Eric's Blog

Torbreck Wine Tasting

2010-04-28T17:58:00Z

04.26.10 Torbreck Wines

I had the immense pleasure of spending Monday afternoon with my wife Linda at the Allison Inn & Spa tasting through quite a collection of the Torbreck wines. We were hosted by Rob Moller of Merchant of Vino and we were joined by Andrew Tierney, Director of Sales & Marketing for Torbreck and about sixteen other members of the trade from the Portland area. It was a typical cool, wet spring day and the room was air conditioned to help show the wines at the optimal temperature, but the wines were warming and helped to reaffirm that Australia does make some incredible wines of distinction.

First off, the setting - The Allsion Inn & Spa located in Newberg is the first luxury destination in Willamette Valley's wine country. Not even a year old The Allsion has garnered lots of attention and critical acclaim for the high level of service, beautiful surroundings and attention to detail. We arrived early so that we could have lunch in Jory, their signature restaurant that features inventive dishes made from local ingredients. Not having a reservation might be a problem on a warm summer afternoon, but on a cool spring day we were seated almost immediately at a table that gave us a great view of the valley to the south. Since this is meant to be about the wines I won't waste too much space about The Allsion, but suffice it to say that the service was impeccable and the food was delicious. I would highly recommend it to my friends. In fact we are going to go back as a group for one of their Sunday Family Suppers that features three courses for $29.

Our first flight of wines provided the insight that Torbreck isn't just about big, burly reds. The 2008 Woodcutter's Semillon exhibits a bright yellow-gold color and projects orchard fruits and citrus zest to your nose and on the palate adds some herbs on the back end. This will compliment almost any seafood and went beautifully with the prosciutto-wrapped grilled prawns provided - 89/100. Our second white - 2010 The Bothie, is a fragrant Muscat Blanc a Petite Grains that is made as a "vin doux naturel" style by the addition of grape spirit to the fermenting must to halt the fermentation leaving some significant residual sugar. The resulting wine was light-bodied, off-dry and quite refreshing. As pointed out by Andrew Tierney this would compliment a tray of fruit and cheese nicely on a warm summer afternoon, or offset a nice stinky blue-veined cheese after dinner - 88/100.

Before I launch into the red wines we tasted I think a general note about the winemaking philosophy at Torbreck is warranted: most of the vineyards they source from are old vines: 40-140 years old! Even their "young" vines are at least 20 years old and they keep crop levels very low - 1-2 tons per acre and in some vineyards not even 1 ton/acre. They harvest later than most Barossa producers because they want ripe phenolics (tannins) in the skins and the seeds and they aren't worried about how much sugar ends up in the grapes. They destem the bunches and carry out fermentations under controlled temperature conditions, typically in the 25-28 °C range (77-83 °F), which is quite cool. This helps to preserve the freshness of the fruit and limits the amount of extraction that takes place during fermentation. The barrel regimen differs depending on the wine, but only French oak is used (now) and they do not fine or filter their red wines before bottling. The resulting wines show an amazing purity of fruit, elegant balance of fruit & acid and a refined tannin structure. While I didn't go gaga over all of the wines, as a group they were very enjoyable and we learned that they are very ageable too. Now on to the wines.

Flight 2

2008 Cuvée Juveniles

The name might imply that young vines are the source here, but in fact the youngest are 40 years old and the oldest are 140 years old. This wine sees nothing but stainless steel so there are no oak influences, just rich, ripe Barossa fruit comprised of 60% Grenache and 20% each Shiraz & Mataro (Mourvedre), a GSM blend. Medium ruby-red color with alluring aromas of blueberry and black raspberry with a hint of dried herbs mid-palate, this is an easy-to-drink wine with a very supple finish - 90/100.

2006 The Steading

This wine has the same pedigree as the Juveniles - about 45 different sources of fruit, vinified separately and blended after each barrel has been assessed for its virtues. The assemblage was aged in older French Hogshead barrels (300 liters or ~79 gallons) for 24 months before bottling. Lovely aromatics of pie cherry, black raspberry, and a hint of dried herbs here too. Very open-knit and easy to approach The Steading has a long finish that gets tightened up ever so slightly by fine-grained tannins - 90/100.

2001 The Steading

This vintage was aged in older American and French barrels. Not as open aromatically as the 2006 but still very fresh and exciting with all of the power exhibited by the younger wine. This is very much like a great southern Rhone blend with aromas of garrigue, black pepper and raspberry reduction, still going strong but should probably be drunk over the next 3 years - 91/100.

2006 Les Amis

100% Grenache from a vineyard planted in 1901 aged in 100% new French oak. Dense ruby-red in the glass with rich aromas of black raspberry, black cherry and Asian spices followed by a hint of oak near the finish this is a beautiful wine that is just starting to emerge. This layered beauty is hiding its best for later and will reward a few years aging - 93/100.

Flight 3

2009 Saignée

Saignée (sane-yeah) is a French term that means "to bleed the vats". It's the most common way to make rosé wine. After a brief period of contact between the skins and the juice some of the juice is "bled" off of the must and then fermented separately, in this case in well seasoned 300 liter Hogsheads. This results in a medium watermelon-pink rosé that is very much like a Bandol rosé from the Provence region of France. Sporting a spicy nose of wild strawberries, dried herbs and dried cherry this is a serious

rosé that will pair well with seafood - 90/100.

2006 The Pict

100% Mataro (Mourvedre) from a single plot of ancient vines aged in 100% new French oak for 24 months, this is not a wine for the faint of heart! A glass-staining deep purple color with scents of black currants, blueberry, blackberry jam and a certain musky herbal note that speaks of forest floor and mushrooms. This is dense, concentrated and a bit rustic. The finish goes on and on. I love it! - 94/100

Flight 4

2008 Woodcutter's Shiraz

This is the workhorse wine for Torbreck and they make some 30,000 cases of it. 2008 was extremely hot and was a drought year as well resulting in some very ripe grapes. As mentioned above Torbreck is accustomed to handling ripe grapes but in this case the alcohol was a bit more evident on the finish. On the nose I get plum, Asian spices, and blueberry. The wine exhibits a nice mouthfeel and a lengthy finish - 87/100.

2006 The Struie

The 2006 The Struie is 100% Shiraz, sourced from cooler, hillside sites, 70% from Barossa Valley and 30% from Eden Valley with vine age ranging from 46 to 110 years. It was aged for 18 months in 20% new oak. At this point the tannins are more prominent in this wine probably because the cooler sites provide more restrained fruit but give this baby another 4 or 5 years of cellaring and it will be incredible. Opaque purple in the glass with scents of blueberry, blackberry, and a whiff of minerals the fruit is balanced by dusty tannins on the lingering finish - 90/100.

2001 The Struie

The 2001 Struie has a similar composition to the 2006 and is surprisingly still very primary in its aromatic expression but there is a bit of meaty, gamey Syrah in there. Dense ruby color with aromas of red and black fruits intermingled with scents of violet and black pepper - 88/100.

Flight 5

2006 The Factor

One of my favorite wines of the tasting this 100% Shiraz is assembled from lots harvested from the oldest, most revered vineyards in the Barossa. It spent 24 months in 30% new oak and boasts a dense purple/black color in the glass. Aromas of violets, licorice, smoke and pepper lead to an explosion in the mouth of blackberry, licorice and slowly unfolding red fruits mid-palate gliding into a very persistent finish. Still very youthful, very Barossa-ish but not at all overdone - 94/100.

2003 The Factor

This version is still inky purple in the glass and just now starting to show some of the secondary characteristics of Syrah that reveal themselves as a slightly sweet & sour element. I first detected blackberry and cherry notes followed by plum and a hint of espresso. After about 15 minutes in the glass I got some tar and spice aromas along with more blackberry and plum framed by fine-grained tannins - 93/100

2007 Descendent

This vineyard was planted by Dave Powell in 1994 with cuttings off old RunRig vineyards - some of the oldest genetic material in Australia. The Barossa's first co-fermented Shiraz/Viognier, Descendant has been joined by many more in the last couple of years - a testament to its success. Composed of 92% Shiraz and 8% Viognier sourced from a single vineyard this dense ruby-red beauty displays an explosively perfumed bouquet of violets, cherry, black olive and a hint of vanilla. The powerful aromas are echoed on the palate along with currant and black pepper. A very powerful, intense and concentrated but elegant expression of Barossa fruit - 94/100.

2001 Descendent

92% Shiraz and 8% Viognier sourced from a single vineyard as above that gets aged in 2.5 year old barrels previously used for RunRig. This elegantly styled effort exudes power without being heavy. Aromatically it opens with blackberry, cassis, licorice and Asian spices followed on the palate by silky tannins framing lush cassis, raspberry and a hint of coffee. Seemless and elegantly delicious - 95/100.

RunRig Flight

1997 RunRig

Still sporting a saturated black-ruby color in the glass this is the flagship offering from Torbreck. Made with select lots of fruit harvested from 80-140 year old vines and aged for 30 months in 100% new French oak. After thirteen years there is no oak present in the aromatic profile or on the palate. The 5% Viognier that is added right before bottling adds a pleasant aromatic lift but doesn't get in the way of the voluptuous, dense black fruits. Aromas of cassis, blackberry, licorice and bitter chocolate flow onto the palate where this superconcentrated wine persists for more than a minute after you swallow. This seems like it still has another decade of life left in it. Liquid silk - 95/100.

1999 RunRig

Dense ruby-purple color in the glass. Very powerful in a restrained style. Scents of plum, cedar and chocolate open up to reveal pepper and black raspberry. Cassis, blackberry and tar flavors are framed by fine-grained tannins that give way to a peppery, chocolatey finish. Very concentrated without being heavy. Ready to drink now - 95/100.

2001 RunRig

Inky ruby-purple color. Concentrated scents of blueberry, plum and baking spices are echoed on the palate along with black raspberry and chocolate. Immensely satisfying and lengthy finish where you barely detect any tannins but the wine is not at all fat, but rather harmonious and full-bodied - 94/100.

2002 RunRig

Also inky-purple in the glass. A little more of the viognier element is exhibited here as apricot and honeysuckle notes. Aromas of blackberries, licorice, violets and chocolate. On the palate the wine is amazingly complex with dense layers of blueberry, plum, licorice and coffee surrounded by silky tannins. Incredibly lengthy finish that lasts for over a minute - 94/100.

2005 RunRig

I didn't care for this wine as there was obvious volatile acidity. One of the members of the tasting group, Riggs Fulmer, commented that he liked the wine because it was a "little naughty" and he isn't put off by such things. I like a bit of Brett in some of my wines and I can get behind some funk too, but this just didn't appeal to me. It may have been this specific bottle because the wine received rave reviews from the press...

2006 RunRig

Glass (and tooth)-staining purple color. High notes from the Viognier show themselves early but are overtaken by black and blue fruits in the form of blueberry pie, black raspberry compote with a pretty, savory note thrown in for good measure on the persistent finish. While still very primary in its evolution this was my second favorite wine of the tasting. These RunRig wines exhibit incredible power but remain perfectly balanced and elegant - 96/100.

Thank you to Rob Moller and Andrew Tierney for a thoroughly enjoyable afternoon and a closing note. While many of these wines are expensive and out of reach for most consumers, they demonstrate that meticulous farming and fastidious winemaking can result in wines that exhibit power, grace and elegance even in the land of Yellowtail Shiraz!

Washington Wine Road Trip Part 3

2009-11-24T01:04:00Z

On Wednesday we were on the road at 7:30 am headed for Yakima Valley where my group visited Airfield Estates. After a few punch downs and pump overs we observed a mobile bottling line put some of their finished product into final packaging. The use of these semi-trucks for bottling is very popular and a smart business decision considering the cost of an in-place bottling system and the fact that it would sit dormant for 10-11 months of the year.

