Having never participated in a “Dry January” I have found myself consuming less alcohol; more like a “Damp January and February’. I certainly sleep better on nights minus alcohol. Bill postulates that spirits especially vodka are easier for the body to digest. As with so many other things in our lives the key to a successful lifestyle is moderation.

We are having a wonderfully wet winter in Sonoma. The rainfall total are up to 123% of normal as of March 2nd and the consistent soakings show no signs of subsiding. If one could draw it up this winter cycle has been picture perfect. We’re getting all the precipitation we need without the drama of bomb cyclones or floods. Our fingers are crossed that this trend continues. If you’ve ever considered visiting Sonoma County, the springtime in my opinion is probably the best time to come and explore what wine country has to offer. Less crowds, moderate prices on lodging and a slower pace present an excellent opportunity to make some new discoveries.

Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Our wine recommendation this week is the 2019 Poggio Scalette Chianti Classico. Poggio Scalette (hill of tiny steps) is a small property in the Greve municipality of Chianti Classico and is run by the Fiore family. Initially started by wine consultant Vittorio Fiore who’s name is prominently displayed on the front label the property is now run by his son Jurij. The top wine at Poggio Scalette is Il Carbonaione a 100% Sangiovese which sells for about $50 retail. Today we will be focusing on Il Carbonaione’s sibling or Scalette’s second wine a Chianti Classico.

The vineyards for this bottling sit at an average elevation of 1,500 feet and were planted between 1928 - 2003. The grapes are 100% Sangiovese di Lamole, an ancient clone of Sangiovese and are fermented in concrete vats and aged for ten months in concrete before bottling. Medium ruby color going clear to the edge in the glass. Pretty red fruit and floral aromas complement the cranberry, sour cherry profile on the palate. Medium bodied and mildly tannic with zippy acidity the wine is refreshing and laid back. It shows great drinkability and I immediately went digging into the wine stash to see how many I had on hand ( always a good sign ). I was delighted to discover that the Poggio Scalette Chianti Classico clocked in at 13% abv. Which means I can have more than two glasses in one sitting if I desire without having to worry about overindulging. The drinking window for this wine is short and its probably best enjoyed in the near term. It would pair well with a variety of appetizers, light main dishes, pasta and pizza. $19 Buy it here.

Show Links:

French government floats €160m fund to ease ‘wine crisis’

How product placement gets wine bottles into shows like ‘The Last of Us’

Gallo is laying off 355 employees

Why one of Sonoma’s best wineries hired a winemaker who'd never made wine before

Deadly Wildfires Devastate Vineyards in Chile’s Central and Southern Wine Regions

The Uncertain Future of Island Wines

Luca and Elena Currado Vietti say goodbye to the Vietti winery

Press Democrat writer Sarah Doyle pens a piece on how Sonoma County winemakers are “passing the torch” and making plans to extend their family legacies.

Ingredient labeling for wine starts this year in the EU. The rest of the worlds wine markets will soon follow suit. Is ingredient labeling a win for consumers and producers?

Jess Lander uses an electric corkscrew regularly but she seems to think she may be in the minority. Do you own and electric corkscrew?

Jackson Family Wines has filed a lawsuit against their insurance company for failure to honor claims submitted due to fire damage from wildfires.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

2019 Château Vitallis Pouilly-Fuissé Vielles Vignes - Father and son team Denis and Maxime Dutron use Chardonnay from their oldest parcels, some as old as 85 years of age to craft this beautiful White Burgundy. 100% Chardonnay, natural fermentation, left on the lees for a year, 70% stainless steel the rest in barrel. Taut and mineral, with green apple and grapefruit. A distinctive Macon that may bring the ABC (anything but Chardonnay) crowd back into the fold. $27

2019 Ramey Russian River Valley Chardonnay - In contrast to the former old world Chardonnay the Ramey’s make a 100% Chardonnay using a plethora of the old world techniques. Whole cluster pressing, native yeast barrel fermentation, lees aging, malolactic fermentation and light fining sans filtering. Baked apple and pear notes complement the layers of savory oak and baking spice. Beautifully textured and balanced. $38

2021 Joel Gott Sauvignon Blanc - A perennial crowd pleaser the grapes for this Sauvignon Blanc are sourced from all over California. Its style remains remarkably consistent from year to year. Ripe melon and white peach aromas jump out of the glass. Lemon and lime flavors work well with the clean mineral finish. $12

2020 Michel Delhommeau “Harmonie” Muscadet Sèvre et Maine Sur Lie - Michel and Nathalie Delhommeau farm the Melon de Bourgogne grapes for their Muscadet in the volcanic rich soils of the Loire Valley in northwest France. After fermentation the wine spends 5 months “Sur Lie” (in the tank on the lees). Lemon, apple, fresh and vibrant with a bracing minerality and tingling acidity on the finish. This Muscadet calls out for fresh oysters on the half shell and other light seafood dishes. $17

2021 Quivira Rosé Wine Creek Ranch - Cranberries, rhubarb and strawberries aromas compliment the zippy acidity of this 70% Grenache, 11%Counoise, 9% Mourvèdre, 5% Petite Sirah blend. Made with organically grown grapes. $20

2020 Concerto Reggiano Lambrusco - Most of us have never served a dry red sparkling wine. Here’s your chance to wow your guests. Concerto, made from 100% Lambrusco Salamino comes in an attractive bottle that is shaped like a bowling pin. The grapes are organically farmed. When poured into a glass you get a beautiful purple froth. Dark ruby red in color the wine taste of raspberry and strawberries with hints of licorice. It’s completely dry on the palate with a fresh zippy clean finish. Serve it slightly chilled not cold. $30

Frederic Magnien Crémant De Bourgongne Blanc De Noir - If you love Champagne but you need to watch your coins a bit more closely try exploring sparkling wines from other regions of France. French sparkling wines that use the traditional method and are made outside of the Champagne region are called Crémant. This 100% Pinot Noir from the Burgundy area can be served as an aperitif and also has the body and weight to be served throughout a meal. A light amber color, very fine bubbles, aromas of bing cherries and strawberry. Champagne quality without the sticker shock. $20

2019 Siduri Russian River Valley Pinot Noir - The consistency of the Siduri brand which was acquired by Jackson Family Wines several years ago continues unabated. Adam Lee may no longer be the winemaker but the assertive and beautiful Pinot Noir style he pioneered continues. Black cherry and spicy raspberry flavors on the palate, medium in length with good acidity. A very attractive entry level Pinot Noir. $30

2020 Bedrock Wine Co. Old Vine Zinfandel - Morgan Twain-Peterson crafts this deep ruby colored wine from old vineyards (some 100+ years old) throughout Sonoma County. Made with native yeast fermentation and aged in French and Austrian oak puncheons and foudres. In the glass black and red fruit, lavender and pepper aromas. On the palate black plums, a round texture with good acidity and length. Drink and enjoy this youthful Zinfandel now and do yourself a favor and save a few bottles for the next few years. $22

2019 Hess Collection Allomi Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon - This 79% Cabernet Sauvignon 9% Petite Sirah 5%Malbec 4% Merlot 3% Petit Verdot blend comes from the Allomi vineyard in Pope Valley of northeast Napa Valley. Black and blue fruit, tobacco and oak lead the way for this seemlessly integrated full bodied red. A cushy textured mouthfeel with a long finish. $30

2019 Obsidian Ridge Lake County Cabernet Sauvignon - 94% Cabernet Sauvignon 2% Petit Verdot 2%Malbec 1% Petite Sirah 1% Syrah. Grown in the volcanic rich soils of the Red Hills of Lake County the wine is aged for 18 months in Hungarian oak barrels. Black fruit, black cherry and vanilla, full bodied and tannic. $35

Show LInks:
Best Wines
Columbia Winery Tasking Room
Lets talk with Maureen Downey
AMOS Electric Autonomous Tractor Tour Visits Lodi
Mendoza declares emergency after late season frost
Freak frost hits Argentinian vineyards as Mendoza declares emergency
E & J. Gallo Winery Announces Acquisition of Denner Vineyards in Paso Robles AVA
https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/article/carlo-trinchero-arrest-17584624.php

I just recently attended the 18th annual Wine & Spirits Top 100 tasting at the City View at Metreon in San Francisco. This was the first public wine tasting I have attended in several years (we all know why) and that reluctance to attend public events was the sentiment of so many other attendees that I met and talked with over the evening. I offer some observations of how public wine tastings are changing and for the most part for the better.

Peg Melnik pens a nice piece highlighting pioneering Italian winegrowers in Sonoma County. Not everybody is selling out. It’s refreshing to see these families holding onto their traditions and successfully passing the business of winemaking onto their descendants. Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Our wine recommendation this week is the 2017 Vigneti Massa Derthona. Derthona is the age-old name of Tortona, a village in southeast Piedmont, in the northwest region of Italy. Derthona is Timorasso, a grape that had all but been abandoned until Walter Massa recognized its potential to make compelling wines. Up until the eighties Timarasso vines had been pulled and replanted with Cortese and Chardonnay which were easier to sell and more popular at the time. Massa began working with Timorasso vineyards he could find and also began planting new Timorasso vineyards in the eighties and nineties. This 100%Timorasso is a mix of several vineyards around the village of Monleale, although it should be noted that Massa also produces three vineyard designated Timorasso bottlings. It’s fermented using indigenous yeast, receives skin contact for 48 to 60 hours beforehand and battonage after fermentation in stainless steel and concrete vats. He holds the wine for six months after bottling as Timorasso can be quite shy and unexpressive when young. With bottle age it comes around and begins to display its powerful and concentrated flavors. In the glass the color is a bright vibrant gold. The aromas show yellow fruit, honeyed almonds and beeswax. On the palate more of the afore mention flavors the wine is intensely rich and unctuous with surprising freshness and acidity and a medium length finish. Given the substantial structure of this wine I suggest you pair it with rich chicken and pork dishes or fondue. When Massa started this rediscovery of Timorasso there were just a handful of hectares planted. Today there are more than 150 hectares planted in the Colli Tortonesi DOC (Tortona hills). This is a wine you will probably have to hunt down. Unless you’re working with a specialty wine retailer you’ll have to source it over the internet. Having said that if your your looking for a new distinctive high quality wine to experience and learn about then don’t miss out on Walter Massa’s Derthona. 13.5% alc 5,000 cases $32 - $39

It’s summertime so we find ourselves drinking less red wine and more rosé and white wines. Our wine recommendation for this week is the Mönchhof Ürzig Würzgarten Riesling Kabinett. The Mönchhof is said to be one of the oldest wine estates in the West German Mosel Valley dating back to 1177. This fruity off dry version of a 100% Riesling is grown on vertiginous, brick colored, cliff-like hills that tower over the village of Urzig which sits on the left bank of the Mosel river.

A light yellow color with a tinge of green this Riesling has a lovely green apple, lime, lees and jasmine blossom nose. Lovely baking spice, honeyed peaches complexity on the palate, with fresh bright acidity balancing out the light sweetness. A lovely way to welcome in the summer this sublime Riesling would pair well with a variety of fried foods, charcuterie boards, vegetables and sushi. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

World Beer Cup 2022

Right now is one of the best times to be looking for a job in the California wine industry. A quick look on winejobs.com will yield hundred of job offers.

Terri and I finally ventured out and went wine tasting for the first time since the start of the Covid pandemic. Bill and I discuss our visit to Ledson Winery in Sonoma Valley and lament the loss of the casual drive up tasting we were able to enjoy before Covid changed our world.

Climate change is wreaking havoc everywhere. Recent flooding in Belgium and Germany and in particular the Ahr Valley wine region has cost hundreds of lives and many businesses and livelihoods have been lost. James Lawrence shares the story of how Weingut Paul Schumacher was destroyed by floods.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Remember the 2001 U.S. recession, the result of the Y2K boom and the dot com bust? Cameron Hughes started his wine company out of those ashes. Not unlike today he found himself in a business environment where there were too many good quality wines and not enough buyers. He leveraged that moment in time to create one of the most successful wine nègociant companies in the world all the while landing an exclusive with mega-box store Costco to feature his products. For years Cameron profited by cutting out the middle man (wholesalers) and capitalizing on the oversupply of quality wine in the U. S. Once the oversupply dried up so did his business. Cameron didn’t survive the cyclical nature of the agriculture business and ended up in bankruptcy court and his business was eventually sold to Vintage Wine Estates in 2017.

I won’t go down a rabbit hole chronicling the drawbacks of the three tier alcohol distribution laws that were instituted after the repeal of prohibition in 1933 and how the scales are tipped in favor of ensuring the greatest profits go to the wholesalers. Large distributors wield considerable political clout so changing legislation moves at a glacial pace. However, the pandemic has brought about substantial changes in the channels that are now being used to get alcohol to consumers.

An economic downturn hits everyone along the distribution chain but restaurants have borne the brunt of this recession. Hundreds of notable restaurants have closed and those that depend on tourism and thriving downtown commerce are barely getting by. A winery operating a good direct to consumer business out of a tasting room loses all of that revenue when they are forced to close due to local or state Covid restrictions. Restaurant closures further erode demand for wines. When producers have their distribution channels disrupted they have to find other ways to move their wines. Smaller producers (less than 20,000 case production annually) often get lost in the inevitable cost cutting and consolidation of distributors. Zoom calls and specialized sales and marketing teams created to promote smaller brands are stepping in to fill the sales voids.

Year 2021 economic conditions for high end wine producers are similar to those two decades ago. Premium wineries find themselves caught between a rock and a hard place. They have done all the hard work and produced great products, but there simply aren’t enough buyers to consume the supply. If they discount their offerings to move pallets they risk devaluing their brand while courting the prospect of shaved profit margins in the future. If they sit on their inventory and wait for market conditions to improve the holding costs eat away at their profits. If they don’t move the wine quickly enough it could age out and need to be discounted anyway. Even more so the winemaker may need the tank space for the upcoming vintage. What’s a vintner to do?

Enter the modern day wine retailer/ nègociant. Although it may not be a new trend for retailers to look outside their normal channels to secure premium quality wine at great values (wine consignment and auctions), there are an increasing number of players in the game now. Have you ever had a non disclosure wine? Chances are you have although you may not have been aware of it. Offers flood my email inbox daily touting 93 to 96 point wines made by 100 point winemakers. The one common denominator is the non disclosure pronouncement. “We can’t tell you very much about the wine or who bottled it for us. What we can tell you is that the wine is 50% off the list price that it normally sells for”. The non disclosure agreement shields the producer from being exposed for selling their wine at a discount. The offer is an easy sale for a reputable retailer as the customer can know that they are getting a great wine at a discount even if they can’t conspicuously display the lofty label of the producer to their friends. The key here is the consumer has to look beyond the label and use their knowledge of wine to evaluate what is actually in the glass, i.e, trust your nose and your palate.

I discovered the 2017 Kalinda Russian River Chardonnay recently. It’s on offer with KL wines. According to the staff, “This parcel was initially headed to an overseas market before 2020 happened...and now we're simply the lucky benefactors thanks to our long relationship with the winery”. I’ve tried numerous wine under the KL wine house label and been happy with the results so it was easy for me to pull the trigger on this bottling. If you are a lover of $40 to $60 Russian River Valley Chardonnay but would prefer to pay $30 here’s your chance to secure a Cadillac Chardonnay in Chevy Vega clothing. Aromatics of stone fruit and citrus complement the spice, lightly toasted nuts and caramel notes. Medium bodied and seamless from the attack to the finish displaying a richness and elegance that one only gets with wines that have spent time in expensive French oak and were subjected to labor intensive battonage. Serve this Chardonnay to your friends that enjoy drinking high quality wines instead of labels. If one had the ability to slap a Dehlinger, Ramey or Rochioli label onto this bottle, no informed RRV Chardonnay drinker would consider questioning its provenance. That’s how well crafted it is. This is a non disclosure wine you don’t want to miss. Cheers!

John Fox notorious for running a wine Ponzi Scheme out of his Berkeley, California retail store has been released from federal custody two years earlier than scheduled. One of the conditions of his release is that he make $45 million in restitution to those he swindled. I’d hate to be an unwilling creditor on that list.

One of the unlikely consequences of the pandemic and the wine glut is that the price of wine is going down and the quality of the wine at lower price points is going up. We sight several examples in this podcast. Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Our wine recommendation this week is the 2018 Cantina Kurtatsch Vernatsch Alte Reben. Cantina Kurtatsch is a co-operative that is located in north-eastern Italy, in the region of Alto Adige that borders Austria to the north. The area is more known for its white wines, where 62% of the wine produced is white vs 38% red. The ubiquitous Schiava, Vernatsch in German is the most cultivated red grape in the area followed closely by Pinot Noir and Lagrein. The Kurtatsch co-operative like most co-ops in northern Italy is not well known in the U.S. We are starting to see more whites wines from Alto Adige but I suspect most of the good Schiava from the area never leaves Europe. One can hardly blame importers from looking askance at Schiava based red wines with their low alcohol and light bodied profiles; not unlike a lean unoaked Pinot Noir, Schiava is not what the American consumer is buying in todays markets.

So why am I recommending the Sonntaler (sunny valley) Schiava? Often when I’m looking at a bottle of wine I’m unfamiliar with I spin it around and look for the name of the importer on the back label. In this case the importer was North Berkeley Imports, a favorite of mine, so I felt comfortable in making the purchase. Being familiar with Vernatsch/ Schiava wines I wasn’t disappointed. With spring weather coming on I was looking for a less heavy red wine and the Sonntaler (12.5 % abv) fitted the bill. The 100% old vine Schiava grapes are hand harvested and fermented in stainless steel tanks. The wine then spends six months in 2,376 gallon neutral Slavonian oak casks. The Sonntaler has a light ruby color that is translucent on the edges. On appearance alone it could easily be mistaken for a Cerasuolo, a deeply hued rosé wine from central Italy. The Sonntaler is fragrant and approachable. Cranberry and strawberry on the nose are in concert with its lean lightly spiced red fruit profile. Light bodied yet flavorful I enjoyed the tongue tingling minerality on the finish. If you’re in the mood for an change and you want to expand your wine palate I highly recommend you pick up a bottle of Sonntaler. For now this may be the best way for us to take a trip to the Alpine meadows of Northern Italy.

Who comes out on top in this deal? For now primarily the grape growers who no longer have to deal with the uncertainty of who will be buying their grapes. As the details of the mega-deal were being worked out many farmers have been in limbo. What will this deal mean for wine lovers? It’s certainly promising on this front as E. J. Gallo has a history of improving the wine operations they acquire. Look no further than the wonderful work they’ve done at Louis M. Martini, Pahlmeyer Winery, J Vineyards and Winery and MacMurray Estate Vineyards. Once Gallo integrates the newly acquired brands into their operations the consumer will likely benefit as Gallo is so much better at running a wine business than Constellation. Better quality wine at the $11 and under price point is a win for the consumer. Having not had any of the following brands for years as they have become so banal I’m looking forward to the prospect of Gallo reviving and improving the quality of the future offerings at Ravenswood, Blackstone and Clos du Bois.

E. J. Gallo is a private company that now represents almost 30% of all bottles of wine produced in the U.S. Not bad for a couple of brothers that switched from growing grapes to squishing them to make wine in 1933. One could easily make the argument that Gallo is too big and controls too much of the U.S. market. After all it took almost two years for them to get approval from federal regulators. That a lot of sifting through the fine print to ensure consumers don’t get hosed on the deal. Based on current market conditions I’d speculate that we can expect more consolidation in the coming years in the wine industry. A post pandemic euphoria will undoubtedly lift revenues for travel, hospitality, retailers and restaurants, but the relief may not come quickly enough for some winemakers. Gallo will almost certainly be a player in future acquisitions.

Kwame Onwuachi and Alice Waters pen a nice piece for The Washington Post theorizing that once president elect Joe Biden is sworn in he can take immediate steps to save mom and pop American restauranteurs by taking executive action. Oh if it were that easy.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Our wine recommendations this week are Bellavista Alma Gran Cuvée Franciacorta. The region of Franciacorta is roughly 50 miles east of Milano in northern Italy.A blend of 77% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Nero and 1% Pinot Bianco. Bright and zesty apple and lemon flavors on a full bodied frame. A real crowd pleaser. You can wow your friends with this one as they remark “Hey this is great Champagne”. Then you can gently remind them, it’s not Champagne it’s Franciacorta. $23 Buy it here.

Domaine Allimant-Laugner Crémant D’Alsace Brut Rosé - 100% Pinot Noir this sparkling wine has a beautiful light salmon color. Clean and crisp red fruits on the nose. Strawberries and cranberries with good depth of flavor on the palate. $16 Buy it here.

Marcel Cabelier Cremant Du Jura - This wine hails from Jura France a region sandwiched between the Burgundy wine region and the Swiss border. It’s 90% Chardonnay, the remainder Pinot Noir and Poulsard. A light straw yellow color in the glass, the green apple and biscuit aromas and flavors could easily fool you into thinking it’s Champagne. This is our new house bubbly. Why spend all your money on a luxury Champagne brand when you can get this level of quality and complexity for a third of the cost? $20 Buy it here.

2018 La Bastide Saint Dominique Cotes du Rhone Villages - 50% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 15% Mourvèdre 15% Carignan. Fermented and aged in stainless steel the nose is quite shy on first impression. Decant it and leave it alone for an hour and you will be welcomed to a wonderful black and blue fruit nose. It’s full bodied with a good punch and spiciness on the palate. A nice mid length savory finish. La Bastide wines age extremely well so you can lose a few of these in storage and not have to worry. $17 Buy it here.

2018 Crous St. Martin Les Espaliers Gigondas - 80% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre. This relatively new label is a collaboration between wine agent Harry Bosmans and wine grower Eric Bonnet of Domaine Bastide Saint Dominique. A deep ruby color in the glass the nose shows deep red fruit and spice. On the palate it’s refreshing, savory and beautifully balanced. A wonderful new discovery. $25 Buy it here.

2017 Juan Gil Monastrell Silver Label - Crafted from 100% Monastrell from the region of Jumilla in southeastern Spain. The 40 year old Monastrell vines are dry farmed on limestone soils. The wine is aged for 12 months in French oak barrels. Deep black and purple in the glass, aromas of blackberries, blueberries, black cherries, licorice and sweet oak accompany a mineral rich and concentrated palate. It’s full bodied with just enough acidity to ward off a slightly sweet sensation on the finish. Ages ago I consumed a lot of this wine and it’s exactly as I remembered it. I’m glad I ‘ve rediscovered it again. $15 Buy it here.

2015 Blue Gray Priorat - 50% Garnacha, 30% Mazuelo (Carignane), 25% Cabernet Sauvignon. Another Label from the Gil Family Estates this wine is packed with juicy black fruit and savory spice. It’s rich and concentrated but not jammy. Very approachable, its balance and well integrated tannins have made it our house red. $18 Buy it here.

The third Thursday of November has been known as Beaujolais Nouveau Day since 1951. While the novelty of Beaujolais Nouveau Day has faded of recent I thought I’d check in on Duboeuf’s latest 2020 vintage release; partly out of curiosity, but mainly in deference to Georges Duboeuf the legendary Beaujolais winemaker and négociant who passed away last January at the age of 86. Duboeuf was a master marketer and he is credited with turning what was a local event in France into one that is now celebrated worldwide. The company is now run by Duboeuf’s son and grandson, Franck and Adrien.

Franck Duboeuf started harvesting the Gamay grapes for his Beaujolais on August 18. That’s roughly 90 days from grapes to your dining room table. The Gamay grape is a cross between Pinot Noir and Gouais Blanc. The process the grapes undergo when they enter the winery is carbonic maceration and it’s this process that allows the wine to make it to market so quickly. Beaujolais Nouveau wines are for early consumption typically within 9 months of release. It’s important to note that not all Beaujolais wines are the same. There are specific areas within the Beaujolais region that produce fuller bodied and more serious bottlings.

Long known for their colorful wine labels Duboeuf Beaujolais Nouveau is a wine that’s all about celebrating the new wine vintage. Let’s face it there hasn’t been much to celebrate about this year so I was hoping the Duboeuf Beaujolais -Villages Nouveau would lift our spirits. It turns out Beaujolais Nouveau is much better than I remember. I’m a fan anew.

Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau has a medium ruby color that runs clear to the edge. The aromas are of ripe red cherries, raspberries, banana and bubble gum. I drank it with a slight chill as one should and the juicy red fruit, light tannins and vibrant acidity were refreshing. We drank half of a bottle and had the other half the next day with dinner. My wife really enjoyed the wine and gave props to it days later as I had a bottle in front of me while I was writing. Note to self, buy some more. This could be our house wine for the holidays.

I’m still baffled by the pricing. With the pandemic and 25 % tariffs on French wines under 14% alcohol (it’s 13.5 abv), how this wine makes it to U. S retailer shelves at $13 is simply amazing. If you’re looking for a good, fun and easy glass of red wine for your holiday table I highly recommend Georges Duboeuf Beaujolais-Villages Nouveau. Cheers!

Convicted wine counterfeiter Rudy Kurniawan has finished serving his federal prison sentence and is now in the custody of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Where he will end up is anybody’s guess. I appears Rudy may be just as difficult to keep track of as the bogus collectible wines he forged in the past.

Jeff Siegel who writes the wine blog the Wine Curmudgeon pens a nice piece on how we have grown to accept expensive wine. How much is too much to pay for a bottle of wine that you plan to consume?

Alpana Singh, a master sommelier in the U.S. has resigned her title. Esther Mobley interviews Alpana who reveals her decades long experience as a woman of color within the Court of Master Sommeliers.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Franzia is selling a backpack that holds an entire box of wine. As it turns out their apparel site has a bunch of other swag you can purchase as well.

If wildfires and air quality indexes in the very unhealthy to hazardous zone for over three weeks weren’t enough, triple digit heat was recorded for several days in many grape growing regions of California. The specter of smoke taint is something that has most in the industry adopting a wait and see attitude. Mike Pomranz pens a piece for Food & Wine looking into the complexities of dealing with smoke taint as a grape grower or a winemaker.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Our wine recommendation this week is the 2016 Newton Napa Valley Unfiltered Chardonnay. Most of the grapes for this Chardonnay were sourced from the Carneros region of Napa, due southeast of the city of Napa bordering the San Pablo Bay. A small percentage of the grapes are sourced from up valley in the Rutherford area. Using indigenous yeast the Chardonnay is 100% barrel fermented. After fermentation the wine was transferred to French oak barrels 24% which were new. The wine was aged for one year and received bâtonnage as needed. After barrel ageing the wine was allowed to settle in tanks and then it was bottled unfiltered. This wine strikes a nice balance between the California oak bombs of yesteryear and no oak Chardonnays that are more in fashion today. This is Alberto Bianchi, who hails from Milan, first vintage at Newton and he has crafted a remarkably sophisticated, powerful and complex Chardonnay. The color is light straw. Green apples, pear and oak aromas are reconfirmed on the firm and juicy palate. The wine has good depth and roundness at this stage. This is a wine to drink now or you could cellar it for several years to allow it gain some bottle complexity. 14 % abv $35 - $40 Buy it here.

