In the summer of 2004, my family decided to spend a summer week vacationing in Pismo Beach. As part of our vacation, we planned to spend a day tasting the wines of Edna Valley. One of my customers suggested that I visit his brother who owned Stephen Ross Wine Cellars. So as part of my vacation planning, I emailed Stephen Dooley and set up an appointment.
When the day of our visit came, we headed out of Pismo to the warmer Edna Valley. After cruising up and down the valley's main highway, we could not find the winery. I called Mr. Dooley and he described where he was. We pulled up and the winery was in the middle of a large industrial park. This was not the romantic vision of wine country that is served up by the Chamber of Commerce.
Come to think of it, why do you need the fancy shell to house the components of a winery. All you need are is an area for your tanks, temperature controlled room for barrels, a lab and a bottling line. And the bottling line can be rented.
As I've continued in my immersion in the wine world, I have come across more and more of these industrial facilities, or as Elliot Stern put it, making wine out of large tanks. These facilities are sprinkled throughout wine country, in American Canyon and the southern reaches of Napa, 8th Street in Sonoma, the northwestern reaches of Santa Rosa and along Highway 116 north of Sebastopol. It is here that aspiring winemakers can start brands with (relatively) little money up front. These facilities provide everything needed to start production.
And these facilities are home to some of the most exciting wines being produced in Wine Country. I have personally tasted brands from Calstar in Sonoma, Covenant in Napa and most recently Sonoman in Santa Rosa, all produced in these wine factories.
Recently, several of the Santa Rosa industrial wineries have banded together to form the Santa Rosa Wine Trail. This trail is not for tourists who are looking for vine shaded picnic areas and roads that wind through picturesque vineyards. This wine road is for serious tasters who are looking for exceptional wines. Included in this trail is Carol Shelton, one of California's most idiosyncratic zinfandel producers and Siduri/Novy Winery, maker of some of California's best pinot noirs and syrahs.
Which brings me to the recently opened Vinoteca Cooperative tasting room located in the heart of the Coffey Lane Industrial Park. Vinify Wine Services, which operates this tasting room, is a cooperative that houses 8 small wineries. Earlier this week, they held an open house for the wine trade and it was eye popping, I tasted some of the most exciting wines that I have tasted in years. Ogdon Olsen, who's pinot noirs are very good, was pouring a syrah that was magnificent. Smokey, fruity, meaty with a solid acidity and smooth tannins, it screamed for us to get out the Barby and cook up some animal protein.
Then there was the Great Sonoman. They poured a 2006 Sonoma Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon that was in the same league as many Napa cabs that I've recently tasted. Smooth with very integrated tannins, this wine was redolent with bright floral notes, chocolate dust, cedar and cigar smoke and deep dark fruit flavors. It had a finish that went on for what seemed to be weeks. This was an exquisite wine. And it sells on their web site for under $40. A steal in any language.
You can find great wine in many offbeat places, including industrial parks.
In 19 days I will leave for Alaska on the Crystal Symphony. The Symphony has restaurants by Nobu and Valentino and a wine list that has all of Bordeaux's great growths as well as Tiganello and many other great wines. I will be blogging about the food and wine of this trip as I go along.
Thanks for reading.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Burgundy To Bordeaux, I Mean Sonoma Coast to Calistoga, in One Day
Sunday was the type of day that can only happen in Northern California. Warm and sunny in Marin where I live, cold and sunny in San Francisco, and hot (I mean very hot) and sunny in Calistoga. What does that have to do with anything? Well on Sunday I attended Pinot Days in San Francisco and Celebrate Summer Calistoga Style in Calistoga. It was the equivalent of Burgundy to Bordeaux in the space of one afternoon!
