Walter's World, Edition No. 26 (September 2026)

Every fall I [Jess] run into the same creative block.

September is such a month of transition, and the weather is always a wild card. Will it stay warm and sunny for one last stretch of summer, or suddenly turn crisp and rainy, calling for richer whites and crunchy reds?

So this year, we asked ourselves: what else makes us think of September?
...and somehow the answer was Earth, Wind & Fire. 😂

It started as a joke, but then we started wondering ("What if the 21st of September was a Monday and we taught a class?") and this quickly snowballed into a full month on this theme.

Chris has put together a lineup of wines that explore how earth, wind, and fire shape what's in your glass -- from volcanic soils and windswept islands to mountain vineyards and ancient seabeds. As always, we hope they inspire you to explore somewhere new.

Cheers,
the Walter's team

P.S. – See something you didn't get in your release but would like to try?
Shop current and past wine club selections here [coming soon!]
or email us and we'll get the order together for you.

I | Ciro Picariello Greco di Tufo
2024 | Campania, Italy | Greco

Just outside Naples, east of the infamous Mount Vesuvius, in the foothills of Campania, you'll find some of Italy's best white wines. Grapes like Fiano from the town of Avellino, Falanghina from Sannio, and Greco from Tufo offer stunning textures and varying types of fruits - spanning from tart citrus to opulent tropical tones, all underscored with a clear minerality from the volcanic soils and saline from the Mediterranean. Ciro Picariello and his wife have been making wines here since just the 1990s, but have made an indelible impression on the experts of the region. They started with a singular focus on Fiano, chasing a style that was intended to age, and have clearly achieved that as folks mention them in the same breath as Raveneau, Lafon, and Coche-Dury (all coveted and super expensive Burgundy wines). The Picariellos have since expanded their lineup to include the big-and-burly Aglianico from neighboring Taurasi, as well as the supremely aromatic Greco from Tufo. While distinctly Italian, it garners its name from its supposed origins, translating to 'Greek' in Italian. Salted melon, grapefruit, and spring flowers remind us of what a glorious summer we had this year. Drink on its own or with a salad of the last tomatoes of the season.

II | Sierra de Toloño ‘La Dula’
2024 | Rioja, Spain | Garnacha

If you’ve been in the club for a minute you’ll recognize this producer and hopefully it brings a smile to your face with the realization that you are about to taste her most exciting wine. We can’t get enough of Sandra Bravo’s wines around here, and just put her rosé on the glass pour list. Sandra found a plot of 80+ year Garnacha vines in the Alavesa sub region of Rioja grown at high elevation. Historically, Garnacha was used as a blending grape to complement Tempranillo by bringing a bit of fruit and richness, usually being sourced from the hotter and lower elevations of the region. No matter the region, making a varietal (100%) Garnacha wine is challenging because it’s a large-berried grape that lacks tannin structure and loses acid quickly since its vegetative cycle is so long, which also makes it riskier from a farming perspective. Folks are starting to figure it out though and when it’s done right it rivals some of the best Pinot Noir in the world, usually for a fraction of the price. Sandra has coaxed plenty of structure, thanks to a cooler climate provided by the elevation, and these old vines growing in limestone, which helps to preserve the acid and retain freshness while keeping the alcohol moderate too. Drink this with some spicy dan dan noodles or Xinjiang cumin lamb. Oh man, I’m so hungry now!

III | Tierra Fundida ‘Wanderer’ Blanco
2024 | Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain | Listán Blanco

Back in June, we featured the red version of this wine, and this month we have the whitecounterpart, Listán Blanco. Oh - by the way - the new vintage of that wine will be landing in the shop soon and oh boy, it’s even more perfumed and gorgeous than the last vintage! Jess stole the sample bottle from me because it was so good. The white is the polar opposite of the red on the nose - super shy and reserved - but when you get it on the palate it really expands to become super tasty. Like a lot of varieties, Listán has mutated over time to include both a white and red version. Some varieties mutate even more to include a pink-skinned version, becoming too divided to pick one camp over the other. For newcomers to Tierra Fundida's wines (and as a refresher for everyone else), it's a wife-and-husband project on the island of Tenerife in Spain’s Canary Islands. They grow everything biodynamically and ferment in small lots from high-elevation vineyards. I definitely recommend decanting it and letting in sit for a good 30 minutes before drinking... and it needs food. Seafood stew, pork Milanese, or linguine and clams would be perfect with this wine.

IV | Alma4 Brut Rosé
2022 | Valle de Uco, Mendoza, Argentina | Pinot Noir

What do kids do when they grow up in winemaking families? They start badass sparkling wine projects when they’re just 17 years old! Four aspiring winemakers attending enology school became close friends, and, when a school project tasked students with brainstorming a wine label, they not only aced the assignment, but are still making that very wine together almost 30 years later. Initially they wanted to learn the technicalities of sparkling production as it’s so process-driven, and as they progressed they focused on varieties that were unusual at the time for the region of Mendoza. Inspired by the great wines of Champagne, they honed in on Pinot Noir & Chardonnay, and started experimenting with barrel fermention for the vin clair (which is the fancy French term for the base wine before kickstarting the secondary fermentation in bottle). They are now aging the wines in bottle on the lees for 40 months before release too, which is significantly longer than a lot of Champagne sees. This lends a character referred to as autolysis, the enzymatic breakdown of lees that infuses the wine with notes of toasted brioche, almonds, and spice. This wine is really going to surprise you with its complexity, and I bet if I poured it blind for you, you’d guess Champagne. Drink with pâté, terrines, or even a leaner cut of steak.

BUBBLE CLUB

I | Nathalie Falmet Cuvée Brut
NV | Côte des Bar, Champagne, France | Pinot Noir & Chardonnay

Nathalie studied chemistry in Paris before attending oenology school in Reims, Champagne where she grew up. Her family were growers and she took over the estate in the 1990s. At just 4 hectares, this boutique estate focuses on Pinot Noir with the addition of Chardonnay to bring focus to the wines. The Cuvee Brut is 50% Pinot Noir, 30% Chardonnay, and 20% reserve wines that Nathalie feels complement the current vintage. She adds a small amount of dosage after disgorgement just to balance out the acid, usually 4 or 5 grams. I love this wine for its precision without being too austere. The style reminds me of Paul Bara which we always have on the shelf.

II | Alma4 Brut Rosé
2022 | Valle de Uco, Mendoza, Argentina | Pinot Noir

Another repeat bubble for the entire club, because we loved it!