I had a research meeting the other night. While this entails meeting with my research partners and talking about p values, regression analysis and variables, it also generally involves delicious food and drinking.
We met at a tapas place in Temescal that I've not had great success with on the past several tries. The wine list, of course mostly Spanish, is fun and quite good, but the food hasn't wowed me. This time, I had a completely different experience and I don't think it was the wine talking...
The food was fantastic, I'm guessing the menu is just been large enough that I've gotten rather unlucky in what I've chosen to try. Ginny suggested a wine she loves- from the Canary Islands. We got a bottle and I have to say, it was one of the most unusual wines I have ever tasted. My tasting notes said "Ash" "Acid" and "Structured tannin" but the ash was what really hit me on the nose. Unmistakeable and very much a signature.
The Canaries are seven small Spanish islands situated just over 50 miles off the coast of Africa, in the Atlantic ocean. They are volcanic, and a very strange place to grow wine. Each of the vines need to be grown in a hole, protected from the elements, and often on steep, carved terraces and all in volcanic soil. Consequently, they taste just like their sea-salted leaves and dark, smoky soil. I remember tasting a cab from up in northern CA at a tiny vineyard when that vintage had been grown during pervasive wildfires that were plaguing the Sierras and the smoke was intense and hit you right up front. Different from that, these wines offer the distant memory of smoke embedded inside of something much more complex but when you say the word "volcanic" you can't help but think "that's exactly it!"
Canary Island wines were almost impossible to find here in north america, but they are creeping in slowly and getting snapped up fast thanks to some easing of distribution. If you ever find yourself able to try one, you're in for something quite unexpected.
Cheers.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Sunday, November 11, 2012
Wines of Washington
I found myself up in Seattle again this past week for a conference. The conference kind of sucked, but that was fabulous because I was able to blow it off without remorse and head outside to do other things. Among them, wandering around down by Pike Place Market, was a tasting room. I stumbled by a modern-looking tasting room on a quiet Friday afternoon and decided to stop in. I didn't have any of my industry cards on me, but decided to just check it out anyhow.
I'm glad I did.
Lost River Winery is my favorite kind of place: family run, local (all Washington) grapes, teeny production, high quality wines and they don't distribute. And even better- I think they're under-charging for the wines they have.
I came in, looking a little nuts with blue dress pants, sneakers (my feet were killing me) an awkward shirt and a big coat. I sat down at the bar and the man behind the counter got me a glass. He was playing Leonard Cohen overhead, apparently he was playing in Seattle that very night! So, good music and a nice vibe going on. Something about ghosts was the discussion with a woman named Karen who was chatting with the man behind the bar. Karen managed to latch on to me and chat away for the hour I ended up spending in Lost River's Tasting Room that afternoon... I would have rather talked wine with the tasting room man, but Karen was very... persistent.
We started with the Pinot Gris. Teeny production, and $15 a bottle. If you like a pinot gris, you'd like this- it had nice, balanced acid and was light and crisp. Of course we all have friends who drink whites on summer afternoons and this would be an easy drinker with friends on the deck.
Next, we went to their "Rainshadow": a Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc blend that was surprising and lovely. It had a lot of acid, but in a very good way. It bit you back just a little bit, had oak overtones and lingered a bit on the finish. I could smell Mount Rainier in there somewhere- our tasting room man said "Semillion grows perfectly in Washington." It apparently does, because you can taste Washington in the bottle...
Next up, they make a Nebbiolo- it wasn't on the tasting menu, but our host poured it for me as he had it open. I was glad, I really wanted to try it. Very Italian, traditional tasting! A translucent, red but dirty red color, it had some barnyard on the nose. The mouth was all nebbiolo, though- fruit forward and velvety tasting. Finish was not long, but faded nicely in the mouth. Much more like a traditional Nebbiolo than a CA nebbiolo- CA wines have that Uber-Jammy fruit that you can cut with a knife- but this is not at all that style. Much more traditional, and I liked it. A lot. $26
Next I got to try the Walla Walla Syrah: yes, made from grapes from Walla Walla and it was what you expected from a Syrah. The color is intense, deep, opaque purple and the nose is rich, jammy and fruity. On the mouth, it doesn't disappoint either: a big Syrah.
Western Red was only $17 a bottle and was one of my favorites on the menu. You want this wine on a weeknight. You want to nurture a glass of it in front of a fire with Monday Night Football on TV and your dog snoring at your feet. It's easy to drink- almost too easy to drink. It's a medium bodied blend of Cab, Cab Franc, Merlot and Malbec. Oh, yeah. Best value on the menu.