The empty bottles are slightly over-filled on a rotary table (in the background) then pass through a station that aspirates the excess guaranteeing that each bottle is filled properly. The next station puts the Stelvin closure on (screw cap) before the bottles head to the labeling section of the line. After labeling the finished product is returned via conveyor belt to the same area where the empty bottles were taken out of their boxes. Empty bottles into the back of the semi and full, labeled bottles back out minutes later, pretty slick.

Because we did the winery exercise first on this day we ended up tasting wines pretty early in the day. But hey, we're professionals! After tasting through the lineup of Airfield Estates wines we were bussed over to the DuBrul Vineyard for our Yakima Valley Vineyard Exercise. If you haven't been to this part of the world you definitely need to head up to Yakima Valley. Most of the landscape is desert-looking and you would not think that anything worth eating could grow there. And if there wasn't adequate river water available for irrigation nothing would.

As the bus made its way up the hill I kept asking myself "would I ever think to plant a vineyard here - no!". We were greeted by Hugh, Kathy and Kerry Shiels, owners of DuBrul Vineyard (and Cote Bonneville). This property, originally planted in 1992, sits on a primarily south-facing slope looking out across the Yakima River toward the newest AVA in Washington, Snipes Mountain. The soil is littered with rocks and the aspect (tilt with respect to direction) changes every 30-40 meters making for a difficult-to-manage vineyard. But manage it they do and a number of prominent wineries seek out the grapes grown here including Owen Roe and Woodward Canyon. If you read the previous post you can see what they do with this precious crop under their own label "Cote Bonneville". Really well-made wines if a bit on the expensive side.

Our afternoon exercise was a tour of Red Willow Vineyard followed by a Syrah Comparative Tasting Workshop. The vineyard is a unique site situated in the North West corner of the Yakima Valley on the Yakima Nation Indian Reservation. Because of its higher elevation (1200-1300 ft) this site was above the flood plain of the Lake Missoula floods which means the soils are really nutrient poor and more ancient than most of the other vineyard sites in Yakima Valley. The list of varietals grown here is extensive and some of the oldest plantings of Syrah in the state of Washington are here too. A prominent feature in the vineyard is the small chapel that sits atop one of the highest points in the entire site. This was constructed by a local artisan from pictures of "Hermitage La Chapelle", a truly iconic vineyard on the east bank of the Northern Rhône that arguably grows some of the world's best Syrah.

The Syrah tasting was exciting for me because I enjoy the varietal and more importantly because I see that Washington is capable of truly world-class Syrah. Once again we were given 3 known Washington Syrahs and 6 unknowns including 3 more from Washington. The known wines:

2006 Gramercy Cellars Lagniappe, Columbia Valley

Co-fermented with 3% Viognier; fermented with 40% whole clusters. "Lagniappe" is a Creole term to denote a little bonus that a friendly shopkeeper might add to a purchase. By extension, it may mean "an extra or unexpected gift or benefit." This Syrah certainly gives a little extra by means of its incredible aromatics. This really reminds me of Northern Rhône wines with violets, dark berries and a hint of dried herbs on the nose. The palate shows elegance but no restraint with regard to intensity. I really like the texture of Greg's wines.

2006 Amavi Cellars Syrah, Walla Walla

Dark ruby color. There's more new oak on the nose here followed by violets, underbrush and white pepper. Densely packed layers of red fruits emerge along with fine tannins mid-palate and the finish is medium length.

2007 Owen Roe "Ex Umbris", Columbia Valley

I'm a big fan of David O'Reilley's wines and this is always one of my favorites. This vintage is deep ruby in color and exhibits aromas of plum, violets, leather and pepper all nicely wrapped up in velvety tannins for a long finish.

The "unknown" wines:

2006 Radio-Coteau Syrah "Las Colinas", Sonoma Coast

This was riper and fuller in body but still maintained a good sense of balance. Pepper, ripe berries, a hint of dried herbs and roasted meat with a medium-long finish of fine-grained tannins. I did guess California...

2006 L'Ecole No 41 Syrah Columbia Valley

This was a much more restrained style with earthy, gamey notes that made me believe it was from France...

2005 Langmeil "Orphan Bank" Barossa Valley, Australia

This one too was a little rough around the edges and didn't strike me as New World in style. It definitely didn't have the typical power I associate with Barossa Valley Shiraz.

2007 Betz Family WInery "La Cote Rousse" Syrah, Red Mountain

Purple ink in the glass, the 2007 La Cote Rousse is 100% Syrah primarily from Kiona and Ciel du Cheval Vineyards. This smelled voluptuous and tasted even better! Based on the nose I thought this might be from the Northern Rhone but once in my mouth I guessed Washington. Very dense and layered on the palate with fine-grained, mouth-coating tannins and an exceptionally long finish. Really good stuff.

2005 Columbia Winery Syrah Red Willow Vineyard, Yakima Valley

Deep ruby/garnet color. My least favorite of the bunch because of its lack of precision. Rather chunky in style the wine seemed out of balance (perhaps it needed a bit more acid?).

2005 Domaine Durand Cornas, Rhone Valley

Dark ruby-red color. Lovely aromatics of lavender, ripe red berries and a meaty component thrown in for good measure. This was classic Northern Rhone style Syrah with chewy structure and power without excess weight.

I must say that I have high hopes for Washington State Syrah. I think this varietal will eclipse Merlot and Cabernet over the next 10 years in terms of world recognition. After the Syrah comparative tasting we were bussed to Woodinville for a nice dinner hosted by Chateau Ste Michelle were I sat with Brennon Leighton of Efeste Wine Cellars and Chris Sparkman of Sparkman Cellars. What a couple of down-to-earth winemakers that like to have fun! They kept me in stitches all night long.

Washington Wine Road Trip Part 2

2009-11-22T15:34:00Z

Day three began at a little more reasonable 7 am. I don't mind getting up early, that's what I do every day. But many of the group work in the restaurant world where 2-3 am calling it quits is the norm and getting up at 5:30 is not. After an hours drive my group ended up at Goose Ridge Vineyard, the largest contiguous vineyard in the state of Washington at 1400 acres.

Goose Ridge makes wine under their name as well as the Stonecap brand. They also sell fruit to a number of other wineries in the area. We drove out into the vineyard and met up with some of the Goose Ridge people along with the Chateau Ste Michelle director of vineyard operations, Kevin Corliss. He talked to us about how they manage the water program in the vineyard to facilitate canopy management. By denying the vines water at the right time they can halt vegetative growth and limit the amount of manual labor involved in leaf thinning. We also got to see first hand how a mechanical harvester works when they drove it right over our heads while we cowered against the adjacent row. The harvester straddles a row and "fingers" reach into the vines and strip the grapes off onto a conveyor that deposits them into a bin on another vehicle that travels in parallel down another row. They claim that the process is gentle but it looked to me like there was a lot of damage done to the grapes and a fair amount of leaf material included in the mix. Interestingly enough the Goose Ridge wines are hand-picked while the Stonecap wines are mechanically harvested.

We got a brief tour of the facility which is divided into two operations: a (relatively) small space devoted to the Goose Ridge wines where they use oak barrels for ageing the reds and a large space filled with giant (25,000 gallon) stainless steel tanks used for the Stonecap production where oak chips are used to impart that component. Charlie Hoppes, the winemaker, lead us through a tasting of their wines. He also has his own brand, Fidelitas. The Stonecap wines were uninteresting to me. They were not flawed but they had no soul. They are meant to hit the shelves at less than $10, but with all of the great value wines from Italy, France, Spain and South America that exhibit real character, I say pass on these. The Goose Ridge wines had more depth and nuance.

2006 Goose Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon

Medium-dark ruby color. A nice burst of red fruits when it first hits your palate is followed up by some sage and olive notes. The tannins are ripe and it has a medium-long finish.

2005 Goose Ridge Vireo

39% Syrah, 37% Merlot and 24% Cabernet Sauvignon. This has more dark fruit elements along with a hint of cocoa on the finish. The supple mouthfeel and smooth, ripe tannins make this very enjoyable.

We were bussed over to Anthony's at Columbia Point in Richland for a luncheon hosted by Jeff Gordon of Gordon Brothers Family Vineyards. Following lunch we broke up into different teams once again for our afternoon "vineyard exercises". My group was hosted by Tim and Kelly Hightower of Hightower Cellars located in the Red Mountain AVA. Our work focussed on determining if a block was ready to pick. We walked between two rows collecting berries randomly from both sides and placing them into ziplock bags. Once back in the winery we crushed the grapes while still inside the bags and tested the resulting juice for pH and sugar content. We also looked at the seeds, or pips as they are called, to determine color (green - not ripe, brown - ripe) and to see how much pulp adhered to them (lots of slimy pulp attached - not ripe, little or no pulp - ripe). Tasting the seeds gives you the final input needed to make a decision. The consensus was that the block could use a little more time and because the weather was cooperating they would hold off another few days before picking.

We were lead through the Hightower wines by Tim and Kelly who share all of the responsibilities at the winery. They are really nice, genuine people that share a passion for making great wine. When asked asked what else we wanted to do and Aaron pipped up with "can we just sit on the patio and drink some more wine?". Sure, was the reply and the glasses were taken out onto their deck that overlooks the Yakima Valley. We watched the hawks circle lazily overhead and shared stories about wine and our lives for the next hour or so. All-in-all a very relaxing afternoon.

2006 Hightower Merlot

82% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc (most of the fruit is sourced from Horse Heaven Hills with roughly 1/3 coming from Red Mountain). Medium-dark garnet color with black cherry, blackberry and a hint of roasted herb on the back end. Medium body with good overall balance and fine-grained tannins. Medium length finish.

2006 Hightower Cabernet Sauvignon

88% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot (mostly Red Mountain fruit). Deep ruby color with black cherry, anise and currant aromas that are echoed on the palate. Mouth-coating (ripe) tannins provide a lovely texture to the wine and the finish lingers pleasantly for almost a minute.

2006 Hightower Red Mountain Red Wine

78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot (all Red Mountain fruit). This was my favorite of the bunch. Deep garnet color with aromas of cherry, wood smoke, cassis and sage followed by flavors of dark fruits and dried herbs. The texture is fantastic and the finish goes on and on. Really well made.

The regional tasting this day was held at the Precept Brands' Canyon Ranch facility. The tables were setup outside and not everyone was prepared for the cold air. During the tasting a bright, near-full moon rose over the Rattlesnake Hills to bathe the area in soft light. Following the tasting we enjoyed a nice dinner outside under propane heat lamps. Some of my favorites from this day:

2007 RiverAerie Malbec

Deep garnet in color with some earthy notes under the black cherry and plum. Good depth of fruit and a mouth-filling texture make you go back for another sip after enjoying the lengthy finish.

2005 Col Solare

71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc. Medium ruby color with ripe blackberry, plum and black cherry aromas that get delivered on the palate too. Very lengthy finish on this complex wine.

2006 Col Solare

72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 19% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, 3% Petit Verdot, 2% Syrah. I don't know, a lot of people were really excited by this wine while I didn't care for it that much, at least not at this time, but then I'm not an oak slut either ;> Perhaps with some additional bottle ageing it will come together.

2007 Cote Bonneville Chardonnay DuBrul Vineyard

Medium golden yellow in the glass. Tangerine, pear and some tropical notes emerge from this well-balanced Chardonnay and the vibrant acidity really keeps the fruit core focussed.

