September 2026
WINE OF THE MONTH
Every month we give a little spotlight time to a hidden treasure, a wine we think you should meet (and hopefully fall in love with). To encourage the introduction, we offer the wine at 25% OFF the bottle price for the given month.
Sagemoor 2022 White Blend • White Bluffs, Washington • Reg $19.99 | 25% OFF = $14.99
Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon. Floral, earthy nose with pear, apple & a note of nectarine. Soft acidity. Medium-bodied. Palate adds in soft citrus near the finish. Fantastic for the money. Good with so many dishes include seafood curry!
JENS’ TOP PICKS
Every month Portalis owner Jens Strecker picks 8-12 wines that he thinks are outstanding … for any reason he chooses. Here are his September Picks — made with late summer, early fall in mind.
Chateau La Pirouette 2023 Médoc Cru Bourgeois • Bordeaux, France • Reg $18.99 | Mixed Case $15.19
Wines from the gravelly soils of the Left Bank tend to have more Cab than Merlot, and this wine is no exception: 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot. Aged 12 months in oak barrels (25% new oak).
Cassis, gravel, coffee on the nose. Super complex. Well-balanced. Fine acidity. Flavors of black currant, blackberries, plums, coffee, hazelnut. Fine tannins with a note of bittersweet chocolate on the long finish. Cru Bourgeois at its best. $18.99 is highway robbery for you, dear Portalis wine club members! Drink now. Winery says to enjoy with grilled meats. We agree.
Bellussi Prosecco Superiore DOCG • Veneto, Italy • Reg $17.99 | Mixed Case $14.39
100% Glera from DOCG Valdobbiadene vineyards which produce Prosecco Superiore, the crème de la crème of Prosecco and still a good price! Classic notes of white flowers, apple, pear & citrus on the nose. Fresh on the palate with velvety bubbles. Perfect as an aperitif or for a toast!
Scala 2025 Ciro Rosato • Calabria, Italy • Reg $21.99 | Mixed Case $17.59
100% Gaglioppo. Special Southern Italian nose. Spice. Minerals. Melon. Red berries. Flavors of raspberries, strawberries, honeydew but not sweet. Superb acidity. Complex. Long finish. Wonderful, wonderful rosé!
Raimbault 2024 Sancerre Blanc • Loire Valley, France • Reg $35.99 | Mixed Case $28.79
Beautiful, straight-down-the-middle Sancerre. Great fruit: grapefruit, citrus zest, little herbal note, and delicious flinty minerality classic for Sauvignon Blanc from this inland part of the Loire Valley. Enjoy with oysters, white fish, goat cheese or as an aperitif.
Photo: Sancerre vineyards with the hilltop village of Sancerre in the background. Credit: Loire Valley Wines @paolinevgr
Sagemoor 2022 Codebreaker GSM Limited Edition • Wahluke Slope, Washington • Reg $35.99 | Mixed Case $28.79
Mourvèdre 51, Syrah 34, Grenache 15. Earth, minerals, deep purple plums, black cherries. Good acidity. Medium+ bodied. Flavors of red & black plums with black raspberries (the acidity!) and fine tannins on the finish.
Faustino Rivero Ulecia 2024 Albariño • Rias Baixas, Spain • Reg $23.99 | Mixed Case $19.19
100% Albariño. Subdued nose of white peach, seashells, sea breeze. Soft flavors = dried apricots, white peach, dried pineapple. Fantastic acidity. Light to medium-bodied. Finish of lemon zest, citrus & a note of salinity. Killer Albariño.
Photo: vineyards in Rias Baixas / credit: Rias Baixas Wines>
Dutton-Goldfield 2021 Chardonnay • Russian River Valley, California • Reg $44.99 | Mixed Case $35.99
100% Chardonnay. Aged 10 months in French oak barrels (40% new). “The temperate 2021 growing season let us hang our old chardonnay vineyards until mid to late September, giving us excellent ripeness without sacrificing acidity. The great combination of bright and lush comes through right away in the nose, which leads with a bouquet of white spring flowers surrounding the core of lemon zest. Pear, green apple, and kiwi provide supporting fruit notes. In the mouth, the crisp and opulent theme continues, with lemon curd and creamy pear lifted with a lime zest finish. A little oyster shell minerality on the finish reminds you of the Sonoma Coast just to the west, and also of delicious shellfish pairings. Try it with our local Dungeness crab, Tomales Bay oysters Rockefeller, or a creamy clam chowder. Valley Ford’s Estero Gold Reserve cheese is a great match, as is a cave-aged gruyere.” —winery notes.
Quinta de Cabriz 2023 Colheita Seleccionada Red • Dão, Portugal • Reg $13.99 | Mixed Case $11.19
30% Touriga Nacional, 30% Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), 40% Alfrocheiro. Lovely nose of red and dark fruits (black cherries, blackberries) with a minerally note. Medium- to fuller-bodied with flavors similar to the nose. Great acidity (but not tart). Back in stock! Crowd-pleaser. All-Time Favorite. Perfect price.
Peyrassol 2025 Les Templiers Côtes de Provence Rosé • Provence, France • Reg $31.99 | Mixed Case $25.59
Blend: Cinsault 50%, Grenache 30%, Syrah 10%, Mourvèdre 5%, Tibouren 5%. Certified organic from soils of clay, limestone and gravel. Floral, spicy, herbal on the nose. Smells like Provence! Garrigue. But soft. Acidity is a dream. Flavors = wild strawberries, black raspberries, tayberries. Citrus all the way to the finish. Note of salinity. Absolutely great fall rosé. Think pizza, burgers, roasted chicken.
Marco Bonfante 2024 Roero Arneis • Piedmont, Italy • Reg $21.99 | Mixed Case $17.59
100% Arneis (translates in local dialect as "the little rascal" as it's a tricky grape to grow) from Roero. White peach, nectarine, rocks on the nose. Flavors add in a floral note followed by soft, minerally citrus. A little fuller than other Arneis. Long, vibrant finish. This wine is a steal! Winery suggests mussels as a pairing.