Cameron Diaz and Katherine Power have entered the celebrity wine business. Their wine brand Avaline, is entering a crowded market place. Years of consolidation by alcohol producers and wholesalers, uncertainty due to an ongoing trade war and now a pandemic makes one consider their market timing. However the ladies may be filling a void by marketing their product as a “clean wine”.

Danny Meyer has hit the play button and is rehiring staff and slowly reopening his restaurants. The challenges of the pandemic have caused him to re-examine his policies on tipping though. With over 20,000 restaurants currently out of business in the U.S. Danny has plans to survive the fallout and still bring about equity within the ranks of the restaurant business.

Dan Berger pens a nice article on the drawbacks of vintage charts. When I first started learning about wine I always carried a vintage chart in my wallet. How about you? Do vintage charts help you make buying decisions on wine?

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Our wine recommendation this week is the 2015 Domaine de Compostelle. Domaine de Compostelle is the second wine for Chateau La Cabanne. The estate in the past has had a reputation of under-performing considering its neighbors are Chateau Clinet and Chateau Trontanoy. In 2010 a big fire destroyed most of the vat room and all of the 2008 vintage. This allowed the owners the Estager family to outfit the Chateau with state of the art equipment, vats and cooperage. Things appear to be on the upswing as the 2015 Compostelle is a wonderful wine. The blend is 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc. After fermentation the wine is aged for fourteen months in 50% new french oak barrels while the balance is aged in second and third use barrels.

Drinking extremely well right now Compostelle is medium to full bodied. The nose shows violets, red berries, currants and plums with a touch of earthiness. On the palate its fresh and crisp displaying an all too pleasing touch of cocoa covered cherries. It’s young but the tannins are already well integrated. Good Pomerol is never cheap, there’s just not enough of it to go around. Here you have a Pomerol from a good vintage, that’s still available at a fair price. $40 alc 14.5 Buy it here.

California winemaker Bill Foley has just purchased Ferrari-Carano Winery in Sonoma County. The deal includes two winemaking facilities and 3000 acres of land. It’s nice to see the operation go to a Sonoma County wine family instead of a big hulking beverage corporation.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

If you own a winery how do you protect your staff and your customers against coronavirus? Michael Alberty pens a piece for The Oregonian that explains how Willamette Valley Vineyards is planning to tackle the virus.

What is corked wine? How do you recognize it and what’s the process to follow if you discover you have a bottle of wine that is corked?

Eric Asimov writes a piece for the New York Times surveying how wineries faced with marketing disruptions are seeking new innovative ways to keep the cash flowing.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

We have two wine recommendations this week. The first is a rare white wine from the DOC Colli Tortonesi (the hills of Tortona). Tortona is a commune of south-east Piedmont,  in the Province of Alessandria in north-western Italy. Piedmonte is most noteworthy for it’s noble reds Barolo and Barbaresco. The white wines of Asti (Asti Spumante) and Gavi have their avid followers too. The 2017 Derthona Timorasso is produced by Boveri Luigi. The Azienda Agricola (farm) is owned by Luigi and Germana Boveri. Originally focused on grain production the family embraced viticulture in the mid nineties and now are solely focused on winemaking.

The rare white wine they make from the Timorasso grape has been recently rediscovered. The man responsible for the rediscovery is Walter Massa. After World War II, native varietal wines like Timorasso were overshadowed and forgotten as winemakers rushed to produce simple, uniform, high profit wines. Massa was discovered by the wine cognoscenti in 2000 and received much praise for a barrique- aged Barbera he had made. Wine writers happened upon some of the small lots of Timorasso that Walter was experimenting with and began spreading the word of the quality of those wines too. Neighboring growers took notice of Massa’s success with Timorasso and followed his lead. Even though Timorasso has been redeemed, today the area planted to the thick-skinned variety covers just 175 acres, hence its rarity.

Derthona is the latin name for the city of Tortona. Boveri’s Derthona Timorasso is planted on the hills of Costa Vescovato, composed of 70% clay limestone and 30% marly limestone. The grapes are hand harvested and once they are crushed they are allowed to macerate for 48 to 60 hours on the skins. Luigi does this to add more depth and texture to the wine. The maceration and soft pressing is followed by a native yeast fermentation and the 100% Timorasso wine is held on the lees in stainless steel tanks for one year. Periodically throughout the year the wine receives battonage. After bottling the wine is held for one year before release.

Following 2016, the 2017 grape growing season faced a difficult start as early frost cut yields throughout the region of Piedmont. Drought conditions were present and a heatwave near the end of the ripening cycle made for a chaotic harvest. Luigi’s Derthona is bright straw yellow in color with tinges of green. Aromas of white peach, grapefruit, meyer lemon and white flowers greet you on the nose. If I had to use one word for the mouth feel I’d say savory. This wine is full bodied at 14% alcohol so it packs a punch. Intense and focused with white peach, beeswax and mineral notes the wine has good depth and richness. Drink now, but know that Timorasso can age well too so you don’t have to worry about losing one in your wine stash. The 2017 is showing well now, but I’m betting it will improve over the next two to four years and beyond. $19 buy it here.

Our second recommendation is the Darby Winery 2014 Dark Side Syrah. Darby English started making wine in a basement in 2002. A Seattle native he attended Oregon State University on a golf scholarship. Lucky for us he switched from golfing to winemaking. Darby’s first commercial release was in 2005. Today he produces 4,000 cases of Bordeaux Blends, Rhone Varietal and single vineyard wines. These are small production wines, typically 400 or less cases for each bottling. Darby sources his grapes for the Dark Side Syrah from the Columbia Valley. Columbia Valley is Washington’s largest viticultural region with 50,000 acres of planted vineyards. It contains 99% of the grapes grown in the state. Darby buys grapes from Dineen Vineyard in lower Yakima Valley, Discovery Vineyard in Horse Heaven Hills, and Stone Tree in the Wahluke Slope, all sub-regions of the Columbia Valley. After harvesting the grapes are trucked over the Cascade Mountain Range to the winery in Woodinville. The wine is aged for 18 months in  600 liter neutral French oak puncheons.

In the glass the color is medium ruby. The nose exhibits black and blue fruit, black pepper, licorice and a hint of grilled meat. The wine has an incredible balance of acids and tannins. On the palate loads of black fruit, spice and a velvety finish. 14.7%alc I don’t believe the 2014 Dark Side is available anymore as the new vintage on the website shows the 2017 at $28 a bottle. Buy it here.

Cancelled events, business losses and layoffs are starting to impact the wine business as Bill Swindell points out in an article for the Press Democrat.

There is nothing worse for a food and wine lover than to experience a partial or complete lose of their sense of smell. Shawn Zylberberg explains how a loss of sense of smell may be a symptom of COVID-19 infection.

Bill and I did a virtual contrast and compare of two Oregon wine producers Elouan and Illahe and I threw in a ringer from Sonoma Coast, W. H. Smith Pinot Noir.

Jeremy Parzen, a wine industry professional and wine blogger has been posting letters he gets from his colleagues and friends in Italy. His latest post is a letter from Giancarlo Gariglio, editor-in-chief of the Slow Wine Guide to the Wines of Italy, Slovenia, California, and Oregon.  We interviewed Giancarlo last February. Here’s the link to that post.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Craig Camp General Manager at Troon Vineyards in Oregon’s Applegate Valley really knows his way around a winery and his recent post titled 'Wine Kaleidoscope’ is a quick look into the marketing vs reality scene in today’s winemaking world. Craig says, “the wine for the people revolution is happening now”. In this article he offers several ways to avoid the industrial, mass marketed wines and to identify wine of the people.

The underwriters at Lloyds of London, the insurers of Cayuse Vineyards have sued Lafitte Cork and Capsule for allegedly selling defective corks. The damage claim is in excess of 3.5 million.

Bill and I have a good time poking fun at the wine fraud ring that was uncovered in Northern Italy in the Oltrepò Pavese region. Too bad this isn’t the first time for this type of shenanigans. Top managers and winemakers at several cooperatives worked in concert to perpetrate the fraud.

Peter Johnson reports on an unfortunate incident between Paso Robles winemaker Tobin James Shumrick and his unstable neighbor. The situation got out of hand and now the winemaker faces some serious charges.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

I’m excited about the new reverse microwave technology that can chill a bottle of wine to the proper serving temperature in three minutes, however Bill does not see its merits.

If I had ten dollars for every article I’ve read over the past few weeks on the proposed 100% tariffs on all European Union wines I could take my wife out to a very exclusive dinner in San Francisco and afford to tip big. Translation, the topic of additional tariffs has dominated the wine news. It’s amazing how much hysteria can be whipped up over a proposal. To be sure this proposal and its projected disastrous consequences are being taken very seriously by most that are in the alcohol business on both sides of the Atlantic, but I think there has been a collective yawn from the average consumer. Alfonso Cevola writes one of the better pieces I’ve read on the subject of Tariffs. Jeremy Parzen and Mitch Frank also weigh in on the issue of the doubling of wine prices at the retail level.

We finish the podcast with some local news. All that and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek.

Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

We have three wine recommendations this week. First up is the 2017 Pico Maccario Lavignone Barbera D’Asti. I discovered this wine at last years Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri wine tasting in San Francisco. This brand was started by the brothers Pico and Vitaliano Maccario in 1997. The Maccario’s are Barbera specialist. Their operation is in the northwest region of Piedmonte, Italy, near the village of Mombaruzzo, an hours drive southeast of Asti in the middle of the Barbera d’Asti DOCG. The region of Piedmonte is bordered by Switzerland to the north, France to the west, Italy’s Lombardia region to the east and the region of Liguria is its southern border. Lavignone is 100% Barbera and is vinified and aged completely in stainless steel. A number of super premium Barbera producers, La Spinetta, Renato Ratti and Vietti come to mind, have made Barbera very chic by decreasing yields in the vineyards and ageing it in small french oak barrels. If you want to discover Barbera minus the lathering of oak, Lavignone is a prime example. On the nose you’ll notice aromas of purple flowers, violets and red cherries. While on the palate there are rich red and black cherry flavors. Barbera is naturally high in acids and lighter in the tannin department hence the temptation to put it in oak to beef its body up a bit. Lavignone’s tannins are soft and well integrated and the acidity gives this medium bodied wine good length and a savory finish. It’s an excellent value at $13 to $15 a bottle and it should be easy to find as they produce over 29,000 cases. 13.5% alc Buy it here.

Parducci’s 2016 True Grit Reserve Petite Sirah is all Mendocino County fruit. It’s 100% estate grown, 100% Petite Sirah that is aged in a combination of American and French oak. Parducci was established in 1933 following the end of prohibition. Although the Parducci family no longer owns the winery it’s still a family run operation, now being operated by the Thornhill clan.

The wine has a deep blackish ruby color, with aromas of black fruit and spice. Petite Sirah can be a very aggressive wine and this version of True Grit (the John Wayne of wines) doesn’t disappoint . On the palate black fruit, vanilla, pepper spice, hints of smoke and chalky tannins. It’s full bodied with a long finish. This is a wine to buy now at a great price, drink a few and save as many as you can to drink five years from now. Although they don’t brag about it on the label the wine is vegan which means there was no monkeying around during the winemaking process. I found this bottling at Costco and when I went back a week later it was all gone. The good wines alway go fast. 14.5 abv Buy it here.

2016 Domaine Beau Mistral Rasteau is a blend of 60% Grenache, 30%Mourvedre and 10% Syrah. Jean-Marc Brun started making wine in 1987 in a winery he rented in the center of the village of Rasteau. Twelve years later he went all in and built his own winery. The village of Rasteau is located in the southeastern region of Frances Rhone Valley. Domaine Beau Mistral covers 70 acres composed of mainly older plots on rocky hillsides. The grapes are hand harvested and punch downs are done manually and by mechanical means. The wines are aged 90% in tank and the rest in barrel. Red raspberry and kirsch aromas with a hint of herbs. The palate displays juicy red fruit, licorice and is direct and thoroughly enjoyable. The tannins are soft, and the wine has ample acidity with an elegant finish. 14% alc $15 Buy it here.

Restaurateurs in Sonoma County are struggling with business interruptions from planned power shutoffs and the recent fires. Many are absorbing the losses while other restaurant owners have elected to close. Heather Irwin of Sonoma Magazine writes a piece that explores how business owner are facing the realities of the PG& E public safety power shutdowns.

E.J. Gallo has just purchased Pahlmeyer, a high end Napa Valley Wine Brand. W. Blake Gray gives us some details about the buyout.

West coast grape growers are in the middle of a grape glut. The glut is putting a lot of pressure on wineries and growers and is forcing many to make some tough decisions. The pain that those businesses are experiencing is translating into some very good bargains for wine consumers.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

We have four holiday wine recommendations this week. First up is a 2016 Chianti Classico from Tenuta di Bibbiano from the commune of Castellina in Chianti. Bibbiano is managed by Tommaso and Federico Marrocchesi Marzi, the fifth generation of a family that has owned the property since 1865. 100% Sangiovese the organically farmed grapes are hand harvested and fermented in stainless steel for about two weeks. After the wine is racked and pressed it spends one year in traditional concrete vats. This is a wonderfully enjoyable, fruity Chianti. The nose show loads of rich red cherry, earth, spice and garrique. On the palate more of that very distinctive savory-sweet, red fruit with delightful balance and it’s strikingly drinkable. I tasted the bottle over four nights using no nitrogen to preserve it. All I did was pour a glass each night cork the bottle and put it back in the fridge. It wasn’t until the third night that it started showing signs of getting a bit tired. This Chianti would easily compliment a variety of dishes on your holiday dinner table. 5,800 cs, 14.5 abv $18 Buy it here.

Trentadue’s Old Patch Red is a perennial favorite of mine. Trentadue is the Italian word for thiry-two. Leo Trentadue moved his family from a Santa Clara ranch where they farmed cherries and apricots in 1959, to Geyserville in the heart of Alexander Valley. He bought a 208 acre ranch that was planted mostly with plum trees, but there were also 60 acres of grape vines. Leo never pulled those vines up, he just planted more grapes. A decade later Leo sold 20 acres of his ranch to Pillsbury, a food company looking to get into the wine business. Through many boom and bust cycles that Pillsbury winery (formerly Chateau Souverain) is now in the capable of hands of Francis Ford Coppola. A wide variety of wines are made at Trentadue and the Old Patch Red (OPR) as the newly redesigned label signifies is their entry level red. The 2016 version of OPR wine has a newer fresher style to it. It doesn’t have the same grit and rough around the edges profile of past years. The winemaker Miro Tcholakov loves working with Zinfandel and Petite Sirah and the OPR shows he knows what he’s doing. 67% Zinfandel, 25% Petite Sirah, 5% Carignane, 3% Syrah the wine spends 9 months in 15% new oak. It has a deep ruby color, with a black cherry-cola nose, with loads of vanilla, oak and spice. On the palate it exhibits juicy black and red fruit. It’s sappy and slightly sweet and polished and finishes long with some nice spice as well. It’s sealed with a screw cap so it’s meant to drink now, but you don’t need to worry if you lose a few bottle in your wine stash because this one has some staying power. 5,972 cs, 14.5 abv $14 Buy it here.

Cellar Cal Pla 2016 Black Slate is a wine from the village of Porrera in the winemaking area of Priorat and is situated roughly an hour and 45 minutes southwest of Barcelona in north-eastern Spain. The importer is Eric Solomon who imports wine predominantly from France and the Iberian Peninsula. If you’ve listened to any of our podcasts you’ve probably heard me talking about the importance of finding an importer whose wines align with your taste and trying other wines that they import. I’ve learned that Eric Solomon Selections is an importer you can count on to bring in uncommon wines from unique places.

Priorat is a wine region that was rediscovered in the early 1990s and one could make an argument that Eric helped bring the region its new acclaim. The regions stony soils are covered with black slate, called llicorella locally. Its steep terraced hillsides make it nearly impossible to farm mechanically. So here’s the formula. Organic farming, old vines 15 to 80 years of age, meager yields, steeply terraced vineyards that are hand farmed and harvested. Add to that a wine that is comprised of 50% Garnacha (Grenache), 40% Carinena (Carignan) and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, fermented in steel and concrete using natural yeast and matured for a year in 3 to 7 year old French and Hungarian oak barrels and you have a stunning example of a wine that exemplifies place over technique. The nose shows beautiful black and blue fruit, crushed rocks, spice and tar. On the palate black fruit, smoke and an earthy minerality. It’s full bodied and the acids and tannins are in perfect focus. The finish is deep and savory. It drinks really well as soon as you pop the cork but do yourself a favor and set aside a glass when you open a bottle and come back to it a few hours later. You’ll be glad you did. A remarkable value at $18 a bottle. 2916cs, 15% abv Buy it here.

The 2015 By Clinet Pomerol is a special bottling by the Clinet Wine Group. This wine was created for near term drinking while you’re waiting for your $125 bottles of Chateau Clinet to mature. I try not to recommend wines that are difficult to find. By Clinet Pomerol will be hard to find in the U. S. although it can be found in European markets. About 10 to 30 percent of the Gran Vin Chateau Clinet goes into this wine and the rest of the blend is sourced from neighboring Pomerol properties. The average age of the vines is 42 years and the blend is 88% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon. Black cherries, plums and licorice on the nose, in the mouth silky lush red fruit. The tannins are refined and the acidity gives the wine a nice lift all the while the fruit is ripe and sweet. Once I tried this wine I was immediately disappointed that I had only purchased four bottles. An incredible value at $45 almost a third of the price of Chateau Clinet.

We’ve suspected that litigation of this sort was on the horizon and now we have two sizable California vintners suing several insurance companies. The vintners claim that the insurers have failed to reimburse them for smoke taint damages as a result of the wildfires in October 2017 in Northern California. Lewis Perdue of Wine Industry Insight scooped this story that we will be following closely.

Mel Christopher, a top PG&E gas executive is no longer with the company. J. D. Morris of the Press Democrat provides the details.

PG&E wants to use a portion of Terry Gard’s vineyard property in Calistoga for a liquid natural gas plant claiming eminent domain and Mr. Gard is having no part of it. They are both headed to court. I guess you could say PG&E has made him and offer he can refuse, at least for now. Cynthia Sweeney of The Weekly Calistogan penned the story.

The Trump administration is adding more fuel to the tariff wars, this time targeting France, Germany and Spain. We’ll have to wait to see if those countries retaliate with their own tariffs on American goods. Meanwhile, get ready for wine and food products from the European Union to climb upward. W. Blake Gray explores a possible way for Bordeaux winemakers to bypass the additional tax. It’s clever but will it change the way Bordeaux wine are perceived?

Eric Asimov of the New York Times writes his first of a four part series exploring the impact climate change is having on modern viticulture.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

There are too many wine grapes in California or we all need to step up our game and consume more vino. Unfortunately all the data shows that we’re drinking better wine but less of it. Bill Swindell asks some local growers how they are handling the grape glut.

Cameron Hughes expresses concern about the current wine glut. He sites declining demand, climate change, negative health messaging and cannabis all as contributors to the wine industries woes.

The California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control is trying to add another layer of bureaucracy for those trying to own businesses or that want to work in a business that sells alcohol. W. Blake Gray breaks the story and a law firm for the alcoholic beverage, hospitality and cannabis industries provide some juicy details. We’re still scratching our heads trying to understand how this story has gotten next to no traction thus far.

If you’re a believer in climate change, after reading this article by Alison Hird you’ll agree that farmers in Southern France need to find a way to deal with the increasingly more severe and unpredictable weather patterns. This year the last week of June brought with it a disastrous heatwave that caused some growers to lose half of their grape crop for the year.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

The wine of the week is the 2015 La Valentina Spelt Montepulciano D’Abruzzo. La Valentina was founded in 1990 in Spoltore a village in the hills of Pescara on the central Adriatic Coast. The estate consist of 99 acres and produces 30,000 cases. The winery is owned by Sabatino, Roberto and Andrea Di Properzio who pride themselves on their devotion to environmentally friendly agriculture. They have been farming organically for several years, but the wines are not certified organic. Spelt is a vegan wine.

The name Spelt is in reference to a species of wheat that has been cultivated in Europe since medieval times. Spelt was once grown where the winery and the village of Spoltore are located. Not that common anymore spelt products are more likely to be found in a heath food store or an artisan bakery.

The vineyard soils are medium clay at 500 to 1,100 foot elevation and are farmed in the traditional Pergola Abruzzese and the Guyot method. After fermentation the wine is aged in barriques and larger barrels (40%) and 60% is aged in 2,500 liter Slavonian oak casks. Spelt spends another year in the bottle before it is released.

Deep ruby color, the nose is shy, completely shut down at the moment. On the palate dark mulberry, and black plum flavors with nicely integrated oak. Medium bodied it has delicious fruit, firm tannins and impressive texture. Lovely freshness and tanginess on the finish. I believe this bottle needs more time in the bottle to develop to its full potential. It would be an excellent candidate for medium term cellaring (2-6 years). 13.5 abv $18 - $22 4,583 cases

W. Blake Gray asks, "What's the point in fining a multi-billionaire winery owner when he ignores the rules"? Bill and  I have a good discussion about Gray's premise, that maybe the best way to thwart eco-vandals is to not give them publicity by reviewing their wines.

One of Amazon's faux liquor stores in Southern California has been receiving more publicity than the founder Jeff Bezos probably wanted. W. Blake Gray stirs up quite a controversy with some good investigative journalism. Amazons' cleaned up their act but will it be enough to avoid punishment by the California ABC that has recently launched an investigation into their operations.

Blue wine? Turns out it may be fake after all. Corsican official have launched an investigation into the company responsible for this oddity. Grab some bottles of blue wine now, as I'm predicting they will be collector's items in the near future.

Bill and I discuss these items and more in this week's addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Jillian Kramer writes a post about What Happens To Your Body When You Quit Drinking. We have a good discussion about all the good things that happen when one abstains from alcohol. Even bartenders in the bay area are getting in the act via the Pin Project.

Adding a little air to your wine helps the wine show itself in its best light. Aromas and flavors are enhanced when a wine gets the proper amount of air. Marshall Tilden lll asks, Aerator vs Decanter: Which is Better?

Another Napa Winery finds itself wrangling with their insurance company. The key issue being the insurance companies denial of the wineries claim for smoke taint damage to 1,075 gallons of Merlot. According to the lawsuit, the insurance company claim denials are about to cause financial ruin to the winery.

The Tennessee Wine and Spirits Retailers Association’s tight grip on alcohol commerce has recently been relaxed by the U.S. Supreme Court. The two retailers in the case, Kimbrough Fine Wine and Spirits and Total Wine & More can now begin serving customers in the Tennessee marketplace. Good news on one front, however the Supreme Court’s decision opens the door to many new court battles in the future. Emma Balter goes into the details of the Court’s ruling.

The fifth largest brewing company in the world, Molson Coors Brewing, is giving its UK staff an additional two weeks of paid leave. It’s called ‘Life Leave’ and the 2000 people that Molson Coors employs in the UK just got a bit more excited about going to work.

Julia Moskin reports on the recent store closings of the luxury food chain Dean and DeLuca. The companies debt problems are also causing financial problems for many of the small purveyors that supply the stores with their fancy food items, some whom report they haven’t been paid for months. One supplier successfully sued Dean and DeLuca for 86,000, but had to settle for 50 cents on the dollar.

Bill and I discuss these topics and many more in this weeks addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

The wine of the week is the 2015 Tenuta Di Arceno Chianti Classico. Just like last weeks wine Alanera by Zenato I discovered the wines of Tenuta Di Arceno at the Gambero Rosso tasting last spring. I was blown away by the quality of the three wines they presented that day. Two of the wines Arcanum and Valadorna IGT Super Tuscans were especially noteworthy, approachable now, full of energy, rich in structure and built for extended ageing too. Bordeaux styled blends the Arcanum is predominately Cabernet Franc while the Valadorna leads with Merlot. Both of these wines are in the high roller $80 and up club, so these are really only splurge wines for us regular folks. Despite their high price point they represent very good value in the Super Tuscan arena. The bread and butter wines of Tenuta Di Arceno are the three Chianti Classico wine they produce. Those are a base Chianti Classico, a Chianti Classico Riserva and single vineyard Chianti Classico they call Stada al Sasso.

Tenuta Di Arceno has been owned by Jackson Family Wines since 1994. Located in the southeast region of the Chianti Classico region, within the commune of Castelnuovo Berardenga, the estate consist of 2500 acres. of which less than 10% are devoted to vines. Lawrence Cronin the winemaker has been crafting the wines of Arceno since 2002. He worked at Edmeades Winery in Anderson, Valley California another Jackson Family owned property prior to coming on board at Arceno. Cronin works in concert with Master Winemaker Pierre Seillan who also oversees the winemaking at properties in Bordeaux and California.

The wine is composed of 85% Sangiovese and 15% Merlot and after fermentation spends 10 months in French oak. In the glass it shows a medium ruby color. The nose offers aromas of black cherries, violets and forest floor. On the palate it’s medium bodied, with crisp juicy red fruit, supple tannins and a medium length finish. The only distraction from the lip smacking red fruit flavors are the slightly drying tannins on the finish. The wine shows its best after a 30 minute decant. 14.5 abv $14 - $17

Washington Post columnist Dave McIntyre takes a look at how winemakers are streamlining their use of energy, water and reducing their carbon footprint. The article focuses mainly on family owned wineries that are leading the way in reducing the impact their operations have on the environment. Will the big hulking corporate wine concerns follow suit?

Stephanie Cain wonders which package is more sustainable canned or bottled wine? Bill and I didn’t come up with a clear cut answer. What do you think?

Natalie Wang reports on Chateau Lafite’s launch of it’s own Chinese wine. The wine named Long Dai which means chiselled mountain is the product of a decade long project. No doubt this wine initially will be the target of well heeled conspicuous consumers.

