The Naked Vine: Wine Advice for the Rest of Us.™

Wine and...pub grub?

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:41:00 +0000

Vine reader Lee D. posits this scenario:

I joined a group last week at a (sports - of course) bar where multiple screens were showing Blues Hockey, Cardinals Baseball, Mizzou Football, and even though people roll their eyes about the Rams, they're still the home team, by gum! As I perused the menu and thought about which elixir would go down best, I felt very uncomfortable even implying (with discernible hesitation and accompanying raised eyebrows) I might throw beer and wings to the wind and satiate my lust for the vine. The confused group looked at me as if I had six heads. Additionally, the added peer pressure made it difficult to order a nice pairing with confidence.

What's a wine gal to do? Could you suggest strategies for making quick and confident selections of food/wine based on the traditional watering hole menu? There are usually more wines than just the "house", but I don't want to merely partake alone in my corner; I want to inspire.

Hmm...inspiration and nachos often go hand in hand -- but nachos and wine? Hmm...this one's going to take some thought...

Disclaimer: I am not referring to "bars" like Friday's, Applebee's, Chili's, or other apostrophe'd chain restaurants that are ostensibly watering holes. These zits on the face of most American suburbs offer broader food options and "wine lists," but they're the gastronomic equivalent of a bachelor/bachelorette party -- sure, you can make a ruckus with your friends and you'll probably end up buzzed and full, but you'll wonder what happened to your evening, your wallet, and your sense of self-respect afterwards.

Most bars, pubs, taverns, etc. offer some kind of hot (as opposed to haute) cuisine. The menu usually consists of various forms of absorptive, high sodium items usually created for sharing, scarfing, and grazing unthinkingly while your focus is elsewhere. These selections, as Lee pointed out above, usually cry for beer -- often for cheap, light lager-ish beer. Why is that?

Well, let's think about that. We're not talking craft brews here -- those are usually better appreciated on their own. Your typical lagers that you'll find at a bar are usually served ice cold, so you can't taste much. They're watery, which washes the salt out of your mouth. (Which is, after all, the point of salty bar food -- keeps you drinking!) Thanks to the hops, they're also mildly acidic, which counteracts the heat caused by the bases you find in your average jalapeno popper. Beer's your most flexible choice -- but we want wine here.

OK, first off, as with most nights you're going out, start by lowering your expectations. You've got to be realistic. Most bar owners aren't interested in keeping a well-stocked wine cellar. They're often thinking, "Red, check. White, check. Pink, check. OK, on to the Jagerbomb makings..." Thankfully, as wine's popularity permeated the mainstream "going out" crowd, bars began stocking something other than Sutter Home White Zinfandel to feed a particular stereotype.

So, what should you expect? Uncomplicated wines (read: "California or Australian") are the order of the day, so you don't have to worry about screwing up a pairing. You can almost always bet on three wines for sure: a cabernet sauvignon of some kind; a chardonnay (which will probably be the "house white"); and a white zinfandel. Merlot's not uncommon, and there's usually a pinot grigio lying around somewhere. Riesling is becoming more common -- usually the sweet versions, and places trying to be classy might have a pinot noir.

The brand of wine probably won't matter much. I made reference way back when to a friend's descriptions of many cheap quaffs as "pop tart wines" because they're so interchangeable. Most of the wines you'll see are in that category. When the server comes, just ask what kinds of wine they have. If he or she doesn't know, send them back to the bar to find out -- at the very least, that will buy you some time to run down the few pub grub pairing rules:

Rule #1: Bubbly. I've said it over and over again -- the best wine pairing with the salty, fatty foods that you're likely to find in any of these establishments is going to be a sparkling wine. Many bars don't carry it, but if you're lucky enough to be in a place that does, go with it. It doesn't matter what kind -- dry works just as well as sweet for this purpose. Swallow your pride and some Asti Spumante. So what if people look at you crosswise for drinking bubbly in a bar? If there are enough sporting events on, you can always say that you're celebrating something. And before long...you probably will be!

Rule #2: When in doubt, white.
This may sound somewhat emasculating to men who have a strange aversion to wine that's not big, powerful, and dark -- but get over it. If you want a good flavor, this is generally going to be the way to go. Wines that are tannic or high in alcohol don't generally play well with foods that are high in salt. Salt and tannic wine combine to taste "hot" and a bit unpleasant. White wine has a couple of other things going for it, too. The higher acidity makes for a more flexible food pairing. Acidic wines like pinot grigio will either quiet spices or go more easily with flavors. Also, as anyone who's ever eaten French fries with ketchup or chocolate covered pretzels can attest, sweet and salty make a delightful combination. Inexpensive white wine often has a little bit of sweetness, because a little bit of sugar covers up a whole lot of poor winemaking. Use this to your advantage. Actually, while white zin gets a particularly bad rap for being sweet, bubbleheaded plonk -- the very thing that makes it palatable to people who "don't like wine" make it particularly good with your typical bar menu. It's sweet and tart -- so it'll work with just about anything. However, if you go that route, tell everyone that it's actually a dry rosé so you can maintain a modicum of dignity.

Rule #3: Remember the four food groups. When you peruse the menu, keep in mind the four pub grub food groups: spicy, meaty, fried, and cheesy. These are used in various combinations and permutations, but almost anything you're going to order will slide into one of these categories. Your mission, should you choose to accept it, is to determine which flavor will be dominant. If you're getting a burger or barbecue -- your reds will be better. Spicy foods call for something acidic or sweet -- which is going to bring you back to pinot grigio or Riesling if they have one around. If you really want red and you're lucky enough to have a red Zinfandel as an option, you could go that way with it. With fried foods, pretty much anything white will beat anything red, especially if it's battered up. And with cheesy? This is where you can break out some of that house chardonnay that you may have noticed we haven't discussed at all...

Washington State

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 00:32:00 +0000

After my foray with Maryhill Winery, I jealously read K2's "Washington Wine road trip." The state's been pretty good to me lately, so I thought I might as well take a little closer look at the place, especially since a broader variety keep showing up in the wine stores around and about.

On the world wine stage, Washington's a relative newcomer. Not long after settlers started moving to the Pacific Northwest in great numbers in the late 1880's...along came Prohibition to throw a big ol' monkey wrench into the works. Once the Dark Ages were over, Washington started producing some wines -- but most of them were of the sweet, jug variety. "Actual" wine production really got moving in the 60's and 70's, and some of the more recognizable labels (Columbia Winery, Chateau St. Michele) started showing up.

Washington wines were largely a curiosity nationwide until the merlot boom of the 1990's. Washington's soil and cooler climate were perfect, it turned out, for cranking out large quantities of relatively inexpensive, approachable merlot. This gave the state a real foothold in the American market and it's been solid ever since.

My image of the Pacific Northwest didn’t exactly match up with "perfect grape growing environment." When I think of Washington, I think of snow-capped mountains, gorgeous rivers, Pearl Jam, and lots of rain. Grapes like to grow in dry soil -- and dry is not the first thing most people think of regarding Washington climate. What kind of amphibious grapes are they growing out there?

The answer lies, as it usually does, in geography.All but one of the viticultural (WineSpeak for "wine grape growing") regions lie to the east of the Cascade Mountains. While western Washington is very wet, the Cascades form enough of a tall, solid wall that the clouds end up dropping all their moisture on the west side of the mountains, leaving the eastern side extremely arid, but with irrigation water available. Couple this with sandy, volcanic soil, and you've got a dreamy place for a vinifera grape vine to drop roots.

You'll see a lot of similar varietals from both California and Washington. If you try them side-by-side, though, you'll probably notice a pretty sharp difference. Especially among the reds, Washington wines tend to be "softer" wines. Cooler climates allow grapes to ripen more slowly. The fruit and tannin tend to be more subtle. I've rarely run into a fruit bomby merlot from Washington, especially among inexpensive ones -- whereas if you try a merlot from California at the same price point, you'll get a big, fat dark berry in the face.

A nice example I found lately was the Dusted Valley 2006 "Boomtown" Merlot. At first sip, I noted how much lighter this wine tasted. It also started off almost tart, so I decanted it, and the flavors balanced pretty well. The tartness eases a bit as some air gets to it. The nose is raspberryish and tasty. The flavor isn't overly fruity, sliding more towards an easy smokiness. By itself, I thought it was OK -- but we put next to a somewhat complicated-spice meal and it performed beautifully. On the menu: roasted pork chops in a Moroccan (read: nutmeg, ginger, and cinnamon-heavy) spice blend, sautéed pears in a sauce of apricots, onions, honey, and more of that spice blend. The spices, being largely bases, cut the tartness in the wine -- allowing more of the cherry and berry fruit character to show through -- and it smoothed out the spices as well. This one was around $15 for a spice-friendly, light meat answering wine.

Washington also produces a fair number of other Bordeaux-type grapes. Cabernet Sauvignon is fairly common, and Bordeaux blends of Cabernet and Merlot are easy to find. I popped open a Washington blend and found some interesting iterations. The Kiona 2003 Cabernet/Merlot was a fascinating blend, especially for $9. The wine had an interesting "French funk" on the nose that I would not have expected. The body had some muted fruit and earthiness that could easily have passed for a young Bordeaux. The finish was slightly fruity, and definitely a major value if you're into some more Francophilic selections. This one also demonstrates the aging potential of some of those wines -- since it's held up flawlessly for six years in a low price point.

There are a number of good pinot noirs as well, although they can sometimes be a little hard to track down. (Oregon is usually the better bet for pinot.)

Among whites, Washington is known widely for some very good Rieslings and Gewurztraminers. They're made in a wide variety of styles, and I've tried a couple of examples lately. The other day, I had the Chateau St. Michele Cold Creek Vineyard 2006 Riesling -- CSM is one of the best-known Washington wineries and, along with Hogue, always produces a bottle that I know I can count on. I've thought their regular Riesling is always a little too sweet and slightly sharp, but this "single vineyard" version still comes in at around $13 and is a significant improvement. It's got a slightly "oily" nose with plenty of apple and melon scents. The body is very smooth. It's nicely balanced -- it reminds me a lot of a German Kabinett. The fruit holds firm and doesn't get lost in some of the sharpness that some Rieslings have on the end. The finish is soft and pleasant. It was an absolutely exceptional pairing with a potato, leek, and fennel soup topped with smoked salmon.

I also cracked the Barnard Griffin 2008 Columbia Valley Riesling. Quite a contrast. It's very light for a Riesling -- almost Chardonnayish in feel-- with a flint and lemon nose. The flavor was very crisp and minerally. Some tasty green apples at first, but it mellows a little to a creamy lemon. The citrusy finish is a little tingly, almost like there's a little spice or carbonation. Good acidity. There are few Rieslings I'd consider "refreshing," but this one fills that bill. It also matched up well with a chicken & chickpea curry.

Washington wines, for me, have always been good, reliable choices. Many of my "go to" inexpensive bottles have been from there -- and as I'm trying more wines from there, I'm realizing just how much depth this region has. The winemakers up there do experiment quite a bit, so I'm looking forward to seeing what the next "big thing" from there will be.

Maryhill Winery

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 02:57:00 +0000

When I attended the Cincinnati International Wine Festival, I noted that Maryhill Wineries in Goldendale, Washington, was one of the labels with which I was the most intrigued. While my palate was somewhat blunted by the cacophony of flavors that I'd been working with that day, I found myself really drawn to Maryhill. They were priced right, seemed tasty and straightforward, and were easy to quaff.

They grow a broad variety of grapes, which can sometimes give pause, but they manage to keep the quality fairly consistent. Most of their wines are in the $10-20 range, which makes them quite attractive. Since the festival, Maryhill's done pretty well for itself. They were recently named the 2009 Washington Winery of the Year by Wine Press Northwest. Their production has expanded greatly over the last few years, and their wines are becoming much more available.

