Wine for Normal People

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 089 -- Terroir v. The Winemaker

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Mon, 11 Nov 2013 16:27:00 +0000

After shameless plugs for our nomination for the Best Food & Drink Podcast Award (such an honor to be nominated!), and a reminder about the wines I selected for you to check out and buy on Vinport.com, this week we delve into a thorny issue in the wine world.

Which has a bigger influence on wine: terroir or the winemaker?

Here's a link to the podcast: LINK

We bring up arguments for both, go in circles and then ask you to send us your conclusion!

Find us on Facebook: Wine for Normal People

Twitter: @normalwine

We reference an article by Jamie Goode, an excellent and noted wine writer in which you may be interested:

Terroir: muddy thinking about the soil?

Thanks for listening! Please send us your thoughts on this topic!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 088: The Grape Miniseries -- German Riesling w Expert Stuart Piggott (Part 2)

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Sat, 02 Nov 2013 04:21:00 +0000

This week is a continuation of Episode 87, but this time it's all about the most confusing but rewarding aspect of Riesling: German Riesling. Expert Stuart Piggott and I discuss the highest quality regions, sweetness and dryness scales, and how to shop to get what you want. Another don't miss episode!

Here's the link: PODCAST

Thanks for listening! Enjoy!

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Get a FREE audiobook download at www.audibletrial.com/winefornormalpeople. There are more than 100,000 titles to choose from, including some great wine books, for your iPhone, Android, Kindle or mp3 player.

And thanks for listening! We can't wait to hear from you! If you've got a question you want us to answer, post it we'll include it on the show!

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Podcast music: "Café connection" by morgantj / CC BY 3.0, ©2009 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)Map: Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license

A ghost of Pinot Noir that will haunt you...in a good way: Pinot Noir Blanc from Ghost Hill Cellars

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Tue, 29 Oct 2013 16:05:00 +0000

Recently I was sent a few wines to review (there's my disclosure -- these were freebies), and among them was my vote for the coolest wine of 2013! I've had a few great ones this year, but none so memorable as what I'm about to share: a Pinot Noir Blanc!

Ghost Hill Cellars has a cool back story about their haunted land:

In the early 1860s, Oregon was in the midst of a gold rush. An old military road that ran through what is now the Bayliss family farm stretched from southern Oregon to Portland. A miner that was traveling to Portland with his hard-earned “poke” of gold decided to camp for the night at the top of what is now known as Ghost Hill. During the night, someone snuck into his camp, killed the miner and his horse, and stole his gold. To this day, the miner is said to wander the hill looking for his stolen gold.

Is it the ghost that makes the wine taste good? Probably not, but as I'll share in a second, you can find a wine in this area worth its weight in gold, so at least the ghostly miner can drink well while on the hunt for his treasure!

Although I'm not aware of any other area in Oregon that's haunted, there is certainly a mystical quality about the terroir in Oregon.

The large Willamette Valley has sub-regions with distinctive soil types, elevations, and sun exposures that make the Pinot Noir grown in each area taste totally different from each other. It's Burgundy-like in the distinctions, which is great for Pinot Noir lovers.

From WinesNW.com

Ghost Hill Cellars wine is made from estate-grown fruit in the Yamhill-Carlton AVA of the Willamette Valley. The area is known for its eroded hills, sedimentary rock and a more moderate climate since it's sheltered from harsh weather by mountains to the north and west. These wines tend to have soft tannins, lots of black cherry and blackberry flavors with floral and smoky notes too. Generally, wines from here are not lighter, elegant styles of Pinot -- they can be heavy but they range depending on site and clone. Honestly, I've also never met a wine from here that doesn't have some sort of cola flavor. Strange but true.

But that's just the red Pinot Noir. Except in a Champagne or sparkling wine, I'd never encountered a white Pinot Noir and that proved to be a different ballgame. I was wowed by the refreshing, different flavors of a wine that was new to me. Here's the scoop:

2012 Estate Grown Pinot Noir Blanc
Price: $25
Alcohol: 13.5%

Color: Orange salmon from the contact with dark-skinned grapes. The wine also had blonde straw highlights. A very cool color -- almost white, but orangy salmon too. Not quite rosé but not white either.

Smell: Bready from aging on the lees (dead yeast cells left over after fermentation) with mild raspberry aromas and a stony/minerally note underlying the wine.

Taste: Cranberry, sour cherry, and dried strawberry flavors with super high acid and a clean, tangy texture. The wine reminded me of a medium-bodied, flat Champagne but more refreshing and bright.

Drink or sink?: This is a great wine -- clean, different, and delicious. I love it!

2011 Estate Grown Pinot Noir

Price: $42

Alcohol: 13.5%

Color: A brownish raspberry color with thicker legs, but clear and glycerin in color.

Smell: True to form for Yamhill-Carlton, this wine smelled like a denser, darker Pinot. Black raspberry, licorice, and cinnamon notes with cherry cola, black cherry, and strong clove aroma.

Taste: Like black cherry and black raspberry but overall the wine was much lighter in taste than smell. It had a bit of that black cherry cola flavor and it was lightly tannic with moderate acid. On the finish the wine was like candied raspberries with a burnt oak note. It stuck around, with a long finish that tasted like black raspberry tea, some earth, and lots of black cherry.

Drink or sink?: This is a good wine but not an outstanding one. For all the aromas, I expected that it would have more weight to it. I like a lighter Pinot, but when it smells lighter. For me, there's a disconnect between the heavy scents of the wine and the flavors and textures. I bet the reserve version delivers on what I'd hoped this wine would taste like. This is a fine Pinot, but nothing that I'd seek out when there are so many other great options.

My advice, if you can order the Pinot Noir Blanc from Ghost Hill's site, go out and get some. You're in for a cool experience!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 087 -- The Grape Miniseries: Discovering Riesling w Expert Stuart Piggott

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Sat, 26 Oct 2013 06:04:00 +0000

The Grape Miniseries returns with a very special edition. Riesling expert Stuart Piggott joins us to give the low down on this exquisite but often misunderstood grape. This is a not-to-miss conversation with an entertaining, funny, NORMAL Riesling guru!

Here's a LINK TO THE PODCAST

After gossiping about why a lot of wine experts are disconnected from normal people we cover stuff like:

The origins of the grape
Terroir's effect on Riesling
Style variation by place (Alsace,Australia, Austria, the US, Canada and more)
Growing Riesling and making it
The "petrol" note and spritz in the wine -- WHAT are they?
The sweetness factor
How to tell if something is sweet or dry by looking at the bottle and how to find a dry wine
Food pairings with Riesling
How to shop for Riesling to get the style you want

To learn more about Stuart go to his web site.

Next time we focus on Germany, the home and holy land of the grape!

Thanks for listening! Enjoy!

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Thanks to our sponsor, audible.com.

And thanks for listening! We can't wait to hear from you! If you've got a question you want us to answer, post it we'll include it on the show!

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Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 086 -- All About Bordeaux's Château Palmer

noreply@blogger.com (Wine for Normal People) — Fri, 18 Oct 2013 05:53:00 +0000

In a continuation of my amazing interview with Jean-Louis Carbonnier of the prestigious Bordeaux property Château Palmer, this week we talk more about the wines of the Château and what makes them so good.

Here's a link to the podcast: CHÂTEAU PALMER

(WARNING: You may want to brush up on the Bordeaux podcasts before listening -- we get into some nerdy details!)

We weave through a million different sub-topics, but here are the main points:

We first discuss the 1855 Classification of Left Bank Bordeaux Chateaux, which many believe gives Palmer the shaft.
We discuss pricing of Bordeaux wine and whether or not it’s fair.
Then we talk about Palmer – its history, the blend, the terroir, the winemaking, and how a wine comes to taste as heavenly as this.
We briefly discuss Alter Ego, another very high quality wine made by Palmer with a slightly different blend and a much more affordable price tag.
Then we wrap with Jean-Louis’s most important takeaways about Palmer and Bordeaux.

Thanks again to Jean-Louis and Château Palmer for educating us on this historic, classic, and unbelievably delicious wine!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 085 -- Inside Bordeaux with Château Palmer

noreply@blogger.com (Wine for Normal People) — Fri, 11 Oct 2013 21:51:00 +0000

I had the pleasure of interviewing Jean-Louis Carbonnier, the Director of the Americas for one of the most esteemed Bordeaux châteaux, Château Palmer and the owner of the communications firm Carbonnier Communications.

Download on iTunes or here to listen.