Bill and I discuss these topics and many more in this weeks addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

The wine of the week is the 2015 Zenato Alanera Rosso Veronese IGT. I discovered this wine at the Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri tasting held in San Francisco last March. I tasted it alongside Zenato’s 2015 Amarone della Valpolicella Classico, a powerful and well balance Amarone. Zenato is a large family owned wine company based in Peschiera del Garda, on the southern shores of Lake Garda in northern Italy. Their annual production volume is around 167,000 cases. That’s a big operation by Italian standards. I’m very familiar with the Zenato lineup; their Ripassa, a beefed up Valpolicella is extremely addictive. Zenato’s wines have a modern bent to them, though they hold true to their roots and are widely available in the marketplace. Alanera means black wings in reference to the Raven and the Corvina grape which makes up 55% of the blend. 25% Rondinella, 10% Corvinone and 5% each of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot round out the blend. Half of the grapes are partially dried for 45 to 60 days. After fermentation the wine spend twelve months in 300-500L French Tonneaux and 100-150HL tanks. The oak barrels are of 2nd and 3rd use. The wine spends three months in the bottle before release. This is a “Ripasso” styled wine but it has the IGT designation because the dried and fresh grapes are used to make the wine versus adding the finished Valpolicella wine to the left over lees of an Amarone vat. It’s the process not the ingredients that make the distinction. Here’s a little background on why the IGT designation was invented. Elegance, richness, beautiful balance and an incredible price point make this wine a no brainer case buy. The wine has a medium ruby color, with aromas of fresh and dried red cherries, licorice, cocoa, oak, raisins and a touch of coffee. On the palate it’s full bodied, and juicy with graceful tannins and very good acidity. The finish is both persistent and satisfying. I have no idea how they are able to make a wine of this quality and consistency at the price point it sells for ( $11 to $14 ) , but power to them. They make 12,000 cases of Alanera and it’s easy to find.

Pair the Alanera with medium and hard aged cheeses, charcuterie, any variety of meat dishes and of course your favorite items off the barbecue grill.

For some reason not everyone can do the right thing when it comes to business. A Baltimore businessman whose job was to safeguard wine which his clients where paying him to store is awaiting sentencing after being convicted of wire fraud and interstate transportation of stolen goods. Selling someones wine without their consent; how could he not know that this would end badly?

Bill and I discuss these topics and many more in this weeks addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

McDonald’s, Burger King and KFC are becoming increasingly more common sights in Italy’s urban centers. Jeremy Parzen pens a post on fast food versus organic and big farming in Italy.

When was the last time you cut out drinking alcohol of any type? John Fodera an authority of all things Tuscan decided to take just such a break. Calling it “The Purge”, he sighted palate fatigue and decided to abstain for two weeks. He took notes of how his body responded, one of the most interesting being the amount of weight he lost.

It’s not surprising to anyone in beverage journalism that there is a culture of “pay to play”. Offers of free samples, meals and trips in exchange for (wink wink) favorable endorsements are ubiquitous. Should there be more transparency in the wine writing business?

Bill and I discuss these topics and many more in this weeks addition of VinoWeek. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

The wine of the week is the 2017 Substance Cabernet Sauvignon. Charles Smith former rock band promoter turned vintner is the motivation behind this project. Charles first passion is Syrah and he makes a number of serious ones. The Wines of Substance program is focused on producing wines that are true to varietal type, of good value and can be enjoyed now. It’s 100% Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and a blend of nine different vineyards. A whole berry fermentation with native yeast followed by 35 days on the skins, the wine was aged for twelve months, 50% in new French oak barriques. A deep ruby color and black fruit nose, with currants, violets, vanilla and cedar notes. This Cabernet is medium to full bodied showing more elegance than the 2016 offering. It’s very easy to drink and you would be hard pressed to find another Cabernet Sauvignon of this quality at this price point. 14.5 % alc $15

The wine of the week is the 2015 Grattamacco Bolgheri Superiore. The town of Bolgheri, in the province of Livorno, sits at the midpoint of the Tuscan coast. Bolgheri is a relatively new wine area having received its DOC in 1994. Grattamacco was the second winery to be established in this area. The original owner Meletti Cavallari was looking for a fishing retreat with his wife and ended up buying an abandoned farm house with a small vineyard on a hill in Bolgheri. He planted the hill with Cabernet Sauvignon and they released their first wine in 1982. The property was acquired by the Tipa Bertarelli family in 2002. There are 67 acres of vineyards located on a hill between Castagneto Carducci and Bolgheri at around 330 feet above sea level. It’s a maritime climate with frequent sea breezes. The soils are calcareous sandstone, marl and clay and the vines average around 24 years of age. All the grapes are hand harvested, with spontaneous fermentation taking place in open cone shaped vats. The wine spends 21 months in french oak and six additional months aging after bottling. it’s composed of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 15% Sangiovese.

I must confess I have never been a big fan of “Super Tuscan” wines. No doubt living in Sonoma County and being only a 45 minute drive from Napa Valley has prejudiced my viewpoint. It’s not that I don’t understand Super Tuscan wines or I’m incapable of enjoying them, admittedly I’m a maniac for Tuscan Merlot. It’s primarily is about availability and price points. Good to high quality Super Tuscans are not made in large quantities and they can be very expensive. Although Super Tuscans can be composed predominantly of Sangiovese, Merlot, Cabernet Franc or other varietals, I’m referring specifically to Cabernet Sauvignon dominated blends. Having so many wonderful choices for Cabernet/ Cabernet Sauvignon blends in my own back yard at much more favorable pricing, puts Italy’s Super Tuscans a little lower on my buy and try list. I was afforded the opportunity to taste the 2015 Grattamacco at the James Suckling Great Wines of Italy event in San Francisco on March 2nd, 2019 and then again a few days later at the Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri San Francisco event. The wine displays black cherry, currant and cedar box aromas on the nose with garrigue lurking in the background. The attack on the palate is strong but the sensation is really one of elegance and silkiness. A slight earthiness, very intriguing, with a good kiss of oak. Full bodied with good concentration and savoriness, the finish is long and satisfying. The wine shows great balance with no rough edges and I suspect that it will age well, although it’s drinking incredibly well now. So if you’re looking for a great splurge candidate this is it. 4,166 cases produced $70 - $100

The wine of the week is the 2016 Artezin Old Vine Zinfandel. This wine is made by Randle Johnson of Hess Collection fame. Hess collection is a huge operation and has wineries in California, Argentina and South Africa. The wine has a deep purple color and features a red fruit nose of raspberries, cherries and white pepper. You get all the classic Zinfandel notes on the palate without the over the top jaminess you often get with less refined efforts. Medium bodied and well balanced, a nice touch of baking spice accompanies a medium length finish. 14.5 abv $12 - $16

When you're out hunting for a bottle of Chianti Classico it can be confusing. There are so many labels and so many styles. You have to start somewhere and once you find a producer that makes a wine that suits your palate, you can branch out and make new discoveries. A quick short cut is to look for wines made by one of the "Fantastic Four". Fèlsina, Ambrogio e Giovanni Folonari, Castello di Fonterutoli and Frescobaldi are all icons of Tuscan winemaking and their wines standout for their consistency in style and clear expressions of the territory. From their entry level to their flagship offerings the Fantastic Four can be counted on to deliver reliable, well crafted wines.  

Our visit to Tenuta di Nozzole was an afterthought. Earlier we enjoyed a visit to Le Cinciole in Panzano having just finished having lunch at La Cantina Ristorante-Pizzeria in Greve. This was a family vacation and I had told myself before leaving on the trip that I would not drag my family around to various wineries the whole time we were in Italy. Still, it would have been uncivilized not to introduce our son to the treasures of Tuscany (This was his first time in Italy) while we were on the peninsula. Besides who spends a day in Tuscan wine country and visits only one winery?

It was the first rain on the first day of October and as we drove though the countryside of Greve, from our viewpoints the majority of the vineyards had already been picked. In fact Luca Orsini's cru was busy picking their last plots when we left Le Cinciole.

First a little history about the Folonari families. The Folonari's, Lombards from the region of Brescia in northern Italy have been in the wine business since the late 1700's. The Folonari's fortunes turned brighter with the purchase of the Ruffino wine brand in 1913. After World War II the Folonari and Ruffino brands grew explosively through solid marketing and mergers. In the early seventies the Folonari's sold their wines brands and the Folonari name to Gruppo Italiano Vini, arguably the largest wine company in Italy to focus on higher quality wines. Smartly, they kept the Ruffino brand, among them the gold label Riserva Ducale, unquestionably one of the most recognizable names in Chianti Classico wines. Fast forward to year 2000 and the Folonari family went through a split over philosophical differences. Some family members retired, others kept the Ruffino brand and Ambrogio and Giovanni (father and son) established Ambrogio e Giovanni Folonari Tenute. A & G Folonari Tenute (estates) consists of six estates and almost 620 acres of vineyards in Tuscany. They farm properties in  Bolgheri, Chianti Classico, Montalcino, Montecucco and Montepulciano. Coincidentally Constellation Brands the world's biggest wine maker, purchased 40% of the Ruffino brand just four years after the year 2000 split and by the end of 2011 the Folonari's were completely bought out for $142 million.  

The Folonari's purchased the Nozzole estate in 1971. At that time the estate was 950 acres, 250 planted to vineyards and 40 acres were devoted to olive trees. Six wines bear the name Tenuta di Nozzole,  an IGT red and white (Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay), three Chianti Classicos and a Vin Santo. All six spend time in small french oak barrels. We saw very little of the production areas, but the places we did see were packed wall to wall with small 59 gallon French oak barrels. The grounds and the facility itself is spartan and impeccably maintained. Modernity and attention to detail are the hallmarks here. These markers are immediately evident in the wines. All of the wines at Nozzole are very good. Made for the modern palate the wines are fresh, powerful and rich, displaying wonderful structures and are decidedly true to type.  

Reservations are required and we had not made an appointment so when we arrived I wasn't sure how we would be received. If it wasn't for the large touring bus parked outside the production area I would have thought we were not on the right property. Good for us my curious wife wandered into the business office, where she was greeted by Laura Dassiè the Export Manager. Amazingly Laura stopped her business activities and spent the next hour and a half showing us around and leading us through a private tasting. We discovered through our time together that Laura had spent some time in Northern California and her English I must say was spot on.  Affable and patient, I really appreciated how she shared the details of their business and handled our inquiries. She's indeed a pros pro and the give and take was really fun. Toward the end of the session she handed us off to Oliva Busignani who is the Hospitality Manager. Oliva helped us with our purchases. 

The 2015 Nozzole Chianti Classico Riserva wine comes with a newly fashioned label. A picture of the estate is still prominently displayed front and center. The label is less cluttered with the bottling information, the alcohol info and the family brand name and symbol having been relocated to the back label. Just the facts here, the estate picture and name, the vintage and type of wine. An atypical deep tinted, taller, heavier, glass tapered bottle, rounds out a quite stylish package. Once you've emptied it you can get a workout in by doing arm curls with the bottle. The nose shows black cherry, leather,earth and baking spice all wrapped in oak. On the palate black and red fruit, licorice and tobacco. Medium to full bodied, there is ample acidity, the tannins are polished and the finish is long. A thoroughly modern interpretation of Chianti Classico but there is no mistaking that it's Tuscan Sangiovese. 14 % alc. $17 - $20

After fermentation the 2013 Tenuta Di Nozzole Gran Selezione Chianti Classico spends up to two years in 1,585 to 1,849 gallon botti (large barrels). After bottling the wine spends a minimum of six months in the bottle before release. Gran Selezione is Chianti Classico's newest top tier wine and this is the first release from Nozzole. 100% Sangiovese, already it’s soft and approachable, showing incredible depth and complexity, with sweet tannins and a silky texture. Aromas of violets, ripe cherries and cocoa and a soft round mouth feel make for an immensely enjoyable drink. This was my son’s favorite wine of the lineup. Who say’s millenials don’t have good tastes? As good as the Gran Selezione is now, I suspect it will age gracefully. N/A

2013 Tenuta Di Nozzole La Forra is composed of 95% Sangiovese and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s fermented in stainless steel vats and the wine is pressed off the skins after 20 days. The wine spends 16 - 18 months in 132 gallon French oak barrels and six months in bottle before release. The black cherry, licorice and herb aromas are in harmony with the wines firm acidity and solid tannin structure. The La Forra nose is not as developed as the previous two, powerful and rich it is built for the long haul. $35 - $40

We also tasted the 2016 IGT Chardonnay La Pietra (the stone) from their Tenute Del Cabreo property. It’s fermented half in new barrels and the other half in one use barrels, then aged twelve months on the lees. It has a pale gold color, with a reticent tropical fruit and spice nose. On the palate it’s texturally dense with good structure and has a satisfyingly long finish. Admittedly I’m too much of a Sonoma County Chardonnay honk to go all in on this wine, but my wife loved it, so we purchased some. $30 - $35

We enjoyed our visit to Tenuta Di Nozzole and would like to thank Laura and the staff at the property for their hospitality. If you ever find yourself in Tuscany, phone ahead and make a reservation to visit the Nozzole estate. You won’t be disappointed. Cheers!

The wine of the week is the 2007 Flaco Tempranillo. Flaco is a slang term for a friend as in “Qué pasa flaco? - what’s up dude? It’s a fun and not so serious expression and the wine is fun and care free as well. Tempranillo depending on where it is grown can exhibit very different expressions; from lighter elegant wine styles to full throttle, palate punishers. Flaco is on the lighter Pinot Noir spectrum of wine styles. It’s 100% Tempranillo that is organically and dry farmed from vineyards around the city of Madrid. The color is a bright ruby red, translucent on the edge. The wine displays red fruit, cherries, lavender and garrigue aromas on nose. On the palate pretty lifted red fruit flavors are complemented by it’s soft, silky, elegant profile. Its juicy fruit, soft texture, coupled with ample acidity make it immediately likeable. Flaco is fermented and aged in stainless steel and concrete tanks so there are no wood flavors to get in the way of the lovely fruit. The current vintage retails for about $7 and they made about 40,000 cases, so it should be fairly easy to find.

The wine of the week is the 2013 Castello Colle Massari Montecucco Rosso Riserva. The Colle Massari estate is located in the southern part of Tuscany, approximately forty miles south of Siena, roughly a hour and twenty minute drive. The vineyards, cerified organic, are located on the Montecucco hill which gives its name to the Montecucco DOC, awarded in 1998. By law a Montecucco Rosso (red) wine must contain a minimum of 60% Sangiovese. The first vintage of Colle Massari was in 2000 and in 2014 Colle Massari was awarded the Gambero Rosso 2014 Winery of the Year Award. The owners Maria Iris and Claudio Tipa, also own Tenuta San Giorgio and Poggio di Sotto both in Montalcino and Grattamacco in Bolgheri, so one could say they are firm believers in the terroir of Southern Tuscany. My wife and I first discovered Colle Massari at a local wine shop in a small village south of Siena called Serra di Rapolano. We stayed in that village for ten days and we wiped out that wine stores stock of Colle Massari. Every since then we have been big fans of the wines made at that estate. You can learn more about the Colle Massari estate here.

The 2013 Montecucco Riserva was aged in oak barrels for 18 months and then spent a year in the bottle before it was released. The wine is composed of 80% Sangiovese, 10% Ciliegiolo and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. A deep ruby color in the glass, the nose displays black plums, cherries and hints of licorice and leather. On the palate the frame is medium bodied, smooth tannic structure, and well balanced acidity. This wine won’t bowl you over with complexity but it’s a fine example of Sangiovese from Southern Tuscany. The current vintage 2015 retails for about $20. 14% abv

The wine of the week is the 2016 Chionetti Briccolero Dogliani. This is a Dolcetto (dohl-Chet-toh) from the area around the town of Dogliani (dohl-Yan-nee). The Dolcetto of Dogliani are so well known, that the best wines from the area are simply labeled as Dogliani, as this wine is. Briccolero (bree-Koh-layro) denotes a single vineyard. Dolcetto is grown though out Piedmont and Liguria, which occupy the northwest region of Italy. In Piedmont it’s typically cultivated in areas where Nebbiolo cannot be counted on to ripen reliably. Here in the land of Barolo and Barbaresco, Dolcetto is the wine the locals drink, while they are waiting for their Nebbiolo based wines to mature. Dolcetto is a grape with low acidity but it can have substantial tannins.

Founded in 1912 by Giuseppe Chionetti, the current owner Quinto Chionetti organically farms 34.5 acres. He produces three single vineyard wines, San Luigi, La Costa and Briccolero. The Briccolero vineyard sits on a hill, with southeast exposure, above his home and is dominated by a large pine tree at the top. With lightly colored, calcareous soils, the vines are guyot trained and low to the ground. The grapes are hand harvested and the wines, 100% Dolcetto, are crafted using spontaneous fermentations and no filtering. The Briccolero ages for one year in cement tanks with 10 to 15% in large oak barrels.

In the glass it’s a deep purple color. Aromas of violets, black fruits and licorice jump out of the glass. On the palate, blackberries, black plums and mulberries. It’s medium bodied, the fruit deeply concentrated and intense, yet all the while silky smooth. Remarkable length and persistence on the finish, Chionetti wines are known for their ability to age gracefully, but it drinks so well now I can’t envision any of the bottles I purchased making it past their third birthday. 14% alc - $26 - $30

On this podcast Bill and I talk about the economic impact of the past few years of fires on the restaurant and wine business in Northern California. Our favorite billionaire, Liquor/ Indian gangster Vijay Mallya, who now resides in London, is vigorously fighting extradition back to India. So far so good for him and not so good for all the Indian bankers that bankrolled his alleged money laundering activities. Fashion mogul Antonio Moretti has been accused of money laundering and tax evasion by the Italian authorities and has been placed under house arrest with his son Andrea. Moretti owns several high end winery operations in Tuscany and Sicily and those assets among others have for the moment been seized by the government. Entrepreneur Joe Wagner of Copper Cane Wines has run afoul of the TTB and the Oregon Liquor Control Commission . It's a complicated case involving clever marketing , logistics and politics that Liza Zimmerman does a good job of covering for Wine Searcher. Year 2018 by most accounts has been a great vintage in Northern California with many vintners having enjoyed a low stress growing and harvest season. We discuss these topics and offer some beer and wine suggestions too. Thanks to everyone for listening. Cheers!

Cheers!

Referenced in the show

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Read the XIII Amendment

Watch: Kayne on the XIII and other stuff

Camp Fire 2018

2015 Luigi Boveri "Derthona" Timorasso Colli Tortonesi:  This is a fairly rare white Piedmontese variety. It's not new, but it has good texture and intriguing flavors. Don't let the odd cork throw you off. $16 at K&L Wines

2016 Lewis Cellars Sonoma Russian River Chardonnay:  High standard are being set here by former Formula Three and Indy Car racer Randy Lewis and his family. Whole cluster pressing, barrel fermentation, sur lies ageing with battonage , all in French oak, with no filtering or fining, makes for a full throttle intensely rich wine. A special bottle to be shared with good friends. $50 K&L Wines

2015 Dehlinger unfiltered Chardonnay:  The Dehlingers have been growing grapes and making wine in Sebastopol for over 40 years. It's all old school here; old vines, Wente clones, whole cluster pressing, fermenting and aging in french oak barrels and no filtering. The epitome of Sonoma Coast Chardonnay. $42 Prima Vini

2016 Quivira Fig Tree Vineyard Dry Creek Valley Sauvignon Blanc:  Hugh Chappelle makes the wines here and they are all phenomenal. The grapes are farmed using biodynamics and the wines are Demeter Certified. Let's just say they care about the earth now and they're looking past their own time here on earth as well. This Sauvignon Blanc has more body and intensity of flavors than most. Aged in Acacia barrels its rich and sublime. Try it next to your favorite new world Sauvignon Blanc or a Sancerre. $20 K&L wines

2017 Pinot Grigio Lunaria "Romoro" (orange wine):  This is an orange wine but if you're pouring it for friends just tell them it's rosè,  unless of course you want to get into a discussion of what orange wine is. 30 days skin contact. It comes from a local cooperative in Chieti, Italy in the region of Abruzzo. One of the best Rosès I've tasted this year. $16 They are still looking for a distributor so it's currently only available through Organic Wine Exchange. A Biodynamic vineyard and organic wine.

2015 Montenidoli Vernaccia Di San Gimignano: This wine hails from Tuscany and is made by Signora Fagiuoli. A delightful woman who likens winemaking to cooking, just on a larger scale. A cornucopia of intense flavors to accompany the minerality and bright acidity this wine will change your viewpoint on Italian white wines. Hard to find but worth the hunt. $18 Liner & Elsen

2017 Brooks Pinot Gris:  Do try this if you like aromatic white wines that feature no winemaking hocus pocus.  Native yeast and no additives and minimal use of sulfites make this wine a pure expression of Pinot Gris. You can order this wine directly from Brooks Wine.

2016 Pey Marin "Shell Mound" Riesling: From the hills of West Marin County Jonathan and Susan Pey have found a niche spot for growing Rielsing. Minimal intervention is the key here. No oak barrels, no malolactic, native yeast and long cool fermentations with ageing on the lees for complexity. Green apples and white peaches with good balance. This one really opens up and blossoms with time in the glass. $25 Ludwigs Fine Wines

2016 Obsidian Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon: Northeast of Napa county the red hills of Lake County have for many years been supplementing the shortage of high quality grapes in Napa Valley. As grape prices have grown so has the price of a good bottle of Napa Cabernet. With Obsidian Ridge you get to enjoy high quality Cabernet grown on volcanic soils at an elevation of 2,640 feet in the Mayacamus Mountains. Aged in Hungarian oak this cab is all black fruit, earth and luxury. Family owned and a great story behind it, I discovered this gem 7 or 8 years ago and I always have some stored away in my wine stash. $27 at K&L Wines

2014 Emiliana Coyam: An organic blend from Chile's Colchagua Valley. Predominantly Syrah and Carmenere with Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Mouvedre, Malbec and Petit Verdot rounding out the blend. In a word elegant, the wine is full bodied with black and blue fruits, moderate tannins and acidity. No rough edges here, you can drink and now and be happy, but I'd stash a few bottles to enjoy in the coming years as well. $29 Fine Wine House

2016 Saint Cosme Cotes du Rhone: I was first introduced to the wines of Saint Cosme by a wine they called Little James' Basket Press, a non vintage Cotes du Rhone, that several years back was about $7 a bottle. The Saint Cosme CDR is a more serious wine, offering more complexity. Syrah leads the blend with Grenache not far behind. Hands down one of the best values out of the Rhone Valley. Black and blue fruit with hints of licorice and lavender. Jump on this one quick because it always sells out fast. $14 at KL Wines

2015 Domaine Lafage "Bastide Miraflors" Cotes du Roussillon: 70% Syrah 30% Grenache.  The Grenache is  fermented and aged in concrete tanks so nothing gets in the way of the delicious red fruit and the Syrah is aged in 600 liter French oak demi-muids. A fantastic value from the Roussillon region in south-western France. We bought a case of this recently. We have two bottles left and I'm re-upping. Enough said. $13 K&L Wines

2016 Trentadue Old Patch Red:  The Trentadues used to farm apricots and cherries in what is now Silicon Valley. They saw the writing on the wall and escaped the urban sprawl and settled in Healdsburg nearly sixty years ago. 68% Zinfandel, 25% Petite Sirah, 4% Carignane, 3% Syrah. Don't let the simple label and screw-top closure fool you. The deep purple color, bold black cherry, vanilla and oak flavors will win you over. I'm still not sure how they do it year in year out but it's consistently good and a no brainer at about $11.

2015 Klinker Brick Old Vine Lodi Zinfandel:  50+ year old vines, black berry jam, sappy black cherry, cocoa, toasty oak and  vanilla. Mild tannins but packed with flavor. There's nothing subtle here, this wine is a hammer. Put it up against your boldest barbecue fair and it will win you over. If you decide to have it without food decant it for a few hours beforehand. $15 K&L Wines

2015 Chateau Lanessan Haut-Médoc:  Those who enjoy good Bordeaux and good value know about this Chateau. And this wine from the praiseworthy 2015 vintage shows particularly well. Lanessans always seem to age well, but I suspect most of these will be consumed earlier than later. Dark red color, black currant, red fruit nose. Well balanced ,the fruit leads and the oak is well integrated. A sleeper from a great vintage. Classic Bordeaux without the sticker shock! $20 K&L Wines

2015 Chateau Fonplégade Saint-Emilion: Vineyard placement can be just like real estate. Fonplégade's next door neighbors are Chateau Canon and Canon La Gaffelière. Add world famous consulting enologists Michel Rolland and Stéphane Derenoncourt and you've got a recipe for exceptional wines. Their 2015 fits the bill. 95% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, deep purple in the glass it's powerful, showing cushy black fruit, with subtle hints of espresso and tobacco. Made with organic grapes. $38 - $50

2015 Tenuta di Nozzole Chianti Classico Riserva: The father and son duo, Ambrogio and Giovanni Folonari respectively, own six estates in the Tuscan region. This wine hails from Greve. I've been drinking  Nozzole Chianti Classico for decades and the improvements over the years have taken the wine in a decidedly modern direction. It's 100% Sangiovese,  and sports an updated new label. Medium garnet in the glass the nose shows red cherries, toasty oak, earth and hints of tobacco. Full rich red fruit flavors on the palate with well integrated acids and moderate tannins. The finish has a touch of spice and is long and savory. Very approachable right now. Pop the cork and it's ready to go. $20 K&L Wines

Nino Franco Rustico Prosecco Brut: Take this one and some fresh flowers to your next house party and you'll always be invited back. You can buy 6$ Prosecco at the supermarket or you can splurge and get the real thing here. Primo Franco only makes Prosecco and this is his base bottling. Ditch the champagne flutes and serve it in a white wine glass to fully enjoy the golden color and crisp green apple and pear notes on the nose. The bright acidity and creamy texture make it a great aperitif. Everyone will be asking you, where did you get this wine? $15

2016 Medici Ermete Concerto Reggiano Lambrusco: The Medici Ermete brand is headed by Alberto Medici. His family has been farming in Emilia-Romagna for over 120 years. They make a variety of Lambrusco wines most of them blends, but Concerto is 100% Salamino Lambrusco. Its blackish ruby red color and the bright magenta froth is immediately recognizable when poured in the glass. Aromas and mouth filling flavors of ripe black and red fruits, a vibrant palate and lingering finish with lip smacking acidity. This is serious, vintage dated, benchmark Lambrusco; a perennial Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri winner. $22

Happy holidays and happy shopping. Cheers!