I was understandably pleased when a case and a half of the wine showed up on our doorstep to review. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I were up to the challenge, so over the period of a few weeks, we cobbled together some notes:

Maryhill Winery 2006 Cabernet Franc -- Because of a story too long to relate here that involved a Sangiovese that was...um..."missing" from our cellar, a rosé that ended up being too sweet, and a football game we needed to watch -- I ended up popping this wine on a night when we were having a more "Italian Friendly" meal. (I also ended up pulling a little trickeration on the SPinC...) This is definitely a more fruit-forward, "New World" Cab Franc. A plummy, slightly minty nose with a full mouthfeel. The flavor is quite fruity, with a nice blueberry and smoke undertone. I might have mistaken it for a Cabernet Sauvignon, except the tannins were much softer and the acidity level considerably higher. The finish is acidic and a bit smoky. We had a grilled salmon with roasted tomatoes and tomato risotto for dinner that evening. The pairing worked really well. The grilled flavor of the fish accentuated the smoke behind the fruit in the wine. The acidity tamed the oil in the fish, and the tomatoes didn't overwhelm it, as they could have. I opened another bottle of this with friends Danny and Ryan. We got to this one after a couple of other bottles and some tastes of old scotch. Surprisingly, the fruit still made it to our scorched tongues. ($18)

Maryhill Winery 2008 Rose of Sangiovese -- For folks who like slightly sweet rosés, this will be a favorite. I'd be interested to know how this wine came about. It's somewhat heavy in the mouth for a rosé, since it's got a fair amount of residual sugar. There's enough acidity to keep it from becoming cloyingly sweet, but I can't say that it was my favorite. It's actually the rosé I mentioned in the Cab Franc writeup. I think it would have been better if it were either made in a fruitier style or allowed to dry out a bit more. The sweetness made it neither fish nor fowl. (Although it might be reasonably tasty with either -- $14.)

Maryhill Winery 2007 Pinot Gris -- "Simple and uncomplicated" is about as apt a description as you'll find for this wine. It's a straightforward, summery wine. The nose is extremely light and lemony. The flavor is much like the bouquet, light and citrusy with some pear and lemon flavors. The finish is quick and acidic, with a bit of a lingering astringency -- almost like a little bit of oak crept through -- but not enough to really be a strong part of the flavor. There's also a little peppery hint as well. It's a decent enough wine. Not my favorite pinot gris, but certainly one that works well enough on a hot day to relax with. ($15)

Maryhill Winery 2006 Zinfandel -- We first tried this as a "second bottle" of the evening. We'd had dinner and had a bottle of pinot noir with it. We were having post-meal chocolate, and the SPinC asked, "Do we have anything that's good with chocolate?" After surveying the scene, I cracked this open. After it opened up a bit -- the nose is big and bold with blueberries and bubblegum. The palate is uncomplicated, but nicely jammy with more blueberry and raspberry flavors. This slides smoothly into a finish with balanced tannins and great flavors of dark chocolate and coffee. And yes, it went remarkably well with dark chocolate and brownies. We had to try both with it...you know, for science's sake. ($22)

Maryhill Winery 2008 Viognier -- We were putting together a salad of our garden veggies, some grilled chicken, and a balsamic vinaigrette and hadn't opened a wine for it yet. I took a shot in the dark here, and it paid off. The nose of this wine is less floral than many viogniers, nosing more of light wood and minerals than of flowers. The flavor is a medium bodied mix of pear and pineapple with a touch of the traditional viognier oiliness. Vanilla dominated the finish. Quite tasty. The salad had a number of strong flavors -- citrus, smoke from the grilled chicken, fresh lemon basil, earth from mushrooms, and this wine stood right up next to it all. It didn't overwhelm the salad's flavors, but it didn't turn either insipid or astringent. A great wine to pair with the salad. The longer the wine sat, the more pronounced the smokiness and vanilla became. I'd really consider letting this sit open for a half hour before diving in. We confirmed the pair's quality at the end when the SPinC reached for the bottle and said, "Hey...well...this sure didn't last long...." One of the highlights and a steal at $15.

Maryhill Winery 2006 Proprietor's Reserve Malbec -- We cracked this on a night where we'd both had a long week and wanted to put together a nice meal. We'd watched a few episodes of some old Julia Child shows from Netflix and we decided to try our hand at some green beans and stuffed mushrooms. For a main course, we marinated up a London broil in some vinaigrette and lime juice and tossed it on the grill. Grilled food & Malbec. We figured we couldn't lose. Nice nose of vanilla and dark fruit. I might have mistaken it for a good Merlot. Nice smooth, balanced fruit on the palate that slides easily towards a finish full of vanilla, pepper, and coffee. It's a very balanced Malbec without some of the really harsh tannins that some of them can have. It's also not quite as spicy, so if that's what you're focusing on, that's probably not going to ring a bell for you. But if you're looking for more of a balanced flavor, it's nice. I get the sense, also, that this is somewhat of an "experimental," limited production wine. It's about $30, so I might wait a couple of years on this one, unless you want to lay it up for a few years, which could prove interesting.

Maryhill Winery 2006 Syrah -- I'm very glad we had a spare bottle of this one from the shipment. We opened the first one and it drank easily enough that we went through the whole thing without writing a note! Second time through, we had it with what started as fajitas and turned into a "lots of beef, peppers, garlic and onions over black beans" meal. Yeah, so it might not have been the "perfect pairing," but it worked nonetheless. Really nice nose on this wine -- plenty of vanilla and soft wood scents. It's medium-bodied for a syrah, slightly jammy -- good blackberry flavor and some pepperiness. Good, easy finish with some lasting clove and coffee flavors. We made the meal with more of a smoky heat than a spicy one (Tabasco Chipotle sauce is great stuff...), and the peppery notes complemented those spices nicely. Again, dangerously easy to drink, but we held off a little for chocolate, and we were glad we did. ($20)

Maryhill Winery 2006 "Winemaker's Red" -- The Maryhill "Bordeaux Blend with a twist" is their most popular wine. It's a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Merlot, with the "twist" being some Syrah thrown in for good measure. It's got an interestingly plummy, funky nose -- very earthy for a wine from the Northwest. Like a Bordeaux, it's lighter on the palate than many of the California meritages, so they've got the body right. The finish is where the wine was a tad disappointing. Initially, the finish seemed a little watery, smoky and clipped. After some serious swirling (and drinking about half a glass), some coffee notes come forth and the balance improves. Not the most complicated wine, but very drinkable. I wonder what it would be like with another year in bottle. A decent value at $14.

Maryhill Winery 2006 Proprietor's Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon -- The few cabs that I've had from the Pacific Northwest have tended to be mellow, "drink me now" concoctions. The cooler climate tends to make more subtle wines. Maryhill's Cab is certainly subtle, but it carries a little muscle with it. It's not as powerful as many of the California versions, but it is a full wine just the same. The nose simply wasn't there at first, but after an hour of breathing and quite a bit of swirling, I got rewarded with a very smooth, licorice and berry nose. The palate is fruity once the wine opens. At first, it's a wall of tannin, but the fruit does emerge. Once it does, lots of dark fruit and coffee. The finish is long and a bit heavy on the tannin. With the steak we had for dinner, though, that tannin was a bonus -- allowing the wine's fruit to show up and balance the meat, the mushrooms, and even the wilted spinach. With the mandatory chocolate and cabernet pairing, we were a bit underwhelmed. It was good -- but the flavors didn't quite marry. The reserve is $36. (Their "normal" cab is $20.) Would be a good one to grab a few bottles of and stick in the cellar for 3-4 years. Once the tannins have calmed, this'll be a rock star.

To sum up, with the exception of the pinot gris, I'd recommend most of these. (Warm weather whites like pinot gris generally don't do as well in the Northwest, in my experience.) The price is right for most of them and they've all got some depth for wines at these price points. If you can find these in your local store, give them a go.

Burgundy, Domaine Chanson & The Phoenix

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 21:26:00 +0000

I’m going to relive the Phoenix’s recent wine dinner -- not just so you all get to hear about how perfectly cooked the lamb was, how fresh the vegetables tasted, or what absolutely splendid pairings got rolled out for us during the course of the evening.

I hadn’t had the opportunity to try that many Burgundies at once (there were six -- three red and three white) to get a sense of the variations in flavor and style. The experience was reminiscent of this May at the Vintner Select anniversary celebration when I had the chance to plow through flights of Barolo and Barbaresco. I’ll share my observations, but I’ll back up a bit and give a little background on the region first.

As I’ve mentioned before, understanding French wine can be notoriously tricky. (I’ve barely made a dent in what I feel like I need to know, honestly.) French wines are labeled by region of origin rather than by grape; each region may have a number of subregions, each of which can have its own blend of grapes; names can be very similar; quality can vary wildly by vintage for various reasons; and so on. Burgundy is one of the easiest wine regions in France to understand. Just remember this:

Reds are made from Pinot Noir. Whites are made from Chardonnay.

That’s all you need to know to start.

(Yes, like all rules – there are exceptions. The lovely light reds from the Beaujolais subregion are made from Gamay, and there are a few places that grow a couple of places that grow a couple of other varietals, but 90+% of the time anything with "Bourgogne" on the label is from one of those two grapes.)

The Burgundy region can be roughly divided into three parts. The northern part is known as the Côte d’Or, home of many of the highest quality Burgundies. The Côte d’Or is also subdivided into two regions – Côte de Nuits and Côte de Beaune. The former is known best for reds and the latter for whites, although each region produces both.

The middle third of the region is made up of the Côte Chalonnaise and Maconnais regions. This part produces many of the more inexpensive wines in Burgundy, including many that I’ve written about in other columns. Maconnais, especially, cranks out a huge percentage of the white table wine from Burgundy. The bottom third is the Beaujolais region, which is a whole other animal, making the light reds I referred to above. If you want to know more about those wines, go here.

About 60 miles northwest of the Côte d’Or, is the Chablis region, known (of course) for whites. Chablis, much like Burgundy, has a negative connotation in the minds of many, as these names were bastardized and stolen by California winemakers in the 70's, who cranked out jug after jug of plonk. The chardonnays produced in Chablis, France are...shall we say...a bit tastier.

There’s a classification system for wines in Burgundy, based on the quality of the terroir from which the grapes originate. This differs from the individual chateau classification in Bordeaux, which doesn’t follow regional terroir differences, in general. The classifications run, in descending order: Grand Cru (named by vineyard -- can cost in the thousands per bottle); Premier Cru (sometimes written “1er cru” – and named by vineyard and village); Village (named by…well…village); Subregional (from a slightly larger area – like Macon-Villages) and Regional (simply called “Bourgogne”). Chablis has its own measures of quality, but are still termed Grand Cru, Premier Cru, and Village. There’s also a “Petit Chablis” designation, which roughly relates to subregional.

The wines we had, as you'll see later, were mostly village level, with one regional and one 1er cru thrown in.

To dinner...The Phoenix is a beautifully designed former gentleman's club built in downtown Cincinnati in 1893. (Think scotch & cigars, not pasties & poles.) The Phoenix is now largely a banquet and reception center, but manager of 19 years Kent Vandersall has a fairly steady stream of special events, wine dinners, and the like in the restaurant. If you haven't seen the interior of this place, it's worth the price of admission to one of these events just to have a look. It's quite remarkable, both from an architectural perspective and from the "Wow!" factor. Kent runs a tight operation. The service was exceptional and he made us, as first-time guests, feel quite welcome.

This event featured the wines of Domaine Chanson Pere et Fils, one of the older continually operating producers in Burgundy. They've been making wine in this region for about 250 years. (According to Sophie Baldo, Chanson's export manager, who "emceed" the tasting -- they are one of the five original houses in the region.) They own vineyards across Burgundy, but they've got a fascinating storage system for their wines. The town of Beaune, the heart of the Côte du Beaune, where the winery lives, is a walled city. The walls range from 8-12 feet thick. This allows the storage of the wine within the old walls, and Chanson does exactly that. As a result -- they own one of the world's only wine cellars in which you walk upwards from the entrance. (Seriously, I must see this someday...)

Until recently, their wines have not been widely marketed in the States, but according to Ed Hernandez, their domestic marketing manager (who we had the pleasure of swapping stories with during dinner), this is about to change markedly.

So, aside from the incredible cuisine -- what made this meal stand out so much for me? Contrast. Even though only two grapes were used in all of the wines, the flavors were all over the map. I'll take this course by course to give you an idea (and maybe make you a little jealous):

Reception: Chanson Vire-Clesse 2006 ($18-27/bottle retail) -- Kicked off the evening with...not a bang, exactly, but certainly an appetite-whetting aperitif. Vire-Clesse is a town in the Maconnais, near Pouilly-Fuisse. I loved the nose on this wine. In my experience, chardonnays aren't usually quite this floral, and I thought it smelled of strawberries. The flavor was very crisp and lightly acidic, but with a nice spice and structure. An excellent palate preparation.