This is the first part of a two part conversation that you won’t want to miss. You may learn more about how Bordeaux really works from this conversation than from any book you can read, I know I did. In this installment, we talk about:

The differences and dynamics between French winemaking regions, especially Bordeaux and Champagne, since Jean-Louis has worked in both
Jean-Louis’s perceptions of how business gets done in Bordeaux
His thoughts on global climate change in Bordeaux
How the critics, especially certain American ones, have had a hand in shaping styles in Bordeaux
The all important French concept of terroir and why it lays at the heart of French winemaking

Stay tuned for next week’s episode when we discuss the

1855 Classification, it’s relevance today, and the nuts of bolt of how to make a wine as outstanding as Château Palmer.

Thanks for listening and please let me know what you think or if you have any questions by commenting below, on Facebook, or on Twitter.

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 084 -- Tuscan Wine Regions

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Fri, 27 Sep 2013 18:32:00 +0000

After last episode's Tuscnay Overview, we left you hanging! Well this week we pick up where we left off...

From Super Tuscans to Brunello di Montalcino to Chianti and Vino Nobile and a bunch in between, this week we cover the main wines of Tuscany and give our 2 cents on what's worth seeking out!

And if you're interested in trying the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano we mention, please check out the Wine for Normal People page at Vinport, it's a limited time offer, so get on it!

Also, here is the blog post we reference a few times covering some of the Italian wines from the excellent event I attended of quality Italian wines. This will give you a sense of flavors to expect in these wines. LINK

Enjoy and I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 083 -- Tuscany Overview

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Mon, 23 Sep 2013 04:12:00 +0000

We tackle one of the most important and diverse regions in Italy, Tuscany. This is the first of a two part series and lays the groundwork for the next episode, in which we detail the wines and the sub regions.

In this episode -- the long, rich history of wine in Tuscany and the geography and climate of the place. Hopefully you find the background as complex and relevant to the wine scene today as we do!

Thanks for listening! Enjoy!

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Thanks to our sponsor, audible.com.

And thanks for listening! We can't wait to hear from you! If you've got a question you want us to answer, post it we'll include it on the show!

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Wine Reviews Podcast: Grapes, regions, and 6 Fabulous Wines from Vinport (Italians, French, and an Argentinean)

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Tue, 17 Sep 2013 05:01:00 +0000

By request from normal wine people who have ordered wines from Vinport/WFNP, we did a podcast on the six wines offered in September through our partnership (full disclosure: I get a small cut of the profit).

Download it on iTunes, or click here: LINK

Even if you can't get these wines shipped to you, you'll still learn a ton about grapes, regions, and flavors since we talk both generally and specifically about the wines offered. Each are classic examples from their regions.

Here's the lineup that we talk about:

NV Serre Colsenta Prosecco Superiore di Valdobbiadene DOCG, Italy $18
2012 Domaine Masson-Blondelet, Pouilly-Fumé, $25
2009 Bodega de Los Clop Reserva, Malbec, $18
2008 Leone d'Oro Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, Italy, $20
2009 Chateau Haut Beyzac, Haut-Medoc, Bordeaux, France, $38
2009 Domaine de Nalys, Châteauneuf-du-Pape Le Châtaignier, $55

If you want to see written reviews and order, check it out: http://www.vinport.com/wfnp

The feedback we've received has been outstanding -- on the wines and the service! Thanks for supporting the program!

A Tour of Top Italian Wines with the Hit List of 8 "Must-Try" Bottles

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Sun, 15 Sep 2013 18:52:00 +0000

I've been slacking on posting lately as I finish up work on the new Web site and blog. And for those of you following my other ventures, you can get excited that I am also spending a lot of writing power trying to complete a few chapters of the book, which are nearly done!

All exciting but something had to give and it's been the blog (apologies!). Fortunately, I was so moved by an experience I had at a tasting from major importer Kobrand that I'm back to the keyboard, which is a good thing.

As background, Kobrand, which is an New York based importer of many major, high quality international brands and a broker for a few high end California brands like Cakebread, Benzinger, and Domaine Carneros, had an Italian wine event showcasing their winemakers and some of their top wines.

I love events where the winemakers are there. It gives me a chance to travel to their land without hopping a plane. And I find that with Italians, especially, their warmth and willingness to share information about their regions makes it an incredibly valuable experience. I was especially excited to spend time with two very different Tuscan producers, from whom I got a ton of information that I'll be using in the Tuscany podcast (we'll record it in the next few days and have live later in the week).

If you're interested in listening to the Italy overview or the podcast on Veneto, the links are here.

I spent time with four producers. Although I've reviewed more than just the best, I'm putting stars (***) next to the ones that are "must trys" if they are available and affordable to you

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Tenute Silvio Nardi: Brunello di Montalcino
I was so fortunate that I got to learn from the elegant and wonderful Emilia Nardi. Silvio's daughter and winemaker for the winery, she served me the best Brunello I've ever had. This family is one of the oldest producers of Brunello and they have made a life's work of getting each and every vintage perfect. How amazing to see such pride and intellect go into a wine!

Emilia gave me so much information, which I'll share in the Tuscany podcast at greater length, but her main points about Brunello were:

The soils vary dramatically from area to area and create vastly different wines
If you use only grapes from your own vineyard you have more control over the quality of the final product
Brunello is an exercise in blending -- every single vintage is a new story, even more so than in other places

The lineup of three wines was outstanding. If you can get your hands on *any* of these wines, you need to do it immediately.

***2010 Tenute Silvio Nardi Rosso di Montalcino DOC, 100% Sangiovese/Brunello, $21
I don't think I've ever had a Rosso with so much character, even when in Montalcino! This wine was young and from their most fruit forward stock of wines, but it had so much going on. Lots of cherry, which is typical of Sangiovese but then an anise, black licorice, herbal note that lingered. Terrific acid and tannin balanced the wine from a texture perspective. This wine was better than a lot of Brunello I've had.

***2008 Tenute Silvio Nardi Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, 100% Brunello, $55
Another great wine, you taste the terroir/dirt immediately. Cherry and herbal notes but the earth and herb characters were the stars of the show. The tannins, acid, and weight of the wine were expertly balanced. This wine was lacking two things to make it perfect though -- food and a little time in the bottle. I think you could age this for 2-3 years more and the flavors would evolve even more. A beautiful wine nonetheless.

***2006 Tenute Silvio Nardi "Manachiara" Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, 100% Brunello, $80
This is Emilia's single vineyard Brunello and it's only made in the best years. My notes say "OMFG"(oh my f*ing g-d) because this wine was a knockout. A light brownish-orange-crimson color from 7 years in bottle, this wine was full of dark earth, anise/black licorice, and dark cherry. Tobacco and bitter chocolate notes with a perfect balance of tannin and acid. What a wine! This was a highlight of the tasting. This is what Brunello should be. Outstanding. I need to get my hands on more of this -- it's so good that it's a steal for the price.

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Ambrogio e Giovanni Folonari Tenute: Tuscany
If you look up charming in the dictionary, there has to be a picture of Giovanni Folonari. But he's not just a cute guy who makes good wine. This guy gave me the total inside scoop on how stuff really goes down in Tuscany. I was so grateful to him for giving me the real deal about how wine gets made, what the differences in a good v bad Chianti are, and the corruption that plagues the European wine industry. I loved my conversation with him. What a cool guy!

You'll have to wait for the Tuscany podcast to get the scoop on what he said, but I trusted him a lot. Why? His family has been making estate grown wine since the 1800s and they are all over Tuscany -- Chianti, Montalcino, Montepulciano, and Bolgheri (home of many super Tuscans). He knows the drill in every winemaking area. Oh, and the guy admitted, very freely that Emilia Nardi's Brunello was better than his. He's right and that's awesome.

I gotta say, the wines were globally very good but this was a serious hit parade for Chianti. I feel very safe recommending these Chianti, which is saying a lot since I generally steer clear of the region due to lack of predictability. Here are reviews of the many, many wines of their line:

2012 Tenuta Campo Al Mare, Vermentino DOC Bolgheri, 95% Vermentino, 5% Sauvignon Blanc (it's a white wine), $16
A different, fuller style of Vermentino, this was fruity with apple pie and lemon curd flavors. Acidic yet creamy either from the ripe fruit used or from malo-lactic fermentation that made the wine feel soft.

2011 Villa Nozzole Chianti Classico DOCG, $20
Ripe cherry aromas with an earth quality and a touch of thyme or savory spice, this was a nice medium-bodied wine that would be ideal with pasta with tomato sauce. This is what a basic Chianti Classico should be.