Pinot Days itself is kind of an unusual celebration in that the sponsoring organization is a for profit entity. This practise is contrary to all the other varietal/appellation events that are held in San Francisco during the year. ZAP, Family Winemakers of California, Rhone Rangers, Passport to California Cabernet,Grape to Glass in Russian River, Napa Stomp are all sponsored by promotional/marketing organizations with any proceeds dedicated to promoting the wines of the members. As a result, several of the big hitters were not at Pinot Days. Among the missing were Williams Seylem, Kistler, Hartford Court, Marcassin and others.
That does not mean that the wines were lacking. There were plenty of wines to sink you pallets into! Some of the highlights were Peter Paul Wines, made by my friend Jeff Morgan and his partner Daniel Moore. Nice fruit and an outstanding structure with good acid makes this a fine wine for food. Another standout was Gundlach Bundschu, which I found surprising. Featuring a funky, smokey nose and sneaky fruit, this structured wine was downright delicious.
Two other standouts were established Pinot stars Kosta Browne and Landmark Vineyards. Kosta Browne, now part of the VinCraft Group, produces extremely fruit based wines that can bludgeon you in ripeness. These wines showed a lot of finesse, something that I did not expect. Landmark's Kanzler Vineyard Pinot Noir was the standout of the event. This wine had a perfect balance of fruit, smoke, acid with some unexpected tannins sneaking through the pallate. This was an immensely enjoyable wine.
It was into the car for a trip north to Calistoga. As the thermometer started to climb from the low 60s in SF, the mid 70s in Marin, high 70s in Carneros, mid 80s in St. Helena, all the way up to the mid 90s in Calistoga, I reflected on what the wines from this appellation would show. With this heat, all I wanted to drink was Savignon Blanc, and I was not disappointed. I found myself continuing returning to Kelly Flemming and Larkmead for the SBs. As the sun set, and the temperature took a 30 degree dive, I found myself exploring the cabernets.
All I can say is wow. These were big chewy wines, loaded with tannins, that had a surprising finesse. I especially enjoyed the cabs from Larkmead, Bennett Lane, Kelly Fleming, and just about everyone else.
And what can you say about a dining experience in the vineyards at Sterling. It was gorgeous, I expected to see a photographer from either Food & Wine or Bon Appetite pop out from the vines and start clicking away. In fact Napa Valley Grape growers were taking pictures and they are posted on their Facebook page.
All in all, a wonderful day spent with some of the best of California. I am starting to see a distinct California personality in wines, what it is I have not yet determined, but it is there. Thanks for reading.
Pinot Days itself is kind of an unusual celebration in that the sponsoring organization is a for profit entity. This practise is contrary to all the other varietal/appellation events that are held in San Francisco during the year. ZAP, Family Winemakers of California, Rhone Rangers, Passport to California Cabernet,Grape to Glass in Russian River, Napa Stomp are all sponsored by promotional/marketing organizations with any proceeds dedicated to promoting the wines of the members. As a result, several of the big hitters were not at Pinot Days. Among the missing were Williams Seylem, Kistler, Hartford Court, Marcassin and others.
That does not mean that the wines were lacking. There were plenty of wines to sink you pallets into! Some of the highlights were Peter Paul Wines, made by my friend Jeff Morgan and his partner Daniel Moore. Nice fruit and an outstanding structure with good acid makes this a fine wine for food. Another standout was Gundlach Bundschu, which I found surprising. Featuring a funky, smokey nose and sneaky fruit, this structured wine was downright delicious.
Two other standouts were established Pinot stars Kosta Browne and Landmark Vineyards. Kosta Browne, now part of the VinCraft Group, produces extremely fruit based wines that can bludgeon you in ripeness. These wines showed a lot of finesse, something that I did not expect. Landmark's Kanzler Vineyard Pinot Noir was the standout of the event. This wine had a perfect balance of fruit, smoke, acid with some unexpected tannins sneaking through the pallate. This was an immensely enjoyable wine.
It was into the car for a trip north to Calistoga. As the thermometer started to climb from the low 60s in SF, the mid 70s in Marin, high 70s in Carneros, mid 80s in St. Helena, all the way up to the mid 90s in Calistoga, I reflected on what the wines from this appellation would show. With this heat, all I wanted to drink was Savignon Blanc, and I was not disappointed. I found myself continuing returning to Kelly Flemming and Larkmead for the SBs. As the sun set, and the temperature took a 30 degree dive, I found myself exploring the cabernets.