First Course: Honey Lime Shrimp, Capellini w/Chanson Chablis 2007 ($20-30)-- A classic example of good Chablis. Plenty of minerality and acidity, floral and citrus scents, and a long, crisp finish that absolutely screams for pairing with something light like shellfish. The shrimp and capellini that we had with it was actually one of our favorite courses. The flavors were very delicate, and they married wonderfully with the wine's citrus.

Second Course: Arctic Char with White Beans, Mushrooms, and Dried Tomatoes w/Chanson Meursault 2006 ($45-60) -- My inexperience with white Burgundy had me unprepared for this wine. This wine had an incredible amount of strength and depth for a white. I was interested to hear from Sophie that Chanson ages their wines in older casks, so as not to overoak and obscure the flavors of the grapes. In this case, what they created was an incredibly complex, melony, slightly smoky wine that was full-bodied without feeling overly heavy. Paired up with a fish that's a cross between trout and salmon and those earthier vegetables, the wine stood up nicely and was able to handle the oil in the fish, which was prepared to perfection. Delightful.

Third Course: Rosemary Dijon Lamb Chops with Swiss Chard w/Chanson Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2006 -- This wine was the first of the reds. This is a regional-level wine, made from select grapes grown all across the Côte d'Or. It was a very "refreshing" red wine. Quite fruit forward, but with some very nice spice on the back end that made it very interesting. On its own, an excellent wine, but with the tiny lamb chops seasoned and roasted to a pinnacle of flavor, it made a wonderful compliment for the fairly delicate but numerous flavors of the lamb. In my opinion, as this is such an incredibly flexible wine, this was probably the best value of the night at $18-22 a bottle.

Fourth Course: Veal Marengo, Creamed Whipped Parsnips w/Chanson Beaune Clos des Mouches 1er Cru 2006 -- The showstopper. I tasted this wine and my eyes literally rolled back in my head. I'd never tasted a pinot noir this good, and I've tasted very few wines of this quality, period. (I can only imagine the state in which a grand cru might have left me. Descriptions might violate some blue laws.) Powerful, yet delicate, this wine wrapped my palate in layer after layer of smoke, spices, cherries, and other flavors that I couldn't even identify. Incredible balance. But tasting notes don't do this wine justice. The world got quiet when I tasted this wine. Alas, this was the one food pairing of the evening that didn't quite work for me. The richness of the veal stew that it was paired with overwhelmed all of the delicate flavor in the wine. I ended up drinking less than half the glass and putting the rest aside for later. The SPinC did not, but managed to sweet talk her way into another glass so she could do a side-by-side with the next course. This wine is only starting to become available in the states, and will set you back around $90. And yes, I bought a bottle to lay up for awhile. Even at this price, it was irresistible. It's apparently fine to age for 20-25 years, so this joins the "target date" wines in our cellar.

Fifth Course: Filet of Beef, Carrots Parisienne, Pinot Noir Demi w/Chanson Gevrey-Chambertin 2005 ($40-60) -- Of the grand cru pinot noir vineyards in the Côte d'Or, 24 of the 25 are in the Côte de Nuits. Tasting this back to back with the Clos des Mouches gave me a wonderful sense of the difference between the wines from the two parts of the Côte d'Or. The Côte de Beaune reds, as I learned, are traditionally much more delicate than the Côte de Nuits. The Gevrey-Chambertin was a lovely illustration of the power of the Côte de Nuits. This was a much more powerful wine. Lots of licorice and vanilla on the flavors, and a much deeper level of fruit, along with a great deal of tannin for a pinot noir. It's understandable why this wine would be set up next to a filet. I think this was the first time I'd had a pinot paired with a steak, and this one certainly had the heft to make a side dish, especially with the fabulous demiglace drizzled across the filet and carrots. While I preferred that pairing, the SPinC actually preferred the Clos des Mouches. Since the filet was roasted instead of grilled, she thought that the meat was delicate and light (or as delicate and light as beef can be) enough to stand up to the filet.

Sixth course: Fruit and Truffles. Exactly what it sounds like. Handmade chocolate yummies and some berries to nosh on while we finished the last of our wonderful wine, chatted a bit more, and eventually made our way out with smiles on our faces. For the record, the Gevrey-Chambertin went much better with the chocolate and dark fruits.

I'd definitely recommend checking out some of the special events at the Phoenix if you're looking for a good way to spend an evening. Many thanks to Ed, Sophie, and Stacey Meyer from Heidelberg Distributing for organizing the meal, to Kent for a wonderfully designed meal to complement these wonderful wines, and to the winemakers at Chanson for a slice of bliss.

Just Naked

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 02:52:00 +0000

I'll admit, I can be influenced by wine marketing. Larry Lockshin, an Australian researcher on wine consumerism, determined that the average person takes 38 seconds to purchase a bottle of wine once they've decided on the type of wine that they're looking for -- and the wine label has the largest degree of influence on the average purchaser's choices.

When I get a case of writer's block, I'll usually wander down to the wine store and make an aimless wander through the aisles to try to get inspiration. While facing down a blinking cursor is frustrating, it does give me a ready excuse to buy a few more bottles. (Isn't this why shoe shopping is supposed to be therapeutic for many women?)

In any case, I was amongst the whites when the Four Vines "Naked" 2007 Chardonnay caught my eye. There it was -- a perfect theme for an article: The Naked Vine does "naked wine." A minute and a half and a couple of impulse buys later, and away we go. This is where wine shopping clearly differs from shoe shopping -- I've never seen a decision made on a pair of shoes in under a minute. What can I say? I'm decisive. And influenceable.

(Pardon me while I prepare to duck the black slingback pump the SPinC is ready to throw at my head...)

Now, aside from being an easy trigger word for someone with my particular mental slant, "naked" for Four Vines actually refers to their winemaking process, specifically that their Chardonnay was produced unoaked. The wine started off with light notes of citrus and lavender on the nose. There's a strong lemony flavor and a lot of acidity for a California chard, which I think is a good thing.. As promised, there was no oak and only a little buttery flavor, which I found mostly at the "beginning of the finish." The finish is crisp, lemony, and lasting. It's a very pretty wine; more delicate than I expected in a Santa Barbara County chard and exceptionally balanced for a wine of this price. ($11-14)

Along came dinner -- a grilled citrus-and-herb marinated grouper over couscous and a diced red pepper from our garden. Unfortunately, the Four Vines ended up turning the flavor "fishy" (grouper is not a "fishy" fish in my experience ordinarily), so we called an audible and opened one of my other impulse purchases, the Washington State-grown Snoqualmie "Naked" 2007 Gewurztraminer.

For Snoqualmie, their "Naked" series of wines (they also make a naked Riesling, Merlot, Chardonnay, and Rosé) is produced "as close to au natural" as possible. These wines are grown from 100% organic grapes -- or, more accurately, grapes that are in the process of being certified organic. We decided to go with the second naked wine of the evening because...well...gewurztraminer goes with almost everything and we needed something that could handle an interesting pairing. It worked. Even with the mild gewurz sweetness, it had enough acidity to handle fish. Since the fish wasn't heavily peppered, the pepper on the wine's finish really came out and added a really nice balance to the food's flavor. When we tried it on its own, it started us with a lingering scent of herbs and apples. Its flavor is quite peppery with some honey and melons on the back end. The finish is tingly-peppery and fruity. ($11-13)
I hit a snag after that wine, though. I looked high and low and couldn't find another naked or nude-themed wine. (Well, except for Cycles Gladiator, but we've already discussed that, and see below...) So, I took some poetic license and went with the Charles Smith "Eve" 2007 Chardonnay ($12-15). Smith describes his wine as "sinfully tempting," so it doesn't seem like much of a stretch to think he was trying to design a wine that encourages people to drink in the buff.

Eve welcomes you into her garden with a light nose of melons and lemons. She tempts you with a very pleasant and extremely interesting flavor. She's got a crispness and creaminess that reminded me of a lemon crème turned into wine (without the overpowering sweetness, of course). Her finish is nicely balanced with some more lemon and just a touch of oak. She's great for sitting back and sharing, and she didn't back down from our citrus and chili powder marinated shark with an avocado-orange salsa. (OK, OK, I'll quit while I'm behind...)

On a separate, non-wine related note, I always enjoy sifting through some of the SiteMeter data that comes in about how people find the Vine. After I posted my article about the banning of Cycles Gladiator in Alabama, I had a ton of Google search hits from people looking for "naked gladiator." I'm interested to see if some of you get called into your boss' office at work, since we'll probably overload any content filters for "naked" out there...

Wine Dinner -- The Phoenix

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sun, 20 Sep 2009 17:32:00 +0000

Hungry, thirsty area foodies looking for something tasty to do this week should take note. The Phoenix in downtown Cincinnati will be hosting a wine dinner this Wednesday, September 23rd. The dinner will feature six Burgundies from Chanson Pere & Fils with commentary from Chanson's export manager, Sophie Baldo.

According to general manager Kent Vandersall, the menu and pairings go something like this:

Chanson Vire-Clesse 2006 (passed upon arrival)
Honey Lime Shrimp, Capellini w/Chanson Chablis 2007
Arctic Char with White Beans, Mushrooms, and Dried Tomatoes w/Chanson Meursault 2006
Rosemary Dijon Lamb Chops with Swiss Chard w/Chanson Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2006
Veal Marengo, Creamed Whipped Parsnips w/Chanson Beaune Clos des Mouches 1er Cru 2006
Filet of Beef, Carrots Parisienne, Pinot Noir Demi w/Chanson Gevrey-Chambertin 2005
Fruit and Truffles

Yours truly and the Sweet Partner in Crime will be attending this little shindig, and I'll be posting my thoughts sometime thereafter. Reservations are $70, including tax & gratuity. For more information, contact the Phoenix via their online form or by phone at 513-721-8901.

If you decide to attend, please say hello. I'll be the bald guy.

Dust on the Bottle

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 16:56:00 +0000

There might be a little dust on the bottle,
Don't let it fool ya about what's inside.
-David Lee Murphy

Last night, my brother-in-hairstyle Danny Gold put together one of the more interesting wine tastings I've ever attended. He and a couple of his fellow Party Source pals decided they'd do a tasting of aged wine. Now, we're not talking 1967 Chateau d'Yquem here -- but it was a pretty impressive spread of wines. When I say "impressive," I mean...well...judge for yourself:

Jean Laurent Millesime 1997 Champagne Brut
Weingut Baumann Oppenheimer Sacktrager 1975 Riesling Auslese
Domaine Marcel Deiss Engelgarten 1999 Alsace (white blend)
Domaine Zind Humbrecht 1994 Grand Cru Pinot Gris
Carmenet Winery 1995 Sauvignon Blanc/Semillon (Sonoma)
Azilia 1998 Barolo Bricco Fiasco
Castillo Ygay 1989 Rioja Gran Reserva Especial
Domaine Tempier 1996 Bandol
Barossa Valley Estates 1997 Ebenezer Shiraz
Corison Vineyard 1989 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa)
Hacienda Monasterio 1996 Ribera del Duero Crianza
Ravenswood 1998 Old Hill Zinfandel (Sonoma)
Beringer 1996 Private Reserve Cabernet (Napa)
Montepeloso Val di Cornia 1999 Rosso
L'Ecole 1999 Seven Hills Vineyard Merlot
Benjamin de Vieux Chateau Gaubert 2000 Graves (Bordeaux)
Paradise Ranch 1998 Pinot Blanc Icewine (British Columbia)

I haven't had the opportunity to try much 10+ year old wine, much less 30+ year old wine, so I was fascinated to see how these wines held up, how they'd age, and so on.

For me, the highlights were the Riesling (which tasted like nectar with a wonderful spiciness); the Pinot Gris (a late harvest pinot gris -- not at all what I expected from Alsace); the Bandol (an earthy, smelly, yummy wine with a smoky finish that went on for ages); the Ribera del Duero (mammoth, sumptuous, and lush); the Montepeloso (an Italian wine with French funk); and the Bordeaux (2000 is a fantastic vintage).

None of them had gone to vinegar, although a few were clearly past their peak. The 1995 Sauv Blanc was certainly past its prime, as were the Corison (a bit flat) and the L'Ecole -- which tasted like a basic Merlot. Even so, how often do you get the opportunity to even taste a wine that's legitimately aged to that point?

Add in Riverside Restaurant's hosting and buffet for us, and we had quite an evening.

I'd certainly recommend getting on Danny's mailing list. He sends out fairly regular wine notes, announcements of these tastings, and information about wine dinners he does in conjunction with various local restaurants. For more information, you can email Danny here.

