March 2026 Newsletter
Our March Newsletter has the sorts of wines that help bridge the gap between winter's stews and spring's leafy greens. There's still plenty of earthy savor and warm spices in the wines below, but when you find asparagus at the market for the first time we've still got the wine for you. The newsletter is split evenly into two parts, six wines from France, and six that are not from France.
Wines from France...
Plaimont Saint Mont Blanc 2020 $18
If there is a more effective advocate for the wines of Southwest France than all of us at Liner & Elsen, then it must be the good people at Plaimont, the leading cooperative project in the region with headquarters in the Saint Mont region just north of Madiran. Aside from their impressive work in Madiran, Jurançon, and the Cotes de Gascogne, they are mainly responsible for founding the Saint Mont appellation, and if making fantastic traditional wine isn’t enough, their nurseries hold stock of more than a dozen indigenous varieties once thought to be extinct. This Saint Mont Blanc is a great example of strictly southwest grapes in action: Gros Manseng, Petit Corbu, and Arrufiac combine in stainless steel tanks to make intense aromas of spiced apple sauce, white strawberry, honeycomb and orange zest. The palate is full bodied and creamy, with a delicious wallop of apple sauce and orange leavened by clean cut acidity bursting on the finish. A perfect match for herbaceous bean stews and soft cheeses.
Mas de Mon Pere Malepère Blanc Quitte ou Double 2022 Normally $34, now $22
Frederic Palacios likes to say that he was born in the hollow of a vine…close to nature and in the heart of Occitanie. He spent his childhood among the vines tended by his father and grandfather in the rolling hills west of Carcassonne. Growing grapes was a side job for the family, but for Fred, the winemaking bug bit deeper. After studying viticulture at school, he went to work for the local cooperative and didn’t like it; too much pesticide spray, too much focus on quantity over quality. It was a relief in 2005 when his father invited him home to take over the family vineyards, where he could realize his dreams of low-intervention farming. At Mas de Mon Pere (My Father’s House), Frederic blends Sauvignon Gris, Chardonnay, and the native Chasan for his only white wine. Aromas include peach pit, grilled pineapple, orange and lemongrass with a waft of white smoke. The palate is medium bodied with citrus and peach and fresh herbs all over before a lingering finish. Trade out the Chardonnay and put this with all sorts of chicken dishes and seafood stews.
Gilbert Chon Val de Loire Rose Solstice 2024 $13
There’s a little bit of Gamay planted in the vineyards of Muscadet, and it’s something of a treat when it comes to Portland. As fresh as you like, cheerfully crisp, and it comes with the same agreeable price tag as Muscadet! Marine Chon and husband Arnaud are the latest stewards of their family estate with roots traced back to the 17th century. In the modern day, they make some of the best value wine in the Pays Nantais from a 76 hectare estate in St. Julien de Concelles. This Gamay rose is a springtime picnic in a bottle, with aromas of strawberry sorbet, meyer lemon, roses, juniper and white soil minerality. Medium bodied and bouncy textured, the palate is a festival of fresh strawberries, white peaches, and rosemary before a dusting of white pepper emerges on the finish. Serve this up for casual gatherings with cheese plates, fruit or potato salads, hummus, pita and falafel.
Chai de la Dive Saumur Rose 2024 Normally $25, Now $22
Romain Guiberteau is among the most important winemakers in Saumur, and his estate grown Chenin Blanc and Cabernet Franc are some of the best available in the Loire; wines of both colors are packed to the eaves with mineral tension, intense flavor and energy. Chai de la Dive stands for the fruit he purchases from his trusted neighbors, and he turns it into some of the best value wine in the Loire. This cheerful Cabernet Franc rose shows bright strawberry sunshine, white pepper, and orange peel. The palate is lively, fresh and strong with strawberry, red cherry, with a citrus element and silky texture. The finish is bright with a lingering note of orange sorbet. As a rose, this wine exhibits all the energy of its limestone roots. Aged in stainless tanks for a wine perfectly silky and delicate on the palate but resonant with fruit through the finish.