2005 Cote Bonneville Carriage House Bordeaux Blend

Cabernet Sauvignon (73%), Merlot (26%) and Cabernet Franc (1%). Medium-dark garnet in color with lush aromas of dark cherries, plum and sweet spices. The flavors echo the aromatic profile and are wrapped up by velvety tannins that provide great texture to the wine.

2004 Cote Bonneville Estate DuBrul Vineyard Bordeaux Blend

63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot. Bright ruby-red. Aromas of redcurrant, licorice, and toasty oak. Sweet, lush and highly concentrated, with a candied quality to the flavors of currant, black cherry, and spices. A really elegant wine of great depth and complexity but at $120 it's a little too spendy.

2006 J. Bookwalter Protagonist Bordeaux Blend

A Merlot-based wine with aromas of menthol, cherry, blackberry and wood smoke. On the palate the shows focus and concentration with silky tannins and a long finish. First rate stuff.

2006 J. Bookwalter Foreshadow Cabernet Sauvignon

Another well made wine this one with a medium-dark ruby color in the glass and a complex array of aromas from black cherry and currant to dried herbs and cocoa. Layers of fruit unfold on the palate and the fine-grained tannins hold it all together for a long, long finish that begs for another sip.

2006 Owen Roe DuBrul Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon

Medium-dark garnet color. Blackberry, currant and dried herb aromas follow through onto the palate where vibrant acidity holds the ripe fruit in check into the lingering finish.

Top 100 & Wine Scores in General

2009-11-21T04:31:00Z

Wine Scores and the Top 100

Wine scores are both loved and reviled by members of the wine trade. On the one hand, when you put a wine on the shelf that has a score of 95 points it practically sells itself while on the other hand a wine that got 87 points can languish on the shelf for a long time even if it represents a great value. It is my observation that 88 points is about the bottom of the threshold to pique peoples' interest even though the Wine Spectator scale lumps values of 85-89 as "Very good: a wine with special qualities" and Robert Parker who championed the 100 point scale back in 1978 lumps 80-89 point wines as "A barely above average to very good wine displaying various degrees of finesse and flavor as well as character with no noticeable flaws".

As a former scientist by training it is interesting to read the Wine Spectator tasting methodology: Wine Spectator or that from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: Wine Advocate. You get the sense that there is actually some degree of precision to be accorded their scores vis-à-vis the rigor they employ. I almost wonder that they don't employ fractional points. Blah, blah, blah! Wine tasting is one of the most subjective activities you can hope to find and our palates and the wines we taste are a moving target. If you taste the same wine once a month over the course of a year you would find that your impression would be different on some occasions. This can be the result of changes in your health, what you ate for your last meal, your mental state when you taste and a myriad other factors that affect your sense of smell (after all 'tasting' is in reality mostly 'smelling').

Does this mean that professional taster's scores are meritless? No, I like and use scores in my shop, (when they are good scores ;> of course), because they help sell wine. But buyers need to understand that scores represent (most of the time) a single point in time, from a single individual based on a single bottle of wine. As I said, your sense of taste is affected by many things and is constantly changing along with the wine that is evolving in the bottle. Wines are living things and change profoundly over time. I am surprised sometimes when I taste a wine and decide to bring it into the store only to find that there is a bad review (or perhaps not bad but unflattering). Often the review was written immediately following release of the wine and it has undergone a positive transformation in the interim. Good scores can be used as the basis to begin exploring a wine to see if you like it but a high score is no guarantee that you will like it. My customers are often surprised when I tell them that I could line up ten100 point wines and if they tasted them blind they may not like more than half of them. Scores only provide one clue about the wine. The language used to describe it provides much greater insight into the nature of the wine and whether or not you might enjoy it. Reading "93 points - Hedonistic, jammy, coat-your-mouth style" does not bode well if you prefer wines with finesse and elegance.

I actually like the system that Dorothy J. Gaiter and John Brecher use for their Wall Street Journal wine column "Tastings". They employ a simple 6 level rating with the following possibilities: Yech, OK, Good, Very Good, Delicious, and Delicious! Once again, there is no precision to tasting wine so don't imply precision where none can be found. I like the simplicity of their system and it offers their readers more latitude to agree with their assessments. I also like their "winespeak" which utilizes simple language that conveys more about how the wine made them feel rather than a technical description of the flavor profile and tannin structure.

Ok, that damned Top 100! I hate that list, primarily because most of the wines are gone from the market by the time it gets published and there are always a bunch of disappointed customers that want to get their hands on some of the top 10 wines. I have been fortunate for the past three years that I have tasted many of the Top 100 wines before they gained their esteemed positions and was prescient enough to bring some 30-35 of them into the store during the course of the year so that I could hold my annual Top 100 Tasting for a few dozen people. Of course in many cases the only bottles I have left are those for the tasting so again I have unhappy customers that want to purchase their favorites that don't exist anymore. Oh well, it serves as a good reason to get together and pull the corks on a bunch of good wines, viva la Top 100!

My best advice is to get out there and taste wine. There is no substitute for actually putting the wine in your mouth to determine if you like it or not. And I always tell my customers: "Drink what you like, just buy it from me!"

Washington Wine Road Trip Part 1

2009-11-11T02:21:00Z

DAY 1 - Seattle

First of all, kudos to the Washington Wine Commission. In the middle of the harvest season they managed to put together an incredible journey through Washington's most significant wine regions giving the 40 of us an opportunity to interact with the most influential growers and winemakers in the state. And my personal thanks to the many growers and winemakers that took the time to enlighten us about what makes Washington wines so special during their most critical moments of the 2009 vintage.

I must admit that my impression of Washington wines before this trip was that most of them were over-extracted, highly-alcoholic and showed no precision. A tasting I attended a few years ago that featured Washington wines left me wondering if the winemakers had ever been to Bordeaux or the Rhone Valley. But I must confess that I now have a new-found appreciation for the wines from most of the major regions of Washington, and I look forward to the next releases that hold even more promise.

Our adventure began in Seattle, at the Edgewater Hotel where Shayn Bjornholm, MS provided an overview of the Washington state wine scene (MS is Master Sommelier, a.k.a. Wine Geek!). If you haven’t heard the story of the Missoula Floods, ask me. I am not going to take up space here writing about it,but it is fascinating and key to understanding the geology of the current Pacific Northwest and why there are so many world-class wines made here. We then proceeded over to the Space Needle for a reception that included tasting wines from the Puget Sound region, Lake Chelan as well as some of the wineries that are located in the area who source grapes from other areas of Washington.

Notable wines (in alphabetical order, not necessarily by preference):

2006 Andrew Will Two Blondes Vineyard Red Blend, Yakima Valley

43%Cabernet Franc, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 28% Merlot. Dense and concentrated. It offers up aromas of cinnamon, sage, incense, black cherry, and black currant. This is a supple, ripe wine with fine-grained tannins, savory flavors, and excellent balance.

2006 Andrew Will Ciel du Cheval Red Blend, Red Mountain

40%Merlot, 37% Cabernet Franc, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Petit Verdot. Dense purple in color, it has an outstanding bouquet of cedar, baking spices, blackcurrant, and blackberry. This has a very lengthy finish.

2006 Cadence Bel Canto Bordeaux Blend, Red Mountain

52%Cabernet Franc and 48% Merlot, so this is a take on the right bank region of Saint-Emilion. A lively wine with aromas and flavors of black currant and black cherry and silky tannins that coat your mouth.

2007 Cadence Coda Bordeaux Blend, Red Mountain

57%Merlot, 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc, and 12% Petit Verdot. The “value” wine from Cadence that offers aromas of black currant, toasted oak and a floral note that extend onto the palate. This has less structure than the Bel Canto but offers more immediate enjoyment.

2006 Soos Creek Wine Cellars Ciel du Cheval Vineyard Bordeaux Blend, Red Mountain

67%Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc and 16% Merlot. Bright red-ruby. Dense,smoky nose of berries and cassis with floral scents, with a distinct viscosity to the very ripe dried fruit and nutty oak flavors with undertones of chocolate, mocha, licorice, minerals, ripe tannins and dusty earth.

2007 Syncline Cuvée Elena, Columbia Valley

70%Grenache, 17% Mourvedre, with Carignan, Cinsault and Syrah making up the balance. Very reminiscent of Chateauneuf-du-Pape with concentrated aromas of bright red fruits along with herbs-de-provence. On the palate this is silky and intense. The finish lasted several minutes!

Following the regional tasting we had about the only freetime that we would see for the next 5 days (unless you count 11:30 pm – 5:30 am free time…). I tried to get over to Pike Place Market but they roll up the sidewalks early on Sundays so I ended up at a great sushi bar, Umi Sake House (2230 First Ave, Seattle). By far the best sushi I’ve had since relocating up here 5 years ago. Extensive sake list, freshest fish around and the head chef is very creative. Give it a try if you’re in the area. By the way, it was absolutely beautiful in Seattle that day.

Day 2 – Walla Walla

After a 5:30 am wake-up call we headed to SeaTac airport for a short flight down to Pasco where we boarded busses that took us to Walla Walla. We broke up into groups of 6-8 for the vineyard exercises and my group visited with Tom Waliser of Beresan Winery. While the Walisers only own 18 acres of vineyards, Tom and his crew are responsible for farming something like 30-40% of the total acreage in Walla Walla including Pepper Bridge Vineyard. Tom talked to us about how they mitigate winter hazards like freezing with smudge pots and large fans to move the cold air out of the vineyard. He also mentioned that most of the vineyards are planted in a north-south orientation and that the canopy is not trimmed symmetrically. They pull more canopy from the east side so that the grapes there get more exposure to the early morning sun and they leave more canopy on the west side to help protect the bunches there from the blazing hot afternoon sun.

We rejoined our companions for a comparative tasting of Rieslings from around the world. We were given 9 wines and had information about the first 3 that were from Washington. We then blind tasted the other 6 and had to try and determine where they came from knowing that there were 3 more Washington Rieslings among them. They were easy to pick out. With few exceptions I am not a fan of Washington Riesling. They just don’t have the same precision that I find in good German, Austrian and even Australian Riesling. I got the Mosel and Australian versions but I thought that the other one was from Austria, but it was Alsatian.

After lunch we broke up into different groups and headed out to a bunch of the local wineries. I got to spend time with Greg Harrington at Gramercy Cellars. Greg was the youngest American to pass the Master Sommelier exam at the age of 26 and then spent time as a sommelier and wine program director for Wolfgang Puck, Emeril Legasse and Joyce Goldstein before turning to his true passion, making wine. He has a fairly minimalistic approach and doesn’t like to mess around too much with the wines. He uses more stems in his syrahs than many of the winemakers I talked to and the rich texture and mouthfeel that he achieves is at least in part due to this.

We were supposed to “experience” punch downs, but we had all “been there, done that” so we opted to taste some of the current ferments tha twere percolating in open-top fermentors. It was interesting to taste such primary wine that still had a little residual sugar. It was hard for me to tell where the wines would end up after completing fermentation.

After a quick shower at the Marcus Whitman we were taken to a Walla Walla regional tasting at L’Ecole No. 41 where 22 wineries poured their best wines for us including: Abeja, Beresan Estate Vineyard, Bergevin Lane, Buty, Cougar Crest, Dunham Cellars, Gramercy Cellars, L’Ecole No. 41, Long Shadows Vintners, Nicholas Cole Cellars, Northstar, Pepper Bridge Winery, Reininger Winery, Seven Hills Winery, Sleight of Hand Cellars, Spring Valley Vineyards, Tamarack Cellars, Walla Walla Vintners, Waterbrook Winery, Waters/Wines of Substance and Woodward Canyon. Too many good wines to write up but I will include some of my favorites.

2007 Abeja Chardonnay

This Chardonnay has a lovely texture wrapped around tropical flavors of pineapple and star fruit along with spiced pear. Beautifully balanced where the oak is an ingredient, not the dominant character. Long finish.

