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OH - PORT - OH Port is one of those wines - often made fun of and not well-understood. Many people who drink dry table wine, especially with meals, think Port is a "silly" sweet wine, too foreign, or just something old men drink around a fire with cigars while telling war stories. Hey, great idea - and I have a couple war stories!Truth is, Ports are rich, they can be spicy, and don't have to be "make-your-fillings-ache" sweet. They are a perfect way to end a meal, or just great for an afternoon treat, with or without cigars (It's never a good idea to smoke if you really want to taste your wine). And it's not just an old man's wine! There are dozens of authentic Ports; that is, produced within the Porto DOC region in northeast Portugal, between Regua and the border with Spain. Ports get their name from the city Oporto, from which Port was historically exported, and across the river from the place where the final selection and blending typically took place. More about that later. Of course, there are also "domestic American ports," and here I'm using a lower-case "p" because wine made in the port style anywhere else, even if it uses the four traditional grapes - Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz, Touriga Francesa and Touriga Nacional - cannot legally be labeled Port. One big exception is that the USA and the EU made an agreement a few years ago that grandfathers in American wineries that were producing port before 1996. So that's why you will still see some "American Ports" with a capital P. One trend is unfortunate: Port and port-style wine sales in the US are down for the second year in a row, off 3% in '07 and almost as much in '08. But one potential bright note is that these figures ignore a lot of direct-to-consumer and tasting room sales of domestic ports. A Port Primer Port is one of the three types of wine; in this case, fortified. The other two types are table wine and sparkling wine. "Fortified" means that grape spirits have been added at the end of the fermentation process, which does a bunch of things: it increases the alcohol content, stops the fermentation of the base wine, typically increases the wine's sweetness, and also adds body.  Port grapes are picked in September and placed in a special, two-chamber vessel that takes only a couple days to ferment. It is designed so that the gases created by fermentation force the juice into the top chamber, and then the juice releases and pours down onto the cap of skins, extracting maximum color and flavor. This process, kind of like an old-fashioned coffee percolator, happens over and over at least every half-hour or more. When the winemaker decides he or she's got the right stuff, they drain the wine, which is only about 6-8% alcohol at this point, off into casks containing grape spirits, called aguadente. The mixture is generally about one part aguadente for four parts wine, meaning the new mixture is about 20% spirits. Drier Ports are fermented longer, resulting in a higher-alcohol base wine, and less aguadente is added. Traditionally, at this stage Ports were placed in pipes, casks that hold 550 liters or about 145 gallons. They were then transported to storage and blending warehouses at a place called Vila Nova de Gaia, where the producers did the final blending and classifying, resulting in wines of about 20% alcohol.Of course, port-style wine producers outside Portugal do things differently. Few use traditional Port grapes, many preferring instead to traditional noble grapes such as Zinfandel, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cab Franc. One winery, Virginia's Veritas Vineyard, uses Tannat grapes, native to France's Madiran region, which are remarkably tannic and produce a dense, chewy wine that sometimes must bottle age for a decade before it's even drinkable. Others use hardy local varieties such as Chambourcin, Norton and Frontenac, that are rarely used by themselves as varietals. Traditional Ports come in four main styles that you can recognize on your retailer's shelves: Ruby The most basic Port, and generally the cheapest, blended from several harvests. Rubies usually spend a couple to three years in stainless steel or oak, and they tend to keep the Ruby color for which they're known. If you're new to Port but want to try it, start out here. Tawny Usually starts with an unremarkable Ruby Port which is then aged in wooden barrels. This process causes it to oxidize and also some evaporation, changing the color from Ruby to a light brown and introduces some pronounced nutty flavors. If you want to try Port but really don't like sweet wine, give Tawny a shot. Late-Bottled Vintage Late-bottled Vintage means just what it says: it's from a single year's harvest, but is aged between four to six years in a barrel before being bottled and released, which tends to mature it more quickly. Vintage Only about two percent of Port can be called Vintage. It's aged in barrels for a couple years only but then in bottle for maybe 10 or 15 years before being released for sale. Aging in bottle retains the ruby color and fresh, fruity quality but the long bottle-aging adds character...and price. Labels: aguadente, Fortified Wine, LBV, Oporto, Port, Ruby Port, Tawny News for Tuesday, June 30, 2009 WINE NEWS!