Wine Over Water -- Sept. 19th

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 15:50:00 +0000

It's that time again. The 3rd Annual Wine Over Water wine tasting event on the Purple People Bridge between Newport and Cincinnati. Yours truly will be pouring at this event, so please come by to say hello.

If you'd like to order tickets in advance, you can click on the link above.

More information:

A one-of-a-kind event, Wine Over Water is a wine tasting held over the Ohio River on the Southbank Purple People Bridge with stunning views of the Cincinnati skyline.

This annual charitable event is hosted by the Newport Citizens Advisory Council (NCAC), a citizen’s group dedicated to improving the community of Newport for residents and visitors alike. Proceeds from this year’s event will benefit the repainting of the Southbank Purple People Bridge and ECHO Soup Kitchen.

Participants will enjoy sampling a selection of international wines as well as offerings from some of Greater Cincinnati’s preeminent boutique wineries. This delightful evening of wine, hors d'oeuvres and live music is designed to engage a diverse audience of residents from all around the area and build a sense of community while supporting a good cause.

Southbank Purple People Bridge
Newport, Kentucky (located on the East side of Newport on the Levee)
Saturday, September 19, 2009
7:00-10:00pm
Tickets: $20 in advance, $25 at the door

Ticket price includes commemorative tasting glass.
Please bring your ID with you, as you must be 21 to be admitted to the event.
Local wineries will have bottles of wine for sale at the event, should you discover one you would like to take home.

Hope to see you there!

Cabernet Franc

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 01:49:00 +0000

The flipside to that whole "getting away from a wine varietal that I've really enjoyed in the past but haven't tried in awhile" issue I discussed in the Riesling column is "this has been right in front of my face for years -- why haven't I been drinking more of this?" Not long ago, I grabbed a bottle of Cab Franc on the recommendation of a friend of mine, and I found I really, really liked it. Predictably, research followed.

Anyone who's been drinking wine for awhile has probably heard of Cabernet Franc, but it's usually just a blending grape -- often mentioned as the "third varietal" in most Bordeaux blends and meritages, backing up Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. (Petit Verdot and Malbec being numbers 4 and 5 of the five in Bordeaux, as you might remember.) It also gained a small degree of infamy by being the other grape dissed by Miles in Sideways, but without nearly the vitriol he reserved for Merlot.

So, what is it? Cabernet Franc is a red grape. It's chemically very similar to Cabernet Sauvignon, and little over a decade ago, some grape taxonomists discovered that Cabernet Franc is one of the two parent grapes of Cabernet Sauvignon. (Sauvignon Blanc is the other.) I found this fascinating, since Cabernet Sauvignon usually produces heavy, tannic wines, while both its parents vinify in a much lighter, more acidic style.

While the grape hails from Bordeaux, the only French wine made exclusively from Cabernet Franc is Chinon from the Loire Valley. Cabernet Franc grows relatively well in cooler climates, so it can be found domestically in places like the Pacific Northwest, cooler areas of California, and more and more in New York. Canada has begun growing a fair bit of it as well.

Cabernet Franc yields a lighter, somewhat perfumier, more subtly flavored wine that often has an "herbal" character. Aside from its chemical similarities, it's easy to see after tasting it why it's blended so often with Cabernet Sauvignon. Its fruitiness and relative lack of tannin can be used to "round off" some of the harshness that exists in many Cabernet Sauvignons, especially young ones.

Foodwise, most cabernet francs aren't going to be the best pairing for big beefy meals with rich sauces. However, the herbal character and acidity make it one of the few red wines that can go with salads. It also generally pairs well with pork, chicken, and fish. You can also have it with Mediterranean foods, roasted vegetables, and it makes a nice alternative to Chianti for red sauces.

Since it's not still produced in huge quantities as a single varietal, these wines tend to be a little tougher to find and are a little more expensive. There aren't many Cab Franc dominant wines that have the high end price point of Cabernet Sauvignon (other than Chateau Cheval Blanc, Miles' "special bottle" in Sideways, which, ironically is about a 50/50 blend of Cabernet Franc and his other favorite, Merlot) but there aren't very many on the low end of the scale either. I've rarely seen one for much under $15. There are some reasonably priced ones out there, like the following:

Domaine de Pallus "Les Pensées de Pallus" 2005 Chinon -- If you want to understand why Cabernet Franc done as a single varietal can be a stand-in for an Italian red, try this one. Again, Chinon is the only French 100% Cabernet Franc variety. Like most French reds, it's best with food, and definitely needs to be allowed to breathe for a minimum of half an hour after you uncork this pink-topped bottle. Once the fume and the funk clear, the fruit begins to open, and you start getting aromas of raspberries and smoke. As for the weight and flavor -- imagine a Beaujolais and a Chianti snuggling up and getting to know each other really well. It's got the chalky minerality of a Chianti, but the fruitiness of a Beaujolais -- and it's best served with a slight chill. It's heavier than either of those wines, and it's OK on its own. I tried it with a Spanish recipe for monkfish that called for a rosé. The Chinon worked just as well, and it played nicely off of the red pepper, onion, and almond puree that made up the sauce. (The whole thing was over couscous.) Also balanced well against the sautéed spinach we had as a side. $17-20.

Wit's End. "The Procrastinator" 2006 Cabernet Franc -- This Australian Cab Franc from McLaren Vale has a name after my own heart. What struck me first about this wine was the mouthfeel. It's got a slightly thick, velvety texture even though the body itself isn't all that heavy. A very "friendly" wine for starting an evening . It's smoky and seductive like a pinot noir, but has a bit more weight and tannin. The nose is a clean smell of cherries, which are the flavor we picked up the most. We had this with a mustard-covered, grilled pork loin chop with some roasted vegetables. This pairing was "absolutely heavenly," according to the SPinC. The roasted, grilled flavors brought out more of the tannin and smoke in the wine, which still keeps much of its fruity brightness with the food. Around $20.

Hahn 2006 Central Coast Cabernet Franc -- For a great contrast in styles of this grape, you'd be hard pressed to find a better one than this wine from California and the aforementioned Australian. This wine is initially quite "hot" tasting and really needs a little time to decant, like most any California cabernet. It's much more alcoholic and has considerably more weight and tannin than the Aussie entry. The nose again is cherries with a little bit of leather and smokiness. The wine is medium bodied, with some fruit, but a full, tannic finish with some chocolate flavors lingering. Mushroom burgers (beef burgers topped with sautéed mushrooms, not grilled portabellas) and bulgur with walnuts and chopped spinach were our pairing with this one, and the higher levels of tannin and alcohol allowed it to set up nicely next to earthy, meaty flavors. The acidity also held its own against the spinach. A "food" franc rather than one to drink on its own. About $15.

Anderson Winery

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 31 Aug 2009 02:42:00 +0000

Not long ago, I was asked to lead a wine-tasting fundraiser for the Madisonville Education and Assistance Center (MEAC). The event, a blind tasting called "The Sauvignons of Spring," gave the folks in attendance the opportunity to sample around 70 different cabernet sauvignons and sauvignon blancs. Each bottle had to be under $15. At the end of the evening, the slightly-tipsy assembled group voted on their favorites.

Honestly, I can't remember the cabernet sauvignon which took top honors, but the announcement of the group's favorite sauvignon blanc raised eyebrows and brought a loud cheer from the crowd. The winner?

Anderson Winery.

No, not wine from Anderson Valley in Mendocino County, California, but Anderson Winery in Hamilton County, Ohio. This very small operation cranked out a white that trumped a collection from all over the world. So, what's the story of this little winery that could?

Anderson Winery is the brainchild of Larry Brokamp, a Cincinnati lawyer, and his wife Kelly. I asked Larry how they got started:

"I started making wine about 8 years ago after my wife and I drove up the Northern California coast and came back down through Napa. We also spent some time in Calistoga.

"When our first daughter, Ella, was born, we passed out our bottles of wine with labels reading 'Celebrating the Birth of Ella Marie Brokamp' with her picture and birth date along with weight, length, etc. Everyone was impressed with the wine and labels.

'My wife had the idea of selling custom labeled wine for special occasions and I looked into licensing requirements because you can't sell wine without a manufacturers license. After about a year and a half of research we figured out how to do it and have always enjoyed it."

They only produce two wines -- the aforementioned sauvignon blanc and a sangiovese-based red. The custom labels are produced to the order of the customer, and are quite nicely done, as you can see here:

Since they make such small quantities of the wines, they don't market to stores and restaurants. Their sales are largely either Internet-based or done through word of mouth. Larry said that the most they've made in a year is about 40 cases. Larry said that he'd like to spend more time on his winemaking, but raising their three kids and running his law practice keeps him too busy to focus on expanding the business too much.

How do the wines taste? Both wines are, by design, simple, straightforward quaffers. Larry said that his goal is to produce "something that most everyone can drink so it can be served at functions such as weddings where there are usually both [regular] wine drinkers and non-wine drinkers."

The award-winning sauvignon blanc is definitely done in an American style -- acidic, but not overly so, with some very pleasant melon and green apple flavors and a mildly tart finish. It's quite popular, and as of the writing of this article, the white was currently sold out. However, there is more in the pipeline.

The red is very "soft." It's quite light (only 12% alcohol) and fruity. The tannins are extremely light -- almost nonexistent, actually. It reminds me a bit of a Beaujolais, right down to the fact that it's best with a slight chill on it. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I had the bottle on a warm summer evening and it was a good, basic wine to just sip on, relax, and watch the neighborhood go by.

Both wines sell for $12/bottle, which includes the labeling.

I've tried a number of wines from "make your own label" places and have found most of them to be barely palatable. Larry and Kelly's wines are a fairly large level above most of those. If you're in the market for some interesting wine-based gifts or if you've got a party to plan, you won't need to look much further than Wooster Pike in Cincinnati.

For more information, check out their website (http://www.andersonwinery.com) or email them at info@andersonwinery.com

Julie & Julia

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 22:13:00 +0000

No, I'm not branching the Vine off into movie reviews -- although anyone that knows me or has followed the site knows that I'm a movie buff. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I decided to walk down to the Levee and catch "Julie and Julia." (And no, I'm not ashamed to say that I was looking forward to seeing a Nora Ephron movie...)

The movie itself was a nice afternoon's diversion -- Meryl Streep absolutely channels Julia Child and Amy Adams does "pixie searching for her purpose" as well as anyone. (Stanley Tucci's Paul Child is a dead ringer for my uncle Harry, also, in so many ways.)

I was really struck by how well Nora Ephron's screenplay (interpreted wonderfully by Adams) actually hit the emotions of a foodie blogger. Little things that showed up -- Adams' reaction when she started getting comments from folks other than family; the giddiness the first time samples showed up on the door; the whole load of "is there anybody out there actually reading this stuff?" stuff. (I like to think the SPinC is a little less frustrated by this endeavor, as well.) Plus, there's just so much good food on screen (well, aside from the aspic). As Vine Reader Mike B. said when we were at Nectar's scrumptious Dinner Club (the theme was "peaches" -- yum!): "When the movie was over, I just wanted to cook something!" I know I did.

The movie's a fairy tale -- since she gets "discovered" and all that. I don't expect a phone call from Anthony Bourdain any time soon. But the thrill I get when the realization comes that a fair number of people actually read the stuff on here -- I think that gets conveyed well in the film. So, thanks to all of you who read the Vine and who keep me plugging away here. It's a great motivator knowing you're out there.

I'd certainly recommend the movie itself, as well. As I said, it was a nice, easy way to spend an afternoon: lighthearted, well-scripted, and (except for a few rough parts in the "modern" segments) nicely acted. A solid, comfortable movie -- think of it as Hogue Cellars Cinema.

Riesling Redux

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 02:00:00 +0000

One of the dangers in writing a wine column is that certain wines can get buried -- wines that I really like, but for whatever reason -- just don't end up making it into the columns all that often. The other day, I was looking at the article from CinWeekly that the Sweet Partner in Crime had framed for me. I noticed in the article that I mentioned Riesling as my favorite wine at the time of the interview, and it hit me...I haven't talked about Riesling in awhile, other than in the context of our recent trip to New York. So, what the heck? Riesling it is! A quick review:

Riesling is known to many folks who are just starting their wine education as "that sweet German wine that comes in the bottle that looks like a tower." That's true. Many cheap Rieslings are simply thick, tooth-searingly sweet concoctions. They don't have to be.