2006 Abeja Cabernet Sauvignon

Deep red-ruby. Another wonderfully textured example with a core of raspberry, redcurrant, tobacco and licorice. Broad and sweet, with pliant, harmonious flavors of plum, raspberry, currant, leather and mocha. The long finish has ripe mouth-coating tannins that are very smooth.

2006 Bergevin Lane Cabernet Sauvignon

76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot,5% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot aged for 20 months in 60% new French, American, and Eastern European oak. This one is wine ink – very deep purple color with a bouquet of graphite, black cherry, blackberry, and violets. Darkfruits, licorice and chocolate on the palate with supple tannins make for a complete package.

2006 Cougar Crest Cabernet Franc

To be honest I prefer Loire Valley Cab Franc. But for those of you out there that like big, beefy styled CF this is the one for you. Bold red currant and red berry flavors on a polished frame of supple tannins. Very long finish.

2006 Dunham Cellars Trutina

49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 48% Merlot,and 3% Syrah. No lack of oak in this one but it is well integrated with the lush black cherry, blackberry and licorice flavors. Great depth of fruit and fine-grained tannins that linger on and on. Good Value.

2005 Dunham Cellars Syrah

Dense purple color with aromas of smoked meats, violets, and fresh cracked black pepper. A very supple texture with ripe blackberry, currant and boysenberry flavors on a sleek frame of fine tannins.

2006 Gramercy Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon

Medium-dark ruby red color. Lovely bouquet of black cherry, blackberry, and sweet pipe tobacco. Excellent balance of fruit, acid and oak with mouth-coating fine-grained tannins that firm up the long finish.

2007 Gramercy Cellars Syrah Walla Walla

This reminds me of Syrah from the Rhône Valley. Purple hued with aromas of bacon, black olives, underbrush and dark berries. On the palate there are rich layers of dark berries, black pepper and tapenade framed by smooth tannins.

2007 Gramercy Cellars Syrah John Lewis

He used 100% stems in this version and the texture was incredible. Dense, concentrated dark fruit flavors accented by smoked meats and sage are wrapped up by the mouth-coating tannins that provide an incredibly long finish.

2007 Gramercy Cellars “Inigo Montoya” Tempranillo, Walla Walla

"Hello. My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” In Rioja new American oak is commonly used for their Tempranillo. Here winemaker Greg Harrington used 1 year old barrels to let the fruit shine through and the result is stunning. Earthy, spicy aromas waft out of the glass and the palate reveals layers of dark fruits, smoke and a lengthy finish.

2006 L’Ecole No. 41 Apogee, Pepper Bridge Vineyard

46% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, 8% Malbec, and 4% Cabernet Franc. Dense crimson color with aromas of black currant, graphite, and blackberry that are echoed on the palate along with some plum and black cherry notes. Very supple texture and a long finish.

2006 Sequel Syrah (Long Shadows Vintners)

I’ve been a fan of this wine since its first vintage and this might be the best yet. 96% Syrah and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon aged for 18 months in 65% new French oak. Aromas of bacon, black pepper, blackberry and violets give way to a palate of concentrated layers of dark fruits, spice, smoke and fine-grained tannins with a long, long finish.

2006 Pedestal Merlot (Long Shadows Vintners)

Move over Sideways! This is a Merlot that everyone will love because of the rich layers of fruit and supple texture. 86% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot and 2% Malbec aged for 22 months in 85% new French oak. OK, so it’s not all Merlot! Dark fruits dominate the bouquet along with some graphite and spice box notes and on the palate this really delivers the goods with an exceptionally long, smooth finish.

2006 Spring Valley Uriah

54% Merlot, 33% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Petit Verdot and Malbec. It spent 18 months in French oak. Currants, blackberries and espresso all wrapped up in smooth tannins and the finish goes on and on.

2006 Waterbrook Melange

28% Cabernet Franc, 21% Syrah, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Sangiovese, 14% Merlot, 1% Tempranillo. Aromas of cedar, spice and dark stone fruit marry with delicious flavors of dark chocolate and toasted oak. Balanced tannins and lingering fruit round out the finish. Good value.

2006 Waterbrook Reserve Merlot

99% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in 39% new oak. It is dark ruby-colored with aromas of, cassis, and black cherry. Moderately structured on the palate, this medium-bodied effort has plenty of ripe, spicy fruit, good balance, and a medium long, fruit-filled finish.

2006 Woodward Canyon Cabernet Sauvignon Artist Series

87% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13%Syrah (the first time Syrah has been used as a component in this wine). A deep purple color, with scents of violets, spice box, black currant, and a hint of blueberry. Densely packed flavors of black cherry and currant along with ripe mouth-coating tannins.

After tasting through a lot of wines we walked next door to Woodward Canyon and were treated to a very nice dinner in their new “Reserve House”. This newly created space is for private, sit-down tastings of their current and limited reserve wines. It’s a gorgeous facility and we had a great time mingling with the winemakers while we continued to enjoy their wines with food.

The buses whisked us back to the Marcus Whitman in Walla Walla and at about 10:30pm there was “Beer Hall”: coolers packed with ice cold micro brews were brought into the foyer of the hotel and we had a chance to get to know one another a little better. You can’t imagine how good a cold beer can taste after slurping and spitting wine all day!

Reed's Ginger Brews

2009-06-25T20:41:00Z

Reed’s Ginger Brews

I should preface this review with the statement that I am not a soda drinker. Water and wine make up 99% of my beverage menu, although there was a time when I did drink Canada Dry Ginger Ale on a regular basis. So when my long-time friend Jim Linesch asked me to evaluate the Reed products like I would a typical wine I thought “what the heck, I do have a reference for my evaluation, so here we go!”

The packaging is very nice, 4-packs of clear lime-green bottles with a tropical island look to the label, presumably representing the Jamaican heritage of the Original Ginger Brew. I like the twist-off caps that are color-coded to distinguish the three different ginger brews.

Looking at the back label for the ingredients list provides some insight into the intent at Reed’s: “Freshly brewed from: sparkling filtered water (sweetened by a blend of fructose, pineapple juice from concentrate and honey, fresh ginger root, lemon and lime juices from concentrate and spices. No preservatives or artificial anything!” At 37.4 g of sugar per 12 oz. bottle it comes in a little lower than your average soda (Coke is 39 g), but that’s still a lot of sugar. All of the Ginger Brews are 25% fruit juice.

First up: Reed’s Original Ginger Brew – The first sip was sweet to be sure, but not overly so and the distinctive flavor of ginger kicked right in. Now I like ginger and I cook with fresh ginger on a regular basis so this had a familiar spiciness to it and after my palate adjusted to the sweetness I liked this drink. The yin & yang of the sweetness vs. the ginger bite reminds me of a good German Riesling where residual sugar plays against bright natural acidity to provide harmony and balance.

I thought I observed some sediment kicked up from the bottom of the bottle when I first opened it so I poured some into a glass and sure enough there is some particulate material. This is a good thing in my opinion and reflects the desire to have a naturally brewed product in the bottle, not some pristine filter-out-all-the-good-stuff beverage, much akin to unfiltered wines. If I were rating this on a 100 point scale I would give it 88 Pts.

Next up: Reed’s Premium Ginger Brew – This is basically the same as the Original but is sweetened with Canadian white water clover honey, raw cane sugar and pineapple juice from concentrate (no fructose). The sweetness here is mellower and seems less pronounced and the honey component is easily identified here. Rating: 89 Pts.

Reed’s Extra Ginger Brew – This brew has 25 grams of fresh ginger compared to 17 grams for the Original & Premium labels and this is evident on the first sip. I like spicy foods and this is definitely more my style. The ginger bite is more prominent and for my palate brings more balance to the overall impression. Rating: 91 Pts.

Overall I liked these drinks and they would be a good foil for spicy barbeque, Thai and other similar fare where a little sweetness helps to balance the fire from capsaicin (chiles). As I said at the beginning I am not a soda drinker and for me these are too sweet for everyday drinking but the ginger element really is a nice departure from purely sweet soda pop. If you see these, give them a try. I mentioned that I previously drank Canada Dry Ginger Ale and I wanted a fresh perspective on that beverage so I bought one and there is no comparison to the Reed’s products. Even though there is slightly less sugar (33 g vs 37.4 g) it tasted very sweet and had no balance to the sweet component like in the Reed’s Extra Ginger.

2007 Oregon Pinot Noir

2009-04-17T15:28:00Z

2007 Oregon Pinot Noir

As of this writing I have tasted more than 50 2007 Pinots from all over Oregon and the bottom line is - taste before you buy. Overall the vintage provided many challenges to grape growers and winemakers. Some faired better than others. Why am I writing this? Mostly because there has been a significant amount of negative press concerning the vintage and specifically because a certain hair-follicle-challenged local wine critic wrote the vintage off before most of the wines had even been released - in my opinion an unwarranted criticism based on limited data and extrapolation based on expectation not real tasting.

To be sure, 2007 Pinots are much lighter than their 2006 counterparts. Is that a bad thing? I don't think so if you are looking for wines that pair well with food and have the potential to age gracefully. The cooler growing temperatures during 2007 allowed the grapes to retain more of their natural acidity which bodes well for enjoyment with food and is a prerequisite for longer ageing. Will these wines last 20 years, probably not, but I would wager that after 8 or 9 years the best of 2007 will be in better shape that most of the 2006's which are very enjoyable as cocktail wines (read jammy fruit, low natural acidity), but don't have the stuff to go long term.

Don't get me wrong, I like the 2006 vintage for its in-your-face, voluptuous fruit and silky tannins, but a string of vintages producing like-type wines seems to have jaded consumers into expecting these big fruit bomb wines every year. Let's face it, all around the globe modern viticulture techniques have provided the means to produce riper fruit which leads to juicier, more accessible wines earlier in their evolution. Thats' a good thing, but let's not forget that Mother Nature dishes out the weather and that has meaning for farmers and wine makers alike. I like to taste the vintage in the wines I drink. I don't want the same big fruit every vintage. Sometimes it's nice to actually see through a glass of Oregon Pinot Noir too!

The 2007 vintage of Willamette Valley Pinot Noirs is a minefield - some good, some very good, not many great, and lots of mediocre wines. In general the best have wonderful aromatics, lower alcohol than in recent vintages and are more delicately structured wines with less new oak because there wasn't enough big fruit to soak it up. So try before you buy and don't expect to be blown away by the 2007's, but don't pass up the opportunity to taste some very Burgundian Pinots either.

E. Guigal Tasting

2009-04-02T20:14:00Z

E. Guigal Tasting held at Wildwood Restaurant NW Portland April 01, 2009

First, two Champagnes from Philipponnat, their Brut Royal Réserve and the 1999 Brut Clos des Goisses. The Clos des Goisses is 70% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay and 30% of the wine was fermented in oak. This bottle was disgorged in March 2007. A remarkably muscular wine with ripe pear, smoke, white peaches and minerals. Both were delicious and went very well with the crab cakes and the roasted fennel wrapped in prosciutto and topped with an olive tapenade.

We then tasted the Guigal 2007 Côtes du Rhône Blanc. Most producers use Grenache Blanc and/or Clairette as the main backbone for their blanc, but since 1991 Marcel Guigal has included significant proportions of Viognier (50% in this vintage), Marsanne and Roussanne in the blend. This clean white displays amazing aromatics of fresh citrus, honeysuckle, kiwi and pear while the palate adds a mineral dimension along with white peach and tangerine. Think grilled fish, spicy Thai, appetizers or sitting on the porch on a warm summer evening.