***2009 Tenuta di Nozzole Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG, $20
Better fruit from better vineyards than the basic Chianti, and an extra year aging in casks and, oh what a difference! This wine has BALLS. Wow. A punch of black cherry and black berry flavors with tons of anise and a smell like the underbrush of a shrub, this was outstanding. It was full, powerful, and all around excellent. The finish lingered on with strong tannins and acid but the spice and herbal character of the wine balanced them out and made everything seem smoother and more consistent. Fabulous.

***2007 Tenuta di Nozzole La Forra Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG, 95% Sangiovese, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, $40
Made only in top vintages, this is a single vineyard wine. I felt this was a little young -- the tannins need to chill out a bit and the fruit and spice need to relax and come together. It needs another few years in the bottle. With time, I'm pretty sure this will become a more vibrant version of the Riserva and that will be outstanding.

2008 Tenuta di Nozzole Il Pareto, Tocana IGT (super Tuscan), 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, $70
A great high tannin wine with black plum, leather, vanilla, and tobacco aromas. The wine had a nice earth flavor and a sense of place. An excellent wine and different from any Cabernet I've ever had so it's worth trying just for the taste of the terroir, which is unique.

***2009 Fattoria di Gracciano Svetoni TorCalvano Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG, 90% Sangiovese, 10% Prugnolo Gentile (Sangiovese clone), $25
I asked Giovanni a lot of questions about what's happening with Vino Nobile. I've read a lot of stuff recently about how the traditional Sangiovese clone, Prugnolo Gentile, that has been used in the noble wine of Montalcino for decades, is being switched out for the Sangiovese used in Chianti Classico.

Giovanni said the study of clones of Sangiovese is relatively new -- beginning just in the last 50 or so years -- and they've recently found that the Prugnolo is not as elegant or layered as Sangiovese. Given that I've had some great Prugnolo, I'm not convinced, but this was lovely so there's something to his argument. A dark fruit flavor with nice dusty road, dark earth characters, which are typical of grapes grown on the dense soils of the area. Smooth, even tannins and acid. Very pleasant and food friendly.

Others
I tried a number of the Bolgheri wines but found these Super Tuscan, French-combo blends too clean and modern for me. There just wasn't a lot of character or difference between these wines and those from various regions of California.

The 2006 Brunello, although good, had nice chewy coffee flavors and good cherry fruit flavors but it was so much cleaner and more sterile than those of Silvio Nardi that it was hard to compare. But at least Giovanni admitted it.

All in all, a great lineup and, if you're a podcast listener, lots of fodder for us to discuss in the Tuscany episode.

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Masi Agricola: Veneto
We did a full podcast on Veneto and discussed Amarone at length, but if you didn't listen, just know this wine is a true labor of love to make. It requires drying the grapes until they are slightly raisined and then making a powerful, high alcohol wine that is pure decadence. One could easily argue that no one does this as well as Masi, one of the top producers of Amarone in the region. I've tasted their wines before -- their Valpolicella and their basic Amarone, but never their top tier stuff. This was quite a treat.

2008 Riserva di Costasera Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC, $60
This wine spends a minimum of three years aging in oak. It's big. Typical raisined fruit, a nice warm herbal character, and sweet oak dominates the aromas and flavors. It had some kickin' tannin. Probably one you want to have after a meal, alone (like a Port) or with something very strongly flavored (game maybe?).

***2006 Serego Alighieri Vaio Armaron Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC, $65
Named for descendants of Dante Alighieri (you know, he wrote that little book "Inferno"?) who have been growing grapes in Valpolicella since the 1300s, this single estate wine is as strong, striking, and memorable as the author's description of the levels of the underworld. Rich cherry and raisins dominate with an undertone of cinnamon and clove and a sweet oak flavor that makes it sing. The wine was smoother and more balanced than the Costasera. It was a "Wow." A stunner and unlike the others on this list, probably one that you could have with red meat and mushroom dishes, not just cheese or alone.

***2003 Campolongo di Torbe Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC, $120
Masi has several "cru" or single vineyard wines of exceptional quality and this is one. From a vineyard that's been producing grapes since the 1300s, this wine is made in select years and in perfect conditions only.

The more elegant of the two cru I sampled, the wine was robust but it had some nuance too, which I like. What does that mean? That it tasted like a ton of blackberry, black cherry, and dried prune but had some tobacco, sauteed thyme, and balsam to it and that was stunning. Although it was heavy, the wine had bright notes too, due to an excellent vineyard and a winemaker that knows how to get the right stuff out of his wine (hard to do when you're dealing with nearly raisined grapes but that's why Masi is one of the best).

2001 Mazzano Amarone della Valpolicella Classico DOC, $160
Another cru, only made in the best conditions, this wine was all brawn. Raisins, prunes, and a brandy-like flavor (it is 16% alcohol so it had a brandied thing going on), made this wine HEAVY. It had coffee notes with a slight bitterness, typical of Amarone.

With saliva stripping tannin and mouth cleaning acid, the Mazzano was a bit of an ambush on my mouth but it was extremely balanced. This wine is 12 years old but it still needs time to soften. Give this 3 - 5 more years and I think it will show more complex flavors and nuance. Amazing how long these wines need to really show their beauty!

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Michele Chiarlo: Piedmont
I love Michele Chiarlo's amazing, inexpensive basic Barbera. For the money, the wine is so layered, delicious, and food friendly. I don't see their other products on the shelf that frequently so I was excited to try their wares.

The wines of Piedmont tend to be so powerful, yet elegant. They have a lot of flavors and textures -- very firm acid and tannin -- and they are some of the best food wines available.

Piedmont specializes in the floral, acidic whites Gavi (from the Cortese grape) and Roero Arneis. If you haven't had them, you should get your hands on some because these wines are tasty and different in the world of whites. Also from Piedmont is Moscato d'Asti, which is acidic, effervescent, and only lightly sweet when it's from it's homeland (not like the cloying nastiness that seems to be FINALLY waning in popularity after a great run here in the US). And then there's the big dogs -- the reds from Nebbiolo -- Barbaresco and Barolo, Ghemme and Gattinara. And the slightly less big dogs that are affordably priced -- Barbera and Dolcetto.

I had really high expectations for this 7th generation producer, Michele Chiarlo. But I realized after trying through the wines that the strongest plank in their portfolio is their Barbera and the rest is just kind of ok. I didn't try their standard Barbera because I've reviewed it here already. Here's a quick rundown of the wines I tried:

2012 Michele Chiarlo Gavi Le Marne DOCG, 100% Cortese, $16
A simple Gavi with some lovely lime and green apple flavors and a slight a floral note. It had excellent acidity but reminded me a little of a lime lollipop. I like Gavi with a little more minerality and a richer texture, so this fell flat for me.

2012 Michele Chiarlo Le Madri, Roero Arneis DOC, 100% Arneis, $18
Clear colored with light minerality and some lily and jasmine aromas and flavors. Slightly lemon-lime on the finish and great acid with a tiny bit of bitterness. A lovely wine that would be great with soft cheese.

2010 Michele Chiarlo Barbera d'Asti Superiore Nizza La Court DOCG, 100% Barbera, $40
A crimson red with lots of cherry -- sour, red, and black -- aromas. It had a light medicinal smell and a eucalyptus flavor with dark berry and tons of acid. This is not a sipper because its structure -- tannins and acids -- are too bold, but it would be great with a rich mushroom risotto.

2010 Michele Chiarlo Reyna Barbaresco DOCG, 100% Nebbiolo, $35
Because of the vineyard locations and soils in Barbaresco, its namesake wine tends to be lighter in style and less brawny than Barolo. This was a great example of this style. A brownish garnet color with earthy, dark floral aromas and flavors. A very fresh tasting wine with cherry notes. It had excellent tannin and great acid. A good wine but I thought it was a little wimpy, even for a Barbaresco -- not enough going on for me to love it.

2007 Michele Chiarlo Barolo Cerequio DOCG, 100% Nebbiolo, $80
The winemaker (who was the least friendly of all the folks I spoke to) said this was their crowned jewel -- the "first growth" of Barolo and better than any other vineyard in the area, so the bar was set high. But it didn't measure up for me. Maybe it was too young or maybe it was just the style, but this Barolo had none of the tar, violet, truffle, or chocolate notes I'd expect in a layered Barolo. Again, I'm willing to say that maybe it was the bottle or the youth or the lack of decanting or the age of the wine, but this was just meh for me.

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All in all a great tasting that gave me a deeper understanding of the complexities of Italian wines and the benefits in specializing in one area where you can learn the soil, the land, and what you, as a winemaker, can bring to the wine to make it sing.