It's true -- Germany is best known for Riesling, but it's a grape that's fairly common in cool climates all over the world. In the U.S., for instance, the best Rieslings tend to come from the Pacific Northwest and from New York -- our colder domestic wine growing climes. As with most cool weather wines, Riesling tends to be fruity and fragrant. They're also wonderful food wines. They're among the most pairing-friendly wines out there, standing proudly next to anything from sausage to Szechuan to sushi. They're some of the few wines out there that don't get absolutely clobbered by capsaicin, the chemical that makes hot peppers hot. Some Riesling, unlike many white wines, can even be aged, so don't get scared if you see older Rieslings in your local wine store.

However, they don't necessarily have to be sweet. You've probably seen more and more "dry Rieslings" in stores as many winemakers realize that not everyone wants a bunch of residual sugar with their meal. Many of the "dry" Rieslings still have a hint of sweetness to them (try some Oregon dry Riesling if you want to see what I mean). While there's not as much variation in flavor as, say, Chardonnay -- each region that grows the stuff tends to put its own spin on it. The Alsace region of France, for instance, makes Rieslings that are fruity, but absolutely bone-dry. They've also got a more mineral character. German Rieslings range from very sweet to dry and generally have strong apple and pear tastes. American Rieslings, even of the dry variety, tend to be on the sweeter side and are usually very fruit-forward.

Jump on back in the Riesling pool if it's a wine you haven't had for awhile. You'll be glad to rediscover it. Here are a few you could consider:

Pierre Sparr 2007 Riesling -- This is one of those Alsace wines that I mentioned. It's a really nice example of a lighter styled, bone dry wine. The nose is of tart apples, with a flavor to match. The finish is crisp with lots of lime flavors. An absolutely delicious pairing with Asian cuisine. I had this with baked trout smothered in tomatoes, green onions, and shiitake mushrooms, flavored with ginger, garlic, and soy. Right around $15.

Leasingham 2007 "Magnus" Riesling -- Australian Riesling has a completely different flavor profile. Much of the Riesling in Australia comes from Clare Valley, a relatively warm region for growing Riesling. Partly because of this climate, the fruit flavors tend to be fuller and the wines are often a little less complex. This particular wine has a spicy, apricot nose. It's full bodied, with intense flavors of peaches and apricots. Finish is fruity and dry with a smoky undertone. The recommended pairings from the winemaker are "seafood and spicy Thai dishes." I'd certainly agree. $10.

Hogue 2006 Riesling -- Hogue, one of my go-to value wines, usually blends their Riesling with another German grape, Gewurztraminer. Gewurztraminer carries a spicy flavor, and that spice comes through strongly on the nose of this wine, as well as some apricot. It's full bodied and is somewhat sweet to go along with the fresh, gentle apricot and pear flavors. On the finish, however, the pepper returns, balanced with a slight sweetness and lasting fruit. The recommended pairings for this are salads or sushi. Anything with a fresh flavor will go nicely here. Again, around $10

Schloss Gobelsburg 2006 Riesling -- If you feel like treating yourself and going a little bit over the $15 (this is more like $20), you can get one of the more delicious Rieslings I've tried in my recent memory. This wine is from Austria -- known more for gruner veltliner, but slowly earning respect (and rightfully so) for other varietals. Simply put, this is a genuinely pretty wine. The nose is full of melon and apple blossoms, but that doesn't tell the real story. The SPinC described it as a "fruity, flowery cacophony." I concur. There's certainly a lot going on here, but the taste is probably best described as apple dominant. The flavor has just a touch of sugar and a little smoky note in the background. The finish is a little bit peppery -- like a junior gewürztraminer -- and slightly tart. Wonderfully balanced and just scrumptious to sip on. For dinner we had a calamari and rice noodle salad with a Thai-flavored dressing and loads of herbs from the garden. Worked nicely.

Lake County, California

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 02:26:00 +0000

Monica from Balzac, who previously let me try samples of both Espiritu de Chile and Golden Kaan wines, sent me something a little different this time around. I opened the box to discover a couple of cabernets from Lake County, California -- two 2005's from Snows Lake Vineyards named "One" and "Two." "One" was 100% cabernet sauvignon. "Two" was a 3-to-1 blend of cab sauv and cab franc. Both wines retail for around $45.

I had to do a little background on Lake County to know what I was getting into. Lake County is immediately to the north of Napa. The soil is similar to Napa's, albeit on more mountainous terrain and with higher elevations. Lake County had a thriving wine business from the 1860's up until Prohibition. Wine production started up again in earnest in the 1960's. There are now about 9,000 acres of vineyards in Lake County (compared to Napa's 40,000+). Lake County, like Napa, is largely known for cabernets -- specifically powerful, tannic cabs.

Tasting big cabernets, of course, is a perfect excuse (like I need one) to fire up the grill and toss a couple of ribeyes on there. No fancy rubs -- just salt, pepper, and olive oil. Sides were some grilled, herbed Yukon gold potatoes and some halved Cremini mushrooms, cooked down in a sauce of ginger, garlic, tomato paste, curry and cumin.

I opened both of these wines a couple of hours before I thought we'd be having dinner. I wanted to give them enough time to breathe. My experiences with tannic wines have taught me that a couple of hours is a minimum for bottles like these. After the steaks came off the grill and were resting, we did a side by side of the two wines.

Even after the time to breathe, the One was a tannic monster. The nose was huge with wood and violets, but the flavors of the wine were obscured initially by the overwhelming tannin. We broke out an aerator and eventually my super-duper Taste of Monterey tasting glass to speed up the process. That helped a little. The other flavors began to emerge. Layers of smoke, wood, and tobacco. (I guess this is what people refer to as "cigar box.") There are some currant and blackberry flavors in there, too. The finish hits you with a surprisingly tart burst that fades pretty quickly into a lingering coffee taste. "This doesn't finish as long as I thought it would...and I think that's a good thing."

The Two was more pleasant. The cabernet franc blended in mellowed the experience considerably. The wine wasn't as tannic, but still certainly wasn't to be taken lightly. ("Doesn't beat you over the head" was my note.) The nose was much more berry and vanilla. The flavors were better balanced -- cherry, blackberry, and cocoa dominated. The bitterness of the tannins start out very strong on the finish, but they mellow quickly into smoke and chocolate with a mineral undertone that certainly wasn't unpleasant.

With the meal, both wines changed. The One lost a little of its tannic edge and revealed more blueberry flavors. That tart burst on the finish remained, which I didn't find all that pleasant. The Two was much better. The tannins balanced the fruit nicely when paired with the steak. The mushrooms were really interesting, since they had a spice to them. The spice flavors gave way gently to fruit, then as the wine finished the spice picked back up pleasantly. That was probably my favorite gustation sensation of the meal.

I had high hopes for these wines with chocolate, but I was disappointed in both. With both Dove dark chocolate and a brownie, each wine ended up a tart, tannic overload. Honestly, the leftover two day-old zinfandel that we had laying around before was a much better pairing.

Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not saying that these are bad wines by any stretch. They simply aren't wines built for my palate. A couple of weeks ago, I linked an article from the Daily Beast by Keith Wallace entitled "The Great Cabernet Ripoff," which bemoaned the huge price increase in recent years for Cabernet Sauvignon. In my semi-uninformed opinion, my guess is that this huge increase is driven by folks who are more interested in collecting wine than actually drinking the stuff. Wine collectors' eyes big up when they see the words "aging potential." You've seen shelf talkers for wines that might state something like, "Drinks well now, but best between 2012-2017."

The growers of premium Napa-style cabernets market to this. Both these Snows Lake wines are so powerfully tannic that, at least for me, they just aren't very pleasant to drink right now (although we both much preferred the "Two" to the "One") -- and I can imagine that they're built to be bought and stashed in a cellar for four or five years until the tannins settle down. I know that there are many folks out there who can taste these wines now and project how they will drink in 2015. Maybe these are good investments for some folks at $45 a bottle. As much as I really appreciated the opportunity to try these wines, they're difficult for me to pass appropriate judgment upon. Now, if some of you want to pick some of this up and invite me over in a few years to give them another go, be my guest!

Before I leave Lake County, I wanted to find a Lake County wine that was more in my price range. I ended up with the Guenoc 2006 Lake County Cabernet Sauvignon for about $11. It certainly wasn't bad, and you could open this up right now without batting an eye. It started with cedar and blackberry on the nose. It's medium bodied, slightly alcoholic tasting, with straightforward blackberry flavors and some earthiness. The finish is a bit clipped -- starts strong with fruit, but quickly tapers off into a mild tannin. It's not nearly as complex as its more expensive cousins, but it's not built to be. It's a pleasant enough cabernet, especially with food (and it's much better with chocolate...).

Alabama Wine Porn: Cycles Gladiator

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Fri, 31 Jul 2009 14:27:00 +0000

Oh, fer gossake. You can't make this up. Thanks to Vine Reader Bev E. for cluing me in to this little gem.

I did a review a while ago of Cycles Gladiator wine. It's pretty widely available, and you may have seen the bottle in your local wine store. They make a few different varietals, and those I've tried are at least inoffensive, if not appropriately decent. However, "decent" is apparently not the appropriate descriptor in the Great State of Alabama. The wine's label is apparently a bit much for the gentle souls in The Land of the Crimson Tide.

Alabama's state Alcoholic Beverage Control has put a statewide ban into place on the sale of wines in these bottles, and given a huge free marketing boost to the folks at Hahn Winery -- producers of Cycles:

The Alabama ABC code states that "No advertisement may include any illustration(s) of any person(s) consuming alcoholic beverages or any person(s) posed in an immodest or sensuous manner." In a letter to Alabama restaurants and retailers, the ABC stated that the sale of Cycles Gladiator wines are prohibited. An attorney for the ABC was quoted as saying the label was submitted twice last year for approval and it was rejected both times. However, an Alabama citizen sent the ABC a bottle, indicating it was still being sold in stores. Consequently, the ABC issued a cease and desist order.

I do declare...this wine label has given me the vapors! Help me to my fainting couch...

UPDATE: Vine reader Jason M. suggested I make this update to the Cycles label, making it more palatable to the folks in Alabama:

remembering the face of my father

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 02:49:00 +0000

It's natural, I guess, for a fledgling wine reviewer like myself to fall into the game of adjectives that is the wine reviewing world. It's a seductive trap for writers -- trying to "describe a sunset to the blind" by getting super specific in my writeups; trying to reduce flavors and sensations to minute components rather than simply writing about how the damned stuff tastes and whether I've enjoyed it. (After all, that's why most of you are here, right?)

About six months after I started the Naked Vine, the Sweet Editor-in-Crime read one of my columns and said, after reading one particularly clunky entry, "Who's your audience again? I don't think you're writing for them, or for me for that matter. You lost me about halfway through." She was right, of course. (Stop gloating over that admission, m'dear...) I was trying to prove that I was a "real" wine writer by churning out 400 words about a $6 sauvignon blanc. As the old cliché goes, you gotta play to your strengths. Being a junior Parker isn't mine.

After I write up my tasting notes, I admit I sometimes check my work against those of other writers to see if I've at least landed in the ballpark. I don't expect to have the same descriptions, but there should be commonalities among different tastings of the same bottle. I was doing just that for a cabernet sauvignon I'll be featuring in an upcoming column. I came across a review so glorious in its ostentatiousness that I did a literal spit-take. Check it out:

"The bouquet offers an immediate burst of slate, lead pencil, cedar and tobacco leaf, smoky and toasty oak and hints of intense and concentrated black currants and black raspberries; given a few moments, the nose draws up touches of leafy, dried herbs, brambles and underbrush. All of these elements testify to the wine’s structural integrity and tannic power. In the mouth, though, [this wine] feels sleek and elegant; it’s packed with spice and black fruit flavors but it’s neither fleshy nor over-ripe. The wine gains depth and dimension in the glass, darkening, as it were, as more mineral, tannin and oaken qualities make themselves known. The finish concludes with another burst of spice and a wild high-note of foxy plums."

Egads. Lead pencil? Brambles and underbrush? Foxy plums?

I realize that I shouldn't be too critical. This writer clearly has a particular voice and niche and writes to it. Even so, I hope this isn't like any review you'll ever see from me. If any of you ever notice me veering too far in that direction, feel free to metaphorically kick my ass.

By the way, I did look up what "brambles" refers to. It's a fancy way of saying "blackberries." I'm still stumped on "foxy plums." For the sake of full disclosure, this particular writer won the 2009 American Wine Blog Award for "Best Wine Reviews," so what the heck do I know?