Alright enough with the sarcasm, lest you think I don't like German Riesling. I love Riesling. I suppose one of the reasons I love German Riesling is the tradition behind it. Some of the best Riesling wines hail from the  incredibly steep valley slopes of  the Mosel, Saar and Ruwer rivers in the southwestern region of Germany not too far from the borders of France and Luxembourg. Farming and harvesting on these steep slopes can be done by machines but it's still mostly done traditionally by hand, using seasonal workers from eastern Europe. A machine harvester can replace fifty grape pickers, start work at a moments' notice and doesn't need to take breaks during its shifts. As time marches on the machines will do more and more of the work, although I'm not convinced for now, that the machines do a better job than humans. Holding to tradition Nik's vineyard holdings are still hand harvested. Fermentation in stainless steel tanks and aging in seasoned Fuder  ( thousand liter oak barrels) make German Rielsings truly unique wines. One of the reasons German Riesling is touted as having the greatest ability to express the differences in terroir is the fact that the German winemakers eschew new small oak barrels in the cellar for fermentation or aging. This allows for a truer expression of what the grapes have to offer in the finished wines. Think of new oak barrels as condiments in your kitchen and without the use of your condiments you have only the true flavors of your base ingredient.

The object of my desires this week is the 2015 Single Post Riesling Ockfener Bockstein Kabinett from the Saar River Valley. Nik Weis is in charge of this operation and his grandfather Nicolaus Weis built the St. Urbans-Hof estate after the war, by the village of Leiwen in 1947. The family owns an extensive amount of vines (33 hectares) in the Mosel and Saar area. The grapes for the Single Post come from a leased portion of  the Ockfener Bockstein vineyard so the Single Post bottling is a secondary label for St. Urbans-Hof. Even though you don't get their distinctive black and gold label that adorns their top wines,  you do get  a wine that has been raised under the watchful eye of Nik Weis, from a Grand Cru vineyard. That in itself is a great value because Nik makes great wines at fair prices.

 German wine labels in the past have been notoriously famous for their Gothic fonts and tongue twisting names which could be difficult to read and understand. Nik is a smart marketer, electing to use easy to understand labeling, but still giving a nod to the old schoolers. For this wine the label clearly states Single Post Riesling in bold red and gold fonts. Typically used on steep slopes where trellising is not possible 'Single Post' vines have their own stake with two canes bent in the shape of a heart. A drawing of this vine training style is featured on the  front label. For the traditional old schoolers the name of the village, vineyard and wine style is in smaller font towards the bottom of the label. Ockfener meaning from the village of Ockfen. Bockstein is the name of the vineyard site, set in a side valley of the Saar River with a 50% slope and a southwest exposure. Kabinett denotes a high quality wine made in a light style. Turn the bottle around and you essentially get the same information on the back side along with the International Riesling Foundation Taste Profile. For the consumer this easy to read scale makes buying German Rielsing much easier. The bottle features a red colored stelvin closure with the words con natura non invicem. A nod to Nik's recent affiliation with the Fair and Green Association which espouses a holistic sustainability concept. Consequently traditional and natural winemaking methods are used in Nik's cellars instead of some of the modern technology and hocus pocus you may witness in other cellars.

The Single Post Riesling has a light amber color and displays lemon-lime, white peach and intriguing leesy aromas. On the palate it's Golden Delicious apples and apricots all wrapped in honey. At 8% alcohol its off dry, delicately light with vibrant acidity and a long lengthy finish that leave you wanting more. In our household once a bottle of Single Post is opened there's never any left over for tomorrow. Both the 2015 and the 2016 vintage are currently available on the market. $18 to $20

Here's how flash wine sites work. Wineries are juice factories and sometimes the juice is not selling fast enough. Storage is costly and if the wineries' banker is calling wondering where their money is, flash wine sites can be a quicker way to raise cash. Perhaps the harvest is around the corner and the vintner needs the space for the incoming crop. Wine that's held in tank or in unlabelled bottles offers the producer more flexibility. If the wine is still in tank, once a price is agreed upon the winery can bulk it out to another bottler, or bottle it for a flash seller at a discount. This is the business model that of Costco fame discounter Cameron Hughes used for years. Once the U.S. economy improved and the excess juice dried up, the company struggled with solvency. Cameron Hughes was recently purchased out of bankruptcy by Santa Rosa based Vintage Wine Estates. If the wine are in unlabeled bottles the winery can put a different label on it, as opposed to using their primary brand label. Same wine different label is a fairly common practice in the wine business. For example, in the U. S. the term 'private reserve' on a wine label may signify a wine of distinction, from a special vineyard or barrel lot, but in reality, and legally, two wines from the same vat can have different labels.  When there's lots of extra juice around there are bargains galore. Everybody loves a bargain and flash sites move wine quickly. Depending on how aggressive the discounts are, sometimes in just hours. If the wines are already bottled and labeled it becomes a little more problematic for the winery. Putting a wine in the market place at a discount in places where it is already being marketed at full retail could violate an agreement you have with a distributor and also erode your products perceived value to the consumer.

Several months ago I received an offer from Last Bottle, a Napa Valley based flash wine vendor offering a 2015 Côtes du Rhone for about a ten spot, with free shipping if you purchased eight or more bottles. Last Bottle usually sources predominately California wines. It's fascinating to me how many unheard of $100 California Cabernets are available at a 50% discount.  Being a sucker for CDR and having tasted so many wonderful Rhone wines from the 2015 vintage already, I decided to pull the trigger and order a case. Last Bottle's fulfillment operations are an hour to the east of us so we usually get our order in two to three business days. I typically let any wine that's shipped to us rest undisturbed for several weeks before I try it. Maybe it's the fact that the shipping distance is so short, but I like that  Last Bottle doesn't  use styrofoam shippers when sending us our wine. Where does all that styrofoam go anyway?

When I received the wine and checked the label I didn't recognize the producer, but when I turned the bottle around I was pleasantly surprised to see the shipper Jeff Welburn's name, prominently displayed on the back label. As I was already familiar with Jeff's  high quality selections from other areas of the Rhone Valley, Saint-Joseph and Gigondas, I stashed the wines in the wine cooler confident that I had made a good purchase.

Before trying the wine I did a little research and discovered that the wine was made by Frédéric et Benoit Lavau Vinificateurs. It's a family operation that has three winemaking cellars in the southern Rhone Valley. They work with over 350 grape growers and make wine from nearly all of the appellations in the southern Rhone Valley.

What's the wine like? The 2015 Réserve Des Galets Côtes-du-Rhône is 60% Grenache and 40% Syrah with 13.5 % alcohol. The wine is medium ruby in color and the nose exhibits black and red fruits, lavender and a  hint of iodine. On the palate, bright red fruit flavors, light acidity and soft tannins. It has a simple clean finish. It's everything a $10 CDR should be. Easy drinking and you don't need to think about it.  Just enjoy. It's barbecue season and this wine is the perfect accompaniment for just about anything that comes off the grill. Last time out we had it with grilled spicy Santa Fe chicken thighs and a lightly dressed Caesar Salad.

Is online wine buying worth the effort? Based upon my experiences over the last several years I'd say yes. What are you waiting for? Get in the pool the waters fine. And remember there really is no need to act hastily. Do your  research and know what you want before the offers even appear. Because after all wine is like buses. There's always another good one coming down the line.

Cheers!

Monday November 13th marked the showing of the 2015 vintage of Grand Cru Classé wines of Saint-Emilion at San Francisco's Terra Gallery. The 2015 vintage was a banner year in Saint-Emilion as it was for many of the wine growing regions in Europe. 

The town of Saint-Emilion is about 25 miles northeast of the city of Bordeaux, the epicenter of the Bordeaux wine region in southwest France, its climate moderated by its close proximity to the Atlantic Ocean. Just about any wine book you pick up to learn about wine will start with the vaunted history of French wines and then launch into explaining the Bordeaux region with all its ranking and classifications. Don't let that discourage you. All it really takes to learn about Bordeaux wines is a little reading and a lot of tasting. Within the Bordeaux region there are some fifty-seven wine regions and one could easily argue that Saint-Emilion is one of the most noteworthy red wine regions in all of France.

 The wine estates north of Bordeaux are considerably larger than the wine estates in the Saint-Emilion region, so the first thing you should know about the latter is that the wines have less availability and  are pricy. The second thing you should know and this is the scary part for those that have the herd mentality, is that Saint-Emilion wines are predominantly Merlot, with Cabernet Franc taking a minor role and Cabernet Sauvignon an even lesser role. So if you are still running with the crowd that thinks Merlot is so out, you're missing out on some wonderful wines. The French have had hundreds of years to figure out what grapes grows best on what soils and Merlot is king on the right bank terrain. The Bordeaux region is split in half  by the Gironde River and its tributaries and as the river flows north-west to the Atlantic the regions on the southwest side are called left bank wines and those on the northeast side are called right bank wines. 

The wines of Saint-Emilion are classed in four tiers and the classification is reviewed and updated every ten years. The last classification was in September 2012. The Association de Grands Cru Classés de Saint-Emilion was formed in 1982 to promote the wines of Cru Classé growers and improve quality among their Chateaux. The top three tiers Premiers Grands Crus Classés A, Premiers Grand Crus Classés B and Grand Crus Classés are where most of the quality wines are to be found. There are a total of 81 chateaux in these three tiers. The important sounding and misleading fourth tier St-Émilion Grand Cru includes hundreds of chateaux located on the lesser terroir of the Saint-Emilion area. A caveat here; a properties ranking is not a guarantee of quality and there are some that should have a higher ranking and others that are clearly underperforming  at their current ranking.

The Terra Gallery located in the SOMA district on Rincon Hill in San Francisco was a wonderful spot for the tasting. A spacious venue offering plenty of natural lighting, lots of fresh water, with spittoons on designated tables in the center of the room and the purveyors, 23 in all arranged in a large u-shape. Having the spittoons in a different area from where the wines are being poured is an idea that more wine exhibitors should consider using. It serves two purposes, no unsightly expectorating at the presenters table, and once you've received a pour and taken a sip you have to move away from the table to go to the spitting area, freeing up the table for another taster. There were a lot of different types of artisan breads available for cleansing the palate and a good variety of mildly flavored cheeses if one started feeling a bit peckish. 

Each chateau poured a wine from a previous vintage with the exception of Chateau Ripeau, which showed their inaugural 2015 vintage. Showing a deep purple color, a gorgeous black fruit and licorice nose, medium to full bodied on the palate, with a lush juicy texture and good length on the finish, I was very impressed with the owner Cyrille Grégoire's premier effort and deemed it one of the top wines at the tasting. Of recent the Grégoire family story has been one of tragedy and optimistic rebirth. The new blacksmith logo on their label serves as a symbol of the families enduring character. Unfortunately for us estimated production is only around 1,500 cases.

 Comparing and contrasting the different vintages side by side was very enlightening. A rising tide lifts all boats and the majority of the  2015 wines I tasted displayed beautiful deep purple color, lush fruit, silky textures, great freshness, with good power and concentration. Close to half of the producers elected to show their 2014 wines alongside the 2015's. In my opinion this strategy backfired with most of the 2014's coming off as tight on the nose and thin on the palate with light persistence. The 2015 vintage is miles ahead of 2014 when it comes to quality and I suggest that you taste the 2014's before you plunk down your hard earned cash. Mind you Bordeaux can be tricky. Recently I've had several 2007 Bordeaux, a poor vintage by most accounts, that have showed surprisingly well.  

At the tasting I found the 2012's to be well developed and drinking well. Regarding the 2010's, I wish I had bought more when they were initially released. Sometimes the hype is right. If remembering vintages isn't your thing here's a quick trick for buying Bordeaux. Any year divisible by five since 1985 strengthens your chances of picking a good bottle.

The tasting gave me an opportunity to taste wines that have less distribution on the west coast because of their low production numbers.  Although it could have easily been done,  I did not try all the wines that were available. It was too easy to get side tracked talking with the property owners. If a property's wine that was shown is not on this list, it most likely infers that I didn't get an opportunity to try it. 

Some of the 2015 wines are already available and more will be making their way to the marketplace this winter as we're already starting to see pre-arrival offers being sent out. In general the prices range from $30 to $50 a bottle. The 2015 vintage will be hyped and the buying window will be narrow, so start making your purchases early to ensure you get your favorite wines. Here's a quick list of my favorites listed below in two categories and in alphabetical order.

Outstanding

Chateau Bellefont-Belcier 2015  68%Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon  $40 - $50

Chateau Couvent Des Jacobins 2015  85%Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc, 4% Petit Verdot   $40 - $55

Chateau Dassault 2015  75% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon   $40 - $45

 Chateau Fonplegade 2015  95% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc   $38 - $48

Chateau Grand Pontet 2015  88% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 4% Cabernet Sauvignon   $30

Chateau Grand Pontet 2010  70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon   $45

Chateau La Marzelle 2015  80% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon   $40

Chateau LaTour Figeac 2015  70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc   $40 - $45

Chateau Laroze 2012  62% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 6% Cabernet Sauvignon   $32

Chateau Ripeau 2015  90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc not available

Very good

Chateau Bellefont-Belcier 201  76% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon   $55 - $60

Chateau Couvent Des Jacobins 2010  85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc   $50

Chateau De Pressac 2015  72% Merlot, 16%Cabernet Franc, 9% Cabernet Sauv, 2% Carmenère,    $30

Chateau Fombrauge 2015  91% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Malbec $25 -$35

Chateau Fonplegade 2014  95%Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc   $40

Chateau Fonroque 2015  85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc   $30

Chateau Franc Mayne 2015  90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc   $30- $33

Chateau Franc Mayne 2012  90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc not available

Chateau Grand Corbin 2015  77%Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon   $32 - $40

Chateau Jean Faure 2014   50% Cabernet Franc, 45% Merlot, 5% Malbec   not available

Chateau Laroze 2015   62% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon   $33

Chateau Le Prieure 2015   80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc   $40

Chateau Yon Figeac 2015   82% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot   $30

Chateau Couvent Des Jacobins 2010   85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc   $50

Chateau De Pressac 2015   72% Merlot, 16%Cabernet Franc, 9% Cabernet Sauv, 2% Carmenère,    $30

Chateau Fombrauge 2015   91% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, 1% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Malbec $25 -$35

Chateau Fonplegade 2014   95%Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc   $40

Chateau Fonroque 2015  85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc   $30

Chateau Franc Mayne 2015   90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc   $30- $33

Chateau Franc Mayne 2012   90% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc not available

Chateau Grand Corbin 2015   77%Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon   $32 - $40

Chateau Jean Faure 2014   50% Cabernet Franc, 45% Merlot, 5% Malbec   not available

Chateau Laroze 2015   62% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon   $33

Chateau Le Prieure 2015   80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc   $40

Chateau Yon Figeac 2015   82% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 6% Petit Verdot   $30   

As always, enjoy!    

Cheers!

Thanks to Bernadette Byrne and the Mendocino Wine Growers for inviting us to the event.

Taste of Mendocino is a personal favorite of mine because of its intimacy. There are only about thirty to forty wine and food purveyors and the room is always cozy but not cramped. The majority of the vendors, I've discovered in the past, are usually the principal owners or winemakers. There's ample parking on the marina waterfront and the four hour tasting window from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. allows plenty of time to meet everyone and go back for a second visit if you like. If you want to experience a good vibe and the wonderful flavors that Mendocino County has to offer don't miss the Taste of Mendocino.

As always drink like a pro:

• Get a good rest the night before. You'll want to be at your sharpest.
• Stay hydrated by drinking lots of water before during and after the tasting.
• Wear dark clothes. You might not spill red wine but others may.
• Once you've received you sample pour:
  • Be mindful of others that may be waiting behind you to be served.
  • Questions are good, but if you have an inordinate amount of them to ask, simply make room for others as you converse.
• Taste and spit... very few people look cool spitting, but you'll remember more.
• Have a good healthy meal before the tasting. Consuming alcohol on an empty stomach is not a good idea.
• Respect others and don't wear perfumes or colognes.

Hope to see you there. Cheers!

I first met Maura Balbo on twitter when I saw pictures she had posted showing what three nights of frost can do to the new bud growth in a vineyard. Her post ended with " My vineyard is KO!". For other farmers the pictures had to be gut wrenching.

Where are you from?

I'm from Fontanile, a little town in the Asti district of Piedmont, in northwest Italy. My husband was born in Bergamo (Lombardia) on July 7th, 1961. I'm forty-three years old. The winery name is Roberto Urscheler Winery. His father was Swiss and his mother is from Bazzana di Mombaruzzo.

Where are your vineyards located?

In the Mombaruzzo , Asti district, Piedmont, northwestern Italy.

What's the size of your estate?

Ten hectares.

How long have you farmed this land?  

We have farmed this land since 1987. Before that the land was farmed by my husband's grandfather on his mother's side.

Did you ever imagine you would own a vineyard?

Yes, of course.

How involved do you get in the vineyard?

All my time is spent in the vineyards and the winery.

How are your vineyards trained?

We start with pruning them, then we tie and clean the vines by hand (It's the work I'm doing during these days). That means we let all the shoots with the bunches and we cut off the other ones. Then we set the shoots upright. In July we make a double selection in the vineyards: this means that only the best bunches are destined for harvest. The others are cut off. Finally we harvest in the month of September the Moscato and the Barbera grapes. In October, usually the first week, we harvest the Albarossa.

How many different grape varieties do you work with and do you have a  favorite?

We produce three kinds of Barbera wines: Barbera d'Asti d.o.c.g., Barbera del Monferrato d.o.c. 85/15 and Barbera del Monferrato d.o.c. La Rosina; then we produce the Moscato Carpe Diem, two white wines: Cortese dell'Alto Monferrato d.o.c. and a Greek Malvasia which is called Aphrodite; then Il Cantore: an aromatic red sweet wine produced with a blend of twelve ancient aromatic grapes; then the Piemonte d.o.c. Grignolino and the Grappa (Spirit) which is dedicated to my husband's grandfather (mother's side): Grappa di Nonno Rinaldo.

Where are you positioned organic wine or not?

We don't produce organic wines, but traditional wines.

We initially met via twitter and have briefly spoken about the devastating frosts this spring in your area. How have your vineyards been affected?

Because of three frozen nights in the month of April, we lost 35 to 40% of our whole production. Yesterday night it hailed in Monferrato. Fortunately we didn't have any damage due to hail.

What's the biggest challenge for a grape grower in Nizza?

To produce quality respecting the tradition.

Are you allowed to irrigate your vines?

No, in Italy it's absolutely forbidden.

Your husband makes the wines and you are the marketer. How were you introduced to winemaking?

By marrying him I was introduced to the winemaking world. My father worked in a grape nursery. I did not meet him. He died when I was 16 months old, in a tractor accident.

What are your export markets?

Switzerland, Germany, Austria and some private French customers.

How do you know you have a good vintage?

We don't know until we harvest; too many unknown variables. First of all the weather. In 2013 we lost 90% of our production because of a twister. Yes, we had a twister in Piedmonte. These days it's hot, too hot for the month of May.  

What is your favorite wine and what makes it your favorite?

Barbera is my favorite wine because it's the typical Piedmontese grape, not as well known as Nebbiolo unfortunately. Barbera has so much potential leading to deep ageing. Acidity is her power, and the deep ruby red color.

What changes do you see in the coming years regarding climate change?

Weather and climate change are dangerous enemies for the agricultural world.

Côtes du Rhônes have always been a go to wine for me. The problem for the average consumer is the wines can vary greatly in style. On one hand they can be easy drinking, fruity and relatively straightforward. While on the other hand more structured, brooding and complex and anywhere in between. Knowing what's in a bottle requires some trial and error. A good retailer that knows your palate can help steer you in the right direction. 

Côtes du Rhônes (CDR) come from Southeastern France, in the southern part of the Rhône Valley. The wines are not labeled by varietal, so you won't see Cabernet, Merlot or Chardonnay on the labels. So how do you know what type of grapes are in the bottle?  A lot of the larger cooperatives and brands will show the grape percentages on their back labels, but most of the smaller more quality minded vignerons (winemakers) may not provide that information. The dominant grape in the area is Grenache, Syrah a distant second, followed by Mouvèdre , Carignane and Cinsault. There are a host of other grapes that are also allowed in the blend for red wines, twenty-seven in all. Generally the red wines are predominatelyGrenache with Syrah and Mouvèdre completing the blend. There is also a small amount of Rose made and an even smaller amount of white CDR made. 

What makes Côtes du Rhône wines so likeable? They can at the entry level offer good insight into the character of the wines from the area. If you want to get a preview of what the wines from Châteauneuf-du-Pape, Gigondas or Vacqueyras might offer, check out the Côtes du Rhônes of the vintage first. There are more than a few Côtes du Rhône vineyards that are right next door to these more prestigious crus. Here's where CDR excels in value, because many of the vineyards are in the right neighborhoods. Most good quality CDR can be had in the $12 to $20 range. 

If you aren't familiar with CDR wines now's the time to jump on board. Recently in the wine world, especially for the more pricey brands,  there'sa lot of hype regarding the new vintage coming on offer. Though I've only tasted 8 or 9 of the 2015 Côtes du Rhônes that are now hitting the retailer's shelves, I'm ready to concede, the hype is legit! These are the best wines I've tasted from the CDR appellation since 2010. And there's more good news. Word is that the 2016's are on par and perhaps even better. In fact generally speaking after several years of anxiety producing growing seasons for wine growers throughout Europe, the wines from 2015 are showing remarkable quality and consistency. 

Côtes du Rhône and Côtes du Rhône-Villages (a step up in classification from grapes grown at better sites with lower yields) are not wines for laying down and cellaring for years. Instead they are vinified for early consumption, usually within the two to five year window of their vintage. These are wines that you can pair with a wide variety of foods and because of their price point you can afford to have them grace your table nightly. 

For this tasting flight we choose four wines from the 2015 vintage. The wines are from the areas of Cairanne, Séguret , Vinsobres, and Estézargues. 

2015 Comte Louis De Clermont-Tonnerre Cairanne Côtes-Du-Rhône Villlages Vieilles Vignes  

 I know, what a long name. Alain Corcia started in 1983 as a negociant in Burgundy and has extended his gift for locating good wines to the Rhône region. This wine is a direct import that's only available at KL Wines. Wines made in Cairanne were just awarded "Cru" status, so 2016 will be the first vintage to bear the name Cairanne without having to have Côtes du Rhône Village appended to it. The classic label and embossed bottle are fitting because this bottling is all show and go. Harvested from old vines (Vieilles Vignes) it has a medium ruby color, a very floral nose, violets, lavender, red fruit and garrigue. On the palate it's medium bodied with a juicy strawberry and red fruit profile. It finishes with good length. The wine shows well upon opening and evolves wonderfully as it gets exposed to more air. $12.99 - 14% abv -highly recommended

2015 Saint Cosme Côtes- du-Rhône - (pronounced Saint Comb)   

 Saint Cosme,  based in Gigondasis run by the Barruol family and has operations throughout the Rhone region. My first introduction to Saint Cosme's wines was their Little James Basket PressRed, a solera system CDR that could be purchased for about $7 in past years. Back then it offered everything a basic CDR should be, at a great price point. Fast forward to present and the Barruol's are still offering a real true to type, basic CDR, at a fantastic price point. The fruit is harvested around Vinsobres and the wine is 100% Syrah a bit unusual for CDR but not for the Gigondas area. Dark purple colored in the glass the nose shows black and blue fruit, iodine, licorice and sea salt. On the palate black fruits and pepperwith medium tannins and a firm mid palate. The finish is medium length with furry tannins and spice. This wine was number 43 on Wine Spectators annual Top 100 wines of 2016. $13 - $15 14% abv - highly recommended

2015 Malmont Côtes du Rhône 

 The Malmont (bad mountain) property located in the hills above Séguret, due north of Gigondas, is owned by the Haeni family. The four hectare project was started in 2002 and the vines were planted four years later. Click here to check out the incredible terracing work that was done to establish the vineyard. The winemaker Nicolas Haeni farms the vineyards himself with minimal outside help. The first vintage for Malmont was 2013. Who said winemaking was quick and easy? A labor of love Nicolas's boutique winery is attached to his home. The blend is 55% Grenache and 45% Syrah. Deep purple colored, the first sniff took me back to my childhood as it smelled like a newly opened packet of Kool-Aid. On the second sniff the Kool-Aid is gone. Was it ever really there? And the nose is showing red raspberries, strawberry jam and violets. In the mouth the red fruits continue, backed by a tart, firm acidity. While the nose sings the mid palate is a bit hollow. The tannins are soft and elegant, but thefinish is disappointingly short. The wine is nicely structured but the fruit is hiding. Perhaps it will emerge with some more bottle ageing. $19 - $20 13.5% abv - recommended

2015 Domaine De Pierredon Signargues Côtes du Rhône Villages

Signargues (pronounced see-nargues) is an elevated plain on the right bank of the Rhone River due east of the town of Avignon. The Pierredon family organically farms70 hectares near the town of Estézargues. The wine is born from a strength in numbers philosophy having been made at the Les Vignerons D'Estézargues cooperative. What makes this cooperative unique? They have ten principal growers and for each one they make a separate special cuvee from each growers best grapes, designating the name of their estate on the labels. Moreoverthe wines are made with no yeast additions, no enzymes, no sulfur additions at harvest time and no filtering or fining. That's a considerable difference from the large batch methods of most cooperatives. This CDR is 50% Grenache and 50% Mourvedre. Medium ruby in color the nose displays black cherries and white pepper. It's fresh with juicy black fruit on palate, medium bodied, with minerality andgood depth. Very enjoyable, moderate tannins and a savory finish.  $15 - $17 14.5 abv - highly recommended

These four wines were excellent examples of the variety of wine styles one can find from the southern Rhone region. Buy them and enjoy them now. Côtes du Rhônes are good matches for charcuterie,  grilled or roasted meats, pastas and stews.  With their wallet friendly price points and back to back high quality vintages headed to retailers shelves, you should consider putting some CDR's on your buy list for your next wine buying trip.

Who was the winner? The winner of the battle for me was the Domaine De Pierredon. Even though I enjoyed all the other wine as well (not a dud in this bunch), the Pierredon was to my liking, the most complete and enjoyable of the group. 

Speri, located in the village of Pedemonte is a fifteen minute drive northwest of Verona. Ironically we passed the historic cellars of Bolla just before we turned down Fontana Street towards Speri. Even if a taste of wine has never crossed your lips you've heard of Soave Bolla. Our request to visit Speri was made and accepted on short notice and upon arrival we were greeted by Luca Speri. Luca represents seven generations of Speri grape growers. His business card doesn't sport a title, aside from his name, the only information on the front of it is Speri Viticoltori.  Viticoltori is Italian for wine growers and after spending just fifteen minutes with him, it's obvious he's the brand's ambassador and knows the operations from top to bottom. During our time together we discovered that he was getting married in a few days. Harvest was just a week away and his Dad was asking his assurance that everything was in order, just before he prepared to lead us through a tasting of his wines. While we discussed his operation and his wines, his phone buzzing every now and then, I was struck by his ability to compartmentalize. His focus for the time that he was in our presence was on us and I truly appreciate him taking the time to show us around.   

