Yesterday I came across a wine good and interesting enough that I thought it deserved a post unto itself. Trying to survive the 100 degree temperatures of the south in the summer I went looking for a white and found the 2009 Frédéric Giachino Vin de Savoie Abymes Monfarina
3. '09 Chardonnay de la Fruitiere, $10: Similar to 1 but more muted nose. More body than 1 & 2. Some/mild toast. Mild bitter (steel) finish. 84
4. '09 La Craie, Vouvray, $15: Similar nose to 1-3 with some honey; pleasant. Mild sweetness/honey, bigger body/more viscosity than 1-3. Lower acidity. Medium finish. 88. IMO, wine of the night...yes, I bought a bottle.
5. NV Louis De Grenelle, Samur Brute Rose (100% Cab Franc), $17: Strawberry nose muted. Fine bubbles, mild creaminess, focused body, balanced. 88 IMO, runner-up wine of the night.
The Reds
6. '08 Les Hexagonales (Pinot Noir), $15: Red fruit (cranberry), spice and mild oak. Near perfect Pinot nose. Somewhat flat (not enough acidity). Let down after such a nice nose. 83
7. La Claux Delorme, Valencay Rouge (Gamay, Malbec, Cab Franc, Pinot Noir blend), $15: Red fruit and... kitty litter (!) nose. Some pepper, mild green veg (raw collards) some oak. 85
8. '08 J. Merieau, Cot Cenit Visage (100% Malbec), $16: Super dry, tight prune brown leaves... bizarre nose! Dry but Not bone dry. This needs cellar/decanting time... or a blackened steak to reveal everything it has. 84
9. '09 La Paradou, Provance (Grenache), $12: Button mushroom, moist forest floor nose. Fruitest of all the reds. Acceptable everyday red. 85
Ever hear wine snobs talking about the higher pleasure of drinking aged wine and haven't been able to find out for yourself whether they're just self-deceived ego-maniacs or whether they're actually on to something? Well, here's your chance. The Wine Warehouse has a 2002 Merlot for a great value, circa $12. It's 8 years old and just starting to reveal signs of aging. And as a bonus, the wine is from Israel--Israeli wines are fairly rare. So this wine may provide you with two firsts. Here are my notes.
Who, I ask, doesn't like a New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc on a hot summer day? Still when I arrived at my local retailer late there were no clerks available to help me sort through the good, the bad and the ugly. So when I saw this wine in a waist-high stack of 3-4 cases in the middle of an aisle with a price tag of $9.99 I must admit that I was skeptical. I took a chance anyway and have to say that I was impressed with the wine I got for the price.
Michel Chapoutier is one of the most respected winemakers in all of France. He took over operations of the family business from his father around 1980. All of the wines produced by Michel are from the Rhone region of France; and all of the Chapoutier vineyards produce biodynamic wines.
Dear Tallahasseans,
This winter I've had the desire for something to drink that could warm you up… something fortified. So I decided to try a few ports. Always in pursuit of variety I decided to try one aged port and another blended port; both are non-vintage. And since I’m always in pursuit of good values, I chose Warre’s 10 Year Old Otima and Trevor Jones Jonesy Tawny Port. (Both pictured above & below.)
Both of these ports are made using the traditional Portuguese blend of grapes, e.g., Touriga Nacional, Touriga Franca, Tinta Barroca, Tinta Roriz and Tinto Cão. After fermentation it is fortified with brandy. And the alcohol content is 20% by volume.
The Otima is made in the Douro region of Portugal and is a lighter style Tawny (pictured right, below) that clearly shows aged aromas and flavors on the finish, e.g., Sherry or Madeira oxidized characteristics together with honey, hazelnuts, orange peel on the mid-palate.
The Jonesy is made in the Barossa Valley in southern Australia and is a blend averaging 46 years in age. It is dark brown (pictured left, below), with notes of candied black cherry and molasses.
I found the Jonesy more approachable than the Otima but enjoyed both for their differences.
You can find both of these Ports at The Wine Warehouse; the Jonesy is $11 and the Otima is $25.