*&^%#@ Solar Panel Thieves Consumer League Urges Wine Label Reform Salutary Sonoma Sauvignons Good American Wines...at a Bargain 12 Million Bottles Online in Spot Market New Zealand Harvest Equal to 2008 How French are French Wine Barrels? Environmentalists Boycott SA Wine Penfolds Tries Glass Stoppers Screw the Cork? Labels: Bargain American Wine, French Barrels, Glass Stoppers, New Zealand Grapes, Penfolds, Sonoma Sauvignon, Summer Wines, Wine Label Reform, Zinfandel Restaurant Whine Service I recently wrote a piece about the restaurant bait-and-switch, about which I received more comments - all positive - than any other post on Wine-Flair, ever. So this morning when I was checking out a discussion about restaurant wine service "pet peeves" on Wine 2.0, I realized that the bait-and-switch thing is just the tip of the iceberg, and that diners need to know more to get good service.Ordering wine in a restaurant, and the rituals of presenting the bottle, opening it, presenting the cork and the first pour give a lot of people angst...and some end up just drinking beer or a cocktail instead. I've long said that the wine and restaurant businesses need to do more, a lot more, to make this process more friendly to the consumer if they want to capture a larger share of the market and make Michelob drinkers into Merlot drinkers. If you have any questions about this sometimes absurdly over-dramatic process - and you probably do - perhaps start by reading this primer on restaurant wine service. Then make a comment or email me your reaction. Happy dining and whin...er, wining! Labels: bait-and-switch, restaurant wine service, Wine 2.0 Wine & Food Pairing MAINE-LY! On Monday evening at New York City's Beard House, we were treated to a spectacular "New England Springtime" menu, courtesy of my cousin Mark Gaier, and his partner Clark Frasier, co-owners and nationally acclaimed chefs of Arrows and MC Perkins Cove restaurants, both in Ogunquit, Maine (shown in photo below right). They were accompanied by Arrows' executive chef Justin Walker, an accomplished chef and an expert in New England fish and farming.
Aside from bragging about Mark, Clark and Justin and the delicious food that they create daily, I want to make a simple point: This fabulous meal was made even more wonderful by pairing each course with a wine that complemented the food, garnishes and method of preparation, and actually accented the many and complex tastes rather than clashed with them. The wine and food pairing, by the way, was done by Danielle Johnson Walker. Anyway, on to the food and wine. Our appetizers of miniature lobster Rolls, crab cakes with remoulade, and yam fries (yes, and amazing, with a wonderful dipping sauce) were accompanied by California Sparkling Wine from Domaine Carneros. The wine cut through but didn't overpower the sauce binding the lobster filling, or the little dollop of sauce atop each crab cake, and its crisp acidity was refreshing on a humid NYC evening. I've visited Domaine Carneros several times, toured its bottling line and sat on the terrace behind its massive reprodiuction of a French Chateau. It's a fun experience, especially with a glass in your hand!  Our first regular course was house-made agnolotti (cheese pasta) with sauteed foie gras, cherries, and Arrows arugula, paired with Crowney Sauvignon Blanc from New Zealand. I found that this wine went great with Fois Gras, even though many wine folks might have stayed with something "traditional" such as Sauternes unless we gave it some more thought and a little innovation. I think it worked well mainly because it wasn't a typical NZ grapefruit bomb, which would have been over the top for such delicate food, but a bit mellower in the Graves style. And the sweet wines might have worked for the foie gras but not for the cherries - which were flavorful but not sugary - or the arugula.