Their tasting room and business office occupy the same building, separated by a modern glass wall. The set up gave me the same feeling I get from a well executed exhibition kitchen. It's contemporary, well appointed and comfortable.

One could say that the Speri's make only one wine, but several different styles. Luca explains, "We focus only in the native varieties, Corvina, Rondinella, Molinara and Corvinone, no Cabernet , Merlot, Sangiovese or Syrah and we focus only on our things and the things we know deeply". 

The Valpolicella area spans 8,000 hectares and the Speri's farm fifty hectares, all in the classico zone, the very best vineyard sites. Although the vineyards are in northern Italy, they still benefit from a Mediterranean influence because of their close proximity to Lake Garda. They make five wines and the labels denote the different vineyards or "crus" where the grapes are grown. All of their vineyards are family owned and farmed naturally. The Speri's do not purchase any grapes, juice or wine to go into their bottlings.  

If you look closely at the capsules of Speri wines you will see the logo for the Vignaioli Indipendenti, an association of growers that helps to protect the interest of smaller growers and wineries. Insiders know that if you are looking for a artisanal, good quality, small grower wines from Italy, to watch for the Vignaioli Indipendenti logo. 

After a challenging harvest in 2014, for the 2015 year the Speri's produced just over 31,500 cases of wine.  Not a small operation, but as Luca says, "We are the biggest of the smallest". The Speri's farm organically, so the wet and cold summer of 2014 muted grape quality, lowered yields and brought plenty of extra work in the vineyards. Luca elected not to make a Amarone for the 2014 vintage in an effort to improve the quality of his other offerings. A costly concession when you consider the price differential between Amarone and the other bottlings. 

Their newest cellar built in 1958, sits directly underneath the tasting room and holds about 80% percent of the wines that are ageing in oak. The remainder ages in the nearby original cellar. The cellar is seven meters underground and maintains the same temperature and humidity year around. The room is filled with 40 and 50 hectoliter Slavonian oak casks and a small amount of barriques. Luca says that they use french oak barriques for the Recioto only, when the wine needs more oxygen , not for the taste. 

2015 Speri Valpolicella Classico - A traditional Valpolicella in the truest sense, 60% Corvina, 30% Rondinella and 10% Molinara. The wine is fermented in stainless steel tanks and raised in concrete tanks then bottled the following February.  In the glass a light ruby color, the nose showing red cherries and a beautiful perfume. It's light bodied, lightly spiced, very tasty, with good acidity, displaying a wonderful freshness and typicity. At 12.5 abv it would pair well with salumi,  cheeses, soups and other light fare.

2014 Speri Valpolicella Ripasso Classico Superiore - 70% Corvina, 20% Molinara and 10% other native varieties. Fermented in the same manner as the Valpolicella Classico, but the wine is passed over the skins of the Amarone and held in tank for nine days. The process called "Ripasso" gives the finished wine a bit more alcohol, body and richness. It's aged for twelve months in 20 hectoliter Slavonian oak casks. Slightly deeper in color than the Valpolicella Classico, the aromas are of red cherries and violets, medium bodied, soft and round texture with good acidic backbone.  

2013 Speri Sant'Urbano Valpolicella Superiore - 70% Corvina, 20% Rondinella and 5% other native varieties. Although this wine holds the same title as the former and is finished at the same alcohol level, 13.5, it's conceptionally made in a different manner. The grapes come from their best single vineyard Sant'Urbano, located in Fumane at 280 to 350 meters above sea level. After hand harvesting the grapes are dried for three weeks, fermented and then aged for eighteen months in 500 liter Allier oak. The nose shows a mix of red and black fruit, hints of baking spice and cocoa. Medium bodied with more concentration than one would find in a typical Valpolicella Superiore, black cherry and spice notes are in perfect balance with the acidity. The wine is fresh, energetic and easy to drink. Try it with Lasagna or one of your favorite meat dishes.

2011 Speri Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico Vigneto Monte Sant'Urbano - 70% Corvina, 25% Rondinella and 5% Molinara. Hand harvested from their best single vineyard the grapes are dried for 100 days, then crushed and fermented in January, remaining on the skins for about a month. The wine is aged in oak casks for three years. In the glass deep ruby red giving aromas of black raspberries,  plums, figs and chocolate. On the palate if you're looking for a big bombastic wine like some Amarones can be you'll be disappointed. In the mouth this Amarone displays a wonderful depth of fruit, with the oak showing a supporting role, but clearly buried in the background. With the illusion of sweetness on the nose, the mid palate and finish are full and persistent.  A wonderful example of an elegant and traditional Amarone. I t would be a great companion on your dinner table and yet it's so approachable now that you could enjoy it all by itself. 

2012 Speri Recioto Della Valpolicella Classico "La Roggia" - 70% Corvina, 30% Rondinella. The grapes are grown in Cariano and once they are harvested they are dried for 130 days. The secret to this sweet dessert wine is the fermentation is stopped with cold temperatures leaving some residual sugar. Deep ruby red almost opaque in the glass, jammy concentrated black fruit and spiced cocoa envelope the palate, followed by a firm mid palate with waves of black cherries, licorice and baking spices. It finishes long and one you've swallowed, the freshness and acidity encourage you to take another sip. Serve this one for friends after the dinner with pieces of fine dark chocolate.  Careful though, your guests may never leave.

During our visit Luca also gave us the opportunity to taste their 1997 Amarone.  He explained, "We keep of every good vintage a minimum of 3 to 4 thousand bottles". The 97' was drinking extremely well and Luca assured us it had ten to fifteen more years of life ahead of it. Each year they release older library wines (at the tasting room only), so if you're visiting the area and you want to experience a properly aged Amarone at its birthplace stop by Speri Viticoltori. Cheers!

Alison Spiegel gets some of the nations coolest sommeliers to drop some insider secrets.

Winemakers are preparing to mount a battle against the regional government in Chablis. A proposed tar plant is the source of the conflict.

Peter Gago, head winemaker at Penfolds has lost his faith in screwcap closures for wine bottles and is now researching the efficacy of glass as a cork alternative.

The Drunken Cyclist shares his experience of two very different nights at Antica Bottega Del Vino in Verona.

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Tickets are now on sale for the 13th Annual Top 100 Tasting. The event will be held at the City View at Metreon venue on Monday, October 10, 2016, in San Francisco. It's always well organized with a good cross section of wines from the top 100 wineries of the year and if you enjoy sparkling wines and oysters, it's game on. In concert with local purveyors, putting out some of their signature specialties, many of the wineries have the winemakers on hand.  If wonderful wine and fantastic food isn't enough to get you onboard, consider that proceeds from the Top 100 event go towards San Francisco Bay Keeper to help fight water pollution. Fast becoming one of my favorite wine tastings to attend, tickets for this event will sell out quickly. Click here to get discounted pre-sale tickets.

The top 100 wineries for this year is not out yet, but you can check out last year's 2015 top 100, a noteworthy list to say the least. A tasting of this type is probably one of the best ways to explore, expand your palate and find some new discoveries in the world of food and wine. Here are a few photos of last year's event to whet your appetite. We'll see you at the oyster table. Cheers!

There's gold in those hill. At least that's what famed grape growers Andy and David Beckstoffer are hoping for as they work to raise the quality and notorietyof grapes grown in the Red Hills of Lake County, California.

The Soberanes Creek fire continues to burn causing lots of concern for residents and farmers in Monterey County. There have also been a number of wildfires in Europe.  

Adam Teeter pens an informative post on understanding tannins in red wine.     

Here's a good post to show what organic farmers battle through to provide us with a healthier product.    

John Fodera has just posted a comprehensive report on currentChianti wines. If you're a fan of Chianti Classico it's a must read.   

As always thanks for listening and please tell a friend.

Antonio Galloni pens a wonderful piece, while offering a sobering viewpoint on the recent sale of one of Barolo's gems, Vietti Winery to American businessman Kyle Krause. Mr. Galloni also has some suggestions on how to start a wine collection.

Here's a quick primer on the differences between Left Bank and Right Bank Bordeaux.

Michele Parente explains why wine costs what it does. 

Bill and I discuss these stories and a few more as we get back into the swing of things after a brief hiatus.

As always thanks for listening and tell a friend about us. Cheers!

Ste. Michelle Wine Estates makes another investment in Northern California, while Jackson Family Wines adds to its portfolio of Oregon wine properties. It looks like the Robert Rue label has been retired as Venge Vineyards has purchased the property  in Russian River Valley.

We're number one or are we? Check out this graphic by Decanter Magazine highlighting the top 10 wine consuming countries.

Want to brush up on your Chianti Classico knowledge and get a heads up of what's available in the marketplace? Don'tmiss Richard Jennings' awesome post.

Is that the world's most interesting man. No, it's Vijay Mallya, India's most wanted man.  

It's easy to steal rare wine but much harder to fence it, or so it seems for two Northern California men who have been charged with trafficking in stolen goods.

Bill and I discuss these stories and a few other on this week's podcast. Thanks for listening and tell a friend. Cheers!

Vittorio Moretti , President of Terra Morettia holding company and Marco Sabellico, Senior Editor of Gambero Rosso Vini D'Italia hosted a memorable dinner for Italian wine distributors and wine writers in San Francisco. The dinner was held at the Ristobar in the Marina district, on the eve of the Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri grand tasting at the Fort Mason Center. 

Vittorio Moretti serves as the President of the Consorzio Franciacorta and is the owner of Contadi Castaldi and Bellavista (beautiful view)  properties in the province of Brescia, in northern Italy, situated about an hours drive east of the fashion capital of Italy, Milan. Signore Moretti also own Petra winery in Maremma, along the Tuscan coastline near the Tyrrhenian sea. Since the 1970's wines from Maremma have been made from grape varieties not typically used in Tuscan wines and were initially glossed 'Super Tuscan' by members of the Antinori clan. Although the term Super Tuscan has no legally codified meaning,  it has stuck, its use denotes wines of small production, sporting whimsical names, with high quality and lofty prices.   

After being introduced to Mr. Moretti by Sara Pedrali - Brand Ambassador for Terra Moretti, I quickly learned that my 50% Duolingo rating for the Italian language holds little weight in the real world. I spoke just well enough to momentarily convince Signore Moretti I could carry on a conversation, but we both soon realized that any conversation of depth was not possible for us. 

Fortunately for us Marco acted as the interpreter for the evening and served that role splendidly. We also had the good fortune of sitting next to Eleonora Guerini, another Senior Editor of the Vini D'Italia. She was gracious and kind as Bill and I peppered her with questions throughout the evening. 

Before seating, we were offered Contadi Castaldi Saten 2010 Franciacorta, paired with grilled crostone with Swiss chard and burrata cheese.  You could walk in a hand full of specialty wine retailers in the San Francisco area and you would be lucky to find three different labels of Franciacorta wines. Even rarer would be a Saten. Saten is a sparkling wine from Franciacorta that is made using only white grapes, typically Chardonnay, but Pinot Bianco can be used also. Franciacorta Saten is bottled with less pressure so the wines have a softer mouth feel.  The bitterness of the chard and the sweetness of the burrata were good foils for the Saten. Contadi Castaldi's Saten is 100% Chardonnay and after fermentation is aged for seven months in stainless steel and barrique. It's aged for about three years on the lees. Light straw colored it offers up a floral nose with hints of yellow apples, citrus and yeast, with soft persistent bubbles.

The next course featured Star Route Farm of Bolinas grown puntarelle with Oregon Dungeness Crab meat. Paired with Bellavista Teatro Alla Scala 2010 Franciacorta Brut, this was another bitter vs sweet combination prepared by Chef Massimo Covello that worked beautifully. Putarelle is an Italian green that belongs to the chicory family. Composed of 75% Chardonnay and 25% Pinot Nero, 30% of the wine is fermented and matured in small white oak casks for at least seven months. Once it's blended with the other wines it spends five years on the lees. A pale yellow color with a tinge of green, the nose showed lovely apple, pear and toasted brioche notes. Vibrant acidity and showing its power, the finish is extremely long. Unfortunately for us this wine is not exported, as all the bottles are reserved for the Teatro Alla Scala in Milan. 

The next pairing was my favorite, house made cavatelli with Full Belly Farm black eye beans, sausage and dill. Cavatelli are inch long rolled pasta shells that look like miniature hot dog buns. The savory earthiness of the dish pared perfectly with the 2012 Petra Quercegobbe, 100% Merlot. A loose translation for Quercegobbe would be hunchback oak. I have a soft spot for Tuscan Merlot and the Petra Quercegobbe did not disappoint. Quercegobbe is fermented in 620 hectoliter oak barrels and is aged in new French barriques for eighteen months. Once bottled it's stored at the winery for another eighteen months before release.  Deep ruby red in color, the nose showed red fruit, herbs, tobacco and anise. Full bodied at 14.5% abv, the wine displays modest power, excellent structure and supple tannins.  The oldest vines next to the winery are less than twenty years old, so Quercegobbi will be one to watch. It's just down the road from Masseto and can be had for a fraction of the price. $53 - $60

There were two offerings for the main course, Stemple Creek Ranch "Prime" New York served with Bolinas broccolini and Rossetti Ranch lamb chops with Green Gulch Farm spinach. The wine paired with these dishes was the tre bicchieri awarded 2012 Petra IGT Toscana. The presentation of the lamb was superb and the execution for the steak was bang on. The Petra is 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot.  The wine spends eighteen months in French oak, 30% new and is aged for eighteen months in bottle. Black berries and currants dominate the nose, supported by bold tannins and fresh acids. On the palate a herbaceous, red fruit profile with a delicious medium length finish. It was a wonderful match for the New York steak, but the $100 plus dollar price tag for the Petra would have me looking elsewhere. 

Next up was a cheese plate featuring items from Andante Dairy in Petaluma, Ca. Cavatini, Melange and Contralto cheeses were paired with Bellavista Vittorio Moretti 2008 Franciacorta. Cavatini is made from pasteurized goat's milk, is white and has a grey-white colored rind. Melange is a blend of goat's and cow's milk and resembles Brie in flavor and texture. For our group the Contralto cheese was substituted for a cow's milk triple cream cheese. The 2008 Franciacorta rests for a minimum of seven years on the lees and is composed of 58% Chardonnay and 42% Pinot Noir. Citrus and yellow apples on the nose are complemented by yeast, baked apples and caramel on the palate, ending with a long creamy finish. $120 - $130

Dessert was a delicious panettone paired with a magnums of Bellavista Vittorio Moretti Meraviglioso. The Panettone, a yeast leavened sweet bread assembled with eggs and butter for extra richness was sublime.  If your'e ever in the Marina District of San Francisco and you're looking for a good place for dessert put the Ristobar, 2300 Chestnut Street at the top of your list. Meraviglioso (wonderful) is a blend of six vintages 1984, 1988, 1991, 1995,2001 and 2002, and is only bottled in magnums. Priced at $1,100 dollars and up a bottle, Meraviglioso is ultra- premium and very rare Franciacorta, with only 5000 bottles produced. We were honored to be offered the opportunity to taste it. Initial notes of apple and pear on the nose are complimented by secondary notes of yeast and brioche. Complex and muscular, Meraviglioso finishes long, it's built for the long haul. 

A special thanks to Vittorio Moretti, Ristobar owner Gary Rulli, Chef Massimo Covello and their staff for hosting a wonderful food and wine event. While we tasted the upper tier of Terra Moretti Wines, the group offers a wide range of high quality sparkling and still wines at modest prices. Franciacorta wines are currently being aggressively promoted in the United State, so we should be seeing more examples of these wonderful wines on retailer shelves in the future. 

How low can supermarket Champagne prices go in the UK and what will be the net aftereffect? Joyce Lin puts together a guide to help understand Champagne labels.

Can you train your palate to get more out of the wines you drink? Rachel Signer asks some industry professionals that very question.  Bill and I have a few suggestions as well on how to sharpen your palate and taste wine like a pro.

What's the big deal about ageing wine? When is the best time to drink that special bottle you've been saving? Nova McCune Cadamatre offers up thoughts on the subject; To Age Or Not To Age? That Is The Question.

Here's our feel good story of the week. Ashley Trout a winemaker in Washington has started a non-profit winery, Vital Wines. Aimed at helping vineyard workers that do not have health coverage, it's a good step in a positive direction.

The press rollout has started for the latest hi-fi wine gadget. It's called the Kuvee. 

Ever wonder how wine gets to the states at sometimes staggeringly low prices? Bruce Schneider and Charles Bieler are working to clean up the tarnished image of bulk wine through their new wine company, Gotham Project.

Wine of the week:  2013 the Pundit Syrah Columbia Valley

The winemaker triad of Chateau Ste. Michelle's Bob Berteau, and Rhone Valley's Phillipe Cambie and Michel Gassier are the team behind Tenet Wines. The Pundit is 94% Syrah, 3% Grenache, 2% Mourvedre, and 1% Viognier ( cofermented with the syrah). The wine spends twelve months in oak barrels, 61% neutral French oak, 23% new French oak and 16% new American oak. The color in the glass is an opaque black-purple, going ruby towards the edges. The nose offers up black cherry, cocoa, vanilla and spice. In the mouth it's rich and sappy with no rough edges, black plum jam, vanilla spice and a long satisfying finish. An excellent buy at $20. 14.3% abv This wine was #34 on the Wine Spectator'stop 100 of 2015, so if you want some you should source it out immediately. 

Richard Jennings a Silicon Valley based wine blogger took over a year off from blogging and on his return has hit it out of the park, with a comprehensive review of 230 grocery store Chardonnays. He didn't just pick up his free samples at the UPS depot. He did the hard work, trekking to local Lucky, Safeway and Costco stores to purchase bottles. Yes, he spent $4,000 of his own hard earned cash to complete the project.  If you shop for Chardonnay at the grocery store this is a must read. But wait, there's more. He's currently working on a grocery store Cabernet project. You can follow his progress on Cellartracker, Facebook and Twitter.

If you're a cheese lover Tia Keenan wants to introduce us to some of the wonderful products that are made here in the United States as well as from abroad.

Former owner of now defunct wine retailer Premier Cru looks to be headed to court again. This time the claimant will be Wells Fargo, who is looking to reclaim the 2016 ZO6 Corvette he purchased this year shortly before he declared bankruptcy. 

Wine of the week: 2012 Tormaresca Torcicoda Primitivo Salento IGT

Primitivo is a clone of a Croatian grape called Crljenak Kastelanski ( tsril/ yeh/ nak- kah/ steh/ lahn/ skee. Practice this pronunciation and you can wow your friends at your next gathering. You could also use it on that overbearing wine snob at your next mixer to get them to back off. Simplified, Primitivo is Italian Zinfandel. The Tormaresca Estate is operated under the umbrella of the Antinori Family. Winemaker Renzo Cotarella has the best of everything at his disposal all with the goal of showing the world, the best that the region of Puglia, in southern Italy has to offer. The flagship wine for Tormaresca is their 100% Negroamaro based Masseria Maime. Don't miss an opportunity to try it.  

Topped with a real cork, Torcicoda is 100% Primitivo and is fermented in stainless steel, then aged in French and Hungarian oak barrels for ten months. The wine rest in bottle another eight months until release. In the glass the wine is a deep ruby to violet colorand the nose shows black plums, black cherries, brown sugar and vanilla. In the mouth the flavors turn to red cherry jam and cocoa with hints of licorice and baking spice. Full bodied with ample well rounded tannins it finishes with good length. Drawing a comparison between Torcicoda and Sonoma Zinfandels, I'd say that this Primitivo is a more feminine representation of the Zinfandel grape, showing less alcohol, more savory flavors and elegance. I tasted the 2013 version alongside the 2012 and the former underperformed, so I suggest you confine your search to the 2012 version. Another reminder that vintage does matter.  14.5 % abv $17 - $20

Open that bottle night has come and gone. Held on the last Saturday of every February and started by wine writers Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher,  it's celebrated as a reason to open up that bottle that you've been saving for a special occasion. If you participated in the event share with us what you had.

New research presented by the Wine Market Council shows that millennials have overtaken baby boomers and Gen Xers with regards to wine drinking rates.  

Talia Jane sent off a blog post to her boss, Jeremy Stoppleman CEO of Yelp, detailing how difficult it was to work for his company due to the inadequate compensation package she was receiving. Now she's wondering why she's unemployed and is asking for handouts. Stephanie Williams a millennial herself offers her take on Talia's dilemma. 

Four Seasons Vineyard Management and Ridge Vineyards have been fined $42,300 for housing violations related to a migrant farm worker facility in Healdsburg, Ca.  

Here's a link for some quick updates on the Premier Cru bankruptcy and scandal. Zachary Sussman pens an excellent post on the subject of wine futures, detailing how they work and sometimes why they don't.  

Do we need another law aimed at dealing with drunk drivers? Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez, D-San Diego believes we do and has introduced a bill that would require more training for restaurant and bar workers to recognize patrons that have had too much to drink. 

Kerin O'Keefe tells a story about one of the most exciting white wines coming out of northern Italy.

Wine of the week: 2011 Castello di Volpaia Chianti Classico Riserva 

Volpaia is a hilltop walled village north of Radda in central Tuscany. Raffaelo Stianti purchased the estate in 1966 and when his daughter Giovanella married in 1972, the estate became the young couples wedding present. All of the estate owned vineyards are organically farmed and certified, 114 acres in total, situated with southern hillside exposures at 1,300 to 2,130 ft. The nose shows black plums and cherries, floral aromas of lavender, with trailing hints of sage and cedar. Elegant with crisp acidity and good structure it's full bodied at 14.5 % alc. On the palate it has beautiful juicy black fruit, with silky tannins and a persistent finish.  $25 

Thanks for listening and please tell a friend. Cheers!

Dorthy Gaiter interviews Michael Mondavi about the Mondavi clan, then and now. The way things have turned out may not be as patriarch Robert Mondavi had envisioned, but if he were here he'd probably be pleased. 

Tim Carl writes about the evolving taste in California wine country. Could this be a glimpse into the near future?

Batya Ungar-Sargon wonders 'Why aren't there more Black Americans making wine?'. 

From the files of people behaving badly, Italian police have discovered a counterfeit Champagne operation in the province of Padua.

Wine of the week: 2012 Boundary Breaks Vineyard Riesling - Ovid Line North

This riesling hails from the Finger Lakes Region of New York on the east side of Seneca Lake. It's composed of two riesling clones Geisenheim 110 and 239 and was harvested at 21 brix. Fermented and aged in stainless steel for six months, it's finished with residual sugar of 3.2 % and 11.6 % abv. It has a shy nose with a pleasant leesy aroma. Leesy is a term for the aroma you get from wine that is held in a container on its lees (dead yeast cells) for an extended period.  Where this wine really struts its stuff is on the palate. You'll find juicy white peach and pear flavors. It's off dry with that characteristic lemon, lime, tongue tingling acidity on the finish. A real crowd pleaser for sure.   575 cases $20

Michelle Locke offers up nine hacks to help you drink better wine by drinking it better. In the podcast Bill and I offer up a few ways to enhance your wine drinking experience as well.

Is the age of the Sommelier coming to an end? Some high profile somms are looking for a different experience and are moving into the retail arena. 

Upscale wine merchant Premier Cru of Berkeley, California has finally folded amidst a plethora of accusations and lawsuits. The FBI is now actively involved and handling former customer and vendor complaints. 

Napa County officials are flexing their muscles and threatening to shut down a winery in Calistoga that does not have their permits to do business in order.  

We talked about this story on a prior podcast.  Look who's saying 'My Bad'. Here's proof that Maureen Downey is smart and one tough cookie. 

Wine of the week:

2014 Tenshen Santa Barbara County White Wine

This is the best full bodied aromatic white I've tasted this year. It's a Rhone blend of Viognier, Rousanne, Grenache Blanc and Chardonnay. The wine is aged for five months in 80% neutral oak, 20% stainless steel. The aroma offers up orange blossoms, tangerine, kumquat and it's delightfully tropical. On the palate it's full bodied, rich and savory. When you swallow, it taste like more, with flavorful waves of apricot and yellow peaches. It's delicious!  Wines of this quality, at this price point do not remain on the market for long. Run to your favorite retailer and secure some before it's gone. 14.7 % abv $18 - $20 

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Thirty-one cases of the world's most expensive wine have disappeared from a northern port in France while awaiting shipment to the Liquor Control Board of Ontario in Canada. 

Lettie Teague pens a piece titled 'An Insider's Guide to Weird Wine Words'. It's a good primer for explaining some of the jargon used by people in the wine business to describe wine characteristics and flaws.

If you ever wondered why some food and wine pairing work and others don't, this article by Bill St. John will help you understand the key elements of pairing wine with food.

The Culinary Academy is closing all sixteen of its schools in the U. S. Steve Heimoff comes up with a few reasons for the closure and we come up with a few of our own. 

Guy Fieri is attempting to dissolve his popular chain of Johnny Garlic's restaurants. The problem is his partner doesn't want dissolution; he wants to purchase Guy's shares of the chain. We'll watch as this one plays out in the court system.

Bill Swindell reports for the Press Democrat on the upward trend of tap rooms opening in Sonoma County. 

Levi Dalton provides a detailed accounting of why sommeliers may be facing a difficult year in 2016. 

Wines of the Week:  

Bele Casel Asolo Prosecco Superiore Extra Brut  

Imported by Chambers & Chambers of San Francisco this is not your average supermarket brand Prosecco. To start with it has pedigree. Coming from the Asolo Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita, one of the two areas in the Prosecco growing region that has the D.O.C.G. designation. The difference between a D.O.C. and a D.O.C.G. Prosecco is that the latter comes from the hillier regions of the growing zone and is subject to stricter quality controls and because of the terrain is more likely to be farmed by hand. Bele Casel is a small family owned farm and use no chemicals at their 100% organically farmed twelve hectare site in the Asolo region, in the province of Treviso, north of Venice. 

In the glass the wine shows a light straw color with aromas of white peach and green apples. On the palate green apple and lemon, bright acidity with a clean refreshingly dry finish - elegance personified. This is our house bubbly for the month of January.  Serve with oysters on the half shell, ceviche, salads, fried calamari and light seafood dishes.   11.5 % abv $12 - $14 

2012 Kaiken Ultra Malbec/ Mendoza

Hand harvested 100% Malbec, raised in one, two and three year old French oak barrels for one year - In the glass a deep violet color, the nose shows black fruits, cocoa and vanilla. On the palate blackberries, chocolate and vanilla, full bodied with firm but round tannins. Rich, showy and superbly balanced with good length on the finish. Enjoy this one with fondues, strongly flavored cheeses and grilled steaks. A ridiculously great value at $14 - $16. Readily available at the moment, be forewarned wines of this quality, at this price point get snatched up quickly. 