I just returned from a visit to Walla Walla AVA in the southeast corner of Washington. I have some family there so I have sampled Walla Walla wines before, e.g., L'Ecole 41, Cougar Crest, etc. But I wanted to visit some new tasting rooms. I ended up visiting Northstar (pictured above), Va Piano and Amavi Cellars. (I went by some others but they were closed, one of which was K Vintners--I was told by some locals that Charles Smith marches to the beat of his own drum, which in this case meant "doesn't hold conventional hours for public tastings.") Walla Walla is approximately the same latitude as Bordeaux as 2007, which explains that three out of the four most common grapes grown (by planted area) are Bordeaux varietals:Some white grapes are grown, e.g., Chardonnary, Viognier, Riesling; and some growers in Walla Walla are starting to break out of the Bordeaux paradigm and are planting other red varietals. But red grapes dominate this AVA.
During my visit to the three tasting rooms I tasted three whites--a Sauvingnon Blanc blend, a Viognier blend and a late harvest Semillon. I found the white blends to be average; the late harvest Semillon was better, but still doesn't compare to a $25 half bottle of Sauternes. The rest of the reds were almost all blends; except for one 100% Syrah at Northstar. Without exception I found the reds to be very well made. None of the wines showed the slightest hint of being off balanced; all had a seamless transition from the attack to the finish. All were incredibly polished. In general they were fruity; and all received some amount of oak treatment--some more than others, but even for someone with old-world preferences like me none of the wines had an offensive amount of oak. To me these wines tasted like they were made by very skilled people with state of the art technology. Although I personally prefer something from the south of France to these reds, I can see why people would enjoy these wines. They're seductive. I look forward to going back soon to visit more wineries... oh yeah, and family too!
Picture from: http://www.prlog.org/
Feel free to leave a Italian wine-related comment....
Although many wines are labeled "old vines" (French: vieilles vignes), surprisingly there's no definition of "old vines". In some old wine growing regions 30-40 years is considered old, while in other regions 20 years may be considered old. Regardless of the definition of "old vines", over time vines begin to produce smaller grapes that in turn bear more concentrated flavors. Whatever meaning of "old vines" that a producer uses "old vines" is typically used in contrast to regular bottlings of the same wine from younger vines. Wines made from old vines usually have more concentrated flavors than regular bottlings, but because there are so many variables that apply to wine making the quality of old vine bottlings are not necessarily higher than regular bottlings.I would not have chosen rosé to pair with this course. A full-bodied white high in acid (e.g., Chardonnay, Sancerre, Pouilly Fume, etc.) would seem to pair better with the richness of the lobster and the acidity of the lemon tartar sauce. But the rosé may surprise.
Second course: Fennel Seed Salami and Summer Truffle Flatbread with salted mozzarella, roasted tomatoes, local arugula and roasted garlic-oregano sauce.
I believe that all of these wines except #6 were purchased locally, but most of them are no longer available. The wines are listed in the order drunk--I'll be honest: I did begin to experience palate fatigue somewhere after the 5th or 6th wine, which is reflected in lack of detail in my notes in the later wines. For me the wines that stood out and are worth seeking out are # s 7, 10 &15 (10 and 15 are pictured below). The notes for the wines are pictured above from left (#1) to right (#15):
Other wines (not pictured, above):
I was fortunate enough to find time to stop into Bella Bella (BB) tonight. They've been open for 10 years and my last visit was probably close to 5 years ago. BB has improved in leaps and bounds since my last visit. While recent notable local Italian restaurants (Anthonys and Nino's) have closed, BB expanded by moving into the business next door, more than doubling their original size; they've redecorated creating an all new informal, unpretentious atmosphere; and they've added a good sized bar (pictured above) serving 53 wines by the bottle, 42 of which are available by the glass. 
The theme of the tasting was Summer Wine. Although it started out as such with Prosecco and a light Lodi Viogner, it evolved into something else as we opened a Ribera Sacra Mencia, a red Bordeaux and a Rhone Syrah. Note: this isn't a complaint! Although all of the wines were very good, I highly recommend seeking out the 2 wines of the night (below).