 The second course, Arrows Charcuterie, included vintage 2007 prosciutto, quail sausage, house-made beef jerky (yum!), pepperoni, and miniature smoked garlic sausage, served with Justin's mustard and Arrows greens. The wine pairing was MAN Vintners Chenin Blanc from South Africa, where a quarter of all the vines are of this variety. This was an inspired if a bit counter-intuitive choice, given that you might naturally reach for a rustic red wine here. But these very rich meats, with their smoky, garlicky and spicy flavors could have gotten lost with a tannic, rough red. On the other hand, they were complimented nicely with this Chenin, which had the richness to stand up to the meats and yet was elegant.
The third course, Pan-Fried Halibut with Xiao Xing Wine (don't ask, and I don't know), Chinese Black Beans, and Summer Winter (Mark and Clark's third restaurant, in Massachusetts) Herbs, was paired nicely with Heron California Chardonnay. The sauce didn't try too hard to overpower the firm, delicious fish, and this somewhat crisp, Chablis-like Chard didn't smother it, either. The grapes for this unpretentious and very affordable wine come variously from the Russian River Valley, Carneros and the Santa Maria Valley regions.  Our absolutely amazing fourth course, smoked eye of rib-eye with herb butter, was the single most delicious piece of meat I've ever tasted - kudos Justin, up all night smoking them. Along with Mark's Mom's (my aunt Delores) Corn Custard, carrots, lovage (I had to look it up so you can, too), and farmers' cheese salad, the steak was paired with a Chateau de Caix Les Terrasses Malbec. If you're thinking Argentina but this doesn't sound Spanish, that's because it's a French Malbec from Cahors. Known in other areas of France as Cot and also in Cahors as Auxerrois, Malbec is one of the grapes that go into classic Bordeaux. By itself it's not as complex and perfumed as many other reds, but it was excellent for this tender piece of beef that was drizzled in a savory meat stock sauce with just a hint of black peppercorn at the end. Being somewhat soft and fruity, but not flabby (lacking in acid) the Malbec didn't overpower the corn custard, either.
Finally, I hope you'll take away three things here: #1: Wine and food pairing isn't a science, it's an art, but there is some "flavor science" behind it. Really. It ain't just hooey. #2: It's worth your while, especially in a restaurant or when preparing a dinner party, to think about how to pair your food choices with wine(s) that work to bridge that space between both. There are some fun online tools to help you, lots of books that you can read such as What to Drink with What You Eat, and my Wine and Food Pairing Chart is a good place to start. #3: Arrows and MC Perkins Cove are outstanding restaurants, with the best chefs in the land. Try them if you're in Maine. And if you're not, you should go! Labels: Arrows Restaurant, Beard House, Maine, MC Perkins Cove, Wine and Food Pairing Wine Not Take a Class? Not long ago I took a 3-day Intermediate Certificate wine class at The International Wine Center in New York. Although I was possibly the most experienced student in the class, I still learned a lot - not so much wine "facts," but really just having the opportunity to focus on wine without distractions, and getting new and different points of view. And the three days of tasting really was a great refresher for me, not having been in a formal class for awhile. The class was organized by geography, with an hour lecture/presentation followed by an hour of tasting wines from that region. We covered the US, Spain, France, and Italy among others.  For beginners as well as experienced wine students, I recommend the solid but friendly approach of Keith Wallace, founder and President of The Wine School of Philadelphia. Keith knows, as I do, that wine has been made into something mystical and, as wine writers sometimes say, "unapproachable." He and his team have a way of fusing fun with practical knowledge, and his Foundation Course, one of the best available anywhere, is always sold out. I know...I took it a few years ago, and it's gotten better and even more popular. The Wine School also offers a full range of intermediate (Certificate of Global Wine Studies) and advanced classes, including The Diploma Oenotrope, an advanced program that requires completing three certificate programs (Foundation, Global, and Advanced) along with a a senior project and a four month internship. All of Keith's classes include tasting, which is an important part of any rigorous, professional wine course. And here's something you should know about tasting wine in a professional or academic setting: it's not all fun. That may sound absurd, but I'm here to tell you that you don't just "taste" - you need to record your specific impressions using an accepted vocabulary, and then explain and justify your evaluation in front of your fellow students. You learn a lot in a tasting class because you're required to describe what you're tasting in meaningful terms, rather than just say you liked or didn't like it. And when you're tasting, say, 60 wines in an afternoon - or even a morning - you can't actually drink them, or you'd be horizontal within a half hour. You taste and then spit, which frankly gets kinda gross after awhile.  