This 2-pack includes 1 bottle of 2012 - Bug Juice Moscato, and 1 bottle of 2011 - Bodega Teso La Monja Almirez.

2012 - Bug Juice Moscato:
"Each year, one of the finest Moscatos comes from Rinaldi, and the fabulous label and hilarious reference to "bug juice" only adds to the fun. This light-bodied, low alcohol (4-5%) Moscato is bursting with notes of honeysuckle, lychee nuts, peaches, mangoes and spring flowers. The intoxicatingly intense aromatics are followed by a wine with some residual sugar, although that component is well-balanced by the wine's acidity and freshness. These Moscatos are best drunk in their first 6-9 months of life, so drink this Bug Juice up immediately."

"Well-known in these pages, Fran Kysela runs a surprisingly large volume import business with a strong focus on value-priced wines from Southern France, Argentina, Australia, and Spain." (08/13) - 92 Pts Robert Parker - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Wine:
"Straw-yellow color. The bouquet is delicate and intense with aromas of fruit (apple, peach) and spices (sage). The palate is sweet and smooth with lingering aromatic persistence. A refreshing and pleasant wine, perfect for brunch, picnics or poolside. Made from 100% moscato d'Asti, produced in the zone of production of Ricaldone, on the hills called Bricco Cardogno, Celle and Vallarenzo. The training system used is Guyot with a density of 2500-3000 vines per hectare." - Winery

Serving suggestions:
"Dessert, ideal with hazelnut cake. Original with "strong" cheese such as Robiola of Roccaverano and Gorgonzola." - Winery

Vinification: "Manual harvest into crates. Soft pressing. Settling in steel vats to allow natural clearing of musts. Racking, increase in temperature. Temperature and pressure controlled fermentation until bottling." - Winery

Estate:
"The winery is located on the hills of Alto Monferrato, close to Acqui Terme, in the heart of one of the most precious areas of south Piedmont. The family business was founded in 1961 by Oreste Rinaldi. It is run today by his son Andrea and his daughter Paola. The family has been producing wine for 40 years from their vineyards located on a particularly privileged area with a favorable microclimate and a perfect southwestern exposure." - Winery

Vineyard:
"Currently Rinaldi has 20 hectares of vines (49.6 acres), 19 hectares owned, 1 hectares rented. Their single vineyard Bricco Cardogno, planted to Moscato, is a vineyard that measures 2.5 hectares (6.75 acres) and was planted 40 years ago by Andrea Rinaldi's grandfather. It is located 240- 300 m above sea level. The soil type in this vineyard is limestone (tufa). All grapes are hands harvested with extreme care. Quality starts in the vineyard. The single vineyard Bricco Rioglio is planted with Brachetto grapes, limestone based with 15-year-old vines. (Bricco is a tea cup in local dialect)." - Winery

2011 - Bodega Teso La Monja Almirez:
"Another great value is the 2011 Almirez, which comes from old, ungrafted, head-pruned Tinta de Toro vines. The vineyards are planted at 2,300 foot elevation, and the yields in 2011 were 18 hectoliters per hectare. The wine spent 12 months in 30% new French oak. A fabulous effort, it could easily pass for a big, rich Chateauneuf du Pape, even though there is not a touch of Grenache to be found in it. Its dense purple color is accompanied by notes of charcoal, barbecued meat, blackberries, cassis, licorice, camphor and spring flowers. Boasting massive concentration, a full-bodied mouthfeel and lavish extract, all concealing of its French oak aging, this rich, full 2011 possesses velvety tannins as well as a finish that lasts nearly 40 seconds. At this quality level, one would expect the price to be three digits or more. Enjoy it over the next 10 years." (11/13) - 94 Pts Robert Parker - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

"Deep ruby. Smoky cherry, black raspberry and mocha on the highly perfumed nose. Sweet, fresh and juicy, with very pure dark berry and floral pastille flavors that put on weight with air. Finishes smooth, ripe and very long, with intense mineral and spice notes adding cut." (10/13) - 92 Pts Josh Raynolds - International Wine Cellar

Producer:
"Just as many music artists must ponder exactly how they follow up a global smash, so brothers Marcos and Miguel Eguren must have sat down and wondered how they could repeat the success of Numanthia-Termes, after they sold the estate to LVMH. They founded Teso La Monja in 2007. They farm 90 hectares of what they describe as "middle and old vineyards" plus another 72 hectares of "young" vineyard. I asked Miguel to explain his approach towards viticulture. "It is growing the healthiest, purest grapes as possible," he replied. "The philosophy is to transmit the character and the essence of the land into every bottle of wine. Everything is done with the minimum intervention, the vinification more Burgundian in style than Bordelais, to look for gentle extraction, obtain and look after the tannins in the pips. Therefore, we are seeking a lower degree of natural alcohol. We are looking for the freshness and elegance. We have sought north-facing, high-altitude vineyards with a longer vegetative cycle and we are looking for minerality. Our passion is the vineyard. Our wines are different - we are looking for acidity around 5 or 5.7 because we have a slight limestone concentration. We have also purchased a lot of stony vineyards to minimize the thermal jump at the end of the growing season. We are looking for sugar, aromatic and phenolic ripeness that are closer together. Most of the vineyards are planted on a slope to enhance drainage and the Atlantic winds means that ripeness comes 7 to 10 days later. Less licorice notes, more red rather than dark fruits with higher acidity level and lower alcohol and perhaps less tannic structure, less green tannins because the long vegetative cycle allows us to reach a phenolic ripeness." There are five lines from the entry level: Romanico, Almirez, Victorino, Alabaster and Teso La Monja. All represent top-class wine as one would expect, though for this writer, the Almirez offers pretty much unbeatable value for money." - Robert Parker

This wine was also rated 88 Points by the Wine Spectator.