The Cabernet was mostly all Cab with just a splash of Merlot and Cab Franc (10 & 5%). It was what you want from a Western Cab: big, fruity, jammy, luscious. And it delivered. I sipped it slowly and carefully, it's a mouthful with a long finish. $25- crazy.
There were a few others on the menu but I didn't press, as it was already getting long in the afternoon and I wanted to be gone about 20 minutes ago- but one last wine for dessert...
2010 Semillon late harvest: oh, worth the wait. $17 a bottle it's a steal. It's not at all what you expect from a late harvest in a refreshing way. It's devoid of the cloyingly sweet over the top honeydrop you expect, but it's a little acidic, and less sweet than you're expecting. But still a desert wine that feels like you're eating that sip. I enjoyed it. A desert wine for people who don't love desert wines. or just an unexpected twist.
What more would there be to love?? A family-run and owned winery that makes finely crafted, teeny production wines that you can only get at the tasting room? Love. Of course. it had to be love.
Flock there. And savor. You will.
I'm glad I did.
Lost River Winery is my favorite kind of place: family run, local (all Washington) grapes, teeny production, high quality wines and they don't distribute. And even better- I think they're under-charging for the wines they have.
I came in, looking a little nuts with blue dress pants, sneakers (my feet were killing me) an awkward shirt and a big coat. I sat down at the bar and the man behind the counter got me a glass. He was playing Leonard Cohen overhead, apparently he was playing in Seattle that very night! So, good music and a nice vibe going on. Something about ghosts was the discussion with a woman named Karen who was chatting with the man behind the bar. Karen managed to latch on to me and chat away for the hour I ended up spending in Lost River's Tasting Room that afternoon... I would have rather talked wine with the tasting room man, but Karen was very... persistent.
We started with the Pinot Gris. Teeny production, and $15 a bottle. If you like a pinot gris, you'd like this- it had nice, balanced acid and was light and crisp. Of course we all have friends who drink whites on summer afternoons and this would be an easy drinker with friends on the deck.
Next, we went to their "Rainshadow": a Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc blend that was surprising and lovely. It had a lot of acid, but in a very good way. It bit you back just a little bit, had oak overtones and lingered a bit on the finish. I could smell Mount Rainier in there somewhere- our tasting room man said "Semillion grows perfectly in Washington." It apparently does, because you can taste Washington in the bottle...
Next up, they make a Nebbiolo- it wasn't on the tasting menu, but our host poured it for me as he had it open. I was glad, I really wanted to try it. Very Italian, traditional tasting! A translucent, red but dirty red color, it had some barnyard on the nose. The mouth was all nebbiolo, though- fruit forward and velvety tasting. Finish was not long, but faded nicely in the mouth. Much more like a traditional Nebbiolo than a CA nebbiolo- CA wines have that Uber-Jammy fruit that you can cut with a knife- but this is not at all that style. Much more traditional, and I liked it. A lot. $26
Next I got to try the Walla Walla Syrah: yes, made from grapes from Walla Walla and it was what you expected from a Syrah. The color is intense, deep, opaque purple and the nose is rich, jammy and fruity. On the mouth, it doesn't disappoint either: a big Syrah.
Western Red was only $17 a bottle and was one of my favorites on the menu. You want this wine on a weeknight. You want to nurture a glass of it in front of a fire with Monday Night Football on TV and your dog snoring at your feet. It's easy to drink- almost too easy to drink. It's a medium bodied blend of Cab, Cab Franc, Merlot and Malbec. Oh, yeah. Best value on the menu.
The Cabernet was mostly all Cab with just a splash of Merlot and Cab Franc (10 & 5%). It was what you want from a Western Cab: big, fruity, jammy, luscious. And it delivered. I sipped it slowly and carefully, it's a mouthful with a long finish. $25- crazy.
There were a few others on the menu but I didn't press, as it was already getting long in the afternoon and I wanted to be gone about 20 minutes ago- but one last wine for dessert...
2010 Semillon late harvest: oh, worth the wait. $17 a bottle it's a steal. It's not at all what you expect from a late harvest in a refreshing way. It's devoid of the cloyingly sweet over the top honeydrop you expect, but it's a little acidic, and less sweet than you're expecting. But still a desert wine that feels like you're eating that sip. I enjoyed it. A desert wine for people who don't love desert wines. or just an unexpected twist.
What more would there be to love?? A family-run and owned winery that makes finely crafted, teeny production wines that you can only get at the tasting room? Love. Of course. it had to be love.