I've also taken three professional wine classes at The Rudd Wine Center of the Culinary Institute of America, in St. Helena, California in the very heart of Napa Valley. Great classes, instructors who make and sell wine for a living (such as Jeff Morgan of SoloRosa and John Buechsenstein of Sauvignon Republic), and there you are surrounded by wineries and vineyards! So, what I'm saying here is that if you're really interested in wine, go take a class, or attend a true structured tasting. There you'll get tasting notes, write down your own impressions, and usually get some good info from the instructor about the vineyards, climate, the country where the grapes come from, the styles of wine from that region, and comparisons with similar wines from other regions, countries or continents. Another great way to learn about wine is simply from reading. My website, sure, and thanks for visiting - but there are a lot of good books out there. I personally wouldn't read Wine for Dummies or any of the other "Dummy" series, as I don't like giving money to people who insult me at the start - at least wait until you know me a little bit. And I'm not a dummy, and neither are you. You're probably just new to wine, or perhaps you've been around the vineyard a bit but just not had the time to focus. So perhaps start with a half-hour or hour of reading at night before you tune into The Daily Show with John Stewart (which I never miss), or instead of watching the dismal 11:00 pm news programs with stories of market and automobile crashes. There's a host of good books out there, some of which I mention in "Wine Books." Labels: Keith Wallace, Metuchen NJ, Sauvignon Republic, SoloRosa, The International Wine Center, The Wine School of Philadephia, Wine-Flair Wine Ratings are Like Monopoly Money Imagine you own a small hardware store in, say, Cincinnati. A good customer who's also a familiar face walks in and buys some power tools costing a couple hundred dollars.Great so far, right? You ask "Put this on your tab?" He replies, "No, I'll pay cash." Fine; you ring him up, and he plunks down $212...in Monopoly money. This is a problem, because, well, you'd only accept Monopoly money when you're playing Monopoly. But you would take U.S. currency because you see it often and it's obviously familiar. More importantly, you recognize it as valid. Well, the story is the same for wine reviews, wine rating systems based on points, and the judgments of wine reviewers. For example, to a lot of wine lovers, Robert Parker is very familiar, and they take what he says as currency. As a result, they may never try wines that he doesn't recommend and they'll probably also find that their tastes and preferences in wine inevitably start to be a lot like his. Do you like big, bold, fruity, explosive, "massive?" Hope so. I do, actually, but I also like subtle, gentle, elegant, restrained, nuanced, complex, crisp, and sometimes even off-beat. Now, Parker is the most influential person in the wine world (well, except for Richard Sands of Constellation Wines, according to Decanter), but so what? His palate ain't yours, his tastes ain't yours and his budget is just a bit larger, I imagine. Anyway, what's in a number? Can Parker himself tell me the difference between a 92 (92 being some kind of threshold, I am told) and a 93? And even if he can, do I care? The other point here is that the very idea of putting a mathematically precise point rating on something as subjective as the taste of wine is itself a little absurd. Now, as somebody who tastes and recommends a lot of wines myself, I'm the first guy to admit that there are some sensible and accepted ways to evaluate wine, and some commonly accepted terms to describe it. But that's a long way from giving a particular wine a numerical score of, say, 95 and then declaring it's worth $1000 a bottle as a result.  