Chai de la Dive Saumur Rouge 2024 Normally $25, Now $22
Cabernet Franc grown on clay-limestone marl that tastes a little bit like a liquid form of clay-limestone marl. This is a perfectly poised expression of the signature red grape of the Loire, with a delicious tension between earthy aromas of clay soil and tobacco leaves, black raspberries and lavender, that leads into a seamless palate of pure silk tannin that offers up more berries off the bush, raspberries and blueberries and cranberries, all growing close to the soil that comes through on the finish. Romain Guiberteau makes some of the most artful Cabernet Franc in the Loire, and some of the priciest. When he purchases fruit from his trusted neighbors for this introductory wine, he vinifies the grapes alongside the fruit for his own domaine with the same focus on energy and power without weight. The grapes are pressed delicately, matured in concrete and steel, and bottled after about six months. This is a wine for mealtimes involving burgers, porkloins, and most anything made with mushrooms.
Les Vignobles Foncalieu Cotes du Rhone Reserve de l’Abbe 2023 $17
Foncalieu’s Cotes du Rhone is drawn from vineyards in the northwest of Cotes du Rhone, where hills start to rise with forested crests on their way to meeting the wild nature park of the Ardeche. The broad spectrum of soils underneath includes sandstone, limestone, sand and clay, giving a reliable sense of balance to the grape harvest each vintage. Les Vignobles Foncalieu sells off much of their wine in bulk, but their best vines go into this cuvee, a mix of 60% Grenache, 30% Syrah, and 10% Cinsault, all aged in steel or concrete to preserve the earthy nuances in the wine. Aromas start with blackcurrant, dried cherries, blackberries, dusty earth with plenty of garrigue. The palate is filled with clay-earth accents, rich stewed berries, and herbs like sage and oregano, all neatly wrapped in gentle but persistent tannins. This is an old-school, unvarnished Cotes du Rhone perfect for hearty stews and ribs.
Wines from other places...
Gota Vinho Verde Azahar 2024 $15
The Portuguese wine industry as a whole is closer to its pre-commercial roots than the wine industries of other European countries. For the most part, Portuguese grapes are still grown in small family plots not much bigger than the backyard, and most of the wines are swallowed up by giant, faceless cooperatives with little regard for the quality of the produce. Natalia Jessa tries to offer a different choice for growers across northern Portugal with her Gota label. She partners only with growers who work sustainably and never irrigate their vines, and blends wines like this Vinho Verde, far better than the price demands because the ingredients are top quality. Two classic Vinho Verde grapes Arinto and Loureiro, combine for a nose of key lime pie, green apple and lemon with an unmistakable scent of salt – a reminder that all the vineyards that go into this wine are within 10 miles of the ocean. The palate is light, packed with citrus and apple and fresh acidity that leads into a gently mineral finish with lemon and lime blossoms left behind. Set this one up with spring salads or shrimp gumbo.
Cirelli Vino Biologico Bianco 2023 $19
Francesco Cirelli graduated with a prestigious degree in economics in 2003. He put his degree to unexpectedly hard work when he purchased a farm in Abruzzo, intent on making organic wine, olive oil and other produce in concert with the natural environment. Francesco and now his wife Michela tend the Azienda Agricola as a fully integrated ecosystem, whose animals graze on cover crops and produce the natural fertilizers for vines and olive trees. The winery is fitted with steel tanks for the everyday wines and amphora for their special reserves. This savory white is a blend of two Abruzzo classics: Trebbiano Abruzzese and Pecorino. Each variety on its own can make startlingly complex wines. Together their powers are multiplied, producing aromas of peach and pineapple, preserved lemon, tarragon and rosemary. The palate is pure, medium bodied sunshine, with flavors of lemon drops, roast peaches and herb salt. The perfect pair for a lemon pasta, carbonara, or grilled seafood dish.