Thanks to Kobrand for the invitation!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 082 Evaluating Restaurant Wine Lists

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Wed, 04 Sep 2013 15:45:00 +0000

A big thanks to Tony H for this topic. Here was his question:

Could you one day explore the issue of wine lists?
Where do restaurant wine lists come from? I would like to think that someone sits down with the menu and thinks through what wines might go well with the dishes, but that’s probably naïve. I suspect most restaurants buy a package deal from a distributor to supply a standardized list and the wines?
If you were going to design a wine list, how would you go about doing it?
What is it about a wine list that tips you off as to whether it has been put together by people who know what they’re doing?
Where do wine list prices come from?

I use my experience as a restaurant marketer for the big hulking winery to shed some light on the inside industry dirt. We talk about what to look for in a list and in a good restaurant (via wine) and then I give you some great tips from the book (almost done!).

Hope you enjoy this one! Look forward to the feedback (and other great service stories if you have them).

And from the Shameless Commerce Division: If you are a restaurateur and need some help with your wine list, email me at info@winefornormalpeople.com to see how we can get you a balanced list!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Ep 081 -- Discovering New Wine Regions

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Fri, 16 Aug 2013 04:22:00 +0000

Thanks to listener Kristaps for this week's topic!

After a great listener question on how drinking windows are determined, we give you a few steps you can follow to start exploring a new wine region. In short:

Get a map
Read and research
Narrow down to what sounds good
Figure out how to get the wines you want
Evaluate them, fairly

Here's a link to the podcast: LINK

Enjoy!

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Thanks to our sponsor, audible.com.

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Podcast music: "Café connection" by morgantj / CC BY 3.0, ©2009 - Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (3.0)Map: Licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported, 2.5 Generic, 2.0 Generic and 1.0 Generic license

German Wine Round-Up: Two Rheingau Rieslings and An Unusal Pinot Gris from Baden

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Wed, 14 Aug 2013 14:53:00 +0000

A quick roundup of wines I'd been sitting on from the Wines of Germany press program (in fairness they were in the basement wine cubby and we did some painting and stuff down there so they got temporarily lost but not forgotten. "Sitting on" is not really accurate. The point is, I've rediscovered them and here they are).

Three really unique wines, but sadly only one that I loved.

Two Rheingau Rieslings...

Rheingau is one of the top sub regions of Germany for Riesling. Nearly 80% of the vineyards are planted with the grape, so this region is pretty single-minded. It’s far north and cold, and they'd never be able to grow grapes, but for a little quirk in the flow of the Rhine River. Inexplicably, it takes a jog from its northerly flow for 30 kilometers and flows west. This shift makes a nice southern-facing slope for grapevines, which keeps them toasty warm (relatively speaking, we're still in Germany, so it's cool). Insulating the grapes even more -- the Taunus Mountains to the north, which deflect all the nasty polar winds.

Rheingau or “Rhine district,” represents only 3% of vineyard area but packs a punch reputation-wise. The region is obsessed with letting the world know that not all wineries are created equal. And no one is more obsessed with that idea than Schloss Schönborn, who created the Verband Deutscher Prädikats-und Qualitätsweingüter (VDP), the association of quality wine estates in Germany.

This winery is one of Germany's largest and oldest -- it's been around since at least the 1300s. The wine below is from the very famous Marcobrunn site and it's a rich, full, powerful Riesling. I've had the pleasure of drinking quite a few wines from Schloss Schönborn and I can say that I've never tasted anything but excellence from these guys, so they practice what they preach in terms of quality. Here's the wine to prove it:

The Wine: 2010 Schloss Schönborn Erbacher Marcobrunn Riesling Kabinett (Kabinett = ripe grapes, usually lightly sweet)

Where it's from: The Marcobrunn vineyard in the Rheingau

Alcohol: 10%

The Price: $25

Color: A light yellow, with a shiny, glycerin quality to it.

Smell: Very bright fruit -- lemon, green apple, and peach with very distinct mineral and honey aromas too.

Taste: Even better than the smell, this was like green apple, flowers, honey, and lemon tea. It had a biscuit or bread quality to it and was full and creamy like lemon curd or marmalade. The wine was lightly sweet with very high acid, that gave it great balance.

Drink or sink? Drink. It's a steal for $25. Delicious and fabulous with Chinese!!

And another one from Rheingau that's much less exciting....

The Wine: 2011 G.H. von Mumm 50˚ Riesling Trocken (dry)
Alcohol: 12%
Price: $13

Color: A very pale yellow-green, it looked like it was made from not-so-ripe grapes (which is what you'd expect at the 50˚ line where grapes often don't ripen).

Smell: Tons of mineral -- like a mountain stream. Light peach, lime, with mint. Honestly, if you know what this is, it reminded me a little of Fruit Stripe gum.

Taste: Very, very acidic -- like sucking on a lemon with little else there. It reminded me of raw lime juice with some apple on the finish. The acid was so high and not at all balanced by body or fruit.It was jarring. I tried it with Indian food and it was so tart it clashed with the warm spice flavors of the food.

Drink or sink? Sink. It was tart to the point of sour. I love acid, but there's no balance in this wine for me. That's ok in a lime, not in a wine. I couldn't finish it in one night and it was, admittedly, better and less tart after it was open for a day but that's not a trait a good Riesling should have. I won't be trying this again!

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Baden

Although Baden is Germany's third largest wine region, you've probably never even heard of because most of the stuff never makes it out of the country.

It's a shame because the area actually mixes it up a bit in terms of grapes -- Riesling takes a back seat to Pinot Noir, Pinot Gris, and Pinot Blanc, some of which is rumored to be kind of awesome.

Baden is very long, stretching 250 miles north to south. It's warm too. Protected by the Black Forest and Vosges Mountains to the west, which also border Alsace, France farther west, Baden experiences more sun and warmth. That means it can produce wines that are lower in acid, higher in alcohol and feel richer and fuller. Since I'm a total Alsace junkie, I'd love to have more wines from this area because they're alleged to be similar, but given that they hoard most of it for domestic consumption, it looks like I'll have to head to Germany to get it! Not such a raw deal, but a high cost of entry for sure.

Then again, if most of it tastes like this stuff, I may be ok drinking Alsace Pinot Gris and German Riesling and calling it a day...

The Wine: 2009 Weingut Heger Pinot Gris QbA, Trocken (dry)
Where it's from: Baden, Germany
Alcohol: 13%
Price: $25

Color: Dark Brass, this wine may be the darkest unsweet white I've ever seen. It had a little spritz.

Smell: The wine smelled great to me -- like honey, lemons, and like petrichor, which is the smell on pavement just after it starts raining.

Taste: Yikes! The first thing I noticed: it was a rough on the texture -- it burned the the back of my tongue and chafed my cheeks. Although the wine wasn't sweet, it tasted like sweet things: honeysuckle, peach gummy rings, birthday cake, and honey. Kind of delicious, but not very wine-like to me.

Drink or sink? As a wine on its own, I'd sink it. The wine was far better with cheese because the fat mitigated the harsh texture. Without food, the wine was unpalatable for me, which is a tough sell. Food can improve a wine, but it shouldn't be nasty alone!

So there you have it. Some great, some ok, some not ok. Germany is so multifaceted and I feel so lucky to be able to explore it and share it with you through the Wines of Germany program!

Have you had any of these wines or anything similar? Share your thoughts below!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Episode 80 -- Veneto, Italy

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Thu, 08 Aug 2013 02:42:00 +0000

If you're going to tackle sub-regions of Italy, you probably should do the biggest volume producer of the country first, right? And that would be Veneto.

Home of Verona, Venice, and Vicenza this area is a juggernaut in winemaking.

In this episode we cover the good, the bad, and the flavorless lemon water. We talk about the split between varietal-producing areas and blend-producing areas.

Download us on iTunes or click to listen here.

As promised, here's a list in case you didn't get it on the podcast:

Bardolino
Bianco di Custoza
Valpolicella
Valpantena
Soave
Gambellara
Valpolicella and Amarone
Breganze
Colli Berici
Colli Euganei
Lessini Durello
Piave
Lison-Pramaggiore
Montello e Colli Asolani
Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobiaddene

Enjoy!

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And thanks for listening! We can't wait to hear from you! If you've got a question you want us to answer, post it we'll include it on the show!

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5 Intense Italians You Need Now

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Wed, 31 Jul 2013 18:39:00 +0000

In preparation for the podcast on an Italian sub-region -- stay tuned for which one -- I realized that I neglected to post up fabulous Italians that I tasted and approved for sale on Vinport (from our Shameless Commerce Division -- I do get a small cut of the profits, but like everything I do, I'm damn selective about quality so be assured these are great examples of where they are from).