So, if you're going to depend solely on Parker or anyone who rates wine numerically to tell you what to buy and what's good - and what's lousy - then you're going to be accepting quite a lot of Monopoly money. If you're ok with that, fine. Me, I prefer my own palate...after all, it's the one I taste with.And I live in Jersey so I can tell you that Atlantic City is no prize. Beware the Restaurant Bait and Switch! I had two experiences in one week that demonstrate both how good and bad restaurant wine service can be, and how you gotta pay attention if you want to avoid paying for Margaux but drinking Boone's Farm. It's unfortunate that this nonsense still goes on...and on.The good was La Griglia restaurant in Kenilworth, New Jersey. While perhaps not the nexus of haute cuisine, this pleasant establishment has an extensive wine list, running to 34 pages and naturally focused on Italy. It features dozens of wines under $100, many of those in the $30-$70 range and a nice selection of new world offerings. I found quite a few things to like, one of which I ordered, Bastianich "Vespa Bianco" 2003, a blend of Chardonnay, Sauvignon and Picolit: complex, savory, forty-seven bucks and done. Good food, crisp and professional wine service, nice glassware, fair prices and lots of choices. Outstanding. And every wine I asked about (eight) was in stock - in the listed vintage. The bad was the total disappointment of The Would, a restaurant in the lower Hudson Valley, NY. It had been recommended by the concierge at the B&B where we stayed while touring some small wineries in the area, along the Shawangunk Wine Trail.  Anyway, after we arrived and once I got past the fact that the place was still gaudishly festooned with Christmas decorations at the end of January, I plunged into the wine list and immediately saw several things that caught my eye. One, a 2001 Rudd Cabernet, seemed like a good deal, especially after having visited Rudd and tasted their stuff the summer before as part of a class at...the Rudd Wine School of the Culinary Institute of America, Greystone.I made a point to tell our server to kindly check the vintage (year); she came back a few minutes later and said we were in luck, one bottle left of the '01. But after departing to fetch two glasses of a nice sparkling Rose as our starter, she returned to tell me the vintage was not '01 but rather 2002. I responded by saying, ok, well what's the price for the oh-two? "Oh, the same" she said. "How is that?" I asked. No answer, and she turned on her heel and trotted away. When she finally returned, I made another selection from the list, only to learn that "we're out of that vintage" but "we have a different year." This happened again...and again. When I politely (well, probably with more than a little irritation in my voice) noticed that it seemed to be the rule at this restaurant not to have anything that was actually on the card, the server shot back "it's just too hard to keep up the list." No, it isn't. Simply put, a restaurant that actually charges money for wine on their list (as opposed to giving it away) needs to sell what's actually on the list at that price, not merely what's in their cellar. Otherwise, ethics requires them to change the list to match what they have in stock, along with an appropriate change to the price. Anything else is simply dishonest. Now, is this a crisis on par with, say, the swine flu pandemic (which threat is pretty exaggerated itself), or the economic crisis we all face, or, as the nuns used to say, a busload of orphans driving off a cliff? Well, no, but it's pretty close to stealing, and is a bit of a pandemic itself in restaurants. So as wise wine consumers, you have to pay attention when you're looking at the list and ask questions, and when the wine arrives, pay attention to what's on the label. For getting the best from restaurant wine service, go here. For the record, I made a phone call about this to one of the partners of The Would, and also sent her an email. Remarkably, she didn't respond to either. So I have. Labels: Boone's Farm, Kenilworth New Jersey, La Griglia, Margaux, Rudd Cabernet, Shawangunk Wine Trail, Vintage, Wine List Great Wines and Grapes...You've Never Heard Of! So how's that glass of Seyval Blanc I just poured you? What d'ya think of that Baco Noir? Care to purchase another bottle of Norton? It's on special today only."You've probably never heard these words, unless, perhaps, you live in New York's Hudson River Valley and you get out a bit. And if you want to expand your tastes and wine experience a bit, here's a primer to get you started. Seyval Blanc is a French-American hybrid that's a little reminiscent of Sauvignon Blanc, and can produce outstanding, crisp dry white wines as well as slightly sweet ones. When mixed with Chardonnay, as they do very well at Baldwin Vineyards with their Mist de Greco, or Clinton Vineyards where they do a 100% Seyval, it's a nice change from the whites you probably drink frequently. Baco Noir is another hybrid, this time a red, that produces a foxy, smoky varietal a bit like Charbono, another grape you may not know. Benmarl in upstate NY makes a great Baco as does Canada's Henry of Pelham Family Estate, shown here. Norton, which was introduced to the US in the 1830s by one Dr. Daniel N. Norton of Richmond, Virginia, is sometimes called "America's True Grape." They make very nice wine from Norton in New York, Virginia (Chrysalis Vineyards), Illinois, and especially in Missouri where it's the popular state grape. Bet you didn't even know that Missouri had a state grape! Try the Stone Hill Winery for this one, too. And I'll throw in a couple from across the pond, too.  