Faraone Cerasuolo d’Abruzzo 2024 $21
Federico Faraone’s family has been growing Montepulciano and Sangiovese since the 1930s. Their vines are planted on the slopes outside Mosciano Sant’Angelo, just 10 kilometers from the Adriatic Sea and in the Colline Terramane district, considered Abruzzo’s finest terroir. The winery is best known for their deep rooted, earthy Montepulcianos, but this Cerasuolo is proof that there is a sunny side to Abruzzo’s red wines. To get the glowing ruby red color, Federico puts the grapes in the press, but before he turns it on, the weight of the grapes presses out “free run juice” for 48 hours, thus, only the most delicate grapes contribute to the wine. This is considered the most “noble” part of the press, and when it’s bottled pure there’s nothing else like it! Aromas of fresh red cherry, cranberry, and gooseberry; oregano, lavender and lovage. The palate is zesty fresh and packed from ear to ear with fresh red berries. The texture is full and bouncy with a satisfying crunch of acidity, and the finish is positively refreshing. Take this charmer out for the first picnics of spring, or with any well-stocked charcuterie board.
Marchesi di Gresy Dolcetto d’Alba Monte Aribaldo 2022 $21
Alberto di Gresy’s family had been growing grapes in the Alba region for more than 300 years when he began to try keeping some to make wine himself in 1973. From the very beginning, Alberto’s style was clear and distinctive. Whether it’s Barbera, Barbaresco, or this easy-to-love Dolcetto, everything Marchesi di Gresy makes offers pure, persistent aromas and elegantly balanced textures. This Dolcetto is planted on the Monte Aribaldo, a choice vineyard site in the heart of Barbaresco, and the grapes are gently handled in the winery, aged in a combination of concrete and stainless steel tanks before bottling. The nose jumps out of the glass with notes of fresh black cherry, violets, and sage. The palate is silky, medium weight and soaked in black cherries and blueberries, leading into dried flowers and dusty herbs. This is one of those Piedmont wines that seems to fit every menu, especially if there’s pork or venison on the table, or well aged parmesan over pasta.
San Salvatore Paestum Aglianico Ceraso 2022 Normally Normally $24, Now $22
The mountainous country that rises from the shore of the Gulf of Salerno is a nature park. It’s of the European style, where ancient villages still exist and people still live, but there are strict rules prohibiting further development that would destroy the rustic feeling of the countryside. In this setting, the organically farmed vineyards of San Salvatore make a picturesque backdrop for stunning views out over the Mediterranean Sea. The wines that grow here have that same sense of rustic charm, but San Salvatore’s wines are also some of the best in Campania. Closer to the sea than most Campanian wine, their wines smell just a little fresher and breezier than their cousins from inland Irpinia. This Aglianico smells of fresh picked cherries and plums, fresh ground black pepper, Italian herbs and dusty earth. The palate is even tempered and silky, with tannins that build slowly on the finish alongside earthy base notes. A perfect wine for casual nights with meaty pastas, roasted eggplants, and lamb.
Salem Wine Company Pinot Noir 2024 $23
It’s time to get excited about the Willamette Valley’s 2024 vintage Pinot Noir. Ever since the perfectly crisp, cool days of early October 2024, we’ve been excited for the wines. Winemakers came in talking about their “relaxing” harvests, where everything seemed to fall perfectly into place. Last year, a wave of beautifully intense white wines washed through the shop. Now that the Pinot Noirs are starting to drop, each new edition is going platinum on our palates. Witness this latest offer from Salem Wine Co. otherwise known as Evening Land’s second label, a blend of Pinot with just a 10% splash of Gamay for fun (and fresh red berry notes). The nose starts with big, bright brush strokes of black cherry and strawberry, rhubarb and orange peel, terracotta clay and violets. The palate is Pinot Noir at its finest, pure silk with talcum powder-fine tannins wrapped around fresh black and red cherries and oranges. There’s a dollop of Eola Amity clay on the finish, and citrus lingers to the horizon. Call this one a delicious start to a classic vintage.