So here are reviews of 5 kick ass Italians that you need to have with some background on each. We've gotten tremendous feedback on the quality of these wines. If you want to purchase them and are in a state where shipping is legal, please go to http://www.vinport.com/wfnp to pick these up:

The Wine: 2011 Monte del Frá Soave Classico DOC
Price: $13.99
Alcohol: 12.5%

Quick Review:

This is a great example of what Soave and the Garganega grape can do when treated nicely! Monte del Fra is a family-operated winery comprised of 118 hectares of property in the hills of Lake Garda, right near Verona. The winery uses indigenous grapes and focuses on terroir, essential in a producer from this area because this poor region's cred was bashed when seas of flavorless drek was sold en masse in the 70s and 80s under the name "Soave." But as other bad stuff took over (cheap Pinot Grigio, for example), the region had to rethink its origins and some producers are doing an amazing job in the vineyard and in the cellar.

This wine is full of honeydew melon, green apple, and floral aromas and flavors. There's a tiny bit of bitterness that reminds me of an almond and a nice hit of clay-like flavor that gives the wine an earthy note. The vintage was a little warm so this Soave is softer, fruitier, and more mouth-filling than in other years but it is still classic: it has the great acid, fuller flavors and textures that you should expect from this region's wine.

Food Pairings:

Risotto, pasta primavera, and grilled white fish or scallops in citrus sauces.

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The Wine: 2010 Vinchio-Vaglio Serra Valamasca Moscato d’Asti DOCG (Sweet, lightly fizzy)

Where it's From: Asti in the Piedmont region of NE Italy
Alcohol: 5%
Price: $13.99

Quick Review:

This is the real stuff off which all the seas of cheap, nasty, flaccid, low-quality, barely-wine yuck on the market is based. Italian producers have complained that their wines have barely seen a uptick in sales with this Moscato craze (probably because they are too acidic and too much like wine versus the fruit cocktail syrup of the big wineries) yet after the Moscato trend is long dead they are the ones who will still be around. They've been doing this a long time and that's not going to change.

This is a classic Moscato d'Asti from steep hills of Monferrato in the Piedmont region of northwest Italy. Its beautiful pear color is rich from the sugar content, as alcoholic fermentation is halted by keeping it very cool to leave the wine lightly sweet. It's full of bubbles that give it a characteristic light spritz. The wine is so decadent and perfect for summer -- it smells like ripe nectarines, pear, ripe red apples, juicy peach, and like tangerines. The flavor will surprise you -- it's sweet but it has enough acid and effervescence to lighten it up and keep the finish clean and fresh.

I'm not a sweet drinker without dessert so for me, this HAS to go with its perfect summer counterpart -- ripe fruit and fruit-based desserts. If you are a sweet wine lover or are trying to convert someone from cheap Moscato to finer wines, look no further. Once they taste this gem, they'll be converted and ready to try better and better wines.

Food Pairings

Peaches, pears, nectarines, and any dessert that incorporates fruit and cream or custard. The acid and light effervescence will provide a contrast to the creaminess of the dish and the flavors of the Moscato blend seamlessly with the fruit to make this ideal with summer desserts!

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The Wine: 2008 Monte del Frá Valpolicella Classico Superiore DOC

Where it's From: Valpolicella region near Verona in Northeast Italy (Veneto)

Alcohol: 13.5%

Price: $15.99

Quick Review: I'll serve it up straight -- a lot of Valpolicella is watery cherry juice with no character. Needless to say, it's rare I'd recommend one. But every now and then you get some magic in the glass and here it is.

The wine is a little brown around the rim from 5 years of being off the vine but don't be concerned the flavor has faded. One whiff and you'll be sold: the dusty, raisined, spearmint, and sweet smoke nature with a little bit of black licorice will get you excited about this wine. The flavors are so layered -- cinnamon spice and pepper (there's a little bite), mint, dark cherry, raisins, and a hit of breadiness (it reminded me of a croissant) against moderate mouth-drying tannins and mouth-watering acidity make this wine a well-balanced, delicious, medium bodied red.

Food Pairings

Hearty soups, anything with truffles or truffle oil, grilled or roasted red meats or hearty vegetables (like squash), eggplant, and hard cheeses will work well with the wines rustic notes and spice.

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The Wine: 2008 Podere San Lorenzo Rosso di Montalcino DOC

Where it's From: Montalcino in Central Tuscany

Alcohol: 13.5%

Price: $17.99

Quick Review:
Since Chianti can be all over the map in terms of quality and flavor, I go for a more reliable version of Sangiovese in Rosso di Montalcino. From one of the most beautiful towns in the world (I want to retire there!), a clone of Sangiovese grows on slopes and foothills, that have hot days and cool nights. That means the wines get a great balance between fruit, acid, and tannins. The finest grapes go into the famed (and much more expensive) Brunello, and Rosso, the younger, fresher, fruitier version is released earlier and for more immediate drinking.

This Rosso is a great example of the wine. It's full of sour cherry, red cherry, and dusty earth aromas and flavors with refreshing acidity and mild tannins to make it perfect with tomato-based dishes (including pizza!). This should give you a great sense of what Montalcino has to offer and insight into what a good Brunello may taste like when you have a some spare cash to splurge on it!

Food Pairings
Anything Italian with tomato-based sauces. Pizza, chicken or eggplant Parmesan, or pasta with tomato-based sauces will work well. Lightly seasoned grilled meat would be great too.

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The Wine: 2004 Tabarrini Montefalco Sagrantino DOCG
Where it's From: Montefalco in Umbria, Central Italy
Alcohol: 15%
Price: $36.99 (I know this one is a little more money, but we have a limited quantity and it is SO worth it. It's a rare gem)

Quick Review
This is a very, very special wine and not one you see on store shelves every day. The Sagrantino grape is mainly grown in the central Italian region of Umbria, in the village of Montefalco. The best is DOCG status (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) and not much of this stuff, which is required to be aged at least 29 months, makes it outside of the region.

This particular version is outstanding, and it's at the perfect age to drink now. It's a dark plum color with lots of sediment (get your filter out!) and thick legs from the high alcohol (15%). Looking at the wine gives you a hint of how much flavor you're about to experience. Imagine being in a dark, cool forest -- the decaying leaves, the fresh nature aromas, the scents just after it rains -- that's the main smell and flavor sensation in this wine. With black pepper, orange rind, cigar, tobacco, and red cherry flavors, this wine is so complex and tasty. The acid and tannin have mellowed to a moderate level with time and the bit of bitterness and rusticity in the wine is what makes it truly Italian (I think all Italian wines have this and I love it -- it's a mark of the native grapes and terroir).

Food Pairings
The wine is rich and has a lot going on, so you want simpler food to pair. Roasted meats or grilled hearty vegetables, stews, or eggplant Parmesan would do well.

If you don't live in a place where you can have these wines shipped to you and they aren't available in your local stores, just look for the DOCs and DOCGs and you should be able to approximate the flavors I described!

Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Nero d'Avola: An Underserved, Awesome Wine You Need to Have

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Wed, 24 Jul 2013 16:01:00 +0000

I always get excited when I see Nero because I know it's

going to be a winner. And in the world of Italian wine, which is all over the map, this is a safe haven (and from my Shameless Commerce Division, so are the Italian wines I recommended this month on Vinport, which are affordable and will really wow you if you decide to try them).

Originally from a small town called Avola in southeast Sicily, this black (nero means black) grape is so under the radar that it's shameful. There's some range in the wines -- from medium and fruity to rich and spicy -- this hot-weather loving grape never disappoints.

If I may be so bold, I'd say Sicilian reds, in general, are an awesome group of wines for people who love New World stuff but have interest in easing into the gems of the Old World. The warm climate ensures fruity, full, higher alcohol wines (more ripeness = more sugar to be converted to alcohol in fermentation) and that's a winning bet for California, Australia, or Argentina wine lovers. The difference: there is always a touch of earth in these wines which you won't usually find in the New World gems. And that's a great way to start easing into the dustier, dirtier wines that come from Old World areas that are farther north.

One of my go-to Neros is Cusumano. The Cusumano brothers, Diego and Alberto, make wine that allows the grape to shine. This Nero has been through malolactic fermentation to make it creamy in texture, but wasn't oak-aged. The flavor belongs mostly to the grape, which in this case is a great thing. I've been a little underwhelmed by the whites, but the Cusumano Nero is a great as you'll see below.