Savagnin is a European white grape that can make an aromatic, sherry-like wine and is widely grown in the Jura region and often bottled as Vin Jaune or "yellow wine." The nutty taste is unmistakable and makes a great aperitif before dinner in place of cocktails. Look for the place name of Arbois where it's sometimes mixed with Chardonnay and gets a little closer to table wine.Picpoul Blanc (Picpoul de Pinet) is a white grape and one of the few grown in France whose wine is named for itself rather than the place where it's grown. Its name means "lip stinger" and it really is, with crisp citrus and floral flavors that go great with seafood. So - expand your horizons and try some of these! Labels: Arbois, Baco Noir, Baldwin Vineyards, Charbono, Chrysalis Vineyards, Mist de Greco, Norton, Picpoul Blanc, Seyval Blanc, Stone Hill Winery, Vin Jaune THE LEGACY OF ROBERT MONDAVI (Robert Mondavi died just about one year ago.)It should have been wonderful: a trip to Washington and a state dinner with Jack and Jackie Kennedy!...all while flying the flag for the family's Charles Krug Winery. Robert Mondavi had been representing the winery for some time as general manager and head of sales and marketing. As part of his business education, he and his wife Marjorie had traveled to France in 1963 and brought back some new ideas. Not just about making wine, mind you - for example, using oak barrels for aging - but also about the appeal of a more European lifestyle, including fine food and, well, "high culture" at a time when Americans were eating Swanson dinners off trays and washing them down with colas. Bob, as he "modestly" liked to be called, now began to insist on plowing Krug's profits back into the obsolete winery, towar Krug would forever throw off the making of cheap 'plonk' and become a world-class winery in its own right. Bob was, back then, what we would later call a 'visionary' in the Internet age. Bob's brother Peter Mondavi had different ideas. As the winemaker, he felt that every "suggestion" his brother made - about wine styles, fermenting techniques, the need for aggressive promotion and marketing, and even sharing ideas with competitors - was an implied, if not explicit criticism, of him. And Peter and his wife, along with his two sisters and their families, also felt strongly that more of Krug's profits belonged in their pockets. Still, Marjorie couldn't stand in the presence of the President of the United States and his ultra-glamorous wife in a house frock, especially when the president of Italy was being honored, could she? She needed a mink, of course. And since this was really a business trip - the Mondavis were representing Charles Krug, after all - shouldn't the winery cover the cost until Bob could pay it back? As it happened, the trip didn't take place until early 1964, for a state dinner under a decidedly less elegant president named Johnson.  Peter's anger and resentment simmered for another year as Bob's spending and his sometimes high-handed running of the business continued. One afternoon, the brothers began to argue again about Bob's purchase of the mink for Marjorie. Words turned to fists, Peter found himself on the ground, and a few months later Robert found himself out of a job - fired by his mother Rosa, alienated from his family, and suddenly removed from the only life he knew.That day, the Robert Mondavi Winery was born.  On Friday, May 16, "Bob" left us. But in the intervening 43 years, he set California winemaking, and wineries in Napa especially, on a course to become much better than they ever would have otherwise. Some say that in pursuing his vision he tore his own family apart in almost exactly the same way he and his brother had parted. And though he and Peter would reconcile in his final years, the inland empire Robert built, with an iconic mission-style winery as its emblem, fell to a corporate wine giant in 2004.Robert Mondavi was both a simple man and a titan, and full of contradictions. Generous to a fault, his quest for perfection became an obsession that sometimes clouded his judgment and complicated his family life and his business in ways we can only imagine. Yet he did far more than put his own personal stamp on the outstanding wines that bear his name. His legacy is a steadfast encouragement and personal support of two generations