All I can say is wow. These were big chewy wines, loaded with tannins, that had a surprising finesse. I especially enjoyed the cabs from Larkmead, Bennett Lane, Kelly Fleming, and just about everyone else.
And what can you say about a dining experience in the vineyards at Sterling. It was gorgeous, I expected to see a photographer from either Food & Wine or Bon Appetite pop out from the vines and start clicking away. In fact Napa Valley Grape growers were taking pictures and they are posted on their Facebook page.
All in all, a wonderful day spent with some of the best of California. I am starting to see a distinct California personality in wines, what it is I have not yet determined, but it is there. Thanks for reading.
Friday, June 17, 2011
Some Random Wine Thoughts
Random thought 1: Sunday is the Pinot Days Grand Tasting, one of the four public events that allow any wine lover to sample almost every winery and wine produced in California. The others are the ZAP grand tasting, Family Winemakers of California, and Rhone Rangers. To quote a Chevron commercial "Too much good stuff!"
Random Thought 2: AT&T Park has a great wine by the glass selection. There is a wine bar on the view level of this ball park that offers 20, yes 20 wines by the glass. My only gripe is that at these prices, they can afford to offer those wonderful one time disposable wine glasses. Maybe the head of their concession company reads this blog.
Random Thought 3: Attended Taste of Mendocino last week. This event was interesting, but from a marketing, not wine perspective. Outside of established standouts Londer and Roederer Estate, the wines were average. But the event effectively showed off Mendocino as a wine and food travel destination. Let's face it, you can't just buzz up to the Anderson or Redwood Valleys from the Bay Area, as it is at least a 3 hour trip each way. They had a lot inns, attractions and restaurants showing off their stuff along with the wineries. Great concept and great execution by the organizing committee.
Random Thought 4: Sampled the wines of Navarro Spain last night at Oxbow Wine Merchants. The 2010s were simple and tasted very grapey, similar to my experience with the La Mancha wines. However, the modern wines, blends with Tempernillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Graciano were very tasty. And the price points were better still, all were under $20 per bottle. I really have to drink more Spanish wines are there are some tremendous values.
Random Thought 5: I am also attending the Celebrate Calistoga Style event on Saturday. BBQ and Cab, great combination!
Thanks for reading, I will be discussing the Pinot Days Grand Tasting in my next blog.
Random Thought 2: AT&T Park has a great wine by the glass selection. There is a wine bar on the view level of this ball park that offers 20, yes 20 wines by the glass. My only gripe is that at these prices, they can afford to offer those wonderful one time disposable wine glasses. Maybe the head of their concession company reads this blog.
Random Thought 3: Attended Taste of Mendocino last week. This event was interesting, but from a marketing, not wine perspective. Outside of established standouts Londer and Roederer Estate, the wines were average. But the event effectively showed off Mendocino as a wine and food travel destination. Let's face it, you can't just buzz up to the Anderson or Redwood Valleys from the Bay Area, as it is at least a 3 hour trip each way. They had a lot inns, attractions and restaurants showing off their stuff along with the wineries. Great concept and great execution by the organizing committee.
Random Thought 4: Sampled the wines of Navarro Spain last night at Oxbow Wine Merchants. The 2010s were simple and tasted very grapey, similar to my experience with the La Mancha wines. However, the modern wines, blends with Tempernillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Graciano were very tasty. And the price points were better still, all were under $20 per bottle. I really have to drink more Spanish wines are there are some tremendous values.
Random Thought 5: I am also attending the Celebrate Calistoga Style event on Saturday. BBQ and Cab, great combination!
Thanks for reading, I will be discussing the Pinot Days Grand Tasting in my next blog.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Sean Thackrey is the Alex Chilton or the Wine World
To quote the Replacements "What's that song?"
