You are invited you to a very special night at The Natural Wine Company this Friday from 6-9 PM. We will be hosting the opening of a brand new art exhibition by artist Karen Decher, who happens to be one of our favorite people on earth. Compulsively creative, she fills her home and her life with countless works of art. From her daughter’s “fairy garden” and hand made Halloween costumes to her prolific stream of paintings, sculpture and multimedia work, she is someone who makes art because she must. In her words: “I am influenced by everything around me—art, architecture, pop culture, nature, science, fabric, paper, cartoons, and people (and in 25 years as a psychiatric nurse, she has truly met all kinds)…so my work ends up being a brain salad of all these inspirations.” So, what wines pair with brain salad? How about a truly thought-provoking orange wine, the Red Hook Winery Vipolzé made right here in Brooklyn by Scholium Project’s Abe Schoener? Perhaps a Terre Nere Etna Rosso born of the black volcanic soils of Mount Etna? A richly textured, deliciously sparkling Cremant du Jura from Domaine de Montbourgeau? Or a brand new, well-priced Umbrian white, the Tiburzi Brigante? Well it is Friday, so let’s try them all!

Just like every snowflake, every mom is unique. Are you sure yours (or your kid's) wants flowers and chocolate to celebrate her awesomeness? At The Natural Wine Company, we'd like to suggest a different choice - or two. We have a bright, beautiful, biodynamic Rosé made by Dominique Hauvette, and a rich, creamy organic wheat whiskey made by neighbors in Sunset Park - both perfect to make Mom feel appreciated - and she may even share some with you. So what will you choose? Well, we obviously hope both - what could make a better Mother's Day? In any case we hope to see you this Saturday from 4-7pm at the store. Have a great weekend and enjoy the sunshine! The Natural Wine Company

This Saturday from 4 to 7pm, we will be tasting two beautiful Spring Rosés: one from France, one from Greece - so come out and get your fix!

This Saturday from 4 to 7pm, we will be tasting a spring-friendly gamay from Christian Venier. Christian Venier is one of a growing number of talented natural winemakers in France's Loire Valley. Located near Cheverny near the middle of the valley, Christian's family has been growing grapes and making wine in the Loire for centuries. Christian was inspired by his cousins Thierry and Jean-Marie Puzelat, who are highly regarded champions of natural wine, and have built a worldwide reputation for their wines. Christian farms his 30 acres of vines biodynamically, and in the cellar, he lets Mother Nature do most of the work. The wines are fermented with the ambient yeast living on the grape skins, and he lets them sit in large cement tanks as long as they need to complete fermentation. He also employs carbonic maceration in his winemaking. Carbonic maceration is a technique often associated with the French wine region of Beaujolais, in which whole grapes are fermented in a carbon dioxide rich environment prior to crushing. Conventional alcoholic fermentation involves crushing the grapes to free the juice and pulp from the skin with yeast serving to convert sugar into ethanol. Carbonic maceration ferments most of the juice while it is still inside the grape. The resulting wine is fruity with very low tannins and it is ready to drink quite early. A perfect recipe for a fruit-forward, food-friendly wine as we head into the warmer months.

This Saturday from 4 to 7pm, we will be tasting two wines form Nicolas Gonin. Much like Slow Food, who work to save vanishing breeds of livestock and nearly extinct varieties of fruits and vegetables, this week's featured winemaker cares deeply about preserving obscure, indigenous grape varieties in his native France. We are certainly richer for his work, as his wines are both delicious to drink and truly unique—the kind of wines that get us excited. Not yet 40 years old, Nicolas Gonin learned his craft from a widely diverse group of master winemakers including Ridge Vineyards' Paul Draper, Domaine Forey in Vosne-Romanée, Chateau Gilette in Sauternes and Domaine Tempier in Bandol. Always learning, he never strayed from his original desire to return to his native Saint Chef (located about 20 miles east of Cote Rotie) and make his own wines, and in 2003, he began to assemble a patchwork of vineyards that has grown to about 10 Biodynamically-farmed acres today. Located about half way between the Northern Rhone and the Savoie, Balmes Dauphinoises is a truly obscure winemaking region well suited to this unique winemaker and his cadre of rare grape varieties.