of winemakers, who collectively elevated American wine and the California wine scene to the world-class status for which he yearned. In this case, "Mission Accomplished" is actually an understatement. Labels: Charles Krug, Fume Blanc, Peter Mondavi, Robert Mondavi, Rosa Mondavi WINE PARTIES THAT WON'T BREAK THE BANK When you're having a party, it's easy and fun to buy some less-expensive wine and serve from decanters, which you may already own. You can get a basic but elegant Riedel Cabernet Decanter (shown here) from Target under $20, and many wine retailers sell decorative decanter tags that you can use to label them.So decant a white, two reds - a Merlot and a Zinfandel, for example - and let your guests pour for themselves. Do make sure your decanters are immaculately clean and rinse them with very hot water to eliminate any soap reside. Second suggestion: Get some good bubbly that isn't "Champagne." Prosecco is my favorite among the non-Champagne sparklers, and good bottles often go for no more than $12, some even cheaper; for example, Zardetto Conegliano Prosecco can be had for $10 and I've seen it as low as $6.  Or try a Spanish Cava - Cava Jaume Serra Cristalino Brut or Aria Estate Cava Brut. Or a French sparkler - Boyer Brut Blanc de Blancs NV, which Sherry-Lehman in NYC carries for $11, or even a nice Rose such as Louis Bouillot Cremant de Bourgogne Rose which goes for under $15. On this side of the ocean, try Barefoot Cellars Bubbly Brut (CA) for under $10, or Chandon Riche California Sparkling Wine or Piper Sonoma, Blanc De Noir, both under $15. If your retailer isn't carrying sparkling wines at these prices, let them know you'd like them to, and that you'll go elsewhere if you have to!Third: Get some good bubbly that is Champagne...but not expensive. Try Charles Lafitte Brut Prestige or Gosset Grand Reserve, both $15-18 max. Or Pommery's 'Pops' Champagne Rose for under $14! Again, tell your retailer to get with these recessionary times! Finally: Put on a wine-tasting party and ask each guest to bring a bottle of his or her favorite but absolutely under $15. Assign a country (France, US, or Australia for example) or a varietal (e.g. Cabernet Sauvignon, or Riesling, or Sangiovese) or just a vintage year (2006 maybe) and see what turns up. Have each guest introduce their wine and say what they paid and where they bought it so guests who like it can get some, too. Wine, I mean. Labels: Cava, Decanters, Gosset Grand Reserve, Piper Sonoma, Prosecco, Riedel, WIne parties HOUSE WINE HABIT? Natalie McLean is a damn good writer and knows her way around a bottle and a vineyard or two. I recommend her Red, White and Drunk All Over as a fun and educational book, and unlike talk show hosts, I actually read the whole thing and am not working from the Cliff's Notes version hastily written by an intern who's been up all night turning pages. Gee, I wish I had an intern. Anyway, good as Natalie is, I disagree with her when when she says (on her website) that every wine lover should have a "house wine." In my experience, that's precisely what people who are new to wine get wrong, and what often keeps them from learning about new wine places, varietals and styles. Is there anything wrong with enjoying a particular wine, and keeping several bottles of it on hand for guests and gatherings? No. But I can't tell you how many times I've visited friends and been "treated" to the same Merlot from the same winery - their "house wine." When they visit, they are gracious enough to bring wine as a gift, but guess what they bring? Gee, thanks, what a surprise - twice in one week! Now I'm a big fan of Merlot-based wines, especially those from St. Emilion and Pomerol, and anyone who's tasted a Chateau Angelus sure knows what I mean. And I've even been known to enjoy a glass of California Merlot from time to time. But it's just one grape in the pantheon of reds, and while my well-meaning friends are happily numbing their palates, they're missing out on so much. It's just too easy to stay with one varietal and one winery once you get comfortable with them, like a worn out couch...or husband. But it's not much fun. So here's a short list of what you're missing: Cabernet Franc: As a varietal it can be wonderful, with vegetal notes in a cherry wrapping. Try Lang & Reed. Carmenere: Almost unknown here, they do great things with this smoky, leathery grape in France and Chile, and nowadays even California. Also known as Grand Vidure. Charbono: Obscure grape that they're still making into a varietal in north Napa. Try Summers Estate Winery. Grenache: So delicious as the base of French red Chateauneuf du Pape wines. White Grenache is the base of the white ones. Mourvedre: An intense, tannic and