The Waterbury Assemblage 2024; Vol. 1-5
Waterbury Assemblage Wine Club takes you on a journey from our shop to the vineyards of the world.
Looking back on the maiden voyage of The Waterbury Assemblage throughout the year in 2024, together we travelled the world and experienced the grapes from far reaching lands with a wide variety of growing conditions; all from our small shop on Waterbury Street. We hope you enjoyed the ride as much as we did planning the trip and before we look ahead to the next journey, we thought we’d take a look back at the places we’ve been. Please enjoy this Assemblage recap of Volumes 1-5.
All Assemblage playlists can be heard HERE
Volume 1, Alpine: Welcome to the premiere edition of Waterbury’s Assemblage - A wine club which is about the here and today, as much it is about travel stories, and a future of going places. Enjoy this trio selectively, or pop them all open among a circle of pals and find for yourself which wines pair best with different bites or moments. Riding co-pilot, a scannable playlist is available on Spotify via the code below. As with chefs who insist that wine is food, a playlist is bundled here in the spirit of music-as-food for the soul. The working theme of Volume 1 Premiere Edition is a nod to Alpine wine regions, spanning France and Italy, with the aim of provoking our subscribers to explore beyond this trio, into all wines Alpine.
Domaine Labbe Abymes Vin de Savoie, Jeremy Bricka Verdesse Isère Blanc, Donna’s Rosso 2019
Volume 2, The Pacific Northwest: A thunder-clap of reverb-drenched guitar… the howl of a lone Yeti pondering stars from a Sequoia top… all the way to the volcanic slabs of snowy Mount Hood, and the trout dances of the Columbia River - Let this road trip of Pacific Northwest wines… begin!
Joe Swick’s Columbia Gorge Pinot Noir 2021, Teutonic Wines Pinot Gris - Crow Valley Vineyard 2023, Les Lunes Elvie’s Block Carignane 2022
Volume 3, So-Hem: In the sipper’s quest for vertical structure aka wine-spine, we are often led to the northmost possible wine regions such as Champagne, Oregon, Germany’s Mosel, or even Michigan. These latitudes, with their seasonal variance and strong overnight shifts can bring out a zesty “eureka” in the grapes to balance even the ripest vintage. But what if we flipped that whole scene upside-down and headed south to islands, mountains and ancient river valleys seated as far away from Earth’s equator as their northern cousins? What will be the color of the mountain scraped skies and how far down-under can we go and still be slaked? We hope to take you there in three bottles, all to answer - just how low can we go?!
Rivera Notro Blanco Semillon Blend 2021, Kunoh Casablanca ‘21, El Montañista Viejas Tintas
Volume 4, Go East: As nature’s rhythms bring us more often indoors during Fall and Winter, and the change in lighting moves from beach rays to fireplaces and votives, plasma screens and card decks, or video chats with cherished folk, our sense of reflection may be heightened (along with chocolate cravings and the urge to fly toward the sun)… So with this in mind, we’ve chosen wines for Volume 4 Head East, which we feel reflect optimism and warmth, among other traits a sipper looks forward to in Orange and Amber wine, as well as a vibrant red which can please fans of both lighter and medium bodied styles. Please enjoy a suggested pairing along the way, or let us know what your favorite pairing discoveries were along this three bottle journey.
Merwah Phoenix, Dila-O Rkatsiteli Mtsvane 2021, Weninger Ponzichter
Volume 5, Island Hoppers: It’s Mid-Winter; Should I stay or should I go? Departing the hearth stones of Volume 4, in Assemblage Volume 5 we seek to rev-up the single engine of our Cessna and embark on an Island Hop by way of three curated yet accessible bottles, admired and of distinct character. A daydream seaplane may have whisked you here, but the journey back is yours to engineer. We hope it is full of great noshes and even better company.
Ancestrale Vino III, Dolores Cabrera La Araucaria Rosado 2023, Clos Fornelli Corse la Robe d'Ange Rouge 2023
A look into the contents of Assemblage vol. 2
Photograph by Alex Feld, included in Assemblage vol. 3
Artwork by David Bender, included as a post card in vol. 4
