The Ruché I posted about a little while ago was the first bottle I'd opened from my haul at Red & White; two subsequent reds have also been excellent. One was a known quantity: an Éric Texier 2014 Côtes-du-Rhône Brézème. $25. I can't remember the last time I saw Texier in the market here, so it was a pleasure to revisit this old favorite, and it's just as I recall it: a juicy, quaffable Syrah that leans toward funk, meat, and black pepper, without tipping over toward any extreme. The other was totally new to me: a Les Deplaudes de Tartaras 2014 IGP Collines Rhodaniennes "La Chanse." 100% Syrah, made by farmer-turned-winemaker brothers. This was outstanding and well priced at $24. Savory kalamata olive aromas backed by florality, fresh and tense in the mouth, the sort of wine that's good enough to guzzle but interesting enough to savor. The shop also carries their Gamay, which I'll probably try next; apparently they also make a "Mornen noir," not a grape I've heard of (but which I'm sure will soon be planted all up and down the California coast).
A couple of basic Austrian whites have been less inspiring. A Gobelsburger 2015 Kamptal Riesling at $17 was initially off-putting, with a lot of sour, puckery lemon notes; these softened with time and exposed more minerality, but I didn't feel this ever really came together into something harmonious. A Salomon Undhof 2015 Kremstal Grüner Veltliner "Hochterrassen" for $13 was perfectly pleasant but very generic white wine, showing almost no varietal character. These, interestingly, were from the local beverage superstore, not from Red & White.
(Of course, small shops aren't always reliable. Elsewhere in the city, I inquired about two different bottles of Montenidoli Vernaccia di San Gimignano, a "Tradizionale" from a very recent vintage and a "Carato" from 2010. I figured -- correctly, it turns out -- that the latter was barrel-fermented and aged and held back by the producer, but I was interested to hear what they thought of the styles, so I just asked what the difference was between those two wines. "Well, first of all, they're two different grapes...." Sigh.)