Condrieu is a tiny appellation in the Northern Rhône just south of Côte Rôtie and is the original home of Viognier. While I have had some domestic Viogniers that have real character, most are sappy and remind me of fruit cocktail or canned peaches with their cloying sweetness. The 2007 Guigal Condrieu, 2/3 of which was fermented in stainless steel and the remainder in new barriques, exhibited an exotic perfume of white peach, orange blossom, honeysuckle and acacia flowers. On the palate the wine delivers rich layers of fruit along with racy minerality and a very long finish. Guigal’s 2007 Condrieu La Doriane is fermented and aged in 100% new oak barriques. This wine came across rather clumsy to me when I first tasted it but as it warmed a bit and I had some of my puree of toasted semolina and chickpea soup it evolved into a very complex, sexy white with tangerine, floral and citrus notes along with a real mineral bite. Very long finish. I think this will reward patience to allow the wood to integrate more completely but offers compelling reasons to drink now.

The 2007 Guigal Côtes du Rhône Rosé is a bright, pale ruby color and offers scents of fresh crushed strawberry and watermelon aromas backed by spicy berry and dried flower notes. I think that if tasted in a dark glass most people would characterize this as a red wine with plenty of framboise, cherry, pepper, and spice box notes. Great value too.

On to the 2005 Côtes du Rhône Rouge. Guigal uses more Syrah than Grenache and chooses to hold this wine for a minimum of two years in large foudres to allow the wine to harmonize and soften before release. This vintage shows fleshy berry aromas along with smoked meat, dark plum and licorice notes framed by fine tannins. Tremendous value.

The 2004 Châteauneuf-du-Pape was perhaps the least impressive wine of the tasting but by all means still a good wine among some great wines. Showing a dense ruby/purple-tinged edge it offers black cherry, hoisin sauce and cedar notes. The bright acidity on the finish makes you want to go back for another sip.

2005 Guigal St.-Joseph Vignes de L’Hospice. 100% Syrah from two steeply terraced vineyards perched above the town of Tournon. Aged for 30 months in new barriques and bottled unfiltered this is a massive wine with a deep purple hue, huge tannins accompanied by massive concentration and intensity. On the nose you get hoisin sauce, smoke, crème de cassis and violets along with fig and cocoa on the palate. A very complex wine that will live for decades.

2005 Guigal Côte Rôtie Brune et Blonde. Ok, if you didn’t know, this is where the idea of co-fermenting Viognier with Syrah originated, probably to add a little more fermentable sugar to the notoriously late-ripening Syrah. If your primary experience with the Syrah grape is eastern Washington, California or other relatively warm growing regions, you need to try something from the northern Rhône. The aromatic profile of these wines is incredible and you will find yourself not wanting to drink them but rather wanting to put a log on the fire and sniffing your glass for several hours as the wine reveals itself to you. Guigal used 4% Viognier for this vintage and produced a massive wine that will show best in another 5-7 years. Right now it exhibits raspberry, blackberry and black cherries wrapped up in fairly dense but ripe tannins and offers a mouth-filling finish.

The 2005 Côte Rôtie Château D’Ampuis is the tenth vintage of this blend from seven hillside vineyards that average 45 years old and contains 7% Viognier. The wine is aged for 3 years in new barriques and offers a somewhat more round and harmonious wine than the single-vineyard bottlings. Dense ruby/purple all the way to the rim, this offers dark plum, raspberry, black cherry and cassis. Dense, did I already say dense? Very concentrated but with impeccable balance and verve. This will age for a long time while still offering immediate gratification.

2004 E. Guigal La Turque. One of the La La wines (La Mouline, La Landonne and La Turque). Spectacular. I have had the occasion to taste some rare and expensive wines that did not compel me extol their virtue, but damn, this is incredible stuff. Also contains 7% Viognier and aged for 42 months in new barriques. Asian spices, licorice, grilled meats and espresso give way to violets and minerals. This can only be northern Rhône Syrah. The texture is silky smooth and the finish lasts for more than a minute. I wish I had had more time to allow this to really open up. Needless to say I didn’t spit!

2009 Taste Walla Walla & 2009 Gamberro Rosso Tre Bicchieri Tasting Notes

2009-03-10T20:00:00Z

The Spring season of wine tasting events has begun and I had the good fortune of attending two really great ones this week. Monday was Taste Walla Walla: Many of you know that I am not a fan of overblown, over-extracted, over-oaked wines. Well there was a room full of them at the Portland Art Museum on Monday! I know, I know, a lot of you like big, big wines and can't get enough of them. So I'll mention some of my favorites along with some that will appeal to the hedonists in the audience . While I did find more definition overall than in previous years attending this event, many winemakers are, in my opinion, still trying for more power than balance and precision in their wines and they tend to use too much new oak.

The list is alphabetical, not in order of my preference.

2009 Taste Walla Walla

2007 Abeja Chardonnay - This was actually one of the nicer whites in the room. Ample use of oak to be sure, but with a lush mix of fruits like tangerine, pineapple, papaya and ripe banana the wood is well integrated and the wine gives the impression of minerality.

2006 Abeja Cabernet Sauvignon - Also one of my favorites. This is immediately appealing, sending a rush of black cherry and cassis fruit backed with darker notes of coffee, smoke and licorice. The flavors are dense and supple, and the wine combines grace and power, unfolding with additional layers of tar, green tea and smoky herb. Still young, this will drink well for another 10 years.

2006 Basel Cellars Claret - A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah that is not overly complex but represents good value from this region. Displaying rich and supple flavors of cranberry, pomegranate and cherries that lead to a velvety finish.

2007 Buty Chardonnay Conner Lee Vineyard - A fairly big dose of oak but lots of fruit to balance, shows ripe, spiced pear and briocche notes and a long finish.

2006 Dunham Cellars Three Legged Red - Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah from Dunham Estate vineyards. Deep purplish crimson, opaque. Blackberry, blueberry, and cherry aromas combine with pie spice and caramelized oak, inviting you to sip. On the tongue this is a full bodied red with chewy tannins. Good value.

2006 Dunham Cellars Trutina - 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 48% Merlot, 3% Syrah. Mocha, boysenberry and bright Bing cherry really pull this wine along. Rich, yet clean and effusive with multiple layers of bright stone fruits and berries. Good structure with fine, ripe tannins on the finish, well made. Also good value.

2003 Forgeron Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon - This is showing very well, and has clearly benefited from the extra bottle age. It’s beautifully integrated, with the tannins substantial but polished. The fruit mixes ripe berries and moves smoothly into flavors of earth, smoke, tobacco and graphite.

2006 Fort Walla Walla Merlot - The supple, velvety texture caresses the mouth, while the cinnamon-scented red berry, red pepper and plum flavors ride through the long, generous finish. Nicely balanced and harmonious through the finish.

2006 Fort Walla Walla Cabernet - Round and velvety. A plush mouthful of plum and currant fruit scented with sweet spice and green olive notes, lingering effortlessly against refined tannins.

2005 Russell Creek Winery Winemakers Select Syrah - Smooth and generous, with a distinct coffee note adding interest to the dark berry and spice flavors. Nice long finish.

2006 Saggi - I don't often find much to say about domestic Sangiovese, but this was one of the outstanding wines at this tasting. Dark cherry aromas and flavors combine with a hint of nutmeg in this Super Tuscan style blend. An elegant entry in the front of the mouth reveals refined tannins with focused concentration, enhanced by the wine's silky mouth feel and lengthy finish.

2006 Spring Valley Frederick Cabernet Sauvignon Blend - Another outstanding wine. An explosion of ripe summer fruits such as blackberry, raspberry, cherry, and plum, which linger in the mouth with a hint of chocolate and fresh pastry. As usual, the tannins are balanced and of exceptional quality, adding to a richly lingering, soft finish.

2006 Spring Valley Uriah - I had this after the Frederick and while it is a great wine it didn't come up to the level of the Frederick in terms of sheer power. Smooth and focused, with a cigar box character to make the ripe blackberry and currant fruit more interesting, finishing with polished tannins. Has great presence without being pushy, and the finish doesn't quit.

Va Piano Bruno's Blend IV - The blend of predominately Syrah and Malbec created a more structured profile than previous blends, leaving you with lush, smooth and complex flavors that lingers on the palate. Bruno’s Blend IV showcases cherry, raspberry and blueberry characteristics from the Syrah and chocolate, plum & spicy characteristics from the Malbec. Great value for Walla Walla.

2006 Walla Walla Vintners Cabernet Sauvignon - 76% Cabernet, 10% Cabernet Franc, 6% Merlot, 3% each of Malbec and Petit Verdot and 2% Carmenere. Deep red color, a toasted almond and bright cranberry nose, with a mid-palate of well integrated dark roasted coffee, cassis and cigar box. Its powerful finish is balanced by sweet tannins, coconut and vanilla bean.

2006 Zerba Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon - Dark ruby-colored, it exhibits an excellent cedary, spice box, cassis, and black currant perfume. This is followed by a layered wine with good concentration and balance.

Italian wines from Lemma Wine Co.

Tuesday was a completely different animal. A group of Italian producers were headed to San Francisco for the annual Tre Bicchieri Tasting that showcases all of the wines deemed by Gamberro Rosso to be the best Italian wines for the year. If you don't know, Gamberro Rosso is considered by many to be the definitive guide to Italian wines. Tre Bicchieri, or Three Glasses is the highest rating given. One of our local distributors, Lemma Wine Company, invited a dozen or so producers to their facility and they opened up all of the Tre Bicchieri wines they had in stock along with numerous other great Italian wines. Momma Mia, what a room full of great vino!

This list is the order in which the wines were presented.

2006 Elena Walch Pinot Bianco Kastelaz, Alto Adige - Very ripe, with apple, cream and a light hint of lime. Full, round and fresh, with hints of mineral and piecrust. Medium finish.

2005 Elena Walch Beyond The Clouds, Alto Adige - One of the best white wines I've had in a long time. Offers very ripe fruit aromas of peach pie, pineapple and apple. Full-bodied and very rich, with loads of fruit and a long finish. This is big, rich and satisfying. One of the best whites in Alto Adige.

2005 Colpetrone Montefalco Rosso - The 2005 Montefalco Rosso is 70% Sangiovese, 15% Sagrantino, and 15% Merlot aged in cask for 12 months. It is a deep, powerful effort redolent of menthol, wild herbs, tar, earthiness, game and dark fruit.

2004 Colpetrone Sagrantino di Montefalco - You have to like tannins to get your arms around this big wine. Colpetrone’s 2004 Sagrantino de Montefalco spent 18 months in French oak followed by 12 months in bottle. It is a beautifully layered wine loaded with the essence of blueberries, blackberries, spices and sweet toasted oak. A lighter hand with the oak might allow more varietal character to come through, but it is still a very pretty, modern-styled interpretation of this classic, structured wine from Umbria.

2004 Fattoria Zerbina Sangiovese di Romagna Pietramora Riserva - Aromas of grilled herbs and leather followed by dark fruits. The wine starts a little slow on the palate then explodes with a layered complexity. The finish is still hard at this point with plenty of tannin, but leaves a very long bittersweet fruit finish full of spiced plums and baked cherries.

2006 Argiano Rosso di Montalcino - The 2006 Rosso di Montalcino is a fleshy, sexy red loaded with ripe dark fruit, tobacco and earthiness. It possesses excellent length and fine overall balance.

2004 Argiano Brunello di Montalcino - Stand out wine. Complex aromas of blackberry, cigar box and jam follow through to a full-bodied palate, with chewy tannins and a medium finish.

2004 Tenuta di Ghizzano Nambrot - Bordeaux blend from Tuscany. Round-textured and fruity, with medium-to-full body, offering plum, berry and chocolate. Medium tannins. Soft finish. Balanced and pretty. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot.