Flock there. And savor. You will.
Monday, August 27, 2012
Albarino: a new white in my flight
I went to a place in Temescal tonight for a research meeting (yes, yes, we did get some work done too) at a place I rather like for its odd ambiance: Marc49. They have a great wine list, and of course I love small plates to share.
They have a couple of flight options- actually, an interesting concept in flights- you can pick 3 for $11 or 4 wines for $14 and in any flight you put it together yourself. So, I had a large wine menu and a flight to put together. I'm a fan of theme flights, particularly linear ones so you can get a side-by-side tasting. Anita got 2 whites and a red, and I went for an "Old World" Theme with one white and three reds.
The white I chose was a Spanish "Albarino" a varietal which was new to me. Like many wines, the exact origin is hard to pin down, but it's an ancient French (Rhone) varietal that the Cluny monks probably brought to Spain in the middle ages. It's generally made in Spain and Portugese wine production, and used as a blender.
What I was struck by was its nose first- very fetching, it's enticing, crisp and clean and with pepper, and a faint floral backnote. On the palate, it was surprisingly big-bodied for a white. On the palate, it was amazingly acidic- sure, I was having ceviche as a small plate, but the lime I tasted in there was really something. Ginny and Anita asked how it was, and all I could say was "wow, that's super acidic." Crisp, clean, super acidic, and a short finish. The body is surprisingly large when it's in the mouth, although my varietal chart puts it pretty much middle in the body taxonomy "medium" and high on acid. It was quite nice.
Just for fun, in the rest of my Old-World flight, I went with a Tempranillo made in Argentina (okay, but I think of tempranillo as a muscley-grape) and this was light with no umph. Dirty, though, and true to old world style, you can taste the production in the wine as much as the wine itself.
Next, Anita got a Spanish Barbera that was also light, fruity, very very light on the barnyard and good, but light.
My next was a standard Cote-du-Rhone blend that was a real pleaser for Anita. It was a 2010, super easy to drink, you could put half a bottle of that away before you even blinked. Easy to drink. Well blended, not much on the nose and a limited finish, but pleasant enough.
The last in my old world flight was a gamble: they had a blend from LEBANON on the menu (do you love Marc 49? Oh, yes you do!) that was Cinsault, Syrah and Cab. I liked it- didn't love it. But it was not old world at all. Not al all. Very new- world tasting, fruit forward, bigger in body and higher alcohol much like we in CA prefer. Well blended, mostly, although you can pick out the cinsault and the syrah themselves. I tried to imagine the cab alone but couldn't. It had the spice and pepper you want from Cinsault- the velvet, the smoothness, and I think this was really enhanced with the Syrah, which of course is going to be adding your big fruits.
Overall, great wine, greater company, and terrific food. And what do you know? A cool white I never even heard of. And a new varietal- if the monastic community were instrumental in its development in the middle ages, of *course* I'm going to love it... This week, go try a Albarino folks. You'll be surprised, at least.
They have a couple of flight options- actually, an interesting concept in flights- you can pick 3 for $11 or 4 wines for $14 and in any flight you put it together yourself. So, I had a large wine menu and a flight to put together. I'm a fan of theme flights, particularly linear ones so you can get a side-by-side tasting. Anita got 2 whites and a red, and I went for an "Old World" Theme with one white and three reds.
The white I chose was a Spanish "Albarino" a varietal which was new to me. Like many wines, the exact origin is hard to pin down, but it's an ancient French (Rhone) varietal that the Cluny monks probably brought to Spain in the middle ages. It's generally made in Spain and Portugese wine production, and used as a blender.
What I was struck by was its nose first- very fetching, it's enticing, crisp and clean and with pepper, and a faint floral backnote. On the palate, it was surprisingly big-bodied for a white. On the palate, it was amazingly acidic- sure, I was having ceviche as a small plate, but the lime I tasted in there was really something. Ginny and Anita asked how it was, and all I could say was "wow, that's super acidic." Crisp, clean, super acidic, and a short finish. The body is surprisingly large when it's in the mouth, although my varietal chart puts it pretty much middle in the body taxonomy "medium" and high on acid. It was quite nice.
Just for fun, in the rest of my Old-World flight, I went with a Tempranillo made in Argentina (okay, but I think of tempranillo as a muscley-grape) and this was light with no umph. Dirty, though, and true to old world style, you can taste the production in the wine as much as the wine itself.
Next, Anita got a Spanish Barbera that was also light, fruity, very very light on the barnyard and good, but light.
