< Tasting Notes

Wines For Cool Summer Nights - July 2025

Whether its around the BBQ or inside with AC, here we humbly present wines to share at all your summer gatherings!

(**NOTE - Links are embedded in each winemaker’s names to direct you to their respective websites. Know thy vintner!**)

TENUTA IL NESPOLO ‘Vino da Sete’ Bianco 2022 * Piedmont, Italy
Tenuta il Nespolo is a natural wine project based in Moasca, Piedmont, with vineyard work by the Verri family and cellar guidance from Luca Amerio, a rising star in Italy’s natty wine world. “Vino da Sete” means “thirst wine”—and that’s exactly the spirit here: fun, fresh, and made to be glugged with abandon.

The vineyards are farmed organically in the clay-limestone hills of Monferrato. Cortese and Favorita (a Piedmontese cousin of Vermentino) bring the snap, while a splash of Moscato adds aromatic lift. Fermented with native yeasts, aged in stainless, unfiltered, and bottled with little to no sulfur. No fluff, no funny business—just delicious.

Grape(s) - – 43% Cortese, 42% Favorita, 15% Moscato

Flavors - Peach skin, lemon pith, white flowers, and a splash of salinity. Slight haze, light fizz, and dry as a bone. If sunshine had a flavor, this might be it.

Serving - Pop it with fried snacks, sushi, or absolutely nothing at all.

Album Pairing - KHRUANGBIN – ‘Con Todo El Mundo’ - 2018 * Like the wine, this album is groove-forward, unfussy, and perfect for sunshine-soaked afternoons. It’s got that laid-back, low-intervention cool—globally inspired, rhythmically interesting, and wildly easy to enjoy without needing to overthink a thing. You can sip and sway at the same time.

QUINTA DO JAVALI ‘Clos Fonte do Santo’ Stone Vineyard 2019 * Douro, Portugal
Quinta do Javali is one of the smallest—and wildest—producers in the Douro, run by Luís Seabra–trained winemaker António Mendes, with a reputation for pushing boundaries in a region traditionally dominated by big houses and bigger extraction. The “Fonte do Santo” site is a steep, terraced vineyard rich in schist and granite, farmed by hand with total reverence for the land. Javali means “wild boar,” and the wines live up to the name: unpolished, expressive, and full of local grit.

Biodynamic practices, native yeasts, no fining or filtration, and ultra-low sulfur. The vineyard is a traditional field blend, with 80+ year-old vines co-planted to Touriga Nacional, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Franca, and other native grapes. Fermented in lagar with foot-treading, aged in large used barrels, and bottled with minimal intervention. Nothing flashy, just pure Douro soul.

Grape(s) - Total field blend of up to 32 native red grapes!

Flavors - Black plum, violet, cracked pepper, and crushed rock, with a feral edge and beautifully chewy tannins. It’s deep and dark, but lifted by mineral structure and that stony vineyard signature. .

Serving - Serve with grilled meats, mushroom stew, or starry nights by the fire.

** AUDIOPHILE LP OF THE MONTH CLUB VINYL**

Album Pairing - YO LA TENGO - 'I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One' - 1997 * This wine is dense, soulful, and a little wild, but not overwhelming—just like the album. I Can Hear the Heart... has that layered, meandering beauty: at times soft and introspective, at times psychedelic and unexpected, but always honest and full of texture. Much like this Douro field blend, it’s a slow reveal—earthy, tender, and hauntingly beautiful once you sit with it.

MADSON Pinot Noir 2022 * Santa Cruz Mountains, California
Madson Wines is the passion project of Cole Thomas, a vineyard whisperer and rising star in California’s low-intervention wine scene. Based in the fog-kissed, redwood-laced Santa Cruz Mountains, Cole works closely with regenerative growers and sources from some of the region’s most soulful parcels. He’s known for hands-off winemaking, gentle extraction, and a focus on purity and place over polish.

Grapes are sourced from organically and regeneratively farmed vineyards in the mountains above Santa Cruz. Fermentation is native, with a portion of whole cluster for aromatic lift. The wine is aged in neutral French oak, bottled unfined and unfiltered with minimal added sulfur. Only 4,356 bottles produced. No makeup, no ego—just forest-floor finesse.

Grape(s) - 100% Pinot Noir

Flavors - Wild strawberry, cranberry, and rose petal meet coastal moss, crushed rock, and a gentle kiss of spice. Light-bodied but layered, with brisk acidity and silky texture.

Serving - Chill it slightly, and pair with duck breast, mushroom risotto, or perfect PNW summer sunset.

Album Pairing - BIG THIEF - ‘U.F.O.F.’ - 2019 * Just like Madson’s Pinot, this album is intimate, atmospheric, and full of small, beautiful details. U.F.O.F. unfolds slowly—acoustic but weighty, floral but haunting. It lives in that same emotional register as Santa Cruz Pinot: foresty, raw, and romantic in a way that doesn’t need to shout. Adrianne Lenker’s voice is all cool mist and pine needles—perfect with a glass of this and some quiet conversation.

COWHORN ‘GSM’ 2021 * Applegate Valley, Oregon
Cowhorn is a Demeter-certified biodynamic estate in southern Oregon’s Applegate Valley, run by the thoughtful, earth-loving team of Bill and Barbara Steele. Former finance execs turned regenerative farmers, they craft Rhône-inspired wines with Pacific Northwest soul. Their winemaker, Morgan Gire, channels the purity of the site into clean, low-intervention bottlings that speak softly but carry depth.

The vineyards are fully biodynamic and estate-farmed, with no synthetic chemicals, native cover crops, and horn manure preps galore. Fermentation is spontaneous with native yeasts, and this GSM is aged in neutral French oak. Bottled with minimal sulfur, unfined and unfiltered. The wine reflects both the warmth of the site and the calm discipline of the winemaking.

Grape(s) - 49% Syrah, 36% Grenache, 15% Mourvèdre

Flavors - Polished but wild-hearted—violet, blueberry, cracked pepper, and dried thyme. The Mourvèdre brings earth and structure, while Grenache and Syrah lend lift and spice. Medium-bodied and graceful, with a whisper of smoke.

Serving - Pair with lamb burgers, lentils, or a slightly overcast afternoon in the garden.

Album Pairing - VAN MORRISON - ‘Veedon Fleece’ - 1974 * Veedon Fleece is one of Van’s most introspective and earthy records—less barroom energy, more stream-of-consciousness poetry and pastoral groove. It’s rich but restrained, mystical but grounded—just like this biodynamic Rhône blend from Oregon. You get texture, you get depth, and you get a kind of wild, quiet elegance that sneaks up on you.

REMINDERS

• To celebrate our valued club members we offer 20% off all food ordered on the day you pick-up. 

• If you can not pick up on the pick up dates please contact mckay@barmiriam.com and we will hold your allotment offsite and can arrange for a future pick up.

• Email mckay@barmiriam.com to buy more single bottles or a case with special club pricing.

• Queen Anne Bottle Shop is open Tuesday-Saturday from 3:00pm — 8:00pm.

• Wine pairs best with friends. Tell your friends.