For those who don't know who Alex Chilton (he died a little over a year ago), he was a legendary singer/songwriter for the Boxtops (classic soul knock off called the Letter) and then as a recluse recorded several albums as Big Star. These albums were favorites at my college radio station, yet were commercial failures. Alex Chilton was forgotten until The Replacements sang about him in their 1987 song celebrating this reclusive, yet very influential artist.
What does this have to do with wine? For many years I have heard about Sean Thackrey. Robert Parker has written "One of California's most iconic and mystical winemakers, Sean Thackrey has logged in 20 or more vintages of consistently stunning wines that perhaps say it all with the simple quote on his label Sean Thackrey, Bolinas, CA." Every one of his wines is rated 90+ and above. The Wine Spectator wrote that his winery is as far from the glamour of Napa as is humanly possible, yet still in California. Above all, he has no tasting room, and no one sells his wines. In short, after 25 years of traveling in most of California's wine regions, he remained an enigma.
So when the Marin Winegrower's Association and the Marin Agricultural Land Trust sponsored a wine event focusing on Marin County wine grapes, in small print, along with the other producers, was the name Sean Thackrey. I had to go.
Now I hear the skeptics, Marin is a suburb of San Francisco. This is true only as far as it goes. Over 60% of the county is agricultural, rural, and extremely remote. All I have to do is make a right on to Lucas Valley Road, travel about 3 miles and I am definitely in rural America. I also pass George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch, where some of the grapes from yesterday's event were sourced. The other areas are Devil's Gulch, which is near Nicasio (Check out Rancho Nicasio, one of the great bars in Marin, and top of the line musical talent plays there as well), and the northernmost area in Marin, Chileno Valley. They are all extreme wine growing areas with more in common with the Sonoma Coast than the warm areas of Napa or Sonoma. And some of the wines were really delicious, and proved to be serious values as well.
Some of the standouts were Pey Marin who poured a very nice Trois Filles blend Pinot Noir that had a wonderful structure, showed great acid, and nice fruit. Their star was their Riesling, which was dry, but extremely fruity. I loved it, as it compares with a good German Spatlesse. This wine begged the question, why not more Riesling in Marin. The answer is economics, if your getting $50 a bottle for Pinot, why grow a graped where you only can get $25. It's a pity that Riesling is not appreciated by most Americans.
Dutton Goldfield was pouring several vintages from Devil's Gulch. Again, great acid and structure and some very nice fruit. A fine effort. Another large winery, DeLoach was pouring a Pinot from Skywalker Ranch, as well as 2 pinots from elsewhere. The Marin County blend was a standout, with bright acidity and fruit, nice tannins and great structure.
Then we got to the reason I went to this event, to finally try wines from the wine enigma Sean Thackrey. OMG, the 2008 Andromeda was a great, not good, but great wine. This was a wine with personality as well as a sense of place. There was a funkiness that I've really come to love, as well as fruit, great acid, light and elegant tannins. There is no other place in the world where this wine could have come from but a climate challenged area. This was a wine for the ages, and it should be spectacular in 10 years, if I can lay off drinking it before then.
Yes there are some really interesting wines from Marin County. The common element is that they are very well structured with great bright acidity, which means they will go great with all types of food.
And I was invited by Sean Thackrey to visit him at his winery so I can taste his whole portfolio. I can't wait.
For those who don't know who Alex Chilton (he died a little over a year ago), he was a legendary singer/songwriter for the Boxtops (classic soul knock off called the Letter) and then as a recluse recorded several albums as Big Star. These albums were favorites at my college radio station, yet were commercial failures. Alex Chilton was forgotten until The Replacements sang about him in their 1987 song celebrating this reclusive, yet very influential artist.