Some Hometown Love -- NuVo Restaurant

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 22:32:00 +0000

You may have noticed that the Sweet Partner in Crime and I do a lot of cooking. Comes with the territory with the wine stuff. Friday, though, we decided we needed to head out. We had a nice night at our disposal and we decided to take a stroll.

NuVo "Modern American Cuisine," originally located in Florence, moved to Newport last September to great reviews and some nice buzz. Embarrassingly, we'd never been there, even though it's less than a mile from The Naked Vineyard. We decided to remedy the situation.

NuVo, for those of you who aren't familiar, is in the old Mokka location on York Street between 5th and 6th. The location isn't large -- it probably can seat around 50 people inside. The back patio (where we sat) seats about another 15 in the back. Like many of the other better restaurants in the Cincy metro area, they do a lot of interesting things with locally raised ingredients. While not everything on the menu was truly "locavore" (Understandably...the Ohio's not a good place to harvest scallops) we could tell the chef, Michael Peterson, made an effort to incorporate wherever he could.

We ordered a couple of glasses of Dom du Tariquet Sauvignon Blanc to go with our salads -- which was NuVo's take on a Caesar (the roasted garlic dressing was delicious), topped with some delicious goat cheese. We were lucky/unlucky with this course. We got large pours of the wine since we got the last pour from the last bottle of that wine. They also ran out of the promised pink peppercorn croutons, so they gave us...well...larger portions of everything else in the salads. Not a bad trade.

Between courses, our server brought us a palate cleanser -- a carrot and orange sorbet topped with a dot of balsamic vinegar. This little bite was a combination of strangely complimentary flavors. Sweet and tart -- with the carrot flavor very much up front. I could have imagined these flavors in a salad instead of a sorbet, but cold and creamy certainly worked.

The night was still fairly warm and neither of us were quite feeling up to anything overly heavy. We ordered a couple of glasses of Ugni Blanc (also by Tariquet) for our entrees. The SPinC ordered the seared red snapper with vanilla and orange glazed veggies over some annatto spiced rice. I had the restaurant-made fettuccini with lobster, pancetta and tomatoes. Ordinarily, I've seen pasta dishes like this done in cream sauces -- but this one was in a sweet corn and lemon juice emulsion.

The snapper was meaty, tasted exceptionally fresh and was cooked to perfection. The combination of the annatto flavors with the fish gave us happy flashbacks to our Aruba vacation several years back. The pasta was exceptional. The lobster's creaminess, the firm flavor of the pasta, the pancetta's smoke, and the acid of the tomatoes were rounded off by the sweetness and tang of the corn and lemon juice. Plenty of care went into making the flavors balance in both dishes. Harmonious is the adjective I'd use.

We didn't end up staying for dessert (we had a date with some Dry Creek zin and chocolate on our back patio at home), but the server did bring a final sweet. Homemade dark chocolates (one with a caramel filling) topped with a little sea salt and a "Dr. Pepper reduction." Yum.

NuVo's certainly not an inexpensive meal. The entrees range from $17-28. Our bill, which included a salad, our wine, and two entrees was $86, but for a nice night out -- definitely worth it. The service was laid back and extremely pleasant. We were able to relaxedly dine without feeling rushed. The only drawback was the décor on the patio -- which was, for all intents and purposes, nonexistent. (The SPinC said, "Give me $500 and an afternoon and I could really spruce this up.") That nitpick aside, we'll definitely be back -- hopefully for one of their Wednesday tapas nights, which sound absolutely fabulous.

Arizona Stronghold

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 02:41:00 +0000

“Learn to swim, I’ll see you down in Arizona Bay…”
– Tool, “Aenema”

"Wine, song, food, and fire/Clothes, shelter, and seed.
No more need for the old empire/(When the) indigo children (come.)"
-- Maynard Keenan, "The Indigo Children"

Maybe Maynard Keenan is just being prescient.

Keenan (lead singer of Tool, A Perfect Circle, and Puscifer) writes a song in the mid-90’s about Los Angeles sliding into the ocean. At around the same time, according to the trailer for the documentary “Blood into Wine,” he has a vision about growing grapes and making wine on an Arizona hillside. A continuation of the same dream? Whatever his motive, he headed to the hills in Jerome, Arizona, to plant himself a vineyard.

Along the way, Keenan hooked up with Eric Glomski, an Arizona native and true believer in the power of the southwestern soil. Glomski’s Page Spring Cellars has as a part of its mission statement (that I wholeheartedly embrace), “Good wine is not strictly the esoteric fare of nobility: Wine is for the people.” Glomski served as Keenan’s oenological advisor for Caduceus Cellars and the pair founded Arizona Stronghold Vineyards as a joint “second label” wine for both Page Springs and Caduceus.

I harbor a natural suspicion towards “celebrity” wines. As my friend Jim Voltz of Bond Street Imports put it, “That’s how you sell average wine – market, market, market, market.” I’ve tried a number of wines “made” by famous folks – and the results have been mixed, at best. Many of them are pretty average, driven by cute logos and recognizable names rather than actual winemaking acumen. (For the record, Bond Street's wines are anything but "average")

I’ve been curious about Keenan’s wine, though – his music may not be everyone’s glass of grapes (and it’s hit or miss with me, depending on my mood and state of mind) but it’s always painstakingly crafted, highly structured, and remarkably creative. I figured if he were going to undertake winemaking, he'd probably throw himself into it as a creative endeavor with great attention to detail rather than having it simply as a vanity project. I also figured Arizona could become an interesting viticultural area. Grapes love lousy soil, blazing hot days, and dry cool nights. My old Southwestern stomping grounds have all of those in abundance.

When I saw the press release come down the pike about Keenan & Glomski’s recent publicity tour, I made an inquiry (when I saw they weren’t coming nearby) and they generously offered to send some samples. Eric was also good enough to pass along some recipe recommendations which, as you know, I can’t resist.

The first one we tried was the Page Springs Cellars 2007 Estate Vineyards "Landscape." This is a 50/50 split of syrah & petit sirah -- all estate grown in Yavapai County. This was described as a "classic Rhone" style. After giving it a little time to open up, we were greeted with a wonderfully fragrant nose of caramel, mint, and blackberries. The body, as expected from a blend like this, is very full and loaded with the syrah's fruitiness. Layers of berries and smoke work towards a finish that goes on for a minute or more by itself, ending with some very firm, balanced tannins and chocolate flavors. I asked Eric (a self-admitted "die hard meat eater") what food would go best with these wines. He suggested "highly seasoned meat, like lamb or goat." Taking this cue, we put together a lamb shoulder braised in tomatoes with sides of wilted spinach & sautéed mushrooms and some polenta cakes. The Landscape is nicely complex and great by itself, but with the lamb -- transcendent. Mint always goes well with lamb, and those tones paired up nicely -- but you add in the tannins slicing through the fat, and you end up with a slightly fruity, exceptionally smooth finish. Retails for about $40.

Next up was the Caduceus Cellars 2006 Merkin Vineyards "Anubis" -- This wine, named for the dog-headed Egyptian god who protected and guided spirits through the underworld, marks the transition of Caduceus to using predominantly Arizona-grown fruit. Eric said that the wine "bears the Bordeaux mark" -- which makes sense, as it is largely a cabernet franc/cabernet sauvignon blend with a little syrah and sangiovese thrown in for good measure. We found it was an absolute must to decant this wine. Even after an hour open, there was still a lot of alcohol on the nose, and the fruit was extremely tight. After a good deal of swirling and decanting, the nose of violets and smoke start to emerge more strongly. Powerful dark fruit flavors and licorice lead to layers of smoke and balanced tannins on the finish. Eric's recommendation was a big steak, and I went with porterhouse. Divine. The wine brought out the flavors in the meat and the fruit in the wine ahead of any lingering fatty taste from the steak. We saved a little for chocolate and sipping, and the flavors continued to balance and marry. The Sweet Partner in Crime summed it up: "It's seductive. It's really fruity, but not an overwhelming fruit bomb. It's big and tannic, but that doesn't detract from the fruit or dry you out. It's not like anything jumps out at you. The whole flavor just draws you in." About $35-40 for about as well-balanced a wine as you'll find.

Finally, we had the Arizona Stronghold 2007 "Nachise" Red Wine -- another Rhone blend named after Cochise's son, former leader of the Chiricahua Apache. The blend is about 2/3 syrah, with the rest grenache and petit sirah. Once decanted, I expected it to be earthy with a little fruit. While a Cotes-du-Rhone is a reflection of the soil with its funk, the Nachise is a reflection of the sun and sky. The fruit flavors are certainly forward, but they're extremely bright for a wine this big. The earth that exists in this wine provides a nice backbone that's full without being thick. The finish is nicely long, with some tasty coffee and plum notes. It actually reminded me more of a Rioja than a Rhone. Rather than going back to meat, we paired this with a "Southwesterny" vegetarian meal -- grilled, marinated portabella mushrooms with avocados and a salsa of black beans, corn, tomatoes, cilantro, and fresh cayenne pepper from our garden. The Nachise embraced both the earth and the spice and held its own against the spread of flavors. About $20 and well worth it.

If these selections are any indication, the partners of Arizona Stronghold (and Arizona wine in general) have an extremely bright future. As for Keenan, was he looking for future oceanside terroir when he planted the Merkin vines? In a 2006 interview with IGN, he quipped: "This is a prime spot for vineyards. An untapped resource. But the master plan is to have the Merkin Vineyards Bed and Breakfast set up for when California drops in the ocean. Beach front property and the New Napa Valley. You got it."

The Great Cabernet Ripoff

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 22:00:00 +0000

Vine reader and ol' drinkin' buddy Nate L. passed along this little gem of an article from The Daily Beast:

The Great Cabernet Ripoff

I really can't argue too much with too much in here. I was talking to another friend of mine who regularly attends private "wine tasting competitions" of cabernets and such. The latest cab to win one of those competitions cost around $300 a bottle, which is utterly ridiculous.

As you all know, I'm pretty partial to wines I feel like I can crack everyday, but after a certain point -- do you really gain anything other than showing people that you have $300 to spend on a bottle of wine?

UPDATE: K2 writes on a similar subject (and about Kings X!) over at Under the Grape Tree.

Finger Lake'n Good™ -- Part II

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 17:20:00 +0000

For part I of the trip, click here. For pictures, watch below and click for closeups...

As you drive around Seneca, there's a bend in the lake east of Watkins Glen, which is on the southern tip. The southeastern side of Seneca Lake is known as the "Banana Belt" because of its shape. This stretch of the lake catches the most daily sun of anywhere on the lake. Since red wines tend to need more sunlight and heat, we found the better reds on Seneca come from there. To wit:

Shalestone Vineyards-- "Red Is All We Do" proclaims the sign at the entrance to this little winery on the east side of Seneca -- and they do it quite well. Tasting there is a wonderfully laid back experience. The tasting notes on their wines are fabulous, such as this from their luscious 2007 Pinot Noir: "Pinot Noir has a presence that is very seductive. Black cherry aromas and flavors are indeed there, but tune your senses… there is a whole lot more. Oh the fickle femme fatale! Some are like a cold shower and others give you multiple orgasms. They are always worth a try."
Their "Red Legend" blend was also a favorite of ours. They have an interesting setup -- they built their cellars into the side of the hill on which the tasting room rests. Natural a/c!

Red Newt Cellars -- One of the prettiest views that we found just about anywhere around either lake. Most of their wines were very solid offerings, but their "Sawmill Creek" 2007 Gewurztraminer was absolutely exceptional. Made in the Alsatian style -- so quite dry -- there were layers and layers of watermelon, kiwi, spice, and various other yumminess. One of the better representations of that varietal we'd ever tried, honestly. (It's a little pricey at $36 a bottle, though.) Red Newt also had a very good bistro where we had a thoroughly enjoyable late lunch and some flights of various wines.

Atwater Estate Vineyards -- Our last stop on Seneca Lake was a winner. Atwater's friendly folks gave us a thorough rundown of much of their current catalog in their gorgeous tasting facility. We were especially impressed with their 2007 Chardonnay. Many of the Chardonnays in the Finger Lakes were overoaked, in our opinion. This one had just a hint of oak, some tasty tart apple flavors, and a nice vanilla finish. Their 2005 "Celsius" ice wine, also made from chardonnay, was absolutely delicious, full of tangerines and honey.