Shone Farms 2012 Estate Pinot Noir

Made by Santa Rosa Junior College Students under supervision of winemaker Chris Wills this Pinot delivers cherry cranberry and earthy mushroom flavors.  Smooth and satiny on the pallet.   

From the Winemaker: Pinot Noir was hand harvested in the middle of the night to ensure cool fruit and then placed into small bins and transported by forklift to the cellar door before dawn. The morning fruit was hand sorted by SRJC Wine Studies students then destemmed and gently placed into an open top fermenter. The must cold soaked for three days and was then inoculated and allowed to ferment to dryness. The fermentation cap of grape skins was hand punched down three times per day to extract color, flavor, and body components. The must was pressed to dryness, settled and racked to medium-toast French barrels where it aged for 16 months.

As always thanks for listening and tell a friend about us. Cheers!

New York wine retailer Empire Wine's ongoing lawsuit against the New York State Liquor Authority has taken a turn in favor of the NYSLA, after Governor Cuomo vetoed a bill that would have limited the state's power.  

Bill Swindell reports for the Press Democrat on the legal problems facing Truett-Hurst. As shares for the company hover at low penny stock levels, it's a sobering reminder of how difficult the wine business can be.

E J Gallo increases its footprint in Napa Valley with the purchase of The Ranch Winery in St. Helena. 

John Fox, owner of Premier Cru, a wine retailer in Berkeley, California, amid numerous lawsuits and claims of running a Ponzi scheme, has closed his retail shops' doors and elected to continue business through online sales only. All of the bad press of late must have made it very uncomfortable for him and his staff to conduct business face to face with the public. If you have made purchases and would like to pick your wine up, you can still do so by making an appointment. 

This video may be as close as you can get to Champagne without visiting in person.

You left your saber at home, but you still want to show off to your friends. The guys at VinePair show that there's more than one way to open a bottle of bubbly.  

Wine of the Week:

2012 Clos de los Siete

 57% Malbec, 18% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Syrah and 2% Petit Verdot -  Opaque in the glass, aromas of black fruit, cocoa and spice, good concentration, smooth tannins and a long finish. Made by rock star winemaker Michel Rolland who collaborates with seven French partners at five different wineries in Argentina. An excellent value at $14 to $16. Break out the roasted meats and steaks.

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In September I had the pleasure of attending a Colors of Soave Master Class hosted by Master Sommelier Evan Goldstein and Giovanni Ponchia, at Nostra Spaghetteria in San Francisco. Having attended last year's Soave class I was keen on seeing what was to be learned at Soave 2.0. Evan ever the professional did not disappoint. This class focused on the soils and site differences in the Soave region. Having worked at several wineries in Northern Italy, Giovanni serves as an enologist and marketing ambassador for the Soave Consorzio Tutela. The Soave Consorzio's mission is to promote Soave wines.

In San Francisco there are typically only a few handful of days where the mercury approaches ninety plus and this was one of them. I could not think of a better way to spend a sizzling afternoon than sipping the wonderful Cru Soaves that were on hand. 

The Soave region twelve miles due east of Verona, in north eastern Italy,  with the hills of Valpolicella flanking its left shoulder and Cru vineyard names like Castelcerino, Casette Foscarin and Salvarenza leading the charge for quality, is making a legitimate call for being recognized as a top producer of white wines. When one talks of Cru Soave it's important to note you are referring to the hills of Soave and not the alluvial flatlands. These hillside vineyards range in elevation from 125 to 1,100 feet.    

Evan noted that Garganega based wines like Soave are very nuanced, and  "if you're looking for a wine of place, Soave can be a fire hydrant directly out of the terroir into your mouth".  The class started with a historical perspective of the Soave region and an explanation of the various types of soil that can be found throughout the region.  How the different soil types impacted the style of wines produced became very clear as we tasted the wines. In general one could say the calcareous limestone based soils yielded more linear, citric, floral and austere wines. I think these wines would age more quickly. Conversely wines from grapes grown in the volcanic red and black basalt soils were richer, thicker, oilier with more texture.   

We started with 2014 Latium Soave DOC "Campo le Calle". From alluvial based soil, 100% Garganega, 30 year old vines, 15 to 25% of the grapes are dried for 15 to 20 days. Pale gold color, aroma of hawthorn, fresh cut grass and citrus. On palate citrus and lemon with zippy acidity.  14% abv $20

2013 Vicentini Agostino Soave Superiore DOCG "Il Casale" is 100% Garganega from calcareous alluvial based soils from the hills of Colognola. Raised in stainless steel vats only, grassy lemon-lime aromas and flavors with a delicate acidity and finish.  13% abv $25

2013 Cantina di Soave Superiore Rocca Sveva DOCG Classico "Castelcerino"  80% Garganega 20% Trebbiano di Soave - A cooperative of 2,200 growers Cantina di Soave produces roughly one out of every two bottles of Soave sold. Rocca Sveva represents the high end of their portfolio.  The grapes are pergola trained therefore they are handpicked. Stratified calcareous rock soils, grapes from the top 100 best growers, the wine spends nine months in the tank before bottling. Gravity only, no pumps are used to move the wine. Light golden yellow color, with mineral, melon , pear and honey notes, bright and crisp   13% abv $20

2014 Marcato Soave DOC Classico "Monte Tenda" 80% Garganega, 20% Trebbiano di Soave from 11 year old vines, fermented and aged in stainless steel for 6-8 months. Light gold color, aroma of white flowers and yellow apples. On palate lemon citrus flavors with a light finish.  12.5 abv $18

2014 Cantina del Castello Soave Classico DOC "Pressoni" 80% Garganega 20% Trebbiano di Soave, clay-basaltic soil, raised in stainless steel, three months "sur lie", aged four months in the bottle before release.  A very engaging tropical nose of melons, papaya and peaches. More weight on the palate than the previous wines, vibrant acidity with a long finish. I'm still trying to find some of this for my wine stash, delicious.  13% abv $17

2012 Monte Tondo Soave DOC Classico "Casette Foscarin" 90% Garganega, 10% Trebbiano di Soave Operated by the 2nd and 3rd generation Magnabosco family harvested from 25 year old vines, tufaceous and basaltic soil. After primary fermentation aged in barriques and 5hl tonneau for about six months. Aged one year in bottle before release. An international style Soave for sure, with a vanilla, coconut and tropical fruit nose. Full bodied on the palate with a pleasing oily sensation, and a richly flavored, savory finish. This one will be hard to locate on retail, you're more likely to find it on restaurant wine lists. Don't hesitate to buy if you find it.  13.5% abv $29

2013 Gini Soave DOC Classico "La Frosca" 100% Garganega grown in basaltic rock and limestone, the Gini Brothers craft beautiful wines. Traditionalist the vines are trained by pergola rooted in basaltic rock and limestone. No sulfur additions in the winery with the wine spending at least 8 months on the yeast in stainless steel and barrique. A delicate green apple, pear and mineral nose. The extended oak aging seems to have only added a delightful depth and textural component to the wine while allowing the fruit to remain at center stage. On the palate persistent minerality and acidity, a tongue tingler. Very impressive now, this will be a good one to purchase and enjoy over the next decade.  Yes Soave can and does age well.  13% abv $25 

2014 Cantina di Monteforte Soave DOC Classico "Vicario" Cantina di Monteforte is a cooperative with around 600 growers.  100% Garganega, basaltic soils, partially barrel fermented, vibrant peach, pineapple profile, medium bodied with good concentration12.5% abv $12 At twelve bucks this a no brainer case buy. 

2014 I Stefanini Soave Superiore DOCG Classico "Monte di Fice"  100% Garganega grown in grey and black volcanic soils, fermented in stainless steel and resting on the lees for 9 months. A deep golden color, tropical aromas, mango, peach, medium bodied with low acidity.  13%abv $27

2014 Franchetto Soave DOC "La Capelina"  red basaltic based soils, 100% Garganega, straw color, white flowers and citrus aromas, juicy white peach fruit in the mouth, finishes crisp and mineral with good length.  12.5% abv $12

A tip of the hat to Limeng Stroh at Full Circle Wine Solutions, the staff at Nostra, Evan and Giovanni for putting together a fantastic event.  If you want some basic knowledge of the Soave region and wines, please review our previous podcast on Soave. Cheers!

2014 Ritual Pinot Noir Casa Blanca Valley, Chile 

Aromas of fresh red fruit, bing cherries and raspberries, with a good wack of vanilla, bright acidity and medium bodied. In the mouth juicyblack cherries and strawberriesIf you like a fruit forward, slightly sweet style of Pinot Noir - new world all the way -  this is your wine. A definite crowd pleaser made by winemaker Rodrigo Soto formally of Benziger in Sonoma. 10,000 cs $16 - $19

2013 Lazy Day Pinot Noir - Lazy Creek Vineyards

Medium body PInot.   Like the medium body with aromas of berry, plum and some licorice in the nose.   Cherry, spice ,and berry on the tongue.   Sustainably Farmed. $26 bottle.

2014 Tin Barn Gilsson Vineyard Zinfandel

Sourced from a 65 year old vineyard east of the town of Windsor in the Russian River Valley this Zinfandel smells like a black cherry pie with lots of vanilla and oak. In the mouth it's a fruit bomb, jammy, chewy and lip smacking good. Slick and sappy with mild tannins and a delicious, long savory finish. 20% new american oak 583 cs $25 - $29

 2011 Mas Des Dames La Dame 

Imported by Vintage 59 and farmed organically by Lidewij van Wilgen. AOC Coteaux Languedoc/ 20%Syrah, 50% Grenache, 30% Carignan.  On the nose, blackfruit, mulberry, earth, leather and herbs. On the palate blackberry, mineral and savory with a medium length finish. $16 - $18  

Guy Fieri is going into the wine business. As far as celebrity wines go he claims he's trying to keep a low profile, so you won't see his likeness or name on the front label. He elected to call the wines Hunt & Ryde in honor of his two sons Hunter and Ryder. The wines all reds for now will be available around Thanksgiving.   

The staff at Punch came up with a nice list of wines you might consider for your Thanksgiving dinner table.

Jon McDaniel offers some great suggestions on what type of wines to bring to the office, in-laws and neighborhood holiday parties.

Hard to believe but we have another winemaker accused of tax fraud and embezzlement. Christian Garvin is facing up to 52 years in prison if convicted.  The court sees him as a flight risk so if he makes bail they plan to hold onto his passport.

Stephanie Baker gives us the scoop on a secret underground wine vault that holds a cache worth $1.5 billion.

Thanks for listening and tell a friend about us. Cheers!

One of our favorite wine retailers K&L Wines in San Francisco has moved to a new and larger location.

In an article for Vogue, Jordan Salcito, beverage director for Momofuku restaurants, shares how her pregnancy has worked to her advantage.

Is the legalization of marijuana good for the wine business? Jeremy Parzen speculates whether the emerging marijuana business will follow the path of "Big Wine". 

The wine of the week is Arianna Occhipinti's 2014 Tami' Frappato. If you've never had a Frappato here's a chance for you to stretch your palate.  Arianna farms organically and uses the natural winemaking process with wild yeast fermentations. Medium garnet in color, the wine offers up a fresh clean aroma of red berries , with a hint of smoke. I kept sticking my nose in the glass trying to figure out what was going on. As the wine opened up volcanic earth notes came into play. In the mouth it's smooth and balanced with a perfect play between the tannins and acids. Think cranberries and light cream. It's not a big wine, but it has perfect tension with good minerality, juicy fruit and spice. Arianna's Frappato would be right at home on your Thanksgiving table. 12.5% abv $13 - $16

Thanks for listening and tell a friend. Cheers!

I had the good fortune of attending the 12th annual Wine & Spirits top 100 tasting in San Francisco on Tuesday October 20, 2015. I'm not sure why I haven't made time to attend this event in the past, but it's already on my calendar for 2016 and I've already invited some friends. Held at City View Metreon in downtown San Francisco, the event featured fabulous wines with the winemakers at your disposal and top local chefs trying to outdo each other,  offering some incredible food. Freshly shucked Hog Island Oysters and 2002 Bollinger Champagne R. D. Extra Brut to start and it got better from there. Certainly one of the most well curated wine tastings I have attended.  

French fashion house Chanel has entered the wine business in the U. S. with its purchase of St. Supery Winery in Napa Valley. 

Diageo is cutting its holdings in the wine industry and Treasury Wine Estates is looking to bulk up its wine portfolio. Who will end up with Chalone Vineyard?

We end this podcast with a few stories about dumb criminals. These guys must be the only people in the world that don't realize that cameras are everywhere.

As always thanks for listening and tell a friend. Cheers!

German agri-chemical giant Bayer has acknowledged that one of its products sold throughout Europe has caused stunted development of the berries for certain wine growers. Although the cause has yet to be determined Bayer is already taking steps to compensate growers that have suffered losses.  

Danny Meyer wants to change the way employees are compensated at his thirteen full service restaurants. The most controversial part of his plan is the elimination of tipping.  Aimed at equalizing the pay differences in restaurants, between the front and the back of the house and addressing pending mandatory minimum wage price increases being proposed in the legislature, his move to emulate the European modelfor fine dining sans tipping, will have lots of restaurant owners and workers watching closely. In a very detailed piece for New York Eater, Ryan Sutton examines the pros and cons of Mr. Meyer's altruism.  

Joey Casco posted a blog titled 'The Harsh, Drunken Truth on Wine Trade Tastings'. He includes a personal story that is well, let's just say very sobering. Bill and I use his blog as a springboard to offer some additional tips on how to survive a wine tasting.  

The wine of the week is Luciano Saetti's 2014 Vigneto Saetti Lambrusco Salamino. Luciano farms organically and crafts his wines without the addition of sulphites. The color is medium garnet and shows a beautiful pink froth when poured. Aromas of black cherry, plum and a hint of cola are evident on the palate as well. Perfect acidity and balance its bone dry. 12% abv - Pair this lovely Lambrusco with charcuterie, your favorite cheeses, lasagna, pizza and Italian sausages.  $19 - $20

Thanks for listening and tell a friend. Cheers!

Paul Prudhomme a legend in Cajun and Creole cuisine has died. Daniela Galarza profiles the accomplishments of one of America's first celebrity chefs. Prudhomme is credited with trade marking Turducken, a dish  that always graced the Thanksgiving table of NFL commentator John Madden. Be sure to check out the video of Paul explaining the essence of a southern favorite Red Beans and Rice.

Jane Anson reports that Bordeaux grape growers are planting hedges around vineyards in a effort to limit pesticide drift near schools and sports fields.

Suzanne Mustacich writes a piece for the Wine Spectator detailing how serious the problem of counterfeiting wine has become in China. The estimate of the amount of counterfeits is astonishing.

In California, two wine collectors have filed lawsuits against an established wine retailer, claiming they failed to deliver on wines purchased years ago. Peter Hellman gives a good overview of the disagreement.

Two former employees of Donkey & Goat Winery a boutique producer in Berkeley, Ca. , are facing charges of embezzlement totaling over $70,000. Frances Dinkelspiel details the allegations they face and also gives examples of other recent wine crimes.

Steve Heimoff interviews Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom. They discuss wine, homelessness and the gig economy. This is part II of a three part series. All three parts are worthy reads.

Our white wine recommendation this week is the 2012 Monte Tondo Soave Classico. This vintage may be hard to locate because the current offering is from 2013. Any wine can age, but does it age well or better yet  improve is the question? The 2012 offering from Monte Tondo is a wonderful sipper to usher in autumn. Pear and honeyed lemon aromas are complimented by juicy pear and peach flavors on the palate. The finish is of medium length and very smooth . This Soave has indeed aged well.  Soave works well with appetizers, fried foods, vegetables and pasta dishes with lightly flavored sauces. 12.5% alc $15 -$17

If you're looking for a nice bottle of Malbec don't miss out on the 2012 Bodegas Colome. Opaque in the glass with a blueberry, boysenberry, baking spice nose. On palate more red fruits, cocoa, fig and spice. Firmly tannic and slightly chewy this wine calls for steak and boldly flavored meat dishes. 14.5% alc $17 - $20

Thank you for listening and tell a friend about us. Cheers! 

Blue Morph based out of the East Bay has developed a waterless tank sanitizing system that uses advanced short-wave ultraviolet ray technology. A unit has already been installed at one of the Jackson Family Wine production facilities in Santa Rosa, Ca., where Julien Gervreau senior sustainability managerestimates 250,000 gallons a year could be saved at each JFW facility that uses the technology.  

Vijay Singh a biochemical engineer has created a new fermentation device that cuts down on water usage and the manual labor associated with winemaking. Dana Nigro provides some of the details in a piece for Wine Spectator.

A high speed railway proposed for Sauternes has vintners in the area anxious. More troubling than that are concerns over higher than normal rates of cancer in small children in the same area.

Jeremy Parzen has been doing a great job of keeping us up to date on the latest wine adulteration scandal in Italy. The scandal has prompted the editors of the 2016 Gambero Rosso to suspend some Frulian producers of Sauvignon Blanc from their list of Tre Bicchieri.   

Fresh off the sale of her successfulJ Vineyard and Winery, Judy Jordan is making an investment in Oregon viticulture. Instead of getting out of the wine business it looks like she's just changing business addresses.  

If you're wondering what to get that special wine lover in your life for Christmas here it is. Coravin has just introduced their second generation model.

Thanks for listening and tell a friend about us. Cheers!

Amazon has started selling beer, Champagne, wine and spirits in France.  While I'm still not sure it's for real, Burger King looks to be giving away wine to celebrate its four decades of business in Spain. Starbuck's is no longer just a place to get your morning caffeine jolt.  Elin McCoy checks our their new evening program of adult beverages and small plates.  The trend of fast food joints offering wine to go with your meals continues to expand.

Writing for Business Insider Libby Kane asks Jorn Kleinhans, owner of The Sommelier Company, to recommend ten words to look for on wines under $25 dollars. It's a good read with lots of good information.

Whether you're looking for a new way to open a bottle of wine or a way to treat those pesky red wine stains, 14 simple hacks every wine drinker should know is bound to give you a few new ideas.

If you haven't heard Bill and I get on our soapbox and talk about the importance of serving wine at the proper temperature, here we go again.  This time we have a little help from the folks at Tablas Creek, who issued a re-post on said subject to help hammer the point home.

This week'swine recommendation hails from Cantina Tramin of northern Italy. For some of you this may be drinking out of your comfort zone, but it's textbook Gewurztraminer. If you're a Gewurztraminer fan put this one on your bucket list.

Thanks for listening and tell your fellow wino friends about us. Cheers!

Costco heir David Sinegal acknowledges that he loves,  "the art and act of making things that are unique and special".  Elin McCoy shares what he's doing with his new venture Sinegal Estate in Napa Valley.

Have you tried wine from a keg yet? Adam Teeter writes an article about the recent phenomenon of wine on tap. It a good jumping off point for Bill and I as we discuss the pros and cons of restaurants serving wine on tap.

Do you buy wine online? How do you know its been handled properly during transport? In Entrepreneur Magazine Tracy Byrnes offers some tips on precautions you should take when shipping wine.

Sarika Chawla writes a post about the newest way to tour wine country in SoCal. If you're a tech savvy traveler this is right up your alley.

We had a terrible wildfire in Lake County, California which is just north of Napa Valley. If you would like to help those in need here are some links.

Is there more consolidation in the future for breweries? It seems almost certain. We also have a quick update on the Napa Wine Train fiasco.

Thanks for listening and tell a fellow wino about us. Cheers!

W. Blake Gray finds an intern working at a Napa Valley winery to explain what one does in a winery at harvest time. The mystery writer, fresh out of a four year program of viticulture and enology with several harvests under his belt, already seems to have a fairly good grasp of how the wine business works. It's a good read.

The Sonoma County Wine Auction set a new record this year. All the proceeds go to charity and in this article by Peg Melnik you can see who the big spenders were.

Cynthia Sewell writes an article about wine exclusives in the state of Idaho and asks, "Are Idaho Officials Enforcing the Rules?".

Over the last few months we've seen some consolidation in the wine business.  Now it seems as though we may start seeing consolidation in the beer business. Bill Swindell reports for the Press Democrat on the Lagunitas, Heineken partnership.  Bill and I kick around a few ideas on what this partnership could mean for the craft beer business.

Thanks for listening and tell a fellow wino about us. Cheers!

If it seems like the frequency of counterfeiting, embezzlement, data breaches and fraud have been increasing in the world of wine, it's because it has.  Fighting crime will be the major focus of the 24th annual Wine Industry Financial Symposium to be held Sept. 21-22 in Napa.  This Symposium will provide an excellent opportunity for individuals in the business to learn ways to avoid some of the accounting pitfalls of running a small business.  Traditionally small wineries haven't used  trust and verify style management to run the financial side of their businesses.  The Symposium will feature a panel of crime experts that can help  you start a program to better secure your business from criminals.  If you're in the wine business,  you can't afford not to be there. 

The "Sherlock Holmes of Wine", Maureen Downey has announced the launch of WINEFRAUD.com.  It's being touted as a resource for buyers, producers and vendors of fine wines.  As such winefraud.comoffers several membership levels geared toward consumers of wine and trade professionals.  Maureen's record as a defender for consumers against wine fraud is well documented.  She was a major player in helping solve the case against Rudy Kurniawan, the notorious wine counterfeiter, now serving a ten year prison sentence in Southern California.

The incident involving eleven women belonging to the Sistahs of the Reading Edge Book Club being booted off the Napa Valley Wine Train, blew up on social media after wine train principals posted a defense of their actions on facebook.  As it turns out the ladies were more than just bookworms and their use of social media platforms facebook, periscope and twitter - #laughingwhileblack, helped fuel lively public discussions in the bay area and beyond.  Is this a case of a clash of cultures or latent racism cloaked by elitism?  We weren't there so we couldn't possibly identify the cause.   The story is multilayered and while its potential impact on tourism in Napa Valley can't be measured - it doesn't look good.  The Wine Train's CEO Anthony Giaccio, days later issued what appeared to be a genuine mea culpa to the book club members and invited them back for a do over.   He asked them to bring 39 more family members and friends, enough to fill up an entire car as his personal guests.  For now his appeal has fallen on deaf ears.  The Book Club has hired civil rights lawyer Waukeen McCoy to represent them in a five million dollar lawsuit claiming 'Malicious Oppression'.  If you've driven up Highway 29 through Napa Valley you have no doubt seen the signs that say 'no limousines or no tour buses'.  That's certainly one way to avoid the hassle of having to deal with large groups of tourist.  Companies in the hospitality business  in wine country should take notice and review your policies regarding how you deal with larger groups of people visiting your venues. 

What's the ideal temperature to serve your red wines?  Matthew DeBord pens a good article about how to get the best flavors out of your wine and Bill and I go on a rant about poor wine and food service in the restaurant business.  Vic Poulos offers some advice as well on how to care for your wines before you drink them.  The bottom line heat is the enemy, so treat your wines like your perishable groceries and you'll get the best results.

Speaking of heat, its been hot and dry in Washington this summer and wildfires throughout the state have some farmers and vintners wondering if their grapes might be smoke tainted.  Grape samples can be sent to external labs that can check for traces of smoke taint.  Getting that information before you take on the expense of processing the grapes seems like a no brainer, because wines made with smoke tainted grapes can offer some unflattering flavors, that become more pronounced as the wine ages. 

Have you ever tasted a natural wine?  Perhaps you've had one but didn't know it.  Natural Wine Bars that sport "Hippie Juice" a pejorative, have been gaining  popularity in Europe and now a few entrepreneurs are attempting to carve out a market in the U. S.   Check out this article 'You Make Me FeelLike a Natural Wine' to learn more and find a few examples of some natural wines you might try.

Thanks to all for listening and tell a fellow wino about us.  Cheers!   

After selling his wildly successful Meomi wine brand to Constellation Brand Inc. Joseph Wagner is looking to the Oregon frontier to create his next super brand.   At the ripe young age of 33 this entrepreneur is making his presence known on the west coast.  Elsewhere in Oregon, Willamette Valley Vineyards has tendered an offer of preferred stock to wine enthusiasts.   They plan to build two small production wineries in the Eola Hills and Walla Walla AVAs.   A posting on Jim's Loire blog wonders why Tim Atkins and Ron Washam's dispute with Georg Riedel was settled so quickly; whereas Jayne Powell - aka Champagne Jayne'scase, with the Le Comite Interprofessionnel du vin de Champagne seems to be stuck in a legal limbo that has her facing financial ruin.  The famed French wine regions of Burgundy and Champagne have been recently added to Unesco's world heritage listing.  Laurent Fabius, the country's foreign minister is making plans to promote more tourism in these wine regions.   The piece written by Laurence Girard for The Guardian conversely ends by taking a cheap shot at Napa Valley for the success of its tourism model.  Madison Wade reports for KRCRTV, on the owners ofButter Creek Ranch Winery in Trinity County California having to declare their entire crop for 2015 a loss, because of the smoke and ash from fires this summer.  Sadly they suffered the same fate as recently as 2008.  We can already see the legal lawsuits lining up regarding the "world's first" commercially distributed cannabis infused beer due to hit the market this fall.  If your employer requires periodic or random drug tests you'll want to avoid these products as we're pretty sure you'll test positive on a culture panel.  Owner Mason "Dude" says, "Like the cannabis product, we recommend taking our double IPA in small amounts… it’s a big beer, and a dab will do ya”.  Our wine recommendation, an organic beauty, comes from the French Rhone Valley.  That's all for this week.  Thanks for listening and cheers.                 

Boston startup Kuvee has assembleda group of techie scholars, entrepreneurs and venture capitalist in order to go into the wine preservation business.  Their idea "a convenience play - drink what you want, it stays fresh, and reorder easily.", appears to have merit.   The product is due to launch this fall sostay tuned.   Gargantuan wine, which is rapidly becoming one of our favorite reads, offers us up some well deserved criticism for restaurant owners and chefs.  The post Four Mistakes Every Restaurant Makes exposes those faults and then proposes some simple solutions to correct them.  After reading the article I'll certainly pay more attention to my hand washing ritual before dining.  What do Celebrity chefs, Mexican immigrants and the Food Network have in common and why are chefs so concerned about their symbiotic link?  Roberto Ferdman pens a post for the Washington Post about what may be going on behind the kitchen doors of your favorite restaurant.  David Marcus explains how many wineries are moving away from traditional sales channels for moving their goods and are making a play for increasing direct to consumer sales, in order to increase their margins.  Brand building and connecting with Silicon Valley entrepreneurs seems like a natural fit.  Joseph Phelps Vineyards, Odette Estate Winery and Starmont Winery have recently opened new hospitality centers.  If you have plans to visit Napa Valley put one of these venues on your list of destinations.  Gerilee Densberger, the former bookkeeper of Whitehall Lane Winery in St. Helena, Ca. has been sentenced to nine years in prison for stealing close to $700,000 over a five year period.  We discuss these stories and a few more on this week's edition of VinoWeek.  Thanks for listening and cheers!        