2004 Fattoria Le Pupille Maremma Toscana Saffredi - One of the best wines tasted. This is Super Tuscan! Le Pupille’s 2004 Saffredi is a remarkable wine, in fact the aromatics alone are worth the price of admission. This French oak-aged blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Alicante possesses stunning harmony as layers of plums, blackberries, toasted oak, mint and flowers emerge from its vibrant, structured frame. The tannins are remarkably polished. From start to finish, this beautifully sculpted wine is a high class effort.

2004 Castello dei Rampolla Sammarco - The 2004 Sammarco is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot and 5% Sangiovese. It exhibits a dark purplish color, along with a wonderfully fragrant nose of spices and violets. It is a rich, powerful effort packed with an array of blueberries, blackberries and grilled herbs, showing a layered personality and an imposing tannic structure that will require patience. This gorgeously pure wine should drink effortlessly to age 25.

2004 Castello dei Rampolla d'Alceo - Another great Bordeaux blend from Tuscany. The 2004 D’Alceo (85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Petit Verdot) is even better. It is deceptively rounder and softer than the Sammarco in its expression of cassis, minerals, licorice and sweet, dark fruit. Despite the lushness of its fruit there is plenty of structure lurking underneath, and it will require significant patience before offering its finest drinking.

2007 Renato Ratti Barbera d'Alba Torriglione - Crushed black fruit, with a black licorice note. Medium- to full-bodied, compact and fruity, with a slightly decadent finish of black pepper and meat.

2006 Vietti Barbera d'Asti Tre Vigne - Exhibits loads of crushed blackberry and blueberry on the nose. Full-bodied, with light tannins and a bright finish. Concentrated and compacted.

2006 Vietti Barbera d'Alba Tre Vigne - Bright and fruity, with floral and berry aromas that follow through to a medium body, with fresh acidity and a citrus, raspberry aftertaste.

2005 Vietti Barbera dAlba Scarrone Vigna Vecchia - How many times have you had a $90 bottle of Barbera. Yeah, me either, but this was fantastic. Shows gorgeous aromas of crushed blackberry, with red licorice and toasty oak. Full and velvety, with masses of fruit. Seamless. This is the best Barbera ever from Vietti and proves that Barbera is world-class.

2004 Renato Ratti Barolo Marcenasco - Beautiful aromas of blackberry and mineral follow through to a full body, with very well-integrated tannins and chocolate, bright fruit and mineral on the finish. Long and gorgeous.

2004 Renato Ratti Barolo Marcenasco Rocche - Not as good a value as the regular Marcenasco but what a great Barolo. Very rich and powerful, displaying loads of plum and blackberry on the nose, with spicy vanilla undertones. Full-bodied, velvety and long. This juicy wine is also structured to last a long time.

1997 Vietti Barolo Villero Riserva - What a treat. Still very young as great Barolos go. Blockbuster. Ruby-garnet color with a brick-red hue. Aromas of ripe berry, almost prune, with coffee and mahogany, turning to berry and plum. Full-bodied, with firm chewy tannins and a long plum, smoke and spicy aftertaste. Giant wine.

So two days of back-to-back wine tasting. Damn what a tough life!

Wine Tasting Etiquette

2008-09-13T14:20:00Z

OK, time for a short rant about some of the things I see when we're out tasting wine or when I'm pouring wine at Wine Xing. Most of this is common sense and none of it is life-threatening, but I swear I want to threaten the lives of some people!

First and foremost: wine tasting is a sensory activity that involves all of the senses but most of the action takes place within the olfactory system (your sense of smell). Yes that's right 70% of tasting is smelling. You smell the wine directly by sniffing from the glass and when you swallow the wine the flavors that you detect are sensed by the same receptors via your retronasal passage (the part of your sinuses that connect your nose and throat). You really only taste 5 things directly in your mouth: sweet (sugar), sour (acid), bitter (tannin and to some extent alcohol), salty (not usually associated with wine) and umami (savory, like mushrooms). All of the other interesting flavors are detected by your sense of smell.

The bottom line: don't wear perfume, oils, or cologne. I know you want to smell nice on your wine excursion but strong perfume affects other people who are tasting and nobody will be able to detect that slight whiff of cinnamon in the Pinot Noir that the tasting notes mention when all they can smell is your cologne.

Sometimes the tasting area can get crowded. The biggest problem is when people make their way to the bar and hold the bar hostage. Be polite. Get your taste of wine, ask a pertinent question or two and then move away from the bar to let others gain access. This happens more at the trade tastings that we attend and I have to be rude sometimes just to get to the spit bucket. If you really must ask 50 questions about each wine, schedule a private tasting and go for it, but when there are lots of other people trying to taste the wine move away from the bar while you assess the wine and move back in when you want another sample.

Use the spit bucket. If you are driving you want to make sure that you keep your intake to a minimum. Taste and spit. If you're not comfortable spitting directly into the bucket ask for another glass that you can use to transfer your taste to the bucket (just remember which one is which!). Dump the unused portion of your taste into the bucket, nobody will be offended. If you don't like a wine, you don't need to announce to the whole room your displeasure, just dump it out. Rinse your glass with fresh water when you move from whites to reds or from reds to sweet wines, but don't rinse between every taste. The water will have a greater impact on the next wine more than the previous wine will in most instances.

Use your Inside Voice at all times. We're all guilty of it, me most assuredly. We get a little alcohol in us and the volume goes through the roof. I see this at Wine Xing every week. People come in get a taste or two, pretty soon there are 3 or 4 conversations going in the room and if this was a venue without alcohol I would still be able to talk to someone in front of me without raising my voice. Mix in a little vino though and I need to shout at people standing 3 feet away!

The food at the tasting table isn't your lunch, it's to help you clear your palate or give you an idea of how a wine goes with food. Don't abuse it.

Don't roll into the tasting room five minutes before they close-- that's not enough time to taste anything.

To blend or not to blend?

2008-07-01T22:16:00Z

To blend or not to blend?

I often have my customers tell me “I really like this blend, is that OK?”, or “I think I’ve been finding more blends that I like lately”. As if single vineyard or single varietal wines are inherently more desirable. Sometimes they are, often they aren’t. We’re seeing more and more vineyard designated Pinots here locally and some of the more well established ones certainly do offer their unique “terroir” You’ve probably heard that word but if not here’s a simple definition: terroir is the sum of the vineyard factors (rootstock, clone(s), soil, aspect (sun exposure), rainfall, air circulation, etc.) that over time impart a specific profile to the wines coming from that vineyard.

Blending offers the winemaker the opportunity to make a more complex, well-balanced wine than might be possible with a single vineyard. For instance, if one site produced riper flavors but lacked essential acidity to make a balanced wine, grapes from another site that has higher natural acidity can offset that deficiency resulting in a wine with better balance. Similarly, the flavor profile of a particular vineyard (in a particular vintage) may be rather monotonic and the addition of grapes from another parcel may round out the profile offering greater depth and complexity.

Not every barrel from a vineyard produces the same wine either. When a winemaker evaluates the barrels they will often select the best barrels to represent that particular single-vineyard bottling and blend the remainder with similar barrels from other sites to generate their “Estate” bottling or some other more generic label.

The same issues exist with multi-varietal blends (Bordeaux blends of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, or Rhône blends of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, etc.). One varietal may not offer the depth and complexity that can be achieved by blending more than one type of grape. That’s the essence of it. Blending provides the mechanism for a winemaker to make the best wine possible from the available resources.

There is another kind of blending too. In Champagne most of the bubbly is produced as NV (non-vintage) designated wine and only in the best years are vintage dated Champagnes produced. Why? The vineyards in Champagne are so far north that it is not possible to get ripe fruit in every vintage and only when the conditions are favorable and the grapes ripen sufficiently that vintage dated Champagnes are made. Otherwise stocks from multiple vintages are blended to make the house style and the best Champagne winemakers achieve an amazing level of consistency.

All that said, it is enjoyable to taste wines from a single great vineyard year-in year-out and experience what happens in different vintages, gaining familiarity with the effects of climate on the resulting wines.

Spanish Wines of Distinction

2008-05-27T23:38:00Z

Jorge Ordoñez Portfolio

I recently got a chance to taste some incredible wines from Spain. It’s unusual for me to go to a tasting and find so many good wines but out of the 36 wines poured that day I liked all but 2. All of these producers are part of the Jorge Ordoñez Portfolio and they represent some of the finest wines from various regions in Spain. Many of these producers represent 3rd or 4th generation wine-making families that have access to some very old vineyard sites.

Rioja

2007 Muga Rosé – 70% Garnacha (Grenache), 20% Viura, 10% Tempranillo. Only 12 hours on the skins imparts a pleasant salmon colored glow to the wine. Flavors of strawberry, watermelon and red currant. Dry and firmly structured, with a mineral tone to its fresh red berry flavors. Finishes focused and quite dry, with bright acids and very good length. A superb bargain in high quality rosé. $12.99

2004 Torre Muga – 75% Tempranillo, 15% Mazuelo (Carignan), 10% Graciano. #11 Wine Spectator Top 100 2007. This was the second time I got to taste this wine and I had much the same impression both times. While there is a lot going on right now the overwhelming new oak flavors dominate the palate and I have a hard time digging out the good stuff. What I did get was black currant, cocoa and cigar box with some minerality on the finish. Needs a few years to come together. $85

2006 Sierra Cantabria – 100% Tempranillo. This supple red is light and crisp, with bright, focused flavors of cherry, raspberry, vanilla and spice. Light tannins provide structure, and the finish is long and spicy. Perfect for a summer barbeque. $11.99

2003 Sierra Cantabria Reserva – 100% Tempranillo. From 30 year old vines aged 18 months in partially new French and American oak barrels. It reveals a Graves-like bouquet of smoked herbs, scorched earth, sweet kirsch liqueur, and a hint of white chocolate. This stunning, medium to full-bodied, fleshy, rich, realistically priced Rioja should drink well for 5-7 years. $28

2004 San Vicente – 100% Tempranillo. The 2004 San Vicente is 100% Tempranillo Peludo sourced from a single vineyard and aged for 20 months in new French and American oak. Deep crimson-colored, it offers an enticing bouquet of pain grille, pencil lead, black cherry, and black raspberry. This leads to an elegant Rioja with excellent balance, intense flavors, and 5-7 years of aging potential. It should be at its best between 2015 and 2025. $55

Ribera del Duero

2005 Bodegas Emilio Moro Malleolus – 100% Tinta del Pais (Tempranillo). The 2005 Malleolus is 100% Tinta del Pais which was barrel-fermented and aged for 18 months in French oak. Dark ruby-colored, it offers an expressive perfume of toasty oak, pencil lead, spice box, mineral, and black fruits. This is followed by a structured, firm wine that has excellent depth and length. It will evolve for 5-7 years and provide pleasure through 2020. Incredible wine. $62.95

2005 Urban Ribera Roble – 100% Tinta del Pais (Tempranillo). This chewy red shows ripe cherry, tobacco and dusty earth flavors over firm tannins. Not flashy, but solid, with local character. Best from 2008 through 2013. $12.99

2002 Alfa Crux - Tempranillo, Malbec and Merlot. Wow. A very flashy, modern-style wine, with layers of mocha and spice-infused toast leading the way for boysenberry, blackberry and fig fruit. Shows additional tar, mineral, graphite and even violet notes through the rich but racy finish. Drink now through 2010. $35.99

Campo de Borja

2005 Bodegas Alto Moncayo Veraton – 100% Garnacha (Grenache). Cocoa and coffee oak notes give way to dark fruit flavors of plum and blackberry in this modern red. The texture is plush, but the structure is firm and balanced. Lively. Drink now through 2010. $32

2005 Bodegas Alto Moncayo – 100% Garnacha (Grenache) from 35-92 year old vines. Rich yet lithe, this red is plush yet remains graceful and nervy, thanks to the energy of its acidity. There's plenty of cocoa and spice from oak, but it's the blackberry and cassis fruit that lingers. Drink now through 2012. $47

2007 Bodegas Borsao Borsao – 80% Grenache, 20% Tempranillo. What a great value wine that really delivers a lot for the money. A complex, dark ruby-colored wine with additional fruit and body, it possesses good underlying acidity, loads of freshness, fruit, and sweetness, and a medium to full-bodied finish. Drink it over the next several years. $8

Admittedly, some of these are expensive wines but they all represent incredible value for the quality they deliver and some are perfect for pouring at your next big backyard party. So don’t overlook the Spanish section the next time you’re in the store.