The only warning I have: this one has a plastic (fake glass) stopper. I think it's fine for preserving the wine before you open it, but make sure you use your own vacuum pump to reseal it if you don't finish it -- my experience is that those stoppers do the wine even fewer favors in preservation than shoving a regular cork back in! I wish they would use a screw cap, but it is what it is.

Here's the deal on the wine...

The Wine: Cusumano Nero d'Avola 2011
Alcohol: 14%
Price: $15

Color: Cranberry color -- not opaque or black like the name would imply. With the 14% alcohol, the wine had thick legs.

Smell: Chocolate, leather, black raspberry and red raspberry jam aromas. And then a fresh scent like wildflowers growing in a meadow -- earthy and floral.

Taste: The texture hit me first. There was a nice amount of mouth-drying medium tannin, and then stronger acid to wash out my mouth and make the wine feel lighter. The wine had a great interplay of earth and fruit. A little tar, ripe raspberry, and mocha flavors made this a nice treat.

Drink or Sink?: Drink. I am never disappointed with this wine. It's richer than a lot of Neros I've had for more money and it's a good example of the wine.

Thanks for reading! Have you had this wine? If so, drop a comment below and let me know what you think!!!

And don't forget the five incredible Italian selections that I hand picked this month on Vinport. These are much higher quality Italians than I've tasted in a long time and if you live in a place where you can have them shipped, you won't be disappointed!!!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Movie Review of SOMM

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Mon, 22 Jul 2013 02:20:00 +0000

We couldn't help but review the wine movie of the day: SOMM.

We liked it, mostly. Here are the highlights:

The cinematography was outstanding -- this guy (Jason Wise) can make a movie!
Wise presented the rigor of the exam well
The characters were interesting

BUT, we felt that, knowing what we know, there were some holes in the presentation. We raise things like the intensity of the service exam (nearly invisible in the movie), the financial hit people have to take to be successful, and what it actually gets you once you achieve this level (be careful what you wish for)...

Here's a link if you don't want to download on iTunes.

Enjoy and PLEASE take it for what it's worth. We are reviewing from the wine perspective -- we're by no means pro reviewers. We'd love to hear your opinions on it all!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Episode 079 -- Loire Part 2

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Thu, 11 Jul 2013 03:13:00 +0000

We released Loire Part 1 but it was so dense we needed a breather!

This week, we return with a short overview of the region, covering the eastern areas, including Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, the most famous of the modern Loire regions.

Enjoy!!

Here's the link to listen: LINK

Wine for Normal People Radio: Tour de France 2013 Wine Coverage

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Fri, 05 Jul 2013 08:56:00 +0000

We are total cycling dorks so M.C. Ice and I start parallel coverage of the Tour de France 2013 in mini-podcasts! Even if you don't like the Tour, these will give you some quick info on some of the great wine regions of France.

We've posted 2 episodes with mini overviews of the wines available in the regions through which the Tour is cycling!

Click on the links to listen:

Corsica and Provence -- Stages 1 - 5

Languedoc-Roussillon and Southwest France Stages 6 - 9

Good listening for a quick dog walk or trip to the store! Enjoy!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Episode 078 -- Loire Part 1

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Sat, 29 Jun 2013 06:45:00 +0000

We're on a roll -- hitting the big regions of France. This week, we cover half the Loire. It's the largest region in France, so we had to break it in two.

Here's a link: PODCAST

But first, we remind everyone of our amazing partnership with Vinport.com, for which I am selecting wines that I think are great examples of their regions.
Free shipping on 6 or more bottles, great prices, and descriptions of six kick ass wines that will let you taste exactly the attributes M.C. Ice and discuss on the podcast (and as I say on the podcast, I get a small portion of the proceeds, but I selected Vinport as a partner because they let me pick what I wanted to present to you, not what was on their agenda).
LINK to my page on Vinport (which features two awesome Alsace wines this month!): LINK TO WFNP PAGE with Alsace wines for purchase!

First a Loire overview, including Cremant (sparkling wine), the "branding" issue the region has, and two of the main areas:

1. Pays Nantais/Muscadet

Featuring the Melon de Bourgogne grape, the best come from Sevre-et-Maine and are aged Sur Lie.

2. Anjou-Saumur featuring:

Rosé d'Anjou, Anjou Villages
Chenin Blanc sweet appellations: Bonnezeaux (Bon Zo), Quarts-du-Chaume (quart duh Sh-ahhhm), Coteaux du Layon (coat-oh duh lay-on), and lots of bad dry stuff from Anjou or Saumur,
Coteaux de l'Aubance (coat-oh day laub-ance)
Chenin Blanc dry appellation: Savennières (sauv-inn-yere)
Cabernet Franc in Saumur-Champigny (saw-muir shamp-in-ye)
Sparkling wine in Saumur

And that's enough to get you started! We'll follow it up next time with the Touraine and Central Vineyards (Sancerre and Pouilly Fumé).

Enjoy!

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Acorn Winery: Unique Stuff and Still Truly One of Sonoma's Finest

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Thu, 20 Jun 2013 02:16:00 +0000

When people I really like who happen to run wineries send me wine, I get a little nervous. It's like a friend asking you to read her novel. You know she put blood, sweat, and tears into the process. You know she's so proud of her accomplishment. And even though you may think of her as an outstanding writer, you worry that maybe this time something will have changed.

Sometimes you're right. But often, when someone's got it, they've got it, which can be a tremendous relief and a real joy too. Such is the case with Acorn Winery located in Sonoma's Russian River Valley in California.

I visited owners Bill and Betsy Nachbur's a while back and had an amazing time at this small winery. As I mentioned in the previous post, this ain't the first rodeo for the couple -- like many in the industry (where you can make a small fortune by starting with a large one) they had a life before wine and were very successful. Like others in Napa and Sonoma, this wine pursuit for them was and is driven by passion. But unlike others, if you talk to Betsy and Bill, see their modest but very comfy tasting room, and hear what other people from other wineries in Sonoma say about these people, you understand that this is a different operation.

Bill, the winemaker, is self-taught. And even though Acorn has been around since 1990 and have been making wine since 1994, the Nachburs don't seem to care about glossy photos and being quoted in the press. They care about figuring out how to grow amazing grapes and make amazing wine.

The winery sells half its grapes and only makes 3,000 cases of wine a year. Their vineyards aren't the highly manicured, "curated" vineyards you see around the Russian River Valley, where they are located. They're from the old tradition, where grapes grew together in the vineyards and were picked and fermented as a batch (field blends). Acorn's Allegría (means joy and is so appropriate for the approach) vineyard is 120 years old and is mixed up and co-fermented in the winery.

What's co-fermenting? Instead of making a batch of Merlot and a batch of Cabernet Franc separately and then blending them, you ferment it all together so the flavors meld.

I'm happy to report that after trying this vintage, I'm even MORE into Acorn than I was before. I approached with a serious critical eye to make sure I wasn't biased but these wines are amazing any way you cut it. The lineup is below, but I can tell you this: wine after wine was astoundingly balanced, delicious, and memorable. These wines make me want more...all the time! I think anything you try from Acorn is going to be a class act. I can't think of too many places I can say that of, but this remains a favorite.

All wines are from Acorn's estate Allegría Vineyards in Sonoma's Russian River Valley.

2009 Sangiovese
The Grapes: 98% Sangiovese, 1% Canaiolo, 1% Mammolo
Alcohol: 13.2%

Color: Orange rim, with a dried rose color in the center. This is lighter -- Sangiovese doesn't hold color well.

Smell: Lovely scents of dried flowers, coffee, cherry, and dried cherry.

Taste: Sour cherry, red cherry, and dried strawberry with a little bit of orange peel. Bright with great acid and light tannins.

Drink or sink?: Drink. This is not an Italian Sangiovese, it's a California version with bright fruit and great acid, but none of the rusticity as in an Italian wine. It's fruity, with acid and tannin and pure flavors. If you try this, don't make the comparison to Italy, this is a true California style and it's outstanding in its own right.

2009 Dolcetto
The Grapes: 96% Dolcetto, 2% Friesa, 2% Barbera
Alcohol: 14.1%

Color: Plum-red like black raspberry juice and lots of consistent color from ripe grapes.

Smell: Earth and plum, dark fruit, raspberry and dried strawberry made this very fresh. The leather notes gave it almost a Syrah-like quality to smell, which is heavier than most Dolcettos.

Taste: Dark fruit, cherry, with leather notes (but really mild, it didn't taste like a Syrah!). It was medium weight with good acidity and slight bitterness due to the grape, which usually has that biting character.