Which two wine companies own half of the wine brands on the top 20 list for off premise sales?  Here's a hint; one is publicly traded the other is not.  Blockbuster brand Meomi was just purchased by Constellation Brands Inc, the latest in a frenzy of acquisitions being made by some big players in the wine business.  Steve Heimoff wonders who got the better end of the deal.  Why would anyone want to hack a winery?  Rob McMillan pens a in-depth article about the Payment Card Industry, with respect to the wine trade and explores topics any consumer that shops using e business should be aware.  Vindu Goel reports in the New York Times that former winemaker and vineyard manager Jeffry James Hill plead no contest to charges of misrepresenting the origin of wines he sold to his clients and other winemakers.  He's out of the wine business and awaiting sentencing.  As always thanks for listening and tell a friend.  Cheers!    

Week of July 12th through the 20th.

You're invited to a dinner party and you ask your hosts "What should I bring?".   It's an Italian themed affair, so they suggest you bring a bottle of Chianti (Key- awn- ti).  Chianti is the name of a large area between Florence and Siena, with seven subzones that surround the Chianti Classico zone in Tuscany Italy.  When Italians speak of "Classico" they are referring to the original or heart of an area. 

If you're unfamiliar with Chianti it's pretty easy to find entry level Chianti in the $7 to $12 range.  If you want a bottle with more power and fragrance you should search for a  Chianti Classico or a wine from one of the appended regions surrounding the classico zone such as Chianti Rufina (Roo- fee- nah) or Chianti Colli Senesi (Coh- lee Say- nah- zee).  Price points for these wines range between $12 and $25.  Next up in quality is Chianti Classico Riserva.   Riserva signifies that a wine has received extended aging in either wood, bottle or both.   Riservas typically represent the best that a producer has on offer and you can expect to spend between $20  and $40.  If this wasn't confusing enough the Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico members ratified new rule changes for Chianti Classico in 2013.  There is now a new classification for Chianti Classico: the Gran Selezione (Say- Lek- zee- on- eh). 

Chianti Classico Gran Selezione wines are just now coming onto the market and we were fortunate to be invited to the Chianti Classico trade walk around tasting on May 11th 2015, in the Crown Room at The Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco. 

Perched atop Nob Hill with breathtaking panoramic views, The Crown Room was a perfect venue for the premiere debut of the new Chianti Classico Grand Selezione wines.  Grand Selezione is being trumpeted as another tier at the top of the DOCG quality hierarchy.

 For a detailed primer on the regulations involving Chianti Classico click this link http://italianwinecentral.com/chianti-classico-gran-selezione/.  For a concise explanation of Chianti Classico with respect to its traditions and how its changed over the years pick up a copy of Matt Kramer's book; Making Sense of Italian Wine. 

What is Chianti Classico Gran Selezione?  The rules regarding the production of the various types of Chianti vary greatly.  Unfortunately, strict codification does not correlate in any way with whether the producers wine is good or not.  Albeit a good starting point, the ultimate proof of a wines worth isn't found in the classification but in the finished product.  The rules of production for Chianti Classico Gran Selezione call for estate grown fruit, 30 months minimum aging, 13% minimum alcohol content and certification by authorized laboratories and special tasting committees. On the surface it sounds great, but here's the rub.  Most quality Chianti Classico producers have been meeting these quality standards for years.   It seems that there isn't much to distinguish between a Gran Selezione or a Riserva Chianti Classico except the premium price one has to pay for the six months additional aging of the former.  Most of the Gran Selezione wines start in the $40 range with several producers pushing the envelope at $150.  Are the Gran Selezione Chianti Classico wines really that much better than the Chianti Classico Riservas we've been enjoying up till now?  Having just added  a bunch of wonderful 2010 Chianti Classico Riservas to my wine stash, none of which I paid more than $30 a bottle for, I can't help but wonder if this new category is an attempt to shake up the stagnant pricing for Chianti Classico?  Are there controls in place to stop a producer from sitting on their Riserva wines for an additional six months, then simply relabeling them and up-charging the consumer for the same wine?  This was a common practice in California back in the seventies and is the reason why in general the words 'Reserve' on a bottle of wine from the Golden State is essentially meaningless. When a producer markets a Gran Selezione, will that product by default declassify their  Riserva; denigrating its value?  How will this new category affect the other wines in a wineries portfolio?  That said, the overall quality of the wines we tasted were outstanding.

Most of the producers line-ups included their Chianti Classico, Chianti Classico Riserva and their Chianti Classico Gran Selezione.  One over-riding theme that kept coming up as I tasted the wines presented was that in general I preferred the Riserva and Chianti Classico wines.  Some of the producers may be trying too hard and the input from the winemaking side made the wines seem  too powerful.  They seemed to have the slap you side the head, look at me make up in their DNA.  Stunningly wonderful wines for sure, representing the best of the best and sure to reward careful, patient cellaring.   And to taste oh what a treat, but if I were choosing a bottle to take to a dinner party, a less ambitious Chianti Classico from a quality minded producer, with its gregarious nature, clarity of fruit and refreshing acidity would be more appropriate.  There's drinking wines and there are tasting wines and a fair number of the Gran Selezione wines as good as they are now fall into the latter category.

The conundrum  the Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico must deal with, is confusion in the marketplace.  The minimum grape variety requirement for Sangiovese Chianti Classico is 80%.  Many producers elect to make 100% Sangiovese wines, but the rules allow you to add up to 20% of indigenous varieties or international varieties such as Syrah, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.  In my opinion any of those varieties, particularly Cabernet Sauvignon added at those percentages, combined with over ambitious barrel aging hinders the delicate floral nature of Sangiovese.  From a consumer viewpoint three bottles side by side on a retailers shelf bearing the same Gran Selezione designation, could have strikingly different sensory profiles.  Chianti has always been a blended wine and it wasn't until as recently as 2006 that white grapes such as Trebbiano and Malvasia were eliminated from the prescribed blend.  This myriad of choices for blending only serves to baffle the consumer.  Most producers decided to stay at the 10% and below line if they elected to include Cabernet Sauvignon in their blend.  The wines on offer were well blended and I could not detect any out of balance wines with regard to varietal correctness.  In fact I was surprised to discover after tasting Fontodi's Vigna del Sorbo that it only included 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, having mistaken it's wound tight, firm backbone on initial tasting for a wine that sported a healthy dose of Cabernet.       

There were several producers at the event who candidly disclosed  they were in favor of the Consorzio adopting a 100% Sangiovese disipline, similar to the regulations observed by their neighbors to the south, in the region of Brunello di Montalcino.  Their sentiment has merit.  What brand Brunello di Montalcino has achieved in less than fifty years with regard to prestige and pricing is remarkable.  Whether Brunello's notoriety is a result of excluding any complimentary grapes from the wine is up for debate, but it does offer the consumer (discounting recent scandals) a greater surety of the type of wine they can expect when they make a purchase.              

At this point I have more questions than answers, but I must reiterate the new Gran Selezione wines are high-quality cellar candidates.  These are statement wines of power and panache.  Try as many of the 2010's and 2011's as you can afford and please leave a comment letting  us know what you discover.  Almost half of my recommended wines have not made it to retailers yet, so while you're waiting the smart money is on the excellent and reasonably priced Chianti Classico Riservas from the 2010 and 2011 vintage.  As with any new classification there is always room for refinement and as the dust settles and  we see more of the wines come onto the market, we'll get more of a sense of where the Gran Selezione category is headed.  Grazie Mille to the Consorzio and its producers for hosting the event.

Stay tuned for our Recommendations!   

On this week's VinoWeek podcast we discuss Jeff Siegel's article on the premiumization of wine.  Are consumers really trading up for more expensive wines?  Locally here in wine country we have our legislators making an effort to fix something that doesn't seem to be broken.  Derek Moore pens an interesting post on the legal limbo which barbers and beauty salon owners are finding themselves.  Lake County, Napa north if you will, has been discovered and is gaining more recognition for its microclimates and its rich red volcanic based soils.  If your'e a music lover, a foodie and a wine lover hurry up and get your tickets for Bottle Rock Napa 2015.  The entertainment line-up looks great and the food, beer and wine choices on offer will be spectacular.  We touch on  some more local politics involving the newly proposed Dairyman Winery and a change in ownership of one of the top wine retail destinations for wine lovers in Sonoma County.  We are holding our breath and hoping that the new owner doesn't make any drastic changes to the Bottle Barn.  Christopher Barnes writes and article for Grape Collective, highlighting ViniVeri and Giampiero Bea's philosophy on natural winemaking.  We hope you enjoy the podcast and learn a few things as well.  If you like what you hear, be social and tell a friend.  Thanks for listening and cheers!  

I first became acquainted with the wines of Fausto Albanesi  by happenstance.  I was purchasing wine from an online provider and I was short three bottles to fill out my order.  As I browsed through their offerings his 2010 base bottling of Montepulciano D' Abruzzo caught my eye, so I filled out the order with them.  I picked the wine because  I was familiar with the soft, full of fruit, mildly tannic wines that could be made from that grape.  In fact most Montepulciano D' Abruzzo can always be counted on for modest pricing and good quality.  Upon trying Torre Dei Beati's Montepulciano, to say that I was surprised with the purity and clean expression the wine showed would be an understatement.  We tried another bottle a few weeks later with a spicy ragout over pappardelle.  This served to confirm that we had found a diamond in the rough, so we anted up and purchased another six pack for the wine stash. 

Fast forward to this year's Gambero Rosso, San Francisco and Torre Dei Beati wines were on our list of wines to try.  Fausto's wines have garnered many awards for excellence over the years and his "Cocciapazza" cru Montepulciano is a perennial three glass award winner at Gambero Rosso.   Some producers for various reasons may not attend the tasting and they have the distributor representatives show the wines.  Those producers that choose to make the trip have taken on a substantial financial commitment.  Larger producers with a vast network of distribution in the United States always have a line of people two or three deep.  Sometimes there can be a herd mentality at these tastings, so finding an under the radar winery that makes very fine wines, that others aren't knocking each other out to try can be rewarding.  This strategy is as simple as looking where others don't and seeking out unfamiliar grape varieties.  The line at Fausto's table was short and it worked to our advantage as we got to spend several minutes discussing his business.  Fausto's warmth and generosity with his time was unforgettable.

Fausto and his family live in the hilly town of Loreto Aprutino, a small village of about 4,000 people near the Gran Sasso mountains, about 25 kilometers from the Adriatic coastline.  He first met his wife Adrianna at Vinitaly, the Italian Wine Exposition held every spring in Verona.   Their wine estate is near an area called Coccia Pazza, which in Italian Abruzzo dialect means crazyhead.  His next door neighbors, the mythical estate of Eduardo Valentini , forge wines that command unbelievable sums of cash.  Fortunately for us we don't have to spend eye popping amounts of money to experience Fausto's wines.  Torre Dei Beati wines are imported into the states, but you won't find them at big box stores or chains; look to a small specialty wine retailer to acquire them.  Cerasuolo, Trebbiano D' Abruzzo and Pecorino are wines that you may not be familiar with, but you need to try these wines to experience their purity and sense of place.  These and his entry level Montepulciano all retail in the $15 to $20 dollar range and are well worth the search.  His top tier Mazzamurello and Cocciapazza wines start at $35.   

Join us as we find out more about Fausto and the wines of Torre Dei Beati, why he's chosen to farm organically from the outset and what makes his wines so special.  Thanks for listening.  Cheers!

Recently we visited the  Allegrini estate in the commune of Fumane, located in the heart of Valpolicella.  The Valpolicella  Classico region is in northeastern Italy, east of Lake Garda and northwest of Verona with the Lessini Mountains to the north.   Being a closet Valpolicella fan, to say that I was in my element would be a huge understatement.  One could easily debate the merits of old world wine versus new world wines but one central idea that cannot be debated at least not seriously:  the type of wines they make in the special and unique hills of Valpolicella Classico can't be made anywhere else in the world.  

Our guide for our visit was Sales Manager Massimo Bernardi.  A graduate student of economics and a reformed entrepreneur, Massimo's warmth and his ardor for his vocation were energizing.  He affirmed our measurement by stating, " I'm a very lucky man because I've chosen my job.  Working in the wine world without passion and enthusiasm for me is impossible".  He escorted us as we toured the cellars, the drying facility and Villa Della Torre. 

The Allegrini operation is sizable.  One gets the feeling as you tour the three different sites where their operations are carried out, that they are bursting at the seams.  Look carefully though and you can see that this family owned business has very thoughtful and deliberate caretakers at the helm.  The Allegrini's own all 247 acres of the vineyards they farm so that they can control the quality of the grapes.  All of their vineyards are up in the hills.  These hillside locations, at between a 800 to 1,600 foot elevation provide good drainage, proper sunlight and wind for good healthy grapes.  Allegrini produces about 83,333 cases of wine. 

They produce  a  Recioto della Valpolicella Classico D.O.C.G. wine that is named in honor of the founder Giovanni  Allegrini and three D.O.C. wines, Soave, Valpolicella Classico and Amarone della Valpolicella Classico.  Departing from traditional blends in order to make another tier of complex and refined wines they make three single vineyard I.G.T. Veronese wines, Palazzo Della Torre, La Grola and La Poja.  The three latter wines may not have the pedigree that is inferred by the D.O.C. designation on their labels, but the wines are excellent examples of the type of quality and purity that can be coaxed out of grapes grown in the Veronese hills.   Allegrini is a benchmark producer of Amarone, a wine made from dried grapes that are fermented until there is no residual sugar left.  Amarone is a big wine, often over 15 % abv but when well made it can show incredible elegance and charm. 

Our tour began in the original cellar and it's here where we learned that the Allegrini familly has played an important role in Veronese wine culture since the sixteenth century.   The cellar has some of the original wood vessels that are still being used for blending the wines.  We noticed  lots of new french barriques also, a sign of a departure from traditional cask ageing in large wooden vessels ( botte ).            

 Contemporary winemaking and viticulture was spearheaded by Giovanni Allegrini.   He challenged conventional farming and chose to purchase and cultivate single vineyard "cru wines" (a vineyard that produces a high quality wine) from unfarmed plots on hillsides and pioneered increased vine density in the vineyard and guyot training to replace the pergola veronese training which is still very prominent in the Valpolicella zone.  When Giovanni  passed away in 1983 his three children Walter, Marilisa and Franco took over the company.  Giovanni's eldest son Walter passed on in 2003 and now the company is run by Franco who heads the winemaking operations and Marilisa who is responsible for sales and marketing.  Recently Allegrini switched  importers and now the brand is handled in the U.S. market exclusively by E. & J. Gallo Winery. 

Upon completing our tour of the cellar and bottling room we took a short drive to Centro Terre di Fumane, their drying facility.  Terre di Fumane is an association of eight wineries of which Franco Allegrini  is the president.  The facility was the first of its kind and was built in 1990.  Fifteen hundred years of drying history have lead to this innovative operation.  Specially selected grape bunches of  Corvina Veronese, Rondinella and Oseleta are dried at this facility and used in the production of Allegrini's  Amarone, Recioto and Palazzo della Torre wines.  One would think the appassimento process (drying of the grapes) would be the easiest part of winemaking, however it's actually one of the most delicate phases of the operation.  During appassimento, 100 to 120 days, the grapes lose 40 to 50 percent of their weight.  Many of Amarones' most noteworthy producers place their grapes for drying on wooden trays or bamboo racks in open air lofts.  While this may be more romantic it's not very practical if your goal is to have a botrytis-free grape at the end of the drying process.  Some winemakers consider a little botrytis fungus beneficial to the finished wine but  at Allegrini  humidity and botrytis are the enemy.  At Terre di Fumane the grapes are laid out in plastic bins which are easy to wash and sanitize.  The building is equipped with an elaborate ventilation system that helps to prevent botrytis development during the critical first few days of the drying regimen.  At its core this cutting-edge mentality is a hallmark of the Allegrini business model.  They respect the past, what those that have come before them have done and they are constantly striving to preserve historically important parts of the wine culture in Veneto, yet they're unafraid to break new ground and use science and technology to increase their odds of making better wines.

 Twenty-five years ago Valpolicella producers were hard pressed to sell the 1.5 million bottles of Amarone that were made annually.  That's no longer the case.  Consumer thirst for big flavored, fruit forward wines has spurned a turnaround in the zone.  When I asked Massimo why does it seem like there is so much more ripasso styled wine in the marketplace these days?  He replied, " Because we have increased the production of Amarone.  We need the skins of  Amarone to make it.  Think about this number.  Amarone production eight years ago was four million bottles and today it is sixteen million bottles.  This is very dangerous".  I didn't ask Massimo a follow up question but my hunch is that he's concerned that this rapid expansion in Valpolicella  could have some unintended consequences.  One needn't feel uneasy about the prospect of overproduction because  an association consisting of twelve historical Amarone Families was recently formed to protect the tradition, production standards, quality, and pricing of Amarone.  Marilisa Allegrini serves as the current president of Amarone Families.  The Amarone families distinctive hologram on a bottle of Amarone is the mark of an authentic,  high quality wine.

We left the drying facility and drove over to Villa della Torre.  Della Torre is a surname and the villas first owner was Giulio della Torre.  Construction was finished around 1560.  The Allegrini's are the 27th owners of the residence which they purchased in 2008.  The Palazzo Della Torre vineyard, planted in 1968  surrounds the villa.  The villa structure is centered around a courtyard with a fountain as its focal point.  From here if you head in the direction of the village you'll discover fish ponds and a beautiful lawn area that is used for concerts in the summer.  The villa has a bell tower, a mystery cave, chapel, state of the art kitchen and some incredible gargoyle adorned fireplaces.  To learn more about Villa Della Torre's history or to book a visit click this link. http://www.villadellatorre.it/en/index.php  

We concluded our visit with a tasting of some of the estates current releases.

2013 Valpolicella Classico  -   65% Covina Veronese, 30% Rondinella and 5% Molinara  -   This wine is fermented and aged in stainless steel tanks and spends two months in bottle before it's released.  Crafted in the traditional style delightful aromas of red cherries and violets jump out of the glass.  In the mouth you receive more red cherries and a very pleasing juiciness, complimented by some firm acidity and freshness.  Medium bodied with a hint of pepper spice on the finish this Valpolicella is charming and would pair well with salumi and cheeses, soups, tomato sauced pastas and grilled chicken.   12.9% abv $13 - $15   

2011 Palazzo della Torre Veronese I.G.T.   -  70% Corvina Veronese, 25% Rondinella and 5% Sangiovese  -  Allegrini's Pallazzo della Torre is a tribute to what wine insiders refer to  as a 'Baby Amarone' or a ripasso styled wine.  The vineyards for this wine surround the villa.  In crafting the wine they use the whole bunch of the dried grapes (30% of the blend), not just the pomace or skins as you would for a typical ripasso wine.  It's a subtle but important distinction in the winemaking process, as I believe this one step is what gives the wine its extraordinary richness, complexity and depth of flavors.  The remaining 70% of wine is made from fresh grapes.  The wine spends about 18 months in first and second use barriques and seven months in  bottle before release.  A deep ruby color with aromas of black cherries and black plum, baking spice and that characteristic dried raisin character ( from the appassimento process) are followed with more of the same on the palate.  Medium bodied the wine is held together with soft round tannins and just the right amount of oak.  This wine pairs well with charcuterie, lasagna and a variety of richer flavored pasta dishes.  Try it with grilled or roasted meats.  We tasted the 2011 which is not on the market yet, but the 2010 which has the same flavor profile is currently available.  A textbook example of ripasso styled wine I always have a vintage or two of Palazzo della Torre in my wine stash.  You should too.  Even though ready to drink upon offer, a testament to how well it's made is that it ages extremely well.  At such a reasonable price point one could easily justify buying a case and drinking it over a number of years to see what pleasure it brings with bottle age.  13.8% abv 20,833 cases produced $16 - $18    

2011 La Grola Veronese I.G. T.   -  80% Corvina Veronese, 10% Oseleta and 10% Syrah  -  The La Grola vineyard was first planted in 1979 and the Syrah planting was the first of its kind in the region.   The vines are guyot vertical-trellis trained as well, revolutionary thinking for that time period.  Perched on a picturesque hilltop site with southeastern exposure in the town of Sant'Ambrogio,  at about 984 ft elevation, La Grola's 74 acre plot is densely planted to approximately  1700 vines per acre.  Long considered a top cru Massimo offered, " La Grola I think because I live here, is the most beautiful vineyard in all of Valpolicella".  The wine is made entirely from fresh grapes and is probably one of the best examples of the character of Corvina.  In the glass showing aromas of lavender, roses, red cherry  and raspberry  the wine turns more angular in its focus, on the palate.  Definitely in its infancy there's good concentration,  but it's a more brooding style, full bodied with rich cherry notes,  hints of cocoa and anise, very good acids and a medium length elegant finish.  It's  fresh and clean and I'm convinced it would have shown even better with more time in the glass.  The wine spends 16 months in barrique and 10 months in bottle.  At the table La Grola calls for grilled meats.  Try it with grilled sausages and portabella mushrooms or a beef stew.  13.7% abv 20,833 cases produced $30 - $34

2009 Amarone Classico  -  80% Corvina Veronese, 15% Rondinella and 5% Oseleta  -  Hand harvested grape bunches are collected from various hillside sites throughout Valpolicella Classico for their Amarone.  The grape bunches are dried for three to four months and then pressed and fermented in January.  The wine spends about 18 months in a combination of new and second passage oak.  The most striking feature of this wine is its impeccable balance.  Quite amazing when you consider its 15.8% alcohol content.  Refined for over four years before release the nose displays black cherry, clove, chocolate,fig and spice.  Not at all a hammer the wine is seamlessly structured, showing great depth of fruit with ideal acidity and well integrated tannins and wood flavors.  Staying in character with the other wines in the portfolio it still exhibits freshness on its long velvety finish.  Allegrini's Amarone is a perennial top award winner in many well established wine publications and with good reason.  It's providing so much drinking pleasure already I can't help but wonder how many bottles will be put aside for aging by consumers.  If you have never tried an Amarone this would be an excellent introduction to the power, richness and complex flavors that it can offer.  Drinkable enough to have on its own; it's that good, you should try it with a plate of dried nuts and Gorgonzola.  Charcoal grilled steaks and richly seasoned beef stews would be good pairings too.  You can find Amarone style wines in discount stores priced around $15.  Avoid them like the plague.  They are what their price suggests, cheap nockoffs.  The higher labor cost in the production of Amarone makes it a more costly wine.  Prices for good Amarone start around $30 and can escalate to over $300 a bottle for certain noted producers, but here's where Allegrini excels.  Their Amarone has a broad market presence and at $65 to $75 the pedigree and price to quality ratio of their wine is unquestionable.  10,416 cases produced

2010 Giovanni Allegrini Recioto Valpolicella Classico  -  80% Corvina Veronese, 15% Rondinella and 5% Oseleta  -  The grape bunches are dried until they have lost about half of their original weight.  Then the grapes are destemmed,  crushed and fermented in stainless steel tanks for 25 days with a daily pump over regimen.  The fermentation stops naturally leaving a residual sugar of 118 g/l.  The wine spends 14 months in french oak barriques.  This dessert wine is available in a 500ml format bottle.  It's dark purple in color with an intense black cherry jam and baking spice nose.  It's sweet but not cloying exhibiting good zip and acidity on the palate, ending with a long satisfying finish.  A great way to end a meal this wine can be easily enjoyed on its own, but if you must, try it with your favorite chocolate torte or biscotti.  $54 - $62 500ml

Heartfelt thanks to Lael Hazan on twitter @educatedpalate and Flavia Antonini with Allegrini Hospitality who helped coordinate our visit.  And to Massimo Bernardi, hai ragione il mio amico, "with wine you are always a friend". 

 If you're ever near Verona, we highly recommend you set aside some time to visit Villa Della Torre.  It's a first-class experience. 

Cheers!

Since its inception  Field Stone Winery has been completely family owned and operated.  Wallace Johnson purchased the property in southern Alexander Valley , 750 acres in 1958 and named it Redwood Ranch.  When he purchased the property Alexander Valley was best known for grazing, fruit, fodder crops and prunes.  Yes , prunes were the top commercial agricultural crop for the area up until the early seventies.  In fact Healdsburg the hub of the area was once known as the "The Buckle of the Prune Belt".  Even when you travel through the valley today you can still see vestiges of old prune orchards  dotting the landscape.  

In the late 1960's Robert Young and other prune farmers in the area started experimenting with grape growing as it seemed it might turn out to be more profitable.  Fast forward to the present and wine grapes are now the number one cash crop in Alexander Valley.  

Wally's original intent was to use the ranch to raise cattle and plant vineyards to be used as a testing ground for his mechanical grape harvesting machine.  Ironically the Statens no longer use Wally's patented harvester,  but the neighboring ranchers at Rio Largo use a French-made mechanical harvester to harvest their grapes which they sell to Jordan, Kendall-Jackson and Girard Winery in Napa Valley.  Wally was very serious about his cattle and at one time he spent $100,000 to purchase a prized bull only to have it die a couple of years later.  

Wally graduated with honors from Cal Tech as a mechanical engineer.  Judging from the number of patents he held as a inventor, his business  and political achievements,  it's hard to imagine he had any time to sleep.  He served two terms as the last Republican Mayor of Berkeley California  from 1963 to 1971.  Wally thought long term and during his tenure as mayor  he fought Bay Area Rapid Transit board members and engineers over their plans to build the tracks in Berkeley between the stations above ground.  He believed that erecting elevated  tracks straight through the middle of town would spur a racial and ethnic divide in effect creating a right and wrong side of the tracks mentality.  In the end he prevailed convincing his political opponents and the tax payers to support a ballot initiative to increase taxes to cover the additional expense of having the tracks buried underground.  Wally also owned a successful business, Upright Scaffolding Inc., that built quality portable  aluminum scaffolding systems and one the first mechanical grape harvesters.  When you visit the winery you can see how he used his engineering knowledge to construct one of the first underground wineries since prohibition.  Wally passed away in 1979 a few years after his wineries construction had been completed.  