OTBN 2008

2008-03-13T00:50:00Z

OTBN Feb 23, 2008

Open That Bottle Night is a fun invention of Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher who write a wine column for The Wall Street Journal (Tastings). Some 8 or 9 years ago they discovered that they had waited too long to open a "special" bottle of wine. You know, the kind of bottle for which there is never a moment special enough to open it. So it sits there becoming even more precious, and it sits and sits some more. Some day you open it and discover that oops, it should have been opened several years ago. So they created OTBN to be that special event when you reach into your cellar and grab a bottle that you have been waiting to open. It doesn't have to be the most expensive bottle in your collection, it doesn't even have to old, but it should have some special significance to you of shared memories: a winery that you visited, a vacation, a gift from a loved one, you don’t even have to have great expectations that it will taste good (although I would suggest bringing a backup bottle if that is the case, you do want to drink some wine after all!). OTBN can be a private affair to share that special bottle with the person that also shares those cherished memories or it can be an excuse to have a great party with good friends.

The official date for OTBN is the last Saturday in February but because of scheduling conflicts we celebrated a week later this year, and what a celebration it was. Mike and Leslie graciously volunteered the use of their house for the event and the agreement was that every couple would bring a special bottle and an appetizer to share. Well you know how it is with foodies and winos, I mean people who enjoy good food and fine wine, they never bring just one bottle…

When we got there Mike had a bottle of Penley Estate 2004 Coonawarra Shiraz open just to get everyone’s palate warmed up. This showed good balance and fine tannins, one of the more reserved wines I’ve seen Mike open! Our other Mike brought a bottle of his 2006 Pinot Noir from his backyard vineyard. This was the inaugural vintage and it was a success. While there was something a bit reduced about the bouquet the raspberry jam and cranberry flavors really coated the palate and the wine had a nice acidic lift on the finish that made you want another sip. We’re all looking forward to the next vintage.

Let’s see, for food we had: duck foie gras, venison pâté with pistachios, rabbit/pork pâté with pistachios, and a delicious caramelized onion and apple concoction on phyllo dough from Mike and Tanya, smoked salmon with capers and slivered onions from Linda and me, a great scallop céviche that Leslie & Tom provided, grilled beef and lamb with several great sauces provided by Mike & Leslie, and spanakopita from Les & Lorri. All in all a nice collection of flavors and textures to go with the great wines.

Once everyone arrived we sat down to enjoy the wines. First up was a 2004 Reserve Fumé Blanc To Kalon Vineyard from Robert Mondavi that Les & Lorri got at the tasting room several years ago. Les paid $65 for it and this leads to the quote of the night: “I usually don’t spend that much for a regular bottle of wine!” referring to the clear color of the contents. This sauvignon blanc has a laser beam of acidity with concentrated flavors of mango, passion fruit and white peach, really special. This went great with the pâtés, the céviche and the phyllo dough tart.

Next up was the 2002 Nicolaysen Pinot Noir Edna Valley that Mike and Tanya brought. This was fruit-driven and spicy with hints of smoke and a rich depth of flavor that went really well with the smoked salmon and the grilled lamb, yummy Pinot. They only make a few hundred cases of this wine and it is only available directly from the winery. Well worth it I say.

Les & Lorri also brought a bottle of the 2001 Domaine Ott Bandol Château Romassan (mostly Mourvèdre with Cinsault, Grenache and Syrah too). The story behind this wine is that Ott is Lorri’s maiden name and she had us get some bottles for family gifts and she wanted to share the wine with her extended wine family too. For me this had good color, a Southern France, slightly herby nose with a chewy, spicy, well balanced palate. Good intensity. I love Mourvèdre and this is a good example of what the grape from this region can offer. It was great with the grilled lamb and spanakopita.

The 1989 Niebaum-Coppola Rubicon, (a claret blend of Cabernet Sauvignon primarily with Merlot and Cabernet Franc), demonstrates why you must take wine reviews with a grain of salt. In 1994 Wine Spectator rated this wine 83 Pts and gave this comment: “Tough and chewy, with hard-core tannins that override the smoky herb and currant flavors. Has just enough texture to fend off the dry tannins. Cellaring recommended; try after 1997.” It was silky and delicious. The tannins had obviously resolved and there was ample fruit almost 20 years after the vintage. This was really nice with the grilled beef. Thanks went to Leslie and Mike for this little gem.

The 1999 Cyrus from Alexander Valley Vineyards was the last bottle of wine that Linda and I had from the very first wine club that we joined back in about 1985. A Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot. Wonderful complexity, with gobs of currant, new leather, exotic spice and creamy oak and a solid backbone of tannin and acidity. This was great with the beef and lamb as well as the rich pâtés.

Tom and Leslie brought two wines and the first that we tasted was a small production Cabernet Sauvignon from the Stag’s Leap District from Robinson Family Vineyards. The 7 acre hillside vineyard sits under the Stag's Leap Palisades right above the Joseph Phelps property. The 2000 Robinson Family Cabernet Sauvignon has an ultra rich "brooding" nose of black currants, dark cherry, bouillon, vanilla and mocha. The equally large scale flavors are of cassis, black cherry, bouillon, toast, mocha and vanilla, and they submerge the tannins in the classic Stag's Leap manner, but with much more power and body. Classic Napa Cabernet that of course went extremely well with the grilled meats. The second bottle they brought was the 2004 Joseph Phelps Cabernet Sauvignon. While yet a young Cabernet this showed a supple mouth feel and had gobs of currant and black cherry aromas and flavors along with some creamy oak that was not over done. Ditto on the food pairing.

Last up: the 2001 Penfolds RWT provided by our hosts Leslie and Mike. This Barossa Valley Shiraz is almost black in the glass and smells of ripe cherries, blueberries and smoke. Full-bodied, dense, and layered the texture of this wine is like velvet and the finish goes on and on. Big Barossa Shiraz! This doesn’t go with food, it is food!

Well there you have it. OTBN 2008 was a great success and we are already talking about the wines that we want to open next year.

Recent changes reflect declining dollar vs Euro

2008-02-13T21:43:00Z

Well it was bound to happen sooner or later. The US Dollar's decline vs the Euro has begun impacting the price of wine from Italy, Spain, France and Portugal. I was actually pleasantly surprised to see prices hold steady through most of 2007 thanks to the efforts of producers, importers and distributors to share the burden of the eroding buying power of the dollar. While I don't expect large increases (I have been seeing 10-15% on my most recent invoices), unless the there is a turnaround in the strength of the dollar this is a trend that will continue for the next few years.

Not to worry though. There are still lots of great value wines available from these locales and from other regions that still believe that what is in the bottle is more important than their marketing campaign! And you can bet that I will continue my efforts to bring the best value wines that I can find into Wine Xing for your enjoyment.

Cheers,

Eric

Wine Storage

2007-12-11T21:06:00Z

I am frequently asked how to properly store wine. Relatively few wine lovers are lucky enough to possess perfect purpose built, cavernous, subterranean cellars. Many of us have imperfect storage arrangements for our wine, but it is important to understand how to protect wine from damaging conditions so that we can make the most intelligent decisions about what kind of wine to buy and how long we can expect to store wine in our own storage location. Wine storage conditions don't need to be perfect, but the finer the wine and the longer you intend to store it for, the nearer to perfect they have to be.

Another consideration is that different wines will react differently to adverse conditions. Red wines tend to be more robust with white wines being more delicate. There is also variation between the grape varieties, with grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon being considerably more resilient than Pinot Noir. My purpose here is not to define the perfect cellar space but to give you an overview of the factors that impact wine storage.

1)Temperature

Temperature along with light is responsible for doing the most damage to wine. The ideal wine cellar temperature is between 45-55 °F (7-13 °C). At the higher end of the scale wines will mature faster. The key though is a constant temperature. If all other factors are optimum then it can be ok to store your wine at much higher temperatures (e.g. room temperature, 65-70 °F (17-21 °C)) as long as it's a constant temperature. If you don't have a cellar in your house then think about using north facing walls, under the stairs, a well insulated garage, etc. Keep a thermometer in your storage area so you can check for a consistent temperature. Slow, seasonal changes of a few degrees aren't a big problem, but do not store your wine in an area that undergoes daily temperature fluctuations of more than 3-4 °F.

2)Light

Bright light will do a lot of damage to wine. That goes for artificial light as well as sunlight (never store wine where it will be exposed to direct sunlight). If your wine storage area isn't dark like a cellar or an under stairs closet then this is a very easy problem to overcome. Try and block off the area with a curtain or cover the wine with a blanket.

3)Humidity

Relative humidity for wine storage should be at least 55% with the ideal range being 70-75%. The role of humidity in wine storage is slightly controversial, although lack of it is believed to aid oxidation of the wine. The concept is that the wine keeps the inside of the cork wet and proper humidity prevents excess evaporation from the outside.

4)Movement

Wine really doesn't enjoy too much movement. If you ever need to transport your wine or if it’s just been delivered from your merchant then it’s important to give the wine a few days rest. If you happen to live in a house that gets shook by heavy traffic, trains or planes, then try and store your wine in an area that is least affected.

5)Horizontal

There is a plethora of wine racks available to buy. This is an important purchase as wine should always be stored on its side. Storing wine on its side keeps it in contact with the cork thus preventing the cork from drying out and letting air in. It will not be harmful to store wine upright for a few months but extended storage without the wine in contact with the cork is asking for trouble.

Buying and renting cellar space

The five points we have just covered are your main considerations when choosing where to store your wine. If you have the money, it is possible to purchase a wine storage cabinet. These temperature and humidity controlled cabinets resemble fridges, but will give you absolute perfect storage conditions. Another alternative would be to install a spiral cellar. Many companies now sell and install these if you have the available space and money. For those wine lovers that are buying the finest wines to lay down for many years it may be worth considering renting cellar space from a reputable wine merchant. This will be costly, but money well spent to protect your investment.

Bubblies

2007-12-01T22:30:00Z

OK, I'm writing this right before the holidays which is when most people think of drinking sparkling wine, but the point I want to make is that Champagne and sparkling wine are great to drink year round. And I don't mean just when you have a celebration either. Because of the great diversity in styles available you can find a bubbly to go with just about any food, from sushi to just about anything with a cream sauce to dessert. In fact, sparkling wine pairs well with foods that are notoriously difficult to match: artichokes, asparagus, and salads to name a few.

Because people associate sparkling wine with special occasions and celebrations they think that it is expensive too. Now don’t get me wrong, we have the Krug Grand Cuvée for $165 and that’s expensive, but there are lots of affordable bottles of bubbly out there: Prosecco from Italy, Cava from Spain, Cremant de Loire from France and sparkling Shiraz from Australia can all be had for less than $20 a bottle. These are everyday bubblies for the special things that happen every day! So grab a bottle of sparkling wine and celebrate today.

