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Seated Tastings:
For those of you who have not had the pleasure of joining us for one of our many by reservation seated tastings, often presented by winemakers or high caliber sales/marketing managers, we feel a need to make sure you are aware of the following:

Bin 75 Private Events – We wish to remind all of our customers that our Bin 75 Tasting Room is available for private events involving wine. For more information we suggest that you go to:

www.hintonswinestore.com/about_us.htm and scroll down to: Bin 75 – Our Tasting Room. 

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A note regarding the Bin 75 Wine Bar availability.  As hard as we try to keep it available Wednesday through Saturday nights from 5:00-9:00 p.m., we do get frequent requests for:

We thank you for your interest in our Bin 75 Wine Bar, and thank you for your understanding when it is not available.

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Rieslings - A trip around the World
Saturday, September 6th - 3:00 - 5:00 pm

The Riesling is considered one of the 'noble' grape varieties for wine making.  It can produce wines of high acidity and elegance in very cool growing conditions.  Its wines usually show fresh fruit flavors and a zesty character.  Riesling has the ability to produce wines that run the gamut from bone dry to very sweet but are usually made in dry or semi-dry styles.  It has perfumey aromas with peach and honeysuckle notes and can develop a 'petrol' nose as it ages.

Please join us on September 6 to enjoy Keith’s selections of Rieslings, including some that are from countries or wine regions not often associated with Riesling.

$15.00 – FREE to Connoisseur members. Please call 770-641-1900 to reserve. Special discounts will be available that day on the wines being tasted.
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Unoaked Chardonnay
Saturday, September 13th – 3:00-5:00 pm

The history of New World Chardonnay over the last two decades or so has been convoluted. Starting in the early to mid-1990s, the backlash against the garish "buttery, oaky" style led to the guerrilla ABC (Anything But Chardonnay) movement among the wine trade and media, a negative response to the grape in general (as the name clearly expresses). This utter rejection of Chardonnay could be thought to have helped spark the fascination with Sauvignon Blanc, particularly the racy New Zealand version. "Steel-tank fermented" was the slogan often repeated by winemakers, sommeliers and retailers to sell Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc, as the image of steely tang invoked by that phrase contrasted decisively with the association drinkers were making between oak barrels and unctuous Chardonnay.

It's no surprise, then, that the next progression in wine marketing and making saw the arrival of the "unwooded" Chardonnay. The provenance of this style seems to be Down Under (if we conveniently forget Chablis and Champagne), but the power in the name is unmistakable. Just as "buttery, oaky" became a catchphrase to describe something unpleasant, its opposites--"steel-tank fermented" and now "unwooded"--connoted something desirable.

Please join us on September 13 to enjoy Keith’s selections from our varied offerings of Unoaked Chardonnay.

$15.00 – FREE to Connoisseur members. Please call 770-641-1900 to reserve. Special discounts will be available that day on the wines being tasted. 
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U.S. Pinot Noir
Saturday, September 20th – 3:00-5:00 pm

For many (admittedly mad) vintners in various remote locations around the world, Pinot Noir is the Holy Grail. No other wine is so ephemeral, such an enigma. Great Pinot combines an extraordinary bouquet of spice, and fruits, and earth, with a sense of lightness, sometimes bordering on frailty in the mouth. Pinot Noir can indeed be a sensuous if sometimes fleeting experience. While the Cabernet Sauvignon of Bordeaux is all power and weight, Pinot Noir is the epitome of grace and elegance. While Chardonnay, for instance, is grown all over the US, Pinot Noir is much pickier. Currently some of the best appellations for US Pinot Noir include Oregon (perhaps destined to be the best of all) and several cool California sites including the Russian River Valley, Carneros, the South Central Coast (Santa Barbara & San Luis Obispo counties), and two micro-appellations in Monterey County: Chalone & Mt. Harlan. 

Please join us on September 20 to enjoy Keith’s selections from our very complete offering of U.S. Pinot Noir. 

$15.00 – FREE to Connoisseur members. Please call 770-641-1900 to reserve. Special discounts will be available that day on the wines being tasted.
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Fritz Underground Winery
Thursday, September 25th – 6:00-8:00 – Wine Bar will be available

If you would like to taste the wines of a winery whose owners were willing to cut production from over 30,000 cases per year to 12,000 cases, please join us for an informal tasting of five wines of this Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma winery led by owner Clay Fritz.  

We are pleased to share information taken directly from Fritz Winery’s website, with the understanding that specific details of the wines to be tasted will follow shortly:

About Fritz Winery

Pretend that you are far away in the Northern California wine country tucked away in the Dry Creek Valley of Sonoma County. High upon a hill nestled into the side of a hill is our subterranean winery. Jay and Barbara Fritz purchased this pristine property in 1970. After spending get away weekends from San Francisco at this rich Sonoma property for many years, the Fritz family decided to build a winery in 1979.  Today our credo is to approach winemaking as an art form. Art, in its truest sense, inspires a shift in consciousness. Our mission is to create wines of genuine artistry, capable of transforming the way we think about the potential of Sonoma County's premier appellations. The new generation of Fritz wines began with a commitment to unequivocal quality. Since 1996, changes at Fritz Winery have been swift and dramatic: Volume has been slashed by two-thirds to only 12,000 cases per vintage. New winemaking equipment is both esoteric and state-of-the-art. An underground cave ages all red wines. The vast majority of wines are vinified on native yeast. All white wines are currently single-vineyard designates, with red wines now in barrel soon to follow suit. The result? Cognoscenti now rank Fritz wines among California's top tier producers. Our limited edition wines now command a following among serious collectors. One hundred per cent of Fritz wines are sold on allocation. And the best is yet to come.

FREE to all Hinton’s Wine Store customers. However, a reservation, though not required, to 770-641-1900 would be appreciated so that we can plan properly. Special discounts will be available that evening on the wines being tasted. 
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Zinfandel for the Fall
Saturday, September 27th – 3:00-5:00 pm

Wildly popular in the U.S., many consider Zinfandel the original "California red." In fact, California is the largest grower of Zinfandel. It is also widely planted in Italy as the Primitivo grape. Zinfandel can range from a light, fruity red wine to a strong red with ultra-intense pepper and jam. "Zin" is frequently blended with other grapes. The small, berry-like Zinfandel grape is tough to grow. Its clusters tighten up and ripen unevenly. That's why many winemakers wait until late in the fall to pick the grapes. It likes warm valleys close to the coast. Zinfandel does extremely well in Dry Creek Valley, the hills of Napa, Sonoma, as well as Mendocino counties and Paso Robles further south.

As we get into the cooler weather of Fall, Zinfandel is the ideal wine for backyard barbecues, college football tail gaiting, and is particularly well suited for Mexican style dishes.  

Please join us on September 27 to enjoy Keith’s selections of Zinfandels, the most friendly of food wines. 

$15.00 – FREE to Connoisseur members. Please call 770-641-1900 to reserve. Special discounts will be available that day on the wines being tasted. 
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