Seneca Lake is much more heavily populated winery-wise than its neighbor to the East, Cayuga Lake. Most of Cayuga Lake's wineries are clustered about midway up the western shore of the lake. We'd heard more about the wineries on Seneca and Keuka, and after our first couple of stops on Cayuga, we thought we understood why. We stopped at a couple of the "more established" wineries on Cayuga and were roundly disappointed in both. Their wines were clearly "made for the tourists" -- lots of cheap, sweet plonk that they'd been selling to tour busses from NYC and bachelorette parties for years. We were filled with trepidation -- and then our luck changed:

Buttonwood Grove Winery -- We were a little nervous when we drove up to the place. When I see wineries that offer a lot of non-wine stuff, I start to wonder how much effort they actually put into crafting their wines. Signs at Buttonwood advertised "cabins for rent," grape pies, and goat cheese. By the parking area we met Melody, a long-haired Scottish Highland cow and her three friendly goat companions (which we unsuccessfully tried to feed on the way out -- they sold treats for them at the register). Despite possible appearances to the contrary, Buttonwood clearly takes the wine seriously. They poured the best tasting chardonnay (Their 2005 Reserve -- $16!) we had in the whole region -- a little oaky with a balanced creaminess and excellent, refreshing fruit. Also had a very nice 2004 Cabernet Franc which was exceptionally smooth.

Thirsty Owl Winery -- Another wonderful bit of scenery to back up some very tasty wines. Our favorites were their 2008 Pinot Gris, which was fresh and clean with some wonderful acidity and fruit that rivaled much more expensive Pinot Gris'; and their 2008 semi-dry Riesling, which was an absolute crowd-pleasing peach explosion. They also had a great little bistro where we enjoyed some appetizers for another late lunch and watched the lake for awhile.

Finally, our tour ended at Hosmer Winery -- which was, again, one of the real finds of our trip. They had a ton of excellent selections. Both their 2007 Pinot Gris and Dry Rosé were fresh, tastily acidic, and full of fruit. The rosé, at $6, was a steal. They did a wonderful methode champenoise brut made of a blend of chardonnay and Cayuga grapes that was bone dry and yet tasted of honey. Absolutely delicious. Friendly atmosphere as well. They also were one of the few wineries that shipped to Kentucky, so we took full advantage.

So, all in all, what did we think? For scenic beauty, the lake views were hard to beat. For white wines, while Riesling was certainly king, they're growing a number of other really solid varietals, including some of the hybrids. The whites also tend to be very consistent across vintages. The reds were a little more uneven, but considerably better than we expected. The quality of the reds tends to be inversely proportional to rainfall. 2007, for instance, was a very dry year in the area -- and the reds from that year were a slice better, on balance, than the 2006's. Also, with the exception of Hosmer, most of the wineries we liked best were the relatively new ones -- quite different from our experience in a number of other places. I wouldn't hesitate to suggest this area for a getaway. So, make your reservations to fly into Ithaca -- the only airport I've seen where the gates don't even open until 45 minutes before a flight. You'll find plenty to help you relax.

Finger Lake'n Good™ -- Part I

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 00:42:00 +0000

The Sweet Partner in Crime and I finally got to the end of our school year. We decided, in conjunction with the SPinC's birthday, to unplug; do some hiking, snag some good grub; and maybe work a little wine in. Neither of us had been to the Finger Lakes and, after finding some inexpensive flights into Ithaca, set ourselves up for a long weekend jaunt.

For those of you who aren't familiar with the Finger Lakes region, it's in west-central New York State. The lakes are long and narrow and look like...well...you get the idea. These lakes, and the beautiful attendant waterfalls and gorgeous gorges in the surrounding area, were formed by the receding sea at the foot of what is now the Appalachian Mountains, a few hundred million years of erosion and weather, and one really big ice age. The result is an absolutely beautiful natural landscape, full of fantastic hikes, photo ops, and the chance to simply sit and listen to the water rush by for hours.

We set our home base in Trumansburg, about 10 miles from Ithaca at the absolutely wonderful Halsey House bed & breakfast. Mitch, the owner -- alongside Tess the sweet dog and his impressive aviary full of parrots -- treated us royally. Breakfasts were excellent and filling, and the accommodations were first-rate. As Mitch put it after we told him about the kinds of vacations we usually lean towards: "You're in the right place. All we do around here is eat and drink. Or, more accurately, drink and eat and drink."

We sandwiched some winery visits around the time we spent exploring the gorges and state parks of the area. (Treman State Park and Watkins Glen had the best trails. Taughannock Falls was the single most impressive sight, in my humble opinion.) When we started sampling, I half-expected to simply OD on sweeter white wines. I did have an inkling about the wines from there. I knew New York wineries cranked out a fair amount of Riesling (Dr. Konstantin Frank and Heron Hill being the largest producers) and I guessed they'd probably grow a few other white varietals. I also knew that we'd run into a lot of cheap, sweet fruit wines. The rest was open for discovery.

What did we find? Riesling was certainly the star of the show. There were scads of them. Most wineries that made Riesling had at least three varieties. You could almost always count on a dry, semi-dry, and sweet versions -- and various "reserves." There was, of course, the ubiquitous chardonnay and some other cool-climate grapes like Gewurztraminer.

There were also some hybrid varietals I'd seen -- grapes like Seyval, Traminette, and Corot Noir. These grape varietals are bred to be winter hearty, so you'll see them in a lot of "nontraditional" wine growing areas like Kentucky, Ohio, and Indiana, for instance. What I didn't know was that these hybrids were developed at nearby Cornell University (where my maternal grandfather, Walter, proudly earned his engineering degree). In many wineries around the country, these wines end up being full of residual sugar to mask flaws in the winemaking. I was interested to learn how these grapes were supposed to taste when grown in soil they were bred into.

There were also some cool-weather reds bring produced. We were told to expect the Finger Lakes reds to be "bug juice," but that wasn't our typical experience. Cabernet franc and pinot noir were fairly common and grew reasonably well. There was some cabernet sauvignon, and a few scattered Rhone varietals.

Across the board, the Finger Lakes wines were also universally affordable. Almost every winery produced very solid wines in the $10-20 price range.

There are three "major" lakes -- Keuka (pronounced Q-kuh), Seneca, and Cayuga. To get an idea of the geography (almost to scale, no less), hold out your left hand, palm away from you, and bend your ring finger at the knuckle. Your index finger is Cayuga Lake, your middle finger is Seneca, and your ring finger is about the area of the bifurcations of Keuka Lake.

The wineries tend to be right on the lakefront, so we had some wonderful views from their tasting rooms. We weren't able to get all the way over to Keuka Lake in the time we had, so we weren't able to get to Dr. Frank's and Heron Hill, but I felt like we got a pretty good sense of the area and the wine production. Many of these wineries are starting to be available more broadly, as well -- so certainly check some of them out.

Here are a couple of our favorites from Seneca Lake:

Glenora Wine Cellars -- Our first stop on the west shore of Seneca was a good one. We were given the dollar tour of Glenora by Bridget, the winery manager, who was understandably proud of the esprit de corps of her tasting room staff. Had a nice chat with the winemaker, Steve DiFranscesco, as well. Definitely a fun experience. Both their 2007 Riesling and Dry Riesling were very solid. I found their 2007 Seyval Blanc to be especially light, pleasant, and refreshing. They also made a wonderful 2002 Pinot Noir/Chardonnay Brut sparkling wine done methode champenoise which was an impeccably delicate creation.

Fox Run Winery -- At the very top of the west shore of Seneca, near the town of Geneva, is a very cool winery with a fun vibe and some excellent wines. They made an excellent Gewurztraminer (2007) full of floral notes and spice and a 2008 Dry Riesling which will be absolutely wonderful when the acidity calms down a little -- probably after about six months in bottle allowing the citrus flavors to emerge some more. At that point, it will be stellar. While almost of the wineries did dessert wines, Fox Run was one of the few that made actual port. Their ruby port stacks up nicely about just about anyone else's at that price point (around $20).

So to avoid overwhelming you (and to give myself a ready-made tease for the next installment), I'll start you off with these two. I'll send along the rest -- and our pictures -- next time!

Barbera

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 21:56:00 +0000

As a child of the 70's, I can't read "Barbera" without tagging "Hannah" in front of it. Anyone my age who doesn't at least crack a smile at the casual mention of Hannah-Barbera was raised by wolves or the Amish. (This is not to be confused with mentions of various Sid and Marty Krofft productions like H.R. Pufnstuf and Sigmund the Sea Monster. Those usually arise in totally different contexts.)

The Superfriends were de rigueur every Saturday morning. So were the Herculoids, Laff-A-Lympics, Speed Buggy and so many others. Thanks to my old Saturday ritual, I can't stroll past that section of the Italian wine aisle without my minds filling up with images of these cartoons, hanging around the recesses of my cerebrum like old friends. I know I can't be the only one.

So what's the deal with this wine? Why is it hanging out amidst the Chianti and the Montepulciano, re-triggering my horror stemming from Scrappy-Doo's first appearance in the Mystery Machine?

Barbera got its start in the Piedmont region of Italy. The Piedmont is still Barbera's best known home, although it's planted all over Italy and often shows up as a blending grape in various red table wines. It's the third-most widely planted grape in Italy. Barbera, like Dolcetto, is a wine that folks in the Piedmont drink while they're waiting for the Nebbiolo to finish aging for use in Barolo and Barbaresco.

General "Barbera" can be grown almost anywhere in Italy, but there are some viticultural areas that are well known for this wine. The towns of Alba and Asti are the most famous and are the sources of the higher quality versions. Thus, in general, if you see "Barbera d'Alba" or "Barbera d'Asti" on a bottle, it'll likely be a little more expensive, but much more interesting and complex.

Elsewhere in Europe, Barbera isn't grown very much except for in small pockets here and there. It's planted fairly widely in California where, because of its normally high yield per vine, it's a common component in a lot of jug wine. Thankfully, some California winemakers have started taking care of this grape properly -- producing it as either a largely single-varietal wine or as a feature grape in blends.

Barbera's flavor profile is all over the map. Since it's a fairly flexible vine that can grow in many types of soil, the terroir and the care taken to limit yields play huge roles in the eventual flavor of the wine. In general, however, Barbera tends to produce somewhat fruity, fairly tannic, and highly acidic wine. The color always tends to be dark -- Barbera was and is often blended in small quantities into Nebbiolo (which tends to produce light-colored wines) for aesthetic purposes. The high acidity level makes it an excellent complement to many kinds of food -- especially rich foods. Pepperoni pizza and Barbera make a remarkably good pairing.

Bazzini 2006 Barbera -- I grabbed a one-liter bottle of this when I knew I was going to be making an Italian meal and couldn't come up with a pairing off the top of my head. For the record, it was pan-cooked salmon filets in an onion-and-anchovy sauce over some risotto. Lots of rich flavors, so I wanted a wine that was acidic to cut through the oil and fruity enough to be a complement. Barbera's usually a pretty safe bet. What I didn't expect was that this eight-dollar liter of wine ended up being a pretty decent quaffer. Not watery at all, plenty of bright fruit and acidity, and pleasant enough to have on its own. It worked well with the fish, which ended up being absolutely delicious, by the way...

Hey Mambo 2007 Bistro Style Sultry Red -- As I mentioned, Barbera winds up in a lot of California wine, and not all of these are jug quality. The Hey Mambo is a blend of Barbera and four other grapes: syrah, malbec, petit sirah, and zinfandel. The result is what I'd term an inexpensive substitute to a Super Tuscan. This wine starts you out with a Syrah-like, plummy nose. The taste is full bodied, with a hint of that Italian "chalkiness," which is balanced by the full fruit of the other grapes. The finish is long and fruity. We had this with rotini in a spicy tomato sauce, and it went very well -- but I certainly would not waver in putting it up against a heartier, meatier dish. About $9-10.

La Spinetta 2005 Barbera d'Asti "Ca' Di Pian" -- Now, if you want to experience a wonderful expression of what Barbera can really be when it's truly taken care of -- and you're willing to go over the $15 limit for a special occasion (you'll probably shell out $22-25), have a look at this one. Big blackberries and flowers on the nose. Long, complex flavors -- dark berries and chocolate with a little bit of oak that transitions to a full, lasting, and slightly, pleasantly fruity finish. It's a perfect wine to break out for a meal to linger over in good company. Or, put more poetically by one of the folks in the wine store: "This is a 'get-you-laid' bottle." (I cannot make that kind of unequivocal guarantee. Your mileage may vary. And, no, I ain't tellin'.)