What does this have to do with wine? For many years I have heard about Sean Thackrey. Robert Parker has written "One of California's most iconic and mystical winemakers, Sean Thackrey has logged in 20 or more vintages of consistently stunning wines that perhaps say it all with the simple quote on his label Sean Thackrey, Bolinas, CA." Every one of his wines is rated 90+ and above. The Wine Spectator wrote that his winery is as far from the glamour of Napa as is humanly possible, yet still in California. Above all, he has no tasting room, and no one sells his wines. In short, after 25 years of traveling in most of California's wine regions, he remained an enigma.
So when the Marin Winegrower's Association and the Marin Agricultural Land Trust sponsored a wine event focusing on Marin County wine grapes, in small print, along with the other producers, was the name Sean Thackrey. I had to go.
Now I hear the skeptics, Marin is a suburb of San Francisco. This is true only as far as it goes. Over 60% of the county is agricultural, rural, and extremely remote. All I have to do is make a right on to Lucas Valley Road, travel about 3 miles and I am definitely in rural America. I also pass George Lucas's Skywalker Ranch, where some of the grapes from yesterday's event were sourced. The other areas are Devil's Gulch, which is near Nicasio (Check out Rancho Nicasio, one of the great bars in Marin, and top of the line musical talent plays there as well), and the northernmost area in Marin, Chileno Valley. They are all extreme wine growing areas with more in common with the Sonoma Coast than the warm areas of Napa or Sonoma. And some of the wines were really delicious, and proved to be serious values as well.
Some of the standouts were Pey Marin who poured a very nice Trois Filles blend Pinot Noir that had a wonderful structure, showed great acid, and nice fruit. Their star was their Riesling, which was dry, but extremely fruity. I loved it, as it compares with a good German Spatlesse. This wine begged the question, why not more Riesling in Marin. The answer is economics, if your getting $50 a bottle for Pinot, why grow a graped where you only can get $25. It's a pity that Riesling is not appreciated by most Americans.
Dutton Goldfield was pouring several vintages from Devil's Gulch. Again, great acid and structure and some very nice fruit. A fine effort. Another large winery, DeLoach was pouring a Pinot from Skywalker Ranch, as well as 2 pinots from elsewhere. The Marin County blend was a standout, with bright acidity and fruit, nice tannins and great structure.
Then we got to the reason I went to this event, to finally try wines from the wine enigma Sean Thackrey. OMG, the 2008 Andromeda was a great, not good, but great wine. This was a wine with personality as well as a sense of place. There was a funkiness that I've really come to love, as well as fruit, great acid, light and elegant tannins. There is no other place in the world where this wine could have come from but a climate challenged area. This was a wine for the ages, and it should be spectacular in 10 years, if I can lay off drinking it before then.
Yes there are some really interesting wines from Marin County. The common element is that they are very well structured with great bright acidity, which means they will go great with all types of food.
And I was invited by Sean Thackrey to visit him at his winery so I can taste his whole portfolio. I can't wait.
Saturday, June 11, 2011
Spanish Eyes are Smiling
Rare is the occasion to sample varietals from both California and their native environs in the same week. This week I attended the TAPAS tasting of Iberian varietals from California and then attended a tasting of wines from the Spanish DO of LaMancha. It was a fascinating study in contrasts.
First off, many of these wines were 2010s, all very fresh and some were extremely grapey, similar in structure to a Beaujolais Nouveau. I did not care for most of these. However, the 2010s from Parra Jimenez Bodegas were fantastic. They made fresh Grenacha, Termpernillo and Syrah that were downright delicious. Fresh and fruity with a lively acidity that makes them a great match for grilled food.
I also found that the wines made in what one winery owner called the new style were also quite good. New style means that they are predominantly Tempernillo based, but have other grapes added to the blend. Most of these were Crianzas or Reserva. The aforementioned Parra Jimenez Reserva was great. Hints of tobacco, cherries and leather, aged in a combination of new French and America oak. It was delicious.
Other wineries to watch for, and most do not have extensive distribution, are Bodegas Romero De Avila's Testivo blend. It had an alluring nose of chocolate powder mixed with dark cherries. It was my favorite of the event.