After Wally's death the ranch passed into the hands of his four children.  Of the four heirs his daughter Katrina and her husband John Staten were  the only ones that wanted to take on the responsibility of running the winery.  The property was divided up with the other three children receiving larger portions of the property while the Statens kept fifty acres and the winery.  The other three kids shortly sold their portion of the property to the Reed Family.  Today the Reeds farm about 350 acres of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon wine grapes.  

John Staten having spent some time on a sheep ranch in Texas was familiar with farm life, so when he found himself suddenly thrust with the responsibility of running a ranch, vineyards and a winery he embraced the opportunity.  Having earned a B.A. in history and philosophy from Stanford University he pursued studies in Theology, attending Princeton and The University of Chicago.  He applied his Ph. D. in Theology, spreading the word if you will, by heading  religion departments at several  colleges in Northern California.  John displayed keen insight or perhaps even better vision, because who would have believed that the driver of a lime colored Datsun 240Z that could be seen zipping by his property along Highway 128 with great frequency during the harvest was none other than "the dean of American Winemakers" Andre Tchelistcheff.   Andre had retired from Beaulieu Vineyards  in 1973, but still worked as a consulting enologist for numerous wineries in Napa and Sonoma County.   John wisely cultivated a relationship with Andre who served as his senior enologist and advisor for over ten years.   Today John is still pretty hands on and can be seen at the winery about three days a week.  John's son Ben came on board in 1990 and is the Vineyard and General Manager.  The winemaker for Field Stone is Patrick Murray.  

Thirty-eight acres of the ranch are planted.  They grow one white grape variety Viognier, and the rest are red varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Syrah, Sangiovese and Syrah.  The Statens farm the land sustainably with minimal use of pesticides.  They are certified members of the  California Sustainable Winegrowing Program.   www.sustainablewinegrowing.org.  The ranch is 70% dry farmed on a good year.  They use manure from their neighbors, pomace from the previous vintages and lots of cover crops of wild onions and flowers to nourish the soils.  They have several owl boxes on the property but they have never really had a problem with birds trying to raid the grapes.  Another bonus for being at the southern end of the valley is they have not had to invest in any frost protection devices.  As you travel further up valley you'll notice vineyards with the fans and overhead sprinklers that are used to combat frost during the crucial periods of bud break. 

While walking the property with Josh Cortopassi our affable docent we learned that the front porch of the old farmhouse on the property was used as a setting for the famed Bartles & Jaymes wine cooler ads from the eighties. 

Field Stone's flagship wine is a Reserve Petite Sirah and the property  has a seven acre plot of 120 year old  vines that form a horseshoe around the farmhouse.  To put 120 year old vines in perspective most grape growers pull up established vineyards and replant usually before the vines reach their thirtieth birthday.  The reason being as vines age they produce less fruit.  Seeing the value of the old vineyard ( a survivor from the past) through a different prism the Statens have chosen to take what the old vines give them and look past the economic drawbacks of farming this plot.  The gnarled head trained vineyard yields grapes that produce a wine of intense blue, black opaque color.  Black cherries and blue fruits explode out of the glass, with some cocoa  and lavender in the background.  Full bodied in the mouth and tannic but the fruit is so deep and intense that the tannins feel ample, not overpowering.  The wine finishes with good length and persistence.  The 2012 example will invariably age well if you can manage not to drink it in its beautiful youth.  850 cases $38

The 2012 Vineyard Select Pinot Noir Russian River is Field Stone's second release of Pinot Noir.  Most farmers have learned that Alexander Valley is too warm to grow quality Pinot Noir and the family is smart enough to not go against the trend.  They source the grapes for this wine from the Russian River Valley at Hopkin's River Ranch, right off of Eastside Road in Healdsburg.  Why Pinot?  Because it's popular and they happen to have Patrick Murray as their winemaker and he's been working with Pinot for over ten years.  It speaks to the good nature and spirit of the family to support Pat by allowing him to use barrel space at the winery to follow his passion.  His own label is called Paro and he crafts Chardonnay and Pinot Noir from Sonoma County.    http://www.parowine.com/ourstory  This Pinot Noir  exhibits aromas of raspberries and red cherries, cinnamon and spice with a hint of forest floor.  Showing a fine balance of fruit acids and oak tannins this one will delight you with elegance not brawn.  392 cases $30

The  2012 Convivio is a red blend composed of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 10% Sangiovese.   Convivio is less fruit driven than many of the other offerings.  The wine displays aromas of black fruit , tobacco, pencil shavings and earth, with medium body and length on the finish.  It's fifteen dollars at the winery but if you shop around you can find it for ten bucks at retail.  John is an ordained Presbyterian minister and he put his beliefs to work with this affordable wine.  The family donates a portion of the proceeds to Clinica Alianza, a non-profit medical center that serves farm workers, and everyone from newborns to elderly in Sonoma County.  620 cases $15

There are roughly 1,800 bearing acres of Sangiovese planted in California.  Contrast that to over 80,000 acres of Cabernet Sauvignon planted and one can see it's an uphill battle in the marketplace for Sangiovese.  Aged in American Oak Field Stone's 2012 Sangiovese starts with a cranberry, red cherry, lavender and tobacco leaf nose.  On the palate more red fruit, lively acidity and modest tannins.  You wouldn't mistake it for a good Chianti Classico but why should you.  It's distinctly Californian and as Sangiovese should be, would be suitable for a wide variety of foods.  483 cases $27

The 2012 Marion's Block Syrah is aged in American and new Hungarian Oak for 16 months.  Floral aromas of lavender and violets, accompany , framboise, boysenberry and black plums with hints of black licorice and spice in the background.   With beautiful texture on the palate the wine is delightfully lush and savory, full bodied carrying a long satisfying finish.  392 cases $27

Alexander Valley happens to be a great area to cultivate Merlot and Field Stone's vineyard block on the north side of the property is no exception.  At one time the owners  of  Chateau Ausone in Bordeaux's St-Emilion region were interested in purchasing the property so they could make a Bordeaux styled wine in California.  Andre Tchelistcheff acted as a duel broker for Ausone and Field Stone, but no deal was ever made.  What did come out of the courtship: the Statens were able to secure some French clonal selections for their vineyard.  Their 2012 Merlot is aged in French-coopered American oak  barrels for nineteen months but only 30% of the barrels are new.   The nose shows black cherries,  currants and tobacco.  On the palate you'll get a good grip of chewy tannins, oak and a hint of leather.  Very good now but several more months in the bottle should help it become more integrated.  490 cases $25

The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon is the workhorse wine for the Field Stone lineup with production at 1,680 cases.  The budwood for the  vineyards is comprised of two Bordeaux clones:  three clones from Napa Valley, BV1(Beaulieu) , Martha's Vineyard (Heitz) and Niebaum respectively.  Aged in 70% French and 30% American Oak the aromas open with black berries and black currants, while the oak influence is firm and in check.  This is more of a traditional Cabernet, old school if you will at 13.5% alcohol.  Its charm is its typicity and its balance in texture and flavors, not the flash and power that we have come to expect from Cabernet made in the "other valley".  On the palate one senses a little red fruit coming forth accompanied by hints of tobacco and pencil shavings.  It's full bodied and bold and would be the perfect accompaniment to a steak cooked on an open grill.  Just what the founder Wally had in mind.  $32

The 2012 Staten Family Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon was raised for 20 months in French Oak (40% new).  It was a bit closed when I tasted it showing black fruit and black currants, firm tannins and a rich mouth feel.  More concentrated than their other Cabernet it shows great promise.  494 cases  $45  

Field Stone also makes Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Rose of Petite Sirah, Viognier, a Vintage Port and a Late Harvest Viognier.  Their Chardonnay was sold out but the other white wines and Rose that I tasted were true to type and exhibited attractive fruit forward, clean flavors.  

If you're ever touring Sonoma County Field Stone Winery is well worth the visit.  Don't expect to find restaurants or convenience stores on their section of Highway 128, but they do have picnic tables just outside the winery's front door.  Stop in, taste their wonderful wines and  stock up on some newly found favorites.  Before you leave enjoy a relaxing  lunch under the oaks and take in the beautiful rural vistas of the surrounding ranches of Alexander Valley.

If you would like to learn more about Field Stone Winery & Vineyard follow the link below.

Fieldstone Winery

There I was in one of my favorite wine stores doing my usual thing, looking at all the different labels and reminding myself to make certain that 25% of my purchases have to be of wines I've never tried before.  It's a good way to keep your mind open to new discoveries and expand your knowledge of wine.  Lately I've been on a Bordeaux buying binge as there are an astounding number of good quality wines from the 2009 and  2010 vintage on the market. 

That's when I spied it, stacked on the floor at the end of the shelves in the far left corner at the back of the store.  Momentarily I reflected on standard grocery store marketing 101.  Remember how the staples that everyone buys, eggs dairy and meats are typically located at the back of the store.  Conventional wisdom being that when you come in to get those items you have to pass by all the slower moving items to do your shopping.  Ironically small retail wine shops rarely use that ploy and are more apt to use loss leader programs to get more eyeballs in their store.  Many retailers bait the consumer by prominently displaying the most well known wine brands at the front of the store and the lesser known producers, which are more of a hand sell toward the back of the store.  One of the great things about wine is that at any moment it can take you back to another place in time.  When I saw the Pieropan Soave in its distinctive elongated bottle shape that is the calling card of aromatic white wines, I instantly took a trip down memory lane to my earlier wine drinking days.  Of course back then Soave was more likely to be found  in a magnum format and with a screwcap.

 You see Soave has had and still suffers from a reputation, well deserved in many cases of being a thin, watery, undistinguishable, innocuous white wine from Italy.  After World War II Soave not unlike Lambrusco and Chianti captivated the U.S. wine consumer.  A combination of returning GI 's having been exposed to European wines and  broad based and successful advertising campaigns by the likes of Bolla and Folonari pushed Soave sales in the U. S. past those of Italy's most famous red wine Chianti. 

The problem was the original grape growing zone , which was primarily east and north of the town of Soave did not possess the  acreage to support all of the demand for the wine.  In steps the politicians who simply rezoned and expanded the original zone to include the flatter fertile  plains to the south towards the Adige river ,where you could now by law grow grapes to make Soave.  The end result was the Soave brand was diluted and its name sullied for two generations as growers took full advantage of the fertile plains and over cropped to get the maximum tonnage of grapes.  A market flooded with cheap plonk, the emergence of super brand Santa Margherita's Pinot Grigio and all its knock offs,  and it's easy to see why Soave can't get any love lately. 

My running  joke with wine merchants was " I'm putting together a Soave tasting, please show me what you have".  The puzzled looks I got from them was priceless.  With perseverance I was able to put together a good panel of wines, both entry level and single vineyard styles.  There has been a big push lately by the Soave Consorzio  www.ilsoave.com to reacquaint consumers with Soave.  It seems the Consorzio still has lots of work to do as I didn't find any wine shops in the San Francisco bay area that stocked more than one producer, if any of Soave.  When I did find a few selections they were typically the wineries entry level wines.  This time we had to cast a wider net to get a good representative group of wines and we ordered several of the wines for this tasting from New York and Southern California.  The weather was mild and all of the wines had a good journey and were allowed to rest in a cool dark place for a couple of weeks before we sampled them.

Our rediscovery of Soave conveniently coincided with the Soave Consorzio's Soave Master Class which was conducted at Verbena in San Francisco with Master Sommelier Evan Goldstein and Giovanni Ponchia.  The first flight of ten wines were tasted blind  and the final six wines were paired with some wonderfully creative and delicious dishes.  The execution and pacing for the class was on point and the background stories told by Giovanni and Evan helped acuminate my knowledge of the Soave region and its wines.  Big thanks to the Consorzio, Evan and his group, Giovanni, and the staff at Verbena for hosting this amazingly enriching event.  

What is Soave?  Soave is the name of a town, a wine, and a vineyard region  in north eastern Italy, in the Veneto region, roughly twelve miles east of Verona.  The original Soave Classico zone, whose producers we focused on for this tasting, is centered around Monte Foscarino which is due north of the towns of Soave and Monteforte d'Apone.  The hills outside the Soave Classico zone have been given the name " Colli Scaligeri" in reference to a family of Nobles who were at one time Lords of Verona.  The grand landmark for the town of Soave sitting above it in the hills is its medieval castle.  Erected in the tenth century it's on our bucket list of places to visit.  The Soave region covers over 16,000 acres and is divided into three areas, Soave DOC, Soave Classico DOC, and Soave Colli Scaligeri DOC.  The volcanic soils of the region, rich in iron, with dark basalt, tufa and calcareous clays contribute to the distinctive terroir of Soave.   The recipe for Soave DOC and Soave Classico DOC is a minimum of 70% Garganega  (gar-Gah-neh gah), up to 30% can be Trebbiano di Soave and/or Chardonnay and a 5% maximum of local varieties. The latter having stricter rules on yields and minimum ageing. The minimum alcohol requirement is 11% for Soave and  11.5% for Soave Classico.   There is also a Soave Superiore DOCG designation which calls for a higher minimum alcohol content of 12% and excludes Chardonnay entirely from the blend.  Superiore wines are made only from grapes grown in the hills of Classico and Colli Scaligeri.  Stricter maximum yields 70 hl/hectare, guyot only training 4,00vines per/hectare, and a minimum twelve month ageing regimen before release onto the market help make Superiore wines a rare find.  It seem the growers haven't caught up with the regulations yet.  There aren't any red wines made in the Soave wine region but there is some Soave Spumante DOC  and Recioto di Soave DOCG produced in the area. 

What's a DOC, IGT, DOP or DOCG?  These are all acronyms for Italian wine law hierarchy.  Italian wine laws always seem to be in a state of flux.  Recently in an attempt to keep all the members of the European Union on the same footing the EU took control of agriculture in Italy.   All future changes now go through Brussels.  With this new wrinkle I think it's fair to say that the only thing that won't change with Italian wine laws is the continued changing of the laws.  An example of the changing laws:  it is now permitted for bottlers of Soave Classico to use stelvin closures (screwcaps).  In the past if you made a Soave Classico wine but chose to use a stelvin closure instead of a cork you had to declassify your wine to the lower level Soave DOC.  That rule has been amended and now producers can use screwcap closures without  having to yoke their wine to a lower classification.  That said, if you practice summarily dismissing  any bottles of Soave as inferior because they don't have a cork closure; you could be missing out on some wonderful wines.  Also Pinot Bianco and Trebbiano di Toscana previously allowed have been banned for use in Soave blends because of their perceived  inferiority.  For the sake of brevity we've  given you a general overview of the wine laws for Soave wines.   For those feeling compelled to geek out on Italian wine laws check out  http://italianwinecentral.com/tag/laws/.  Regular folks that just want to be able to find good quality representations of Soave,  listen to our podcast and you'll be armed with enough information to find the quality producers.

The Soave marketing gurus are still trying to pinpoint what consumers want  in an Italian white wine, which leaves the producers of shall we say of "Real Soave"  in a quandary.   Eighty-five percent of the Soave you see on the market is of industrial quality and is  produced at a cooperative.  That's not to say that  cooperatives can't produce good quality wines, but on a scale of one million cases per year, odds are the quality does get compromised.  The other fifteen percent of the market is composed of traditional and maverick Soave winemakers.  Both insist on low yields in the vineyard in an effort to get more flavorful  wines.  The traditionalist stay with the Garganega/Trebbiano blends while the new wave group sometimes  include Chardonnay in the blend .  Many producers try to cover all the bases, so it's not unusual to find cantine that offer three tiers of wine.  The first level being their entry level wine that typically sees a short period of ageing and no wood contact.  Dismissing these entry level wines in some cases would be a mistake as the quality bar is quite high with several noteworthy producers.  The second and third levels  can be a mix of single vineyard designation wines, with none or some wood ageing or full on heavily influenced winemaking efforts that involve barrel fermenting, generous amounts of Chardonnay, extended lees contact with battonage and longer bottle ageing before release onto the market.

What does Soave taste like and what style should you try first?  Our tasting clearly showed that there is a good case to be made for many of the styles you'll see in the marketplace.  In the glass it displays a straw-golden color which a lot of producers like to show off by bottling with clear glass.  Soave is not a wine with a high aromatic profile.  Blending other grapes with Garganega can add texture, body and complexity to the wine but usually at the cost of blunting the delicate aromas of the finished product.  The aromas won't jump out of the glass and bust you in the nose like the more aromatic Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer and Rieslings will.  With Soave its more about nuance of aroma, minerality and  crisp acidity.  If you're looking for the purist expression of Soave try a wine by a traditional producer that uses only Garganega grapes grown in the Classico region and eschews wood contact.  In these wines you'll find straw colors,  intriguing minerality (think wet stones and earth) accompanied by aromas and  flavors of white flowers, green and yellow apples, pear, white  peach, honeydew melon, stone fruits, yellow citrus and lime with a crisp finish and mouthwatering acidity.  If you would like to try Soaves with fuller body, more depth of flavors and complexity on the palate try some of the producers we highlight in the podcast.  Although these type of wines weren't made traditionally in Soave their new wave flair and quality cannot be overlooked.  Most Soaves clock in around 12.5 % alcohol by volume which makes them easy to drink and suitable as aperitifs or accompaniments  with appetizers first courses and a variety of main dishes.  From delicate flavored Brie, Chevre,  and Mozzarella to more assertive Asiago, Beemster or Taleggio Soave pairs nicely with many cheeses.  It great with Sushi, and for that matter anything that comes out of the water.  It's a seafood lovers wine.  Chicken, pork and veal pair well with richer styles of Soave as do pastas with butter and cream sauces.  With Soave it's best to pick producer first vintage second.  Find a producers style you enjoy and there's a good chance you'll be pleased with the results from year to year.

The good  thing about Garganega is that it grows in loose clusters with sparse berries which helps with mold and rot resistance and affords  growers the option to leave the grapes on the vines well into October to get more complexity.   The bad thing is, Garganega is a late ripener  and inclement weather can be a bigger factor on quality than with earlier developing varieties.  2013 and 2014 were years that witnessed  a number of hail events impacting yields for many growers in the Soave area.  We'll have to wait and see what comes to market before we can make any quality judgments  though.   The vast majority of Soave currently on the market is from the 2012 vintage.  In general they seem generous and delicious having more tang and zip than the more fruit forward 2011's.

 How much does it cost?  Good Soave retails in the twelve to eighteen dollar range.  More ambitious efforts and single vineyard designated wines can typically start around nineteen and can reach into the low thirty dollar range.  That said the quality to price ratio is ridiculously favorable to consumers that takes a liking to good quality Soave.  This is what happens when you have producers working diligently and succeeding at making a good wine, but not getting the recognition in the market place yet.

There's boat loads of Soave swill in the marketplace, how do you find the good stuff?  If you're willing to search around and ask your favorite retailer to bring some quality producers into their program you will be rewarded with very good wines that speak well and clearly of the Soave Classico zone.  In general the phrase Soave Classico on a wine label is an indicator of a good quality wine.  The adjective Classico denotes that the grapes used to make the wine are from the original historic production zone and are considered to represent the best growing conditions for wines of this type.   Another indicator of quality is  the symbol  of the Vignaioli Indipendenti on the capsule of the bottle.  Members  must ensure that Soave is their main product and can't buy grapes or wine except for extreme winemaking needs.  Members of this small group of producers adhere to managing the entire production process from grape growing to bottling.  The principle mission of the Vignaioli del Soave Association is to give Soave wine back its dignity in the eyes of the consumer by being transparent and providing information.

 We hope you enjoy the podcast and learn a little too.  Tell us what you think about the wines of Soave and if you make a new discovery don't keep it a secret: let us know.  Bill and I thank you all for listening and until next time - Cheers!

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One of the best ways to sharpen your palate and to learn and experience new wines is to attend a wine  tasting.  Having numerous producers at the same venue gives one the opportunity to economically contrast and compare regions and wines.  That said here are a few suggestions  you may want to follow to help yourself and others more fully enjoy the experience of a large format wine tasting.   

Tips to Drink Like a Pro

• Get a good rest the night before.  You'll want to be at your sharpest
• Stay hydrated and  drink lots of water before during and after the tasting
• Wear dark clothes.  You might not spill red wine but others may
• Once you have received your sample pour be mindful of others that may be behind you waiting to be served.  Questions are good, but if you have an inordinate amount of them to ask, simply make room for others as you converse.
• Taste and spit.. very few people look cool spitting, but you'll remember more.
• Have a good meal shortly before the tasting.  Consuming alcohol on an empty stomach is not a good idea.
• Have a game plan of producers you want to visit before you arrive and stick to your plan.  If you finish your list and you still have time you can wander around at that point.
• Respect others and don't wear perfumes or colognes.

Tre Bicchieri San Francisco is an annual best of Italian wine events that we try to attend every year.   Slow Wine San Francisco also showcased only Italian wine and presented a challenge.

This year's Slow Wine tasting was held at the Terra Gallery on Harrison Street at the base of the Bay Bridge.  It was a great setting and location.  The above referenced challenge relates to the fact that we were unable to get a list of the wines that would be poured beforehand.  We received  the list of producers when we arrived and trying to put together a plan for tasting at the last minute  proved time consuming and confusing.  We usually put together a firm list of producers' wines we intend to try before we arrive so that we can use our time wisely.  For tastings of this size (there were over fifty-five producers) failing to plan is the same as planning to fail.  We arrived on time after a satisfying lunch at Henry's Hunan Restaurant in the Financial district.  The smoked ham with green beans and the Kung Pao chicken really hit the spot.  

The Slow Wine event wines are judged using a standard of which we were unfamiliar.  No one hundred point scale here.  The standards of quality for Slow Wine are keyed to a different criterion.  Their snail symbol is awarded to a winery that they particularly like for the way it interprets Slow Food Values ( sensory perceptions, territory, environment, identity) and offers good value for the money.  The bottle symbol is awarded to wineries whose bottles presented excellent average quality at their tastings. Finally, the coin symbol is awarded to wineries whose bottles are a  good value for the money.    

We typically arrive early for events, so as to get a good jump on tasting before the event becomes crowded.  We were not the only ones that followed this strategy, for there was already a short line when we arrived.  Within the first hour of the tasting the place was packed, reminiscent of ZAP tastings from years gone by.  As a result we were not able to taste as many wines as we would normally.  We always try the white and sparkling wines first and follow those with the red wines.  As a result, we did not taste many reds, as the event was too crowded to navigate from table to table without lots of effort.  The wines we did get the opportunity to taste, as a group, were very good to excellent.  There was a good representation of wines from up and down the Italian peninsula, although  there weren't any wines from Aosta  or Liguria. This is understandable as these regions produce so little wine anyway.  It was surprising not to see any wines from Lombardy, especially since their signature sparkling wine Franciacorta has been receiving more recognition lately.  Wines from the southern regions of Calabria, Campania, Molise and Sardinia were not represented this year.  Several of the Cantine  at Slow Wine were currently seeking a distributor, so some of the wines we recommend may be challenging to find in the states.   Many of the producers were quick to tell of their embrace of organic cultivation methods, which they believed would preserve the health of their soils.  It became clear as we worked the room that most of the wines were made by small biodynamic and organic producers.   Listed below in two categories and in alphabetical order are our recommendations and approximate prices for the wines. 

Outstanding:

Aquila del Torre 2012 Friuli Colli Orientali Friulano 

Aquila del Torre 2011 Riesling  

Castelfeder 2009 Alto Adige Chardonnay Burgum Novum Riserva        

Castelfeder 2012 Alto Adige Pinot Grigio 15 

Castelfeder 2010 Alto Adige Pinot Nero Burgum Novum Riserva 

Canus 2012 Friuli Colli Orientali Sauvignon  

Corte Sant' Alda 2009 Amarone Della Valpolicella  

Fattoria di Felsina 2010 Chianti Classico Rancia Riserva 

G. D. 2010 Barbera d' Alba Superiore   

G. D. 2009 Barolo Bricco Delle Viole

G. D. Vajra 2010 Langhe Freisa Kye

L' Armangia 2010 Barbera d' Asti Superiore Nizza Titon        

L' Armangia 2013 Moscato d' Asti Canelli  

Leonildo Pieropan 2011 Soave Classico La Rocca 

Leonildo Pieropan 2011 Soave Classico Calvarino  

Mossio Fratelli 2012 Dolcetto d' Alba Bricco Caramelli 

Pian delle Querci 2007 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 

Tabarrini 2011 Adarmando 

Tabarrini 2009 Montefalco Sagrantino Colle Grimaldesco

Tenuta Terraviva 2012 Pecorino EKWO       

Trappolini 2012 Grechetto  

Very Good

Badia a Coltibuono 2009 Chianti Classico Riserva                     

Cascina La Ghersa 2011 Colli Tortonesi Timorasso Timian

Corte Sant' Alda 2009 Valpolicella Ripasso Superiore Campi  

Fattoria di Felsina 2010 Fontalloro  

Lusenti 2012 Colli Piacentini Malvasia Frizzante

Marotti Campi 2012 Lacrima di Morro d' Alba Rubico 

Pian dell Querci 2011 Rosso di Montalciano   

Tenuta Terraviva 2011 Trebbiano d' Abruzzo Mario's 39 

Velenosi 2012 Falerio Pecorino Villa Angela 

seeking representation

seeking representation

$32

$16

$50

seeking representation

        $65

$40

$35

$75

$40

$!9

N/A

$29

$23

N/A

$44

$25

$50

$21

N/A

$30

N/A

N/A

$50

N/A

$16

N/A

N/A

$15

When you pour yourself a glass of wine have you ever wondered what's in it.  Hey it's just fermented grape juice right.  Living in food centric Northern California with its booming culture of sustainability and organic farming, we decided to look a little further into what may or may not be in the wines we buy and share with our families and friends.  To gain more insight into this subject we conducted an interview with Kevin Byrne, COO of Beverage Grades.

Beverage Grades has a unique business model that to us appears to be a great tool for savvy wine buyers.    Beverage Grades operates an independent, high-tech commercial chemistry lab, which tests for components such as sugar content, caloric value, and the amount of vitamins present. They also test for substances like pesticides, antioxidants, even trace elements such as lead and arsenic. The BeverageGrades™ lab operates without influence from alcoholic beverage companies. They purchase the beverages themselves from liquor stores, test them, and let the data speak for itself.   They aim to lab test thousands of wines, beers and spirits so that consumers are empowered to make smarter choices when purchasing alcoholic beverages.

We enjoyed our candid interview with Kevin and hope it didn't get too geeky.  We covered a variety of topics and feel it's fair to say anyone who is concerned about health and wellness, ingredient labeling and the purity of the wines they consume will find the conversation enlightening.

Thank you Kevin and thanks to all of our listeners for tuning in.  We appreciate you all.  Please tell a wine loving friend about us.

Cheers!