Drink or sink?: Drink. Unlike the Zin, I love the bitterness in this wine. It offsets the fruit in a way that makes it a point of interest rather than a distraction from the flavors. Dolcetto is a unique grape and this wine is a great expression of it -- clean, pure fruit flavors with great texture. I love it.

2009 Cabernet Franc
The Grapes: 96% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot
Alcohol: 13.4%
Color: Ruby, sparkling and glycerin like -- a shiny, clean looking wine

Smell: Coffee, violets, dark berry, spearmint, black pepper, and potting soil, this had ideal aromas for a California Cab Franc.

Taste: Chocolate covered coffee beans, dark cherry, spearmint, leather, a great floral note. So balanced, with medium tannin and acid.

Drink or sink?: Drink. SO balanced, pleasant and sippable but this had real depth in flavor -- it wasn't just a one note. An amazingly delicious balance between earth, fruit, acid, and tannin. A perfect California Cab Franc.

2010 Heritage Vines Zinfandel
The Grapes: 80% Zinfandel, 11% Petite Sirah, 7% Alicante Bouschet, 2% a ton of other stuff, including Plavac Mali, a Zin clone
Alcohol: 15.3% (high)

Color: Crimson and ruby in the center, the wine had a very consistent color -- even ripening of the bunches, I suspect. Fat legs from the alcohol

Smell: Powerful, brandied black cherry, blackberry, and vanilla, oak, and coffee grounds from the barrels

Taste: Coffee, black cherry, vanilla with a slight hint of bitterness and a little acid.

Drink or sink?: Drink. But with the caveat that this is the second time I've said to M.C. Ice -- "I love all this wine but this Zin is just great, whereas the rest are mind-blowing." Great wine, but I don't love the slight bitterness and I think the wine could use a little more tannin for balance. Also, you need to watch the alcohol on this -- pairing with food is hard with a 15%+ wine, even if it's balance. Still, it's a good wine and I'd drink it any day (just after I drank the rest of Acorn's line first!).

2009 Alicante Bouschet
The Grapes: 98% Alicante Bouschet, 1% Petit Bouschet, 1% Grenache
Alcohol: 13.6%

Color: Plum and dark purple in color, this looked like a rich wine.

Smell: Smokey and peaty, like Scotch from that 83% American oak used (much of it new)! Bacon, smoked barrels, black licorice, and tobacco. After a while it was less smokey and peaty and more like briar, baked rhubarb, blackberry syrup, and black pepper.

Taste: Plum, briar, raspberry, and vanilla flavors -- it was like a pie! Medium acid and tannin, cigar, tar, and underbrush gave it complexity.

Drink or sink?: Unbelievable. I love this wine. The smell alone had me, but the taste was rich, full, and meaty. Loved it.

2009 Medley
The Grapes: 44% Syrah, 14% Cabernet Franc, 13% Sangiovese, 11% Cinsault, 7% Viognier, 5% Muscat, 3% Zinfandel, 3% Other stuff.
Alcohol: 14.2%

Color: Like canned red beets -- dark red to purple but with a slight orange tinge. Thick legs from the alcohol.

Smell: Pepper, plums, prunes, dried blueberries, and dried dirt were enriched by nutmeg, dirt, and campfire smells from oak aging.

Taste: Like a blackberry briar (berries + underbrush/outdoor smell), with orange peel, blood orange, and sundried tomato flavors -- very cool and interesting. It had medium tannin and bright mouth-cleaning acid.

Drink or sink?: Drink. FABULOUS balance and so delicious. I could drink this all day and all night alone, but it's also great with food.

What can I say? Acorn proves again that it's a complete hit parade of wines. For me, this is a MUST visit if you're heading to Sonoma. The wines are nothing short of outstanding. Whew. I dig the people and I'm glad they haven't lost their touch. Go see them -- you won't regret it.

Wine for Normal People Radio: Audio Wine Review 004 -- Cave de Rasteau La Domeliere

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 02:58:00 +0000

In this mini-review we discover a sub-region that used to be part of the larger Côtes-du-Rhône region: Rasteau. Our foray into this new appellation was nothing short of a rollicking success!

Click here to listen to the mini review: LINK

2010 Cave de Rasteau La Domeliere
Price: $15

Grapes: 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Mourvedre
Alcohol: 14.5%

Color: A rich plum color with thick legs.

Smell: Shrubs and underbrush (garrigue, as we state), herbal, a horsetail (yeah, as in the animal tail), leather, with an undertone of cherry but fruit is definitely secondary. It was a bit of a cilia singer -- a little hot from the alcohol.

Taste: Just like it smells -- cherry, earth, medium tannin, nice round, full texture from the alcohol. Rich, full, earthy, and not too heavy.

Drink or sink?: Drink! Great structure, great flavor, rich and drinks well above its price!

Hope you enjoy the review! Drop a comment here, on Facebook or on Twitter and let us know what you think!

Wine for Normal People Radio: Episode 077 -- Alsace, France

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Mon, 10 Jun 2013 15:07:00 +0000

In this episode we cover a lot of ground and hit on one of my personal favorite wine regions: Alsace, France.

Here is a link to the podcast: LINK

And the show notes:

We introduce our amazing partnership with Vinport.com, for which I am selecting wines that I think are great examples of their regions.
Vinport has access to some amazing regions and producers that aren't always widely available. If you live in state where you can have wine shipped to you, check out my page. Free shipping on 6 or more bottles, great prices, and descriptions of six kick ass wines that will let you taste exactly the attributes M.C. Ice and discuss on the podcast (and as I say on the podcast, I get a small portion of the proceeds, but I selected Vinport as a partner because they let me pick what I wanted to present to you, not what was on their agenda).

LINK to my page on Vinport (which features two awesome Alsace wines this month!): LINK TO WFNP PAGE with Alsace wines for purchase!

We do some listener thanks and segway into the podcast with a great listener question on how to get your sweet wine loving friends to transition to different wines! Alsace may be the answer.

Then we get to Alsace.

We discuss, the unique geography and climate, dork out on soils, and then discuss the grapes.
We tackle the historical ping pong match in the region
Then we drill into what to expect from the wines of Alsace (hint: A LOT! This region got me into wine in the first place).

The wines we discuss are:

Hubert Beck Pinot Gris, $17 on Vinport

Riesling
Gewurztraminer
Pinot Gris
Pinot Blanc
Chasselas (shas-LA)
Auxerrois (au-say-WAH)
Sylvaner
Muscat
Pinot Noir.

The wine types we talk about:

Edelzwicker
Cremant d’Alsace
Vendange Tardive
Sélection de Grains Nobles (selek-cion de GRAN NuhBLAH),
And the Grand Cru wines, including Trimbach Clos St-Hune, one of my top wines ever.

Enjoy! And one more shameless plug my page on Vinport!

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Audio Wine Review 003: 2011 Truchard Chardonnay from Carneros in Napa

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 19:18:00 +0000

I love a crisp Chardonnay and Carneros, in southern Napa, usually delivers! This is a great wine, as you'll hear us describe...

Download it on iTunes or click this link to the mini audio review. Press the arrow at the bottom of the blurb to listen: LINK

The Wine: 2011 Truchard Chardonnay
Where it's from: Carneros, a cool climate area that straddles southern Napa and Sonoma.
Price: $30
Alcohol: 13.9%
Color: A pale straw, not to much color from the oak or over-ripe grapes!

Smell: Very floral, like nightshade jasmine flowers and a mouthwatering lemon and green apple scent that made it seem lively.

Taste: Much fuller and richer than we expected, with honeysuckle, jasmine, and then tropical fruits. Tons of pineapple and then vanilla from the oak but the acidity keeps the wine feeling fresh and light. As M.C. Ice says "I like how the oak is a side dish, not an entree. It balances the other flavors, doesn't overpower them." Great minerality too.

Drink or sink?: Drink. An well-balanced, excellent and tasty Chardonnay. Very close to a European style but with great California fruit flavors. We loved it!

Full disclosure: This wine was provided by Truchard for review, but as with all our reviews, we give an honest assessment for good or for bad!

And the Finale Walla Walla Post: You'll Want an Encore from Gramercy and Abeja

noreply@blogger.com (Wine For Normal People) — Thu, 06 Jun 2013 01:21:00 +0000

As a final post on my outing to Walla Walla, Washington -- I have two shining stars. Gramercy Cellars, a small (5K cases) winery, which is relatively new, totally excellent, but very slick for this little town, and Abeja, even smaller (4K cases) and what I consider one of the crown jewels of Walla Walla.