The most amazing thing about these wines were their values. All of the whites and most of the 2010s were around $10 per bottle, the reservas topped out at about $30. Now the comparisons to the California grown versions, they don't compare, at least not yet. The Spanish wines were for the most part a better value, and packed more flavor into each bottle.
Monday is Mendocino, Thursday finds me tasting the wines the Navarro region of Spain, and Sunday is a double header, Pinot Days in the morning and sampling the wines of the Calistoga AVA in the evening. Too much great wine!
Thank you for reading my blog, and please tell me what you think.
First off, many of these wines were 2010s, all very fresh and some were extremely grapey, similar in structure to a Beaujolais Nouveau. I did not care for most of these. However, the 2010s from Parra Jimenez Bodegas were fantastic. They made fresh Grenacha, Termpernillo and Syrah that were downright delicious. Fresh and fruity with a lively acidity that makes them a great match for grilled food.
I also found that the wines made in what one winery owner called the new style were also quite good. New style means that they are predominantly Tempernillo based, but have other grapes added to the blend. Most of these were Crianzas or Reserva. The aforementioned Parra Jimenez Reserva was great. Hints of tobacco, cherries and leather, aged in a combination of new French and America oak. It was delicious.
Other wineries to watch for, and most do not have extensive distribution, are Bodegas Romero De Avila's Testivo blend. It had an alluring nose of chocolate powder mixed with dark cherries. It was my favorite of the event.
The most amazing thing about these wines were their values. All of the whites and most of the 2010s were around $10 per bottle, the reservas topped out at about $30. Now the comparisons to the California grown versions, they don't compare, at least not yet. The Spanish wines were for the most part a better value, and packed more flavor into each bottle.
Monday is Mendocino, Thursday finds me tasting the wines the Navarro region of Spain, and Sunday is a double header, Pinot Days in the morning and sampling the wines of the Calistoga AVA in the evening. Too much great wine!
Thank you for reading my blog, and please tell me what you think.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
California Terroir?
Have you ever walked through a farmer's market here in California. In Marin County, where I live, we have one of the largest and oldest markets in the state. What is truly amazing about these markets are the wide range of produce that's available. There's Chinese broccoli, lnng beans, chayote squash, jicama, berries of all types, apples, pears, oranges, just about anything but tropical fruits grow here in this state.
Last weekend's TAPAS (Tempernillo Alliance of Producers and Amigos) of wines produced from Iberian Peninsula wine grapes got me thinking about that when it came to wine grapes. We seem to be able grow anything here. Nebbiolas and Barbaras from Italy; Syrah, Grenache and Viognier from the Rhone; Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris from Alsace; Riesling from Germany, Cabernet, chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Burgundy and Bordeaux; and now Tempernillo, Graczinano, and verdehlo from Iberia.
The question is, when grown in California, do these varietals make good wine, and do they bring a sense of place to those wines. I remember Cal-Italia, where the wine growers were celebrating Italian varietals. Guess what, most of the wines were totally dismissible, and the event never happened again. Until recently, I have not found a lot of Italian varietal based wine that was worth drinking. However, even that has started to change. Vina Nocetro (I don't have the correct spelling) from Amador County is doing some very interesting things with their Nebbiola and Sangiovese based wines.
And just last week, I was invited to taste Hart's Desires wines from Somona County and I was surprised two times. First was a Sangiovese that had a small amount of Zinfandel in the blend. It was juicy, fragrant, nice tannins and acid structure. In short, it had many of the attributes one finds in a well made Chianti Classico, and it was a bargain. The second was a rose made from Sangiovese. This could have been one of the best California roses I've had in quite a while.