gamey grape that originated in Spain. Can stand alone but is most often used in blends. Also called Monastrell. Norton: A native North American grape that can produce a spicy, raspberry-y red. Try Augusta Winery. Petit Sirah: Not the same as Syrah, and makes a fabulous varietal every bit as big and bold as a cult Cabernet. Try Pedroncelli. Pinotage: A South African cross of Pinot Noir with Cinsault. Sangiovese: Base for Chianti wines. When blended with Cabernet and/or Merlot, these are the so-called "Super Tuscans." A clone of Sangiovese goes into one of the best wines of the last 10 years, the Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova, which got an unheard-of 100 points in 2001 from Wine Spectator, and was its "Wine of the Year" in 2006. Tempranillo: Spanish grape, main part of Spanish Rioja red wines and goes into Port under the name Tinto Roriz. Tannat: From the French Madiran region. Intensely tannic wine that can cellar age for decades. So: love your house wine, if you have one. But step out on it frequently. You'll be glad you were unfaithful. Labels: Charbono, Chateau Angelus, House wine, Merlot, Mourvedre, Natalie McLean, Norton, Petit Sirah, Pinotage, Wine-Flair WINE TASTING: NO FEAR!!! I built this website to help you de-mystify the world of wine, so that you can try new stuff at your local retailer, or order confidently in a restaurant. And this little article should also give you some gumption when you attend your first, or 20th, wine tasting.So - you're invited to a formal wine tasting...and you want to go. After all, it's for a worthy charity that you know, and the buzz is they've got some wonderful cult California reds and brilliant French white Burgundies. Yum. So you register, and pay your $75, and you show up with excitement and anticipation. You're relatively new to the world of wine, and the only "tastings" you've ever attended are at a friend's house. And we all know that those were really more like wine "drinkings," also known as "parties." So when you stand outside and gaze into the tasting room, you feel overwhelmed as you watch the light reflect off hundreds of freshly washed glasses, while the assembled guests preen and prance around like masters of the universe. This is supposed to be fun, right? But all you see is very serious-looking people having what look like very serious conversations with well-dressed men and women standing behind tables, carefully pouring a small sample into each glass. The guests hold their glasses up to the light very deliberately, and then swirl them with great ostentation before sticking their noses in so deeply that you think they'll break - the glasses, their noses, or both. You hear one say something about the "mid-palate" and another remark that "too much time in 100% French is obvious." Some guests even have those little shiny "tastevins" around their neck, while the prettiest woman in the room is spitting into a ceramic bucket from three feet away with the accuracy of a Marine sniper. Aside from all these affectations of wine tasting, you think to yourself "I'm not really experienced or very good at this...and what if one of the wine suppliers asks me to describe their product wine in 'wine terms' - I will literally shrink to the floor!" You assume that the palates of these critics - and their tastes in wine in general - are so much more "refined" than yours, that you're simply out of place here. Well, don't, and, you're not.  Why do I say that? 'Cause in 2001, a professor at the University of Bordeaux conducted two wine tasting experiments that show just how much we are all influenced by pre-conceived perceptions. In the first of his two, well, scams, Professor Frederick Brochet invited a bunch of self-anointed wine experts to describe the flavors and aromas of both red and white wines he poured. One of these high priests lauded the red for its "jamminess," while another talked of its "crushed red fruit." None of the almost 60 experienced tasters figured out that the red was really a white wine, tinted darkly with food coloring! The second test with a different group was even sneakier, in which ordinary and inexpensive red table wine was placed in a pricey Grand Cru-labeled bottle, and also in its original labeled bottle.In other words, a single wine was passed off as itself - and as a different, far superior wine. Yet three-quarters of the experts there judged the "grand cru" as "complex, balanced and rounded," while the vin de table in their view was "weak, light, flat and faulty". But they were the same wine! My points here are simple:
Labels: Bordeaux, jamminess, Sideways, vin de table, wine tasting |
Main photograph by Christine Costello (View of Gloria Ferrer Vineyards, Carneros, CA).