My next was a standard Cote-du-Rhone blend that was a real pleaser for Anita. It was a 2010, super easy to drink, you could put half a bottle of that away before you even blinked. Easy to drink. Well blended, not much on the nose and a limited finish, but pleasant enough.
The last in my old world flight was a gamble: they had a blend from LEBANON on the menu (do you love Marc 49? Oh, yes you do!) that was Cinsault, Syrah and Cab. I liked it- didn't love it. But it was not old world at all. Not al all. Very new- world tasting, fruit forward, bigger in body and higher alcohol much like we in CA prefer. Well blended, mostly, although you can pick out the cinsault and the syrah themselves. I tried to imagine the cab alone but couldn't. It had the spice and pepper you want from Cinsault- the velvet, the smoothness, and I think this was really enhanced with the Syrah, which of course is going to be adding your big fruits.
Overall, great wine, greater company, and terrific food. And what do you know? A cool white I never even heard of. And a new varietal- if the monastic community were instrumental in its development in the middle ages, of *course* I'm going to love it... This week, go try a Albarino folks. You'll be surprised, at least.
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Back to Paso...
But this time there was a high-tech DSLR camera and a meteor shower involved. We decided not to camp (I wasn't the one being a wuss) and "roughing it" in nature turned into a need for being in the middle of nowhere to avoid light pollution, so we stayed at The Tree House, a little guest suite they rent way out in the hills at Twilight Cellars Winery.
Exiting the freeway at the familiar highway 46 West, I turned onto Anderson Road to my Paso Faves. Directly to Caliza we went. Nice tasting this time, the room was vacant except for us.
Pouring their usual Rhone White blend "Kissing Cousins," the 2010 vintage, which was delicious, crisp, citrusy. Mostly Viognier, with some Rousanne and Grenache Blanc this time round. Then the 2010 Sympatico (tempranillo and grenache) was nice and dry, with a firm nose of the terroir one wants from a more muscly tempranillo.
Pouring their usual Rhone White blend "Kissing Cousins," the 2010 vintage, which was delicious, crisp, citrusy. Mostly Viognier, with some Rousanne and Grenache Blanc this time round. Then the 2010 Sympatico (tempranillo and grenache) was nice and dry, with a firm nose of the terroir one wants from a more muscly tempranillo.
On to the 2010 Cohort: a robust, jammy blend of syrah (55%), petite syrah (20%), primitivo (20%) and a splash of grenache (5%). Estate bottled, another Chronicle Wine Competition Gold Winner- it's estate grapes, with great fruit, deceptively high alcohol content (15%!), and of course Caliza's signature terroir both on the nose and palate to finish it out. Round, balanced, jammy, fruity but with hints of the *very* good side of the barnyard. I love this place!
2010 Syrah- also amazing and another Chronicle Gold winner- it's not *quite* the 2006, which was just, gosh... orgasmic. This is another winner, however, for all of those who want a serious Syrah to sink their teeth into more than drink in little sips like wussies. Great body, more rogue tannins than structure, and the signature earth and all that amazing body you want from both Caliza and Syrah made here!
Nobody knows me without Larry, and without Charmey. We came down twice a year and they all know who I am when I walk in with Larry and the Pug, but this time it was just me, with an unknown guy. I love Brett, and I love a Designated Driver, but he's bored as he doesn't drink, and I do prefer to share my hedonistic enjoyment.
We went next onto Booker, who were still open (they sell out early every year)- but left after even debating about walking through the door at all. You feel a little bit of your soul get sucked out every time you walk into their uber-sleek tasting bar with their 20 something plastic breasted, gorgeous blonde models pouring, with the clientele being their peers. Hipsters- people with 80,000$ cars and high heels trying to walk on tiny gravel, men who make fortunes and women who look good on their arms. I was debating about stopping at all, but when I was accosted with the usual "scene" coupled with poor service, we walked right back out and went to familiar territory.
Midnight Cellars is one of my 3 wine clubs, and I love them. We were, as we often are, the only folks in the tasting room upon arrival. No new vintages bottled for the wine club since my last shipment (ah, well), but I did a full tasting and put together a custom case for myself with many upgrades this time. Always jammy wines, with higher alcohol content (they usually are about 14.5%), and this very subtle attention to old world Italian technique that's evident in the product I can never put my finger on, but is signature Midnight- we had a typically good time shooting the breeze with the new tasting room staff. Alas, Nicole went her way- she will be missed every time I go down there.