Then there is the issue of the Rhone Rangers. I'm still not sold on this. I have had excellent CA syrahs from Novy, Rosenblum, Fess Parker, Failla, and others. But most of them are in the California style, big ripe fruit, and very rich. I liked them, but they are not the food friendly wines of the northern Rhone. As for the GSM blends (Chateauneuf de Pape), Tablas Creek does make a very fine version of this style. Others making interesting wines are L'aventura (who I think is extremely overpriced), Four Vines/Cypher Vineyards, Andrew Murray, etc. I remember tasting the Andrew Murray wine blind and having a Texas native tell us that is had the nose of a huge BBQ joint. Talk about roasted meat aromas.
I think the whites are more interesting and successful, yet not quite as well known. Viognier from Fess Parker is one of my go to white wines over the summer. Great for sipping, fish, chicken or lightly seasoned pork on the grill. Marsanne Roussane blends are downright intriguing, it made well. Their acidity and fruitiness are perfect with warm weather fare.
Which brings me to what are called the rest of the Aromatic Whites, Gewurztraminer , Riesling, and Muscat. All of these have very floral and aromatic noses, and grow very well in various regions of Europe. Many are made off dry, which means slightly lower alcohol levels. I think Riesling in the US is a work in progress, I am not a big fan. As you can get really great German or Alsace Riesling at very good prices, why bother. (A side note, I am looking forward to cruising on the Crystal Symphony where the house pour dessert wine is a TBA Riesling from Kracher, one of the worlds great sweet wine producers. My mouth waters thinking about it.) Dr. Loosen has a joint venture in Washington state the is only partially successful. Skip the Washington State and stay with his German product.
If you are looking for domestic Riesling, go to New York's Finger Lakes region where it has it in spades. Because this region has similar conditions to the Rhine and the Moselle, the wines have a very similar structure, great acidity, low alcohol and are very food friendly. Look for Keuka Springs, Dr. Konstantine Frank and Widmer. Keuka Springs also has a dynamite Gwurtz as well, winning Best of Show White Wine at a recent SF Chronicle Wince Competition.
In California, Navarro is the Gwurtz go to winery. They've been doing it for years, and they do it well. It is Alsatian in character, well structure, slightly off dry and totally delicious.
Which brings me back to the TAPAS tasting this weekend. Ir was very interesting. I generally found the wines to be well made, and the whites to be generally more interesting than the reds. It was a red that really stood out, E2 from Bodega de Edgar Winery in San Luis Obispo. This was a wine that I would buy in a second. It was a blend of Graziano and Tempernillo, had great structure, very well integrated tannins and went well with the Paella that was served at the event. Finding that wine was enough to make the trip worthwhile. I will go again next year and see how they are progressing.
Back to my central questions, if we can grow anything here in California, is it worth growing and drinking. That's in the eye of the beholder. One of the strengths, and some would say weaknesses of our system is that unlike Europe with its myriad of restrictions on what can be grown where, we leave it up to the grower. If he or she feels they can make a commercially viable product, or one that they enjoy drinking, why not. While I like to pontificate on wines attributes, wine is really a very personal thing. It's what you like, and that's what counts.
Over the next two weeks I am going to a whole batch of very interesting wine events, ranging from Pinot Days (a personal favorite), tasting Calistoga AVA wines, to tastings of wines from two of Spain's lesser know appellations. I should find something to write about. Thanks for visiting, and please feel free to send my your comments and thought.
Last weekend's TAPAS (Tempernillo Alliance of Producers and Amigos) of wines produced from Iberian Peninsula wine grapes got me thinking about that when it came to wine grapes. We seem to be able grow anything here. Nebbiolas and Barbaras from Italy; Syrah, Grenache and Viognier from the Rhone; Gewurztraminer and Pinot Gris from Alsace; Riesling from Germany, Cabernet, chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Burgundy and Bordeaux; and now Tempernillo, Graczinano, and verdehlo from Iberia.
The question is, when grown in California, do these varietals make good wine, and do they bring a sense of place to those wines. I remember Cal-Italia, where the wine growers were celebrating Italian varietals. Guess what, most of the wines were totally dismissible, and the event never happened again. Until recently, I have not found a lot of Italian varietal based wine that was worth drinking. However, even that has started to change. Vina Nocetro (I don't have the correct spelling) from Amador County is doing some very interesting things with their Nebbiola and Sangiovese based wines.