Australian Big Gun Wines

2007-11-16T23:01:00Z

Australia is a huge country with wine growing regions spread from coast to coast. There are a wide range of styles and quality available from down under and to be honest much of the stuff we see here is plonk. Too many of the Aussie producers opted for quantity rather than quality and the result of high yields and overly manipulated juice is dull, insipid wine – plonk.

There are thankfully a number of producers who restrict yields, carefully select the best grapes and make fantastic wines, some of them reaching cult status. We had a chance to taste a few heavy hitters from South Australia this week. Did they live up to the hype?

WS – Wine Spectator RP – Robert Parker Wine Enthusiast

2001 Yalumba ‘The Reserve’ Cabernet/Shiraz 96 Pts RP 95 Pts WS $115
The 2001 The Reserve is 74% Cabernet Sauvignon and 26% Shiraz aged for 20 months in 70% new French oak hogsheads. From old vines with low yields, the wine is densely colored and glass-coating. The aromatics are stunning: blackberry, cherry, licorice soar out of the glass and continue on to the palate. Very powerful with a long, long finish.

2004 Jim Barry ‘The Armaugh’ Shiraz 98 Pts RP 95 Pts WS $160
The Armagh, a 100% Shiraz aged 16 months in French and American oak. It is an opaque purple-hued, super-intense effort displaying great precision and richness. Notes of melted asphalt, acacia flowers, blueberries, blackberries, charcoal, and espresso roast emerge from this full, dense, opulent Shiraz. The finish lasts for over 45 seconds.

2002 Henschke Hill of Grace Shiraz 98 Pts RP 98 Pts WS $550
The 2002 is 100% Shiraz aged 18 months in 100% new French and American oak. It boasts an inky/blue/purple color as well as extraordinary uplifted aromatics of acacia flowers, ground pepper, espresso roast, blackberries, cassis, chocolate, and smoke.

The verdict? Incredibly powerful wines to be sure and if my bank account had a few more zeros in front of the decimal place I wouldn’t mind shelling out big bones for these wines but we got to taste some other less heralded wines that gave me almost as much pleasure at a fraction of the cost.

2003 Yalumba ‘The Signature’ Cabernet/Shiraz 92 Pts RP $45
A blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 45% Shiraz from Barossa estate vineyards, the 2003 The Signature is a big, chunky, heady red that reveals an inky/purple color, impressive levels of richness, and sweet notes of charcoal, acacia flowers, blackberries, tar, and pepper. Long, long finish.

2004 Henschke Keyneton Estate 92 Pts RP $40
The Keyneton is 40% Shiraz, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc. Deep crimson in color. Spicy sweet aromas of plums, anise, blueberries and cassis with hints of smoky tar, vanilla, cedar and minty nuances. The palate is sweet and ripe with lush blackberry fruits, complex with excellent depth and concentration, velvety fine-grained tannins and excellent length.

Good on ya mate!

The Iberian PeninsulaThe Iberian Peninsula

2007-11-10T22:17:00Z

Even though wine has been produced on the Iberian Peninsula for several thousand years, high quality table wines available for export have only recently hit the market. In the past Portugal and Spain were primarily known for their fortified wines, Port and Sherry, but modern viticultural and vinification techniques have been employed in many regions of these two countries and some of the resulting wines have taken on cult status.

Spain is the third largest producer of wine in the world behind Italy and France. Tempranillo is probably the most well known red varietal and is now widely planted around the world. Garnacha (Grenache), Cariñena (Carignan), and Monastrell (Mourvedre) are commonly referred to as Rhône varietals but have made a home in Spain too. Albariño, Viura and Verdejo are a few of the most common white varietals.

Portugal has about 500 indigenous grape varieties that produce a wide range of distinctive wines and has the oldest appellation system in the world, predating the French AOC by nearly two hundred years. Tinta Roriz (Tempranillo), Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca and Tinta Barroca are some of the more widely planted and well-known red grapes while Alvarinho (Albariño), Viura (Macabeo), and Verdejo account for a large portion of the white wines we see here.

We had a chance to taste some of these wines this week and I’d like to mention just a few:

2003 Laurona (Montsant) Wine Spectator 2006 Top 100 (#89) $28

What a gorgeous blend of Garnacha, Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon from the region that surrounds Priorat in the northwest corner of Spain. It smells like raspberry jam and on the palate the raspberry and blackberry flavors are joined by minerals and it’s all wrapped up in a layer of smooth tannins. Very balanced and powerful. The 2000 vintage made the Wine Spectator Top 100 too (#90).

2004 Clos Mogador Priorat Wine Spectator 92 Pts $78

This is dense ruby/garnet wine ink! This elegant red is balanced and lively, with black cherry, raspberry, mineral, mountain herb and floral notes framed by well-integrated tannins and fresh acidity. Has the density to age. Drink now through 2016.

1995 Bodega Vega Sicilia Unico Gran Reserva Tinto WS 94 Pts $320

I know, I know, I’m always talking about value. Is this good value? I don’t think so but it was a pleasure to taste one of Spain’s most heralded wines. Still fresh, this concentrated red delivers vibrant cherry and plum fruit, with expressive licorice, mineral and game notes. Thick and firm on the palate, yet remains harmonious through the spicy finish. Drink now through 2015.

2004 Aveleda Bairrada Touriga Nacional Follies WS 89 Pts $15

A wine all of us can afford, this Portuguese red is concentrated and fresh-tasting, with a lively array of crushed red fruit flavors, including plum, raspberry, red cherry and wild strawberry. The suave finish echoes the fruit. Drink now through 2010.

2003 Quinta do Vallado Douro Vinho Tinto Reserva WS 94 Pts Top 100 2005 (#25) $32

Absolutely delicious, complex, seductive and refined, with a beautiful aroma of Asian spice, cassis and chocolate with flavors to match. Broad and lush, with plenty of structure and a caressing finish of cream, black truffle and mocha that goes on and on. Tempting now. Best from 2006 through 2010.

Wow, some really great value wines and some world class wines are making their way to our shores from Spain and Portugal. The next time you're looking for a little adventure in a bottle of wine stroll on over to the Iberian section and take home a bottle or two, you won't be disappointed.

Corks and 'Corked' Wines

2007-10-25T16:15:00Z

Corks have been the traditional closure for bottled wine for hundreds of years and serve to protect the wine from exposure to air and hence oxidation. Today there are a number of alternative closures: screw cap (“Stelvin”), synthetic corks of various composition and most recently glass corks (“Vino-Seal”). I have had a number of customers come into the store and flatly refuse to buy wines sealed with a twist-off cap. This stems from the stigma that only “cheap” wines come in screw cap bottles. I like to point out that PlumpJack bottled half of their 1997 Reserve Cabernet ($135/bottle) with them and more high-end wineries are using alternative closures for wines that are not considered ‘plonk’. Most wines from New Zealand and many wines from Australia and Germany now come with screw-cap bottles.

What’s the real issue here? TCA (trichloroanisole) or ‘cork taint’ is the culprit responsible for spoiling somewhere between 2-10% of all wine sealed with a natural cork. Most people describe a corked bottle as smelling like wet newspaper or a dank basement. Often times though with a low level of TCA the wine is just ‘off’ and the fruit flavors are muted giving one the impression that the wine is not very good. I’m afraid all too often consumers open a bottle of wine and with no prior experience with the product determine that they don’t like it not realizing that it was a bad bottle, not a bad wine. Individual sensitivity to TCA varies widely too. Some tasters can detect as little as 2-4 parts per trillion while others cannot detect it at 50 ppt.

Where does TCA come from? It is the result of mold acting on chlorinated compounds used in insecticides, cleaning agents, etc., so the source of the TCA can be the forest where the cork came from or the winery. Somewhere in the process – from stripping the bark off a cork oak tree in Portugal to storage in the winery prior to bottling – cork can become tainted. Alcohol in the wine begins extracting the TCA as soon as it comes in contact with the contaminated cork and after a brief time the wine is compromised. It should be noted that wine can acquire TCA before it gets to the bottle too. Hoses, barrels and virtually anything that is a contact surface for wine can become contaminated and transmit TCA to the finished product.

Of course there is the aesthetic side of things to consider. Somehow going to a nice restaurant and ordering an expensive bottle of wine only to have the server twist off the top and place an aluminum cap down for you to ponder doesn’t make sense. There’s a certain elegance to the ritual of being shown the bottle and the subsequent extraction of the cork.

The ageing of wine under cork versus a screw cap is still up for debate and analysis. Historically many wines have needed years of cellaring to soften harsh tannins and allow the wine to mellow before it is considered drinkable. Will these wines behave the same with the use of an alternative closure? Many wineries are conducting these tests and time will tell.

But for the vast majority of wine the use of a screw cap is ideal. They are convenient, they can prevent most of the spoilage due to TCA and the wines they seal are meant for early consumption so we don’t need to concern ourselves with the ageability issue. I look at twist caps as a boon to the consumer.

About me

2007-10-21T16:31:00Z

I grew up in West Los Angeles in the 50's and didn't really discover wine until my wife Linda and I moved to San Diego in 1981 after I graduated from UCLA with a PhD in biochemistry. Up to that point we had only experienced Mateus Rosé and a few easy-to-drink California Zinfandels and Merlots. We had however determined that our beverage-of-choice was wine.

In 1983 a colleague invited me to attend a wine tasting with his fellow eonophiles. I said "sure, I'd love to learn more about wine". These regular events were held in the very same building on the UCSD campus where I had done my stint as a post-doctoral fellow a few years earlier. When we arrived I was introduced and we all arranged our six glasses in front of us. Then the member who had been elected to put on this particular tasting placed six brown paper bag-wrapped bottles on the table and informed the group that we were tasting wines from the southern Rhône region. Panic set in immediately. I had never tasted wines from the Rhône and I had certainly never participated in a blind tasting. My first thought was that I would make a complete ass of myself.

The bottles were passed around and everyone poured a few ounces into the appropriate glass and began a careful (and quiet) analysis of the wines. I mimicked their behavior and wrote rather banal comments like "nice smell', "tastes good" and "yuck" while they all seem to be writing a treatise for each wine. After about 30 minutes someone asked "does everyone have scores?". Scores? Oh crap, I don't know how to score these wines. "Don't worry Eric, your scores won't count anyway" I was assured. At that time the group (which had been established in 1978) used a 20-point scale and after tallying the average score for each wine they were revealed from the lowest average score to the highest while everyone made comments relative to their ranking of the wines. I didn't have much to offer other than "I liked that one the most" (it wasn't the group favorite and I somehow felt inferior for not likeing that one at the time but this was my first realization that rating wine is a very personal and subjective undertaking).

Linda joined the group a few years later and our fascination with wine has grown ever since. Fast forward to 2005 when Linda and I moved to Oregon. We were living in Newberg and knew we wanted to open a wine store but had not yet determined where it should be: close to wine country or close to Portland? After 9 months of investigation we settled on Wilsonville and started Wine Xing, LLC with a focus to bring good quality wines to the community at a fair price.

In a few weeks we will mark our second anniversary and we truly appreciate the many friends we have made in the Wilsonville area and the Portland wine community.

A brief note on my qualifications to write about wine. Am I formally trained? No. Do I have a degree in enology. No. But I am well read on the subject and I continue to learn about the ever-expanding universe of wine through literature and by tasting wines. On average I taste between 50 and 100 new wines each week (it's a tough job but somebody has to do it J). Do I like all of the 800 or so wines that I have in the store? No, but the wines that I select are in my opinion well made, reflect good winemaking and will appeal to the group of customers that enjoy a particular style of wine.

Cheers.