The Seasonal Table: Sommelier's Harvest Essentials

Every wine in this four-bottle pack earns its place at the table. A master sommelier chose each one to draw out the best in harvest season's food, from a legendary Saar Riesling estate to a volcanic Soave that trades routine for real character, finishing with two reds worth tasting side by side, an organic Burgundy Pinot Noir and a fifty-year-vine Brunello.

Suggested Menu

• First: Crisp apple, celery-root, and cultured-butter tartine with trout roe
• Second: Roasted kabocha squash soup with crème fraîche, brown butter, and toasted pumpkin seeds
• Main: Roast duck breast with porcini, chestnuts, radicchio, and a light jus
• Finish: Aged Comté with pear, walnuts, and walnut bread

2023 Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt, Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett Grosse Lage — Mosel-Saar, Germany

"The Saar's Off-Dry Icon"

Reichsgraf von Kesselstatt has been growing Riesling since 1349, one of Germany's oldest wine estates, now run by Dr. Karsten Weyand and cellar master David Nicolay across the Mosel, Saar, and Ruwer. This bottling comes from Scharzhofberg, the Saar's Grand Cru-equivalent site above Wiltingen, planted on steep slate and loess. The 2023 is a fruity, off-dry Kabinett at a light 10.5% alcohol, with ripe orchard and stone fruit, a flinty edge from the vineyard's iron-rich soil, and the racing, saline acidity the site is famous for.

Pairing note: Start the meal here. The wine's sweetness and cutting acidity are built for the tartine's trout roe and cultured butter, echoing the richness while keeping the palate awake for what's next. Serve chilled at 45-48°F in tall, tapered Riesling stems.

2025 Dama del Rovere, Soave Classico — Veneto, Italy

"Volcanic White with Bite"

Dama del Rovere is a family estate in Brognoligo di Monteforte d'Alpone, at the heart of Soave Classico, run by brothers Massimo and Davide Pra on steep, basaltic hillsides that give their Garganega serious mineral drive. The 2025 is hand-harvested, fermented cool in stainless steel, and rested on its fine lees for a silky mid-palate without losing its linear, stony focus. Expect white peach, lemon blossom, green almond, and a distinct smoky, volcanic edge.

Pairing note: The wine's brown-butter-friendly texture and stony minerality are made for the kabocha squash soup, cutting through the crème fraîche while picking up the toasted pumpkin seed note. Serve chilled between 48-52°F in all-purpose white wine stems.

2025 Château de Melin, Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune Rouge — Burgundy, France

"The Eighth-Generation Organic Pinot"

Château de Melin sits southwest of Beaune in Auxey-Duresses, a 28-hectare estate the Derats family has farmed organically (Ecocert-certified) since 2009, now into its eighth generation with sons Thomas and Guillaume on board. This Pinot Noir comes from clay-limestone soils around Sampigny-lès-Maranges, cold-macerated, fermented with manual punch-downs, and aged ten months split between tank and barrel. It's fresh red fruit and candied cherry with an occasional wild, gamey edge, backed by real tannic structure for a regional bottling.

Pairing note: Built for the duck breast. The wine's bright acidity and firm tannins stand up to the porcini and chestnuts without fighting the light jus. Serve at 57-61°F in Burgundy stems.

2021 Bramante Cosimi, Brunello di Montalcino — Montalcino, Tuscany

"The Grandfather's Cuvée"

Named for Rudy Cosimi's grandfather, a local tractor repairman, this is a back-road Brunello from vines his father planted in 1975, when fewer than 30 producers worked the region. From fifty-year-old vines on sandy, fossil-rich soil, the 2021 offers ripe cherry, blood orange, crushed violet, and dried Tuscan herbs over a base of sweet leather, with velvety tannins and a long, dusty-mineral finish.

Pairing note: The natural finishing wine of the pack. Its structure and dried-fruit character are a classic match for aged Comté, pear, and walnuts. Serve at 60-65°F in Bordeaux stems.