla. By day 2 licorice and mint also make an appearance.
Taking a sip reveals a delightfully tasty and balanced Pinot Noir. It is full of delicious, deep fruit flavors similar to the nose with some nice earthiness and black tea underneath. More Old World in style, this is a really quite elegant Pinot Noir, definitely a wine to sip slowly and contemplate so as not to miss any of the complexity.
It ends dry and quite long with lots of lingering spice. Excellent! This one gets a perfect 10 Taste Rating and it was even better on day 2 which is an indication of its many years of aging potential.
2018 Kukeri Lakeville Vineyard Petaluma Gap Pinot Noir
Saturday Splurge
And here's what people are saying about our previous Insider Deals:
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"You are a man after my own heart. I have always looked for the best and least expensive wine and you just made it easier. Cheers!"
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"Jon, I should have bought more! Delicious!!"
"I am a Certified Specialist of Wine. I love your deals. You pick great wines!! Kudos to you for getting us great deals!"
"thanks for the deal...this wine is spectacular for $12.50/bottle. I am used to buying big, bold, young cabs or old vine zins and paying considerably more multiples of this price."
"Hi Jon, just had to let you know that I love this wine!!!! Thanks for doing what you do."
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"Wish I had doubled my order!"
"Wow - this wine is amazing!!! Glad I have two more bottles of it!!"
"Bought a case wish I had purchased 2-3 cases. Fantastic buy for the price."
"This Insider Deal was the best ever. This wine is amazing!!! Strongly recommend."