And just last week, I was invited to taste Hart's Desires wines from Somona County and I was surprised two times. First was a Sangiovese that had a small amount of Zinfandel in the blend. It was juicy, fragrant, nice tannins and acid structure. In short, it had many of the attributes one finds in a well made Chianti Classico, and it was a bargain. The second was a rose made from Sangiovese. This could have been one of the best California roses I've had in quite a while.
Then there is the issue of the Rhone Rangers. I'm still not sold on this. I have had excellent CA syrahs from Novy, Rosenblum, Fess Parker, Failla, and others. But most of them are in the California style, big ripe fruit, and very rich. I liked them, but they are not the food friendly wines of the northern Rhone. As for the GSM blends (Chateauneuf de Pape), Tablas Creek does make a very fine version of this style. Others making interesting wines are L'aventura (who I think is extremely overpriced), Four Vines/Cypher Vineyards, Andrew Murray, etc. I remember tasting the Andrew Murray wine blind and having a Texas native tell us that is had the nose of a huge BBQ joint. Talk about roasted meat aromas.
I think the whites are more interesting and successful, yet not quite as well known. Viognier from Fess Parker is one of my go to white wines over the summer. Great for sipping, fish, chicken or lightly seasoned pork on the grill. Marsanne Roussane blends are downright intriguing, it made well. Their acidity and fruitiness are perfect with warm weather fare.
Which brings me to what are called the rest of the Aromatic Whites, Gewurztraminer , Riesling, and Muscat. All of these have very floral and aromatic noses, and grow very well in various regions of Europe. Many are made off dry, which means slightly lower alcohol levels. I think Riesling in the US is a work in progress, I am not a big fan. As you can get really great German or Alsace Riesling at very good prices, why bother. (A side note, I am looking forward to cruising on the Crystal Symphony where the house pour dessert wine is a TBA Riesling from Kracher, one of the worlds great sweet wine producers. My mouth waters thinking about it.) Dr. Loosen has a joint venture in Washington state the is only partially successful. Skip the Washington State and stay with his German product.
If you are looking for domestic Riesling, go to New York's Finger Lakes region where it has it in spades. Because this region has similar conditions to the Rhine and the Moselle, the wines have a very similar structure, great acidity, low alcohol and are very food friendly. Look for Keuka Springs, Dr. Konstantine Frank and Widmer. Keuka Springs also has a dynamite Gwurtz as well, winning Best of Show White Wine at a recent SF Chronicle Wince Competition.
In California, Navarro is the Gwurtz go to winery. They've been doing it for years, and they do it well. It is Alsatian in character, well structure, slightly off dry and totally delicious.
Which brings me back to the TAPAS tasting this weekend. Ir was very interesting. I generally found the wines to be well made, and the whites to be generally more interesting than the reds. It was a red that really stood out, E2 from Bodega de Edgar Winery in San Luis Obispo. This was a wine that I would buy in a second. It was a blend of Graziano and Tempernillo, had great structure, very well integrated tannins and went well with the Paella that was served at the event. Finding that wine was enough to make the trip worthwhile. I will go again next year and see how they are progressing.
Back to my central questions, if we can grow anything here in California, is it worth growing and drinking. That's in the eye of the beholder. One of the strengths, and some would say weaknesses of our system is that unlike Europe with its myriad of restrictions on what can be grown where, we leave it up to the grower. If he or she feels they can make a commercially viable product, or one that they enjoy drinking, why not. While I like to pontificate on wines attributes, wine is really a very personal thing. It's what you like, and that's what counts.
Over the next two weeks I am going to a whole batch of very interesting wine events, ranging from Pinot Days (a personal favorite), tasting Calistoga AVA wines, to tastings of wines from two of Spain's lesser know appellations. I should find something to write about. Thanks for visiting, and please feel free to send my your comments and thought.
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