Case on hand, we went to my other local-boy-done-good Fave, Grey Wolf. It was, as it often is in there, packed, so I had to elbow my way into the counter and make a space to taste. We got a good pour, if from staff who were a little stretched, as usual. The vintages they're pouring now seem to have rather unfortunate labels (not the nice sleek black ones from last year!) and of course I went back for more of the almost dizzyingly spectacular Lone Wolf as I have recently drained the last of my 2009 case.
The Jackal (2010) is all Zin with a splash of Syrah. 14.5% alcohol, it goes down smooth, a little too easy to drink, and a wine you can chew on. Big, unapologetically California Zin.
The Big Bad Wolf is another Zin/Syrah blend with slightly different concentrations but what a different wine- 14.5% again. It's over the top what you want from a California Red Zin- huge, big, fruit, dark, grapey goodness. A jammy slam on the tongue! The Big Bad, as it must, hits hard and lasts long. Finishes with surprising subtlety. In like a lion, and out like a lamb this one.
Innuendo 100% Zin- also 14.5% alcohol. Again, totally different. You miss the Syrah, a wee bit. It's not quite the typical Zin you're expecting, over the top, fruit stuffed in your mouth, and a heavy, deep but often fast finish. I would have thought this one less alcohol, it doesn't quite have that taste to it- this is on the drier side, still very fruit forward, but with an unexpected dryness as it hits the mouth that is unusual from a Zin. You get the heavy fruit in the mid-palate, mid-taste, but it finishes drier. Not surprisingly with the driness, it finishes longer. The fruit goes on a little while and mingled with the dryness on your tongue, a fight to the last. Subtle, but it's there.
After Grey Wolf, I left with a case of the 2010 Lone Wolf (no possible comparison to the 2009, that was just spectacular), and went to dinner. My other usual fave in downtown Paso- Pappy McGregor's for some pub grub and hearty beer.
After eating, we drove out to Twilight Cellars, who I thought I had visited in the past, but no, I've never been here. A winding, long road up way into the hills- we knew this was going to be great for Brett's night sky pictures. I hoped we would get some great streaking meteors!
We got up the hill (Daou cellars was also up there, but it was 4:50 and we had to check in, and there was no time for more tasting) and went into Twilight. I could have sworn I had been there before, but not a chance, this was totally new. It really is up the hill, in the middle of no where, with a tasting room. The husband and wife team are the owners, vintners and tasting room staff, along with what looked like a crazy bored teenage daughter.
We checked in. The husband and wife, winemakers and owners are nice enough, but tended to bicker the whole time which made us feel a little awkward. I made a reservation for Saturday through Sunday, but she had mistaken that for Fri-Sat, and I'm not sure who made that mistake, but I ended up being blamed. I don't make too many mistakes like that...
None the less, the Tree House was available tonight, and they gave us the key and we checked in. And I did a tasting of their wines. Honestly, at this point, I had been to enough wineries that you really would have had to amaze me for the wines to be note-worthy. These I recall today as being okay, decently made and structured for everyday drinking, but not sophisticated or too complex. We did our tasting and went up to the room. For $150 a night, it's fabulous if you want privacy, and charm. No dogs, unfortunately, but it's a great spot for a little romance and silence among the birds and vines. The AC works, there is a TV with satellite, plenty of space in there for two and a little kitchenette. The owners don't stay on the property over night- home must be elsewhere, as we were completely alone after the tasting room closed. The crush pad is up there on the hill, and at night it's pretty dark and all the noise you hear is the whirr of the AC unit.
We napped then went out for a meteor shower (a very slow one) and to take pictures of the night sky with Brett's new camera. He doesn't drink, so this was an arrangement where I could taste wine, get out into the middle of no where, and he could take pictures.
At 11pm, we went out onto the hill where the road junctions with Daou winery and there was a kind of plateau in the hill. Brett set up shop, and we both sat (or lounged in the car, as I did, wishing I had bought a convertible) and took pictures, or just watched the night sky. I saw about 6 meteors, one spectacular and vertical, the rest fast and small and horizontal. Brett got a lot of amazing pictures, but none of the meteors. Ah, well. We packed it up about midnight, and took off in the morning early back for San Mateo and SF.
I love winey weekends. And I always love my usual standbys. I'm a creature of habit, but when you expect the best, you have a hard time with the rest. :) That said, I miss tasting with a fellow hendonist with whom I can share the experience, and prefer to explore a couple of the new places (they have a hard time keeping up with so many new wineries opening down there, they have to change the tourist maps every year!) each time. So much wine, so little time!
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