Golden Kaan

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 02:33:00 +0000

Monica from Balzac, who was goodly enough to let me try the Espiritu de Chile selections back in January, asked me to give my impressions of Golden Kaan wines, a new series of wines from the Western Cape of South Africa near Cape Town.

Golden Kaan 2007 Chenin Blanc -- South African chenin blanc is an entirely different animal than the light, crisp chenin that quality winemakers are doing in California, or the fruit-laden minerality of the Loire whites from France. South African chenins tend to be a little heavier, and the Kaan certainly is an excellent representation of this varietal. The nose is quite full of caramel and vanilla. The body is as full as I've tasted in a chenin, and contains a pleasantly complex mix of citrus, vanilla, and toasty oak. The finish is a nice, lasting balance of oak and melon.

The recommended pairing was a warm green bean salad (which ended up helping me discover a great way to put fresh, uncooked onions in a dish without having stank-breath after!) and I added a grilled grouper recipe from the Giuliano Hazan cookbook I mentioned once before. The pairing was spot-on. The bean salad had a lemon-based dressing which pointed up some citrus notes in the wine. The smokiness of the wine's flavors went very well with the grilled fish.

Golden Kaan 2006 Pinotage & Golden Kaan 2007 Shiraz -- The SPinC and I tried these two wines side by side, since the recommended food pairing for both was this tasty looking "lamb soasities" recipe. (In case you're wondering what in tarnation that is, it's lamb shoulder cut into chunks and marinated in a mixture of onion, lemon juice, garlic, and various curry-themed spices; skewered with green pepper, shallots, and dried apricots; and cooked over hot coals. Recipe here. Yum!)

We tasted the wines by themselves initially. We discovered that using the aerator that we brought back from California was a huge help for these wines. Both of them definitely needed some time to breathe, since they were both a) relatively young and b) varietals that can always stand a little bit of air to wake up the flavors.

Pinotage, for many people, is a "love it or hate it" varietal. Pinotage is a crossbreed of Cinsault and Pinot Noir, and is the wine South Africa is best known for. This hybrid produces a wine that's slightly heavier than many Pinot Noirs, with some very strong flavors. These wines are often very smoky and rich, and they can have any number of flavors that don't appear in many wines. Done well, these wines stand up nicely to grilled and smoked game and pungent spices.

This version, while possessing some of the characteristics you'd expect in Pinotage, is a reasonably approachable wine. The nose is full of tart cherries and chocolate with a strong smoky flavor on the palate. There's a slightly bitter flavor on the finish, almost like coffee, and it's dry. The shiraz is a light styled wine. The nose is of fresh cut wood and cherries -- more sweet cherry than the tartness of the Pinotage. There's a tobacco flavor as well, but the cherries dominate the palate from front to end.

With the food, I thought that the Pinotage was much more interesting. I thought it stood up to the spices in the marinade and the sauce, and the flavors in the wine itself stood out. The SPinC was of a different mind. She enjoyed the shiraz more, since there were already so many varied flavors in the food -- she felt that the shiraz allowed the food to take center stage and be a solid complementary taste. She said, "If it were January, I'd probably like the Pinotage more."

I think the Pinotage is an excellent "starter" if you're not too familiar with the varietal and you want to get a sense of it. The shiraz was OK -- but I think there are some better ones out there in the same price point.

All three wines retail for around $10 and are broadly available.

P.S. Vine reader Steve G pointed out my patently obvious missed opportunity for a Star Trek reference with the name of this wine. But after about a dozen "KAAAAAAAAAN!" exclamations with the SPinC looking at me sideways, I decided to let it slide. But please, feel free to unleash your inner Shatner after killing a bottle of one of these.

Vote for Me! -- updated!

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:38:00 +0000

Your intrepid wine blogger has thrown his name in the hat for Murphy-Goode winery's "A Really Goode Job" promotion. One lucky winner gets to move to Healdsburg, California for six months, tasting wine -- blogging and tweeting along the way.

I had to put a short video together. I went for "Brevity is the soul of wit."

You can see my video (and hopefully vote for it!) here. (UPDATE: This takes you directly to the video without having to sift through all the entries...)

All support is appreciated! I'll keep you updated as things move along.

(Many thanks to Michelle Lentz, the Wine Girl, for helping me figure out how to get the link working...)

Cracking Open the Good Stuff -- Volume 1 -- Göpfrich

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Sat, 30 May 2009 18:43:00 +0000

After our 100th review, I figure this is a good a time to make a slight change around here. Now don't go worrying, I'm still keeping my focus on inexpensive, quality wines. You'll still be able to get your Vine fix and that will remain the primary focus of the site. As I've tried more and more wine, my palate has broadened -- as does anyone's who keeps one hand on a tasting glass for any length of time. Many of these wines are simply too good not to share my thoughts about with all of you out there.

So, from time to time, I'm going to start jotting down a few notes on wines that are slightly higher priced -- because everyone needs a good special occasion wine from time to time. (Or, to paraphrase Virginia Madsen from Sideways -- anytime you open a good bottle of wine is a special occasion.) I'm going to start with a bottle that helped me first understand what a good bottle of wine can be.

The Sweet Partner in Crime came home with a delicious looking porterhouse steak that simply begged to be grilled up. We put together a couple of foil packs for vegetables -- new potatoes with some rosemary and basil from our garden and Brussels sprouts with some garlic, olive oil, and feta cheese. It was a Friday night after a particularly grueling couple of weeks at work, so we decided to pull something out of the "special occasion" rack.

I dug around and came out with the Göpfrich 2003 Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon. Göpfrich is a Sonoma Country winery that we visited on our first trip to wine country. It's a small operation in Dry Creek Valley run by Ray and Bonnie Goepfrich. We stumbled upon the place while we were out tasting and Ray was good enough to let us try some of his bounty even though we didn't have an appointment when we popped in.

At the time, I thought his wines were some of the best I'd ever tasted, especially the Cabernet Sauvignon. Many bottles of wine have passed under the bridge and through the liver since then, and I still stand by my estimation. Especially at the price point (the current reserve cab is $38 a bottle), these wines are astoundingly good. Theirs was the first wine club that we joined, and we've been loyal customers every since that day.

Most Göpfrich wines are high in alcohol, so they're a little "hot" when first poured. So, after letting the wine breathe for a little while, we got to work on dinner and eventually poured a little -- just to get a sense. Even after half an hour, the wine still hadn't quite opened up -- but once it did (took about another 20 minutes -- just in time to eat), the wine was nothing short of spectacular.

The nose was rich and layered with blackberries, coffee, and chocolate. There was a quick burst of fruit when first sipped, but that fruit quickly mellowed into a long, rich, chocolate-and-berry filled midpalate. The wine's richness continued into an exceptionally well-balanced finish that lingered strongly for well over a minute. This was a "take a sip, close your eyes, and dream" sort of wine, one that continued to open up over the course of the evening -- flavors of blueberry peeked out around the edges, and the finish became smokier.

With the food? Well...nothing short of divine. There's really not much I can add. A great cut of meat, grilled properly and a top line cabernet -- there's simply no way to go wrong. We saved a splash for chocolate later in the evening. Again, impeccable.

Göpfrich is always my first recommendation when I get asked about Sonoma wine country. They ship nationwide.

Kinkead Ridge -- The 2008 whites...

noreply@blogger.com (Mike) — Wed, 27 May 2009 02:37:00 +0000

(This entry marks a milestone for The Naked Vine -- it's our 100th wine review. So thanks to all of you out there in Vine-land for your readership, for your encouragement, and for your friendship over the last three years. It's been a heck of a ride thus far...)

Tucked away in a modest, quiet neighborhood in the river town of Ripley, Ohio, is Kinkead Ridge Winery. The estate winery, cleverly disguised as a one-story ranch style house, is the brainchild of Ron Barrett and Nancy Bentley -- a pair of transplants from Oregon, where they grew pinot noir for a number of years. They relocated to southern Ohio in 1999 and dropped roots, literally and figuratively.

I'm usually fairly skeptical of "local" wineries. There's a reason that the "best" winemaking operations tend to cluster in certain areas. While there are grapes that will grow in almost any climate, I can't tell you how much bitter Chambourcin and Norton, overly sweet Cayuga or Concord, and heavily charred Chardonel we've tried in many of these little places. (Perhaps there's a method for making those wines taste good. If there is, I've yet to find it consistently applied.)

There are no worries on that front from Nancy & Ron. The wines grown at Kinkead Ridge are all vinifera grapes. They grow primarily Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Syrah, Viognier, and Riesling. Smaller quantities of Petit Verdot, Roussanne and Sauvignon Blanc fill out the mix. They also have an "experimental" section of the vineyard where Ron, a former electrical engineer before becoming a vintner, experiments with Merlot, Gamay Noir, Dolcetto, Sangiovese and Semillon.

How do they manage to grow all this vinifera? It's the soil, Nancy says: "We looked at a lot of different places when we decided to leave Oregon. We looked in California, Washington, other places in Oregon -- and we found that the soil of the land we found was exactly what we were looking for. The soil composition on the ridge is almost identical to St. Emilion in France -- not the clay cap that you find down in the river valley."

Ron's scientific bent also comes heavily into play. "You have to keep a close eye on a lot of these vines. We've got great terroir here, but the big drawback for us is the variation in temperature and climate. In 2007, we had a frost around Easter that nearly wiped out the vineyard. We were able to salvage the cabernet, but the syrah was completed ruined, and we lost most of our Viognier and Riesling. Hazards of the occupation." When the vines are able to mature, however, the winery has the capacity to produce about 2000 cases a year -- with increased production on the way, if all goes well. As the vines continue to mature, the yield with undoubtedly increase and the quality should improve as well.

Not that there's much wrong with the quality of the wines as they currently stand. One of the hallmarks of many local wineries I've found is, on the rare occasion that one of them makes a wine of note -- the price is often two to three times what you'd pay for a comparable wine from a "known" region. Kinkead Ridge, however, has a price point for all of its wines between $10-20, and these wines are, in my estimation, about as good for those styles as you would find "normally."

Ron and Nancy release their whites every year on Memorial Day weekend and their reds on Labor Day weekend. The Sweet Partner in Crime and I took the scenic drive down US 52 to Ripley this weekend to try their spread of whites.

Kinkead Ridge 2008 River Village Cellars Traminette -- Traminette is a hybrid of Gewurztraminer, and a friend of Ron's said that she had a couple of tons available for sale. He picked them up and, unfortunately, found that some of the grapes had already begun to raisinate. He cobbled together an interesting, semi-sweet, eminently drinkable wine from the ton and a half he was able to use. Plenty of traditional gewürztraminer pepperiness to be found therein, lots of floral notes, and a surprisingly fresh finish. For about $10, a very nice sipping wine or a nice pairing for spicy Asian cuisine.

Kinkead Ridge 2008 Riesling -- My personal favorite of the four whites that we tried. Reminiscent of a German spatlese to me -- slightly sweet (1.2% residual sugar -- or at least that was Ron's self-described "SWAG" -- short for scientific wild-ass guess...) but full of really pleasant apple and pear flavors. Crisp acidity on the finish and a lasting fruit flavor that begs for some roast pork loin or a meat and cheese tray. A very flexible wine for all seasons. $14.

Kinkead Ridge 2008 White Revelation -- One of the flagship white wines of Kinkead Ridge, the blend on this white cuvee changes every year. This year, it's largely Sauvignon Blanc and Semillon, with a hodgdpodge of other grapes thrown in for good measure. The wine certainly reflects the character of the grapes -- and it drinks very much like a decent white Bordeaux. Acidic and minerally from front to back, it's a nice accompaniment for anything from salads to grilled chicken. Great summer wine. $14.

Kinkead Ridge 2008 Viognier/Roussanne -- Of the four, this one was probably my least favorite on its face, because I think it's still a little too young. That's not to say it was bad -- far from it. One of the customers had brought in a bottle of the 2006 Viognier/Roussane, and the difference was remarkable. This one needs a little time in the bottle, maybe even a couple more months, for the flavors to marry and balance and for the slight oiliness of the Viognier to die down, but the backbone of tropical fruits and aromatics were certainly there. Pick up a bottle and stash it until fall. Then have it with some grilled fish. You'll thank me. $16.

The tasting room is open most Saturdays during the summer from 11:00-5:00. For more information about Kinkead Ridge, the winery, their story, and how to get there if you're interested in making a weekend road trip down to the Ohio River, check out their website at http://www.kinkeadridge.com