To start, Gramercy.

It's a relatively new operation, founded in 2005 by a Master Sommelier, Greg Harrington, and his wife, Pamela. The couple was living in New York where Greg was working and went to a tasting of Walla Walla wines. I guess he and I aren't too dissimilar because he found what I found in the wines: that they were totally different from anything else in the U.S. -- earthy but fruity, with awesome balance. Shortly thereafter he booked a few trips out west and then made it a goal to move to Walla Walla to make wine.

Gramercy aims to make wines from top vineyards with an optimal balance of earth, fruit, and structure (tannin, acid, alcohol). They're all about minimalist winemaking techniques and letting the terroir come through in the wine.

I didn't meet Greg Harrington, and that was just fine because instead I got to hang out for an hour with Assistant Winemaker and Partner, Brandon Moss. In the backdrop of a polished New York-meets-Walla Walla tasting room, Brandon set the tone and made it more Walla Walla than New York.

Moss is a Walla Walla native and has so much passion for the area and for wine. He was fun, loved dorking out, and was so down-to-earth. A truly normal wine person. I have to admit that when I think back on the whole trip, a major highlight was the fun I had laughing with Brandon and discussing wine in Walla Walla.

As you'll see in the reviews below, their wines kick ass. Which is a good thing since it would have been a shame if we had fun but the wines sucked. Thankfully, these guys know what they are doing too! Here's the lineup:

The Wine: 2012 Rosé
Price: $25
Grapes: Cinsault, Grenache, Syrah
Alcohol: 13.2%

Quick description: A pale salmon color with lemon, herbal smells. It was bone dry with nice lemon, light raspberry, a little salty, bready flavor. Very nice herbal finish with great acidity.

Drink or sink?: Drink. Great dry rosé -- super nice for sipping but I would have loved it with cheese.
The Wine: 2010 L'Idiot de la Village, Columbia Valley
Price: $42
Grapes: 80% Syrah, 12% Mourvedre, 4% Grenache, 4% Cinsault
Alcohol: 14.2%

Quick description: Thick tears from the alcohol with a lighter ruby color, this looked hefty. It smelled like decaying leaves, spice, cinnamon, and plums. It tasted like red berries and tons of black pepper and cinnamon spice, with long, chewy tannins and good mouth cleaning acidity.
Drink or sink?: Drink. This was absolutely awesome. Full of flavor and texture. This, like many of the best Syrah and Syrah blends in Walla Walla came from the "In the Rocks" vineyard, which has rocks (galets, as the French call them) similar to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, reflecting heat and light for great ripening and big flavor.

The Wine: 2010 Walla Walla Syrah

Price: $55

Grapes: 100% Syrah
Alcohol: 13.9%

Quick description: Dark ruby with dark fruit, plum, saddle leather, and black pepper aromas. This wine just screamed Syrah. The wine tasted like black pepper, blackberry, and ripe plums, with chewy, strong tannins that were slightly astringent but balanced by good acidity and moderate alcohol.

Drink or sink?: Drink. This wine is very, very young but has enormous potential to be outstanding. One to hold.

The Wine: 2010 Columbia Valley Lagniappe Syrah
Price: $55
Grapes: 100% Syrah
Alcohol: 14.2%
Quick description: A dark ruby with thick tears, the wine had aromas of strawberry with coffee beans, saddle leather, and brewed coffee. It tastes like black pepper, raspberry, blackberry, and strawberries with leathery notes. Moderate tannins and acid gave the wine good balance and it didn't feel hot, despite the 14% alcohol.

Drink or sink?: Drink. A nice wine with lots going on. A little more strongly flavored but surprisingly simpler than the Walla Walla Syrah. Very good.
The Wine: 2009 Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Price: $50
Grapes: 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Cabernet Franc, 9% Merlot
Alcohol: 14.2%Quick description: A brownish, crimson color, the wine smelled like blackcurrant, black cherry, dried fruit, cinnamon, nutmeg, and walnuts. Strong flavors of black cherry, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cola with tame tannins and nice mouthwatering acid.Drink or sink?: Drink. A great wine -- super balanced with great baking spice and ripe fruit. A great deal at $50 too!

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Abeja
A partnership between two couples, this small winery may be the pinnacle of Walla Walla wines for me. In 2002, Ken and Ginger Harrison on the business side, and John Abbott and Molly Galt on the winemaking/ marketing end, created an oasis for wine lovers on the east side of Walla Walla.
Right out of college, John Abbott, a kind, modest, and smart guy went to Napa to work for Pine Ridge in the Stag's Leap District and then Acacia in Carneros. He and Molly moved to Walla Walla to start Canoe Ridge Vineyard, owned by Chalone, where he was head winemaker and she was in charge of hospitality and PR. Eight years later, Abeja was formed on a refurbished site of a working farm that was built from 1903 to 1907. Abeja ("bee" in Spanish) has an Inn on the property that is made up exclusive quarters from the old farm buildings. The winery's production and business take place in the old silo, which has breathtaking views of Walla Walla's Blue Mountains and the valley. The place is a secluded and deluxe, and utterly beautiful. As you can guess -- staying is not easy on the wallet. Although it's beautiful and buccolic, the best part of Abeja is the wines. The problem: They are small and if you're not staying there you may not get access to their stuff! The other, better option for all of us not in Walla Walla is to get on the mailing list, which I highly recommend because these wines are worth seeking out. John aims to make wines that are good with food and well balanced. He's apparently a perfectionist in the vineyard and that leads to outstanding results.I spent a lot of time with Molly. She gave me a tour of the grounds, showed me the winemaking facilities and introduced me to Ken and John. Everyone at Abeja was wonderful and modest. Even better, each wine I tasted was exceptional.The Wine: 2012 Walla Walla ViognierPrice: $30Grapes: 100% ViognierQuick description: A pale yellow with lots of floral notes and a great saltine cracker smell. The flavor was awesome -- like a sugar cookie with some bread flavor -- almost like a lemon curd croissant. The wine had a ton of richness -- it felt soft and round but still had great acid.

Drink or sink?: Drink. An amazing Viognier -- one of the best I've ever had. Between the neutral barrel fermentation and the whole cluster pressing, which gives that salty earth flavor, John has completely mastered this grape. The biggest problem with this wine -- only about 250 cases produced. I wish they'd step up production because it is insanely good.
The Wine: 2010 Walla Walla SyrahPrice: $40Grapes: 96% Syrah, 4% Viognier
Quick description: An inky plum color with a light rim, the Syrah was co-fermented with Viognier (á la Côte Rotie in Rhône), which is known to pull color from Syrah and make the wine darker. More intense and French-like than any other Syrah I had on the Washington trip, this smelled like oregano, black pepper, and cinnamon, with black cherry and black plum. The flavors were black pepper, black cherry, black raspberry, and plum with a touch of leather. The wine had chewy tannins and great acid to keep it in balance.

Drink or sink?: The best Syrah of the entire trip and one of the best domestic Syrahs I've ever had. This is an outstanding wine. A must-try.

The Wine: 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, Heather Hill Vineyard, Walla Walla
Price: $55 (should be twice that for the quality)
Grapes: 100% Cabernet Sauvignon

Quick description: Ruby with stained tears, it smelled like dusty earthiness with dried strawberry and green pepper. The flavors were like dried strawberry, tea leaves, forest floor, and black fruit. The wine had chewy tannin but was balanced by moderate alcohol and excellent acid.Drink or sink?: Drink. Another excellent Abeja wine. From the Heather Hill Vineyard on the south side of Walla Walla, this small area produces outstanding, layered, and perfectly balanced Cabernet Sauvignon. Add on expert winemaking and this wine is delicious. The best Cabernet of the trip and drinks like a $100+ bottle.

The Wine: 2010 Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Price: $45
Grapes: 96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot
Quick description: A bright ruby with aromas of thyme, cinnamon, black currant, and berry with some black pepper. The wine tasted like black fruit, plum, cinnamon, nutmeg, dust, leather, cigar box, and dried fruit. It was nutty and kind of like a fruitcake. Softer tannins, with medium acid.
Drink or sink?: Drink. Another stellar wine with lots of different flavors. The sourcing from Red Mountain and the Dionysis and Bacchus vineyards gives this wine lots of dimension and makes the wine more approachable and fruity now. Highway robbery for $45. This is better than a lot of $90 Cabs I've had._________________________________________
Small fries, but great wines. If you can get your hands on these two producers' wares, you won't be let down! Let me know if you've had these wines and what you think!!