I’m sure you’re making your last minute rush to get gifts for everyone on your list as I write this.  I’m sorry this didn’t get to you sooner, but I’m here to offer three great ideas for wine gifts for everyone on your list.  I’ll post the video, which has all of the information you’ll need. However, I’ll also put some quick highlights below the video for you to cut and paste into your wish list.

The next option for $20-25 was Pascal Jolivet Sancerre 2010. This wine can be found in most retail shops, and like the other two options here today, can be found at most Total Wine stores. A great white wine for any time of the year, this crisp, lean expression of Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire Valley, France is fantastic. It has excellent citrus notes and good acidity  with nice minerality. It’s perfect with seafood, salads, appetizers or just sipping alone.

daily wine picks

Picks for Dec. 03, 2011

Less than $15

Dec. 03, 2011

More than $30

Dec. 03, 2011 PASCAL JOLIVET Sancerre Château du Nozay 2009 (90 points, $35)

Shows a slightly rounded edge now, with a lemon curd note and a flash of brioche leading the way for pure gooseberry, straw and citrus oil flavors. There's nice subtle length. Drink now. 500 cases imported. —James Molesworth

Yes, $28 is above average for a Sancerre, but then this week’s Wine Of The Week—the Pascal Jolivet Sancerre 2009—is very much an above-average Sancerre.

Until recently, Sancerre was never really taken seriously. It was a popular café wine to be sipped along the boulevards—or in more prosaic English, a good by-the-glass pour.

But now Sancerre is growing up as innovative producers such as the dynamic Pascal Jolivet are focusing on quality rather than quantity and consequently, raising expectations as to Sancerre’s true potential.

Some wines are about fruit, some are about earth. This beauty is all about stone. It is tightly focused, even precise, with a slate-like minerality running right to its core.

There’s not an ounce of flab on the wine, it’s almost puritanical in its obsessive crystalline clarity.

Jolivet sums up his approach to winemaking thus: "My wines have finesse, elegance, with clean aromas and flavors. There is a paradox in the winery because I use technology—but only to control the fermentation, not to interfere. I make natural wines that are easy to drink, not ‘technical wines’ that are heavy and don’t go with food."

This is noninterventionist winemaking at its best, with the pure high harmonies of Sauvignon Blanc singing out of every glass.

Healthy Wine Drinking: Thursday

It's still unclear why red wine can cause headaches. The only real solution is to drink white. Photo courtesy of Pascal Jolivet.

The plan was grilling steak and sharing a bottle of red with my wife; the problem was that red wine gives her headaches. Research has shown that sulfites aren't the culprit. If they were, then white wines—which often have more sulfites—would trigger headaches too, and so would many canned vegetables. My wife thought tannins could be the problem, but the tannins in tea and chocolate don't bother her. Recent studies suggest compounds like tyramine (a naturally occurring substance in red wine) might be responsible—but how you figure out the tyramine levels in your glass of Cabernet, I don't know. So I poured a glass of 2007 Trefethen Cabernet Sauvignon ($55) for me and a glass of lively 2009 Pascal Jolivet Sancerre ($19) (left) for her, and we were both happy.

Sharing food, wine and cultural experiences

The Rosé Society, Wine Review: Pascal Jolivet Sancerre 2008

by eleni on September 26, 2010

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I used to drink a lot of aromatic whites.  I’ve always loved how the floral and clean citrus notes play a sort of surprise symphony when the acid explodes in the mouth.  And Sauvignon Blanc from the Loire was a special focus prior to wandering down the Viognier trail.

When I encountered it, I was intrigued by the Pacal Jolivet Sancerre 2008.  Yet I returned it to the shelf several times before purchasing it fearing the pretty label sealed its fate.

The Pascal Jolivet Rosé is 100% Pinot Noir made with the “saignée” method. According to the winemaker: “The juice is produced from macerated Pinot Noir grapes that have not been sorted by hand or de-stemmed. The philosophy of the estate is to let nature take its course as much as possible.”

The color of this rosé is reminiscent of Reunite, Boones Farm, and all those other wines of the 70s that give rosé its bad reputation (see Katrin’s comment with the last mystery meet): a delightful orange blush commonly referred to as “salmon”.  In the nose, it offers a refreshing citrus aroma with some elusive minerality.  And the highlight: an impressive acidity that I have longed for all summer (when try after try I was disappointed by every glass of rosé I found, even at my beloved Corks) tempered by a tad of tannins and faint red apple lingering in the finish.

The Jolivet Rosé pairs easily with a host of foods but I enjoyed this crisp rosé in and of itself on a beautiful, warm September afternoon.

I purchased the bottle in early 2010 figuring I would bring it to our next “pink” tasting (see last pink tasting) but eliminated it because it just overstepped the price point we agreed to in advance.

Pascal Jolivet Sancerre 2008

12.5% alcohol

$19.99; paid $15.49

The world’s their oyster

Boston’s best chefs and biggest shellfish fans will descend on Duxbury Beach Saturday for the Island Creek Oyster Festival. It’s a combination fund raiser, food fete and late-summer beach party celebrating a great Bay State success story.

“I’m always amazed at the passion people have for our product,” said Skip Bennett, who founded Island Creek in 1992.

Today, Island Creek oysters are found in some of the nation’s most exclusive restaurants, while Bennett has used his good fortune to help others. Saturday’s festival raises money for the Island Creek Oyster Foundation, which is building a shellfish hatchery on the island of Zanzibar in Tanzania.

The 2010 festival features plates prepared by nearly two-dozen Boston-area chefs, drinks from Harpoon Brewery, Grey Goose vodka and winemaker Pascal Jolivet, and plenty of fresh oysters. Go to islandcreekfoundation.org or call 781-934-2028 for tickets and information.